Nothing Is Easy In Konohagakure
Life for the six of them was going smoothly. Team 8 was just starting to get to know Sakura, and she was, in turn, getting to know all of them—especially Hinata. Naruto and Hinata constantly spent time with each other, and always ate every meal together, usually cooked especially by Hinata or ramen paid for by Naruto. Shino and Kiba were also starting to secretly date, though, in the group, it was really no secret. They have yet to, to everyone else's knowledge, done anything beyond a quick peck on the lips, but, then again, doing anything further than that wouldn't be hard to do when you have a dog scrutinizing your every move. Kiba was obviously the seme, while Shino was uke—though Shino would be the one to win in a fight at any given time.
Hinata and Naruto walked together to the usual training place. Sakura had left ahead of them to give a daily report to Tsunade about something she would not discuss with the five of them (Akamaru counts because, somehow, he could tell Kiba). She was talking to Kiba and Shino, who were both standing oddly attentive, instead of their usual casual way. Shino spotted the pair and nudged Kiba, who waved them over hurriedly, though the usual grin was not present.
"I wonder what's going on…?" Hinata asked aloud rhetorically, and Naruto simply shrugged.
"Oi! Sakura-chan! What's going on?" Naruto called as they walked towards the group. Sakura sighed at his impatience and waited for him to be right next to her to continue talking.
"They're going to start the process of choosing the next Hokage, soon," Sakura began. "There are four official candidates—Shino-kun, Naruto-kun, Neji-san, and myself. And, more than likely, they are going to have a point system to determine who will become Hokage. You get points for things like kindness, courageous acts, hard work, completed missions above C-rank, and things like that."
"Why are you a candidate?" Naruto suddenly asked, and Hinata elbowed him—hard—in the ribs.
Sakura's fist clenched, and through gritted teeth, she answered, "Because, no matter how irresponsible Tsunade may seem, she's a good leader, and I'm kind of a young version of her. We're both hardworking, ruthless, and can both make descisions quickly. Besides, we, at least, don't attract attention to ourselves needlessly," she bit back at him, nearly hissing at him with the last comment.
"Ha! Tsunade and you'd both punch holes in stone walls just to make a point!" Naruto threw back, not willing to back down from the argument. From beside Naruto, Hinata chuckled, and soon began to full-out laugh at how silly they sounded.
In response to their questioning looks, she gasped out, "You… both… sound… so… silly!"
"Regardless, this means that we're opponents," Shino pointed out, pushing his glasses up, as a habit, as he said so.
"Yeah. What are you going to do to earn points around each other? I mean, you'll be constantly trying to act better than each other, and…" Kiba pointed out, trailing off at the end as he put his hands behind his head and stared at the sky.
"We'll act the same," Naruto said firmly.
"Of course! What, would I kick Hinata out just because I'm competing with her boyfriend?" Sakura asked, laughing loudly, thinking Kiba's idea was absurd. Naruto and Hinata both blushed, though Hinata's blush was much redder than Naruto's, at the boyfriend comment, but they both chuckled as well. Shino stared ahead, showing no emotion, and while Kiba didn't tilt his head away from the sky, he also smirked, and even Akamaru seemed to smile.
And then there was silence between the six friends. They didn't know what to say, and really, what could they say at that point? Half of them were now competing against one another for the top position of Hokage, and any wrong comments could hurt anybody.
"Ano… Sakura-chan, I think we should… start training…" Hinata began, stuttering slightly because she was nervous about being the first one to speak.
"Yeah! Shino, c'mon, I need to spar with you to get my juices flowing!" Kiba shouted, nudging Shino in the side.
"Yeah, yeah! I'll go and work on my jutsu! It's nearly done, you know!" Naruto exclaimed, before turning to his usual area. Sakura took Hinata gently by the hand and led her away to go underneath their usual spot, the large oak, while Shino, Kiba, and Akamaru walked together to the opposite part of the forest to begin sparring.
----
Lunch was unusually silent. Throughout the meal, Sakura, Naruto, and Shino did not speak to each other, afraid of saying the wrong thing. Kiba, Hinata, and Akamaru constantly exchanged glances, both clearly worried about their friends (and boyfriends). Finally, somewhere about halfway through the meal, Kiba sighed and began to talk.
"Look, I know you all are afraid of saying something stupid, but…" he began, and ended in frustration, unsure of the words to use.
"Don't let it get in the way of your friendship," Hinata offered, shocking Shino and Sakura by speaking, and shocking them even further in not stuttering.
The three of them reflected for a few minutes, and Naruto finally nodded, and replied, "Yeah, yeah… You two are right. We shouldn't worry about it. After all, we all know I'm going to become the Hokage!" Naruto exclaimed with a smirk.
"Yeah right! Who'd give you a single point? All you're good for is a decoy! Just run past the enemies, and they'll wonder why a traffic cone is running away!" Sakura threw back.
"Oh yeah? How's pink any better?" Naruto growled.
"I think what you both wear is silly, for a ninja," Shino said simply, his voice still calm, unlike Sakura and Naruto's.
"Ch! Who'd want an emotionless Hokage?" Naruto asked.
"Yeah! As long as your bugs are fine, you'll let Konoha burn!" Sakura said, ganging up on Shino as well.
The 'argument', which, in truth, had no animosity behind it, lasted the entire part of the meal. At the end of the 'argument', the three of them were acting no different than usual, and were really talking together more, including Shino. The yelling, which usually was an annoyance, was actually music to Hinata, Kiba, and Akamaru's ears, because it meant that they were getting along fine.
Suddenly, from the trees, three ninja with black masks jumped down, surrounding the group as they finished their lunch. Everyone automatically got ready to defend themselves, and Naruto yelled, "What the hell do you want?"
With a whoosh, three darts from the trees came down. One hit Hinata, one hit Kiba, and one hit Akamaru. They wobbled and passed out. Naruto swiftly caught Hinata and laid her down, glancing to make sure she was okay. When he saw that she was still breathing, he stood back up and got into a fighting stance.
"What the hell do you bastards want?" Naruto screamed. The ninja made no reply, except for getting into their own fighting stances. Naruto charged the ninja nearest him, simultaneously making five Kage Bunshin. Shino started to fight one of the ninja with taijutsu, not bothering with the bugs—just yet, for he needed to evaluate just how strong the other ninja were. Sakura charged some chakra quickly before fighting the last ninja, though in truth, she only attacked him if she knew she could get away with it unscathed—her medic nin training didn't allow her to make any unnecessary risks with herself, for then who would heal everyone else?
Naruto stood behind his clones, using them to assess their abilities. They had a good level of taijutsu, and once Naruto found this out, he created more clones, and then joined with them to fight. As they fought, he conjured a Rasengan with the help of two of his clones. He had created enough to hold down the ninja, and even chakra reinforced them so that they wouldn't immediately poof away. The clones piled on top of the ninja, burying him in a mass of Narutos. Naruto ran at his clones, the Rasengan extending, and rammed through the clones, all of them exploding in a puff of smoke.
Naruto was, in the least to say, shocked when he realized that the ninja was no longer there. It wasn't possible to perform any seals, as the clones were holding him back from doing anything of the like. It wasn't possible for him to dig, either.
"Oi! They're clones!" Naruto yelled, an epiphany striking him. He was about to create even more clones, when Shino raised a hand.
Shino flung his arms out, obviously calling out his bugs. He stepped back, and Sakura and Naruto, understanding the need for a distraction, fought hand-to-hand with the other two clones. Shino's bugs flew from his sleeves and under his coat and pants, flying at the clones furiously. They landed on the clones, completely covering them in a mass of moving black spots. They consumed all of the clones' chakra, and the clones vanished in a puff of smoke.
As soon as Sakura saw that she had a chance, she quickly knelt beside Hinata—who was closest—and folded her hands over Hinata's chest. She sighed and nodded, as if confirming with herself what was wrong with her. A blob of green light formed just underneath her hands, with even darker green blobs inside of it. After moving her hands all around Hinata's body, collecting the dark green goop as she did so, she stopped, and Hinata slowly blinked her eyes open. She was about to perform the same act on Kiba, when two ANBU jumped to the ground, similar to the masked ninja.
"Don't bother. Here's the antidote," one said, retrieving a bottle of a light blue liquid. "It didn't hurt them, anyways, just knocked them out," he added as an afterthought."
"Let's see… Naruto Uzumaki gets three points, one for discovering they were clones, another for strategy, and yet another for destroying a clone," the other said, as he turned to Naruto. "Ah… And Shino gets three points as well, two for destroying clones, and another for strategy. Sakura gets one point, and that is for being able to take away poison from someone before we gave the report."
"So… so… this was all just a test?" Naruto growled.
"Hai. Whether you like it or not, Naruto-kun, you'll be tested like this until the next Hokage is chosen—unless you want to drop out of the race," the original ANBU explained. "And you three being all around each other makes it easier. Now, if you don't mind, we have a Hyuuga to test as well."
The two ANBU members left in a flurry of leaves, contrary to the usual puff of smoke. Naruto growled from deep in his throat, and Sakura pouted for she had only gotten a single point.
"What a silly system. Do they simply just pick who gets points for what?" Sakura demanded.
"Sakura," Shino began, attracting Sakura's attention. She was somewhat shocked that Shino had directly talked to her, for that usually wasn't the case. "I do not wish to step into territories that don't' belong to me, but… It seems to me that you can't be an effective medical nin at the hospital and Hokage at the same time. I suggest that you either drop one or the other." When Sakura opened her mouth to protest, Shino held up a hand. "I speak only as a friend. Please, if you wish to ignore my advice, do so. It's just advice," he said, before giving his attention to Kiba.
"Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto asked gently as he leaned over his girlfriend, who was currently supporting herself on her elbows.
"Yeah, I feel better than Akamaru and Kiba look. I guess Sakura' s treatment is better than the antidote, hmm?" Hinata asked with a small smile.
"Oh, them? I think they're just acting like that so that Shino'll fawn over them," Naruto pointed out with a smirk. "And… I'm sorry. You'll… you'll be put into a lot of these types of situations because you'll be around me so much," Naruto apologized gently, automatically reaching out his hand to brush a lock of Hinata's hair behind her ears. His hands slipped down to her cheek and rested softly there.
"Ano… it's… o-okay…" Hinata replied, blushing madly and looking down out of embarrassment.
"Ano… can I kiss you…?" Naruto asked, not wanting to make her run away in shock from a sudden move.
"Uh… uh…" Hinata began, unsure of what to say.
"Sorry to ruin the mood, but PDA around friends is fine, you know," Sakura said with a smirk from the tree, where she had apparently simmered enough to where she was calm.
"PDA?" Naruto asked, unsure of what the initials meant.
"Public Displays of Affection," Sakura explained with a sigh, shaking her head lightly. 'Really, these two…' she thought. "Same to you two!" she called over at Shino and Kiba, who looked confused and dumb folded at her sudden comment.
----
Hinata sat on her bed, studying the instructions for her current level of medic nin training, trying to make sure there was nothing she overlooked. Sakura knocked on the doorframe, for the door was wide open, but Sakura did not like entering anyone's room without their permission.
"You're not going to find anything remotely helpful in the instructions. They cut out all the hints," Sakura said with a smirk. "Can I come in?" she asked politely.
"Of course, Sakura-san," Hinata answered back with a smile.
"Ch, using the chan is just fine," Sakura said with a soft shake of her head. "But… really, what I came in here for is advice on someone else's advice," she began.
"Do you want to know if I think you should follow Shino's advice?" Hinata asked, sure about whose advice she needed advice on, but not so sure about why.
"Well… his advice made sense. I can't possibly concentrate on being a medical nin, and still the Hokage. Even with Tsunade, being a medic nin is sort of secondary—hell, it's way secondary. She only is used if it's so extreme only she can do the procedure, and lately, she's been teaching me most of the things like that. But… well… Was Shino really talking to me as a friend, or was he talking to me from the point of view of someone who really wants the position of Hokage?" Sakura asked. "You might not know, but… You've known him longer and all…"
At this point, Sakura was pretty much rambling. Hinata put her hand on Sakura's to quiet her before talking. "Shino does not want the position of Hokage as much as you might think. You see, if he becomes the Hokage… He won't be able to marry Kiba," Hinata almost explained the whole situation to Sakura, but knew that would be a mistake, for she had still not told Naruto. She'd let Sakura make up her own reasons. "And there was definitely no hostility in his tone. He really thinks that, and he's not just trying to get you to drop out. If you think you should take the path of a medic nin and stick to that, then follow that path. The goal of Hokage is not for everyone," Hinata explained.
"What about you? What are your goals?" Sakura asked curiously, keeping the conversation going while she processed the new information.
"I… I want to be a medic nin, of course… And I want to be considered apt to be the head of the Hyuuga clan. Even if it still ends up being Hanabi, as long as my family thinks I was good enough… And of course, I want a happy family," Hinata finished anticlimactically.
----
"What do you mean, you're dropping out?" Tsunade demanded, slamming her hands onto the desk.
"I… I can't be a true medic nin and a Hokage at the same time. I'll be needed out on the field constantly, and besides, like… like the ANBU said yesterday… I hold back to much in fights, because of the rule of protecting yourself to be able to heal others. I would not make a good Hokage, simply because I want to follow this path. Like a good friend said… 'The goal of Hokage is not for everyone'. Gomen, Tsunade-sama… I may have disappointed you, but…" Sakura said trailing off at the end while apologizing, for the apology was not really sincere.
Tsunade sighed and clicked her fingernails against the desk rhythmically. "Can't be helped, I suppose. Fine, I'll tell the ANBU to scratch your name off of the list. "Besides, this might be of use in the next test…" she said with a small smirk.
"What is going to happen?" Sakura asked curiously, not really expecting to be given a straight answer.
"You'll find out when it does happen, victim," Tsunade said with a little chuckle. "This will be good…"
----
"Hmm. You actually followed my advice, I see?" Shino asked after Sakura announced her forfeit from the tournament.
"Yeah, I did. I realized that I'd much rather be a medical ninja than a Hokage. You can't truly be both at the same time," Sakura said with a small nod.
"Ahh. What makes you think that I was not just trying to make you drop out of the race so that it will be easier to win?" Shino asked. Sakura couldn't be sure, but she got the distinct impression he had an eyebrow raised.
"I'm not sure… I just found out about something that made me realize that well, you wouldn't have lied," Sakura said with a small wink.
"Ahh. The wedding?" Shino asked in confirmation, forgetting completely that Hinata had yet to tell Naruto, who was sitting right beside them, about the wedding.
"What wedding?" Naruto asked innocently, wondering what it could possibly be.
A/N: Ahh, a cliffhanger! Sorry, I had to. Well, okay, not really, but I thought it would be a good place to end. I'm already planning out how the next chapter will start and all! Review, pretty please, even though I'm acting like the mother of a son of a bitch?