I do not own Naruto…

Sitting on a long bench underneath a makeshift shed, Hinata reached for her canteen and took a drink of water before gently wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She had taken it on herself to introduce a small training area behind the academy. It wasn't in the original plan until much later but she thought that with an open area equipped with some basic training apparatus to flaunt, she might actually be able to draw out more enthusiasm among the soon-to-be shinobi of the village.

Oiru wasn't a big village to start with but it sure covered some contrasting landscapes. From an overall point of view, it was a beautiful village with picturesque scenery of sturdy wooden houses built around lush foliage. But then, there were also many small parts of the village that were barren, save for some measly, low-growing shrubs. These parts however, were what gave the village its name, for the earth on the barren area was made up of oil, black, oily sand to be exact – a compound of oil and sand that gave a thick, almost greasy, offensive appearance. Yet it was also these unpleasant-looking parts that were drawing in too much interest and Muro Kazuhiro, being the head of the village, knew that he had to do something to safeguard his village before outsiders start plundering into this land. Oil was highly priced everywhere and Oiru was starting to attract too much attention for its own good. That was reason enough to start a ninja school in the village. The villagers badly needed to be able to protect their own land.

Nevertheless, the characteristics of the place didn't really entice Hinata in the first place, nor did it bother her... not when her spirit was somewhere else and not when she was constantly carrying a heavy weight in her heart. It hadn't been that obvious at first but as the days passed, she began to realize that the ache within her chest wouldn't go away – in fact, it was slowly, albeit surely, draining her very soul.

Heaving a sigh, Hinata reached for her lunch box and gently opened the lid to some plain rice and chicken braised with pumpkin. Then, she drew out a pair of chopsticks and a spoon from her lunch bag.

"Hinata!" Muro Kazuo called out just as she was about to start eating.

"Ka… Kazuo-san," Hinata softly muttered. Admittedly, she had been trying to avoid the brown-haired male, choosing to work on the training grounds all by herself instead just to stay away from his wearisome presence. The young master seemed madly in love with her, something that had worried Hinata a lot since her arrival to the Land of Oil. He was always around, either with an excuse to pick up some shinobi skills and learn more about its function and connection, or to assist her in getting acquainted with the people and places within Oiru. Naturally, she wondered if he was even interested in the whole operation of the academy.

"I've been looking for you," the curly-haired male said as he pulled her lunch box away and put its lid back on. "Don't eat this. Let's go for something different," Kazuo continued, as he hurriedly put her lunch box, chopsticks and spoon back into her bag and quickly grabbed her wrist.

"But…"

"Come on, let's go."

"Kazuo-san," Hinata uttered as she stood up and quickly pulled her hand away. The young male was being a little too friendly, too affectionate. It bothered her that he was being so nice all the time.

"There's this place that serves the best ramen in the whole of this village," Kazuo continued, oblivious to her withdrawal. "You must try it."

"Ra…ramen?"

"Yeah, ramen… You do take ramen, don't you?"

"I…" the dark-haired lady deliberated on her answer. She had always loved ramen, or rather, she had always loved the one person who simply adored ramen. And because of his love for the food, she had somehow grown to love eating it too. But now, being so far apart from him, she couldn't bring herself to take on the noodles. In truth, just a mention of the word 'ramen' was enough to elicit an emotional reaction from her already frail spirit.

Yet, the young Muro wouldn't allow her time to make up her mind as he once again grabbed her wrist and pulled her along. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll like it…"

%%%

Hinata sat, unmoving, inside a small restaurant, staring at the bowl of steaming hot ramen before her. By some means, she already knew that a simple bowl of noodles could draw out scores of memories of the times she had spent with Naruto – happy memories that would only add to her torment, now that things have turned out the way it had. That was reason enough for her reluctance to join the young master in the ramen shop in the first place. She didn't want to recall the painful part of the past which a harmless bowl of ramen could so easily bring forth. She didn't want to acknowledge just how much she was actually hurting.

"It's really good, you know. You can trust my taste on this. Just give it a try," Kazuo urged with much enthusiasm as he placed a pair of chopsticks over her bowl and then, picked himself a pair and started stirring his ramen.

Hinata quietly inhaled as she reached for the chopsticks before looking up. Then, all of a sudden, she could see Naruto slurping ramen right before her. Her husband looked up and grinned cheerfully.

"You know, Teuchi's ramen is really good," Naruto commented before his face saddened. "…but it's not as good as yours."

Her heart sank at those words and Hinata could feel guilt growing within her and tears slowly stinging her eyes. Then, Naruto's blonde hair and blue eyes slowly blurred and was gradually being replaced with curly, brown hair and even darker brown eyes.

"Hinata?" Kazuo quizzed as he leaned forward, curious to know why Hinata's eyes were suddenly teary. "Are you okay?"

She inhaled sharply through her nose and swallowed hard in an attempt to clear her mind and stop herself from actually crying. Subsequently, out of genuine concern, the curly-haired male placed a hand over hers and gave it a squeeze.

"You missed home?" Kazuo warily asked.

"I…" she didn't know how to answer.

She also didn't pull her hand away like how she normally would. Perhaps, she was tired – physically tired from trying to keep herself away from the pale, young man all the time. Not only that, she was also tired from keeping herself as busy as she could during daytime so that she could put her thoughts of Naruto aside as best as she could. But then, that had been ineffective in every way because, she would only end up staying up every night, often crying herself to sleep just thinking of him and about how everything had fallen apart between them in just two months.

Alternatively, perhaps she truly needed someone whom she could confide in, who could comfort her and tell her that everything would be fine when she finally get back. Someone who could provide her that little bit of support she badly needed and restore her faith that was slowly draining away. Then again, perhaps it just felt good to have someone who seemed to truly love her for once and who would so candidly display his affections towards her without hesitation.

Hinata chose to keep quiet as she contemplated Muro Kazuo's stance. By and large, he was a lot like her – hopelessly in love with someone who would never be able to return the affection. At least that was what she thought, because Naruto didn't even deny he still had feelings for his old teammate. How then, would he be able to actually love her when his heart was somewhere else? She would have remained in Konoha if her husband had refuted her claim. She would have stayed back if he had been more adamant.

With a sigh Hinata finally pulled her hand away. It would be unfair to give Kazuo a wrong impression. Their relationship, if any, could never work out. She didn't want history to repeat itself here. She didn't want him to feel like how she was feeling – like a fool, a lovesick fool. She was in love with Naruto, before and always. And even though it really hurt to admit the fact, she really hoped that he would actually come to love her.

"I'm sorry, Kazuo-san, I was just…" she trailed off as she started to gently stir her ramen.

"You were thinking of him weren't you? …Your husband?" the brown-haired male knowingly questioned.

It was too obvious that Kazuo hated the fact that Hinata was married. He had been shocked to find out about it when she first decided to inform him of her marital status but he had pushed it aside, unfazed by that little fact. He did have three years to work on getting her to change her mind. Nevertheless, he also realized that every time he thought she had become more comfortable with him, she would quickly withdraw and then, put a gap between them.

Not eager to see Hinata withdraw again, the young master kept his hands to himself but in frustration, started jabbing his chopsticks into his bowl before shoving some noodles into his mouth and slurping aloud. Then, without looking up, he swallowed and asked, "Did he like ramen…?"

%%%

Sasuke stood panting as the white electrical chakra of his chidori slowly fizzled out and disappeared from his hand. Standing meters away from him, Naruto flashed him a triumphant smile before he slumped onto the ground, equally breathless. All around the two friends, trees were literally splintered while big rocks and boulders had exploded into pieces where the rasengan and chidori had collided.

"So, was that fun?" Sakura sarcastically asked as she naturally rushed towards the Uchiha.

Both men were injured, although not seriously. But that was nothing compared to the satisfaction they have just had from the overdue exchange. Naruto couldn't remember exactly when they had had their last sparring session. All he could recall was, it had been before Sasuke and Sakura got married and that was more than a year ago.

Lying on the ground, the Hokage watched his friend slowly slumped down as his wife started to administer healing on parts of his body that were injured, while loudly expressing her distaste for their earlier exchange. More than two months ago, he would have resented that very scene. But now, as he lay on the ground, a small smile started to form on his lips as he involuntarily put his hand onto where he knew he could feel a pair of rings resting under his shirt.

Somehow, he realized that things have changed… he has changed. It had been difficult and distressing when he had first started to pay the Uchihas a visit. But despite his dilemma, he had continued to impose upon his friends, showing up for dinner every night ever since. He couldn't deny the first few days of his stopover had been dreadful. It had been tough for him to even bring his head up to look at his old teammates then, so all he could do was, whizzed through dinner and promptly depart. Initially, he didn't know why he had persisted. At that time, he had thought that it was because he had wanted to see Sakura. Then again, there was Sasuke, and he really didn't like to see the two of them together. After that, he slowly came to understand that this whole imposition on his part, whether spontaneous or planned, wasn't about them – it was about him. He needed to come to terms with his inner enemy. He needed to get out of his very miserable situation. He needed to find a way to let go of his feelings for Sakura and, the best approach was to actually come face to face with her… and her husband. That was why he had persisted.

Nevertheless, throughout the whole ordeal, he had found solace in the form of a pair of rings sitting on his chest, hidden underneath his shirt. Every time he left the Uchiha's place, he would put his hand on his front and feel for the rings. It had started as a naive act of consolation for himself and he probably felt childish about it then. But at the outset, he really needed to be consoled and in some ways, he believed that the rings were able to provide him with that little support he needed.

As the days passed, things started to ease up. He realized that being exposed to actuality in the harshest way, had in one way or another, forced him to accept the reality of the whole situation. It had also helped him realized exactly how foolish he had been. All the same, with that acceptance and his eventual realization, he was able to slowly let go of what he once thought, was his undying love for Sakura.

So, as he lay on the ground, allowing his body to heal itself, Naruto kept his hand over the rings. This time however, it wasn't so much for the need to be consoled. He was actually feeling composed, even contented. Composed, because he no longer felt any form of resentment towards his two best friends. Contented, because he was finally able to overcome the enemy within him.

On top of that, he felt that he was able to once again, have that close, unadulterated relationship with both of his ex-teammates, especially Sasuke. They had gone through too much together in the past and it had been his very own bitterness that had somehow, put a wall between them. He realized now that the Uchiha probably knew of his feelings towards Sakura. Then again, hadn't he been childishly displaying his affection towards her ever since their younger days? The Hokage wouldn't admit that he had been obvious about his feelings lately but maybe, he had been trying a little too hard to appear gracious.

Naruto sighed aloud as he thought about how tactless he had been. Although he was feeling much better now, he realized that one person had been truly hurt throughout the whole process. Now, rubbing the rings under his shirt, he closed his eyes and quietly whispered, "Hinata."

"Time to go," Sasuke called out to him, many minutes later just as he was about to doze off.

The Hokage turned around to see the Uchiha standing beside him, completely healed.

"Do you need Sakura's help?"

"Nah," Naruto replied, as he slowly stood up, stretched his hands and yawned. "I've fully recovered."

"Told you," Sakura said as she walked up to them. "Let's go now. I still need to prepare dinner."

"Uh… why don't the two of you go ahead without me tonight," Naruto sheepishly uttered as he rubbed the back of his head.

"You're not coming?" the pink-haired lady asked, a little surprised.

"Actually… no."

"Why?" Sakura couldn't help prying. Naruto had been showing up in her house for dinner every night for more than two months already and she and Sasuke actually expected him to continue to stop over until Hinata returned. Well, at least she had thought he would continue to impose upon them. Sasuke however, seemed to have been counting down the days till he finally stop appearing at their house.

"I thought I'd drop by at Teuchi's place tonight."

"Ramen?" Sasuke casually asked.

Naruto smiled. He was really feeling a lot more relaxed and the part of him that had been afraid to face his inner enemy had been overcome. "Yup, ramen."

%%%

It had been a long time since he had stepped into the small restaurant. Ramen Ichiraku however, looked the same to him.

"Hokage-sama!" Ayame, the owner's daughter called out aloud, surprised and excited at the same time. But before Naruto could dismiss her enthusiastic acknowledgement, the other patrons inside the little eatery had turned to look, some greeting him while others nodded their regards.

Naruto gave a curt nod in general before suddenly spying something that made him stop in his track. The white eyes. He had not seen them for a long time and it didn't occur to him that just having a glimpse could actually cause an effect on his part. Unsurprisingly, his gaze lingered upon the Hyuga as he automatically moved forward and took a seat beside him.

Hyuga Ko immediately stood up and gave a deep bow, "Hokage-sama."

"Please… no. We're not in Hiashi's house right now so… just, just Naruto, okay?"

The Hyuga took a few seconds to process the situation before giving another bow, "Naruto-sama."

Defeated, Naruto gave a sigh. He had forgotten how rigid the Hyugas could be with their all-too-proper upbringing and general conduct. "Just sit," he finally ordered.

In truth, Hinata's family consisted of many people… too many. And then, they were split into those from the main family and those of the branch. Changing the mindsets of the Hyuga and getting Hyuga Hiashi to stop dividing the clan into main and branch was what he had always wanted to do but, that would take time… and a lot of convincing on his part. On a different note, Naruto had always found it a little tricky to remember the names of most of the Hyugas. To him, they all looked the same – fair-skinned, black-haired and with featureless white eyes. Other than that, they were almost always seen in either their traditional loose-robes, complete with brown haori or in standard shinobi uniforms.

Therefore, at that very moment, the Hokage found himself racking his brain, just trying to recall the name of the man sitting beside him – fair-skinned, black-haired, with featureless white eyes and, who at the moment, was wearing the traditional Hyuga robe. All he could remember was he used to be Hinata's personal guardian… or was he the one? Had he really been paying that little attention to his wife or had she neglected to enlighten him with sufficient information to her family and clan? Somehow, he had never really given that much thought and suddenly, he wondered how it had been for his wife, growing up as a Hyuga, wearing the conventional Hyuga robes and bearing those same eyes.

Hopelessly, Naruto could only sit and offer a smile to Ko before Ayame carefully placed a bowl of piping hot ramen before him.

"Ah, thanks Ayame. Still remember what I liked, huh?

"Miso ramen with extra pork," the man beside him casually offered causing the Hokage and the shop owner's daughter to turn towards him, surprised with his knowledge.

"How'd you know, Ko?" Ayame asked.

"I happened to be… um, used to be Hinata-sama's personal guardian, Ayame-san."

"Well, off course you'd know. Silly me."

That little exchange was all Naruto needed to obtain two facts that he badly needed to be familiar with – the man's name was Ko and yes, he used to be Hinata's guardian.

"So, Hinata used to come here?" the blue-eyed Hokage casually asked, happy to be able to finally start a harmless conversation with the Hyuga.

"Actually, there was this one time when she would come everyday for two whole weeks," Ko reminisced. "She had wanted to learn how to cook ramen then."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Apparently, he had never thought to ask Hinata how she'd learnt to cook ramen before.

"I remember that time," Ayame laughed. "She was being real silly, you know? She'd come, order the same thing you would order, eat and taste the noodles ever so thoroughly and then leave. And she would do the same thing everyday!" The lady gave a hearty laugh. "She could have just told me that she wanted to learn how to cook for you, the Uzumaki Naruto who had been frequenting our place ever since he could walk… I'm sure father would have been willing to teach her. It's not like she's going to be opening a ramen shop or something. And you, Naruto, had always held a special place in my father's heart. So, for you, I'm sure he'll relent."

The blonde-haired male gave an awkward smile as he started to rub the back of his head.

"Hinata could have easily used her Byakugan too..." Ayame continued.

"Hinata-sama would never do something like that," Ko quickly defended.

"I know, I know," the young lady said as she dismissively waved that little statement off.

Ko sighed. "Well, you know what happened after that, right?"

Ayame smiled but Naruto found himself incapable of answering the question.

"I've never had that much ramen in my life before," the Hyuga admitted.

The shop owner's daughter laughed even louder while the Hokage found himself suddenly very interested with whatever Ko was imparting.

"I'm sure you know she took three long months to master the ramen dish. But, did she tell you that we had to be her guinea-pigs?" Ko gave a smile as he shook his head. "Momo-baachan had to start hiding any available ingredient away and Hanabi-sama had to pretend to be training with Hiashi-sama all the time." With that thought, the short-haired male actually gave a chuckle. "And the rest of us had to practically run away from Hinata-sama every time she emerged from the kitchen."

Ayame gave another hearty laugh, "Like I told you just now, she should have just asked my father."

"Ah, you know Hinata-sama. She would never try to bother anyone if she could help it."

"It turned out alright," Naruto finally said. Much better, actually.

"Off course it turned out alright," the lady of the shop said. "You'd be coming here more often if it had been otherwise."

Naruto grinned uneasily before deciding to turn his attention to the bowl of noodles in front of him.

"She was really proud of herself for that," Ko continued softly, as if talking to himself, his eyes unfocussed as he recalled the past. "There were so many other occasions when she had triumphed… and so many times when she had been able to surpass her father's expectations." Then, turning to the Hokage, he sighed. "If only Hiashi-sama had taken more time to see her differently and not always placed her as second best…"

Naruto stopped chewing on his noodles for a while, allowing the details to sink in. The word 'second-best' stood out like a sore thumb and for a moment, he could actually feel guilt descending upon him. But just as he was slowly processing the circumstances, Hyuga Ko stood up abruptly, realizing that he had passed on too much.

"It's getting late. I have to get going. Good night, Hoka… um, Naruto-sama," the dark-haired male said as he gave a deep bow.

Naruto could only give a nod as he watched the Hyuga turned to leave.

Then, just as Ko stepped out of the restaurant, the Hokage called out, "Ko, uh… Can you let Hiashi know that I'd like to join him for dinner say, tomorrow…?"

A/N: My thanks to all who have reviewed the previous chapter and once again, to those I couldn't reach, I'd really like to express how appreciative I have been of the reviews. To Jimbo, Hana, bibbab, naruhina, The Lazy Feline and misha48, thanks for your reviews!

If you guys have been following the comments, you'd probably realize that I've been getting lesser and lesser challenging reviews. I wonder why… Have you guys completely given up on me? I hope not. Lol! I believe I still need to be assessed and criticized. So please, don't start getting lenient now and hopefully, you guys won't give up on me. Then again, positive comments are also very much appreciated!

Thanks!

- softwinds -