She felt dizzy.

She opened one of her eyes, and the world tipped like it was drunk. She closed her eye, and lay there for a while. The dizziness began to pass, and after a while she sat up, her eyes still close. She tipped a little, but quickly steadied herself.

She opened her eyes and found that she was in a tree. Except that the tree had smooth boards over every branch, creating a walkway for people to walk around. She sat up and held her head, wondering why she was here.

Suddenly a voice rang out, it was rather close by and it was especially loud. "YOU DID WHAT!?"

Then she heard a voice that sounded familiar. "Look, you deserve this, really you do. You need Tsunade to talk with you."

"That doesn't mean kidnap the Hyuuga Heiress!"

Hinata suddenly remembered why she was here.

"She is the closest thing Konoha has to a princess, and you kidnap her?" The first voice said, loudly.

"It needed to be someone the Hokage would care about, otherwise she wouldn't do anything about it."

"Look, you baka, do I have to spell this out for you? We, no YOU, have kidnapped the heiress of the most important clan in Konoha, excluding the Uchihas. Do you know what this means for us? For the Haven? We might as well hang ourselves now, save Konoha the trouble."

"I still think you put too much trust in Konoha's ninjas and their tracking abilities."

"They don't have to use their abilities, we are living in their BACKYARD."

"Alright, alright, I'll take her to the meeting place and turn her over, I'll explain everything."

"I just hope she's not awake yet, otherwise we'd owe her an apology."

Then a Brown haired man with red eyes came around the trunk of the tree to Hinata's right, he wore a mist headband with the mark of the exile. "Oh, man." He said.

"Let me guess, she's awake?" the first voice said.

"Yeah, she is." The brown haired man said.

"Send her in."

"Yes sir," He said to the first voice, "if you will please follow me." Vara said to Hinata.

She looked at him, confused. "Weren't your eyes blue before?"

"Yes but I'll get to that later, but now the Outcast would like to see you." Vara said, before leading her around the trunk to a small building that hung between two branches. It had three windows and a small scarlet cloth curtain for a door. Vara pulled back the door and led her in. It took a second for her eye to adjust to the darkness, when they did she found that the room was simply decorated with only a table, a bookshelf and a desk as furniture, but the room itself was rather impressively made, complete with a stair case that led to a second floor.

Then she noticed the red leather swivel chair behind the desk, and the numerous yellow spikes of hair the peeped over the top of it. The chair swiveled towards her, and she saw a face that she had only seen in dreams for the last four years.

"Hey, Hinata." Naruto said, "Long time no see, huh?"

"Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-Na-…" Was all she could say before fainting.

Naruto sighed, "Back to the old routine I see."

After getting Hinata to wake up, Nartuo formely apologized for Vara minor insurrection, and asked for forgiveness. She readily gave it before bombarding the boy with questions. "Where are we? Where did you get that coat? Was that warning at the forest all you? How did you grow so tall? Why are you protecting Konoha? Why did you take Iwa?..." And the questions just seemed to never stop.

"Hinata," Naruto interrupted, "I will explain everything in due time. I will however answer your first question. Come with me." He went to the stair case, and led her up the stairs to a small bedroom, he went past the simple bed and led her to a balcony. "This is my new home, the Haven of Exiles."

The sight left Hinata gasping for breath. They were in a forest, where hundreds of homes sat in the trees. The forest floor was filled with packed-dirt streets, where a thousand shops lined the sides. A hundred villagers, ranging from five-year-old kids to forty-year-olds, walked the streets. In the distance, Hinata could make out a blue lake that surrounded the whole village.

"We have everything here, from Jinchuurikis to exiled bloodlines, we have wood users, gem users, lava users ice users, in fact, the only this we don't have is…I forgot…Hey Vara," He said as he turned back into the office, "What was that we don't have?"

"That would be arrogant jerks, Outcast-san."

"Oh right."

"You have Jinchuurikis?" Hinata asked.

"Oh, sure we do, we have all nine of the biju."

"But Yondaime killed Kyuubi."

Naruto looked at her, suddenly very uncomfortable. "…Eight…I meant eight…" he said as he turned to the window. "Nice view though, huh?" Naruto asked, "It's no Konoha, but…"

"It's amazing." Hinata agreed, deciding to ignore his body-language from her previous comment.

"Well, I guess. Oh, um, is there anything you need before we start getting you back home?"

Hinata's heart sank. Going back, and leaving again…The thought reached her face, and she made no move to hide it.

"Look, in all honesty, I would love for you to stay, but that would put us on some bad terms with Konoha. I know your dad's an idiot and all, but he can't be so bad that'd you hate to go back."

"It's not my dad." She said.

"Really? What is it then?"

She looked at him, he was asking what was it that made Konoha the empty hallow shell of a village it had become. He was asking her why she hated that place. Why it had become a cold and lonely place. How could he not realize that it was him, without him, Konoha was like any other village, cold and careless. "Nothing." She said.

Naruto figured she didn't want to talk about it. "Well, you could stay for a little bit, Vara was stupid enough not to give a specific time…anyway, is there anything I could get you while you're staying?"

Hinata sighed and held her arm, "Well, I was just coming back from a week long mission, and I was hoping to take a shower when I got home…"

"Not another word." Naruto said, before snapping his fingers. Suddenly a young lady appeared, she had deep green eyes and black hair. But her most outstanding features by far were the two cat ears that stood on top of her head, and the long tail. "Felicia, I want you to take Hinata here to the Bathhouse, make sure she gets the best soak she's had in her life, then I want you to get her a meal made by the Rutsubos (pots (AN: you'll see why later)) When she's done bring her back up here. Be sure to answer any of her questions and treat her with the respect you'd give any Exile."

"Yes, sir, Outcast-sama." Felicia said bowing, "Come along Miss Hyuuga." She said, leaving the Balcony.

"I'll see you later, Hinata, but now I've got some work to do, talk to you later." Naruto said, before jumping off into the trees.

Felicia led Hinata down a long staircase to the street, where a hundred cold stares met her. Everyone from forty-year-old men to six-year-olds holding their mother's hand. She felt alienated, and hated.

She quickly caught up with Felicia. "Wh-why are they looking at me like that?" She asked the cat woman.

"Because you're an insider, those who are accepted by the village that hate us, and normally hate us also." She said, "But they should know better." She said before turning to the crowd. "Yeah, that's not at all hypocritical, glare at the insider! Show her what it's like! The whole point of being an Exile is to love the village you came from despite its stupid mistake!" She yelled at them, and some quickly looked away, ashamed. Others reluctantly diveted their eyes. "Tremes." Felicia whispered under her breath. "Sorry about that, some people just can't let things go, you know?"

Hinata nodded and continued on her way to the bath house.

She came out feeling as fresh as a spring flower. The bath houses had every kind of soap, shampoo, and towel you could think of. She felt amazing after coming out of there.

Felicia was waiting for her, her tail swishing in the air, making some men nearby faint from blood-loss through the nose. "Are you ready?"

"Ready for what?"

"You're about to have a meal from an outcast clan whose bloodline ability allows them to cook the best food this side of the earth."

"Is that the Rutsubos Naruto-kun mentioned?"

"Naruto-kun?" Felicia said smiling, "I wasn't aware he had a girlfriend."

Hinata suddenly blushed a deep shade of red, "No, no it wasn't like that!"

"Suuuurrrrrreeeee it wasn't."

Hinata blush went deeper. "No! Honest, we were just friends!"

"Yes, but the question is, did you want it that way?"

Hinata got real quiet. "Well…n-not really…I've-I've always admired him because he would never give up, and…that admiration grew stronger until it became something different…" She hung her head, "but I could never tell him that…I could never have the courage against rejection."

Felicia smiled gently, "I've felt that exact way." Hinata looked up at her, "In fact, everyone in this village has felt that."

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.

"We're Exiles, outcasts, nobodies, all of us have been thrown out of our homes because we've been rejected. Those hurts have followed us all our lives. But it has taught us all one very important thing."

"What?" Hinata asked.

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained." Felicia said simply.

Hinata blinked.

"Look, think about it, if he rejects you, then you can finally find someone to fix your broken heart, if he loves you, then you will be one of the happiest people alive. Simple as that."

"But-."

"No but's now let's get you your lunch." Felicia said, grabbing Hinata's hand and leading her to the "Rutsubo's Feeding Hole".

Hinata came out of the restaurant stuffed. How any Village could kick out a clan like that, she'd never know. There was however, one problem with them: The words "Too Much" were not in their vocabulary, and they insisted on five course meals.

"Thank you, so much, Rutsubos, the meal was to die for." Felicia said, thanking them.

"No problem at all, Felicia." The head cook said, "But I do have one question."

"What?"

"Does she not like the food?" he whispered, pointing to Hinata.

"Oh no, she loved, but she had a very big breakfast this morning," Felicia lied, "she asks for your forgiveness."

The head cook thought about it, "Very well, since she did not know about us, I will let this one go."

"And she thanks you." Felicia said, before backing out the door. She turned to Hinata, "Think you can walk a straight line?"

"I'm not sure, my stomach's extra weight is throwing my balance off."

"Yeah, the first meal normally does that to you."

Felicia somehow led Hinata back to Naruto's office/house. Upon arrival, Naruto appeared, thanked Felicia, and then snapped for Vara and Ula, who both got there in less than a second. Vara's eyes were now a dark shade of blue that was almost black. "Vara, Ula, come with me, I can't show myself at the meeting place without risking my head, so you two are going to deliver her. I however, owe Hinata a little more time together, we are friends after all. So lets move."

"Yes, Outcast-sama."

"Meet us at the ferry in twenty minutes." Naruto ordered.

"Yes, Outcast-sama." They said before disappearing.

"Well, Hinata, I'm going to answer another question for you, My dad was the Yondaime,"

"Yeah… I know that."

"You did?"

"Yes, Jiraiya-sama told the council, and the council told us…"

"Oh…Well did you know he left stuff for me?"

"Like what?"

"Like the coat and the Hirashin no Jutsu."

"You mean the jutsu that is soo fast the Sharingan can't even copy it?" Hinata asked, eyes wide.

"Yeah, but it needs a little work. Anyways, are you aware that my mom was Kushina Uzumaki, the Last Uzu Nin?"

"No…never heard of them."

"Not surprising, but anyway, Uzu was famous for their armor smithing, and when Uzu fell, my mom went into making flak jackets for Konoha, and signed them with the sign of Uzu, the swirl mark. As you could probably tell, it became rather famous." Naruto then walked over to his desk and pulled out a large box. "A couple of months before my mom got pregnant with me, she was working on some lightweight, and yet incredibly strong armor." He began pulling out a green pair of greaves, bracers, cuisses (thigh protection), and the breastplate, "She had almost finished the armor for Dad when she was put into the hospital. So she left it for me, hoping that I would grow up just like my dad." Naruto slid off the Yondaime coat, and began strapping on his armor. "Luckily, she was right." He said as he pulled the breastplate over his head. "It's a shame they left all of this to me for when I became a chuunin, this armor would have greatly helped in that fight with Sasuke." Naruto said, signing. "Oh, well, can't live in the past."

"Sorry." Hinata said.

"Oh, don't worry about it." Naruto said, smiling, "Now, I have a question for you. How are things in Konoha?"

Hinata quickly told him about the Hyuuga's trying to give Naruto an honorable memory, the Villagers being idiots, the clans being upset, the ninjas being upset, Tsuande wanting to kill people, and the overall hating of each other's guts.

"Wow…I have a serious influence on people." Naruto said as she finished her lengthy update.

"Yeah, you kinda do." Hinata said.

"Well, we better get going." Naruto said.

"Yeah, yeah we should."

Naruto smiled, "I'll race you to the ferry."

Hinata smiled, "Couldn't we walk instead?"

Naruto smiled bigger, "I guess." He said, before pulling up a mask and hood.

The ferryman paddled the boat over the lake with graceful speed. When they landed on the other side, Ula, Vara, his eyes now a light brown, Naruto, and Hinata began to walk eastward.

Not long later, Hinata spoke up, "I don't ever remember a lake like that in Konoha's forest."

"Oh, yeah…" Naruto said, "You'd probably wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Of course I would."

"Well…Kakashi left me a scroll of jutsu that he would have taught me...and one of them was how to create a huge amount of water."

Flashback

A thirteen year-old Naruto, dressed in his dad's coat, and his mom's armor and headband, was pouring over the scroll in front of him. He was currently working on the Suiton: Baku Suishouha. "Hm." He grunted as he thought, "If I could use this right, I could actually be able to drown my opponents, while at the same time, open the possibilities of using water jutsus." Naruto smiled. "I'm going to have to learn this one." He said as he got up in the armor that was a little too big for him, and the coat that was a little too long.

He quickly went through the handsigns, and cried, "Suiton: Baku Suishouha!" He spat up a small puddle.

His first couple of attempts were failures, until he got fed up with it. The angrier he got, the darker the whisker marks on his face became.

Finally, he was so mad, that his face was twisted in rage, "Suiton: Baku Suishouha!" Suddenly, he felt a huge amount of water build up in his stomach. He opened his mouth, and a waterfall fell from his mouth. The whole plain was filled knee deep with water, but it kept coming. Naruto kept letting the water fall from his mouth until he realized that he couldn't breathe, but the water kept coming.

Before long he felt that he would pass out, the world was going black, he felt dizzy, the sounds of the forest were fading into nothingness, too. He was sure he pass out in the next couple of seconds when the water stopped coming. He stood up, still dizzy for a couple of seconds, before he sat down.

As his vision cleared and the dizziness passed, he sat up and looked at how the jutsu went. What he saw made his jaw drop.

A pristine, blue lake sat in front of him, the water sparkled as the sun reflected off of its surface.

"Woah…"

Flashback end

"So that's how the lake and the Island came to be." Naruto said. Ula and Hinata were staring in shock. Vara just kept walking. Naruto looked at them, "If you're having trouble believing me, I have a witness. Isn't that right, Vara?"

"You retold it almost word for word." Vara said, "You did, however forget the part where you dived into the lake looking for Kakashi's scroll."

"That part of the story wasn't necessary." Naruto whispered.

They walked in silence a little bit more, when suddenly, Naruto stopped. "This is as far as I can go without risking my life." He said, "It was great seeing you again, Hinata."

"It was great seeing you too, Naruto." Hinata said.

"Now before you go, I have something very important to tell you, don't tell anyone that I'm the Outcast."

Hinata looked at him, he was turning down recognition and respect, he would have never done that. "Why not?" she asked.

"Because you never know when Konoha may need the Outcast in her gates, and as long as I'm not Naruto, that dream could happen." He said, "But the minute I become Naruto again, I will never have a dream of entering those gates again."

Hinata's eye were filled with tears as he said that. Even after all that cursed collection of buildings and people did to him, he still loved it. He was willing to give up who he was to see again, if for only a short time. He was willing to risk death for the same people that threw him out. He was such a good person.

"Now, before you go, is there anything you want to say?"

The opportunity to tell him the truth was practically smacking her in the face. "I…" she began, trying to pull the words from her throat, "I…" the words were on the tip of tounge, mocking her in her inability to tell him. She sighed. "How can I see you again?"

Naruto smiled beneath his mask, "The minute you're outside of Konoha, I'll be watching you, Trust me, we'll meet again, as long as you have missions out of Konoha, we'll meet again." Then with that, he gave her a big hug. "It was great to see you again."

Hinata's mind froze up. "Contact…with…Naruto…in…a…loving…manner…"

By the time her mind had it all sorted out and finished rebooting, Naruto was already gone.

"Come on, Hyuuga-sama, we need to get you back to Konoha, the Hokage is waiting."

After the brief exchange, where Vara explained to the Hokage that there was a slight insurrection among the Outcast's ranks, and as a sign of apology, Hinata was returned without a scratch, and in better shape than before, and he would send a large supply of weapons in two days time.

Tsunade hesitantly accepted, seeing as how she had no real reason to suspect the Outcast of anything.

Now, Hinata stood in her room, beating herself up over how she couldn't tell him. "Four years! Four years, and I couldn't tell him! Why couldn't I tell him? It's only three words! Three stinkin' words!" She punched the wall. "Arg! Four years and no improvement!" She said as she threw herself onto her bed. "Why didn't I improve!?"

She sat there for a long time, thinking as the newest memories of Naruto filled her mind.

Suddenly, she sat up. She blinked a couple of times as a realization hit her.

She did improve.

Her stutter was almost gone.

Next chapter, more time skip…sorry.