"Welcome back Sasuke and Hinata. Now let's get down to business shall we? I'm sure Naruto won't mind will you?" he asked glaring at Naruto. Naruto shook his head no as Sasuke and Hinata stood in their places. "Now then, today I thought we'd do some combat training. You know, to get a feel for one another."

"Uh…sensei, I don't know about this. What? You want Naruto and me to fight a…girl? I mean, it was ok when it was Sakura because we all know that Tsunade has been training her on the off days, but…" Sasuke cast a wary look towards Hinata as she shifted her feet, staring aimlessly at the ground.

"I see your point Sasuke and it has been noted but all the same, I don't think you should take the lady too lightly. I had a word with Hiashi and Neji. Hinata's a lot stronger than you think. Yes, she has her weak points but it's nothing that can't be fixed with a little team work and training. Now Naruto you're up first against Hinata. Oh and no shadow clones please."

"Aw man. That sucks, but hey no matter. I'm sure I won't need them," he said smirking. Hinata glanced up at her new sensei but he only nodded signaling her to take her place in front of Naruto. This ought to prove interesting…

"Alright then….fight!"

Naruto ran at Hinata full speed tossing a few shurigan which she easily avoided using her Byakugan. When they finally met up, Hinata was able to match Naruto blow for blow. Even so, she was the first to take a fall. Naruto's way too strong for her…With one left hook Hinata was sent flying through the air towards Sasuke, who jumped up and caught her with ease before she could hit a nearby tree.

"Ooo…Hinata…I…I'm sorry…but…" Naruto stammered nervously, but Hinata just smiled weakly.

"It's…it's ok Naruto. I…I'm glad that you didn't go…easy on me." Kakashi watched as Sasuke smiled down at the woman in his arms. Looks like it won't take too long to set those two up but I was hoping maybe Naruto would notice her too…

"You know, you really gave Naruto hell," Sasuke commented while helping his new team mate to her feet.

"Thanks," she replied weakly, limping forward to take her place again in front of Naruto.

"Uh…I think that's enough for today. You did well Hinata but I want a word with you alone. Naruto…Sasuke…you're dismissed."

"ALRIGHT! MAYBE TODAY WILL BE THE DAY THAT SAKURA FINALLY AGREES TO GO OUT WITH ME!"

"You're such a loser Naruto," Sasuke mumbled before running after his team mate leaving Hinata and Kakashi alone.

"Hinata, come with me." Hinata followed Kakashi through the forest until they came to a stop at a nearby creek. He sat down on the grass near the creek and motioned for Hinata to come and sit too.

"Why are we…?"

"You're hurt. I'm going to patch you up here and talk to you about some weak points I saw in your fight against Naruto." She sat down Indian style in front of Kakashi and stared at the ground. She had lost her match today against the man she loved. She did her best but it wasn't good enough to get his attention. In fact, it would seem as if it only made things worse. How would she be able to face him the next time? She thought that once she'd declared to forget about him that all thoughts of trying to get his attention would go away but they did not. All she could think about while fighting him was doing her best so that he would notice her…approve of her…recognize how much stronger she had become and maybe, just maybe offer her a date instead of Sakura but…it did not happen and right now all she wanted to do was just crawl in a hole and just stay there forever. She did not even realize that she was crying until she felt Kakashi's hand on the side of her face wiping the tears under her eyelids with his thumbs.

"Hinata? Why are you so sad princess?"

"I…I lost…" she whispered but he just chuckled at her.

"So you lost? It's going to be ok. I promise. In fact, that's what I wanted to talk with you about. You see, I don't think you lost because you lack the skills to win. I personally think you are much better at taijutsu than Naruto."

"Huh? Re…really?"

"Of course. I just think that your biggest problem lies in your lack of confidence in yourself."

"Well…I…Naruto's just better than me."

"No. Naruto's just stronger than you but not better. You have your cousin to thank for that one and one of your former team mates, Kiba. You remember some time ago at the Chunin exams? Kiba whooped Naruto in hand to hand combat but lost because he wasn't thinking straight. Naruto is a strong adversary but that doesn't mean he can't be matched in certain areas."

"Oh…well…um…I guess you're right."

"Well, I don't know much about boosting one's confidence but I figure a good way to start would be to just make you work one on one with either me, Naruto, or Sasuke on different days except for the days I call for a full practice."

"Huh? Kakashi sensei, I don't think…I don't know if…" she stammered but Kakashi put a hand up signaling for her to be silent.

"Hinata, I'm only doing this to help you. If you can get used to training alone with others then when you train with us as a group it will be easier for you to fight. Besides that, Sasuke and I can help you sharpen your taijutsu skills being that our Sharingan can't copy your Byakugan. When you train with Naruto, you'll be able to sharpen your gekegenki pinpointing Naruto from his multi-shadow clone jutsu—his kage bushins."

"Oh…well…I guess…ok," she mumbled. She was about to stand up and leave but the pain in her stomach forced her to stay seated. She twisted up her face in pain hoping that Kakashi wouldn't notice but he did.

"Hinata? You're hurt bad. Lift up your shirt."

"Huh? No…I…"

"Lift up your shirt or I will do it myself," he commanded. She winced as she tried to lift her shirt but the pain in her arms was just too much. "Hmmm…looks like Naruto really did a number on you. That boy doesn't know his own strength. That fox spirit…he has got to learn to control it. Hinata, I am going to use my kunai to cut your shirt off of you."

She nodded and watched as he took out a knife and cut her shirt right down the middle. The cool breeze from the creek made Hinata shudder and she was starting to regret ever getting out of bed. Kakashi took out a cloth and wet it in the creek before turning to survey the wounds on her stomach and arms. Immediately his eyes darted, not for the wounds on her body but for the pretty red bra that was highlighting the curve of each breast. He forced his eyes to look downward but instead of a cut, he was taken by the arch of her tummy and where it was pointing. He closed his eyes for a second and then opened them, praying that she had not noticed his gawking. God forbid he was gawking at a…pupil. When he finally convinced his eyes to stop gawking, he noticed a small gash on the right side of her stomach and two more on each arm. They were chakra burns, which was why she was having trouble moving.

"Ahh, I see the problem. Nothing a little water and peroxide can't fix." He reached in his pocket pulling out a small brown bottle and poured its contents onto the cloth before moving to sit behind her. Hinata closed her eyes when she felt his hands touch her stomach, the warmth of them coming as a great surprise. She was nervous and slightly embarrassed about being so exposed yet she began to relax as he rubbed her arms and then sides gently, working his way across her tummy and round to her back. A soft moan escaped her lips as he continued to dab her sides and back with the cloth until he noticed how dry the peroxide was making her skin. He reached into another jacket pocket and pulled out a small bottle of aloe vera. He poured a little in his hands rubbing them together before running his hands down Hinata's back. He slowly caressed each shoulder bone in a circular motion then worked his way down her spine and over to her sides again. Another moan escaped her lips and she leaned back into his arms.

"Hinata," he whispered. "I'm not done yet." He slid his arms around her waist and grabbed the pieces of torn shirt off the ground in front of her before sliding them past her waistline again. He tied the torn pieces together before wrapping the shirt around her waist using it as a bandage. For a moment they both just sat there before Kakashi broke the silence. "Um…Hinata? I think you can move now. Your burns shouldn't be all that bad anymore."

"Oh…yeah. Sorry," she whispered. She looked down and saw that she had been patched up pretty good. She lifted her arms and was pleased that they no longer hurt anymore. Hinata stood up to leave but then realized that she had no shirt on. She immediately went pale in the face, throwing her arms over her chest embarrassed. Kakashi took notice of this and took off his jacket giving it to her to wear.

"Keep it til our next practice. I don't know when it will be because you will be working with Sasuke tomorrow morning. Anyway, I have to get going. You think you can manage now?"

"Uh…yes…sensei sir."

"Alright then. Later."

Kakashi disappeared only to reappear in front of the local bar. He sat down and ordered a bottle of sake trying to shake thoughts of what had just happened. Hinata had moaned? No, maybe it was all in his head yet he still couldn't shake the thought. Maybe she had not realized what she was doing but when she leaned back against him, another possible moan had escaped her lips and he couldn't help but to remember how sweet it sounded. I am losing my mind…I need a drink.

"Eh Kakashi?" Kakashi looked to his right to find Guy sitting next to him frowning. "You look like you've had a rough morning."

"You have no idea Guy. No idea…"

AN: I seriously need to go easy on the fluff but I can't help it. Gahh...This was a longer chapter than the rest but rest assure it will keep flip flopping--some really long and some really short. Just depends on my mood. I will do my best to give you one or two more good updates before I get out for Christmas break. That would mean 3-4 whole weeks without updates. Sad I know but that's how it is when you're in college. Now review...flame...Um...yeah. Lots of love guys: