I'm so glad so many of you liked Hinata Gaiden! It was really fun writing a segment of the story where I didn't have to worry so much about adhering to canon. Now we're onto Part 2. Here we go!

Introduction:

That which is washed away may drift along the ebb and flow of the tides. With enough time and luck, it may just find itself whence it came.

Chapter 19: Return

Hinata walked with Naruto down the streets of Konoha. It was so nice to have him back; he'd barely changed since the last time she'd seen him. The familiarity was so comforting, she felt reassured just by his presence that things would be okay.

"Hey, Hinata," he said in a serious tone, "I want tell you something."

Hinata stopped in her tracks. "What is it, Naruto-kun?" she asked softly.

"Well," he said, "I've known you for a long time, and in that time, I've come to learn a lot about you. Your likes, your dislikes, your hobbies… but I've learned more than those surface level things too. I know how hard you work and how strong you are."

Hinata's eyes widened "Naruto-kun…" she whispered, as though normal volume would shatter the moment. She loved what he was saying, but why was he saying it now? Could it be? She dared not hope for it.

"I once told you I used to think you were this shy, dark weirdo," he continued. "But now I know you're a talented, kind, courageous, beautiful girl."

Her heart pounded madly. Words escaped her.

"And you've always been there for me," he said with a smile. "Even before I knew who you really were, you saw the best in me and I know now that you… you loved me for it."

She took slow shallow breaths, face reddening at an alarming rate. She would shriek from being overwhelmed but her voice was fully locked away.

He took her hands gently into his own. They were so warm, so strong, so comforting. "So I want to tell you the truth." He looked directly into her eyes. Her heart raced. "Hinata," he said, "I… I…"

"Wake up!" came Tsunade's booming voice.

Hinata's eyes flew open. Naruto was gone. She was not on the streets of Konoha. Instead, she was lying on a cot in what she recognized as the medical lounge, where medic ninja went to rest during and between shifts. Standing next to her, bearing a frown and half-lidded eyes, was her mentor. "Have you come to at last?" she asked, annoyance heavy in her tone.

"Tsunade-sama," she muttered, sitting up. "What happened?"

"You finished your shift and collapsed in the hallway," Tsunade explained. "Again. Shizune brought you here and told me."

"Oh," Hinata muttered, embarrassed.

"This is the third time in as many weeks, you know."

"I'm sorry," Hinata replied, head down.

"You have to take it easier," Tsunade told her. "I know that you've been stacking your training load lately. Ninjutsu training with Kakashi, Gentle Fist practice with Neji, exercise sessions with Guy and Lee, all of these every day on top of your missions and long medical shifts? It's too much, even for you."

Hinata looked off to the side. "I haven't passed out during my shift, have I?"

Tsunade sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not yet. You're a very talented medic, Hinata, but if you keep running yourself ragged like this, you will burn out. What will your patients do without you?"

Hinata frowned. "I know. I'm sorry," she said again. "I didn't mean to deprioritize them."

"Don't be sorry, fix the problem." said Tsunade. She put her palm to her forehead and closed her eyes. "I swear, you, Lee, and Guy are the only people I know who feel worse when I tell them to take it easy." Hinata shrank back at this. "Look, I know I'm being hard on you, but I do understand why you're pushing yourself extra hard these days," Tsunade said with a smile. Hinata blinked, confused. "After all, he's coming back soon."

Hinata blushed. "N-no, I just want to-"

"Yeah, okay, whatever," Tsunade interrupted her, rolling her eyes again. "Let's pretend you haven't been counting the days until Naruto arrives. We can live in make-believe world if you want. But since I also exist in that world, I'm ordering you as Hokage to get some rest." She turned to leave, glancing over her shoulder at Hinata. "That is an official mission directive and I will not tolerate failure."

Hinata stood up, taking a deep breath. "Yes, Tsunade-sama," she said.

After gathering her things, she began the walk home. She still felt mentally worn out, especially since she had been forced back into reality after comfortable immersion in a lovely dream, and her body felt sore. She left her jacket unzipped to feel the cool open air on her undershirt. Tsunade was right, she realized; she had been pushing herself too hard lately and she couldn't lie to herself; it was indeed because of Naruto's possible return. She didn't know exactly when he'd be back, but it had been about three years since he'd left and naturally, he was on her mind even more than usual. So badly, she wanted to be strong enough to stand beside him when he arrived, as she knew he had become more powerful.

When he arrives… She'd thought about it enough; she knew it was more accurate to call it fantasizing. In her mind, she would greet him with a big smile, standing tall and firm on her feet. He wouldn't be meeting the old, meek Hinata; no, he'd be meeting the new and improved Hinata, filled with even more confidence than she'd had the last time they'd met. She would gather her courage and wrap her arms around him, telling him she'd missed him. Then, she hoped, he would say she missed her too. And then they would walk together, and then…

She sighed. Thinking about this made her feel woozy. She could ponder it more once she got home. After a 12-hour shift plus triple training time, she was covered in dried sweat and dust, and she knew her face bore signs of exhaustion. What she needed was a nice bath and a good meal, then she could nap her stamina back to full. Yes, then she'd feel good and clean and rested. That would pick her spirits up.

"Hinata!" a voice from behind her suddenly called. It made her stop dead in her tracks. She knew instantly who it belonged to.

Naruto ran through the crowd, approaching Hinata swiftly. "It is you!" he said cheerfully. "I wasn't sure because you look different and I saw you from behind, but I'd recognize that face anywhere!" He beamed at her.

Hinata, meanwhile, bore a stupefied look on her face. Oh no. The first time he had seen her in years, and it had to be in her exhausted, disheveled state. I'm a mess! I look gross and terrible! I probably smell bad! This was an unmitigated disaster. She could feel her panic emerging.

But even more than that, she was overwhelmed with sensory input. Oh my god. He's so tall. And handsome. Even more handsome than he was in my dream! Look at his jawline. Look at his eyes. They're even bluer. How is that possible? His haircut looks so good on him too. God, he really is tall. And his voice is deeper now, it gave me a shiver. And that smile! It's even more wonderful than before! And his outfit. It looks so good on him, so mature. I can't believe it. He's so handsome, too. And look at how tall he is! The gears in her brain locked up and Hinata froze.

Naruto tilted his head. "Hinata? Hello?"

Say something! "You're…"

"I'm?"

"You're… tall…" she whispered. Stupid!

"Heh, I guess I am," said Naruto, putting his flat palm at the top of his head and sliding it horizontally until it was parallel to the top of Hinata's head. "We used to be about the same height, didn't we?" He had been shorter than she, but she wasn't about to correct him. Now he stood a few inches taller, but in Hinata's perception it was a vast gulf.

The proximity of his hand shocked Hinata further and she began to feel woozy again. She wobbled on her feet for a moment before falling over.

"Oop, I gotcha," said Naruto, leaning over to catch her. He chuckled. "I haven't seen that in a long time."

Hinata had mercifully only lost her balance; she was still awake, if dizzy. Now he was cradling her in one arm, looking down, and smiling at her. Ohmygodhe'sholdingmeinhisarms! This immense stimulus forcibly unlocked and overclocking her brain gears, and she sprang back up, laughing a loud but decidedly awkward laugh. "Naruto-kun," she said, blinking rapidly as her senses returned to her. "You're back!"

Naruto grinned wider. "Yup! It's good to be home. How have you been?"

Hinata froze again at this. How had she been? It was a hard question. All memories of her past before the last minute had vanished as he asked it. The only thing she knew was how she was doing now, so she went with that. "Good," she answered. "Very good."

Naruto nodded. "Great! I just saw Iruka-sensei and Konohamaru on my way to Ichiraku. I've been craving a bowl, you wanna come?"

Hinata unfroze. She had forgotten in her stunned state that she was, in fact, tired and hungry. "That sounds wonderful," she replied.

"Then come on," he said, waving her towards himself.

She followed his lead, chasing behind, examining him as she did so. His back is so wide. His shoulders are so broad. She smiled as she took in his figure, and then frowned. He looks so good, and I'm… like this. Why did he have to arrive now of all times? If only she hadn't passed out after her shift, she would've gotten home in time to clean herself up. What must he think of her, seeing her in this state? There was no way she could dare hug him so dirtied up.

"Oho, look who it is!" said Teuchi as Naruto entered the stand.

"It's me!" Naruto replied joyfully.

"It's you!" Teuchi reiterated. "Welcome back! In honor of your return, how about a bowl on the house?"

Naruto's eyes widened in awe. "Really? Thanks! Can I get a miso pork bowl?"

Meanwhile, Hinata entered the stand. "Oh, and if it isn't Hinata-chan!" said Teuchi. "Care to start off with your usual double?"

Hinata's eyelids flew wide open and she turned beet red. She'd made peace with her eating habits years ago, but that was before Naruto would find out about them, before she'd already blown her chance at a graceful reintroduction. He looked at her inquisitively. "Um, just a single to start, please," she answered.

"Coming right up!" Teuchi called as he turned to make the dishes.

Naruto and Hinata sat down on the stools. "You usually get a double?" he asked her.

She began to fidget. "Well, um, that is-"

"Indeed, Hinata-chan here has become quite the regular," said Ayame. "She downs those bowls without fail!"

Hinata began to sweat. "I, uh, I get hungry sometimes," she muttered in a tiny voice.

"Hmm," said Naruto. "I didn't know you liked ramen so much!" he grinned at her.

Seeing his expression, her embarrassment petered out. Of course, she wasn't about to tell him that it was because the stand reminded her of him and it was a cheap source of easy calories. Instead, she said, "I've learned to really enjoy it."

Naruto nodded. After a moment, his eyes scanned her head. "You grew your hair out," he noted.

"Oh, yes, um," she tried to cobble words together, "I thought it might be a nice change of pace… I don't know if it suits me, though." Idly, she curled a lock of her hair around her finger.

"I think you look great," Naruto replied easily, not realizing the magnitude of the effect his statement had on Hinata. In an instant, her fears about her appearance were vanquished. "How about me?" He pointed his thumb at himself. "Whaddya think? Pretty good, right?"

It took all of Hinata's strength, even bolstered by her reinvigorated shyness, to not immediately vomit all her thoughts about Naruto's appearance at once. "Yes," she said, simply, "You look very good." Naruto seemed pleased by this. "So, um, how was your trip?"

"It was pretty wild," said Naruto. "I went to all kinds of places, met all kinds of people, but mostly I just trained with Pervy Sage."

Hinata wanted to ask if he met any special ladies but resisted. "I'm sure you've gotten much stronger, Naruto-kun," she replied.

Naruto grinned. "Sure have! I learned a lot. How about you?" he asked. "What'd you get up to while I was gone?"

Taking a breath, she recollected. What would she say? She started the most grueling training regimen she'd ever endured, and then added three more intensive training regimens on top of it? She only managed to do that by learning to be okay with stuffing her face? She eked out a win in a tournament against her seemingly unstoppable cousin using a year's worth of trained techniques and earned her chuunin status because of it? She learned to save the lives of real human beings, but also learned how to cope with losing them when fate made it inevitable? So much had happened in the last three years, she couldn't begin to summarize it.

Instead, she simply said, "I also trained a lot. It was tough, but I made it through somehow."

"I bet you got a lot stronger too," Naruto replied.

Again, she recalled the final battle with Neji. Despite all of the good luck she knew she'd had during it, she did feel stronger after that. Her ninjutsu and taijutsu training had progressed significantly and she had done well on missions since then too. "I think so," she uttered after a moment.

"Order up!" said Ayame, placing down their ramen bowls.

"Thanks for the meal!" said Naruto, with Hinata saying it shortly after. "Ahh, you have no idea how much I've missed this!"

He tore into the ramen at a breakneck pace, not bothering to savor it so long as he could get as much of it in his mouth as possible. His tastebuds played a sweet symphony to his mind as he did, and he couldn't help but utter an "Mm-mm" as he ate. As he was about halfway through his bowl, however, he heard a soft thud next to him. Turning to look, he saw that Hinata had already finished her meal, soup and all. Naruto's eyes widened. She'd finished before him? But he was eating like a starving man! A bit of red tinged his cheeks as he observed her sigh of contentment. Maybe Hinata had changed… and, Naruto thought, maybe he kinda liked it.

Soon after, he finished his own bowl, letting out a satisfied, "Ahh." As he set the bowl on the counter, he grinned at Hinata. "That was good."

"Mhm," Hinata replied with a nod and a smile. The meal had calmed her nerves and relieved her tiredness somewhat. Plus, she had been able to get more used to Naruto's stunning appearance by observing him as he ate.

"This is great," said Naruto. "Look at this, the two of us hanging out and eating ramen, just like old times. It's like I never left."

"It is," said Hinata with a light blush. She wished he had never left, but it was such a relief to have him back. You have no idea how much I've missed you.

"Y'know what?" said Naruto, raising a hand. "Hey, old man, can I get another?"

"One for me too," said Hinata.

"Coming right up!" said Teuchi.

As they waited, they talked more about the past three years. "So, there was this one time," said Naruto, "Pervy Sage and I stopped in this town off in the Land of Lightning and it was all rundown. At first, we thought it was just a poor town on the outskirts, but then we learned from the innkeeper that the town was ruled over by a gang of toads."

"Isn't Jiraiya-sama the Toad Sage?" Hinata asked.

"Right," said Naruto. "So we go to confront them, bringing some summoned toads with us to act as ambassadors. But it turns out, they weren't toads, they were frogs."

"Are they that different?"

"That's what I said," Naruto answered. "But that really offended them, so, long story short, we had to beat up a bunch of frogs. It was a real slimy situation, you know?" Hinata smiled at his pun. "And once we were done kicking the crap out of them," Naruto's face turned overly sinister, "we told them to leave the town alone or we'd come back and have frog legs for dinner."

Hinata laughed at this. Naruto grinned, hearing her. It had been so long since he'd heard her laugh; he felt warm inside, and not just from the ramen. It brought back sweet, years old memories.

She tried her best to think of a story. The first that came to mind was that of her first week of her medical shifts, where, as a chuunin, she could attend to actual patients instead of fish. Apparently, the karma for Tsunade's successful gamble had come to collect and the hospital was met with a rash of deaths from some unknown disease. The helplessness and despair Hinata had felt as the fatality count climbed higher and higher took its toll on Hinata and Tsunade could tell; it was rough for any rookie medic to have people die in your arms one after another. Tsunade offered to give Hinata some time off, but Hinata insisted she wouldn't falter at the loss of life, as the living still needed her help. It took days of continuous testing and treatment, but, thanks in part to Hinata's byakugan, they managed to identify the pathogen and come up with a vaccine.

But that was a dark story to tell at this reunion, she decided, so she racked her brains for a more lighthearted one. "Uhm, so, I delivered this woman's triplets once," she began.

"Whoa," said Naruto. "You do that kind of stuff?"

She nodded. "It's part of my duties as a medic." He seemed more impressed than she'd anticipated. "Since they were triplets, the father kept mixing the boys up and the mother was getting annoyed by this – I guess some maternal instinct allowed her to tell them apart – so after a while, he asked me to help him tell which was which."

"Did you know?"

"It was hard to tell just from their appearance, but even though they were identical, they had slightly different chakra colors, which I had seen while delivering them. So when I told him which child was which, he ended up writing something on their foreheads."

"Their names?"

"You'd think, but it was first place, second place, and third place."

"Seems like a good way to give those babies a complex."

"Right?" At the time, it had reminded her of her father and late uncle, but she omitted that detail. "He said it was easier than remembering their names, which were admittedly similar."

"What were they?"

"Komaru, Kotaru, and Koharu."

Naruto furrowed his brow. "That sounds like they did it on purpose."

"Apparently it was the mother's idea," Hinata explained. "You meet a lot of, um, interesting people working in the hospital."

"Seems like it," said Naruto.

As they swapped more stories, she was surprised at how easily she slipped back into a comfortable rhythm with him. His new look still made her heart throb as she gazed upon him, but underneath it she knew it was the same old Naruto, just taller and manlier. Eventually, their second servings of ramen arrived, and, just as before, they both tore through them like scissors through tissue. Naruto tried and failed to outpace Hinata, giving him another strange feeling inside as he watched her finish her bowl.

After they were done, they heard Kakashi's voice as he entered the stall. "Aha, I thought I'd find you here," he said casually.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yo!" he replied with a wave.

Naruto laughed. "You haven't changed one bit. Oh, wait! I have something for you!"

Hinata watched as Naruto revealed the latest installation of the Icha Icha series, which Kakashi received with great awe.

"It's really boring, but I think you'll like it," said Naruto.

After tussling with his desires for a moment, Kakashi put the book away. "I was going to have you do this today, but Tsunade-sama has informed me that Hinata has been ordered to get some rest, which I suppose eating ramen counts as," he said, grabbing two objects from his pouch. "So tomorrow, we're going to embark on your first mission back as a team."

Naruto grew excited. "What is it?"

Kakashi revealed the objects he'd retrieved: a pair of bells. "Survival training."

Hinata and Naruto looked at each other, eyes serious. "Yes, sensei," they said in unison.

After Kakashi left, Naruto and Hinata departed from Ichiraku. Understanding that Hinata needed rest, they headed toward the Hyuuga lands. When they arrived at the gates, she turned to Naruto. "This is my stop," she said, trying not to let disappointment seep into her tone. She knew she would see him later, but having been away from him for so long made her desire that much more time with him.

"Yeah," he said, an odd tint to his tone.

"Well," she began to turn, "I'll see you-"

Suddenly, Naruto's arms were wrapped around her, and she was pulled towards his chest. Hinata's brain short-circuited. His arms were so strong, holding her tightly. His chest was so hard, squeezed against hers. Having him lean down to hug her was such a new, exciting experience. Yet, somehow, he was gentle as well. "Hinata," he said quietly, "I really missed you."

Those words brought Hinata back to reality. Her heart swelled, and she felt herself welling up tears. Holding them in, she lifted her arms to embrace him back, leaning her head on his shoulder; oh, those broad, manly shoulders. "I missed you too," she whispered. "I really did."

As they parted from one another, Hinata smiled softly, a blush adorning her cheeks. To her surprise, his cheeks bore a hint of red themselves, and his eyes were a touch wider than usual. Hinata wasn't sure why. Could he be embarrassed that he'd hugged her in public? She gasped; could it be that she smelled bad after all? The thought mortified her. She decided she'd leave the speculation for later. After a moment, they waved at each other and Hinata entered the gates.

Naruto walked back to his apartment, where he hadn't been for years. He looked down in thought, hands in his pockets. Hinata had felt soft when he held her. Really soft. She'd smelled nice too, in a way he couldn't quite put his finger on. He'd felt a bit of her hair and appreciated its silken texture. And her voice in his ear, her hot breath as she spoke… Naruto shook his head. She was the same as always, wasn't she? The same old Hinata he knew. Right? She was just a little bit taller, her hair was longer, and…

Naruto wasn't sure why he was ruminating on these things, but he felt a strange knot tighten in his gut as he did, and he wasn't sure if it felt good or not. Taking a deep breath, he put it out of his mind and raced back to his long-awaited home.

Meanwhile, Hinata, wearing a bright if somewhat dazed smile and humming a soft tune, passed Ko. "Hinata-sama," he greeted. "You seem to be in high spirits. Did you have a good day?"

She turned to him and nodded. "Mhm. I had a very good day," she replied.

Hinata arrived back in her room and sat on her bed. Looking toward her dresser, she spotted the photo of Team 7 next to her chuunin exam medal. She looked at Naruto in the picture. He had been so cute as a kid. Now, he was more mature, more handsome, more everything good about him, but she had unmistakably felt it: deep down, he was still the boy she fell in love with. That smile was the same smile that had saved her from the darkness of failure and pushed her towards the light of confidence. She cherished it even more, having seen it again after so long.

After taking a quick bath, where she thought more about Naruto's new and improved form – those thoughts combined with the heat of the bath made her lightheaded again – she changed into her pajamas and laid herself down on her mattress. Despite her lingering exhaustion, memories of the previous few hours wouldn't leave her. She was addicted to them, as though she had to savor for fear of never making more. Eventually, she convinced herself that more were soon on the way, and she promptly fell asleep.

When Naruto arrived back at his apartment, he remembered how small the place was; it felt even smaller now. Maybe he ought to move to a new one, once he started doing missions again and could replenish his money supply. The place was still littered with old plastic and Styrofoam ramen containers. He'd neglected to tidy up before leaving and was now regretting it.

Setting his backpack down, he slumped down onto his bed, remembering the springiness of the mattress. His eyes traveled to the dusty photo of Team 7 on his dresser. He took it in hand, gave it a quick wipe, and half-smiled. As he looked at himself in the picture, he gave a small chuckle at how angry he looked. Back then, all he could feel was annoyance at Sasuke. It was a far cry from how he felt now. He was also wearing his old outfit, which had now been beaten up by years of travel and training. He kept it in his backpack out of sentimentality,

Then he looked at Hinata. He hadn't noticed it before, but her smile seemed so nervous back then. Still cute, of course, but the smile he'd seen just a while ago held so much more behind it, more than had been there even when he'd left her at the gates almost three years prior. He wondered what had happened to boost her smile like that. He hoped he'd find out eventually.

Preparing himself with a slow breath, he began picking up the empty ramen containers.

The next day, Hinata and Naruto assembled at the training ground 3 at the scheduled time. When they saw each other, they waved at one another. Hinata took steadied breaths; seeing him the second time was much easier, though getting a look at him up close still sent waves of warmth throughout her body. Naruto had approached her with his usual smile, but as he arrived, something about his expression seemed different and she couldn't quite suss out why. He looked away from her with an odd suddenness and his expression felt maybe the slightest bit more rigid.

Naruto himself couldn't quite figure out what was odd, either. Something had happened when he saw Hinata's smiling face. It wasn't as bad – or good, maybe – as yesterday, but he felt that knot in his stomach again. What was happening? With a shrug, he chalked it up to having not seen her in years. After all, he still had to reconcile her current appearance with his memories.

They didn't have much time to ruminate on these things as Kakashi arrived, his new book in hand. "Yo!" he said with a salute. "Hope I didn't keep you." Surprisingly, he had been punctual. Putting Icha Icha Tactics back in his pack, he said, "Nostalgic, isn't it?"

Hinata and Naruto looked around. "Yeah," said Naruto, while Hinata nodded. "I've missed it."

"This is where you officially became genin. Back when Sasuke was here, wasn't he…?"

Naruto slumped down on the ground while Hinata's face fell. Her battle with him, her failure to stop him, still haunted her.

Kakashi closed his book. "Well then, shall we get started?"

Naruto chuckled. "Not gonna read while we do it this time, Kakashi-sensei?"

"No, I'd like to savor it. Besides, this time, for some reason," he said, raising his forehead protector to reveal his Sharingan, "I have a feeling I should take this seriously. Here are the rules: you pass if you can get the bells from me by dawn. If you don't come at me with killing intent, you'll never get them."

A moment passed. Naruto hurled shuriken at Kakashi, who ducked and threw some back. Naruto leapt to avoid them, putting him in the trajectory of Kakashi's next volley. Hinata looked concerned until Naruto summoned a clone, which pulled him out of the line of fire. She smiled at his clever use of the clone.

Naruto bellowed, "Henge! (Transform)" and the clone transformed into a massive shuriken. Before he could throw it, Kakashi was at his back, one hand restraining Naruto's throwing arm while the other was at the back of his head. But behind Kakashi was another Naruto clone, kunai aimed at Kakashi's back.

Hinata blushed in awe at Naruto's display. His tactics and timing had matured so much.

"Alright… start!" said Kakashi, vanishing from view.

Hinata shook her head; now was not the time to sit around staring wide-eyed at Naruto. They had bells to catch. Activating her Byakugan, she scanned the area. Immediately, she picked up Kakashi's position: about fifty yards away, behind some trees. "There!" she said, running towards him. "You can't escape my Byakugan that easily."

"Nice, Hinata!" said Naruto, following behind.

"Oh, I hadn't planned on it," said Kakashi. "I just wanted a second to set this up. Kirigakure no jutsu! (Hidden mist technique)"

All of a sudden, mist materialized around them. Hinata stopped in her tracks, making a gesture at Naruto. "This mist is much thicker than even Zabuza's," she told Naruto. "It's hard to see through."

"I see," said Naruto. "I guess we'll just have to look the hard way." Forming the seal, he cried, "Kagebunshin no jutsu! (Shadow clone technique)"A vast horde of Naruto clones popped into existence and began fanning out around the training area.

"I'll look too," said Hinata, rushing towards where she'd seen Kakashi. When she arrived, he had already departed.

Kakashi watched from a tall tree as his students searched fruitlessly for him. He had guessed Hinata's Byakugan had developed beyond this limitation, but it seemed that she had more progress to make before she would. Naruto's clones, meanwhile, would never be able to lay eyes on him, with their haphazard search.

He looked on as Hinata approached the area near his tree, one Naruto following behind her. She was still looking around in every direction but up. Kakashi smirked at her being so close, yet so far from discovering his position. Suddenly, while she looked away from the tree, Hinata punched it hard enough to break off its stump. Startled, Kakashi tumbled to the ground along with the branches he had hidden in. As he fell, he caught sight of Naruto reaching for the bells and quickly twisted in midair, away from his grasp.

Landing, Kakashi stabilized himself. "You could see through it after all, couldn't you?" he asked Hinata. "You were only pretending you couldn't. You signaled to Naruto that you'd already found me and he made those clones pretend to search for me as a cover." Excellent teamwork, even after they've been apart for years. "And that powerful blow…" He recalled the chuunin exam two years ago, the first and last time he'd seen her demonstrate it. "You've gotten strong, Hinata."

Hinata smiled. "As I said, you won't escape my Byakugan that easily."

"But still, not quite enough," said Kakashi, looking into their eyes before he vanished again.

"Damn," said Naruto, snapping his fingers. "Almost had him." He turned to Hinata. "That punch was something else, Hinata! I bet you learned that from Granny Tsunade, didn't you?"

Blushing at his praise, she replied, "Mhm. It takes a lot of chakra control, so it's not my fastest strike." You haven't seen anything yet. "I don't know if a direct attack with it will be enough against Kakashi-sensei."

Naruto nodded. "Kakashi-sensei's Sharingan is better than Sasuke's and his taijutsu is better than Bushy Brows'. We've gotta approach carefully. Where is he now?"

Hinata scanned the area. "He's… huh?" She noticed peculiar. "Kakashi-sensei's chakra signature… it's in over a dozen places all around the training ground. His chakra is evenly distributed, too. Could they be shadow clones?" Would he really make that many?

"It sounds risky; maybe he's desperate to avoid detection?" Naruto offered.

"Maybe…" muttered Hinata. Things seemed off.

"Guess we don't have any choice but to try each one, eh?" He made the seal again and summoned a platoon of clones. "Which way?"

Hinata pointed at each Kakashi she could see and a group of clones ran off in each direction. Afterwards, she and the original Naruto ran to the closest Kakashi they could find. This time, he was behind a rock. "Leave it to me," said Naruto, creating a clone who then launched the original above the rock.

Hinata watched as chakra began to collect in his palm, rapidly forming a dense, spiraling sphere. Amazing… She remembered that Naruto used to require a clone for that jutsu. Now he could do it one-handed. His chakra control must have advanced by leaps and bounds to do that.

"Rasengan!" he roared, divebombing the Kakashi they'd found and kicking up a cloud of dust. But when it cleared, Kakashi stood unharmed. Huh? Naruto was sure he'd gotten him, how could he have missed?

"Nice try," said Kakashi. "At least you're coming at me with intent to kill." From behind him, Hinata attacked with a raised palm. "Ninja combat lesson one: taijutsu," he said as he dodged it.

He evaded her strikes seemingly effortlessly. Even when Naruto joined in and she was certain she'd tagged him, they seemed to slip right through him. Could it be? She focused. It didn't appear to be an illusion, but how else could he be avoiding what seemed like direct hits?

"Time's up," said Kakashi, and he again vanished before them.

"Damn it!" said Naruto. "This is getting old. How do we keep missing him?"

"I'm not sure," said Hinata.

Naruto thought for a moment. "Wait a second. Hinata, come here," he said, beckoning her over with his hand. Once she was close enough, he told her, "Disrupt my chakra and I'll disrupt yours."

"Okay…" Hinata didn't think it was a genjutsu, but she obeyed anyway, reaching out to touch Naruto's arm. As her heart fluttered from the mutual contact, she channeled chakra into Naruto's coils, disturbing the flow.

"Well?" asked Naruto.

Nothing seemed to change around them. "I don't see any difference," said Hinata. "I don't think it's a… wait." Suddenly, one of the copies of Kakashi in the area started glowing brighter than the others. "I see the real Kakashi-sensei!" she declared. "And the one near us didn't vanish, he just moved away." But how had this happened? She should have seen through the genjutsu.

"Ninja combat lesson number two: genjutsu," said one of the fakes, appearing before them again. "Good job catching it, Naruto." Naruto grinned from this.

Suddenly, it clicked for Hinata. "You weren't making more of yourself with that genjutsu – you were making the clones have the same chakra levels as you. More chakra wouldn't register as obviously as a genjutsu with my Byakugan. Which means this one in front of us is…"

"Why don't you care to find out?" said Kakashi, whipping shuriken at them. Naruto ducked evasively while Hinata spun in place, deflecting them.

Again they pursued him, attacking relentlessly. At first, he appeared to dodge, but soon they caught onto his patterns; while preoccupied with a swing from Hinata, Naruto managed to punch him full on in the face. Naruto grinned until Kakashi met him with the same expression.

"Naruto-kun, watch out!" said Hinata, realizing too late what was happening.

The Kakashi they were fighting exploded into a mass of lightning, shocking Naruto. "Gah!" he cried, falling backward.

Hinata hurried over to help him up. "It was a clone – a lightning clone."

"Thanks," he said, grasping her hand. "So it's like those water clones Zabuza used?"

Hinata nodded. "Those ones only had a small fraction of Zabuza's power."

"That explains how we were able to beat this one so easily," said Naruto with a contemplative eye.

"Kakashi-sensei's chakra affinity is lightning – even though I can mostly see through the fog, telling the difference between his lightning release and his normal chakra is difficult." She looked at the ground. "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun."

He smiled at her, alleviating her shame. "Don't be. Now we know how to get to him."

They approached the real Kakashi, who had evidently taken apart Naruto's clones relatively easily while they were under the genjutsu. To their surprise, he leapt out in front of them. "Little sense hiding now that you're here," he said. "Ninja combat lesson three."

"Here it comes," said Naruto with an uneasy grin.

"Ninjutsu," said Kakashi, forming unspeakably fast seals. "Suiton: Suiryudan no jutsu! (Water release: water dragon bullet)"

An immense water dragon rose from the lake behind Kakashi and surged towards Naruto and Hinata.

Hinata leapt in front of Naruto and began spinning rapidly, crying "Kaiten!" The dragon broke against the revolving dome and water ran past it on either side. "I'll take the lead this time, Naruto-kun," said Hinata as the water subsided.

Naruto nodded. "Got it. That'll give me time to set up a new jutsu."

Hinata smiled. Of course, he's got even more up his sleeve. Her expression becoming more focused, she rushed at Kakashi. He was much faster than his lightning clone, his Sharingan trained on Hinata's movement. Hinata recalled how Sasuke had been able to read her every move after a certain point in their fight; no doubt Kakashi, with more experience using the Sharingan, could do so as well. Around her she observed Naruto's positioning. I see. Hinata pivoted and began swiping at Kakashi in an altered pattern. "Juuho: Soushiken (Gentle step: twin lion fists)!" she roared.

The heads of two massive lions manifested around her palms, increasing her reach enough to tag Kakashi with the periphery of one. "Guh," said Kakashi, caught off guard as the chakra seemed to slip through him. Immediately he knew the effect: the lion head had sapped the chakra from him where it intersected with his body. He quickly adapted, springing back to put him out of her reach.

To his surprise, so did Hinata. "Nice one, Hinata!" called Naruto. "My turn!" Evenly spaced around Kakashi were four copies of Naruto, standing atop four toads. "Ninpou: Shiguugamayudan! (Ninja art: four corner toad oil bullet)" As the clones burst, the toads each turned left and began spitting oil, rotating their heads to the right as they did so. In a flash, the area within their perimeter was covered in oil.

At one of the edges of the oil, Hinata finished forming seals. "Raiton: Ibuki! (Lightning release: powerful breath)" she roared. In her hand appeared a bolt of lightning, which she quickly threw into the oil. Electricity arced through it, igniting it immediately.

The flames began to approach Kakashi, encircling him on all sides. A four-way combination jutsu from Naruto, immediately followed by lightning from Hinata. More excellent teamwork. "Your old sensei won't go down just yet," he said, making seals. "Doton: Doryuuheki! (Earth release: earth-style wall)" Planting his hands on the ground, four walls emerged from underneath the oil. Their tops were slanted, preventing oil from pouring in.

Rather than flee the area, he's protecting himself with earth release. Hinata examined the area, squinting from the brightness of the flames. We can't approach easily.

But Naruto was already making more seals. Once again, he planted his hand into the toad's backs. "Ninpou: Suiseisha! (Ninja art: water fusillade)" Water spouted from the toads' mouths onto the flame. As it made contact, the fire grew ever higher and hotter.

Water on an oil fire! Hinata was even more impressed. Naruto had learned to manipulate his range of jutsu well. Beneath the flames, she saw that Kakashi had constructed earthen walls even underground, lighting the area up with earth chakra. I could disrupt those with lightning…

But before she could make a seal, Kakashi's hands reached out from underneath the dirt, pulling Hinata down into the ground. "Doton: Shinjuu Zanshu no Jutsu! (Earth release: double decapitation technique)" came his voice from beneath her.

As she sank into the earth, she saw what had happened: the chakra-made earth walls underground had masked his chakra network alongside the chakra-based flames enough for her to lose track of him. "That takes care of one of you," he said.

Concentrating chakra into her arm, she tore through the dirt, then brought her fist down hard on the ground next to her. With the impact, enormous cracks appeared throughout the area around them, liberating Hinata from the trap. Kakashi and Naruto stared wide-eyed at this display of force.

"Or, maybe not," Kakashi muttered.

"Holy crap," whispered Naruto, unsure of the feeling this instilled in him.

Despite his shock, Kakashi chose that moment to flee, leaving Naruto and Hinata behind in the rubble.

The cat and mouse game continued for hours, with Naruto and Hinata pursuing Kakashi's every attempt to run, only to be outfoxed by their sensei's diverse array of jutsu and the power of his Sharingan.

"He's getting away!" said Naruto, giving chase as Kakashi fled from them yet again.

"Wait, Naruto-kun," said Hinata. "We've been running after him all day. He won't get out of the reach of my Byakugan. Let's take a moment to plan."

"Yeah, let's do it," he said. "But how do we plan against Kakashi-sensei? He's the Copy Ninja, master of a thousand techniques. He has an answer to everything we do."

"It certainly seems that way," agreed Hinata. "But I think I've noticed something that might help us."

She told him of what she'd noticed, and Naruto hmm'd in thought next to her. "I have something that could work," he said. "I hadn't wanted to use it, but… do you trust me?" he asked Hinata.

"Of course," she replied. "Always."

Naruto smiled.

Kakashi breathed heavily some yards away. These kids had improved dramatically over the last three years. Kakashi had trained himself as well, but he couldn't have anticipated they'd reach these heights. Even Hinata, whose growth he thought he had seen, surprised him. It was taking a lot out of him to keep one step ahead of them and his stamina was rapidly dwindling. But dawn was rapidly approaching; if he just held out a bit longer he'd be in the clear.

Suddenly, Naruto sprang up from the brush in front of him to attack. A frontal assault, really? Is he joking?

But then he noticed something about Naruto: his pupils were slits. They were still blue; the rest of him was unchanged, except for his chakra, which was neither yellow nor red, but instead an orange mix. Kakashi focused his Sharingan. So, he's managed to learn how to control the Nine-Tails chakra this much… He was on Kakashi in a flash. Kakashi's eyes widened as he blocked a blow that carried much greater weight than before. He wasn't just running fast. That was shunshin no jutsu! (body-flicker technique)

Just then, another Naruto dropped from above, Rasengan in hand. This time, however, the Rasengan was many times larger. "Oodama Rasengan! (Great ball Rasengan)" he bellowed as he fell.

"Haven't you tried this already?" asked Kakashi, dodging both the Naruto in front of him and the one who fell. The latter hit the ground, generating a massive shockwave and leaving behind an impact crater several feet wide and deep. "A bigger Rasengan won't cut it." Four other doppelgangers of Naruto leapt out of the surroundings to join the attack. Kakashi flipped backwards, forcing them all into his line of sight. Only five? Is that his limit with this form?

While he dealt with four of the clones in front of him, one circled around to his back. Kakashi gave it a kick without looking and it fell backwards, puffing into smoke.

But out of the smoke leapt Hinata. "I was wondering where you were," said Kakashi, turning to face her after dispersing one of Naruto's clones. She dipped into a low stance. Kakashi scoffed. She had already tried her Thirty-Two Palms during an earlier encounter and Kakashi had managed to read all of them with his Sharingan. He glanced behind him. A pincer attack, eh? It'll be tricky to manage that while Naruto is in this state, but I should be able to avoid both attacks. Just then, Kakashi watched as Hinata's chakra suddenly flared up. A Gate? Bad move. Once she's depleted she'll have a much harder time getting the bells. I'll just have to focus my Sharingan even more.

As Hinata leapt into her supercharged attack, Kakashi prepared to evade the strikes. But as he did, he noticed a second Hinata behind him. Another clone had also been transformed into Hinata. She too launched her Thirty-Two Palms at Kakashi. Together, the two Hinatas cried out, "Hakke: Nibai no Sanjuunishou! (Eight Trigrams: Double Thirty-Two Palms)"

Flanked on both sides by Hinata, Kakashi wouldn't be able to evade all of her strikes. Instead, he opted to grab both of their wrists and toss the two away. But as he tried to, Naruto leapt at his back, attempting to grab him. Kakashi lurched forward, out of Naruto's reach in response. Suddenly, the ground split open; another Naruto came rushing out, launching himself at the bent-over Kakashi. No earth release? He hadn't seen Naruto weaving any seals. Just then, he noticed that Naruto's fingernails were torn up. He dug his way through the earth with brute force? Kakashi glanced at the crater Naruto had left behind; indeed, there was a hole in it. As Naruto surged towards him, Kakashi barely had an instant to avoid the attack.

In that moment, with both of Kakashi's arms occupied and his front and back covered, Hinata and Naruto's clone grabbed the bells.

Kakashi fell back to sit on the ground, stunned. "Find it a bit hard to move, sensei?" asked Naruto, taking the bell from his clone. His pupils had returned to normal. "Hinata noticed your stamina was running low. We figured with enough pressure you'd slow down enough for us to take the bells."

"So you layered the Rasengan, the Palms, the Gate, your new form, and the ground strike onto one moment," said Kakashi. "If it had failed, you'd be out one teammate and I'd know even more of your tricks. Risking everything on that one strike." Kakashi sighed. "Well, I can't say it's unlike you two."

"We'll take that as a compliment," said Hinata, reaching down to help Kakashi up.

"Another few minutes and I'd have won," said Kakashi as the first rays of the dawn shined on them. "Alright," he continued, brushing dust off himself, "I suppose it's already a given, but congratulations, you two. You pass."

Naruto and Hinata beamed, bells held aloft. Kakashi couldn't help but smile as well. It felt like not so long ago that they were two munchkins helpless against his overwhelmingly superior abilities. Now they were full-fledged shinobi, capable of this and so much more. The sight of them holding the bells filled him with pride.

Little did the three of them know, however, exactly what the future held for them.

And so closes the first chapter of Part 2. I'm going to need to think carefully about how to go about writing the next arc. I'm not exactly sure of the direction I want to take it in yet. I hope I can deliver something satisfactory.

As always, thank you for reading! If you enjoyed yourself, please leave a review!