Honest Curse: Sean-Style
Chapter 3

Upon awakening, Naruto's first thought was Hinata. As had happened several times now, Naruto had dreamed of her, those same nonsensical dreams of him touching her body and doing weird things to her. As usual, he shook his head to clear the thoughts from his mind, but this time he noticed his body had reacted to the dreams. This confused him even more than the other, so, in typical Naruto fashion, he put the occurrence out of his mind. Little did he know Hinata had been having similar dreams of him.

Hinata was waking up about the same time Naruto was. She had a slight nosebleed from her dreams. She was used to that, so she just wiped her nose and went to get her shower. As she was getting ready for the day, she was reliving her dreams in her mind and giggling like the closet pervert she was. She'd never act on her dreams, of course, but the dreams themselves were natural, she knew that. She remembered when she had talked to one of her aunts the first time she had a dream like that, about a year ago. The aunt had told her it was natural and not to worry about it, just to "enjoy the glow" as she put it. Hinata wasn't sure what that meant, but she guessed reliving the dream like she did qualified. Then she had a thought; she was going out with Naruto now. Maybe someday, these dreams of hers could come true. Not likely. She chuckled to herself. Even if she was dating Naruto, things like that weren't likely. She shrugged and enjoyed her shower.

Naruto, meanwhile, had showered, dressed, and was out his door on his way to the Hokage's office. He had a promise to himself to fulfill. He figured he better do that before he went to class today. As he approached the Hokage's office, where he had a standing invitation of sorts (the Hokage had told him he could come in whenever he wanted,) he heard voices coming from within. He listened.

"I've chosen you as my successor. There is no one better for the position than you," Sarutobi's voice said. Naruto wondered who was there with the old man; he didn't have to wait long.

"I decline," answered Tsunade's voice. Naruto decided that was the best time to make his entrance, so he opened the door. Sarutobi turned at the sound of the door opening.

"Oh, Naruto, what are you doing here?" The old man asked. Naruto smiled at him.

"I just wanted to thank you for that item you gave me before I left on that mission. It really helped. Hell, without it, I wouldn't have been able to complete the mission at all," Naruto said. Then he turned to Tsunade. "And I think you would make a great Hokage, Tsunade." With that, Naruto turned and left the office, chuckling at the shocked look on Tsunade's face.

Ten minutes later, Naruto was standing outside the Hyuga compound, waiting for Hinata to come out. He wanted to surprise the shy girl by meeting her and walking her to class. He was standing there waiting for her when he got a sudden idea. He chuckled, and a second later a puff of smoke surrounded him.

When Hinata came out of her family home's main gate, she heard a small whimper. She turned and saw an adorable black-and-white puppy sitting on the sidewalk looking up at her. She smiled and bent down to pet the puppy a moment, then got up and headed toward the academy; she didn't want to be late. The puppy followed her. She looked back at him in surprise. She didn't really think it would go so well if she showed up in class with a dog. She tried to shoo the puppy away, but it wouldn't go. She finally gave up and just ignored the little creature. She was walking along when suddenly it appeared between her feet. She stopped so as not to kick it or trip over it. It looked up at her, and she could have sworn it was grinning. Then a puff of smoke appeared where the puppy was sitting and Hinata got quite a surprise.

Naruto appeared where the puppy had been. The way they were, when he transformed back, he had Hinata on his shoulders, her legs in front of him. Hinata shrieked in surprise, then realized what had happened and smiled. Naruto smiled up at her.

"Good morning, Hinata," he said, chuckling. The pretty girl blushed, her face bright red from both her sudden height and her surprise at finding herself on Naruto's shoulders.

"G-Good morning, Naruto," she said, smiling and blushing.

"Hinata, you really should smile more. You're really pretty when you do," he told her, which of course made her blush even deeper. "And that blush of yours is just adorable." Hinata gasped and blushed even deeper. Naruto saw she was about to faint. "Hinata, don't faint. You'd hurt yourself if you fell from up there."

Hinata realized he was right and put all her effort into staying awake. "So anyway, what are you doing here, Naruto?"

Naruto chuckled. He knew Hinata was trying to stay awake and talking would distract her. "I decided to surprise you and walk you to class today. Then while I was waiting I decided to surprise you with that transformation. Then I had the idea to come back so you'd be up on my shoulders like you are. I just thought it would be fun, and your reaction was worth it." He was smiling as he talked and Hinata was blushing as she thought about how handsome he was.

Hinata nodded. "This has been a good surprise, Naruto. But could you put me down now?" Naruto smiled, got down on his knees and set her feet on the ground. She stepped off him, then had a realization, namely that his head had been against her crotch that whole time. It made her think of some of the things he had done to her in her dreams, which prompted her to blush, get a nosebleed, and faint. Naruto caught her, chuckled, and lifted her into his arms so he could carry her to class. He smiled. He could get used to having her this close to him. It was nice. That thought made his body react the same way it had reacted to his dreams that morning. Naruto blushed, embarrassed with his body's reaction, shook his head, and walked the rest of the way to the academy.

Just as they were arriving, Hinata awoke. She found herself in Naruto's arms. Hinata gasped. Naruto smiled and set her down so she wouldn't faint again. She smiled; he took her hand in his and the two walked into class together, hands still linked.

Naruto sat with Hinata that day, of course. The two of them focused as much as they could on the class, though both of them found it hard given the proximity of the other. Hinata kept blushing from a combination of the reality and her dreams, and Naruto's mind kept going back to his own weird dreams, which he still hadn't figured out a meaning for. So it was that neither of them could really focus on their lessons. By the time the afternoon came and the class went outside for sparring, both Naruto and Hinata were as tense as a spring, coiled and ready to snap. Iruka had noticed the tension between them, but he had no idea what was going on. He shrugged. He had a solution, regardless.

"All right, first spar, Naruto vs. Hinata," Iruka stated. Naruto and Hinata looked at one another, thought a moment, grinned, and nodded. The two walked to the sparring area and got into their individual taijutsu stances. Hinata's was the Gentle Fist stance, slightly modified. Naruto's looked like a standard fighting stance, one fist in front of him, the other extended behind, his feet shoulder-width apart, one just a bit ahead of the other. Iruka thought it looked like a style he hadn't seen in years, but he shook that off. "Begin," he said.

Hinata grinned, thinking with that odd stance of his, Naruto would be an easy target for her Gentle Fist. Of course, she wouldn't use chakra on her strikes; she and Naruto would never really hurt one another. She knew he was aware of her style and how it worked, so she knew he would act accordingly if she hit him. For instance, if she hit his shoulder, she knew he'd stop using his arm. Similarly, if she hit his hip, he'd let that leg go limp. So really, she just had to hit him four times. So it was that she rushed at her crush, hands ahead of her ready to plant strikes on him in certain key points. Naruto's response shocked her, however.

As Hinata rushed forward, her hand moved for Naruto's left shoulder. His right hand moved forward and simply pushed her wrist aside. Hinata's momentum carried her past him, causing her to stumble. Both she and Naruto knew that this was a prime opportunity for him to sweep her legs. That's why he put his leg just a bit aside of her, showing that he could have done so, but he didn't. Iruka, watching Naruto's movement, realized the style he was looking at WAS that one he hadn't seen in years. But how had Naruto come by it? He shook his head, then, realizing that both Naruto and Hinata were holding back. Naruto's leg sweep missed on purpose, but Hinata still mocked stumbling as if he had hit her.

Iruka grinned at the antics of his two students; to the other students, this probably looked like a very tense spar, but he could tell neither had really hit the other at all. Yet they were both showing their skills. A true spar between friends, he realized. He returned his attention to the spar.

Naruto came at Hinata from behind as she acted like she stumbled over his leg and sent a strike at the back of her head. He wouldn't have hit her, even if she hadn't parried him, but she did. She turned in mid-stumble and struck his wrist with the side of her hand. She grinned at him and said, "Your hand would be numb from that, I just closed the chakra point in your wrist."

Naruto thought about that a moment, then let that hand fall limp, nodding his understanding. Luckily for him, it was his weaker left hand, not his dominant right hand. He grinned, thinking how he now had a weapon of sorts. The two jumped back apart, leaving about five feet between them. Naruto's left hand hung limp, which fooled everyone but Iruka into thinking Hinata had done something to him. Naruto chuckled, and Iruka grinned, knowing Hinata wasn't using her chakra in her strikes. Naruto decided it was time to play his trump card and end this.

Naruto started to circle Hinata, who turned so she was still facing him, still in her modified Gentle Fist stance. When Naruto's back was to the other students, he mouthed "I love you" and made a kissing motion at Hinata. Hinata blushed furiously and her guard dropped. Naruto rushed forward, got around behind her, placed his "limp" hand against the back of her knee and when she fell forward, he "hit" the back of her neck, and she fell to the ground. Naruto rolled her over and put a hand on each of her wrists, then grinned at her. "I win," he told her.

Hinata, blushing, said, "That wasn't fair, you cheated."

Naruto chuckled, got up, and held a hand out to her. Hinata took it, and he helped her to her feet. "Of course I cheated. That's the way of the ninja. And by the way, yes, I did mean what I said." Naruto left her with that and walked away, back to the back of the group. Hinata joined him a moment later and took his hand in hers, blushing. Naruto smiled at her and squeezed her hand encouragingly.

Iruka was somewhat surprised by that turn of events. Naruto had beaten Hinata at taijutsu? She was one of the best in the class in taijutsu, while Naruto was one of the worst. Then he remembered that blush on her face. He guessed (correctly) that her embarrassed state probably had something to do with Naruto's victory. He chuckled and called the next pair, Kiba and Shino, to spar.

Naruto led Hinata to a spot a short way from the rest of the class. He had stumbled onto this clearing some months before, when he was skipping class one day. Hinata looked around and saw that the clearing they were in had a small stream running by on one end, what looked like three trees that had been cut down (not training stumps, actual cut trees) in the middle arranged in a triangle, and a fire pit in one corner. Examining this, she figured someone had come here quite often. She looked at Naruto.

"This is where I come when I need to get away from everyone. Like on October 10, when everyone turns on me and trashes my apartment and tries to attack me, I come here and camp. That's why that's there," he said, pointing at the fire pit. "I'm not sure why, but I wanted you to know, if I ever vanish and no one can find me, this is where I'll be, so you can find me even if no one else can."

Hinata smiled, blushing at the idea of knowing where he was when no one else did. She came over and hugged Naruto. Naruto was surprised, but he smiled and hugged her back. Hinata's blush deepened when she felt Naruto's arms around her. The two just stood there for a while, basking in one another's presence and acceptance. After a while, Naruto looked at the girl in his arms. "Hinata, you really accept me, for me, don't you?"

Hinata looked up at him. "Of course I do, Naruto," Hinata said, blushing lightly. "I more than accept you," she added, blushing furiously.

Naruto looked confused. "What do you mean, Hinata?"

Hinata steeled herself. "It's now or never, Hinata," she thought to herself. "Naruto," she started, then faltered. Her voice didn't seem to want to cooperate. "I... I love you, Naruto," she confessed, her blush making her resemble nothing more than the setting sun.

Naruto gasped, then smiled. "I love you too, Hinata." Suddenly, the two found themselves wrapped tighter than ever in one another's arms, and both were happier than they'd ever been before.

After several minutes, the two pulled apart. Hinata, blushing like mad, and Naruto, smiling and blushing slightly himself, just stood there together, looking at one another. After a while, Naruto had a thought. "You know, Hinata, we've been on a date, and now we've said we love each other. So, does that mean we're a couple now?"

Of course, Naruto wouldn't know. Hinata realized after thinking a moment that Naruto had no experience with such things, beyond asking Sakura out every day or two. She smiled and giggled a little, blushing. "Yes, I guess it does, Naruto." She ran one hand down his arm until her hand rested in his. He smiled at her and intertwined his fingers with hers.

"We better get back," Naruto said, reluctantly. Hinata nodded. After a few moments to let that thought sink in, the two walked back to their classmates just as the final spar ended. They giggled as they watched Sasuke beat Sakura easily. Naruto smiled at Hinata, then had a thought. He worriedly asked, "Hinata, you're not upset that I beat you earlier are you?"

Hinata looked up in surprise, then remembered their spar. She smiled. "No, I'm not upset, Naruto. Unlike chicken-butt over there, you didn't really hit me. I think Sakura might really be hurt. I wasn't, you just pinned me. So don't worry about it," she told him, smiling.

Naruto couldn't help smiling back. "Thanks, Hinata," he said. "And your smile is still beautiful." Of course, Hinata blushed when he said that. He chuckled. "And I still love making you blush, it's so cute." Hinata blushed a little deeper, but she was smiling at her boyfriend. She gasped at that thought. "What is it, Hinata?"

"I just happened to think, if we're a couple, that means you're my boyfriend, and I'm your girlfriend," she said, her blush even darker now.

Naruto thought about it a moment, then nodded. "Hey, yeah, you're right. I've never had a girlfriend before," he said, smiling. Hinata smiled back; he was her first too, after all. "I'll do my best, Hinata."

She chuckled at his choice of words, and the lack of a promise attached to it. She understood his reasoning. "I'm sure you will, Naruto. I'm sure you will."

Two Days Later

Naruto chuckled as he entered the classroom. Today was the day of the exams. He had been very careful to make sure no one but Hinata and Shino saw him using his Shadow Clones, so he knew everyone thought he was going to fail the exam today. After all, he still had absolutely no skill at using normal clones, and he had been showing that lack of skill as often as he could lately. The exams started. Naruto sat back and watched as his classmates were called, one after another, to display their skills with the clone jutsu. When Hinata's name was called, he turned to her and kissed her on the cheek. She blushed. "For luck," he explained. She nodded, still blushing, and headed to the other room where Iruka and Mizuki were to take her exam.

Naruto waited his turn, watching as Sakura, Sasuke, Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Shino, and Kiba were all called. He knew they would all pass. Eventually, it was just Naruto. He chuckled. He was always last. Came of having a family name late in the alphabet, he supposed. Eventually, Mizuki came into the room and called for Naruto to come with him. Naruto got up and followed him to the other room, a confident look on his face. As Naruto entered the room, he had a sudden feeling in the back of his mind that he should fail this by trying the normal clones. He didn't want to fail, but he remembered his trump card, the Shadow Clones, so he shrugged and thought "Why not?" to himself.

Iruka and Mizuki were sitting in front of Naruto, behind a desk with a single headband left on it. Naruto made the sign for the clone jutsu and focused his chakra, trying his best to make clones. He almost chuckled at himself, thinking how easy it would be to blow both of them away with the Shadow Clones. Instead, he forced himself to make a normal, very pathetic, clone, the best he could ever do with the normal clones. Of course, Iruka told him he had failed.

He put up a show of being annoyed and frustrated and of being hopeful when Mizuki stood up for him, but really it was just a show. Iruka shot Mizuki down easily and the two were about to leave when Naruto spoke up. "Iruka-sensei, can I speak to you in private a moment?"

Iruka looked at his favorite student and nodded. "Sure, Naruto. I'll talk to you later, Mizuki," he said; Mizuki gave an odd grin and left. Once he was gone, Iruka smiled at Naruto. "Okay, Naruto, what's up?"

Naruto chuckled. "I'm not sure why I failed just now. Something told me to do this with just you and not Mizuki. I'm not sure why. But I'm going to pass the exam now," he said, giving Iruka a confident grin. Iruka sat down to see what Naruto was up to.

Naruto made a single hand-sign, a cross made with the first two fingers of each hand. He said, quietly, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" and suddenly the room had not one, not two, but ten clones in it. Naruto chuckled at Iruka's stunned face and told him, "Touch one."

Iruka looked confused, but reached out to put his hand through one. He found his hand stopping on it and looked at the original, stunned. "They're solid," he said. "Naruto, this is a Jounin level jutsu. How in the world do you know it?"

"That is an S-rank secret, Iruka-sensei, so sorry, but I can't tell you. Just know I learned it with permission," Naruto answered. Iruka nodded. He gestured for Naruto to take the last headband from the table, which Naruto did. Then Naruto told him, "I'm going to keep this a secret for now. Something tells me having people think I failed will come in handy somehow, so don't tell anyone just yet, okay?"

Iruka looked at his student, wondering what he was up to, then nodded. "Okay, Naruto, I won't tell anyone. I'll see you tomorrow. Meet in the classroom as usual to meet with your new sensei, all right?"

Naruto chuckled and nodded. "All right, Iruka-sensei, I'll see you then," he said, sliding his new headgear into his pocket and heading out the door. Naruto headed out to the front of the academy, a depressed look on his face. He went to the swing where he always sat when he felt really dejected. Hinata saw him coming out and had been about to hug him in celebration, when she saw his depressed face. Had he failed? No, it wasn't possible, now when he knew that Jounin-level version of the clone jutsu. Suddenly she saw him looking at her and she saw the spark of happiness in his eyes, even though his face didn't change from its depressed expression. She watched as he walked to the swing and sat down. She decided to wait and see what happened.

Naruto had been at the swing about ten minutes when he heard someone beside him speaking. "Iruka's tough, but he's not against you. He wants you to be strong, but that won't happen if he goes easy on you," Mizuki said.

Naruto acted like he was frustrated. "I just really thought I would pass this time. I trained so hard..."

Mizuki grinned, thinking, "And now to set the hook." "Well, then I guess I have to tell you," he said. Naruto looked up at him. Mizuki told Naruto about the Scroll of Sealing that was in the Hokage's office and that if Naruto learned a jutsu from it, he could pass the exam.

Naruto looked up and saw the distortion in the air that told him Sarutobi was watching him. He'd seen it enough that he knew it when he saw it. He chuckled and turned to Mizuki. "Oh, you mean like this one?" he asked, forming his cross hand-sign. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he said; suddenly about twenty clones surrounded Mizuki. Mizuki looked at Naruto, shocked. The boy hadn't even been able to make one clone before, how could he do this?

Mizuki had one last weapon up his sleeve. "Oh, I see how it is. You've fully become the Kyuubi now, have you? I see," he said. When Naruto looked confused, Mizuki said, "That's right, Naruto. The Nine-Tailed Fox that ravaged our village lives on in you! It was sealed in you, not killed! That's why everyone in the village hates you!"

Naruto looked shocked, then hurt, then just laughed. "Not everyone hates me, Mizuki. In fact, there's someone right over there," he pointed toward where Hinata was at this, "who loves me. So even if I have the Kyuubi in me, which I don't doubt, considering everything I've gone through my whole life, not everyone hates me. But you do, and that's enough reason for me to do this." Saying that, Naruto and all his clones rushed Mizuki and promptly beat him down, leaving him unconscious on the ground. Naruto chuckled, scratching his head. "I guess I got a little carried away," he said. Hinata ran over and hugged Naruto. Naruto smiled and hugged her back. "You heard all that, didn't you?"

Hinata nodded. "I don't care if you do have the fox in you, Naruto. You're still you, and I still love you," she said, hugging him tighter. Naruto sighed happily and held his girlfriend close. After making sure the ANBU had Mizuki in custody, Naruto and Hinata walked away together. The two ended up in the Hokage's office a few minutes later.

"Okay, old man, tell me, was what Mizuki said true? Do I have the Kyuubi in me?" Naruto asked, leaning over the Hokage's desk, an annoyed look on his face.

Sarutobi wasn't happy about this, but he nodded. "You do, Naruto. But you are not the fox. You're you, as Hinata said," he told the boy, chuckling as he remembered the conversation he had watched between the young couple. Hinata blushed as she realized she had been being watched. The Hokage smiled at both of them. "Naruto, Hinata, both of you realize this doesn't change anything. You are both ninja of this village, and knowing this secret doesn't change either of you. Also, Naruto, you may tell this secret to whom you choose, the law against telling it does not apply to you."

Naruto thought about that, then nodded, understanding why he had never known before. Hinata just held Naruto's hand to comfort him. Naruto smiled at his two precious people. "Thank you, both of you. Oh, by the way, old man, I won't be able to take the normal oath to become a Gennin you know. I can't say I'll always be faithful to the village, since the Hokage may one day become an evil man. I also can't say I'll never attack a person from this village, since someone may betray the village. So, what can I do?"

Sarutobi grinned at the boy, proud of him for realizing his bloodline would make things different. "All right, you two. I'm going to swear you both in as ninja here and now, all right?" The two preteens nodded. "Hinata, you can take the same oath as Naruto here. Raise your right hands." The kids did as he said. "Repeat after me."

This is the oath Naruto and Hinata took that day: "I hereby swear to be always faithful to the Will of Fire. I swear to always protect my precious people and defend them from any threat, be it from within or without the village. Moreover, I vow to always do what I believe is right, no matter the circumstances or consequences. I vow to always do everything in my power to see to it that Konoha stays on the path of right as well. This do I swear." (A/N: There's a reason I worded the vow like that.)

Naruto and Hinata left the Hokage's office as official ninja. They bowed to their Hokage and smiled as they left. Sarutobi smiled at them and went back to his paperwork once the two new ninja were gone. Naruto and Hinata, meanwhile, were walking hand-in-hand toward the Hyuga Estate. Upon arriving at its gate, Naruto hugged Hinata, whispered in her ear, "I love you" and parted from her. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hinata," he said, grinning. She smiled back and headed into her home. Naruto smiled and went home himself. So it was that the two of them began their lives as ninja and as a couple. They both fell asleep that night with smiles on their faces and drifted into dreams of one another.