Author's Note: Thank you all for the reviews! Here's the next chapter, up quickly, like I promised.

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

Chapter 6: It wasn't supposed to be this way

"How was your weekend break from training, Naruto?" asked Kakashi as he and his student met up once more the following Monday.

"Good," Naruto said simply. "I had some ramen, talked with some friends." "I learned that Hinata's father is a hateful monster," he thought sorrowfully. "How about you, sensei?"

"It was alright. I did some enjoyable things," said the jounin in his usual calm tone.

"There he goes again, saying something without actually meaning anything at all."

Kakashi pulled open his book and sat by the tree. "Okay then. Make one thousand clones."

"Wait a minute! You said that I could only make twenty clones for this training!" said Naruto, confused yet indignant at the same time.

"That's right. I said to use only twenty clones for this training. You didn't think I'd just have you sit around all day looking at things, did you?"

Naruto frowned at once again being outsmarted by his teacher. "Okay, so what are the other clones going to be doing?"

Pausing for a moment, Kakashi looked at Naruto and said, "Naruto… do you want to learn the Great Fireball technique?"

"What's that got to do with my training?"

"Do you?"

Naruto sighed. "Yeah, sure."

"Alright. Make a thousand clones."

"Okay…" placing his fingers in a cross shape, he cried, "Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! (Mass shadow clone technique!)" Immediately afterward, the field was filled with doppelgangers.

"Good," said Kakashi, "Now, you've seen Sasuke do this many times, so you know the seal. Have your clones do it."

"Sure…" said Naruto, still wondering what this could possibly do for him. In his mind, he shouted, "Katon! Goukakyuu no Jutsu! (Fire release: Great Fireball technique!)" As he finished, barely a puff of smoke came out from each clone. "Ugh… I can't do it!" said Naruto, frustrated at his failure.

"That's to be expected," said Kakashi after the smoke disappeared, "You're not a fire type like Sasuke, so your powers regarding fire are a little weak… but do it again anyway."

Nodding, each of the clones performed the technique again. "Katon! Goukakyu no jutsu!" Again, just a puff of smoke. "What's the point of this, Kakashi-sensei? I just can't do it."

"So you say. Dispel your clones." Naruto did as instructed and, as usual, felt woozy when the clones were gone. "Now do it again," instructed Kakashi.

Naruto was getting tired of this. "Katon! Goukakyuu no Jutsu!" He expected another whiff of smoke, but instead a tremendous fireball escaped Naruto's mouth. "Woah!" he exclaimed after the fire stopped, "What th- I mean, how did- What happened?"

"Congratulations," said Kakashi, "You've just learned the secret behind the Sharingan." In response to Naruto's confused expression, he continued, "The way the Sharingan works is that it takes in the seals and type of the move and performs it over and over, thousands of times, in the user's mind. But because of your training, you can just do it manually. And due to that, there is virtually no technique you cannot learn, except for bloodline limits that combine two elements."

The confused expression on Naruto's face soon became an excited smile. "That's incredible, sensei! If I can do that… I'll be unstoppable!"

"That's right, Naruto… but don't let that get to your head. It's interesting to think that Orochimaru wanted Sasuke for his Sharingan… but he failed to realize that there were certain techniques, such as the Rasengan, that could not be copied with those eyes. If he had wanted all the techniques…" Kakashi smiled at his pupil, "Then he should have chosen you, Naruto."

Naruto laughed. "Well, it doesn't matter either way! He's dead and Sasuke's back here! What matters is my own training!"

"That's right."

Towards the end of the day, Kakashi told Naruto to stop and get some rest, for his twenty clones had been at it nonstop and the rest had already gained several new techniques, many of each type. As they took a break, Kakashi looked at his student and asked, "Naruto… you have a faraway look about you. Is something on your mind?"

"Huh?" said Naruto, looking back at his sensei. "Oh, no, it's just that…"

"Naruto, do you honestly think you can lie to me?"

Naruto sighed a resigned sigh. "I guess not… but the thing is, I can't tell you what it is because-"

"You had to promise not to tell because it's a very dangerous secret, right?" Kakashi finished for him. "Well, you don't have to break your promise if I already know."

"Sensei, what are you saying?"

"I figured out the reason for Hinata's shyness and why she wears that jacket in extremely hot weather long ago, Naruto. Not all of us are as logically slow as you,"

"Sensei…"

"Just kidding. Besides, I used to walk by the Hyuuga mansion a lot… and Hinata's screams were pretty loud, especially when you send chakra to your ears."

Naruto took on a worried expression. "Y-you haven't told anyone, have you?" he asked.

Raising his one eyebrow, Kakashi replied, "Naruto, if I had told the village about a potentially crippling secret like that, do you believe it'd be possible for me to be sitting here talking to you? Not even I can fight off both branches of the Hyuuga."

"So what should I do?"

Kakashi's expression became solemn. "Naruto… I know it's tough for you to sit idly by while a good friend of yours is in pain… but it was a while ago, and that family needs to sort this thing out on their own."

"But I can't just do nothing!" Naruto replied angrily.

It was Kakashi's turn to sigh. "Alright. If you absolutely feel you need to do something, why don't you talk to her? You can't go against her will on this one, Naruto."

Taking this as an acceptable answer, Naruto responded, "Well, alright… next weekend, I'll do just that."

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

As Naruto sat down at the stool in Ichiraku, he began waiting anxiously for Hinata to arrive. "Finally, it's the weekend," he muttered, "I wonder what Hinata'll say."

"What I'll say to what?" Hinata asked, sitting next to Naruto in what had become her reserved stool.

"Ah! Hinata-chan! Good to see you!"

"You too, Naruto-kun!" she replied happily, "Now what was it you wanted to ask me?"

Naruto's face fell. "Hinata-chan… regarding what you told me last week…"

"Yes?" she urged softly.

"I was wondering… if there's anything I can do for you."

"What do you mean, Naruto-kun?"

"After hearing what you told me… I can't just lie around and do nothing… there's got to be something I can do to help you. Please, tell me, anything at all, I'll do it!" he said eagerly.

For a moment, there was silence, which Hinata broke by saying, "Naruto-kun… don't you realize that you already have?"

"Huh?" Naruto was confused. When was this?

"Naruto-kun, when you defeated Neji-niisan three years ago, you changed everything in my life," continued Hinata. "Both Neji-niisan and my father were nicer to me… they actually valued my existence as a person and a member of the family. My father started talking to me without any sort of hatred or resentment in his voice and Neji-niisan and I were friends like when we were little. Don't you see, Naruto-kun?" She smiled at him as he took in all of this, "Because of you, my life has been happier than it had been for the past twelve years."

"Hinata-chan, surely I can't be credited with all of that…"

"But you can, Naruto-kun. Everything good in my life has come from you." "The saddest moment in my life since then was when you left for three years," she thought as she looked at her love, "But even when you were gone, and though I missed you terribly, I still thought of you as my savior, the hero who brought light in my life." "Thank you, Naruto-kun."

Finally, he smiled back at her. "You're welcome, Hinata-chan. Now come on, let's eat!"

"Right!" she replied cheerfully. "Yes, thank you, for more things than you could ever know."

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

The training continued, month after month. Naruto kept seeing Hinata for their dinner together at Ichiraku, something they both appreciated greatly. The boy had also learned several new techniques and had brought his second sight to a greater level, making him capable of reading people's emotions through it. Sasuke and Sakura had also been spending time together, hanging out whenever Sasuke had a break from training. Otherwise, Sakura went to visit Naruto or practiced her medical ninjutsu in the Hokage building. Sasuke had progressed tremendously in Shogi. He got closer and closer to defeating Shikamaru twice in a row, until three days before the chuunin exam…

"Well, I guess it's over, Sasuke-san. Your training is complete."

Sasuke let out a sigh of relief. "Finally," he said, "I thought I'd never get you twice in a row."

"You've even surpassed Asuma now. If you don't mind, I'd like to play you again sometime," said Shikamaru.

"Sure, but not any time soon," replied Sasuke. "I think I've had enough Shogi for a few years."

Shikamaru laughed. "Alright, I guess it's not really your thing. Well, you'd better get out of here and spend your time doing whatever you want before you have to go to take the exam."

"Yeah. Good luck with Temari," said Sasuke with a smug grin as he got up to leave, "And… thanks, Shikamaru."

The chuunin smiled. "Don't mention it."

Sasuke walked out of the Nara house and onto the main street of the town. "I should go find Sakura," he thought, "She'll probably be in the Hokage building… I'll surprise her by showing up. She'll like that." Smiling, the Uchiha traveled to the building with the kanji for fire on it. As he made his was up the stairs, he wondered, "Where is she? Perhaps she's talking to the Fifth." He arrived at the door to Tsunade's office, but before he could knock, he heard two voices speaking.

"It's almost time, Tsunade," said the first voice. Sasuke recognized it as Naruto's teacher, Jiraiya.

"I know… what do you think we should do?" asked the Fifth.

"I've been speaking to Kakashi and he says Naruto should be able to handle it."

"Can he really? As Naruto's teacher for the past three years, do you think that he's ready to stand up to Uchiha Itachi?"

"What?" thought Sasuke, his heart pumping fast, "Itachi's coming? Here?"

"It's not like we have a choice. He's going to attack Naruto in the midst chuunin exams."

Sasuke was even more outraged. "So this entire thing was just a ruse? They wanted me there so that Naruto would be sure to be there to stop me?" Suddenly, he was struck with a tremendous headache. The world around him was spinning and he could no longer hear what was being said inside the office. "I need to get out of here" was the only thing he could think. He ran back down the stairs and out of the building, where he smacked straight into Sakura.

"Oh, hey Sasuke-kun, how are y- Sasuke-kun? What's wrong?" she asked, noticing that his eyes had turned into Sharingan.

"You… knew, didn't you?" he said in a low, trembling voice.

"Knew what? Sasuke-kun, what are you-"

"Don't toy with me!" Sasuke yelled, his voice suddenly becoming extremely fierce, "You're the Hokage's pupil! You had to have known!"

"Sasuke-kun, please…" said Sakura, cowering slightly at her love's rage. "I-I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Don't play dumb, Sakura! You knew that Itachi was coming back to Konoha! Everyone knew except me!"

"What? Sasuke-kun, I didn't know anything about your brother, I swear!" Tears were starting to fall out of her eyes.

"Yeah? Well everyone seemed pretty content not telling me anything about it! They should have told me, they should have…"

"Sasuke-kun… I'm sorry, I didn't know… please calm down," she pleaded.

"Don't tell me to calm down, Sakura!" he yelled, giving more volume to his voice. "I can't believe they did this… I can't deal with this," With those simple words, he bounded out of Sakura's sight.

Sakura dropped to her knees, crying. "Sasuke-kun… why? What did I do to deserve that…?"

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

"Ah, training's finally over," Naruto said with relief. "Now for a good night's rest, and then two days later I take the exam with Sasuke… and someone else. I wonder, who should I-" Suddenly, he stopped dead in his tracks as he saw what was before him. "Sakura-chan?" Sakura was huddled on the ground, tears streaming down her face and sobbing loudly. "Sakura-chan, what's wrong?" he called to her, running to her side.

"N-Naruto…" she mumbled from her sobs, "What is wrong with who I am? What do I do that's so terrible…?"

"Sakura-chan, what are you talking about?" Naruto asked, leaning down next to her. "There's nothing wrong with who you are, nothing!"

"No," Sakura protested, "If there was nothing wrong with me, then… then Sasuke-kun wouldn't have gotten so mad!" She began crying more heavily as she said this.

"Sasuke…" Naruto was angered by this. Sasuke had done something to Sakura to make her this ball of sadness on the ground. "Sakura-chan, what did Sasuke do?"

"N-nothing," she said through her tears, "It was all me…"

"Don't give me that, Sakura-chan! Tell me what happened!" He softened up his tone, leaning closer to her. "Please Sakura-chan, I want to help…" He stood up, taking her hand and standing her up as well.

She nodded slowly and began to retell the events of the day. "I don't know what happened… I don't know why he would yell at me like that… he was so angry…" she finished.

Naruto sat, mouth open in shock at what had happened. "Sakura-chan… I think I know what made Sasuke do this…"

"Y-you do?"

"Itachi, as he said, is coming back to Konoha in less than a week… nobody told Sasuke because, well… they knew he'd do this. But Sakura-chan, this isn't your fault," Naruto told her.

'Y-Yes it is… If I had known, then I could have told him, and he… he wouldn't have…" she couldn't finish, as she began crying again.

"But you couldn't have! Granny Tsunade would have told you that you couldn't tell, and you can't betray the Hokage. Listen, Sakura… Sasuke's going through a bad time, but there's no fault with you! If he doesn't see the great friend he has in you, the beautiful, wonderful person that has cared about him and done nothing but train for him for the past three years… then I don't care what clan he's from! He's the biggest fool in the town!"

"Naruto…"

"I promise you, Sakura-chan, I'll make everything right. I'll talk to Sasuke and if I have to, I'll beat him up! Things will be just like they were three years ago, no, better! So please…" he pleaded, "Please stop crying, Sakura-chan… I can't stand to see you cry. Please," he pleaded, "I'll make another promise of a lifetime."

As Naruto finished his words, Sakura looked at him wide-eyed. Naruto's speech had touched her greatly and had made her realize something. The man in front of her wasn't just her stupid, goofy friend. He was so much more. He was kind, and gentle, and loving to all. She viewed him, tears still flowing down her face. Slowly, she leaned closer to his face, and then, as she approached…

She kissed him.

Naruto was stunned for a moment, but did the only thing he could on instinct. He kissed her back, at the same time motioning that they should get out of the street. Seeing the agreement in her eyes, the two walked toward Sakura's house, still locked in their embrace. Naruto's heart was in an excited panic. But as another tear fell, making contact with each of their cheeks, Naruto suddenly stopped.

"Wh-what's wrong…?" asked Sakura, pulling back, "I-is it something I did, or…?"

"No," answered Naruto, his voice gentle. "It's something that you're going to regret doing later on."

"What d-do you mean?" Sakura asked, extremely confused.

"Sakura-chan… this isn't right. We aren't right. Look at yourself… you're kissing me, however passionately, through tears. The man you love isn't me, Sakura-chan. It's Sasuke, and however much of a jerk he may be, that will never change."

"What are you s-saying…? I thought… I thought you had feelings for me all this time!" she said, still not understanding.

Naruto smiled a sad smile. "It's true. For the longest time, I loved you. Or at least, I thought I did. But now… I'm not so sure. What I do know is this: You and I are not meant to be together. You and Sasuke are. And because both of you are my friends, I'm going to make sure that that happens."

"Oh…" she approached him, but instead of kissing him again, merely hugged him. "Naruto, you're the best friend I could ever ask for."

"The same goes for you, Sakura-chan," he replied. "The same goes for you…" Naruto bade her goodnight and the two parted, each feeling better than they did minutes ago.

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

Meanwhile, back at the street where Naruto had found Sakura, Hinata stat a few feet from where the two had met, huddled behind a wall, crying. Memories from minutes ago passed through her mind.

"Oh, it's only a few more days until the chuunin exam… I'll have to cheer Naruto-kun on! Maybe I'll get him something for good luck," Hinata mused as she walked toward her house. Suddenly, two sounds reached her ears as she turned the corner. One was the sound of her beloved's voice, a worried tone to it. The other was the sound of sobbing.

Stepping back behind the wall, Hinata said "Byakugan!" softly, activating her bloodline limit. The forms of Naruto and Sakura appeared through the wall. She felt guilty for spying like this, but maybe if she found out the situation, she could help Sakura out. But mere seconds after she'd enhanced her eyesight, she had it revert back to normal. Hinata had just seen something completely shocking, something that rattled her all the way to her toes. It was something that immediately made tears fall out of her eyes.

She had seen the man she adores kissing another woman.

"No…" Hinata thought, trying to trick herself into thinking that the incident didn't happen. "No…" As much as she tried "No!" she said aloud, the salty droplets spilling on the floor. "It wasn't supposed to be this way," she said to the air. "This isn't how it should have happened!" she screamed, and then buried her head in her knees, crying until she could not produce any more tears.

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

Woah! Did somebody call the drama llama? I hate to leave you guys on a cliffhanger, but it makes you drawn into the story… right? Or maybe it'll make you hate me and stop reading. I'll take that risk. Even if you do hate me, please review! Your reviews push me to greater heights!