Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its affiliates, I only own this plot and my own original characters.

Chapter 2: Hinata's Resolve

Flashback
Kurenai opened her door to see a pale faced Shikamaru. Her heart immediately sank upon seeing him. She knew they returned from their mission, but why so soon. In addition, why did only two teams return to Konoha.

"Are you busy Kurenai-sensei? There's something I need to talk to you about."

Kurenai didn't need Shikamaru to tell her what went wrong. "It's Asuma," Kurenai uttered with tears dripping from her face.

Shikamaru hesitated and nodded. "Asuma-sensei passed away during a battle with Akatsuki." Kurenai nearly fainted as she fell to the floor with her face full of tears. Shikamaru did the first thing he thought of. He kneeled down and put his arm around her shoulders in a vain attempt to comfort her. "He wanted me to tell you something though, as his final wish."
End flashback

"Asuma loved you."

Those words ran through Kurenai's mind as she kneeled before Asuma's grave. She loved him too, and she felt that they were so close to having it all. But why did he die? How could someone as strong as Asuma Saratobi die so easily? She didn't ask for the reason he died or for how he died. She did not want to know.

Kurenai began to cry as she knelt down. Never before had she felt as much pain that she felt now. She was angry at Tsunade for not sending her to fight her lover's murderer. However, she did feel a sigh of relief when she heard the news of his murderer's death.

"At least he was revenged. His death was not in vain," thought Kurenai. She quickly regained her emotions as she heard slow, nervous steps behind her. She quickly spun around to see who it was, only to be relieved when she found out it was Hinata.

She managed to show a slight smile in front of her. Hinata always made her feel happy, mostly because she was just like her when she was young. "What brings you here girl?"

Hinata looked frightened, almost like she wished Kurenai didn't sense her. "I-I'm sorry for intruding. I just saw you sad…and wanted to make sure you were o-okay." In fact, at this moment Hinata wished she didn't follow Kurenai to the graveyard. What good was it going to accomplish?

Kurenai looked into her pale, sad eyes. There was no way she could ever mean any harm, and Kurenai knew she only wanted to help her beloved sensei. "Thanks Hinata. I'm really alright." She wiped away the tears from her eyes, hoping Hinata didn't catch them.

Hinata walked closer to Kurenai. "You loved him didn't you?"

Kurenai gasped at Hinata's comment. "So she knew too." She wondered where Hinata picked that up, but then realized that her current emotions probably showed it well enough. "You're sharp as always. Yes, I did. We were close and always did everything together when we were in Konoha."

She looked at Hinata's eyes again. She appeared to be listening intently to what Kurenai was saying. "It's amazing how fast time slips away from us all. One moment you think you have everything, but the next moment it's all gone." She quickly glanced at her student. She did not want Hinata's life to end up like hers. "Do you have anyone special to you Hinata?"

Hinata gasped at Kurenai's comment. "W-well…y-yeah. Ano, my family, sister Hanabi…..and, ano, Neji-nii-san has opened up to me lately."

Kurenai smiled at Hinata's comment. "I'm not talking about family girl. Do you have anyone special to you?" Kurenai asked the question again, wondering if she'll get a different answer, if one at all, from her.

Hinata stood there with her mouth open. What was she supposed to say? She wondered why Kurenai would ask her something of this nature in front of Asuma's grave. "Naruto-kun….I want too, but…but I'm not ready." Hinata bowed her head, but her blush gave it all away to Kurenai.

"She's a terrible liar. I could tell from the first Chuunin Exam she entered." She smiled down at Hinata and raised her face to meet hers. "I figured as much. You're probably wondering why I'd say something like that here. I used to be just like you – hesitant and afraid. But this has made me learn something. You cannot make up the time you lose with your loved ones."

Hinata still stood there looking at Kurenai. "What was she saying? What does she mean by all this?"

Kurenai knew she didn't take all of that in. "The life of a shinobi is dangerous. One minute you could be alive, but the next you could be dead. And once someone is dead, they will never know how you really felt. I realized this after I got the news of Asuma." Kurenai walked to Hinata and embraced her student. "I don't want you to live like I did.

Hinata wanted to say something, but nothing came out. "So that is what Kurenai-sensei means. I-I think…I know what I have to do." Hinata looked at Kurenai and smiled. "Hai," she responded.

Kurenai looked surprised at Hinata's reaction. Did she actually understand what I meant? "Hinata, you're my favorite student. Try not to worry about me. I'll be fine. Let's head back to town." Hinata smiled and followed Kurenai as she made her way out of the graveyard.

Translations:
Ano - Hesitation word (like ummm)
Hai - Yes