Vase
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto by Masashi Kishimoto, or any of the characters affiliated with it, and this is merely a fan-based piece of work.
Hinata grabbed a polishing cloth and began to rub into the surface of the ancient vase, detailed with rich blue swirls and very, very fragile. It was blue china, an heirloom from her late mother, and she treasured it deeply. It was in a glass case in her room on her desk, directly to the right of her mirror so it would never collect dust. But every now and then, she would polish it to perfection, spending hours sitting on the floor cross-legged, scrutinizing every swirl, every inch of the surface. The wind blew through the open window, letting the curtains sway as her fringe blew with the breeze, as she stretched her legs out, the vase sitting gently between them.
Dipping the polish cloth inside the vase to clean it, she absentmindedly stared out the window, wondering if she could ever live up to her father's expectations. Kurenai Yuuhi looked after Hinata now, and her father had no part in her success or failure, for that matter. She knew her sensei took her on because of her kindness, but a part of the young girl wished that she could be with a normal family like the Aburame or Inuzuka clans, or even the Nara clan. Her heart began to ache as she thought of someone in the same predicament as her. Naruto. Her fingers stopped upon the rim of the vase as she swallowed, looking into it, unable to see anything but pitch blackness. Naruto-kun... Hinata felt inspired when she saw how happy he always was, even carrying the Nine-tailed Fox inside of him, the Kyuubi. He was always full of energy, and endless confidence, and she looked up to her crush. No-one else was like him. She smiled softly as she stood up and put the vase back in its glass case on display, and stared at it for a few minutes with her fingers clasped behind her back as she swayed on her heels back and forth.
One day, she vowed, as she grabbed her creamy jacket and slung it around her shoulders, zipping it up and making sure the hood was in place at the back, I will catch up to you, Naruto-kun...
Heading out the door of her room, she made her way to the kitchen quietly and saw a light on, and blinked. It seemed that Kurenai was still up, as she poured over various scrolls on the kitchen table. Hinata giggled lightly. It seemed rather silly to her, studying on the kitchen table where people usually ate at.
Kurenai paused upon the line she was reading, grabbing a book and putting it in front of her instead, as she heard Hinata's footsteps and turned her head to look at her, smiling. "Ah, Hinata, you're up late. Are you going for a walk?"
"Y-yes, Kurenai-sensei," she said quietly with a small nod. "I'll be back soon though, I p-promise."
"Alright then. Could you perhaps get something hot for me to drink while I'm studying?"
"O-of course." Hinata shuffled her feet and bit her lip, a little uncertain as to whether to ask what she wanted to, or not. Would it be rude? Taking a breath, she mumbled, "C-could I have some m-money t-too so I can buy s-something as well?"
"Of course, Hinata. Here you go." Handing the girl some money and putting it in her hand, Kurenai couldn't help but smile some more as the shy girl left the house and broke into a run, panting with the money clenched tightly in her fist, not looking up at the sky, but in front of her, pumping her arms faster anf faster as the wind carried her along with it.
Hinata would become as strong as Naruto, even if it meant going against everyone's expectations of her. It couldn't be hard, could it? She had her sights set on being as strong as him one day, and it was this inner courage which drove her forward to succeed.