Characters: Naruto, Hinata, some Sakura, mentions of Shino and Kiba
Rating: PG-13, only for swearing
Word Count: 2307
Summary: Naruto and Hinata get stuck in the desert.
A/N:I think this ends kind of abruptly, but I'm mostly pleased with it. This is the longest thing I have written in FOREVER. This has actually been sitting on my flash drive for probably more than a year, and I just kept adding little by little - so much exposition to set everything up! I always want to get to the juicy parts lol. Anyway, enjoy!

So far, this hadn't been the most interesting mission he'd ever been on. They were supposed to be tracking down a terrorist group made up of missing nin from various villages. But they'd been in Kumogakure for over a month now and had yet to find a trace of anything. Naruto had been assigned with Shino, Kiba, and Hinata - who were, of course, three of the foremost experts in reconnaissance that Konoha had to offer.

After their last report, Tsunade-baachan was seriously considering terminating the mission. Having four of their most elite ninja sitting around on their asses wasn't exactly the best use of resources, especially considering there was so much to be done in Konoha.

But just as they were about to pack it up and cut their losses, the four of them stumbled upon more than they'd ever hoped to find - what appeared to be a small base of operations for the group.

The group was careful - most of the scrolls were either encoded or trapped. Luckily, Hinata was easily able to spot the traps and explain how to diffuse them. Despite this advantage, they were able to glean precious little information. The group appeared to be a lot larger than anyone had anticipated - at least fifty encampments were mentioned, some apparently of considerable size. They were able to determine the approximate locations of two other encampments; both of them appeared to be considerably larger and more heavily guarded than the one they'd infiltrated (with only five or six easily-overtaken guards).

Upon their next report to the Hokage, she decided to separate them. Naruto and Hinata were sent after the base in Wind Country - Tsunade determined that Naruto's considerable stamina would be necessary for the long trek to the desert, and Hinata's visual abilities would help them find the hidden encampment as soon as possible. Shino and Kiba were sent to Earth Country, their tracking skills being more useful to locating a base deep in the mountains than Hinata's Byakugan.

The group said their farewells - which mostly consisted of Hinata wishing her former teammates good luck, to which Kiba responded with a cocky grin and Shino with a barely noticeable smile - and they departed within an hour of receiving their new orders from the Hokage, both groups eager to move as quickly as possible.

With the help of a few toad summons, Naruto and Hinata made it to the Land of Wind in less than a week, which was amazing time for any shinobi. The supposed location of the base wasn't far from the border, and thanks to Hinata's Byakugan, they found it with relative ease.

"That was easy!" Naruto exclaimed, apparently very proud of the rapid progress they'd made.

"Yes..." Hinata replied quietly, ever hesitant. Things had been going a little too easily. She squelched her misgivings, though, attributing it to the lack of confidence that so often led her astray.

The two of them were really rather exposed in the open desert, but the entire base was underground and not a single guard was visible from the surface. Hinata could easily see the entrance, but it would have been almost impossible to spot without her special ability, as it resembled every other patch of sand surrounding it.

"I can't see anyone," she said to Naruto, as they approached what she indicated to him as the entrance. "Several rooms and hallways underground, but not a single person." Her voice held an edge of uneasiness.

"Let's investigate," Naruto said, without the slightest hesitation. Hinata nodded her assent. "Be careful, Naruto-kun."

No sooner had the words left her mouth than at least a dozen shinobi appeared from practically nowhere. She saw one of them strike at her from behind as soon as he appeared. She was able to dodge just in time, the blow passing barely a hair's breadth from her head. She averted several more from at least five more shinobi before she chanced a glance at Naruto, who was having just as hard a time keeping up with them as she was. These shinobi were elites; even with her Byakugan, she could barely keep up with their movements. Hinata knew they must've walked into a trap.

She saw one of the shinobi strike Naruto with his bare hand, right over his heart. Naruto collapsed immediately, apparently unconscious, and two seconds later disappeared altogether. The distraction was enough. Before she could blink, she was struck in a similar fashion, and she slipped into unconsciousness.

She woke to the sound of Naruto cursing.

"Dammit. Why won't it work??"

"Naruto-kun?" she ventured.

"Hinata! You're awake!"

"Where are we?" she asked. They were still in the desert, certainly, but Hinata was sure it wasn't the same place they'd fought in.

"Not too far from Sunagakure, I think." He responded. He continued to curse under his breath. "I can't perform any jutsu," he stated, before she had a chance to ask. Hinata tried to activate her bloodline limit, but failed. Without it, she couldn't even tell what the problem was. "I can't, either."

The concern on Hinata's face must have shown, because the next thing Naruto said was, "Don't worry, we'll get out of here." He smirked confidently, as if to further prove his point.

The shinobi responsible for the ambush had apparently assumed that they'd never make it out of the desert alive. Of course, that was a very stupid thing for them to assume, if only for the fact that he was Uzumaki-fucking-Naruto and it was going to take more than a little desert to get the better of him.

And there was the less-important reason that he was very well acquainted with the Kazekage and knew his way around this particular part of the desert. He knew they were close to Suna, despite the lack of discernible landmarks. He'd personally made the trek between Konoha and Suna at least a dozen times in the past couple of years.

"Sorry you had to get stuck out here with me, Hinata," he said, turning to his partner for the mission. "But don't worry, we'll be in Sunagakure before you know it." He gave her a reassuring smile.

Hinata gave a tiny smile in response, and while she had faith in Naruto's abilities, she was also very aware of the danger they were in. Despite all their training, they were still two humans stranded in the desert with no supplies.

"This is the right way, I know it," he said confidently.

Naruto was very hot, thirsty, and downright tired. But they were almost there. He knew they were almost there. They had to be almost there.

Hinata hadn't spoken much the whole time - just a couple of suggestions and gentle reminders - like making sure he protected himself from the wind and sun, which he probably wouldn't have thought of until they had done some damage. He was used to traveling a lot faster.

"Oi, Hinata," he said, without even turning around to look at his companion. "I think we're close, but I can't see anything yet. Maybe you could try doing your thing again?"

When he didn't receive an immediate response, he turned. "Hinata...?"

He was sorry that he hadn't turned around sooner. Hinata was sweating profusely and her legs were shaking, as though just standing there required an immense effort.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun," she said, when she realized he was talking to her. Her voice was weak and breathy. "Did you say something?"

Naruto frowned. "We should rest," he said, mentally berating himself for not being more aware of his companion's condition.

"N-no," she said, bending over and resting her hands on her knees. "If we stop now, our chances of survival will-"

"Just for a minute," he interrupted, not wanting to seem like he was arguing with her. She looked up at him and stared for a moment. It surprised him - he couldn't remember her ever making eye contact for that long before. She finally nodded her assent, sinking down onto the sand and closing her eyes.

Naruto stared at her with a furrowed brow. He thought Hinata would insist on moving again soon, considering her reluctance to rest in the first place, so it surprised him when she didn't.

"Hinata?" he said after a while, thinking she might have fallen asleep. "We should get going." When she didn't respond right away, he poked her gently in the arm. "C'mon, Hinata. Time to go."

This time she gave a soft grunt of assent. It was obvious that she was exhausted, but she seemed determined not to show it. She leapt to her feet. As soon as she did, she took a few steps back and to the side, as if steadying herself.

"Hinata...?" By now she had regained her balance. Naruto stared at her, trying to meet her eyes, but now she only looked at the ground.

"Just a little dizzy," she managed, looking up finally, and trying to smile. Naruto smiled back, though his brow was wrinkled with concern.

Hinata took a few steps toward him, as if to show that she was all right. Naruto had just turned around again when he heard her collapse behind him.

Naruto blinked away the threatening tears, determined to force himself to remain strong - for Hinata's sake. It was difficult, even for him, to carry so much dead weight across the desert - but he would reach Sunagakure, even if it killed him. More than the fact that a friend of his was in danger, that he couldn't do a damn thing about it bothered him more than he could even begin to contemplate. Hurting one of his loved ones was a sure-fire way to piss him off, but this time, there was no one to fight. He'd never felt so incredibly helpless in his life.

He almost cried with relief when he could finally see the city. By the time he reached it, he had nearly collapsed himself. He might have done it sooner, but he couldn't have given up - not as long as Hinata's life depended on it. A few steps into the city, he was thanking every deity he could think of when he was met with a familiar face.

"Sakura...chan," was all that he managed to say before passing out on the ground in front of her.

Naruto woke to the sound of Sakura's voice as she fussed over him. "Moron," was the first thing he heard. Her voice was angry and berating, but the expression on her face betrayed her concern. "Why didn't you bring more supplies?"

"Hinata?" Naruto said merely, completely ignoring her question.

"She's going to be okay," Sakura responded. "But you were lucky. Both of you. You know Sunagakure doesn't have many healers and I wasn't even supposed to be-"

"Can I see her?"

Sakura sighed in annoyance at his complete and utter disregard for everything she said. "She's still unconscious."

Naruto sat up quickly, swinging his feet around to stand up. He swayed unsteadily, placing one of his hands on the bed behind him to regain his balance.

"You shouldn't push yourself," Sakura scolded. But her eyes were soft and sympathetic, and she came over to assist him. Swinging his arm around her shoulders, she supported some of his weight as they made their way to the door of the tiny hospital room.

Thankfully, Hinata's room was next-door, so their trek wasn't a long one. Sakura led him to the only chair in the room. Naruto sat down gratefully, looking his thanks at Sakura before turning his attention to the room's only other occupant.

"I'll be back later," Sakura said, and Naruto registered the quiet click of the door behind her as she left the room.

"I'm sorry, Hinata," he said softly. He received no response other than Hinata's quiet, even breathing. He scooted the chair closer to the bed so that he could take her hand in his own. He squeezed it briefly, trying to fight the tears forming in his eyes, even though no one was there to see them. He was startled when Hinata's hand moved slightly in response to his touch.

"It wasn't your fault, Naruto-kun," she whispered. She opened her eyes then, intending to continue, but found herself unable to with Naruto looking at her with so much emotion in his eyes.

"But you almost-" he broke off, unwilling to finish the thought. "Maybe if I'd stopped to think-"

"The fault is as much mine as yours," she interrupted.

Naruto found it impossible to think of Hinata as capable of any wrong-doing, especially with her laying there looking affectionately at him, her purple hair radiating around her head like a halo.

"But I couldn't do anything, I-" his speech abruptly halted again. "What good am I if I can't protect those precious to me?"

"You saved me," Hinata said simply, stroking his hand gently. She was looking at him so innocently that Naruto couldn't help the few tears that spilled out. Hinata reached up weakly to touch his face. Naruto leaned into her hand, holding it against his cheek with his own.

"I'm so glad you're okay," he whispered brokenly. "If you weren't, I don't know how I would've..."

"Sssh," she responded, her thumb tracing slow circles on his cheek. "Don't worry about it, Naruto-kun. Everything will be all right now."

And Naruto believed her, because he was determined not to let anything like this happen again. He lowered his head to rest it against her chest, soothed by her heartbeat and the rhythmic rise and fall in tune with her breathing.

Sakura found them that way half an hour later, their hands still intertwined, both of them sound asleep. She sighed, half exasperated, half sentimental, wondering if Naruto was even aware of the depth of his feelings for Hinata.