Chapter 33: In Memory…
The four stepped off the scanners in Konoha. Ulrich was right, the sun had just gone down.
"Well, Yumi, our Pencak Silat match where I'm supposed to get beat up?" Ulrich said, crossing his arms and smiling.
"Look, Ulrich, I only said I would beat you up to make Jeremie happy. It's Odd's deal, not yours." Yumi said.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Odd whined. "I WAS SO EXCITED TOO!"
"You didn't let me finish, Odd. Even then, if you want to have a match, we can do it tomorrow morning. I don't know if this is the prime time for sparring, especially when we need rest." Yumi said, smiling back at Ulrich.
"YES!" Odd said.
"Odd, notice how Yumi said it's your deal. You might still get hurt here if you keep going." Ulrich said.
"Oh, right." Odd said. "Well, will you spar tomorrow?"
"You know, wouldn't it be better to spar with our people? You'd get more practice in fighting with your bare hands that way." Shikamaru said.
"You have a good point there." Aelita said.
"Well then, if we're gonna spar tomorrow, we need our sleep. We should be heading to our homes now." Naruto said.
"Well, I have to go tell Kakashi that we came back." Sasuke said. "Then I'm going home."
"I-I'll go with you!" Sakura said.
"Won't your parents worry about you?" Sasuke asked.
"No, it only just turned dusk. Plus, our homes are near each other, so I'll be able to get home quickly." Sakura said. Sakura wanted to spend as much time as she could with Sasuke. Sasuke was only going to stay for the time they would have Lyoko around, and then he'd continue his independent journey to repair his sins… which would probably last for a few years if nothing else major had gone on.
"Alright then… let's go." Sasuke said, and he and Sakura took off.
"Speaking of parents, don't you guys have parents? I'd assume that they'd be worried sick about you." Naruto said.
"Jeremie had a time freeze program that he put on before we left… we might have to go to our world soon." Yumi said. "We don't know how much longer it'll last."
"Jeremie and I tested the program that one night too." Aelita said, referring to the day where she and Jeremie programmed the monster prototypes.
"How long did it last?" Odd asked.
"A week… we sort of skipped through it. That was another reason we waited till everyone went to sleep."
"How long has it been?" Ulrich asked.
"Five days." Yumi answered.
"Can't Jeremie extend the program?" Shikamaru asked.
"He can, but it's too risky. Jeremie could mess up the code any time, and that wouldn't be too good on us." Aelita said. "We might have to leave you guys back here until you can come."
"That's true..." Naruto said.
"Guys, can we wait until tomorrow to talk about this? I'm pretty pooped right now." Odd said.
"I agree. We should all get our rest before we make any big decisions." Yumi said.
"That's true." Aelita said. "Let's go then." The Lyoko warriors went off back to their hotel.
"Whelp, I need my sleep. See ya tomorrow." Shikamaru said, and he took off as well.
"Hinata, come on. We should get going too." Hinata snapped out of the trance she was in. "R-right."
As the two were going home, Naruto asked, "What's on your mind?"
"What do you mean?" Hinata replied.
"You were zoned out… that doesn't happen often with you."
"How could you tell?"
"I can tell by your face. You were staring off to the floor… isn't it obvious?"
"Was it really?"
"For me, yes."
"Well… I was wondering that if your mother and Aelita's mother came out as ghosts on Lyoko, does that mean… does that mean that my mother's ghost could too?"
"Wait… since when was your mother dead?!"
"Since I was seven. And I didn't know until I was thirteen."
"And you didn't tell anyone?!"
"Well… yes. I was too shy to talk around you, and… I couldn't really summon the courage to talk about her either."
"I know that feeling…"
"You do? But you've- "
"I did meet my parents. Not in the flesh and blood, but their spirits. I've met them. I think we should talk more inside." Naruto said, facing the house.
The two were sitting on Naruto's bed, looking at the floor. "Hinata… don't always believe what I say in the public. I did meet my parents."
"But then… why didn't you tell the others?" Hinata asked.
"Because… because they'd probably be all over me, and since I met my mother during the war, it would only burden them more. Plus, it wasn't a problem, it was more of a miracle, so there wouldn't be any point in adding that to the bowl."
"Naruto?"
"Hm?"
"That's another reason I like- no, love you so much."
"What?" Naruto said, looking at Hinata, blushing.
"You always know what's best for the people you care about."
Naruto smiled. "I was born with that."
"Of course you were… how else would you be so good at it?"
There were a few moments of silence. Then Hinata said, "I'm sorry to ruin the mood, but… I feel like I need to tell you about my mother."
"If it makes you uncomfortable you don't have to talk about it, Hinata. You can always tell me later, y'know…"
"I don't feel like I can. It's been hurting me for the longest time… I feel like telling someone close to me would be the best thing to do about it…"
"And I was the first one that popped into your mind. Well, if you insist… I'll be here to comfort you if you need it anyway."
"Alright… well, my mother was kidnapped… and she was pregnant."
"With you?"
"No, she wasn't kidnapped for that long… it was Hanabi."
"How old were you then?"
"Six. She was kidnapped the day before my birthday, and was put up for a ransom. Either I was to be killed with Hanabi (who they would force out), or they would kill my mother… with Hanabi in her."
"How could they?!"
"They knew that Hanabi and I were the heirs to the Hyuga."
"And why does that matter?!"
"I don't know," Hinata started to tear up. "They were heartless people. We went to them in April… and we got to see my mother, telling them that we were deciding what to do. And she… she…" Hinata started crying.
"Hinata… you don't have to keep going…"
"Yes, I do." Hinata managed to choke out. "She had given birth to Hanabi… she handed Hanabi to me, saying, 'Take care of her… and remember, I will always love you…', she talked to my father… my father had the saddest look on his face…" She buried her face into Naruto's chest.
"Hinata…." Naruto had no idea what to say. He just kept stroking Hinata's hair, as if that was any help to her.
"E-every time I asked father where mother is, he would say 'I'm not sure, but she'll come back sometime…'. Eventually, I thought about it, and I had a flashback to when my parents were talking… since I could comprehend more words then, I-I f-found out that she had made Hanabi a premature baby behind the guards' backs… j-just to save her…"
"Your mother was a strong woman."
"Huh?"
"I remember my mother telling me that she couldn't stop screaming in pain when she gave birth to me." Naruto said, cracking a weak smile. "your mother probably didn't make a sound, mind you she had no one to help her and she was giving birth to a premature baby."
Hinata gave Naruto a small smile. "I guess I never saw it that way…"
"My father was scared too, he kept asking the Hokage's wife if she was okay, and when I finally got delivered, my father was so fast to check on me that the Hokage's wife slapped him and said that the mother had to see me first."
Hinata started to laugh a little. "Wasn't your mom the one that always liked to beat up the boys?"
"Yeah... wait, how did you know?!"
"My father always told Hanabi and I about your mother, 'the Yonkage's power-rich wife', like she was the world's greatest legend…"
"I mean, she was a legend to me… she told me that my father always used to watch her from a tree… remind you of anyone?" Naruto cracked a bigger smile.
"Of course." Hinata said, smiling and remembering the times when she would hide behind a tree to watch Naruto train.
"Look, I did it again!"
"Did what again?"
"I made you happy in one of your darkest hours again, that's what!"
"Naruto, you always do that for me. And for that, I'd like to thank you with something."
"What kind of something?"
"Just close your eyes."
"Alright then." Naruto shut his eyes lightly. Hinata pulled his head to her and put her lips on his. Naruto opened his eyes in panic at first, but then closed them again. He was fine with what was going on… until-
"HA! WE CAUGHT YOU!" Said Konohamaru and Hanabi as they jumped through Naruto's window, which they managed to open with a crowbar.
"WHAT THE?!" Naruto exclaimed as Hinata blushed bright red and fainted right into Naruto's arms.
"I FINALLY CAUGHT YOU, NARUTO NII~SAN!" Konohamaru exclaimed.
Naruto took a deep breath. He looked angry. "Konohamaru, Hanabi, what are you doing here?" He said through clenched teeth.
"We decided to spy on you and onii~san!" Hanabi said.
"And why?"
"Well… because… we… we thought it would be fun…nii~san…" Konohamaru said.
"Alright, let me ask you this; How would you feel if Hinata and I spied on you two, huh?"
Both Konohamaru and Hanabi blushed. "W-WHY WOULD Y-YOU D-DO THAT- W-WELL MEEP!"
"And why do you think how Hinata and I would react would be any different?"
"W-well… I-I g-g-guess w-we d-didn't th-think that th-through." Hanabi stuttered.
Naruto laid Hinata on his bed, got off, and quietly walked over to the two preteens with an angry demeanor. He then sat on his knees right in front of them. "Now do you realize how much trouble you're in?"
"Y-yes, nii~san." Konohamaru said.
"Hanabi, you said your father was on a supply mission, right?"
"R-right." Hanabi said.
"When does he come back?"
"Three days." Hanabi said.
"Your big sister is probably going to tell your father, and he'll take care of your punishment. As for you, little bro- "
"Please, nii~san! Please spare me!"
"Sorry, but not today, Konohamaru. Hanabi, you can go back to your house. Go."
"Yes, sir!" Hanabi said, jumping out the window. Naruto closed it behind her. "Good, at least you didn't break it." He walked back over to Konohamaru calmly.
"Don't worry, I'll spare you this time around." Naruto said quietly, his hand on Konohamaru's shoulder. "It's just that what we were talking about could've seriously hurt Hanabi."
"How much?"
"Let me ask you little bro, how much would it hurt you to see Hanabi bawling about something you couldn't even understand? Be honest with me here, no one here will shame you."
"Well, if I were to be honest… it would hurt me a lot."
"What Hinata and I were talking about would've broken her to that degree."
"Really?!"
"Yes, really. Even Hinata couldn't stand talking about it."
"Then, why was she?"
"She felt that telling me would help herself… I just hope it did."
"You really like her, don't you, nii~san?"
"Not like. Konohamaru, don't tell Hanabi this, please. I don't like Hinata… I love her."
"That's a pretty strong word…Naruto nii~san, are you sure about that?"
"I'm sure, Konohamaru, I'm sure."
"Nii~san, can I ask you something?
"Yeah, sure."
"How does it feel to like someone, and how does it feel to love someone?"
"Well… liking someone is having feelings for them and wanting them to notice you as a person. You can like anyone. Heck, you could even like more than one person if you're like that. Loving, well, loving is different. Loving is where you know the person well, and you have the feeling to protect them in any way possible, no matter what. And there's only one person that you can truly love… also, you can't tell love from one person. You can only tell love if you know how they are around their companion."
"Well then… would I love Hanabi, or would I like Hanabi?"
"I would say love, but… it's a bit too early for you to determine that, don't you think? Get to know Hanabi more. Maybe she is the one for you."
"N-Naruto?" Hinata said, just waking up from when she fainted. "Wh- What happened?"
"This little rascal and your sister thought it was funny to spy on us, that's what happened."
"NII~SAN!" Konohamaru exclaimed. Hinata started to giggle. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY?!" Konohamaru exclaimed.
"I don't know… Naruto, do you ever think that they're spying on us so that they can use us as role models for their relationship?"
"WAIT WHAT?!" Konohamaru blushed as red as a tomato. Naruto started laughing as well. 'I mean, this kid was asking me for relationship advice earlier…"
"N-NII~SAN! NOT IN FRONT OF HER BIG SISTER!"
"Calm down, little bro. We're just teasing you." Naruto said, ruffling up Konohamaru's hair.
"Y-Yeah, I know that, b-but still…"
"Oh, come on. Laugh a little, bro." Naruto said. "How about I take you home?"
"Sure, nii~san!" Konohamaru said with a bright smile.
"Hinata, you wanna come?"
"No, I'll stay here. Just make sure to come back early, it's dark out."
"Alright." Naruto and Konohamaru said as they went out of Naruto's room and downstairs to take Konohamaru home.
Naruto… I love you too. Hinata thought.
