Now this is the longest I haven't updated!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY HINATA!!! (Yesterday)
She is my FAVORITE character!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but I wish I owned Hinata!

Chapter 7: Day 2

Naruto was the first to wake up. He couldn't sleep last night; he didn't know why.

He was lying on his back staring up at the tent roof. After a few more minutes of staring, he sighed and got up.

Luckily, he found a creek nearby, so he went to wash his face. When he got back, he looked at his surroundings. He didn't get to look at it very well last night.

They set up a tent underneath what looks like a bunch of leaves. There were two trees far enough apart that they had branches with growing leaves touching each other. Out of boredom, he climbed up one of the trees. What he found on top fascinated him. From the top, the bunch of leaves looked like a trampoline! Near one of the sides was a little dent, which he assumed that either it's been there for a long time, or someone recently dropped there...

Yeah right! Who would drop from the sky?! Unless it's a bird, he chuckled to himself as he imagined a bird falling. He looked more closely at the dent, and saw that it was too big to be a bird. He was going to think some more when he heard Kiba.

"Naruto, what're you doing up there? C'mon, it's time to eat!" Kiba yelled at Naruto.

Naruto jumped down from the tree. Their breakfast was two eggs Neji found. They were already cooking over a hot fire.

As they ate, Neji announced, "You know, while I was looking for eggs, I found two big twisted trees. Their branches were twisting around each other, so it looks like it's hard to go through. However, I found a hole on the righ side."

Everybody (except the pets) stopped eating and stared at Neji. Shino gulped down his food.

"So you think that Hinata or her captors could have gone through there?" he asked. Neji nodded.

"We should check it out now, then!" Naruto suddenly stood up, not feeling hungry anymore.

"Hey, I'm starving here! If those two guys are there, I can't fight with a grumbling stomach!" Kiba complained.

"He's right," the Hyuga resumed eating his egg. "We need our strenght first."

Hesitating, Naruto sat back down. Don't worry, Hinata. We're coming!

In the end, Hinata ended up sleeping on the bed.

She woke up after a well rested sleep. First, being woken up by two goons; second, sleeping in a hollow tree on a dead deer; third, a bed. It feels great!

She smiled to herself, then looked down so she can silently thank Ryu.

To her surprise, Ryu wasn't on his sleeping bag. However, there was a note (A/N: Ryu has paper, a feather pen, and ink out of berries. Weird, huh?). She took the note and read this:

'Morning Hinata!
I had to do some things, so I won't be here when you wake up.
Stay safe!
Your friend, Ryu
PS You can get breakfast from the storage tree.

Ryu's handwriting was kind of messy; it reminded her of something.

Oh yes, it was like Naruto's handwriting.

Naruto.

Hinata realized she hadn't been thinking of him for a while. The loud, blond, and destructive ninja of the Leaf Village. She giggled as she remembered everything he's done.

After a few more queit memories, she got up. She didn't change to her nightgown (she didn't want to), so she was ready to leave. All she needed was to find her shoes. Ah, there it is.

She put them on and headed outside. She smelled the fresh morning air all around her. She loves that smell.

Now where's that tree? she looked around her.

Then, Hinata found the path that she and Ryu took. She decided to follow it. After a few minutes, she found the trees with the twisty branches.

Memories of that night flooded Hinata's mind. The capture, the fall, the running; everything! She even remembered the small hole she made (she found that too).

Surprisingly, the Hyuga heirress wasn't that disturbed with her memories. She had good memories to go along with it, like meeting Ryu, her new friend.

So she shrugged it off and went to the front of the left tree. She was about to move the big branch covering the hole, when she smelled something.

Do I smell, eggs? she asked herself. She shook the thought out of her head. It must have been her imagination; who would be (besides Ryu) in the middle of the forest cooking eggs?

She got the branch out and searched for a good breakfast. She decided to take the box of fruits and vegetables, and the box with fox meat (A/N: Fox meat. That kind of scares me. It makes me think of Naruto. Naruto meat. AAAHH!)

It was when she was carrying the surprisingly light boxes that she remembered another thing.

She had never seen these food here.

When she was looking for a place to stay on the night she was kidnapped, she did find this tree, but not the things inside. With her Byakugan, she should have seen that there were things inside this tree.

You must have been sleepy, Hinata. You couldn't concentrate, she told herself, but she was getting suspicious.

Again, she shook all thoughts out and continued to carry the boxes to the cave.

The cave. The cave in the mountain. Why was there a mountain? When she was being carried in the air, she didn't see any mountain coming their way.

But remember Hinata: you were falling from the sky. You can't notice anything when you think you're about to die!

Hinata siged; she was starting to argue with herself. She continued to walk, but in the direction of the creek for she remembered she needed to wash the food.

---

When she reached the cave, Hinata started a fire. She also had a pot of boiling water so she can make some soup.

She was just about ready to eat when Ryu showed up.

"Hey, you made breakfast!" was the first thing he said when he entered. Realizing this, he quickly said, "Good morning Hinata!"

Hinata, though, didn't notice this and replied with a good morning to Ryu.

Ryu sat down on one of the logs and picked up a plate that Hinata prepared for him. "Thanks!" he said, already taking the first bite of the fox meat.

---

When the two were almost done, there was a sudden gust of wind that blew the fire out.

Everything inside the cave blew everywhere. Hinata covered herself with her arms.

When the wind died out, standing in the entrance of the cave were Kiro and Jug.

"You know, Princess," Jug started to say, "what you did to me two nights ago was real painful. Now it's time to return the favor."

Hinata recognized that voice immediately, even though she hadn't heard of it for a day (A/N: This sentence doesn't sound right)

"Hold on Jug," the skinny one was saying. "I just remembered. We haven't introduced ourselves yet," he looked at Hinata, who was looking at them. "Hi, I'm Kirotumaru, but you can just call me Kiro."

"And I'm Jug, just Jug."

"We already know who you are, so an introductory from you is unnecessary. We're here to bring you to our master."

"And maybe a boulder or two will put you out long enough us to take you there!"

"Now, now, Jug. I'm sure she didn't mean to kick you there. We don't need to drop a boulder on her."

"Kiro, you don't know how hard she kicked me!"

"Our mission was to take her to him safely!"

At this, Jug closed his mouth. "Tch!"

By now, Hinata was already in a fighting position. Ryu was standing, but he wasn't doing anything. Just standing there.

Kiro looked around the cave. "Master said the person he sent out already started the mission. But look; instead, he gave her a luxurious time!" he said with disgust.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" Ryu suddenly cried out. Kiro, Jug, and Hinata all looked at him surprisingly.

"Right then, we need to proceed with the mission," Kiro said.

Jug performed lightning quick hand signs. When he finished, he held out his hands. "Black Spit Jutsu!"

Out came black goo from Jug's hands, which wrapped around the female Hyuga.

"HINATA!!" Ryu shouted.

Captured again! What's wrong with me?! Hinata started to panic. She was back in the situation of that night, except this time, Neji wasn't there. Instead, there was Ryu, which was good, but he wasn't doing anything. He was standing there with his mouth open.

"Ry--" black stuff covered Hinata's mouth. Before she had a time to react, she felt a hard fist on her cheek. The next thing she knew, she was flying to the back part of the cave.

Her eyesight was getting fainter and fainter, but she could see well enough to see that Ryu was still standing there with a horrified look.

She thought it was just her glazing eyes playing tricks on her, but she thought she saw a little smirk on Ryu's now-almost-calm face.

She passed out.

"Did you guys hear that?" Naruto asked. They were now inspecting the hole on the twisty branches. Naruto thought he heard a faint scream. It sounded like somebody was screaming Hinata's name.

"Yeah. Sounded like a guy's voice," Kiba replied.

"My bugs sense powerful chakra from that way," Shino pointed through the hole.

"But there's nothing past this hole but more trees," Kiba commented.

"Byakugan!" Neji looked around him. He saw a nearby mountain. The whole inside mountain was covered in.....chakra?

"Hey, guys," Naruto said, "something's wrong with Gloo. Neji looked away for a minute to look at his new jelly-dog.

Naruto was right. Gloo was shivering madly. He sensed too much chakra in one spot.

Something's going on here, Neji thought as he watched the creature continue to shake. He felt sorry for him.

"We need to find out what's going on behind this obstacle!" he said aloud this time while picking up Gloo, not caring if he got stuck. His plan of using him was forgotten.

Once they crossed the trees (by going around it), Kiba set Akamaru to sniffing a trail. He barked when he caught a familiar scent.

"Akamaru said he smells Hinata's scent!" Kiba said. "Lead the way, buddy!"

And so Akamaru did, with the rest of the team close behind.

Please Review!
Sorry for any mistakes on this chapter. I didn't really read it over.

Is this a cliffhanger? If so, MWAHAHAHAHA!
If not, BOOHOOHOOHOOHOO!

For those wondering, I did think of a Naruto Christmas special, but I didn't get to finish it.
I was also DYING to make a Hinata birthday story, but I was going to make that a sequel for the Christmas special, so I decided not to make it.