OK, this story is shaping up nicely so far. I have to admit I've been having more fun recently now that we're getting to some good bits of the story. I hope you like them as much as I did. NaruHina forever!!
Oh, yeah. There's a concept in the story that I've been thinking about adding to it for a while and I'm still trying to make up my mind about it. I'm sure it could add to the emotion of the story, but the question is how. Anyway that idea is that someone…needs…to...die.
And by the way, sorry for the big delay. I'm finishing this school year and it's been a bitch. A bitch that hopped on her menstrual cycle and ran my ass over.
Hope you all had a fantastic 420, man!
CH.7: JUST FEEL BETTER
Naruto was tossing and turning in bed. An uncomfortable feeling made him switch his position constantly. He checked the clock by his bed. It read 1:26 A.M.. Through the curtains on his window, he could see the crescent moon light up the starry sky. An orange glow came from the lampposts on the streets below. He gave his back to the window once more and shut his eyes. For some reason, he couldn't fall asleep. After a hard day's training, he thought he wouldn't have trouble. His mind was heavy with thoughts of recent memory. He couldn't focus on his intent to catch some sleep. With both hands, he wrapped his pillow around his head.
"Come on, what's wrong with you?" He said muffled by the pillow and grinding his teeth. He loosened his grip when he started smothering himself too hard. He got up from bed and walked to the bathroom for a drink of water. He noisily gulped it down and went back to his room. He walked from on end to another, thinking about what was causing his insomniac anxiety. He shook his head, tying to cut loose from the tension inside it. He cracked his neck with both hands, thinking it would reduce the stress building in the back of his neck.
"What's the matter with me?" He said to himself aloud. After growing tired of pointless waste of energy, he sat at the edge of his bed, resting his head on his hands. It had been a long time since a feeling similar to this one had kept him up all night. This time, it was a feeling he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
'Hmmm,' he thought, 'I really haven't tried that meditation Grandma Tsunade recommended. Guess it's worth giving it a shot.'
He sat right in the middle of his bed and assumed a traditional meditating position; his arms stretched outward lying on his knees and his forelegs crossed. He took deep breaths and closed his eyes.
'OK, just relax.' He thought to himself, 'Everything is fine. Don't let anything trouble you. Don't think about anything. It's just you. It's all in your head. Just let it all go away. Let it all go away.'
Naruto's eyes started getting heavy.
'You're wind based-chakra. Let it all go away like a breeze. All your problems gone with the wind.'
His tension felt like it was going away. His method was working. He felt more relaxed by the second. Soon, he felt like his body was getting heavy. He felt like he wasn't in his room anymore. He was now traveling to a much different place. He felt like was falling backwards and landed on his head. He felt something tickling his left ear. It was moving with the wind. The sound of running water was heard from a distance not far away. When he opened his eyes, he found himself staring at the sky. The moon was now full and blue and there were more stars than ever. He turned to his side to face grass. His sight was dimmed by the darkness of the surrounding trees. He was in the middle of the forest. He got up to his feet and took a look around. He felt disoriented and didn't know where to go.
"Where am I?" He said out loud. His voice sounded more high-pitched than he remembered. He covered his mouth, scared.
"Is that my voice?" He said out loud again. His eyes opened wide in surprise when he looked at his arms. He was wearing a jacket with orange sleeves. He looked down to himself to find he was wearing his old jumpsuit. He touched his forehead. He was wearing his old headband.
"What the hell is going on?!" He shouted.
The sound of rushing water in the distance increased in intensity. He heard a large splash. The wind was rushing towards him, blowing his blonde hair. As his only lead, he followed the sound. The trees made it hard to see his surroundings. As he kept pushing forward, a light appeared through a crack among the tree trunks. He followed that light as fast as his feet could let him run. The shining was becoming brighter the closer he got to it. He could see powerful currents of air coming from up ahead. The air was moist and drops of water were landing on his face. Just as he was about to creep up on what was ahead, he tripped on a stone and landed face first on the dirt with a thud. He groaned in pain and disgust as he wiped the grass, mud, and pebbles from his mouth. He felt flabbergasted for a while to find little stones where he was standing, almost as if the forest had suddenly disappeared. He heard another strong splash up ahead. He looked up from where he was to find a small waterfall cascading over some small rock formations on a tiny lake. He could see a small silhouette of a woman moving her arms elegantly on all directions, picking up drops of water and creating a small dome around her. It was a stunningly beautiful scene for Naruto.
'It's her again.' He thought as he got back on his feet, recalling his mission with Team 8 to find the Bikochuu beetle. He felt his arms going numb and his knees were weakening, making him to slightly tilt himself from side to side. With caution, he approached the lake with his eyes fixed on the mysterious girl. He felt nervous and warm inside. His heart was palpitating rapidly and his breathing got labored. He was about to take a step into the rocks surrounding the lake, but he remembered what happened last time. He looked down before he took the step and watched where his foot landed so he didn't slip. He silently placed it on the surface of the water by concentrating chakra into it. He looked at his own reflection in the lake. He was back to his twelve year old self. He gulped one more time as the nervous emotion in his chest was growing bigger. He turned his attention again to the spectacle before him.
The girl was truly gorgeous. The water in the air was reflecting the moonlight, creating an otherworldly effect that was truly astounding to observe. Naruto continued approaching her, but stopped dead in his tracks. The closer he got, the more apparent it became that the girl was naked. He felt his cheeks getting hot and felt an uneasy feeling inside his stomach. His heart was accelerating. His conscience was telling him to walk away, but there was something about her that made it impossible for him too react normally, almost as if he felt hypnotized. She still wasn't aware of his presence. Naruto found himself coming closer than ever to her until he was only several feet away from her. She carried on without noticing that she was being watched.
When she stopped, the watery atmosphere surrounding her had vanished. The girl had her back side to Naruto. When she turned around to face him, his jaw dropped. Despite the light of the moon, it was still too dark to see her fully, but he could tell she was completely undressed. She had a nice, curved figure, ending with a slim pair of legs. Her chest was voluptuous but not too large. She had short, black indigo hair, ending with a point on the back of her head. Her eyes were milky, pearly lavender. They were glistening intensely under the blue moon and staring right at him. Naruto recognized those eyes. Time seemed to have stopped for both as they stared silently at each other. He extended her arm towards her and took a step forward. The girl nervously brought her hands to her chest and ran away.
"Wait, I'm sorry!" He called out to her, but the girl was already lost among the trees. Naruto gave chase to her, leaped out of the water and entered the forest. The deeper he got into it, the less visibility he had. He could still hear her jumping from tree to tree up ahead and she didn't seem to be having much trouble at all. He tried to move faster, but it felt like it was in vain. The girl was increasing her speed as well.
"WAIT!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. He focused his strength into the next jump to try to catch her only to crash into a tree trunk with his face slammed deep into it.
Naruto felt the impact and opened his eyes. He was now facing the hard wood floor of his apartment. He moaned in pain and rubbed his forehead and shook his head to clear his eyes. He looked up to his bed. The covers were scattered all over it and were lying on the other side. He weakly got up and gaped blankly into the dimness of his room. His eyes flew open and he jolted his head with his hands.
"That girl was naked?!" He gasped. "That girl was Hinata?!" He gasped again. He slammed his hand on his forehead. "Damn it, I'm such an idiot! This is why she's always acting so embarrassed and timid when I'm around. She thinks I'm a pervert! Wait, she's been like this since I've known her." He started walking pensively from one corner of his room to another. "There must be another reason why she's always like this. Maybe that's just the way she is. But then again, why is it with only me?" His expression turned depressed. "Maybe she's been aware about Kyuubi all along and she's afraid of me. No wait, then everybody else in my age class would now. Maybe not from her, but somehow." He slammed his head again. "Uhh, why did I have to say that out loud?! "There was a beautiful girl in the waterfall last night. I called her out but she was gone." She was right there! Well, it couldn't have been worse after that time before the chunin exams when I told her what I think about her: "I've always thought you were gloomy, timid, and completely weird." Real smooth, Naruto. The girl must hate you now!"
He stopped walking.
"But why would she admire me so much? I mean, even if I said that, do I still make up for it with my ninja abilities? I mean, I know I used to be very clumsy, but she didn't seem to take it so badly. Like that time when we were looking for the beetle and I dropped Sasuke's headband, I almost farted in her face and she didn't hold a grudge afterward. Sakura wasn't even there and she beat me up for it. Maybe she's just a very nice person. And well, I did say I like people like her before my fight with Neji, so maybe she interpreted that back then as an immediate "I'm sorry" after the comment about her being gloomy and timid. But still, why would she blush like that when I'm around her? Why didn't she say anything when I said what happened that night at the waterfall? I guess that she would've said that was her and punched me or gone "Gentle Fist" on my ass or something. But then again, it's Hinata. She's never been known to get angry against anybody. Hell, even the grudge between her and Neji's side of the family died down. But still, I have to admit that I took things a little too far so I guess she would've at least said something. But why didn't she? Now that I think about it, she's never even raised her voice to me or made a fuss about something I did. Maybe it's just part of her personality to be that way." He sat at the edge of his bed and sighed deeply.
"Why am I repeating myself? Why am I making such a big deal out of this? That was a long time ago. Maybe she's forgotten all about it by now. But that still raises the question of why she's like that."
He shook his head again.
"Come on, Naruto. It's Hinata. She's your friend. She's been cool with whatever you have done so far. I mean, sure you haven't exactly treated her like you have tried to treat Sakura but…"
He was completely shocked. Through his mind, memories from his days back when all his friends were all Genin were flashing through his mind. He remembered Hinata back in the Chunnin exams when she gave him a jar with healing ointment, how he cheered her on to fight Neji, how he was amazed by her commitment to win. He remembered what she told him before his fight with Neji, how he was feeling really down and she picked up his spirits. He remembered when they set off to find the Bikochuu beetle and how she fought tooth and nail to save him and the rest of her team. Shino's words came to mind, too. He remembered he said she came up with that new technique all on her own to impress him, but he also remembered how he embarrasingly ruined the entire mission for them, how they had a picnic before setting off to find a bounty hunter and she made him some rice balls that resembled him. At first, he had criticized her for it, but after a taste, Naruto suggested she would be a great wife. Memories of Sakura came to him as well. Most of them were about her getting angry with him and punching him right in the face, like when he came back to the village after training with Jiraiya or after he had fainted from using Kyuubi's chakra. He saw how he strived to impress her time after time but she still had her interest set on Sasuke, such as when he was restored by Tsunade. He also saw how he wasn't respecting or acknowledging Hinata the same way she did to him. A knot of guilt was forming in his throat. He looked around for a moment. He got onto the bed and lay there staring at the ceiling with his arms crossed behind his head.
"What am I going to do?" He thought to himself. He felt confused, without a clue on what was the right thing to do. Inside his mind, he heard a low purring. It was calm and at peace.
'Kyuubi, is that you?' Naruto quickly thought. No answer. 'Kyuubi?' He called once more. The demon was silent. He was vigilant for any reaction from the demon, but before he knew it, his eyes were slowly shut and he fell asleep.
His eyes felt hazy when he woke up the next morning. He rubbed them with his forearm to get a better view. The first thought was his bizarre dream. He felt dazed and a funny feeling in his stomach when he pictured Hinata fully undressed in front of him. He still felt like he should do something about his behavior, since she was probably aware of what had happened, even if it was a long time ago. He knew she was more forgiving than anyone he had ever met, but he still believed that one wrong move could change anything. Just then, someone was knocking at the door. He got up and slowly opened it. He was greeted by the face of a pig, who let out an "oink". Naruto mumbled doubtfully.
"Naruto, were you still asleep?" It was the voice of a young woman. He tilted his head upwards to see who it was.
"Sorry." It was Shizune. "Did I wake you up?"
Naruto shook his head negatively. "Is something wrong?"
"I've brought you your mission assignment. Lady Tsunade picked it out for you."
"Why didn't she call me to her office?"
"She's having a meeting with the eld-"
"On second thought, I don't even want to know."
Shizune let out a sigh of worry.
"Could you excuse me for a sec?" He closed the door. He came out a few minutes later, fully dressed in his usual wear. "I know this sounds crazy coming from me, but I'm really not looking forward to receiving a mission assignment."
"I'm sorry, but we have decided that we should at least have some missions around here in the village." She handed a scroll to Naruto. He hesitatingly opened it and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath from his nose and popped one eye open and felt like someone kicked his heart when at the very top he saw a big "D". Ton-Ton oinked sadly. Shizune patted Naruto's shoulder.
"Don't worry. We're trying to solve this as soon as possible. You'll be OK."
"How can you be so sure?" said Naruto surly. Without a word, he left. Shizune gazed at him while he descended the stairs. She sighed again and left as well.
Naruto read the directions on the scroll, which lead him to the suburbs on the west side of the village. He arrived to a middle-class house with a small garden in the front yard. When he knocked on the front door, he was received by a small boy, about nine years old. He gave him a menacing look.
"Hi, I'm here for-" The boy stomped Naruto's foot before he could explain himself. He groaned with strain and bounced on one foot while rubbing the other. An old lady came to the door to see what the commotion was. The second he saw the scars across the ninja's face, she turned angry as well. Naruto nervously chuckled while still rubbing his foot. The woman turned around and was gone for a few seconds. When she came back, she angrily handed him a retractable leash. At the end of it was a tiny, shaggy-looking dog with brown and white fur. When he took it in his hand, the dog whined and backed up into the house. The boy patted its back reassuringly to make him feel better. The dog still uneasily left the house with Naruto.
"This is going to be a long day." He said out loud when he was gone.
Naruto felt embarrassed of himself when he walked along the streets of Konoha as people jeered at him and made fun of him. They pointed at him while they mocked him. They felt satisfied that they were seeing the bearer of the greatest threat to the village was now subjugated to minor tasks such as that. He took their insults and tried to shake them off. He pretended he wasn't listening and wished he wasn't really there. He closed his eyes for a short moment and imagined he was back at the training grounds, honing his skills. Hinata was there, and they were working together. They were practicing combat, but they didn't look stressed. They were actually laughing and having great fun. It was a perfect choreography of moves, almost as if it was staged. They would block and counter successfully, all without misjudging a single move of each other. Every punch, kick, and jab they swung, it was affronted with a move of equally powerful proportions. Naruto smiled warmly at these thoughts. He felt that his heart was thumping unusually strong. A strong sense of warmth inside of him and an unusually strong heartbeat mad him open his eyes. He was once again back in reality.
The dog was panting easily as he skipped across the street.
"You know," said Naruto to the dog aloud when nobody was watching him. "right now I could be out kicking some ass and taking names with my friends in an unknown country. I could be training out in the fields. But no, I'm stuck in here, walking you around like a rookie ninja because Grandma Tsunade and Pervy Sage think it's so dangerous." He finished this sentence in a mocking tone, faking fear. "But I'm not mad. Nuh-uh. It's cool. I got no beef with you. Why should I? You're just a dog. You probably don't give a shit about what I'm saying, do you?" The dog quickly steered to the left as the rope from the leash extended as well.
"Hey, where're you going?" He pushed the button on the retractor and pulled the dog back to him.
"You can't be running like crazy or I'll get in trouble, you got that? Although I can't sink any lower."
The dog pulled himself next to a corner and raised a leg.
"OK, fine." He gave his back to him and waited for him to be done.
"Naruto?" A familiar voice, one who he hadn't heard in a very long time, came from over his shoulder. It was rather neutral and suave. When he turned around, much to his surprise, their stood his old teammates.
"Capt. Yamato! Sai!" His cheeriness had returned. "It's so good to see you again!" They both looked unchanged since the last time they met.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?" said Yamato. "Sorry, but things got complicated during the mission, so we had to extend our deadline."
"That's tough."
"So, this is what Lady Tsunade has you doing now, huh?" Sai asked.
"Yeah. Forgive the pun, but I've been on a tight leash these last few days."
Yamato turned solemn and put his hand on his shoulder. "Naruto, I'm sorry I wasn't there. If I had, things wouldn't have gotten too out of hand."
"Have the news really traveled that far?" He asked mixed with incredulousness and disillusion.
"By now, your story has stretched over the entire continent. Sorry."
"Don't blame yourself. You had work to do. Besides, Pervy Sage and Grandma Tsunade are on it…at least I hope." He could picture Jiraiya being a total flirt in a bar while Tsunade takes a dip in a hot tub.
"Naruto, if you don't mind me asking, how is it that Kyuubi's power was subjugated without being sealed away?"
"I guess I just tired myself out."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't know. I guess I just-" He felt something escape from his hand. The tiny dog started darting away, making the leash drop. Upon impact, the retracting button was pressed on the ground, making it chase after the pup. It immediately started to panic and ran like it had seen a ghost. Unfortunately for the dog, the leash was faster and it caught up to him; the impact made him catapult himself through the air, landing on its bottom. Naruto laughed until he was holding his sides. Sai quickly went for the dog and picked it up, handing it to Naruto.
"That wasn't really funny, you know?"
"It makes me glad. I've been given the cold shoulder from these people since I got out of the hospital."
"What about your friends?"
"Ehh. Hit and miss. Anyway, like I was saying Captain…" he faced Yamato again. "…I guess I just tired myself out during the fight. I kept at it until my body couldn't take Kyuubi's chakra anymore. I guess he got tired as well."
"Hmmm…interesting."
"What? What is it?" Yamato had suddenly looked like he was meditating on something.
"Hey Captain, what's up?"
"Huh? Oh, sorry. I guess I lost myself on something." He apologized. "Anyway Naruto, it was nice too see you again. If you need anything, we'll be helping Lady Tsunade research on your condition."
"Aaah, come on you guys. We should catch up or something. Hey, how about we have some Ichiraku ramen tonight?"
"Sorry, Naruto, but work's been piling up since our absence. We need some time to catch up on that."
"C'mon, you serious?"
"Don't worry, it'll only be a couple of days." Sai said reassuringly. "We'll find you as soon as we're done."
"And it'll be my treat." Said Yamato with a smile.
"Really?! Yeah, you're the best, Captain!"
"All right, see you then Naruto. Good luck!"
"Thanks!" With that, they waved at each other until they could no longer be seen.
Time went by slowly as Naruto finished his route with the dog. His mind constantly trailed off while the rest off his body went on automatic. He once again thought of his dream from last night. He was deeply aroused by it, but the fact that the girl was Hinata, it made an indescribable feeling that made his body tingle and a chill go up and down his entire body. It was something new to him, and it made him uncertain about what to do. It was something new to him. Hinata's image was marked inside his thoughts until he returned to the dog's house. To avoid being stepped on again, he tied the leash to a pole outside and then knocked on the door. With all his might, he jumped high in the air before someone would answer and disappeared without looking back. There was nothing left for him but to go back home.
With his head to the floor and his hands deep in his jacket pockets, it was a melancholy walk back home for him. He thought of training before he headed home, but he didn't feel motivated enough. He thought of going to Tsunade's office to ask for another assignment, but he knew she was probably still busy. He sighed with boredom at the prospect of having an uninteresting day. He then remembered what district he was going through. It was a very familiar block; one he used to visit often so long ago. He immediately changed direction and walked down a couple of blocks to reach his old playground in front of the Ninja Academy. It was mostly unchanged from when he saw two days ago.
'Iruka-Sensei is usually still here at this hour.' He thought. 'I wonder…'
He reached the front gate and stepped inside the old building. The old corridors were identical as the days he used to study there. He checked the different doors until he found the one with Iruka's name on it.
"Come in." His former Sensei's voice sounded from the other side when he knocked. Naruto stepped into his old classroom. The teacher's desk would be at the front while the student's seats were divided into different levels. A second door was on the top level. Iruka was sitting on his desk.
"Hey Naruto, how's it going?" Iruka saluted gladly.
"Hi, Iruka-Sensei! You got a minute?"
"Sure. What do you need?"
"I kinda need to talk with you about a…personal problem." He rubbed the back of his neck. Iruka gave a surprised look for a moment, but spoke again rapidly.
"Sure, have a seat." Naruto pulled a chair from a nearby seat and placed it in front of the desk.
"So, what is that you want to talk about?"
"You see, I have this problem with…" He hesitated before answering. "…a friend of mine."
"Is it someone I know?"
"Well, yeah. You see, something happened between us, but it was like three years ago. I did something that I'm sure it offended he-" He cut himself short before he gave a hint to who that person was. "What I did was really offensive and I'm sure it hurt my friend a lot. The weird part is that I just realized this and I don't know what I should do. I mean, that person never brought that up since it happened, so I first thought we were cool on that, but for some reason, that person acts all terrified and nervous, almost as if that person still remembers it, but it could still be for a different reason which I do not know. So, what do you think I should do? Should I apologize or just let things be?"
"Well, what did you do to said person?"
A nervous sweat dripped from Naruto's forehead. He nervously looked around and bit his lip. He knew that if he said what had happened, Iruka could immediately deduce who it was.
"Come on, Naruto. You can trust me." He said with an upward inflexion of the head. Naruto thought of his answer for a few seconds. It was best to just come out and say it like it was.
"I might've caught her bathing."
Iruka gasped.
"Look, it was an accident! I didn't mean to! I just got up to go to the bathroom when I heard water splashing and there she was but it was so dark I couldn't tell it was her and lately I've started meditating and this thought came to mind which is why I have suddenly realized who that girl was!" He nervously and rapidly let it all out. He was standing in front of his desk wildly waving his arms in the air as he explained.
"Naruto, calm down. It's OK. Things like that can happen." He got up and helped him sit down.
"Look Naruto, first of all, I'm really happy that out of everyone in the village, you picked me to talk about this."
"Don't say it like that! You make it sound like I'm a needy kid with girl issues."
"Ok, sorry. But, have you thought of doing anything about this?"
"Well, I've thought about apologizing to her, but I don't know how she'll react. I could completely turn her away and she might not even wanna talk to me ever again."
"Well, girls like it when you're nice to them. What I would recommend is for you to break it to her slowly the next time you meet her and just give her a nice formal apology. If that doesn't make you all that secure, try taking her out for lunch or buy her something nice. Something not too shabby, but nice."
"Alright! You're the best, Sensei!"
"It was nothing, Naruto. Anytime you need something, I'm here for you."
"I hear ya."
"And if you ever have problems with her again-"
"It's not what you think it is!" He raised his voice and faced him with a glare.
"OK, OK. It's not my place to be saying things like that."
"Anyway, thanks Iruka-Sensei. Goodbye." He got up from the chair and waved goodbye while his former teacher did the same thing.
"By the way Sensei, I'm curious about something." He turned to him again. "Have you heard of Chakra Element Nature?"
"Of course. I know tons about it. Why do you ask?"
"Nothing. I was just wandering if…you see, this one time, Kakashi-Sensei and I were training and he brought up this Element Orientation thing and he also had this little papers that react to your chakra and indicate what element type you are and-"
"You want some of those?"
"Yeah, please. I mean if you have any…"
"Sure, let me check." He opened a drawer on his desk and dug around it looking for the papers.
"What do you need them for?"
"I, uh…wanted to try something out the next time I train."
"I see. By the way Naruto, I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but did you know that your type of chakra actually affects your social life? Earth-based people can get along very well with fire-based, as well as wind with water. Lightning is said to go different ways depending on-"
"Sensei, I told you it's not what you think!" He shouted again.
'Crap. Am I really that obvious?' He thought.
"OK, sorry again. Alright, here we go." He pulled two small, yellow papers and handed them to the Genin.
"You got lucky. These are my last two."
"Cool. Thanks again, Sensei."
"No problem. By the way, do you mind if I ask why you chose me?"
Naruto stopped before he opened the door. He slightly turned his head to look at Iruka.
"I just trust you. I know you would never lie to me."
Iruka turned solemn at his ominous comment.
"If you knew who my parents were, you would tell me, right?"
"Of course, Naruto." He answered. He tried to look gleeful again.
"Thanks again." He stated with a half smile and walked out.
'Damn it, Iruka-Sensei', thought Naruto as he stared at the papers in his hands. 'Who would've thought that he'd say stuff like that, as if he knew what's what? Where did that social chakra thing come from?! Well, that's the last time I try to come for advice from him. Maybe I'll try Kakashi-Sensei next time.'
His lonely walk home was interrupted for brief moments where he stopped to check out the sun's position, anxiously waiting for time to move faster. He smoothly rubbed one of his fingers against the papers. He looked at them again.
'Is it true what he said? What if Hinata's a- Ok, ok, stop. Don't let it get to you. Just try to relax.'
He took a deep breath. 'OK, so maybe what he said was true, but you're not gonna be getting any ideas until you show-' He interrupted his inner dialogue again. He grabbed the sides of his head and shook it in frustration while groaning.
'Why are you acting like this? What's wrong with you?' He let out an exasperated sigh and stuffed the papers in his pocket. At the last moment, he stopped so he wouldn't crush them inside it. He resumed walking with his eyes to the ground and his mind swimming with images of Hinata.
He made a turn and arrived at the staircase of his apartment building. He noticed a girl's shadowy silhouette on the floor, one that he could never forget. His eyes slowly opened widely and looked up. Sakura was standing with her back to the wall with eyes closed; her head was tilted downward. There were several tiny, watery dots on her face. Naruto could tell she had been crying.
"Sakura, what is it?"
"We need to talk. Do you mind if follow you?" Everything about her was neutral; her voice, her face, her stance.
"Sure." He answered after a brief pause. He proceeded up the stairs with his teammate closely behind him. He could feel an ominous air coming from Sakura, a feeling that something serious was about to happen. Even while she walked behind him, he could tell she was looking at her feet as they ascended the steps. She was tightly grasping her left knuckles with her other hand. She seemed awfully distracted as she only followed Naruto to know where she was going despite the fact that she knew where his apartment was. When she heard him stop, she looked up as he unlocked the door. He walked in and stood facing the door as she walked in. Sakura noticed the place was cleaner than usual. She remembered how messy it would get sometimes and how she'd call it a pigsty. She sat at the edge of his bed and folded her hands together while dropping them on her thighs. Naruto sat down beside her.
"What is it?" There was no answer. Sakura started gripping her hands more tightly. She bit her lip and shut her eyes.
"What do you want to say? Is something wrong?" He stared at her.
"Sakura?"
The pink-haired Kunoichi turned to face him until their eyes met. Hers were shining with tears forming in her green pupils. She reached out with both hands towards Naruto's shoulders and pulled him closer. He felt her great strength bring him nearer as she wrapped her arms around his back and embraced him with a hug. A small tear dropped and landed beside him.
"Sakura, what are you doing?!" The girl slightly pushed him away and put her hands on his cheeks. She pulled his head towards hers until they were so close, not even a piece of paper could separate them. She closed her eyes and gently made her lips touch his. Naruto's eyes were blown open with surprise. The kiss felt nice, but a little forced. He enjoyed it, but at the same time, felt guilt and angst.
"Like you don't know." Said Sakura when she pulled back. "This is what you've always wanted. Now's your chance!" She tried to pull him near again.
"Sakura, wait!" He gripped unto her arms strongly to stop her force. She was genuinely surprised at this reaction. "What about Sasuke?"
"What about him?"
"Don't you love him anymore?"
The girl lowered her arms. There was no immediate answer. It's like she was reflecting on the situation.
"Well, I do but…"
"OK, now you've lost me." Naruto stated, looking rather puzzled.
"It's just that…I've been thinking about and I've realized that you were right. You have been the one who was there for me when I needed it. You're the one who's always thinking about me and everything you do, even if it turns out wrong, you've done it with good intentions."
She placed her hand over his. "I've been so childish. I get angry about every little thing and take it out on you and then made it look like it's your fault. I have judged you so badly. I mean, even if I was aware of the presence of Kyuubi, I wouldn't show any further support or kindness towards you. At this rate, Sasuke may never return, so I want to-"
"Whoa, hold up." He interrupted. "Did you just say you're giving up on Sasuke?"
"Well, not really, but-"
"And now that you decided this you want to make a move on me? Sakura, you make it sound like I'm Sasuke's sloppy seconds."
"No, that's not what I-"
"What about the promise I made to you?" He got up this time. "I gave you my word that I'll bring him back. I was doing it not just for me, but for you. I was a kid back then, so I thought that maybe I could do it while still winning your heart, but now I know I can't change people minds like that. It just doesn't work that way. Doesn't that promise mean anything to you anymore?"
"No, but I-I…" She dug her face into her palms and started sobbing loudly.
"I don't know what to do!" She said through tears with a broken voice. "I'm so confused!"
"You deserve someone like Sasuke. He's good-looking, he's strong, he's cool…maybe a little messed up on the head and sort of emo, but I'm sure he just has a clouded judgment. Face it Sakura, you'd be fooling yourself if you said you don't like him. Look at you."
Sakura looked up to her friend, feeling compelled by his words; tears still bursting out.
"I said it once and I'll say it again: I never go back on my word. That's my ninja way." With that, he smiled and gave her an old-fashioned thumbs-up. In a way, she was relieved that part of the usual Naruto was back.
"But, what about you? Don't you like me anymore?"
"Sakura…" He approached her and lowered himself until they were at the same level. "…I always will, but if I have to give you up just to see you happy, I will."
"But."
"Think about it for a moment, Sakura. Picture yourself with Sasuke. Imagine he's back and he's happy to be here with us. We have convinced him that he has a great future here with us. Do you see yourself happy?"
Sakura didn't have to think twice. She saw herself, wrapped around Sasuke's arms while she gently stroke his hair. They were both smiling. His eyes showed no signs of anger or hatred. The vengeful Sasuke had disappeared. It felt so enchantingly beautiful and heartwarming. After a long time, visions like that still brought unparalleled joy.
"Yes, but what will happen to you? What are you going to do?"
"Me? Well, I…I guess I'll just have to find someone new. Someone else I can love."
Sakura felt lost in these words. It was as if a massive boulder fell on her head and knocked her senseless. Hearing those words escape from Naruto's mouth sounded so unnatural. She thought of him being happy with someone else. She saw pictures of him inside her head with another girl, one with long, black hair, snow white skin, and lavender eyes. Someone who seemed more deserving of Naruto. But somehow, distress and anger abounded in her head, maybe even jealousy. She lowered her sight and got up. Without saying a word or making the most minimal expression, she slowly walked out and closed the door behind her. The same air of a bad omen brewing circled the room again.
Naruto impatiently waited for the days to go by until Hinata and her team return from the mission. Whenever he wasn't needed for a petty mission, he would stroll across the city, looking for Yamato and Sai, hoping to talk to them after such a long time. After getting no results, he would go back to his favorite training ground and try to achieve something, but somehow, he felt lacking the will to do it, which was odd for him. After his experience with Hinata, doing it by himself felt strange and unordinary. He would try, but he ultimately gave up the effort and went back home. He would lie on his bed, occasionally letting out a sigh. He would only get up to get a glass of water from time to time. He wasn't hungry, but a churned sensation inside his stomach could be felt. As night started to settle, he took off his jacket and hung it on a chair. He steeped out into his balcony to watch the town's bright lights. They reminded him of droplets of water against the sunshine, much like when Hinata does her display of chakra control. He remembered the scene of such beauty, one so engaging and awe-inspiring, it was hard to let go. A sudden thought occurred to Naruto as this memory was played in his mind.
'Is water Hinata's chakra base? Wait, does Iruka-sensei knew? Is that why he brought that whole social crap up? Does he know that my chakra base is air? How? Does he think that I have… damn it, not again!' He reached for his head and shook it wildly again, trying to lose his train of thought. When he settled, his palms met his chins as he pressed against the railing with his elbows. He could see Ichiraku's ramen shop from there. Anko was stepping out from behind the curtain with dumplings on each hand. He let out a chuckle as she ate one whole in a single bite. He remembered the time he went on a mission with Shino, Ino, and her to look for Orochimaru and help a village from the attacks of what they thought was a sea monster. She was a bit scary sometimes, but he had to admit that for a sensei, she was alright and fun. He could see the Yamanaka flower shop from there as well. Asuma was stepping out with a bouquet of roses in hand. There was a small note attached to it. Naruto valued Asuma a lot more than he used to since he found out they both have an air-based chakra. He was reminded of the tricks he taught him on how to make you kunai throws stronger with concentrated chakra. Naruto's curiosity forced him to follow him with his eyes to where he was going. He looked awfully nervous and kept putting his hand in his pocket, playing with something inside it. He got to an apartment building a few blocks off from the shop and climbed several stories. He placed the flowers in front of a door, along with a small box he had in his pocket and quickly left.
As soon as he lost sight of him, Naruto jumped onto the railing and took a big leap towards the building. As he sprung forward, an unusual force propelled him, causing him to soar across the night sky. He was impressed by how he got to the building's roof in a single shot.
"How did I-?" He quickly lifted his shirt to check himself. The seal wasn't visible at this point, but felt unusual nonetheless.
"Take it easy, OK? Don't get too carried away. You're the one "borrowing" my body. I have to admit it's handy and, well, pretty freakin' awesome, but don't think you're gonna win, you got that?" He tried to tell Kyuubi, but as usual, no word from him. He jumped the side of the building and descended by grabbing onto the ledges of each floor until he got to the floor Asuma visited. He knew whose apartment this was for he had been here before. He knew Kurenai wasn't home because her team was on a mission. He knelt down to the bouquet, which smelled unusually pleasing. He took the note and read it inside his head.
Dear Kurenai:
I'm sorry I couldn't do this face to face, but if I was going to do it, it had to be now. I know this isn't my style, but I will go on with this anyway. I'm sorry that the news about our child has been spread across the village to the point it is now.
Naruto stopped to let the news go through his head.
'Ok, this is news to me. Kurenai-sensei and Asuma-sensei have a kid? No way. Wait, could she be pregnant? Whoa…are these guys in trouble or what?'
But, as long as we are both comfortable of going along with this, there should be no problem. It all happened because of the way we feel about each other. This was no accident. When you look inside the box, you'll see a note. Read it, and I will wait your answer the day after you return. I'm not doing this because I feel forced to do it, only because I love you with all my soul.
The note ended there. Naruto was shocked by what he was reading. He took a look at the small box. It all made sense now, but he had to make sure he was right.
It was just as Asuma had written. There was a note inside it. When he lifted it, a ring with a beautiful diamond sparkled before his eyes.
"Holy shit!" These words escaped his mouth. "This must be worth a fortune!"
He immediately closed the box and left it by the flowers. There was no need to read the note for it was obvious what it was written on it. He quickly got up and left as quickly as he had come.
When he returned to his apartment, his mind started to center on other things. As he lay down on his bed, he started to think about what he should say to Hinata. He still felt confused as to how should he handle this situation. After such a long time, she might have forgotten about what happened and moved on. Maybe talking about would only open some scars and bring unpleasant memories. But still, somewhere deep in his heart, he felt he had to do it. It wasn't his style to leave loose ends. If he handled the situation correctly, everything would be fine. He had to make it an apology as much as possible without hurting her or making her uncomfortable. He had to show her that he cares for her not only as a comrade, but as a friend too. He knew he had shown it a couple of times before, but the sudden realization from the night before had made him realize it wasn't the right way. He should be more encouraging and friendly with her, like he tried to be with Sakura.
"Come on, Naruto. That's enough." He said to himself out loud. "You're letting all this bull carry you away. Hinata's your friend. Why should you do this? It's not like you l-" His voice trailed off before he could finish. He remembered what he told Sakura that afternoon. He remembered that he felt like his mind was on autopilot and was letting his feelings carry him away at that point. He had to admit that when he said that last sentence, Hinata came to mind.
"Do I?" He lay down on the bed again with his arms crossed behind his head. He kept thinking about that last sentence until sleepiness took over him.
It had been a long time since Naruto had slept that well. No nightmares to drive his imagination, no bizarre visions of himself. The sunlight bothered his eyes when he opened them the following morning. He rubbed them clear and took a look around. He was fully awake at the realization of that day's date. He looked to the calendar on his wall. It was Wednesday, the day Hinata would return from her mission. He had intensely marked that day with a bold marker. He also checked his bedside clock. When he saw it read half-past noon, he let out a scream.
"I gotta get ready!" He flew for his closet and pulled a clean shirt and changed it for the one he was wearing. He grabbed his jacket and zipped it up in one swift movement. He bushed up his hair a little with his hands and tightly secured his headband as well as the Hokage's necklace. He walked out into his balcony and jumped for the training grounds just as he had jumped the night before.
"She's probably already waiting for me. Oh, man." He said to himself out loud.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"What's the big holdup? Aren't they coming?" Ino complained.
"They're just running late. Be a little patient." Shikamaru said, trying to calm her friend down. "By the way, have you checked on Sakura?" TenTen asked Ino.
"I tried, but I can't find her anywhere. I tried her house, my shop, the other training grounds, downtown, I also asked Lady Tsunade, but she said she has no clue. What do you think happened that night?"
"Who knows? Maybe she got a little jealous?" Choji thought out loud.
"Jealous? About Naruto? No way. She was the first of us to see Naruto transformed. If that didn't force Sakura to start treating him better, nothing will. Besides, Naruto's personality is one Sakura can't bear. Hell, neither can I. He's just not her type. I mean, he's alright, but not what I'm looking for in a boyfriend."
"Well, if you're going to be that black and white about it, sure." TenTen suggested. "But still, those guys have been a team such a long time. There has to be something there. Something that Sakura might be afraid to admit to herself."
"Well, whatever's the case, she missed her chance. Hinata was the one who started getting closer to him."
"Guess you're right. By the way, what are you looking for in a-"
"Look, he's coming!" At the sight of the spiky-haired ninja coming at them, everyone sprung out of the way and went into hiding through the trees beyond the lake. Naruto landed with a bounce and looked around for a while. The training ground was silent and deserted.
"Guess she's not here yet." He thought a little disappointed. "Maybe she's just running late." He sat down by the tree and closed his eyes for a while. He sighed softly and started
muttering to himself.
"Hey Hinata. How's it goi-… No, not like that." He cleared his throat. "Hey, what's up Hinata? Yeah, that's better. Look, we need to-… Wait, wait. First, try to get her to relax." He took a deep breath. "So, how was your mission? Good? I'm glad to hear it. No way! Seriously? That's awesome! No, he didn't!" He laughed silently. "Well anyway, there's something we need to talk about. No, what are you thinking? Try harder! Ok, ok, how about…" He paused his thoughts for a moment. "Well Hinata, there's something I need-… wait… I want to tell you… yeah, that's good …about. It was a long time ago, but I still think you might remember it…"
"What the hell is he doing?" Shikamaru wondered from the trees nearby.
"Why is he talking to himself?" Ino asked too.
"Could he be talking with the demon?" Choji asked.
"I don't think so." TenTen observed. "He looks like he's thinking about something, but he's having trouble thinking straight."
"What makes you say that?"
"What am I, a shrink?"
"…it was all an accident. I mean, I would've looked away, but the scene was so beautiful-… No, come on, man! That'll only make her feel uncomfortable and she'll get all nervous and shy and "blushy"." He sighed once again. "What am I going to do?" He frustratingly rubbed his head with his hands. He messed up his hair a little and then cursed himself under his breath. He started to get a unique sensation in his chest. There was a slight buzzing inside of his ears. He could hear rapid footsteps approaching him. He felt the vibrations of the impacts on the floor. His nose started tingling as well. He could smell a sweet scent, one of a flower he could not bring to mind. It was mixed with a miniscule amount of blood. He looked up and to his surprise, everything from where he was to the small district ahead of him was before his eyes. Running through the green fields was Hinata; her face had a few smudges of dirt and even tiny drops of blood. She didn't show any signs of slowing down. Naruto shrieked in surprise and hopped inside the canopy of the tree.
"Oh crap, what am I going to say to her?!"
Hinata arrived panting; holding herself up with her palms on her knees. She looked awfully fatigued. Her hair was a little messy and her clothes were a bit dirty. She looked all around her; hoping to see her secret crush again.
'I guess he's still not here. Maybe he overslept…' She made her way to the edge of the lake and looked at her reflection. She was a bit surprised to find herself in that state.
'I can't look like this in front of Naruto.' She thought while she splashed some water on her face. The refreshing feeling felt good after a long mission. She also tried to straighten out her hair. Naruto observed how she groomed herself in what he thought was quite a graceful manner.
'OK, just relax. You can do this, 'cause you're the man. There's nothing you can't handle. Everything will go fi-'
A celestial sound landed in his ears, making him forget about what he was thinking. It was a singing so soft, so sweet, he was dazzled by it. He looked downward to find that beautiful voice coming out of Hinata's mouth. She was vocalizing a relaxed, peaceful song while she stroked her hair using her hand as a comb. Naruto fell speechless at the beauty of this music. He could feel what Hinata was trying to express; peace, quiet, tranquility. He was soothed by the lovely notes and felt warm on the inside. Soon, the girl's vocals started to swell and reach a different set of higher notes. He never would've imagined the potential she had in her singing. He felt like she was enjoying herself and was happy to be doing what she was doing.
"Wow, that was amazing!" Naruto popped his head from the thicket of leaves when she was done. Hinata gasped and went rigid. She forcefully turned around to find him hanging from the tree upside down. Her face started turning apple red. Naruto let out a concerned grunt.
"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that I was-… well I was up there and-… I couldn't but listen to-… that was just kickass." He said when he couldn't think of anything to say. The color on Hinata's face only turned more intense. Naruto got down from the tree.
"Look, it's nothing to be embarrassed about." He tried to sound reassuring. "It's great to have a talent not a lot of people can have, you know?"
"I-I know, but-" Her redness starts vanishing. "I-I was not expecting to be overheard by somebody." She said stuttering.
"Yeah, that was my bad. You see, I had just gotten here before you arrived and I was up there." He pointed at the tree.
"What were you doing?"
"Well, you see-" He tried to finish, but he couldn't. He tried to move his mouth, but no words were coming out.
"Is everything OK, Naruto?" she sounded concerned.
"What? Oh, yeah. Everything's fine. But, the thing is-"He once again felt stuck. Hinata gave him a questionable look, not understanding what was going around inside his head. After a few short moments, he took a deep breath and said sternly and with a straight face.
"Look Hinata, we need to talk."
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Oh, this is what she was up to." An unexpected, suggestive voice, followed by a deep bark, made the group jump with surprise. When they turned around, they were greeted by Kiba riding on top of Akamaru, panting happily, and Shino, who as always, wore a coat with its neck covering his mouth and his eyes hidden behind dark glasses.
"Check it out Shino. Who knew we were missing this much?"
"Keep it down, damn it!" Ino whispered loudly. "They don't know we're here!"
"You mean you're spying on them?"
"Sorta…" Choji started.
"Anyway, what are you doing here?" TenTen said almost menacingly.
"Well duh. We just came back from a mission and we left it to Kurenai-Sensei to report to the Fifth. Hinata said she had to go somewhere and left off in a hurry. It was awfully suspicious of her to just run out on us like that after a mission." Kiba informed. Akamaru barked affirmatively. "So, how long has this been going on?"
"Could you just leave?" Ino demanded.
"Are you kidding? I can't miss out on something like this." He said while he and Akamaru approached the group. Shino stood his ground.
"You can't. We're far too many people already!"
"C'mon, it'll be fine. Besides, Naruto's totally clueless and Hinata is too distracted from what happens around her when they're together." He drew closer and poke through the group along with his dog. As he got closer, his nose twitched and tickled. He started sniffing into the air.
"What's with you?" Ino asked.
"It's Naruto. He's sweating a lot. From the look of it, he's very nervous about something." He used his hand to guard his eyes from the sunlight to take a better look at Naruto. He was scratching the back of his head and was yanking his jacket's collar constantly.
"What are they talking about?"
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Look, I know it was a long time ago, but maybe you still remember." Naruto said. His sweat started sliding down his face. Hinata still looked confused, not very sure of why was he acting like that. "Now, this isn't something I'm very proud of because I'm sure that if people knew about it, they would label me, but forget about that. Here it is."
He gasped sharply.
"Do you remember when we searched for the Bikochuu beetle three years ago?"
Hinata nodded.
"Well…there's something that happened while we were in the forest that-, it was purly accidental by the way, that, um… might have offended you or…made you uncomfortable or…whatever. The point is, I'm sure that you didn't like it very much." He was playing with his hands while speaking.
"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.
"Well, it's sort of a long story. You see, there was this one night when I got up to go to the bathroom. It was very late and I was kinda half-asleep, OK? Well, when I was finished, I heard water splashing. Out of curiosity, I followed the sound. When I got to where it was coming from, there was this small waterfall."
Hinata started putting together the picture he was describing. When the memory came to full view, her face went scarlet and her eyes looked like they were petrified.
"In the waterfall, I saw this girl splashing around there and when she moved her hand, the water would move with her as well. It was so awesome! Well, long story short, it's only until recently that I discovered that was…you." He felt disturbed to have to break it to her like that. He noticed that her face was blood red by now.
"L-Look, I'm really sorry!" he said with an accelerated voice while making wild gesticulations with his arms as if signaling her to relax. "I didn't know it was you. I mean, it was dark, I was still sleepy, there was no way I could tell it was you and… Look, sorry if this sounds awkward but… you were nude, right?" Hinata's head looked like an oversized tomato. Her eyes started fading and felt like she couldn't breathe. Naruto shrieked. He didn't notice that a girl's angry yell could be heard from nearby.
"L-Look, I promise- No, I swear…" He was making wild arm movements again. "I swear on the life of my unborn kid…" These last words caught Hinata's attention. She stopped from fainting and the color on her face couldn't get any more intense. "…that I didn't see anything." He made some emphasis at the end. "I already said it was very late and I wasn't fully awake. I could see you, but only like a shadow. That's it. Look, you're probably wondering why am I bringing this up after such a long time. Well, it's that I have been taking up meditating recently and it's been helping me bring up a lot of stuff I thought I had forgotten. One memory has been of that what happened back then. You see, I've seen myself looking at you-" He stopped cold. He started thinking about where he was going with this and what Hinata might be thinking.
"B-B-ut, I-I haven't been imaging what you look like- I-I mean, you're- it's not that I think you're- you're just- I- you're very-" He stammered. He was starting to blush.
"Ahhhhh!" He screamed in frustration while he pulled his hair. "What's wrong with me?!"
"Naruto." Hinata finally spoke. Naruto looked up at her. "You don't need to apologize." Her cheeks were still a bit crimson from the memory. The blue-eyed ninja looked awfully surprised.
"If it was all just an accident and a misunderstanding, you shouldn't be feeling guilty about it. Besides, it was a very long time ago, like you said. It's best if we try to forget about it. And don't worry, it could've happened to anybody. Who knows? Maybe it could've been Shino or Kiba the ones who had looked at me. Also, I should've been more discrete about what I was doing even though you were all asleep." When she finished, it felt like the world was waiting for something to happen. For a handful of seconds, both Shinobi started at each other in the eye.
"That's it?" Naruto asked.
"What do you mean?" Hinata asked back.
"You know, aren't you gonna punch me or go all "gentle fist" on me or call me a pervert or make me sorry for bringing this up?"
"Why would I do that? I would never treat my friends like that."
Naruto was speechless.
'Is she serious? Could she be bluffing? Is she yanking my chain? Nah, no way. Not Hinata. She doesn't have it in her. Then what? I mean, I would've at least expected her to raise her voice. Instead, it's the same old Hinata I know.'
Naruto did nothing but stare into her friend standing before him. He was surprised at such a display of kindness coming from her. It didn't feel like she was really going to hate him for what happened. With a lot of previous experience regarding women getting angry over what he did, he was astonished at Hinata's reaction. Even if he knew the kind of person he was, seeing her not getting angry about something as serious as this amazed him.
"N-Naruto…" Hinata said with cheeks burning by how he stared at her. "Are you OK?"
"Wha- oh, I'm fine, I'm fine." He said, scratching the back of his head. He laughed awkwardly.
"So… how was your mission?" He stopped scratching his head. Instead, he put his hands in his pockets and shifted himself back and forth.
"Oh, it went great." Hinata answered. "There has been a lot of disturbance in the far regions of the Land of Fire lately. It's an area of small villages with little connection to the village, but it's been said that rogue ninjas have been spotted several times."
"For real?"
"Uh-huh. We were sent to investigate on their whereabouts. Fortunately, we couldn't find any in those towns. It was until when we were heading back when we got intercepted by a small squad of them. We barely got away thanks to Kurenai-Sensei's genjutsu."
"They were that tough?"
"Well, they were all fighting as if they were being controlled by something. I couldn't find anyone who seemed to be controlling them. But, here's the strange part. When I took a look inside one of them, there was a strange substance circulating across his body."
"Substance?"
"I couldn't tell what it is. It was so unknown to me. Right now, Kurenai-Sensei went to report everything to Lady Tsunade. So…" She familiarly played with her fingers. "…how have you been, Naruto?"
"Me?" He sighed a groan. "You have no idea. Grandma Tsunade has been handing me these lame missions around the village. It's like I'm a Ge- oh wait, I still am. But the point is…"
Hinata felt sorry on the inside for Naruto. She was a Chunin and she knew that because of his training with Jiraiya he had to put his promotion on hold until he returned. Even now, with so many things happening to him, he wasn't able to.
"…these missions suck. Is a great ninja like me supposed to walk dogs for a living? This is not something a future Hokage should be doing."
"But, Naruto…" He turned at her. When their eyes met, she hesitated and pulled back a little from him.
"Uh, N-Nothing. Sorry, please continue." She decided it was best not to break down his enthusiasm for his future dreams. Telling him it was for his own good would hurt him. She was glad that despite his turmoil, he still had his sight set on the future.
"OK, so I know that Grandma is afraid of another demon outbreak, but what does a guy have to do to see some action around here? That Grandma Tsunade sometimes just pisses me off. If she wasn't Hokage, I'd kick her ass. Then, we'll see who gets it." He punched repeatedly into thin air. He then pretended he got hit in the face and pretended to drop by the impact. Hinata giggled quietly. Naruto looked at her while laying down.
"What?"
"N-Nothing, I just, um…" She continued playing with her fingers while thinking of what to say.
"So…" Naruto started. "Do you feel like training?"
"Well, actually, if you don't mind…" Hinata said when she snapped back to herself. "…do you think we can do this tomorrow? I would love train with you, but…"
"You know what? You're right." Naruto interrupted as he got up. "You just came back from a mission and you're must be really tired. I understand." He finished with a smile. For Hinata, that smile was so warm, it felt like a kiss. Her eyes started to get dim.
"Uh, Hinata? Are you there?" He waved his hand in front of her face and snapped several times until she was back. She squealed inside her head when she realized how close he was to her.
"I-I guess you're right. I am a bit tired."
"Do you mind if I, uh…walk you home again?" He said with his hands down his jacket pockets and shifting like he was doing before.
"N-Not at all." She said. She couldn't help but to show a bit of her happiness. The two started walking side by side into town, unaware that the group of ninjas, and a very large dog, were following them closely from behind.
Naruto and Hinata were crossing downtown while they chatted.
"So Hinata, I know I was pretty out of the loop while I was gone with the Pervy Sage, but here's a bit of gossip that came to me recently. Is it true that Asuma-Sensei and Kurenai-Sensei are having a baby?"
"Yes, it's true."
"Do you know when's the baby due?"
"Well, I heard that Kurenai-Sensei got pregnant about a week before you returned. Right now, she should be about three months pregnant."
"Really? But why do they keep sending her on dangerous missions?"
"I don't think we should worry. Sensei can handle herself pretty well on tight situations."
"Well, have you heard if they're planning on, you know, getting married?"
"I don't know. Maybe with all the problems the village is facing right now, I mean with the Akatsuki, they might want to wait a little."
"I wouldn't say that."
"Why is that, Naruto?"
"Something awesome happened last night. I saw Asuma-Sensei walk out of Ino's shop looking deadly nervous. He had a big bouquet of flowers and a small box in one of his pockets. He left it all, along with a small note, in front of Kurenai-Sensei's apartment."
"You were following Asuma-Sensei?"
"I saw it all happen from my balcony. Anyway, the situation was so awfully curious, I had to check it out. I took a look inside of that little box and guess what? There was a ring with a diamond this big inside!" He said while sizing the diamond with his hands.
"Seriously?" Hinata said with a little excitement.
"Totally! He wants to pop the question."
"Oh, wow! Kurenai-Sensei is going to be so happy when she gets home!"
"I know, right? And besides, you had to see it coming, didn't you?"
"Well, yeah. I mean, it's not just the baby, but I'm sure they really love each other."
"That's weird. I never said that they'd marry only because Kurenai-Sensei got knocked up."
"Huh?"
"I mean, you're right. Whenever I've seen those two around, they are always real close and together. I never really understood it until last night, but those two really got it goin' on. They should get married. What's the point of a love-less marriage, anyway?"
Hinata blushed again when Naruto finished. Hearing him talk like that warmed her heart.
"R-Right, right." She said with a hint of nervousness. "There's no point on that."
"Hey, Naruto!" He heard someone call out his name from behind. Both teens turned to face Yamato and Sai. They both looked cheerful.
"Hey guys, what's up?" Naruto saluted.
"We were looking for you. We're done with everything we needed to catch up with and are now free to have some lunch."
"After meeting you the other day, we felt it was the best we could do." Sai added.
"Alright! Ramen! It's really been a while. Hey Hinata, you wanna come with?"
She was a bit startled at the sudden invitation.
'Wow, eating with Naruto…I mean, we're not alone, but still though.'
"Um, sure. Sounds great." She said smiling.
"OK, let's go." Yamato lead on.
"Hey, you guys don't mind if we cover our part of the bill, right?"
'Our part?' Hinata thought. It almost sounded like he thought it was a real date. She felt her heart beat like a bass drum. Naruto noticed she was looking uneasy.
"You know, so I can make up for what happened back then." He whispered in her ear.
"Naruto, you don't-"
"Please. I really want to make it up to you. I know it's not much, but it's something."
"Well, if you say so…"
"Alright! Thanks, Hinata."
Hinata felt the warmth inside of her she had felt recently. Such a display of kindness from him was something for her to celebrate.
"Hey Naruto, come over here." Sai signaled him. The genin obliged.
"What is it?"
"What were you two doing before we found you?"
"Hey, what I do is none of your business."
"It's just that from the look of it, I'd say that you two were da-"
"You keep talking, and I'll shove a book down your throat!" Naruto menaced.
"Fine, take it easy." Yamato joined in. "I'm sure it's nothing major."
This calmed Naruto down. He didn't notice the smirk on his captain's face when he finished.
Ichiraku's was just as Naruto had remembered. It felt like it had been ages since he dug into a bowl of his favorite ramen. The sweet smell of boiling noodles and fresh pork made his mouth water.
"What are we waiting for? Let's eat." He said to his friends excitedly and dashed towards the stand. Fortunately, the place was empty save for an old man sitting on the corner of the stand. He took a deep look at the blonde youth stepping in.
"Hey, Naruto! It's been a while. How are you feeling?" Ayame, Teuchi's daughter, greeted him and his friends.
"I've been alright. How about you guys?" The moment Naruto sat down, the old man in the corner left some money on the table and left with an accelerated walk. Everyone eyed the man as he disappeared from view.
"What's with him?" Naruto asked.
"Hmm, it's just as I expected." Teuchi appeared from behind the curtain that led to the kitchen. He spoke solemnly towards Naruto.
"I'm sorry Naruto, but I can't have you eating in here until this whole problem of yours is fixed."
"Say what?!" He shouted, looking the old man in the eye.
"Like I said, I'm sorry, but if you're going to be scaring people away like that, we'll be out of business. Already a lot of people are aware of how much you fancy this place and now they try to avoid it."
"Come on, you can't do this! I'm like your best customer! If it wasn't for all this crap I've had to deal with, I'd be around more often!"
"My decision is final. As much as it hurts the both of us, I must do this or else my business will have no future."
"Why, you-!"
"Naruto, calm down!" Yamato pulled him back.
"You're the one who won't have a future!" He growled at the man. "Let me go!"
"Naruto, please!" Hinata tried to step in front of him. He rapidly changed his sights to her. His eyes were trembling with anger. She felt intimidated by them. This made him calm down a little and step down from the stool.
"Sorry." He said as he walked out. With a jump, he was gone into the buildings beyond.
"Naruto, wait!" She shouted to the empty street. "Please, excuse us." She bowed her head and left Yamato and Sai on their own.
Hinata found Naruto walking down an empty street, still angry about what happened.
"Naruto." She called to him. He didn't respond. She called him again.
"Naruto, please come back. We can just look for another restaurant for us to eat."
"They'll probably think the same thing the old man thought. It's all about their precious business."
"Well… ummm, how about we go to my house and…"
"You don't have to do it."
"Naruto, if this is about the whole waterfall incident, please for-"
"Hinata." He said sternly. It was an expression she had never seen Naruto use. He was serious and melancholy.
"It's not just about what happened at the waterfall. It's about everything."
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Did you receive the information from Lady Tsunade?" Neji was walking with Lee on their way to the Hyuga household.
"Yes. The mission begins two days from now at noon. We are being sent to investigate some unusual activity in the Land of Rice Fields. There are many rogue clans in this area that have been causing disturbances among the civilians."
"Understood. By the way, have you seen TenTen?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I haven't seen her all day. We need to tell her about this as soon as possible."
"Good point. Where could she be? Maybe she's with- Look, there she is, in that tree."
Neji turned to where his teammate pointed at.
"What are those guys doing?"
"Hey, aren't those Naruto and Hinata? Are those guys spying on them? What could they be talking-" before he could finish, Neji pulled him down to his knees.
"Stay down and follow me."
"What's wrong, Neji?"
"Just a gut feeling. I need to hear what they are talking about."
Both ninjas side-stepped behind two large trunks near the couple and listened to their conversation.
"Like I told you, ever since the outbreak of Kyuubi, I've been recommended to take on some meditation to relax my mind and get a little peace. This has helped me look back at a lot of memories, including some with you where I can see that you try to be a great friend with me, but I'm taking it all for granted. I've realized I haven't been as good as a friend as I should be. You are always so nice with everyone and I haven't been respecting that. I should have treated you better all this time, like a better person. I've been the first to admit that sometimes I can be a bit of a jerk, just like back at Ichiraku's, and sometimes people see this as childish and immature, but that's just the way I am and I like it. I can't stand to just sit around and go down without a fight. That doesn't mean I can treat my friends better."
Naruto was talking with such confidence and security, he even surprised himself. Hinata was touched by this small speech. A yearning, a desire started to stir inside her. She felt like she could go up to him and kiss him, just once and lightly, on his cheek. That would be OK for now, but still, nervousness was in the way.
"So maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but I give you my word that I will make this up to you."
"Naruto…" She said happily with her hands folded in front of her chest. Her eyes were slightly glittering.
"And you know I never go back on my word. That's my way of the ninja." He winked at her and gave her a thumbs up. "Believe it!"
Hinata smiled warmly to her friend. They continued walking until they were once again in front of the gates that led to the Hyuga district.
"So, tomorrow then down at the lake?"
"Sure."
"Ok, then. Goodbye!" With those goodbyes, they went their separate ways. Naruto took a good, hard look at Hinata as she walked into her clan's district. He smiled at her again and turned around to go home. As he did, he muttered a song as he looked up towards the sky. It felt so curious how is it that after his dispute at the ramen bar, a small chat with Hinata could turn him around. When he looked at the sky, he could see her, smiling back at him. His fantasy was intervened by the gentle strumming of a guitar. He followed that sound to a corner nearby to discover the same beggar he had heard the other day. His hair was the same as before and he was wearing the same clothes he did back then. The song he played was deep and serene, a beautiful ballad of sound, a truly enchanting love song. Naruto was nothing short of captivated. Once again, he was taken on a trip across oceans of green grass and quickly appeared flying over high tides. He felt as if he really had that sort of freedom. He closed his eyes to dig deeper into this vision. He was majestically flying through the air, across the clouds and with the sun on his side. He extended his arms and started spinning downward in a nose dive only to return to a horizontal position inches away from the ground. The satisfaction of facing danger and avoiding what could be death was a sensation that had always been a pleasure to ho,. When the song finished and returned to his senses, he approached the beggar and dropped a few coins in his case before asking,
"Excuse me, but where did you get that?"
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"Neji, were Naruto and Hinata out on a date?" Lee asked his jonin companion.
"Obviously not." Neji said. "I don't think she has it in her, at least not yet."
"Did you hear what Naruto was saying? It was incredible to hear him talk about his feelings with no shame as to how would someone else would react. How beautiful!" He said with happy tears on his eyes.
"Shut it." Neji said. "Don't you get it? Hinata's taking a big risk here. My uncle had warned us about being close to him after what's happened. Of course, when it comes to Naruto, she can go as far as to challenge even her family superiors. She knows she's in danger, but she still tries to be with him. What's more surprising is that after what we just saw, it seems they are closer friends than they were before. Something must have happened."
"Well, maybe she's just trying to reach out to him and make him feel better after being rejected by his own village again. Hinata doesn't have it in her too see people get hurt like that."
"I know, but even so, it's best if I keep an eye on her. If he gets too close to her, she will be in bigger danger than she is right now. Not just with her father, but with Naruto as well."
"And I'll join you. Watching two people share their lives and interact with each other in such a way is something I must see. It reminds me of my own relationship with Guy-Sensei."
Neji stared at Lee in silent anger.