Author's note:Ouch, guys. Only one review for that last chapter. That means that you've either forgotten about me or that the last chapter sucked. Oh well. One must push on!

Disclaimer: No.

Chapter 5: Sight beyond vision

"So, what do you want to talk about, sensei?" asked Naruto, finishing his second bowl of ramen.

"There's something important I need to tell you about the training. I want you to use no more than twenty kage bunshin at a time for this training," replied Kakashi, still eating his first bowl.

Naruto's eyes widened in shock. "What? Why? Won't that really slow me down compared to if I use a thousand?"

Kakashi nodded. "Normally, yes. But this training is different. Try meditating and focusing your sensory information to your eyes again."

"Right now?" asked Naruto, "Okay then…" The genin closed his eyes and focused. But Darkness met his eyes. After a moment, however, he was met with a flash of bright color. Naruto gasped. He could see! Focusing on his left, he saw an outline of his sensei, oddly colored, but still clearly defined. The steam rising from the ramen took a very visible shape, and he could see through the normally opaque soup. What was more, he could see under the bowl, all the way through the counter, to see his own legs resting under it! Testing out this new ability, Naruto focused as far around him as he could, finding that his sight was capable of viewing almost every direction. His eyes flew open and, turning to his teacher, he exclaimed, "Kakashi-sensei! That was…"

"Pretty interesting, eh?" said Kakashi, grinning at the surprised look on Naruto's face. "This is what is known as 'second sight'. It allows you to see around and through objects by converting your other four senses into sight. This sight also greatly enhances your field of view. However, all shinobi can only use it with their eyes closed, with the exception of one clan."

A look of realization came across Naruto. "The… Hyuuga?"

Kakashi smiled at his student's sharpness. "That's right. This form of sight is a very basic form of the kekkei genkai bloodline limit, the Byakugan. You've probably noticed that several bulges come across their eyes when they activate this ability. Those bulges are nerves that carry and convert information from the other senses. But because of their genetic ability, they can call upon it much more easily and see many more things with it, such as," his eye narrowed, "The tenketsu."

"Woah," was all Naruto was able to say after hearing this. "But, I still don't get it, Kakash-sensei. Why can't I use more than twenty kage bunshin to train with this?"

"Simple," said Kakashi. "You'll go blind." As his student's face became even more shocked, he continued, "The enhanced nerves of the Byakugan, when converting the other four senses to sight, tone down the massive outpouring of information. Otherwise, the sight they receive would blind them from its intensity. Luckily, your nerves don't enhance the brightness of your second sight, but by the same token, you can't see as in depth as they do. This is also why I started training you so early… with so few kage bunshin, relatively speaking, four months will be just enough time to complete this."

This was a rather large amount of information for Naruto to take in. He slurped down the last of his soup as he pondered what he'd just heard. But as his heart pounded with excitement, a smile crept over his face. "Then, then, when I've mastered this… I'll be even more amazing!"

Kakashi smiled. "That's right." "And you'll be one step closer to surpassing my teacher, Naruto," he thought happily, "Something that I'll make sure will happen. You've already surpassed me, after all."

"Then what are we doing waiting around here? Let's get back to my training!"

"You need to pay for your food first, Naruto."

"Oh! Right!"

"Good to know he'll always still be Naruto, though."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Hmm."

"Got it yet, Sasuke-san?"

"No… wait… yes!" Sasuke cried excitedly, moving his shogi piece, "Checkmate!"

"Well, well," said Shikamaru, looking over the board. "That was a good move, really. But…" he moved a piece on the board, "Not checkmate."

"Damn," said Sasuke. "I could have sworn I had you."

"You've got to look at the big picture. A shinobi is often fooled by what he sees at first glance. In life, you've got to stop looking at just one thing and look at the rest. What's important may not be what's right in front of you, you know."

"When did you philosophize anything else than being lazy?"

"I'm just talking shogi, Sasuke-san." Shikamaru grinned as his opponent and trainee sought the best next move.

"So how's it going with Temari?" asked Sasuke.

"Where did that come from?" questioned Shikamaru, raising an eyebrow.

"Just making small-talk. Your move."

Though he wasn't quite convinced that was it, he played along anyway. "She and I are good friends. We visit each other every now and then."

"She's pretty cute, don't you think?"

"Yeah… wait, what?" Shikamaru couldn't believe he'd let himself slip.

"Nothing," said Sasuke, hiding a feeling of smugness. "So why don't you ask her out?"

Furrowing his brow, Shikamaru asked, "What are you talking about?"

Unable to hide his smile anymore, Sasuke looked Shikamaru right in the eye. He was having some real fun now. "Don't tell me that you haven't thought of it."

For the first time since anyone could recall, a blush came over the chuunin's face. "That… is none of your business!" he said, smacking down a piece with a loud clack.

Sasuke lowered his expression. "Of course not." Placing a piece, he leaned back and crossed his arms, a wide smile on his face. "You lose, Shikamaru."

"What?" asked Shikamaru, unable to believe his ears. After a thorough inspection of the board, he too leaned back and smiled. "Heh. No wonder people say 'beware the fearsome blood of the Uchiha!' Now you're starting to use your head. Come on, let's play again."

"That's what we're here for," said Sasuke, a satisfied smirk on his face.

/\/\/\/\/\/\

At the end of the week, Naruto and Hinata met once more for dinner at Ichiraku. Both were glad to see each other; Hinata was elated to see Naruto in general and Naruto was happy to get away from his training and talk to someone who didn't read an obscene book all the time. And besides, Hinata was just such a fun person to talk to.

"Phew! It sure is warm out tonight," said Naruto after his ninth bowl, unzipping his jacket. He was completely unaware of the blush on Hinata's face that appeared at this. He did, however, notice that she was still wearing her traditional heavy jacket. "Eh? Hinata-chan, aren't you warm in that?"

"Oh, uhm, yes… a l-little…"

"Well, let me help you, then!" Naruto stood up, unzipping Hinata's jacket and removing it. He found no resistance in doing this, as her body had just become slightly limp at Naruto's action.

"N-Naruto-kun!" she gasped as he placed the jacket next to her. "Th-th-thank you!"

The boy smiled. "No… problem," his smile into a wide-eyed look as he saw what Hinata was wearing underneath her jacket. It was similar to the outfit she wore on the day of the chuunin exam three years ago, except… "Well, it was three years ago, and she has…" Naruto gulped as his next thought arrived, "…grown since then…" His eyes wandered down her neckline to find that the first few buttons were undone. As he realized that he was staring, he immediately withdrew his gaze. "Stupid Ero-sennin and his peeping! I must've caught it from him!" "Ah, sorry for staring, Hinata-chan, it's just that you're so…"

"So… what?" she urged, her blush increasing with her curiosity. She really hoped he wasn't going to say "dark, plain, and timid" again.

"… Gorgeous," he said eventually. Naruto didn't know why he'd said it; it was just the first word to pop into his head that properly described the woman in front of him. He blushed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head in anxiety, wearing a dumb grin. Now he expected Hinata to think that he was being stupid for saying something like that.

But instead, he heard her small, gentle voice ask, "Is that the truth, Naruto-kun?"

"Yeah," said Naruto, "I don't know why you wear your jacket… you're really too pretty to hide like that."

Hinata's heart was bursting with joy. But then, something took her smile away. "Naruto-kun… do you want to know why I wear my jacket?"

"Huh?"

She looked around nervously. "What I'm about to tell you… you can't tell anyone, promise?"

"I promise."

"Okay," she sighed, gathering her thoughts, "It's the same reason I created that ointment… you know, the one I gave you at the chuunin exams three years ago."

"What is it?"

"It… was to hide my bruises."

"Bruises?" asked Naruto, confused, "But, Hinata, all of us shinobi get bruises on missions… there's no reason to hide th-"

"No," she said quietly, though with a tone that was enough to cut him off. "I was hiding the bruises from… my father." At the last word, she turned her head away, unable to look at her beloved.

Naruto was even more puzzled. "What? You got bruises from your father? What do you mean, Hinata-chan?"

Hinata clenched her fist, bracing herself. "My father… he used to beat me."

"Beat you?" shouted Naruto, disbelieving.

"Please, Naruto-kun, keep your voice down," she said, still barely whispering, "Yes. He would get angry at me for being weak, telling me that I would be the fall of the Hyuuga clan… and then he'd start to attack me with normal speed, not holding back." A tear trickled down her cheek, her voice becoming shaky with each word. "It would go on for hours and hours, and when I'd cry, he would yell at me, saying that I was lucky he didn't use the juuken," She sniffled, the tears now coming in slight streams from her eyes. "Then he'd make me wear a jacket, so that no one would know."

"Hinata…" Naruto could barely believe what she'd just told him.

"He, he didn't want anyone to know," she said, her voice becoming louder as she started to hyperventilate, trying to stem the flow of tears, "that the so-called 'great lord Hiashi of the Hyuuga' would mercilessly beat his own daughter. He called me worthless so many times…" Hinata hung her head in sorrow, "That I guess I just started to believe it after a while." She closed her eyes in a last effort to stop her crying. After a moment, though, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw Naruto giving her a warm, understanding smile.

"I know what it's like, Hinata," he said, wiping her tears with his sleeve, "I know how it feels to be thought of as worthless… to feel like you can't do anything right, no matter how hard you try… that people hate you, just for existing. It hurts, right?" She nodded, letting out another sniffle. "But the truth is that you're not worthless… you're the opposite, actually." He placed his other hand on her other shoulder. "You're a good person with a great heart… and your father should consider himself blessed to have such a daughter. I know that I'm extremely lucky to have you as a friend."

She looked into his eyes, knowing from what she saw in them that what he'd said was the truth, from the bottom of his heart. Instantly, she felt comforted by him, knowing she didn't need to try and hide her sorrow. "Oh, Naruto-kun!" she cried, embracing him in a tight hug. Naruto was a little surprised by this action, but quickly held her gently against his chest. No longer did she try to stop her tears. Hinata sobbed heavily, crying out the pain of every sad memory and feeling she could remember. After all the years of hiding herself, she could finally let it out. As she cried, Naruto stroked her back, running his fingers through her long, black, silken hair.

"It's okay," he said in a soft, reassuring voice. "It's terrible to feel alone and worthless, but now you've got friends who care for you a lot… and no one's going to hurt you like that, ever again… I'll make sure of that." He felt her warmth increase after he said this, and her grip became tighter around him, as though she would collapse if she let go. "She's like me," he thought, still cradling the girl as her sobs became softer, "We were both hated for no reason… but we're still good people inside. Why is it that we have to suffer? And worse yet, why do we have to suffer… alone?"

……………….

After a while, Hinata had calmed down and sat back on her own stool. "Are you going to be okay?" asked Naruto.

She nodded, and though she did so with a sniffle, she smiled at him. "I'll be fine, Naruto-kun… thanks to you," she added quietly. "Thank you for dining with me again," she said, giving a short bow.

"Hey, don't mention it," said Naruto, indicating for her to lift her head. "In fact, I should be thanking you. This was a good break from my training. Oh!" Just then, an idea had struck him. "Hinata-chan… would you mind meeting me here every weekend for dinner until the chuunin exams? Kakashi-sensei is working me pretty hard and I'd like to take a break every now and then… what do you think? Hinata-chan?" Her eyes were wide and her mouth was slightly open.

"N-N-N-Naruto-kun… that would be wonderful!" she proclaimed, overjoyed by his offer. She clenched her fists, trying with little success to hide her enthusiasm. "I'll see you next weekend, then!" she said, getting up off of her stool.

"You're leaving?" asked Naruto, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"My family will get worried if I'm out too late, you know…"

"Then I'll get you home quickly," said Naruto, standing up and walking a few feet from the ramen stand. He then bit into his right thumb, just enough to draw blood, and after making the appropriate hand seals, planted his hand into the ground.

"Kuchiyose no jutsu! (Summoning technique!)"

Just then, a giant frog popped appeared in a puff of white smoke. Naruto leapt onto its back, smiling with satisfaction at the impressed look on Hinata's face. Extending an hand to her, he said, "Come on, Hinata-chan. This is your ride."

"W-wow…" she muttered, taking Naruto's hand and sitting behind him on the large amphibian.

"Hang on tightly to me to me, Hinata-chan," he told her, "This could get a little rough."

Hinata was glad that Naruto was in front of her, because she was blushing at his command. "O-okay," she said, wrapping her hands around his chest, closing her eyes in preparation for the ride.

"Alright, Gama-kun! Let's go! To the Hyuuga estate!" The Frog nodded, letting out a loud croak in agreement, then pushed its powerful legs into the ground. Within a second, the frog, Naruto, and Hinata were a few hundred feet above the air. Hinata opened one eye, wondering where they were after feeling the massive amounts of air pass over them. After she saw how high they were, her eyes widened.

And she screamed.

"Don't worry, Hinata! You're completely safe!" Naruto called over the howling wind. "Just keep holding on to me, and never let go! You're safe, as long as you're with me."

Hinata ceased her screaming and thought, "That's right… as long as I'm with Naruto-kun, I'm safe." She leaned her head against his back, holding him tighter still. "No matter what happens… I won't let go."

The frog landed with a resounding thump, but only remained on the ground for about second before thrusting itself into the air again. Hinata opened her mouth once more, but instead of screaming, she began laughing. "This is fun, Naruto-kun!" she called over the roar of the air.

Smiling at her change in reaction, he called back, "Yeah! And it only gets better from here!" The two of them spent the rest of the ride laughing and yelling with excitement, not fear, over the various jumps the frog performed. Finally, they reached the Hyuuga estate and Hinata dismounted.

"Whoo…" she said, wobbling slightly as she got off the toad, "That was fun, but I don't think I can use my legs very well after that," she said, smiling dazedly.

"Then let me help you," he said in an unusually gentle voice, holding Hinata steady by the hand, guiding her towards the gates of the mansion.

"Oh, Naruto-kun… tonight has been so wonderful… thank you," she said, leaning on his arm for a moment as they reached the entrance.

"No reason to thank me," said Naruto, releasing his grip on her hand so that she could enter. "Being with a friend like you is what's made this so good."

Blushing heavily, she waved at him, and he waved back, mounting the frog once more. And with a large hop, the orange-clad ninja was off, leaving a blissful Hinata in his wake.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Well, that's that chapter… sorry for the long wait, the next one will be up more quickly. Please review, I'd really hate to get only one review for this chapter too!