Matriarch of the Hyuga Clan

by dreadlord789

After the death of his adoptive Grandfather, Naruto falls down a spiraling depression, one that he is unlikely ever to get out of. When he is on the edge looking down, someone decides to make themselves known to save his life, and possibly save theirs too.

3. Chapter 3

AN: Im back guys! School is getting pretty hectic and im spending more and more of my time reading about engineering stuff and math... Anyway, before the new chapter i have a few things to say.

Rant Warning:

Ive had several people raise concerns about the age Naruto and Hinata are, and how some things are inappropriate. While i agree and dont want 13 year olds running around and sleeping with other people, you have to remember the era this takes place, or at least the era Kishi wants us to think they are in. Although the story itself takes place in relative modern times, you have to remember that ninjas existed in the Sengoku (Warring States) period back in the 15th century. At that time, most people didnt live into their 30s and so had children as soon as biologically possible, meaning whenever they hit puberty, which is as early as 11 or 12. There are records of people in Egypt have children before they were 10... Anyway, i just want everyone to remember that it was a different culture, different time period, and different part of the world entirely. Many things that are normal for Japanese culture are not normal elsewhere in the world, so early teenagers being intimate isnt so far fetched, and what is "appropriate" changes from person to person. Dont get me wrong, i DO NOT condone people being intimate at that age, especially since most people arent fully mature and can have fatal consequences. But try to keep an open mind, plus its a fanfic... about fantasy, so if you dont like then dont read, its that simple.

Also there seems to be confusion about people making love and people just satiating their primal urges. There is a clear difference between two people showing the depths of their emotion to their soul mate and two people just hooking up and screwing like rabbits. That isn't what their relationship is about. Sure they both feel an attraction to the other, but that is natural. Can anyone here say that they arent attracted to your significant other? Of course not, in fact it would be very hard to maintain that relationship if you werent. But that doesnt mean your relationship is strictly platonic. There is a large amount of romance and love in a healthy relationship, and this fictional one i write about in this story is no different.

Plus, by this point, they both have been part of a war and have, most likely off screen, killed people to protect their home. So their emotional age is much higher than their actual age. Throughout history humans have had the amazing ability to adapt to all kinds of social stigma, and it has only been recently that being intimate at a young age has been frowned upon.

*Phew* Ok, rant over. I apologize for that, and i know a fair amount of you guys wont read it and i will still get several people saying that they shouldnt be doing immoral acts at such a young age, but im just going to live with that and respect your opinion.

So with that done please read the chapter and tell me what you think.

BEWARE: LEMON AT END OF CHAPTER! Dont read if you arent comfortable with it.

Shout out to Leonas for the help with this chapter!

Disclaimer: I dont own Naruto

Chapter 3

It was a gorgeous day; the sun was shining, the birds were chirping, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and one Hinata Hyuga had never been more pissed off in her life. From the time they had left Konoha till now, a total of three hours, they had been going over everything they had ever learned as a shinobi.

Jiraiya had them recount their battles, their skills, their jutsu repertoire, even their knowledge of current events and shinobi history. After he had a firm grasp on their respective abilities combat wise, he began drilling them on certain scenarios and gauging their strategical knowledge based on their responses. All in all, it had been a very productive couple of hours, and they all learned a lot about themselves, but therein was the problem. Aside from the month Jiraiya had trained Naruto, he hadn't learned a thing from his old sensei in the half year Naruto had been "trained".

This was the reason for the current mood of Hinata. "Naruto. Let me get this straight. The only thing your sensei personally taught you relating to fighting had been tree walking?"

Naruto sheepishly nodded his head, he had never seen Hinata so upset, and in fact until only recently he thought she was physically incapable of getting angry. So imagine his surprise when she let out a curse that was extremely un-Hyuga-like. Jiraiya just watched the two with the world's largest grin on his face, and he found himself quickly warming up to the idea of bringing the girl along.

"N… 'Nata?"

She took several calming breaths and forced a smile. "Gomen Naru-koi, I'm not mad at you. I'm just very upset with the… carelessness of your other sensei."

Naruto let out a mental sigh of relief, quickly learning that Hinata adding that little suffix to his name meant that she was calm enough to reason with. He couldn't help but draw similarities between the way Hinata was acting and the way he father acted, but luckily he had enough common sense to not voice said similarities. Naruto walked over to his fuming fiancé and hugged her.

"'Nata, don't be upset. It really isn't worth it. Here and now we have each other and Ero-Sennin, so it's really not worth spending the time to be upset."

Somewhere ahead of them there was a grumble about 'damn gaki'.

Hinata sighed and hugged the blonde back. "Naruto, I know what you mean, but you have to understand just how serious this is. We're shinobi, trained killers, trained killers, so if you aren't trained, then someone else will be able to kill you. Kakashi wasn't just playing favorites Naruto, he was sentencing you to death. It might not have been his intention, but you could have been killed while on one of your missions because you weren't taught how to properly defend yourself." As Hinata was speaking a tear fell down her face. "I can't stand to lose you, not now, not when I am finally able to tell you how much I love you."

Naruto pulled back slightly and smiled at her, kissing her to solidify the point he was going to make. "'Nata, I swear to you here and now, that no one, not even the Shinigami himself, will take me from you."

Hinata closed her eyes half way with a joyful smile and threw her arms around the blonde's neck, kissing him for all he was worth, which apparently was quite a bit. They continued for about thirty seconds before they finally broke apart, foreheads touching and staring into each other's eyes while they caught their breath. Unfortunately, their touching moment was broken apart by the third member of their party.

"Holy shit… You guys are goldmines!"

Naruto turned to look at his sensei who was wearing a pair of reading glasses and scribbling on a notepad furiously.

"Hey, gaki, what was the last part of your final statement? I didn't quite catch that whole bit about the Shinigami."

Naruto glared at the Sannin. "Shove it Ero-Sennin. Don't you use us as your material for your disgusting books!"

Naruto felt the girl in his arms stiffen slightly, and she spoke in a very quiet voice. "You… You wouldn't be that Jiraiya… The one responsible for those books called Icha Icha?"

Jiraiya puffed out his chest. "Why, yes I would little lady! Are you a fan? I don't usually do autographs, but I guess I can make an exception since you two are helping me- OUPFH!"

Whatever he was about to say was caught in his throat, and his hands flew down to cradle his recently kicked privates. He slumped to his knees and managed to look up into the glaring eyes of Hinata, who took his hair in her hand and pulled his eyes up so they were level with hers.

"Listen hear you old pervert. I don't care how powerful you are, or if you are one of the Sannin, but if you ever use us for that piggish filth you call a book, I'll make sure that one of these days you'll wake up and find that you have more in common with women that you ever thought you would. Do I make myself clear?"

Jiraiya's eyes widened and he gripped his privates even harder; to make sure they were still there. "Yes ma'am."

Hinata released her grip and let him drop to the ground. She dusted off her hands and turned to Naruto with a sweet smile.

"Well, we should get going Naru-koi."

Naruto gulped and nodded. "H-Hai!"

At the Hyuga Compound

Hiashi was sitting in his study, sipping a cup of his favorite jasmine tea. He had just put the finishing touches on the last document that would finally solidify Hinata's position as heiress, again. He was pleased with his eldest daughter's changes, and has even started coming to terms with her… fiancé.

It was still troubling to believe that Hinata had chosen that particular shinobi as her future husband, to love and serve her as she continued the legacy of the Hyuga, but at least she had chosen out of love. He had heard one to many stories of suicide within the clan when someone was forced to marry against their will.

'I thank Kami that he is at least a powerful shinobi. His performances in the Chunin exams were stellar, and to top it off he fought the Suna Jinchuriki later that day, and defeated him!'

His musings were cut short with a quick knock on his door. Hiashi knew that he was only ever interrupted in his study when the council chose to convene, and thus his presence was required.

"Enter!"

The door slowly slid open and a young girl with a piece of cloth wrapped around her forehead entered and bowed.

"Lord Hiashi, the elder council has requested their presence at your earliest convenience."

Hiashi sighed, he had a feeling this would happen sooner or later. "I see. Did they inform you of the nature of this meeting?"

The woman shook her head. "Gomen Hiashi-sama, but they did not."

The older Hyuga mentally swore. 'Of course not. This has to be about Hinata.'

"Inform the council I will be there momentarily"

The woman bowed as she backed out of the room. "Hai, Hiashi-sama"

Hiashi stood up and brushed the wrinkles out of his robe. His eyes fell on a family portrait of directly after Hanabi was born, when his wife was still alive. He picked up the picture and gently stroked the figure of his late wife.

"Hitomi, if only you were here none of this would be happening… You always had a knack for bringing out the best in people, and not a day goes by where I don't miss you."

He set the picture back down on his desk with a sigh, reigning in his emotions and putting them back behind his Hyuga mask. He made his way to the council chambers without running into another soul, quite a rare coincidence in a place that houses several complete families. He walked up to his destination and slid open the door, to be met with an amusing sight.

Every member of the council was there, arguing over why their son should be paired with the new heiress. None of them were paying enough attention to realize the clan head had entered the room, and was growing progressively angrier with each passing second.

Finally Hiashi had enough. "Quiet you fools!"

Finally everyone noticed his presence and quickly quieted.

"Now, would someone like to tell me why I have been summoned like some lapdog? The reason had better be important, or there will be consequences."

The elder from the other day who refereed the spar, Gōman, stood up. "This is an important reason indeed Hiashi-dono. It involves the very future of the Hyuga, and whether or not we are on a path to ruin."

An older woman by the name of Jiman stood up. "Yes, this is to determine how to counteract the results of earlier today."

Hiashi sighed. "I wasn't aware that yesterday's results needed to be countered. The results of the spar from today were quite clear, and as Hyuga we are honor bound to honor those consequences. Hinata was victorious, and as such she has been made heiress once again. I have already completed the steps necessary to make this official, so there is nothing more to discuss."

Gōman scoffed. "How is it that for the past five years your eldest has lost every single spar against Hanabi, and yet she is so easily able to bat her aside like dealing with a child?"

Hiashi narrowed his eyes at the man. "What is it you are trying to say, elder?"

The old man flinched slightly, but held his ground. "Everyone here is thinking it, and I am merely voicing those thoughts, the demon has corrupted your eldest, somehow giving her some new demonic strength which she used to win her duel!"

Hiashi stole glances around the room, and found nearly all the elders were nodding their heads in agreement, even his own mother.

"Even you have fallen to their propaganda Kaa-san?"

An older woman with a tired looking face and long white hair named Dentō looked down in shame. "I'm sorry Hiashi, but the facts are irrefutable, there is no other explanation other than what has been stated. I love Hinata very much, but I can't let her steer the Hyuga towards a path of ruin."

Hiashi shook his head in disgust. "Well, I for one will, and that is all that matters."

The woman from earlier Jiman snorted. "What has brought about this new found change in you Hiashi-dono? Not a week ago you were supporting our every action in making Hanabi heiress, yet here you are placing yourself vehemently against us. Why?"

The clan head sighed. "My eyes have been opened to what I have been blind too for these many years. Hinata is strong, she proved that yesterday when she obliterated Hanabi. We all know that was her own power, and no one else's. Do you really think Naruto would have been able to supply her with strength in the middle of a spar? We all had our Byakugans active, and I know there wasn't a drop of the Kyubi's power used in that fight, unless you all forgot what his power looked like from thirteen years ago."

Gōman stood up in rage. "You dare to challenge our memory!? We all lost family to that beast, and no one will ever forget the feeling of pure evil it radiated!"

Hiashi smiled. "Good, then you all know that it wasn't used at all today. The fact of the matter is, Hinata created her own style of Juken that allowed her to toy with Hanabi like a cat would with a mouse. Hinata has been holding herself back for years, and now no one, not even me, know her true capabilities. She might be able to go toe to toe with any one of us, and with her new style, might be able to even emerge victorious!"

There were several murmurs around the room, but Hiashi wasn't finished.

"I'll admit, I wasn't ready to welcome the Uzumaki into our home either, but you must approach this from an open point of view. We have a rare opportunity, one that hasn't happened to any other clan in Konoha's history. We have a change to incorporate the Uzumaki into our clan!"

Gōman stomped his foot in rage. "You would defile our blood with that-"

Dentō cut him off. "Silence Gōman, let my son explain his reasoning."

Hiashi smirked. "We have all heard the stories of the Uzumaki clan of Uzushiogakure. In the last war they fought against the combined might of Kumo, Iwa, and several lesser nations and they almost emerged victorious! Their sacrifice allowed us to mobilize our forces and win the war, but there were few Uzumaki survivors. Their name alone holds weight all across the elemental nations, and I'm sure there is some sort of heritage for Naruto to claim, since he is the heir to both Uzushiogakure and the nation of Uzu itself! So tell me, if you oppose the heir to a nation and a village as a husband to my daughter, who else would you have stand by my daughter's side as she leads our clan?"

There were even more nods all around the room. Hiashi knew he had them almost cornered, it was time to put the final nail on the coffin. It was time to play with their pride.

"And now they are both under the tutelage of one of the most powerful ninja our village has ever produced, Jiraiya the Gama Sennin, one of the legendary Sannin! When she returns she will be far stronger than previously, and now she has the backing of one of the more influential members of this village. From what I see, there is no one better to lead our clan to new levels of power and prestige than Hinata, and every single one of these changes were brought about by the young Uzumaki."

Gōman looked around the room. He knew there was no way he would be able to convince the council to brand Hinata now, but he still had one more card to play.

"You say Hinata hasn't been corrupted by the demon yet, but who is to say it won't happen in the future? What of their children? I can't seem to think that the power of the Kyubi wont infect any future heirs!"

Hiashi chuckled. "Well, if it does then we will see what happens when the power of the mightiest beast in history is mixed with the power of the mightiest Dojutsu. I don't envy the position of any enemy my grandchildren might have, because I for one don't want to be on the receiving end of that combination of raw power."

Gōman sat back down, defeated. He may have been power hungry, but he wasn't stupid. He knew all too well that the prospect of increasing the power of the Byakugan was the one thing the elders would sacrifice anything to achieve, even the position of the next clan head.

There were several more minutes of hushed whispers among the elders, but finally Dentō stood back up. "I think I speak for the majority here that the points my son has brought before the council are more than adequate to recognize Hinata as heiress and Naruto as her fiancé."

Hiashi breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. "I'm glad the council has seen reason. Now, I must get back to making the final preparations for the marriage between Uzumaki Naruto and my daughter."

He left the room and the elders filed out one by one, leaving only a handful left.

Gōman looked to his fellow elders. "We… We can't let this happen! It'll… It'll destroy us all."

Jiman shook her head. "As much as I want to agree with you, I just can't refute what Hiashi said. We can't do anything anymore, so we might as well make the most of what we can and pray Hinata wont destroy the old traditions."

An ancient looking man by the name of Egoizumu stood up. "I agree with Jiman. We have lost the backing of the council and now the only option left to us is work with Hinata and attempt to decrease the number of changes she will make. Now, I believe we should all get some rest, it's been a very tiring day."

Eventually only Gōman was left. "No. I won't go down easily. Not now, not when I'm so close."

He left the council chambers to figure out how he could salvage this hopeless situation.

In the Town of Fujisato

The trio had been traveling for about six hours, finally reaching their first destination, the small town of Fujisato, famous for its hot springs, its festivals, and its underground casinos. Jiraiya narrowed his search for his missing teammate to a number of towns and locations where she had been spotted, but it was going to definitely going to take time to find her.

They walked through the front gate and walked straight to the nearest hotel. Jiraiya stopped and handed Hinata a small wad of bills.

"Go ahead and get us a room while I start asking around for Tsunade. I don't have enough money for two rooms so it looks like you two are sharing a bed, but I don't think you two mind do you?"

Naruto blushed and took Hinata's hand, leading her into the hotel. "Damn pervert…"

Hinata just smiled, sure she was a little embarrassed, but she wouldn't lie, she didn't mind sharing a bed with the blonde. Jiraiya just laughed and proceeded to walk away to begin asking questions around town.

"Let's go 'Nata, you don't want to know where he's going… dirty old man…"

Hinata giggled. "Well, since he's gone, why don't we shower and have a night out?"

Naruto paused and looked back at her. "You mean like a date?"

Hinata just laughed. "Well, I think we kinda skipped the dating phase so this can just be a night we get to enjoy ourselves."

Naruto felt a stab of guilt, reminded that he had taken away what most girls dreamed of, that night that girls remember for the rest of their lives, that night that they promise themselves to one person for the rest of their lives. Even though he knew it wasn't true, he felt that she held some resentment because he had robbed her of that precious moment. He knew that this was ridiculous, but the mind tends to wander and can reach some very ridiculous conclusions when it does so. He knew that he would fix this, if not tonight then sometime soon.

Naruto put on a smile. "Alright, sounds like fun. Let's go get ready!"

Not twenty minutes later and Naruto and Hinata were walking out of the hotel again, washed and refreshed. Walking hand in hand they explored around the town looking for something to eat since they had arrived before their usual lunch.

Just as they were walking down the street Hinata ground to a halt. "Wait, there's a nice looking sushi restaurant. How does that sound Naru-koi?"

Naruto shrugged and looked down at the ground. "That doesn't sound too bad… But I was kinda hoping for ramen or something…"

Hinata sighed. "I'm sorry Naruto, but you need to diversify your diet. Ramen is ok every now and then, but you can't live solely on that. How about this, we have this for lunch and then we can find somewhere that has Ramen for dinner. Ok?"

Naruto pulled in Hinata for a tight hug, squeezing the life out of her. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You're going to be the best wife ever 'Nata!"

Hinata just blushed, and ignored the bone shattering hug. This was the first time Naruto said he was actively looking forward to their marriage, and up until now she still had lingering doubts that she had forced him into something he didn't really want.

The lunch itself was simple, but it was filling and tasty, something the two of them were looking for after two solid days of eating plain rice and beans out on the road.

After that they spent the night just enjoying each other's company, visiting stores and doing a bit of window shopping. Hinata was saddened that she didn't pack enough money to actually buy any of the items that caught her eye, few as they were, and though she could charge them to the Hyuga clan, she didn't want to do anything to aggravate an already precarious position… yet.

Unknown to her, Naruto had basically his entire life savings on his person. One of the many things Hiruzen had taught Naruto in his lifetime was the extreme value of money, and taught Naruto how to use a seal on his arm to store all his earnings from his missions. That sum had become pretty hefty since the wave mission became an A ranked mission, in addition to the multitude of D ranks team 7 performed in the several month break before the start of the Chunin exams. To Hiruzen's surprise he discovered Naruto was very conservative when it came to spending, and he could be very stingy when he wanted to be. Hiruzen was happy his teachings were taken to heart by his adoptive grandson, and he could only image the look on Naruto's face when he became Chunin and discovered he had enough wealth left my his parents to buy basically half of Hi no Kuni.

The afternoon together was magical, and once the sun went down they were pleasantly surprised to find that the town also was hosting a fireworks display that night. It was apparently some festival to honor the god of harvest, a very important time for the town especially with the wheat harvest approaching in a few weeks in mid-August. As per her promise, they were able to find a small stand that sold ramen to satisfy the blonde's endless cravings. Eventually Naruto and Hinata found themselves in the town square, where there was light music and a dancing floor made of bamboo where several couples were already swaying to the music.

Hinata was excited at the chance to dance with Naruto, and pulled him over towards the dance floor, but he was hesitant. "Wait 'Nata…"

She paused and looked at him with an impatient smile. "What is it?"

He blushed and shuffled his feet. "I… I don't know how to dance…"

Hinata closed her eyes and mentally slapped herself. Once again she had taken something for granted and assumed Naruto had a similar upbringing as herself. She kept forgetting that he never had someone to teach him these things.

Hinata gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "It's ok Naru-koi, just follow my lead and do as I do. I'll teach you."

She settled for swaying with him to the beat instead of actual dancing, but the way they were together just felt more… right. She rested her head on his shoulder with her arms wrapped around his neck while he rested his head on hers and hand his hands clasped over her waist.

Around and around they twirled in an endless circle, content to get lost in the slow rhythms and simply enjoy being with one another. They both knew these peaceful moments were rare in the life of a ninja, but that made those times all the more special.

They had been dancing so long, that Hinata eventually was beginning to fall asleep, and her quiet yawns were all the indication Naruto needed to scoop her up in his arms and carry her back to the hotel. It was a short walk, one that Naruto wished would have lasted longer, and the two earned many looks of endearment as people watched two young teens in love.

Naruto eventually reached the hotel and made his way to their room, where he set Hinata on the bed and tucked her in. He watched her sleeping form, and heard her mumble his name in her sleep, something that brought a smile to his face. There was one thing though that was tearing him up. It was something that he still hadn't told her even though she had almost given herself to him, and it was the main reason why he pushed her away and asked her to wait. He still had to tell her about the Kyubi.

He knew that if he didn't do it now, then it would only mean more lies and trouble down the road, and he figured that it was best to tell her away from Konoha. Out here she would actually have time to think about what he had to tell her, and maybe even come to a decision about their relationship, if it survived.

Very gently he placed a hand on her shoulder and brought her out of her slumber. "'Nata… 'Naaaaaaaata. Wake up sleepy."

Her eyes fluttered open revealing eyes that had captured Naruto's heart and made his breath catch in his throat. "Naru-koi? Where are we?"

He smiled and brushed a bang out of her face. "You started to fall asleep so I brought you back. There… there's something I need to tell you though…"

Hinata forced herself awake when she heard the uncertainty and trepidation in his voice. "Naruto? What's wrong?"

He looked at the ground. "Do you remember what you promised me? The promise that you would never leave me, that you would always love me? No matter what?"

Hinata nodded. "Yes… Yes I remember… Naruto, what is it? You're starting to scare me."

A tear fell from his eye. "Do you… Do you remember what they taught us about the Kyubi… About the Yondaime's sacrifice thirteen years ago?"

Hinata mentally sighed. "Yes I remember… But… Naruto… I-"

He put a hand to her mouth. "Just… Just hold on a second 'Nata… I need to finish… I need to tell you that it was all-"

She removed his hand. "Naruto, its ok. I already-"

Naruto started to get frustrated. "Just hold on a second! This is really hard for me… I'm trying to say-"

This time Hinata put a hand over his mouth. "Naruto. I already know. I've already known for a while."

Naruto just stared at her, and eventually she removed her hand to let him speak. "You… You already know? But… How?"

She sighed and began explaining how she made the connection way back in the academy about how Naruto's birthday and the Kyubi festival coincided. She also did some research on the myths of the Biju, and about how they would never really 'die' just fade away until they reappeared several years later. There were some questions that coincidence raised though, since the Kyubi hadn't been sighted for nearly a hundred and fifty years. Then she discovered the word that would change her view on her blonde crush forever, Jinchuriki, the power of human sacrifice. With all the remarks made towards Naruto from the villagers and the way he was treated, she was easily able to put the pieces together and figure out the truth about what happened all those years ago.

For a long time there was silence as Naruto just stared at the floor. "So… What do you think?"

Hinata lifted her head to look at the blonde. "What do you mean?"

Naruto looked at her with tears running down his face. "I'm sure many Hyuga's died when the Kyubi attacked… So do you hate me? Do you blame me for their deaths? I wouldn't blame you if you did… I mean, I basically am the Kyubi so I could understand if-"

Hinata grabbed the hem of his robes and pulled him into her lips. She forced his mouth open with her tongue and kissed him passionately to drive whatever he was about to say out of his mind forever. She held him for as long as she could, eventually breaking for air.

They were both panting with their foreheads resting against each other, and Hinata smiled and gave him another quick kiss. "Naru-koi, we both know you aren't the Kyubi. And even if you were, I still wouldn't care. I fell in love with that little blonde boy who saved me from those bullies when I was a little girl. The same boy that shared with me his nindo, who showed me that no matter what, hard work and determination will always triumph over natural talent. I fell in love with that boy, and whether you call yourself Kyubi or Naruto I couldn't care less, I just want to be with you."

Naruto let tears of happiness fall from his face while he crawled over to her side in bed and held her close to him. He fell asleep holding the only person left in the world who would show him love, the only person who he would ever give his heart to, and there wasn't anywhere he would rather be.

And that is where they slept, in the arms of their other half after an evening that only served to bring them closer together. There was only one black spot on the entire evening, and that was when they had accidentally run into a slightly drunk Jiraiya entering what appeared to be a brothel. The Sannin, in his slightly drunken haze, had caught sight of Naruto and had offered to get someone to "train" Naruto before his wedding night with Hinata. Of course, she made it clear that no one was going to touch Naruto besides her, and Jiraiya's privates received that message loud and clear when they met her foot in a vertical handshake.

The next morning they all awoke early, against Jiraiya's wishes, and proceeded to head out of the town. Whatever Jiraiya had done the night before had led him to discover that Tsunade was actually not in that town, and so they hit the road to find her. They stopped at a clearing around mid-morning for training promised by Jiraiya.

"Alright you two, at the rate we're going it's a two day walk to our next location. We are going to walk from sunrise till noon, and then stop for training."

He dropped his bag to the ground and walked over to a tree, plucking several leaves off the tree branches. He approached Hinata and handed her the leaves.

"Alright, now I want you to do a chakra training exercise since you've already mastered tree climbing and water walking. You take a leaf and use your chakra to keep it stuck to your forehead." He demonstrated and stuck a leaf to his head between his eyes. "Now, to make this a little more difficult, every time you manage to get a leaf to stick, I want you to place another leaf above one of your tenketsu."

Hinata took the handful of leaves and arched an eyebrow. "Why above a tenketsu? Why not just put more on my head?"

Jiraiya shrugged his shoulders. "I didn't want to directly say it, but I've had a theory about blocking the famous Juken of the Hyuga, and you are the perfect person to test this theory. Now, what is Juken in essence besides a taijutsu form?"

Naruto walked over to the pile of leaves and took one, placing it on his forehead to try the exercise. When he focused chakra at the point and let go the leaf blew off at an incredible speed, causing him to pout and Hinata to giggle. "Well, I guess its forcing chakra into an opponent's tenketsu, shutting them down temporarily and blocking the flow of chakra through that tenketsu."

Jiraiya nodded. "Precisely, now what would happen if someone was able to completely control every one of their tenketsu? What would that mean to those who use Juken?"

Hinata gasped. "The entire fighting style would be rendered useless since the opponent could push chakra out of that tenketsu point and block the opponent's chakra!"

The old Sannin smiled. "Correct, but you're still thinking too small. If someone was to master control of their tenketsu, and had a large enough chakra capacity, then they would be able to continuously push a steady stream of chakra out of their tenketsu during a fight, making them invulnerable to virtually all attacks!"

Hinata smiled, if she was able to do what he was talking about she would be as strong as Tsunade, arguably one of the strongest Kunoichi in the world! "And you think I can do this?"

Jiraiya's smile disappeared. "I can't say. I'm not sure if you would have the chakra capacity to fully utilize this technique like Naruto could, but he just doesn't have the control necessary, unlike you. If you two would just merge then you would make the ultimate ninja, but I guess there is a way you two can merge…"

Naruto ignored the perverted statement and took Hinata's hand in his. "I don't care what anyone says 'Nata, I have no doubt in my mind that you'll be able to do this. You just have to try!"

Hinata smiled and picked up a leaf, putting it on her forehead. "Thank you Naru-koi, I'll get this technique down or ill die trying!"

The blonde laughed nervously. "Well… I mean… try and all, but don't kill yourself… please…"

Hinata smiled. "I wouldn't dream of it."

Naruto gave her hand a squeeze, and leaned in for a kiss, closing his eyes slightly. He saw Hinata do the same, and it was clear she wanted to feel his lips on her own just as much as he did, but before they could do so someone cleared their throat behind them, causing them to flinch back.

"As touching as this is, you both have training to do. This isn't a vacation or a honeymoon, this is a mission."

Naruto and Hinata blushed, but knew that he was right, there would be time to be together later.

Naruto walked over to Jiraiya and bowed slightly. "Sorry, I got carried away, and I distracted Hinata. I promise it won't happen again when we're training."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "Cut the formal crap, just pay more attention ok?" Naruto nodded. "Ok, now make about, oh… well, as many clones as you can."

Naruto nodded and took a few seconds to gather chakra and put his fingers in a cross shaped seal. "Taju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Multiple Shadow Clone Technique)!"

There was a puff of smoke, and then the training ground was instantly filled with Naruto's, as far as the eye could see. Hinata's jaw dropped and Jiraiya looked pleased, and he tried for a few seconds to count them, but quickly tired and gave up.

"Oi gaki, about how many clones do you think there are?"

Naruto thought for a few seconds and shrugged. "I dunno, maybe two hundred, around that."

Jiraiya nodded. "Ok, now Naruto, do you know why this is a forbidden technique?"

Naruto shook his head so Jiraiya continued.

"Well, the chakra toll this technique places on the body is very heavy, and most Jounin are only able to make maybe two or three before it starts to get dangerous. You are an exception due to your situation and heritage as an Uzumaki, who were all gifted with abnormally high chakra reserves."

Naruto's eyes widened. "You know about my family!?"

Jiraiya mentally cursed himself for letting that one slip out. "Yeah, I know a bit about them, and I'll tell you everything I know in due time, but for now focus on your training, ok?"

Naruto nodded excitedly.

"Ok, now the major benefit to this technique is obviously having solid copies of yourself with complete chakra networks, which means that they will be able to use every single jutsu you yourself know. The other benefit is the reason I had you make so many clones."

Naruto tilted his head. "What other benefit?"

Jiraiya smiled and gestured to a clone to follow him. "Come with me, but the real Naruto stay there."

The clone looked at the real Naruto, and they both shrugged. Jiraiya and the clone walked several paces behind the real Naruto so there wasn't a way he could see the pair of them.

The clone however was quickly losing patience. "Oi, Ero-Sennin, what're we doing out her- Ompf!"

The clone was nailed in the gut with a strong punch from the Sannin, and immediately expelled itself. Naruto turned around and pointed an accusing finger at his sensei.

"Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing!?"

Jiraiya smirked. "What's wrong gaki?"

Naruto glared at him. "What do you mean what's wrong!? You nailed him in the gut!"

Jiraiya just continued smirking. "And how do you know that? You were turned completely the other way."

Naruto shrugged his shoulders while still glaring. "I don't know, I guess I got his memories or something like that. But it doesn't matter you- …Wait… I got his memories?"

The older Sannin clapped his hands. "It looks like you figured it out. When a Kage Bunshin expels itself, all its memories and experiences, everything it learned over the course of its lifetime is sent back to the original and incorporated into Naruto's own memories. So if you train with… let's say two hundred clones for about six hours, you would do the same amount of work as another person doing that same training for about fifty days straight."

Naruto's face erupted into a massive grin. "I… I can learn so much… I can literally learn everything in the Konoha library in a single day! This… This is incredible!"

Hinata finally decided to speak up after getting over her initial shock. "Naru-koi could fit entire years' worth of training into mere weeks!"

Jiraiya sent a glare over towards Hinata. "Oi! Did I tell you to stop?"

Hinata flinched and went back to placing leaves over her tenketsu. "No Jiraiya-sensei…"

Jiraiya watched her for a few more seconds before he turned his attention back to Naruto. "Ok, now that you know the benefits you can apply it to training. Just remember, this only works for things you can learn, meaning jutsu, strategy, chakra control exercises, you know, things you have to remember with your brain. It has no effect whatsoever on physical endurance or things of that sort, so you will still need to keep yourself on a harsh physical regimen, but for now I want you all to focus on water walking. Just focus chakra on the bottom of your foot like tree climbing. It'll be more difficult since the surface of the water will change, so you're going to have to fluctuate the amount of chakra on the bottom of your foot constantly. Now get to it! I want you to practice for about two hours then dispel your clones."

There was a chorus of 'Hai' that resounded throughout the training grounds while Jiraiya went to sit under the shade of a nearby tree and doze off for a nap.

Jiraiya was shaken awake by a very wet Naruto, who had the largest smile on his face.

"Ero-Sennin! I dispelled all the clones after two hours like you said and I got a huge headache, but then when I went to try the exercise again it was like I could do it all along! These Kage Bunshins are a sign from Kami that I'm going to be a great ninja!"

Jiraiya grumbled a bit and stuck a finger in his ear to clean out the wax. "Yeah yeah, sure gaki, sure."

He reached into his pocket and took out a small slip of paper, handing it to the blonde who tilted his head. "What's this?"

Jiraiya arched an eyebrow. "What do you mean 'What's this?'?"

Naruto was about to speak when Hinata walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Jiraiya-sensei, Naruto wasn't in class when we learned about chakra paper. Iruka-sensei was sick that day, so when the lesson started Mizuki-sensei sent Naruto out of the room while he taught it."

Jiraiya blinked. "Wait a second. You mean Naruto was purposely made to leave the room while one of the teachers had you all test your elemental affinities?"

Hinata nodded with a shamed look on her face. "Hai… No one said anything because we didn't want to get in trouble… I'm sorry Naruto…"

Naruto shrugged. "It's alright 'Nata, were fixing it now so it's ok, no harm down right?"

Jiraiya cursed under his breath, he was going to personally make sure things changed when Tsunade became the next Hokage. "Well gaki, this here is what is called chakra paper. It's made from trees that are fed on chakra in special nurseries and are used for the purpose of determining a person's elemental affinities. You have to channel chakra into the paper and the way it responds tells you your particular affinity. Now be clear, just because you don't have an affinity towards an element doesn't mean you can't learn it, it just means it'll be a whole lot harder and it'll need a lot more chakra. Now stand back so I can show you."

Jiraiya held the paper in the palm of his hand for a few seconds before half of it turned to dirt and started crumbling away while the other half ignited and burned off.

"See that? It means I have two elemental affinities, Fire (Hi) and Earth (Tsuchi) type chakra, meaning Katon (Fire Release) and Doton (Earth Release) are very easy for me. You already know what Fire and Earth looks like, so if you have wind the paper will split in two, lightning the paper will wrinkle, Water: the paper will become wet/damp."

Naruto nodded and took the piece of paper, channeling some chakra into it. Naruto jumped a bit when the paper was violently torn in two, and then proceeded to tear itself into oblivion.

The blonde looked at the pieces of paper in his hand, and then turned his gaze towards his stunned teacher. "Uh… Ero-Sennin? Was it supposed to do that?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "No Naruto, no it isn't. I guess maybe instead of having two affinities, your body just chose to superpowered one. What I just saw leads me to believe that you have one of the strongest, if not the strongest, Wind (Kaze) chakra types I've ever heard of!"

Naruto just grinned and pumped his arm. "Did you hear that 'Nata!? I knew I was awesome!"

Hinata smiled and brought another leaf up and put it on her arm, bringing it up to a total of five leaves. She had made decent progress, but she was reaching the limits of her chakra capacity, and she would soon need to rest unless she wanted to risk chakra exhaustion.

Naruto was brought out of his cheers by an abrupt smack to the head, curtousy of Jiraiya. "Listen here gaki; don't let this get to your head! You still have a whole lot of work to do before you are anything more than a nuisance to most shinobi."

Naruto glared at the Sannin while rubbing the back of his head, but knew where his sensei was coming from. Pride could get you killed on the battlefield; he had seen this more than once having been on a team with one of the most prideful people in the world.

"Sorry Ero-Sennin, it's just I've been told for so long that I'm the 'dobe' or 'dead-last' that I got excited when I found out I was actually going to be good at something."

Jiraiya sighed. "Look kid, if it makes you feel better… I was the dead last of my class too."

Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief, and Hinata too was so surprised she let all the leaves fall. Unfortunately Jiraiya saw her lapse in concentration.

"Oi, gaki-ette, good job on keeping it up for so long, but now you have to drop down and give me one hundred push-ups, and then do two hundred squat jumps. Then repeat that, oh… five times."

Hinata's mouth fell open, and she sent a pleading look for help to Naruto, who nodded back. "Uh, Ero-Sennin, isn't that a little… harsh?"

Jiraiya chuckled. "It might be, but that is what my ex-team mate Tsunade made me do whenever we trained. She was a strength and stamina monster, and those two exercises were her bread and butter. Of course, she would eventually wear weights for added strength, but you get the picture. So hop to it!"

Naruto looked at Hinata who cast a defeated look at the ground. Naruto laughed at her distress as she did one push up after another, but his laughter stopped when he found Jiraiya smirking at him evilly.

"Who said she would be doing this alone?"

Naruto gulped and went over to take position next to his fiancé.

The next two days continued in the same manner, travelling in the morning while training in the afternoon, and needless to say both Naruto and Hinata were exhausted. Naruto had been able to completely master all forms of chakra control with the use of his clones, and were now using them to cut through leaves on his first steps towards wind nature manipulation training. Jiraiya said he wanted him to be able to know the ins and outs of wind chakra before he taught him any new jutsu, and despite Naruto's many protests he kept true to his words. It was very slow progress, even with the clones, and Jiraiya assured Naruto that it took Sarutobi Asuma, one of the more accomplished Futon (Wind Release) users in Konoha, at least three months to complete this stage. The only thing Jiraiya had taught Naruto jutsu wise was the Shunshin (Body Flicker Technique), and that was only to shut him up on the second evening. Of course, this training was also joined by the physical training that Jiraiya put him through, and coupled with the mental fatigue of two hundred clones and thousands of hours of training, it all equaled one tired Genin, even with the Kyubi's accelerated healing.

Hinata was in worse shape than him. She had maxed out on her leaf control exercise when she reached around 53 leaves, all placed over tenketsu and held there with chakra. Unfortunately, her reserves were too low to expel that much chakra all at once, but she was told by Jiraiya that her reserves would grow quickly as she continued her training, not to mention she still had quite a bit of growing to do before her chakra coils were fully developed. Her chakra control was increasing at an astronomical rate, and she was able to expel her chakra out of all the major tenketsu at any point in time, though she was still working on replicating that feat with the smaller tenketsu points. She was also going through that 'workout soreness' phase since she was still getting used to the physical aspect of training, but she was excited to see the results of all her training. Physically she was just as tired, especially since her team never really stressed the physical aspect of training.

Therefore the relief they felt when their next stop came into view was a most welcome sight for the two exhausted shinobi. The city of Biratori was quite an impressive sight, at least three times as large as the small town of Fujisato.

When they entered the city gates Jiraiya turned to his two students. "Alright you two, same drill. You guys go and get a hotel room for us while I look around for Tsunade."

He went to reach into his pocket for some money to give the two but was stopped when Naruto rushed towards him and grabbed his hand.

Naruto bent up to whisper in the Sannin's ear. "Ero-Sennin, I'm planning on taking Hinata out somewhere very nice tonight, and I want it to be really special, but that doesn't really work when you come in at three drunk, so here."

Naruto shoved a large wad of Ryo notes into the older man's hands. "Can you just stay somewhere else, you know, use the money to… research and just give us a night alone? Please, just for tonight?"

Jiraiya smirked at his student's request. "Wow gaki, never took you for the perverted type, but with a wifey like her I guess I can understand."

Naruto blushed and stammered a response. "I-It isn't like that you perv! I just want this night to be special without your drunken ass there!"

Jiraiya chuckled and took the money from his student's hands. "Mmhmm, that's what they all say."

Still chuckling the older man walked into the city waving over his shoulder. "Don't get yourselves killed now!"

Hinata walked up to a grumbling Naruto. "Naru-koi, why did you give Jiraiya-sensei money?"

Naruto took her hand in his and began to walk into the city, heading for their finest hotel. "Well, I wanted some time where it's just the two of us without that perv. I wanted to have tonight just be us, without any distractions from him, where I get to treat you like a princess, like you should be."

Hinata smiled and hugged herself to Naruto's arm while resting her head on his shoulder. Naruto turned and kissed the top of her head before resting his own on hers. To anyone passing by, they would have seen two teens walking down the road, looking very much in love, and they would be spot on.

Hinata watched as they walked past all of the lower quality hotels, places where they would normally stay.

"Naru-koi? Where are we going?"

Naruto chuckled, pulling his arm out of her grasp and wrapping it around her shoulders, pulling her closer. "I told you, tonight is going to be special, and I can't really do that it a crappy little hotel like that now can I?"

Hinata smiled, liking the more romantic side of her fiancé. "But, anywhere with you is special. It doesn't have to be somewhere fancy and expensive."

Naruto grinned and tightened his grasp. "No, I guess it doesn't, does it? But it definitely doesn't hurt either."

They then walked into a very high class looking hotel with a large lobby. The floor was made completely of marble with large decorative pillars lining the pathways. The room opened up to a vaulted ceiling with a massive chandelier, and on the ceiling was a painted mosaic of the Shodaime Hokage's fight with Uchiha Madara. Naruto and Hinata were in awe at the pure grandeur displayed in the hotel, and they two were getting looks by both the staff and the other guests since they were both in their training gear.

Naruto ignored them and walked up to the front desk with his head held high where he was greeted by a small man in a suit. "Hello, my name is Uzumaki Naruto and this is my fiancé Hyuga Hinata. I request a room for us to stay in for the night."

The man was smirking at the couple up until he heard Hinata's name. "A-Are you the Hyuga Hinata? Heiress of the Hyuga clan?"

Hinata smiled and nodded. "Yes I am, now would you be so kind as to ready the Hyuga suite for my fiancé and I to spend the night in?"

The man bowed low while sending off several bellhops to do as requested. "O-Of Couse Hyuga-sama! Your room shall be ready momentarily!"

Naruto nodded and led Hinata away from the desk. When they were alone again he looked at Hinata with an arched eyebrow motioning towards the check in desk, but she just shrugged. "What? The Hyuga are famous in Hi no Kuni and Konoha, especially with the fall of the Uchiha. We are highly respected and have many connections all throughout the elemental nations."

Naruto nodded and smiled. "I guess you're right. I'm still getting used to the attention I guess."

Hinata smiled and wrapped her arms around his back, pulling him in for a quick kiss. "Well, you better get used to it mister, because you aren't going anywhere for a looooooong time. Understand me?"

Naruto chuckled and gave her another kiss. "Yes ma'am."

A teenage girl with long brown hair and deep sea foam eyes in a bellhop uniform approached the couple and bowed. "Your room has been readied for your use. All sheets and linens have been changed and the room was given a quick cleaning."

Naruto eyebrows rose. "What? Really? That sure was fast…"

The woman bowed again. "The Hyuga suit is always kept in good condition, but whenever its use is called for it is taken as top priority, especially when there are guests involved with the Hyuga visiting."

Hinata didn't like the way the girl was looking at her Naruto. 'Has she no shame? It is clear that we're together, hell, were wrapped around each other!'

Thankfully when she looked back at Naruto he was only looking at his fiancé, and they were led away to their room. They walked up to the elevator and when the doors opened Naruto pulled his hand out of Hinata's.

She turned to him. "What's wrong?"

He smiled and made a cross hand seal, creating a Kage Bunshin. The two Narutos looked at each other before nodding, and the clone ran off. Naruto then took Hinata's hand again and stepped into the elevator. "Don't worry 'Nata, he is just going to take care of something while we freshen up."

Hinata could tell that he was keeping something from her, but she knew he was only trying to make this night very memorable, so she just let it go and stepped into the elevator.

With Kage Bunshin

The Naruto Kage Bunshin quickly left the hotel and turned towards the upper class portion of the city. He was given a specific number of important tasks that were vital to the success of the night Naruto had planned. His first stop was stop was a restaurant, but not just any restaurant. He wanted it to be a place that showed culture and class while also having the mood and climate that would ooze romance.

He came to a stop outside a place called Enju, and the vibes coming out seemed to match exactly what he was looking for. He walked in through the door and up to the front counter where a small man in a very nice looking suit and tie stood.

"May I help you sir?"

Naruto nodded and straightened up as high as he could, putting on his best impression of a Hyuga. "Yes you may. I would like reservations for tonight at 6:00 PM sharp."

The man sighed. "I'm sorry sir, but we won't be able to process reservations only two hours ahead. It takes weeks just to get a table here. I apologize sir, but it just isn't possible."

Naruto swiped a seal on his arm that allowed him to use real money and took out an impressive stack of bills. "Make it possible. 6:00 PM sharp. Hyuga Hinata and Uzumaki Naruto."

The man's eyes widened when he recognized this name, because as soon as he heard Uzumaki he stiffened. The man looked at the bills and shook his head, confusing Naruto. "Right away sir. Your table shall be ready when you arrive."

Naruto thanked the man and left with a smile on his face. 'I think I can get used to this.'

Back at the Hotel

Naruto decided to be the first to take a shower so he would be surprised at Hinata's attire. Luckily her father had the foresight to have a formal set of robes for her and a suit for him packed in case such an occasion arose. Of course the hotel had whatever cosmetics Hinata or Naruto would need while they were there, and Naruto couldn't believe his luck in picking this particular hotel. Who knew the Hyuga kept a room here ready for the main family at any time? He sure didn't.

Currently he was waiting on a sofa in the family room of the suit while Hinata was using the master bathroom to prepare herself. Naruto silently hoped she was one of those girls that took an hour washing her hair so he had enough time to finish his preparations for the evening. Luckily his clone created another clone before dispelling, informing Naruto that dinner was taken care of.

"Only two more things to do, and if those go off right, then this will be the best night of her life… I hope."

Just then he heard the shower turn off, and he silently prayed for his clone to hurry up and finish.

With the Kage Bunshin

He was in a store, still in the expensive part of the city, one that he never thought he would ever step into. It wasn't because he didn't like what the store sold, he just thought that he would never need to be there, but fate has a funny way of changing things.

He had been looking for over half an hour, scrutinizing each and every one they had, and he was giving up hope. Just as he was about to go to another store he found it. It was perfect in every way, it symbolized everything he wanted it to, and he was confident that she would love it.

He looked up to one of the attendants who had been following him behind the counter the entire time. "I'll take this one. It's perfect."

The lady behind the counter laughed. "Are you sure little boy? It's very expensive, now where are your parents? Are they in this store?"

Naruto's smile dropped from his face. This wasn't the first time someone had taken him for a child, especially since he had yet to go through that male growth spurt, but he wasn't going to let this woman ruin his day. He pulled out his Hitai-ate and showed the woman.

"I am a shinobi of Konohagakure. I am no more a child than you are, and I demand respect."

The woman froze in fear and bowed several times. "Forgive me sir, I was out of place! I apologize for any insults I may have said, I wasn't aware!"

Naruto sighed, he didn't want people to be afraid of him, and he just wanted to be treated like everyone else. "It's ok, I know I'm short for my age… Now, may I please buy this one?"

The woman let out a sigh of relief. The stories of shinobi taking out their anger on civilians who insulted them are all too common, especially with the increase of missing nin lately.

"Of course sir, but are you sure? It's the most expensive one we have in the store?"

Naruto swiped the seal on his arm to bring out several stacks of Ryo notes. "I don't think that'll be a problem ma'am."

Back in the Hotel Room

Naruto's eyes were as wide as saucers and his heart was pounding in his chest as soon as Hinata stepped out of the shower. He would never believe just how lucky he was that the woman standing before him chose him out of all the people in the world.

Before him stood the pinnacle of human perfection. Hinata's hair was still in the shorter hairstyle, but to him, who usually liked longer hair, it was perfect that way. She wore little make up, mostly a slight foundation to give her cheeks a more rosy look. She was wearing a deep violet kimono that had small branches of flowers scattered throughout. The obi itself was of a lighter purple color that contrasted with the darker kimono but at the same time complimented the pale purple color of her eyes perfectly.

He finally swallowed the lump in his throat. "'Nata… You… You look beautiful!"

Hinata reverted back to her shy self momentarily and poked her fingers together several times. "Thank you Naru-koi, you look very handsome yourself."

Naruto smiled and extended his hand in invitation. "Well, we should get going 'Nata. I have the entire night planned for us, and I think you're going to love it."

Hinata accepted his hand and giggled. "Naruto, I would be happy if we just stayed in and had ramen. It's just being with you that makes it special."

Naruto feigned regret. "Really!? Crap! I already had all this stuff set up when we could have had ramen! Guess I should cancel it…"

Hinata started panicking slightly. "Wait! Wait! I was just joking! Please take me out!"

Naruto chuckled and kissed the tip of her nose. "I know 'Nata. I might be a little behind in the emotional department, but even I can take a hint."

The Hyuga girl sighed relief. 'Oh thank Kami… I knew I shouldn't have mentioned Ramen… That stuff is like a drug for him.'

Naruto hooked her arm in his as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Well my hime, shall we start this wonderful night?"

She smiled and nodded on his shoulder. Naruto only chuckled as he walked out of the hotel room.

With the Kage Bunshin

"Alright, this is the last stop, then everything will be perfect."

He looked to the front counter and approached a small woman in an apron. "Hello young man, may I help you?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes, I'm planning a special night for the most important woman in the world, and I need something that tells her I love her and only her."

The woman made an 'Awww' sound and complimented him on his romantic feelings. "You know, not enough men have the guts to spend the time to properly romance a woman. Whoever this young lady is, she is very lucky to have found you."

Naruto blushed and smiled, mumbling something under his breath. "Well, actually it was the other way around…"

"So, is there something you can tell me about her"

Naruto thought for a second. "Well, her favorite color is purple."

The lady behind the counter thought for a second then grinned broadly. "I have just the thing! Stay right here."

She disappeared through a door behind the counter and came back several seconds later with a vase full of purple flowers.

"There are called lavenders. They represent love and fidelity, and personally I think these are the best flowers out there to show that. So many people use roses that it's almost become a cliché, and the lavender has been really downplayed the last few years, so I don't think she'll be expecting it!"

Naruto took the flower and smelled it. It smelled faintly like Hinata, and Naruto knew then that those were the flowers he had to get for her and use, no matter what.

He handed the vase back to her. "So are these the only lavenders you have or are there more?"

The woman laughed. "Oh dear no. This store actually has a nursery out back and lavenders are the main flower grown there. For some reason Kumo is having a massive building project using lavenders; something about preventing runoff while beautifying the mountains."

Naruto just smiled and swiped the seal again, pulling out several large stacks of bills. "Perfect. I'll take them all!"

With Naruto

He led Hinata through the streets, and they were getting looks from many people who were happy that such young love was in the air. When he finally came to a stop outside of Enju Hinata looked up.

"Enju… Where have I heard this name before… Is this that Enju!? The most lucrative restaurant in all of Hi no Kuni!?"

Naruto honestly didn't know that little tid bit of information. "I guess it is 'Nata, now let's go in. Its almost 6."

They walked inside and the man from earlier saw their approach and grabbed two menus and bowed before them. "Uzumaki-sama, Hyuga-sama. I'm honored you two are able to join us tonight. Please follow me and I'll show you to your table."

The man politely motioned for the two to follow him and led them towards the back of the restaurant. The atmosphere was even better than Naruto had hoped for; the lights were dimmed yet gave enough light to easily see anyone around the table, there was a harp player towards the side of the restaurant that gave the perfect ambiance, and from judging the tables, Naruto was able to see that this was every bit as high class on the inside as it looked on the outside.

They were led through a door to a back room with a single table, where a man in a very expensive looking suit was waiting for them. Hinata shot a look towards Naruto who just shrugged. He didn't know what was going on either.

When they approached the other man he bowed. "Good evening Uzumaki-sama, Hyuga-sama. My name is Kōkana Enju, the owner of this humble establishment, and I will be personally taking care of you two tonight."

Naruto nodded and tanked the man as he was pulling out Hinata's chair for her to sit down. Naruto then took his own seat while their water glasses were filled.

"Enju-san? I have a question for you if you don't mind?"

The man looked up and bowed. "Of course Uzumaki-sama, ask anything."

Naruto now was very confused. He had never been treated like this before. "Why is everyone taking care of us so well? Not that I'm complaining of course! I'm just wondering why."

Kōkana looked perplexed, as if Naruto had asked if the sky was blue. "Uzumaki-sama, do you not know that your family was the one who gave me the money to build this restaurant?"

Both Hinata and Naruto were surprised this man knew of the Uzumakis; no one ever seemed to know anything about them. "You know about my family?"

The man smiled. "Of course I do Uzumaki-sama. I was in contact with your family for some time, and I am pleased to say that I consider myself one of their friends. I was told of a young Uzumaki with blonde hair and bright blue eyes, and I made a vow to always welcome him into my establishment as I have welcomed his family in the past."

Naruto fought back the urge to ask about his family. This night was about Hinata, and he would always have time in the next few days. "Thank you Enju-san for your kindness."

The man bowed again. "Of course. Now, what may I get you two to start off with? Your meals will of course be on the house."

This was the signal for Naruto's stomach to make a rumbling appearance, causing Hinata to giggle and Kōkana to chuckle.

With the Kage Bunshin

He was in the last spot he needed to be, finishing up everything, making sure it was perfect. Jumping back and standing on the hill overlooking his work he felt satisfied with how it turned out.

"She'll love it."

He created a few more clones. "Alright, one of you guys dispel to send back the memories. The rest of ya stay here and make sure no one messes this up. And make sure the rest of the guys stay Henged! This whole thing'll fall apart if even one of them jumps the gun."

They all 'Hai'ed as the clone jumped off to find the original, leaving a dozen clones to decide amongst themselves who was going to dispel. They all circled up and began looking between at the other clones, tension building. Their hands began inching towards their kunai pouches, and they started to slip into their taijutsu stances. Finally, at the apex of the tension, they all shouted at the same time.

"JAN-KEN-KO!"

They all threw out their hands, revealing that they all threw out paper. They all sweat dropped and one of the clones sighed.

"Maybe doing a janken (rock-paper-scissors) competition with clones of the same person wasn't a good idea?"

With Naruto and Hinata

The happy couple were sharing a desert of Wasanbon (multicolored sugar candies) and were chatting happily chatting away. The night had so far gone off without a hitch, and it was even better for Naruto since he got to meet someone who personally knew his family, and he had already been invited back to discuss what the man knew.

As they were finishing Kōkana came back to the table. "I hope that you two found your dinners to be enjoyable?"

Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand and gave it a light squeeze. "I'm sorry Enju-san, but nothing will be able to beat 'Nata's cooking, but I will admit, it was very delicious."

Kōkana smirked. "Of course Uzumaki-sama, I understand completely. Is there anything else I can get for you two?"

Naruto looked at Hinata, to signal her that he was finished if she was. She smiled and shook her head.

"Thank you Enju-san, but I think we're finished. Now are you sure you won't let me at least compensate you in some way?"

Kōkana shook his head and bowed. "I wouldn't dream of it Uzumaki-sama. If I accepted your money I would shame your ancestors, and the guilt would eat me alive. This is the least I can do."

The blonde shrugged and thanked the man again, hopping out of his seat and extending his arm for Hinata to take. She took his invitation and walked arm in arm out of the restaurant. When they were out of sight she wrapped her arm around his back and pulled him into a fiery kiss. Naruto was surprised at first, but just went with the flow and began returning the gesture, enjoying the small moans and squeaks that came from the girl he was with.

After they broke apart panting Hinata leaned her forehead on his. "That was a thank you for treating me so well tonight Naru-koi."

Naruto smiled and pulled Hinata so she was flush against him, earning a squeak from the girl. "You're certainly welcome 'Nata, but the night isn't over yet."

They disappeared in a swirl of leaves via Shunshin atop a hill just outside the city. Hinata was confused about why they were there, but then she noticed her surroundings. They were standing at the crest of the hill surrounded by dimly lit lanterns, just barely illuminating the pair. Naruto motioned her to turn around, and when she did her breath caught in her throat at the scene before her.

There was a large meadow filled with lavender plants that showed their natural color beautifully, perfectly accentuated by the pale moonlight. She was speechless at its raw natural beauty, and she was so enthralled that she never noticed another swirl of leaves from behind Naruto and the familiar 'poof' of a Kage Bunshin dispelling.

She finally found her voice. "This is amazingly beautiful Naru-koi… I never knew lavenders grew this late into the year…"

She heard Naruto's voice behind her. "They don't."

Just then the entire field was filled with smoke from what looked like hundreds of Kage Bunshins dispelling, and when the smoke cleared it showed the real lavenders remaining, but they were in a specific pattern. Before Hinata were the lavender Naruto had purchased spelling out the words 'Will you marry me?'

Her eyes widened and when she turned back around she found Naruto on one knee, holding up an engagement ring up towards her with a large smile on his whiskered face. The band was made of white gold with four purple diamonds spreading out from the center of the ring like flower petals with a larger purple tanzanite stone in the direct center. The light glinted off the ring spectacularly, and even in the darkness the stones shone brightly.

Hinata brought a hand up to her mouth as tears began falling from her eyes. She began slightly trembling, and right before Naruto asked her what was wrong, she threw herself on the blonde knocking him down on his back. She planted her lips firmly on his and tangled her fingers in his hair while tears were falling from her cheeks onto his.

When they finally broke apart she hid her face in the crook of his neck. "Yes… Yes… A million times yes…"

Naruto never stopped smiling as he wrapped his arms around Hinata and slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position with Hinata seated in his lap. He unwrapped his arms and lifted up her left hand, sliding the band on her ring finger. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a matching white gold ring and placed it on his own left hand. When this was done he put his hands to her cheeks and brought her face up so it was level with his.

He then swooped in for another kiss, full of love and passion. Hinata's own hands reclaimed their position in his hair as their kiss heated up. Hinata began moaning once again into his mouth, causing Naruto to chuckle from the vibrations.

He broke apart much to her displeasure causing her to pout slightly. "Naru-koi… Why did you pull back so early?"

He simply chuckled and leaned in to whisper in her ear. "Don't worry 'Nata, I already told you, this night is far from over."

Before she could ask another question he wrapped his arms around her waist and disappeared in another swirl of leaves, right into their hotel bedroom.

When Hinata was able to steady herself she found two arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her in to a warm embrace. Before she could utter a single word lips were placed on hers, and she let herself melt into the kiss. She wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck and ran her fingers into his spiky locks, fisting the hair in her grasp. She pulled just enough to get him to slightly open his mouth, and wormed her tongue into his mouth where she fought for control. She was met with little resistance and proceeded to release her grip on his hair and bring it to his suit coat, slowly pushing it off his shoulders. It fell to the floor and Hinata brought her hands back up to grip his hair. Naruto pulled off his tie and let it fall with his coat, undoing several top buttons as Hinata caressed his head while still fighting for control.

Soon Naruto's shirt was off and he brought his hands up to Hinata's shoulders to pull her back slightly. Reluctantly, she released his hair and pulled out of his mouth.

"'Nata, I just want to make sure that this is what you want. I don't need to be intimate with you to know that you love me, and we have the rest of our lives to be physical. I… I just don't want this to change anything between us. If something happened and you left… I… I don't think I can survive having someone else leave me like jiji did… I just don't think I'm strong enough for that."

Hinata wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a peck on the lips. "Naruto. Listen to me right now. Nothing, and I mean that, nothing, will ever change the way I feel about you. This isn't some fan girl crush like all those girls back in the academy, this is real love. I love your jokes, I love your determination, I love your personality, and I love your caring nature… so far I haven't found anything not to love. And the fact that your very handsome doesn't hurt either. I want to be with you, now and forever, and be the woman you wake up to every single day, the woman you come home to, and the woman you share your dreams with."

Naruto kissed her again. "I love you so much 'Nata."

She tightened her grip on his neck. "I love you too."

They sensually brought their mouths together again and this time Naruto was the one to initiate the attack on her mouth with his tongue and fight her for control. She squealed in surprise and delight, excited that Naruto was finally ready to accept her fully. Naruto brought his hands down to her obi and began to unwrap the intricate knot, and after several seconds he was met with success. Naruto slowly traced the outline of Hinata's body with his fingers, sending chills up her spine. He finally brought his hands up to rest on the fabric on her shoulders and gently pushed the robe off, letting it slip past her shoulders and pooled into a pile of lifeless silk at her ankles, leaving her clad only in soft lavender panties and a matching lacy bra.

Hinata giggled into the kiss and pushed Naruto out of her mouth. "Not very nice Naru-koi… I shouldn't be the only one like this…"

Grinning, she slowly brought her hands down to hem of his pants and unclasped the button and zipper, letting Naruto step out of the dress pants, leaving him in his burnt orange boxers. They both took a few seconds to admire each other's body, and soon they were back in each other's arms, slowly kissing and showing each other the depths of their emotion.

Sometime into the kiss Hinata wrapped her legs around Naruto's waist, feeling his growing arousal brush her underside. Naruto was forced to being his hands down to Hinata's bottom to support the extra weight, and he fell on the bed with Hinata straddling him in a similar manner to his first morning in her bed just a few days prior.

She broke the kiss and with a smirk brought her hands behind her back to the clasp of her bra and removed the offending piece of fabric and freed herself, letting Naruto watch as she reveled herself for the first time. Naruto's eyes were wide with both anticipation and curiosity, he might have been young, but he had long since gone through puberty and knew what got him excited, and right now that person was Hinata. Hinata threw her bra off the bed in some corner to be forgotten until the morning came, and she giggled when she saw Naruto staring.

"It's ok Naruto, you can touch if you want to."

The words seemed to knock Naruto out of his daze, and he ran his hands up Hinata's sides, caressing her developing curves causing her to shiver in excitement. His hands eventually came to a rest below the swell of her breasts and cupped them. A jolt of electricity ran down Hinata's spine when Naruto began to knead the flesh under his hands, and she couldn't contain the moans any longer. Her eyes half closed with pleasure as Naruto continued his ministrations, and his own moans began when Hinata began to grind on his growing arousal, sending waves of pleasure coursing throughout Naruto's being.

Naruto released his grip and held Hinata as he flipped them over, making the girl below him groan.

"Naruuuuu, please… I can't take it any more…"

He just smirked. "I want to do this right. I want to show you that this is out of love, not lust."

Hinata's eyes watered from all the emotions running through her. Never before did she have someone who cared about her so much. She never had someone to hold her when she cried after she was called a failure, or a friend to talk to and share her dreams with, or a loving mother to console her when she woke up at night shivering from a nightmare. But here and now, she finally had someone who wanted to do all those things for her, and show her all the love she never found in her childhood.

Naruto silenced her tears with a kiss, letting Hinata wrap her arms around his neck as she pulled him in closer. Naruto used his left arm to keep some distance between himself and Hinata while he ran his right hand down Hinata's side again and followed his trail across her toned stomach down to her covered womanhood.

Hinata jumped slightly and her eyes shot open when she felt a hand touch her where she had never been touched before. She would have gasped, but her mouth was currently occupied, and there was no way she would push Naruto away just to gasp; so she settled for a throaty moan. The blonde just grinned into the kiss as he kept up his touches. Up until this point he had just been experimenting on what he thought would make Hinata feel good, and gauged her reactions. He had since determined that Hinata was pretty sensitive, and just his touch made her leap off the sheets as her panties became progressively more wet, which made his pride soar.

He was surprised when Hinata brought her legs up and wrapped them around his waist. She then brought her arms down to the bed and pushed off, rolling them both over so Hinata was once again on top.

She pulled her head back and sat up panting. "That wasn't very nice Nar~u~to. You teased be a lot, and now I can't wait any longer."

She crawled back slightly and brought her hands down to the band of Naruto's boxers, pushing them down to his feet and freeing him completely. Hinata's eyes glazed over slightly as she lowered her own panties, retaking her position above Naruto once again panting.

"You… You don't know how long I've dreamt of this… Of being with you… Making love to you… Holding you…"

Naruto smiled and ran his hands up and down Hinata's sides. "Now that dream is a reality. I love you 'Nata."

Hinata smiled back. "I love you too."

She grabbed him and put him into position, raising herself slightly, then plunging herself down, engulfing all of him at once. She let out a squeak and closed her eyes tight, letting the initial pain fade while each second brought more pleasure than pain.

Hinata had her hands on Naruto's chest to steady herself while Naruto continued to run his hands up and down her sides to comfort her. It was torture for him. He had never felt something so absolutely… blissful. His entire body was on fire from the pleasure coursing through his nerves, and Hinata's involuntary squeezes didn't help either. She was warm, tight, and wet all at the same time, and she was all his. He was using all of his willpower to not start moving within her; he wanted their first time to be just as good for her as it was for him.

After what seemed like an eternity she slowly began moving her hips against his, sending jolts of pleasure throughout Naruto's body. He rested his hands on her hip to help her move against him, and before long she built up a quick pace. Her hips rocked forward and back, getting faster and faster. Hinata started lightly moaning from the feeling of being filled so completely. The pleasure she felt only intensified when Naruto began thrusting his hips up.

The grinding was soon replaced, and she was left speechless from the blonde's motions.

"Yes… Oh Kami yes… Faster… Please…"

Naruto was spurred on by her moans and begs for more. He reached the limit for what he could do in his position, so he gripped her shoulders and spun them around so she was on bottom again. She wrapped her legs around his waist and kept up her grip on his shoulder while he grinned down at her, giving her a quick kiss.

"I have you pinned now 'Nata."

She giggled and thrust up her hips against his causing his eyes to roll into the back of his head. When he regained his composure he brought his face to hers and gave her a quick kiss before he buried his head in the pillow next to her head. He could catch all the delightful scents and aromas mixed with her natural smell that was emanating from Hinata, and he found it intoxicating. He drew back, then buried himself once again deep within her. Hinata's head flew back into the pillows and her back arched off the bed, her mouth fixed in the shape of an 'O'. Again and again the blonde drew himself out of her only to ram himself back in, taking her to new heights of pleasure and sending jolts throughout her body.

Her head was bobbing up and down on the pillows, and when Naruto gripped her hips to move even faster, she knew she would be sore in the morning. Hinata opened her eyes slightly when suddenly she felt him hit a spot within her that sent liquid fire racing all throughout her body. She could feel something building within her, and she knew it would only be a matter of seconds before she lost the battle for control. A stray tear of happiness fell from her eye and she murmured underneath their panting.

"I love you…"

Her eyes shot open as something deep within her exploded out and she clamped down on her partner, screaming out her release. Naruto couldn't handle the sensations, and soon he too went over the edge with her as his eyes glazed over and he lost himself in the torrent of pleasure. They stayed that way for several more seconds before they both collapsed on each other panting and gasping for breath.

As the adrenaline began to leave their system their eyes began to close from exhaustion. Naruto wrapped his arms around Hinata and rolled them over so she was on top of him, resting on his chest. Naruto looked down at his future wife and smiled, brushing one of her bangs behind her ear as she fell asleep. He bent his head down and kissed the top of her head.

"I love you 'Nata… Now and forever."

END

Well, there is yet another chapter from yours truly. Please review/PM and tell me what you think

Peace