AN: Hello there I'm back with another chapter! Thanks everyone for your kind reviews. I wanted to let you all know that once this story is completed I plan on going back and changing things. I also want to make the story a bit more rational since it lacks rationality. Yeah… Anyway, I would just like your opinions as to what you liked and didn't like with this story so far. And now! On to the next chappie!
Chapter 16: How we fell in love.
"Uchiha, Itachi," an old man grumbled folding his arms across his chest resting his back on the couch he sat on, "the last thing I would have thought you would do is return to this village."
"I had originally planned to die at Sasuke's hands however my brother had a little incident, for a lack of a better word, it seems forcing him to kill me would be a bit much," Itachi relaxed placing his arm on the back of the couch he sat on across from the old man.
"Ah, yes, Tsunade did those delinquent ninjas you sent out figure out who the mother of the children was?" An old lady who was sitting next to the old man croaked.
"No, Uchiha, Sasuke refused to reveal who the mother was," Tsunade lied; she was seated next to Itachi.
"Itachi, do you know?" The lady turned to face the youngest person in the room.
"No, I don't," Itachi lied casually making it seem as though he really didn't, "My little brother can be very secretive."
"Tsunade, please tell me you're not going to leave this topic alone," the old man glared.
"I have more pressing matters to attend to, and this is merely a matter of curiosity rather than importance," Tsunade bit back annoyed with the stupid geezer's tone.
"Where is Danzou-san?" Itachi asked.
"That is none of your concern, we are the ones currently governing Konoha," the man turned to glare at Itachi.
"I do recall I specifically asked for a hearing with him, not you two," Itachi replied smoothly.
"You are much too soft Tsunade allowing him back into the village like this," the lady croaked obviously very angry.
"Koharu, Itachi did much for this village, he is one of the main reasons why it still exists," Danzou said walking into the room, "if you truly wish to help this village, stop corrupting it as you have."
"Ah Danzou-san, it's been a while," Itachi stood up and extended a hand as though they were old friends.
"It has indeed, have you informed Tsunade-hime of your past mission?" Danzou asked shaking Itachi's hand.
"Aah," Itachi nodded, "I wish to discuss something with you alone."
"If you would please give us some privacy, Koharu, Homura," Danzou gave the two a stern look.
Neither one of the elders got up to leave, but instead they remained in their seats and acted as though they had not heard a word Danzou had said. "I am a loyal Konoha shinobi, I won't do anything to harm Danzou-san if that's what you are worried about," Itachi sighed running his hand through his bangs.
The geezers still refused to budge. "How do you expect to be shown any respect when you don't show any of it yourselves?" Tsunade roared getting annoyed.
"Tsunade! You may be Hokage however we are superior and we could very easily strip you of that title," Homura barked like the annoying dog he was.
There was a long silence and the air was thick with tension. The elders sat there. Until finally the old lady cracked.
"Fine! Let's go!" Koharu, threw her arms up in exasperation. "You too Tsunade."
"No she can stay if she wants," Itachi interjected earning a glare.
After the door was shut and the elders left and Danzou got a signal from one of his ROOT members that they were gone, he asked, "Now what is it you wished to discuss with me Itachi?"
~x~x~x~
The girl's all gasped looking shocked. "Oh-Ho!" Naruto nudged Kiba with his elbow playfully wriggling his eyebrows. "Did you finally get the guts to propose to your 'Super sexy and ridiculously cute girlfriend' you always talk-ahem-brag about? Or did she propose to you?"
Almost everyone started laughing then, Akemi happened to be choking on a piece of her cinnamon roll. "That's why we tell you not to laugh with food in your mouth!" Tenten wagged her finger.
"Y-yeah, s-sorry!" Akemi coughed continuously, her face was red. "I-it's ju-just that c-comment Naruto-ku-kun made was-was, hil-hilarious!"
"This doesn't make any sense," Shikamaru spoke gaining everyone's attention, "Akemi you're so afraid of dogs that Kiba never heard of or saw you until you kicked his butt that one day, you always ran the second you felt Akamaru's distinct chakra, how the hell did you get engaged to Kiba of all people."
"EH?" Tenten's eyes widened. "We only used to joke about it, but now that you mention it they do make a cute couple don't they?"
Akemi shifted slightly away from Kiba and hugged her knees to her chest before hiding her face; she didn't like all this attention. Kiba lifted her with all ease and placed her in his lap, causing her face to redden even more. Akemi didn't waste a second in glaring at him. "What?" Kiba could only ask.
"S-Super sexy a-and ri-ridiculously cute?!" Her eye twitched.
"Hey that's my opinion of your looks; and when it comes to guys, saying she's smart or she's kind won't get you any plus points," Kiba shrugged.
"Kiiiiiiibaaaa," Akemi growled causing everyone to laugh, well aside from Sasuke who didn't seem very happy that doggy-boy was Akemi's fiancé.
"Wait a minute! Akemi doesn't even go to the hot springs!" Ino declared. "How can you say she is super sexy? I mean her sweater is big and fuzzy and gives away nothing."
"What do the hot springs have to do with anything piggy?" Sakura asked.
"She means he couldn't have gone peeping if he found out Akemi had headed to the hot springs," Sasuke answered.
"And I bet that if you found out that I went to the hot springs, you wouldn't waste a nanosecond before you came to peep right?" Sakura asked sarcastically.
Key word: Sarcastically.
"Of course I wouldn't," Sasuke whispered in her ear, "it's a rare opportunity."
Everyone in the circle watched as Sakura's face went through practically all of the values of red before stopping at maroon. "P-p-per-pervert!" Sakura pointed an accusing finger at him.
Sasuke smirked triumphantly. "There's that flustered face I was looking for," he said quickly placing his rather large hands on Sakura waist and pulling her towards him; and since he had successfully caught her off guard, she ended up falling onto him.
Sakura's hands were on Sasuke's shoulders and her chest area was against Sasuke's. It was quite the show for the members of the group, well until Ino decided to remind everyone that she had in fact asked a question and that she wanted an answer. "So now that the two love birds have given us a free romance movie scene, can you please tell me how you got lucky and saw what Akemi's body looks like?" Ino asked Kiba.
Kiba and Akemi turned red at the memory. Leave it to Ino to be straightforward. "He caught me while I was developing a certain jutsu of mine," Akemi blushed, "you know the one where you can walk on air? The thing was I kept on falling into the water, and falling in fully clothed didn't help me much so I hunted a secret spot and started to develop it in my underwear."
"Tsk. Tsk. Akemi you should have been more careful, just because it seems secret doesn't necessarily mean it is. You never know when a pervert might walk by," Sasuke scolded, playing his role as her "big brother," how unusual and out of character of him.
"You do know that I can see the horns growing out of your head ever since you saw Sakura-chan in her kimono, right aniki?" Akemi's eyebrows lifted as she eyed the Uchiha warily.
"Actually those horns have been there ever since they went to bed back in the Flame," Naruto corrected, "and mind you they slept in the same room, on the same bed, God only knows what went on in there."
"I know that they've been there since the Flame Naruto-kun, they just really popped out when he saw her in her kimono," Akemi sighed.
"A-absolutely n-noth-nothing went on i-in tha-that room!" Sakura stammered.
"Well you did give birth in that room," Akemi put her finger on her chin.
"W-well I-I m-mean no-nothing like…"
"You can't really blame him for being how he is guys, I mean it has been five years," Ino pointed out.
Sasuke didn't like the way the conversation was going and decided to change the subject. "You're afraid of dogs?" He asked Akemi.
"Yup! I was," Akemi smiled leaning against Kiba.
"Until you fell in love with Kiba right?" Tenten laughed. "I'm pretty sure Kiba started falling for you after you kicked his butt that one day."
"Yeah, I don't know why, but having your butt kicked by a girl can be sexy sometimes," Kiba sighed, "and damn watching Akemi walk away looking triumphant, looked se-"
"You know what I want to know?" Akemi cut Kiba off. "How Naruto fell in love with Hinata and vice versa."
"Ooooh that does sound interesting," Tenten purred.
"Hinata has been oddly quiet," Sakura added.
"The dobe hasn't really said anything useful either," Sasuke contributed.
"Wow even Sasuke-teme is interested, now you gotta tell us Naruto," Ino looked at Naruto seriously, "our teme is interested, that is a rare thing."
"Our teme?" Sakura questioned. "Look Ino, Sasuke is my man, teme, idiot, or whatever, and I will not share." Sakura, who was sitting in Sasuke's lap, turned around and pressed her lips to his in order to make her point.
"Don't go overboard guys!" Tenten called mockingly.
"Emi and Sora are enough love children for now!" Ino chimed in.
"We don't need any more mini Sasukes running around the village," Kiba laughed.
"How troublesome," Shikamaru groaned, "aren't we supposed to be listening to Naruto and Hinata tell us a story, rather than focus on how many children Sasuke's gonna have?"
When the attention was diverted back to the married couple, Naruto could only smile and think about it. "I really was blind to not notice you earlier," Naruto kissed the top of her head.
"More like dense."
"Thank you for your contribution Uchiha."
"No problem Hyuuga."
"SHUT UP! God I bet your kid's and Tenten's will never get along because of how competitive these ice bastards are!" Ino yelled.
"Shhh and listen Piggy!"
~x~x~x~
Naruto still remembered how it all started. Hinata had come and asked him to train with her. They were sixteen then, Naruto had forgotten about Hinata's confession for he'd been given to time to really let it sink in. Naruto still remembered how much fun they'd had. He remembered laughing and smiling with Hinata.
When she'd first asked Naruto to train with her he'd gone easy on her. Hinata couldn't have felt anymore insulted which is why she'd stopped before they even started fighting and told him to go all out on her and that she wouldn't be able to improve if he went easy on her. Understanding her point he'd gone full force on her. It was a challenge but it was fun nonetheless. She loved it, she loved him.
They'd finished at around five thirty or so, she'd used up a lot of her chakra, a bit too much. So as they climbed up from the riverbank where they were sparring, Hinata couldn't help but wonder why her head felt so heavy or why the world was spinning. That aside she was finding it difficult to control her legs and arms; walking had never been such a difficult task. Hinata's vision faded and she felt her body grow limp, and she felt like she had started to fall.
The worry Naruto felt when she fell into his arms was enormous. "Hinata! Hinata!" He'd shaken her limp form but then decided it was best to let her rest, she had used up a lot of chakra. So he'd picked her up as though she was a bride in a long white dress and walked back down the hill and set her down on the grass before he settled next to her.
~x~x~x~
"And just what did you do to Hinata-sama after that?" Neji asked like the over-protective brother-like-cousin he was.
"Undress her with my eyes," Naruto laughed, "I didn't do anything, sheesh, I just waited for her to wake up."
~x~x~x~
Naruto had taken that chance to admire Hinata's beauty. She had a cute nose, it was average sized and round, going well with the rest of her face. Hinata's lashes were very long now that he paid attention to her. Naruto's eyes trailed to her lips. Her bottom lip was slightly bigger than the top one, they were slightly parted. They looked so smooth and soft. Naruto's hands had made their way to Hinata's hair and he let her silky locks fall through his fingers. Before Naruto knew it he was playing with Hinata's hair, slowly and gently twisting it around his fingers.
Naruto didn't know how long he'd been sitting there staring at Hinata before she began to stir. "Hinata!" Naruto had called out very happy. "Hinata! Wake up please!"
Hinata's eyes had snapped open almost instantly. "N-Naruto-kun?" She's asked completely and totally surprised.
"You're all right!" Naruto sighed in relief. "Thank God!"
Hinata felt sore and very, very, tired. She was still a little dizzy from waking up all of a sudden. Hinata closed her eyes and rubbed them trying to rid them of the hazy layer they had formed. She then felt her entire body be lifted off the ground and when she opened her eyes she saw orange. "Na-Naruto-ku-kun?" She'd asked tentatively. "W-Why a-are you c-carrying me?"
"Well you see you fainted, and you've kinda been asleep for the past couple of hours. I'm thinking about taking you home, at least there you can rest on your comfortable bed," Naruto smiled ruefully.
"Wow," Hinata's eyes went wide and her mouth was slightly open, telling Naruto that she hadn't really been paying much attention to what he said.
Naruto was so captured by how adorable Hinata looked with her eyes wide and lips slightly parted, that he forgot to be curious about what it was Hinata was staring at. "Look-look Naruto-kun!" She wriggled slightly in his arms as she excitedly pointed at the dark sky littered with stars.
Naruto took in the breathtaking sight and seeing as Hinata was so into star gazing he decided to sit down. Hinata's arms instinctively tightened around Naruto's neck, "W-What a-are y-you doing Na-Naruto-kun?"
"I'm sitting down," answered Naruto innocently.
"O-oh, I am rather heavy," Hinata blushed and looked away.
"Even if you are heavy, that doesn't mean you're fat," Naruto looked down at her, "there are a lot of other factors that need to be considered."
Hinata's cheeks were red as her eyes went wide. "E-eto, u-umm, Na-Naruto-kun," Hinata fiddled with her fingers looking down.
"What is it?" Naruto asked.
"W-would you-"
"Why can't you look at me while you're talking?" Naruto frowned.
Hinata grimaced at his tone, "S-sorry," She apologised facing Naruto.
"Hinata, you are a strong, grown, and independent kuniochi, you shouldn't be so shy! Heck I remember you fought Pein head on!" Naruto said angrily, "you shouldn't be so embarrassed to speak your opinion."
Naruto felt his heart pace speed up a bit seeing her all flustered like that, staring at him with wide eyes. "R-really?" She whispered looking back down.
Annoyed with Hinata looking away from him, Naruto grabbed her face with both if his and forced her to face him. "Is the dirt really that much more interesting than I am?" Naruto pouted.
Now, had Naruto not made that comment Hinata positively knew she would have fainted rather than topple over from laughing so hard. Naruto stared at her laughing form smiling, he'd never really gotten to see this side of Hinata. She had such a lovely laugh, if anything, he knew that it made him smile even when he was ticked off. Naruto laid down next to her as she attempted catch he breath, and saw tears streaming down the sides of her eyes. "Of-of course not-t Na-Nar-ru-to-ku-ku-kun!" Hinata replied trying to catch her breath.
"Oh really?" Naruto raised his eyebrows.
"Yeah," Hinata breathed out, a smile plastered to her face.
"Wanna stargaze with me on my roof?" Naruto suddenly asked Hinata.
"Y-yes! I-I was just gonna ask you the same thing myself!" Hinata beamed.
"Well then let's go!" Naruto jumped up. "Race ya there!"
The two took off running and Naruto beat Hinata since she still wasn't feeling that good just yet. Naruto had gotten some blankets from his apartment and the two lie down next to each other, basking in the starlight and enjoying each other's presence. The two recalled how the next day it was in fact Naruto who had asked Hinata for a sparring match. Naruto recalled how embarrassed and how his heart was pounding in his chest when he asked Hinata. That day, Hinata didn't faint and the two went to Ichiraku's and were teased about being a couple by the old man (stimulating a blush from the two), who was scolded by his daughter for butting into other people's business. After a good two weeks of sparring and spending time together, Naruto was assigned a mission and had to go. He remembered Hinata's smiling face as she waved to him and wished him good luck.
~x~x~x~
"Oh yeah I remember then!" Sakura exclaimed getting up from Sasuke's lap, leaving Sasuke annoyed and amused. "I told you I'd take care of him and try my best to not let him do anything reckless!"
Hinata giggled, "that's right."
"Sakura-chan continuously teased me about Hinata during the mission, but thankfully," Naruto's pout turned into a mischievous smirk, "we ran into Sasuke-teme and since we were supposed to spy on him and you know drag his sorry ass back to Konoha."
Sakura blushed bright red, "You wouldn't dare…"
"Sakura-chan kept on staring at the ice bastard-in a really weird and creepy way- and she looked like she really liked what she saw!" Naruto burst out laughing, causing one side of Sasuke's mouth to twitch upwards smugly.
"Psh, believe me the only reason you landed a hit on Sasuke-kun back then was probably because he was too busy staring at me too," Sakura muttered angrily, arms neatly folded across her chest.
"Hn."
"Shhh!" Hinata glared playfully at Naruto. "You'll wake the kids!"
"You know how much I love to hear you say that," Naruto nuzzled his face in Hinata's hair slightly messing it up, "right?"
"Yeah," Hinata smiled.
"Alrighty love birds time to move on!" Ino clapped her hands.
"What happened after that?" Tenten asked excitedly.
~x~x~x~
"Sooooo," Sakura walked hands behind her back, "you and Hinata huh?"
Naruto gave Sakura a confused tilt of his head. "Oh come on don't give me that face," Sakura nudged Naruto with her elbow, "she came to see you off, I totally know what's going on between you two."
"You can tell that we're training partners?" Naruto asked wide-eyed and oblivious to the true implications behind Sakura's words.
Sakura face palmed.
~x~x~x~
"The dobe will always be the dobe, what an idiot."
"For once I agree with you Uchiha."
"Huh? What did you say teme?" Naruto placed his hand behind his ear mockingly.
"I said-"
"Wait a second Sasuke-teme!" Ino put her hand up to stop Sasuke. "Tenten quickly record today's date! It's a historic record! The competitive ice-bastards, dubbed Sakura's and Tenten's hubbies, have just agreed to something!"
"Damn it!" Tenten cursed. "I don't have any scrolls with me at the moment!"
"We'll record it later!" Sakura scolded. "On with the story!"
~x~x~x~
Around a week before Naruto came back from his mission, Hinata became nervous. What if something happened between him and Sakura? If anything no matter how loyal or in love with Sasuke Sakura was, Naruto was just too charming for his own good! He had a smile that could save lives. It saved her after all.
Hinata was worried and nervous for what to expect when Naruto came back… Oh no! What if he didn't want to train with her anymore! What if…what if…what if… Hinata had to go to Ino! Ino knew more about boys than anyone else in the village.
~x~x~x~
"Oh I remember!" Ino's head snapped towards Hinata. "You came and asked me how to make a guy fall in love with you!"
~x~x~x~
Hinata ran into the Yamanaka flower shop and saw a female blonde with her cheek in her palm staring at the ceiling. "Hey Hinata!" Ino had smiled. "God! I really need a friend! It's soooo boring just sitting around here doing nothing all day!"
Hinata took a deep breath and fisted her palms. "I-I need your help with something!" Hinata declared with a blush.
"What is it?" Ino was in front of Hinata in an instant, holding her hands in her own. "Are you pregnant with Naruto's child." Ino asked with a serious face.
"Wha-" Hinata blinked once, twice, "NO! W-what could possibly have driven you to such insane conclusions?!"
~x~x~x~
"Pork-chops, just because someone needs your help doesn't necessarily mean their pregnant!" Sakura berated.
"I was just teasing forehead!" Ino retaliated.
~x~x~x~
Hinata started feeling dizzy and her world seemed to be spinning, well that was until Ino shoved a pair of lilies up her nose, stimulating Hinata to sneeze. "Hey, I was just joking," Ino said patting Hinata on her back, "you can barely talk to Naruto, let alone-"
"Ino-san!" Hinata yelled embarrassed.
"Besides you're too innocent anywaaaay," Ino sang, "and how many times do I have to ask you to call me Ino?"
"I-Ino-chan, e-eto…ummmm,uh," Hinata stammered fiddling with her fingers, "how do you make a guy fall in love with you?"
"Huh?" Ino's eyes widened a little and her eyebrows scaled her forehead. "Well," Ino hummed placing a finger on her chin thinking, "personally I would show him what it would be like if he was with me, whether it was forever or just a while, I'd show him just what life would be like with me."
~x~x~x~
"You guys should have seen Hinata's face! She was soo cute!" Ino giggled. "Her eyes where bright and she looked like, well I dunno, but she looked just…happy," Ino breathed the last word out.
"Well, we all know Naruto would have probably fallen in love with Hinata faster if he wasn't so dense and had noticed Hinata had a crush on him sooner," Kiba complained leaning back.
"Nah, I'm glad Naruto is this dense," Hinata smiled leaning her head back to show Naruto her expression, "it makes him all the more attractive don't you think?"
"No, I would lose patience with him," Sakura shook her head.
"Well for someone who would lose patience, you sure waited a whole lot before Sasuke came back," Ino snorted.
Shikamaru yawned all of a sudden, "Can you guys just telling us your story so we can go to sleep?"
"Shikamaru, you're considered to be very lazy, and you like to sleep a lot," Neji commented, "so just how did someone who likes peace and quiet, along with sleep get along with Ino? Who's rather loud and very energetic."
"Are you hitting on my girl Hyuuga?" Shikamaru joked. "Because we all know aside from being loud, energetic and overall troublesome-"
"Hey!"
"She's the girl of every man's dreams, yup I said it," Shikamaru said when everyone looked at him like he'd grown in a second head.
Sakura jumped out of Sasuke's lap, "Does this mean you're gonna take good care of my little piglet? You better or there will be consequences," Sakura cracked her knuckles to emphasize her point.
Shikamaru looked unfazed, "You don't need to threaten me, she's scary enough when she's angry and out for blood."
Ino pouted, "I'm not that bad, now am I?"
"On the contrary, your scary side is rather attractive," Shikamaru said as though it was obvious.
"You guys do realize you'll get your turn to share how you guys fell in love with each other after Hinata and Naruto are done telling us how they fell in love right?" Tenten asked.
And before either could complain Kiba declared, "On with the story!"
~x~x~x~
Hinata had thanked Ino and ran out of the store at top speed. Taking a sharp turn, Hinata opted to run through the forest, there were less people there, and therefore it would be easier to run through. After running for about two minutes, she had to swivel back onto the main road. Walking through the bustling streets, she arrived in front of a four story apartment. Taking a deep breath Hinata jumped up to the top floor. Hinata looked for an open window, and to her surprise she found one. When a foul odor drifted into Hinata's nostrils when she jumped in, she realized why. Either way, Hinata began a three day task to completely rid Naruto's home of any dirt.
~x~x~x~
"Th-Three days you say?" Neji asked wide-eyed.
"Naruto was well known for his super messy room," Sakura eyed Neji warily, "I once saw a cockroach and slipped and fell, and then his boxers fell on my head."
"And I saw your panties," Naruto added placing his hands behind his head and looking away.
"He got to see your underwear?" Sasuke asked before Sakura could reprimand Naruto.
"Pervert must have been staring!" Sakura said trying struggling from Sasuke's lap to kill Naruto. "Let me go Sasuke-kun!"
"You were wearing a short skirt and I was still laying down in bed, so your legs and red and pink striped panties were clear in view!" Naruto defended.
"He saw your underwear," Sasuke wasn't very happy.
"Oh please! Don't tell me you didn't see them!" Sakura shot back, too focussed on killing Naruto to pay attention to what she had said.
"I wasn't paying attention then," Sasuke mumbled, still grumpy.
"Well too bad!" Sakura snapped, still struggling to get out of his embrace.
In the background everyone could only look at them half mortified half amused, "Sakura really isn't paying attention to a thing being said," Tenten noted.
"It just proves to show you when Sakura is out for blood nothing else matters," Ino nodded wide-eyed.
"Sasuke-nii-san, it only makes sense that there should be some of Sakura-chan's underwear in her drawer from the time she was hiding with you," Akemi commented, cutting the argument short, "you could have just opened the drawer and taken a look at her undies."
"You have some of my underwear?" Sakura somehow managed to turn and glare.
"They were the ones you bought in the Flame, I was gonna pack them for you, but Akemi told me that then you'd be suspicious of where you got them," Sasuke told her.
"Akemiiiii," Sakura growled changing her target.
"Sakura-chan, your mind is currently being controlled by momentay rage, and blood lust, very similar to how Sasuke-nii-san's mind was a number of years ago, you are making very rash decisions and not thinking the situation through clearly, calm down and take into consideration how packing underwear for pregnant women you'd never bought in Konoha would look suspicious," Akemi spoke calmly.
"Don't give me that-" Sakura paused for a moment and actually thought about it, calming down.
"Quick finish the story before she goes on rampage again!" Ino said.
"Wha-"
~x~x~x~
Naruto had come back from his mission tired, hungry, and worst of all, depressed. It was only the afternoon, so he decided he'd wash up and walk around aimlessly. Upon opening the door, a delicious aroma hit his nose and he could only wonder who was in his home. Cautiously taking a step into his home and pulling out a kunai advancing slowly, Naruto began to head towards the kitchen slowly.
Hinata appeared from the kitchen dressed in a casual kimono, obviously designed for home-wear only and an apron and said something he had never ever heard anyone ever tell him, and could only dream of hearing. "Okairi, Naruto-kun," Hinata smiled brightly.
Naruto's feet were rooted to the floor beneath him. He stood there in complete and absolute shock. He'd only ever dreamed of hearing those three syllables be directed at him. He'd longed for them so bad that his heart ached. Here Hinata was, standing before him, dressed a mother would, telling him that one special word. He could feel tears forming in his eyes, as his lips twitched into a happy and breaking smile. Before he knew it, he'd ran to Hinata and hugged her, replying softly, "Tadaima."
(QUICK AN: Tadaima means: I'm home and Okairi means welcome home, it's something that parents and their children in Japan say Ex. Kid walks in through front door: TADAIMAAA! Parent: Okairi!)
~x~x~x~
The story was cut off with a load of squeals and "AWWWW"s from the girls.
~x~x~x~
Hinata returned the hug smiling warmly. "E-eto, how about y-you, go and take a bath Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked as Naruto pulled away. "I-I already prepared it, so you don't have to worry."
Naruto was shocked yet again. "Y-yeah sure I will," he said awkwardly, "t-thanks."
"No problem," Hinata smiled again, "just be out in time for lunch."
"A-ah," Naruto replied still in a state of shock.
~x~x~x~
"I wasn't really surprised that Naruto-kun was shocked, in fact I'd been expecting it," Hinata commented, "if anything, I had already calculated every last one of his responses, the only thing that shocked me was Naruto's reaction to me saying 'okairi'."
~x~x~x~
After taking a bath Naruto noticed his clothes neatly folded on the bed waiting for him. He also noticed how clean the place was. Even his laundry was done and drawers were organized. Naruto could only stare past the small doorway and wonder what had ever possessed Hinata to go through all of that. Lunch tasted great, it was like a feast kind of. There was ramen with all sorts of toppings, onigiri, egg rolls, and even sushi. He didn't have the ingredients to all of these. As Naruto sat down, he couldn't help but stare at Hinata. Even as he was eating he was staring at her. She seemed so fragile, so easy to break. She did look like a porcelain doll, with those delicate plump cheeks lightly dusted with a shade of rose, her heart shaped face, big eyes, manicured eyebrows, button nose. "I-is there something wrong?" Hinata asked worriedly bringing Naruto back to earth, "Does it not taste good?"
"Huh? Wha-" Naruto blinked rapidly, "no-no it tastes great! I'm just a little, preoccupied."
"Is there anything wrong?" Hinata asked a worried expression taking her face. "You have seemed rather depressed, did something happen during the mission?"
Naruto didn't know why, but it felt nice to know that Hinata was worried about him, it showed she really cared. A mature smile tugged at his lips, "Thank you Hinata, I've never had someone treat me the way you have."
"I-it was n-nothing," Hinata said flustered, trying her best to keep her eyes on him, "r-really, I-I enjoyed doing this fo-for you, k-knowing th-that i-it might m-make y-you h-h-happy."
Naruto and Hinata had a lively lunch after that. Naruto told her about the mission. She helped him feel better and he asked her if she would like to train tomorrow, and she said that she would be busy tomorrow, but Lee was up for a match and had been driving the village nuts in search of a partner. Naruto gave her a smile and thanked her again. As the sun began to set, Naruto invited her to stargaze with him. They watched the stars together in complete silence. When Hinata had to go, Naruto invited her to come back to stargaze tomorrow. When she was gone he couldn't help
The next day Naruto came back home to a very similar smell, only to be greeted by Hinata in a similar way to that of the previous day. In fact it continued for the next week or so. Often when Naruto would come home he'd hear Hinata singing something until he greeted her or she just became quiet the moment she felt his chakra in the house. So on the last day they had together before Hinata had to go on a mission, Naruto masked his chakra from when he was still on the training grounds and came home and very slowly and very quietly opened the door, he snuck in and listened to Hinata for a while before he snuck up behind her and suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist and picked her up slightly, ripping a squeal out of her mouth as she began to kick, until he whispered, "Tadaima," into her ear.
Calming down and controlling her breathing Hinata replied, "Okairi."
That was the last time they spent an afternoon like that for the next two weeks. The day after that Naruto had returned home and found nothing more than an empty room and a note. Hinata had apologized exactly seven times in her letter and explained as to why she wasn't there that day. Naruto smiled as he read her letter, happy that she had actually put the time into writing it out since she didn't have the time to tell him. And he noticed just how empty his life felt without her. If anything Naruto felt dull and empty and often fanaticised coming back and finding a happy Hinata standing there making them a meal. She acted like she was his wife. If only he could have her as a wife, life would be perfect and they'd have the cutest little children. Hinata would be a loving mother, she wouldn't spoil them, and she'd make sure they grew into fine strong shinobi. They could have a daughter that looked just like Hinata, with pretty lavender eyes, long navy hair, fair skin. Naruto wanted Hinata as his wife. Wait a second! Did he just think that? Woah! He had to slow down! They weren't even dating! Well not yet, anyway… Wait a second! How would Hinata feel if he were to ask her out?
Naruto got up and paced around his bed space. He couldn't just pop out of nowhere and go, "Hinata will you marry me?" They were only friends, it's dangerous to develop feelings for your friend, even if she's a pretty girl, who nice, kinds, and funny sometimes. She laughs to all his jokes and listens to everything he says. No really listens not just sits there and just hears. Did Naruto love Hinata? Oh he didn't know, sure there were times when he wanted to just hold her in his arms as they watched the stars, but still. Naruto exhaled loudly. He'd just have to, he'd go to Kakashi-sensei, he was his mentor, and he should be able to help him.
"OI KAKASHI-SENSEI!" Naruto yelled.
"Ah, Naruto, can I help you with something?" Kakashi looked over the top of his favorite orange book.
"U-umm, sensei I have a small teeny-tiny problem," Naruto started then added, "can we discuss it somewhere private?"
"Huh?" Kakashi asked surprised. "Yeah, umm sure."
The two headed towards the training grounds where Kakashi gave them the bell test. Kakashi sat on the stump Naruto had been tied to four years ago. "So what is this teeny-tiny problem?" Kakashi asked not looking up from his book.
"W-well umm, how do you know if you're in love with a person?" Naruto spit out rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
"Hm?" Kakashi looked up wide-eyed. "You're in love with Sakura? Sasuke won't be very happy about that…" Kakashi added under his breath.
~x~x~x~
"He knew?" Sasuke asked in a monotone.
"It's not so hard for him to not know," Ino exclaimed, "with you continuously staring at Sakura's under-average-sized butt."
"Woah Sasuk-"
"Carrying on," Neji cut off Kiba not in the mood for another interruption.
~x~x~x~
"Well let's see," Kakashi put the book down and scratched his chin, "what I know is that when you're in love with someone, your heart pace picks up a little and you feel shy and overly self-conscious."
"Oh."
"It doesn't have to happen all the time, I mean if it did then the two would get annoyed with it," Kakashi rubbed his masked chin, "sometimes just seeing the girl makes you happy, just thinking of her makes you smile, very often you start to think up ways to make her smile. Love is a form of happiness, of ecstasy; it's more than just a simple attraction. It's when you enjoy just the very presence of the other person, it's when you're happy with them, it's when you look at them and know that you really want to spend the rest of your life with them."
There was a moment of a silence before, "Simple enough?" Kakashi looked over to his blonde student to see him standing there in awe, his mouth hanging open slightly.
"Well, umm, yeah well you see Kakashi-sensei," Naruto stumbled over his words leaving the silver-haired man shocked yet again, "I-I've been fanaticising having Hinata-chan as my wife, and-and, well umm, I smile when I see her. My heart beat doesn't change often, but I dunno I just feel like I want her to be my girlfriend, my wife, mine."
"Hinata-chan you say?" Kakashi lifted an eyebrow.
"Well uh, umm, yeah, uh-"
Naruto stopped spouting nonsense as Kakashi placed a fatherly hand on his shoulder, "Congratulations Naruto, you are officially in love with Hyuuga, Hinata."
Naruto's eyes popped out of his head. "Good luck, I'm pretty sure your father would be very proud of your choice-no, your heart's choice."
"You think?" Naruto got teary at the mention of his father.
"Aah, Minato-sensei had such great hopes for you, him and Kushina-san," Kakashi's right eye crinkled and the shadows in his mask shifted showing he was smiling, "your mother used to brag about how attractive you would be and said that she hoped you looked like Minato-sensei, she knew that you'd need someone to look after you, just like your father needed her, so she was like, Naruto needs to have a strong-willed, determined, smart wife to kick his butt when it needs a beating."
"Wow, Kaa-chan sure was violent," Naruto winced.
"But she had a point."
"Aah."
~x~x~x~
"Kakashi-sensei's so sweet!" Sakura had silent tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Who would have thought a guy with a mask who always has his nose stuck in a stupid perverted book would be so well educated in love!" Ino blew her nose.
"Guys stop it! I don't wanna cry too!" Tenten wailed.
"It's okay to cry Tenten," Neji rubbed her back (for you see Tenten was no longer sitting in Neji's lap, but beside him, in fact all the girls had changed into such positions tired of being in their loved one's laps), "It's actually a very healthy thing to do."
"I need a tissue Ino!" Tenten wailed.
"How troublesome."
~x~x~x~
"Saki! Naruto? What can I do for you two today?" Ino asked confused.
"Well I kinda need a girl's opinion, so uh," Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, rather embarrassed.
"Naruto here," Sakura pointed to Naruto using the back of her hand, "wants to propose to Hinata," Sakura told Ino; and before Ino could retort (since her mouth which was hanging open), "he knows it's early, but he finds the term 'girlfriend' too weak, since it shows that it's 'a basic relationship based more on lust than on actual love' and he loves Hinata, so he wants to get married, but not now! Relax piggy."
Ino closed her gaping mouth and began to purr at how cute she thought the situation was. "Sure I'll help you! Hinata only deserves the best!" Ino jumped up. "Lemme just tell my mom that I'm going out and that someone needs to watch the shop."
Naruto and Sakura waited for Ino patiently as she bounced up the stairs and came tumbling back down a few seconds later. "So let's go!" She jumped up excitedly, running out of the shop dragging the other two by their elbows.
~x~x~x~
"If you ever want to go shopping you go straight the Ino, she's like," Sakura paused for a sec, "the shopping kage!"
"Awwww really?" Ino purred spreading her arms wide. "Gimme a hug you cute little forehead girl."
Sakura smiled brightly and shuffled over to Ino who did the same on her knees to give her a hug. "How old are they again?" Sasuke grumbled.
"24, and they're still like this," Shikamaru grumbled, "how troublesome."
~x~x~x~
Stand to stand, shop to shop, nothing seemed to be right. By the twenty-seventh shop Naruto was frustrated and losing hope, Sakura was plain annoyed, and Ino completely understood how Naruto felt. "God Naruto is it really that hard to pick out a simple ring?" Sakura complained angrily as she plopped herself down on a bench, in a very un-lady like manner.
"You do know that teme, as in the Sasuke-teme, likes women with posture and poise," Naruto muttered grumpily, "you know ones that sit down like the seat is made out of glass."
"Really forehead! Had you had any chakra channeled to your butt that bench would have been dust by now," Ino huffed.
"You do know that you asked me for help, not the other way around!" Sakura scolded.
"None of the rings felt right dattebayo!" Naruto moaned exasperated.
"I know right?" Ino groaned in agreement.
"I sometimes have theories that you two are related," Sakura mumbled.
"Hey look! Naruto let's go check that store out!" Ino yelled excited.
"Letsa go!" Naruto pumped his fist in the air as he and Ino took off running to the store full of hope.
Sakura blinked a couple of times as she watched the two take off and grumbling got up and ran behind the two a smile adorning her face.
When Hinata arrived to the village, she ran straight for her home to take a shower and get dressed and properly apologize to Naruto. So about two hours later after she, had been welcomed home by her father, said hi to Neji and Hanabi, taken a shower and eaten a small onigiri, Hinata was in her usual clothes and was headed towards Naruto's home, hoping he would be there. Hinata stopped in front of his door and breathed in and out a few times trying to calm her pounding heart and control her breathing. After two minutes when she was finally sure that he wouldn't be able to tell that she had been panting. Hinata lifted a fist to the door and knocked a few times.
The moment he heard a knock Naruto jumped up to the door, seeing it was Hinata, his heart pace sped up as he revised his plan. Naruto bounded to his room and picked up the little red box and shoved it into his pocket, keeping his hand on it. Naruto then rushed to the door and opened it. "Hey there Hinata-chan!"
"H-hello!" Hinata blood rushed to Hinata's face upon seeing Naruto. "I-I'm sorry f-for leaving so suddenly!"
"Hey umm, Hinata-chan," Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly closing his eyes in a nervous smile, "would you, uh, like to go out for some ramen at ichiraku's?"
Hinata blinked a few times; did that mean he accepted her apology? "U-umm sure!"
All throughout the walk to and meal at ichiraku's Naruto's heart pounded in nervous anxiety. He was so nervous that he even ate less than usual! Hinata took notice to this and became very curious as to why. Naruto walked with her to the riverbank where they had first trained together. "Hinata-chan, close your eyes," Naruto ordered.
Although Hinata was curious as to why she complied without questioning, she trusted Naruto, and even though she was nervous as to why he'd asked her to do such a thing she still said nothing. Hinata heard shuffling and then felt Naruto take one of her hands in both of his. Hinata's facial expression shifted to that of confusion, especially when she felt one of them leave hers. "You can, uh open them now," Naruto said shyly.
Opening her eyes, Hinata found the surprise of her life. Written in the sand next to Naruto, in his huge sloppy handwriting, was, "will you marry me?" Hinata looked at Naruto who looked at her with determination in his eyes. It couldn't be! She had to be dreaming! There was no way, absolutely no way that Naruto was proposing to her! No… no way! Hinata pulled her hand away from Naruto as she blinked repeatedly, rubbing her palms over eyes harshly continuously, before shaking her head in a way to clear her eyes. "Wha-what's wrong Hinata-chan?" Naruto looked crestfallen.
Hinata paused. "If this were a dream, I wouldn't be thinking it was a dream right?" She asked Naruto.
"N-no, I guess not," Naruto tilted his head to the side.
"S-so this isn't a dream huh?" Hinata asked.
"N-nope! Sure isn't!" Naruto answered wide-eyed.
Hinata placed her hand back in Naruto's silently asking him to repeat his question.
"Hinata," Naruto paused looking her in the face, "will you marry me? Please?"
Hinata giggled at his cuteness before a huge smile adorned her face as she said, "yes!"
Naruto barely had any time to slip the ring on her right index finger before she collapsed into his arms. Naruto kissed her forehead and carried her to the hill where it all started. He stayed by her until she woke up and they sat together under the stars yet again.
~x~x~x~
"K-KAWAIIII!" The girls pronounced in perfect harmony yet again.
"And that's the end!" Naruto hugged his beloved wife.
"You know what I'm really, really,curious about," Ino asked suddenly.
"Yeah, I've been curious about that too," Tenten agreed craned her neck.
"Yes, that also intrigued me, even though I got the full story," Hinata agreed.
"What are you girls all so curious about?" Kiba wondered aloud.
"Just how did Sasuke-teme take advantage of Sakura…" Ino started.
"Was it that he met her while she was drunk or did they get drunk together?" Tenten continued.
"The bottom line question is…" Hinata contributed.
"Just what happened that night?" The three girls asked at once, directing their question at the Uchiha.
"Aren't you guys supposed to record today's date as the first time Neji-san and Sasuke-kun agreed to something?"
AN: IMPORTANT MESSAGE HERE!
To all of my readers, I was planning to have all the couples explain how they fell in love here, but instead, I decided to only settle for NaruHina because it was longer than I expected it to be and I felt that I'd kept you guys waiting much too long. So if you guys want all of the others to tell what their love stories are, leave me a review telling me if that's what you want! Also I will take suggestions as to how they fell in love, since I personally love suggestions. I hope your guys enjoyed it, and I thank you all! Every last one of you that decided to actually sit down and read this story! Thank you all so very much! I appreciate it, everyone! Thank you so very, very, much! Oh yes and please like I said before, I would just like your opinions as to what you liked and didn't like with this story so far.