Naruto stood in the shower with the water on super-hot. His head was on the wall as the water ran down his body, staring absently at his feet.

"I didn't do it." He told himself. "I couldn't have done it. Not something like that."

"But the blood was on your hands." A voice in the back of his mind said.

Naruto closed his eyes tightly, trying to ignore that fact.

"What did they do to me?" He asked as he slammed his fist against the wall.

(Flashback)

Meat! There was meat on the floor in front of him, it was uncooked and bloody but it was food.

For… quite some time now, he could not tell exactly how long at this point, they had been feeding him some sort of tasteless mush. Something like pre-chewed rice that tasted not as good as that sounds. They would serve it to him in a big bucket with a tray of water every day. The first time he had tasted it he gagged, but he had to force himself to eat it since he couldn't eat the bucket instead. But now, he had eaten so much of it that now whenever he even looked at the white goop he nearly vomited.

But then, they had brought him to this empty room and there was real food in front of him. The rancid smell of the raw meat and blood was sickening, but the sight of something other than the mush was more beautiful than he could describe. Like water in the desert.

Naruto took a cautious step towards the meat pile, almost expecting it to vanish or for some horrible to happen. There were no guards, no chains, nothing to prevent him from eating the meat.

Naturally, this seemed too good to be true.

Just then, a small section of the wall opened up, and from the other side out crawled a wolf. It was a large animal with black matted fur and sickly yellow eyes, with foam drooling at its mouth, almost like it was rabid. Calling it Kuromaru's evil twin wouldn't seem to be an unjustified comparison. The door behind it then closed, preventing any escape for either of them.

Naruto watched this creature, but it did not watch him. Instead it was focused on the pile of meat. The wolf's long tongue fell from its mouth and it moved towards the pile, with a hungry look in its eyes.

Naruto suddenly felt a surge of rage course through his body. This wolf was going to eat the meat, 'his' meat. No, no no no no. That was his meat, his food, he deserved that food… he was not going to eat anymore of that mush even if it meant he had to eat the wolf instead.

With a snarl that belonged to an animal, Naruto lunged at the wolf. Catching the beast in its side and tackling it against the wall, the element of surprise being the single biggest factor here in Naruto's success. The wolf soon fought hard against Naruto, it twisted its body and its jaws snapped down on Naruto's shoulder. The blonde grunted in pain but he ignored it, instead he drew back his fist and began to slam it against the wolf's face. Over and over again Naruto slammed his fist into the creatures face, harder and harder with each hit, hitting like he was trying to turn the lupine's skull inside out.

All Naruto could see was red, and it was several minutes even after the wolf had died from the repeated blows when Naruto finally stopped. His shoulder was bleeding heavily and the wolf's teeth were still latched to it in a literal deathgrip. The blonde lifted his bloodied hand up and grasped the jaw and pulled up releasing himself from the beast. He was breathing heavily as sweat dripped from his face; it was so hot in here all of a sudden.

He then suddenly turned his attention back to the pile of meat, he tried to stand in order to walk towards it, but he found his legs would not support his weight. They were not injured, aside from some scratches from the wolf's claws when it kicked, but he had no explanation for why his body wouldn't obey him. Nonetheless, he crawled over to the meat.

When he finally got the pile of dirty, bloody, slightly fly-covered pile of raw meat, Naruto was fully aware that he was no longer acting on his own consciousness. Now, it was more like a basic animalistic instinct, a need to find nutrition and a desire to defend and even kill to protect that sustenance.

Tears filled his eyes as he shoved his prize down his throat, tears of worry for his own humanity.

"I'm in hell."

(End of flashback)

Naruto laid on his futon, wearing only his boxers, his body still wet from the shower. He hated how his mind just kept drifting back to the memories of what had occurred during his imprisonment. More and more he could remember more details of the hell he was put thru, but whenever he tried to remember how he escaped he was met with a blank wall.

'How long until I remember my escape? Why can't I remember what surely was the one pleasant memory I have of that time?' He asked himself. 'Or was it even worse?'

Hinata awoke that morning feeling completely and utterly refreshed, in fact she felt amazing. It felt as if her entire body was now bursting with energy.

She quickly got out of her bed and walked over to the large full view mirror and looked at herself. Standing there dressed only in her sleepwear, she did not appear any different. But the longer Hinata stared at herself, the more sure she was that something was off. She touched her face, her breasts, her sides, she even ran her finger down a lock of her hair, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

'Just my imagination.' She thought to herself as she smiled at the mirror.

Hinata went to her bathroom where she turned on the shower, stripped out of her clothes and stepped into the hot water. She took out her favorite lavender scented shampoo and began to rub the soap all over her body.

'I can't believe Naruto-kun was actually in my room last night.' She thought giddily. While she loved seeing him and had often dreamed of having him come into her room, yesterday had not been under the best of circumstances. But still, having him around, being able to just talk to him, and then even… hug him. She was very sure that had helped her recover.

Until-

(Flashback)

Hinata was leaning back against her pillow gently laughing as Naruto told a funny story from when he had been on his training mission.

"And then I told Ero-sennin 'that was a guy' and he spent all night in the shower crying." Naruto finished.

Hinata giggled as she asked "And I thought Jiraiya-sama was a noble and powerful sannin."

"Powerful yes, noble no."

"Y… you know Na… Naruto-kun, you don't h-have to stay with me anymore i-if you don't want to." She said, thinking that she was boring Naruto.

Naruto stared at her like she was insane. "Hinata-chan, what kind of friend would I be if I just up and left? Especially after all of the time you spent looking after me when I was as sick as a dog."

Hinata blushed lightly. "But I look so gross. My hair is a mess and I have not showered."

The blonde boy gave an oblivious grin. "Oh I don't know about that. I think you look very cute."

Hinata hid her face with her blanket to cover up the crimson red color it had just turned. 'Cute, Naruto-kun just called me cute.' She felt like she was going to pass out.

Naruto continued to grin, however it flattened when the door to Hinata's room opened and in stepped Hiashi, with a cold stern look on his face.

"What are you doing in my house, boy?" He demanded but kept his tone down. It was the kind of tone that said 'No answer you give will improve your odds of improving my mood'.

Naruto immediately stood up and gave a brief bow. "Hyuuga-sama, I was just-"

"Who let you in here?" Hiashi interrupted.

Hinata became worried, if her father new that Hanabi had let Naruto inside-

"I let myself in sir. I was worried about Hinata and I wanted to come see her."

Hinata stared at Naruto with surprise.

Hiashi narrowed his eyes. "Breaking and entering into my home like a common criminal. This does not surprise me coming from you."

"Father-" Hinata began to say but was silenced by a quick look from the elder Hyuuga.

"Remove yourself from my property boy. Before I remove such a thing like you as I see fit." He said icily, leaving no room for bargaining or patience.

Naruto stood there rigidly for a moment and then nodded. "As you wish Hyuuga-sama." He then nodded to Hinata. "Goodnight Hinata-chan. I hope you feel better."

Naruto walked past Hiashi who quickly added. "And use the backdoor, people like you don't have the privilege to use the main entrance." He didn't even bother to turn around and look at Naruto as he said that. Naruto froze and gave Hiashi a nonthreatening frown, but Hiashi when he did look at Naruto gave him in return a 'What are you doing to do about it?' kind of look before he left the room and hallway.

Before he left and was out of earshot, Hinata could swear he heard Naruto say something to himself. "Something tells me that guy wouldn't even let the Hokage use the front door if he didn't have to."

Hinata sighed to herself. "I agree completely Naruto-kun." She whispered, knowing he couldn't hear her anymore.

(End of Flashback)

Something Hinata would never understand is what her mother ever saw in her father. There was no love in that man; he was rigid pillar of ice most times and an uncontrolled inferno when he was out of blood. Looking down on all others like they were insects that must be stepped on, it was disgusting. Dr. Frankenstein himself could not have made him more of a monster in her eyes.

Hinata then felt a slight throb of pain in her head.

'Poke out his eyes and make him crawl in the dirt. See how he likes it.'

'Who is he to talk down to Naruto-kun like that? His tongue should be cut out.'

Hinata shook her head. "Whoa… what was that?" She asked herself, those thoughts reminded her of the ones she had yesterday, and that scared her.

She had thought some mean thoughts towards her father on occasion, but never like these. Her normal thoughts were more resentment and cynical, normal for a teenager dealing with a neglectful parent. But now, her train of thought was becoming a bit more violent.

'Am I getting close to a breaking point?' She asked. 'Kurenai-sensei everyone has a limit to the amount of bad attitude they're willing to tolerate. Am I nearing that? Is that why my thoughts are taking a dark turn? If so, how do I handle it? Because I'm afraid of how I might react if I'm pushed too far. I honestly have no idea of what I'd be capable of.'

She shook her head to clear the thoughts from her confused mind. "I should go see Naruto-kun. That always makes me feel better."

Hinata went outside to get some fresh air. Since she had no desire to be under surveillance by her clan at the moment, she left the compound and headed into the public part of Konoha.

'I can't help but feel like someone is following me.'

She looked over her shoulder, but she did not see anyone. She could have activated her byakugan for a better look, but she decided against it. It was probably just her imagination again. It had been a little active lately so this was probably just another instance.

She walked all the way to Naruto's apartment, walking up the stairs with a skip in her step. She really wanted to thank him for coming over last night and for taking the blame for her sister in front of her father.

She gently knocked on his door and stood there for a moment. When there was no response she knocked on it again. "Naruto-kun?" She called. "Naruto-kun it's me, Hinata."

Still no answer.

Hinata felt a sense of worry pass through her. She instinctively grabbed the door knob, expecting it to be locked, but instead she found that it was not. 'That's not good.'

She opened the door and stepped inside the small apartment, and on the floor she saw Naruto laying on his futon, fast asleep.

She could not help but notice that he was only wearing his boxers, which gave her a perfect view of his body. She felt her own start to grow hot at the sight of his muscles.

The blonde twitched and stirred slightly in his sleep.

Hinata was beyond tempted now to use her byakugan and just catch a little peek at what lied underneath those boxers, but she forced herself not to.

'Must… resist… urge.' She thought as she crept closer to Naruto, being as quite as possible.

She knelt down next to him, gently placing her hand on his forehead to check his temperature. He stiffened a little bit, but then relaxed.

'Hmm, his temperature is normal. He just must be tired.' She thought as she withdrew her hand.

"Mmm… Hinata-chan." Naruto murmured in his sleep.

That caught Hinata completely off guard. She sat there silently staring at Naruto with a mixture of complete shock and utter joy. 'He is dreaming about me? Naruto-kun is dreaming about me?!' To have some fun, she leaned by his ear. "Yes Naruto-kun?" She whispered sensually.

"You're beautiful." He replied, still unaware she could actually hear him.

Hinata didn't know whether to faint, cheer, or dance at hearing that. The one thing she did do without restraint was smile like she never had before. "You mean that?"

"Believe it."

Feeling bolder, she wanted to satisfy some of her curiosity. "What do you like best about me?"

"Your kind eyes, your pretty hair, your warm smile, your gentle hands, your great courage..." He listed.

'He thinks I'm courageous too?' She asked herself, wondering what he meant.

"...Your nice breasts, your feminine butt, your fine legs..." He continued with the beginning of a perverse smile. "You're beautiful and sexy. I wish I could hold you all night."

Blushing, Hinata tried to calm her fast-beating heart. 'He... he fantasizes about me? Like I do him?' She took a deep breath and leaned closer again to whisper some more. "What if I let you?"

"I'd never let you go."

"I wouldn't want you to." She added.

Naruto yawned and looked like he was about to wake up. Feeling nervous again, Hinata backed away, trying to make it look like she had just gotten there. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Huh? Hinata-chan? When did you get here?"

"J-j-just now. Yo-your door wasn't locked and you di-didn't answer when I knocked so I was worried. I'm sorry if I w-woke you up." At the end she was doing her finger-poking nervous habit.

"Actually I needed to wake up. I need to be ready in case Baa-chan calls for me, and I wanted to check something out while I had the chance."

"Oh? Like what?"

"Come with me. Maybe you could help me find it." He said as he stood up and stretched, briefly showing off his abs as he did.

"S-sure, I'll help. What are you looking for?" She asked, trying not to go over to help and take his boxers off to see more.

"A new outfit for when I make chūnin."

The young unofficial couple was inside one of Konoha's ninja clothing stores sampling possible outfits. Hinata scanned the racks of jackets and coats on one side while Naruto looked on the other.

"Nothing, not one single scrap of orange." Naruto sighed. "What do people have against orange?"

"I… I think it is only good in moderation and coordination." Hinata said softly. "B-but I always thought orange looked great on you Naruto-kun. It made you stand out from everyone and captured your personality well."

Naruto smiled proudly. "Thank you Hinata-chan, that is exactly why I chose the color. It is unique and individual." His smile then dimmed a bit. "And I guess the fact that no one likes it makes it even more suited for me."

Sensing his discomfort, she looped her arm around his. "I like you Naruto-kun, and I like orange too."

"Then why don't you wear it?" He asked.

Hinata shook her head. "Naruto-kun, look for a moment." She then henged herself so that her outfit was orange instead of lavender. "See? It doesn't really look good on me."

Naruto looks at her, at the same time noticing her more mature body and appreciating it. "It looks okay to me, but you're right, lavender does seem to suit you better."

Hinata nodded and released the henge. "Not every color is for every person. For you I'd say bright colors combined with black work best. It just... suits you for some reason. Some red might work too, but I don't think other colors would."

Naruto looked back thru the selection and found a jacket that had some appeal to him. It was a lot like his current one, but it was completely black save for the red swirl on the shoulder, and some white bands at the wrists and all over the front side. Such a plain jacket, but the tag is what caught his eye the most.

"Hey check this out Hinata-chan. This one is supposed to be customizable."

"How so?"

"It says here that I had put my chakra into the white parts and it will change the color and patterns to give it any designs I want the jacket to show. It just won't change the black parts and changing it a second time requires some sort of purge of the first design."

"So if you change your mind or stop liking it you can edit it instead of buying a new one?"

Naruto shrugged. "That's what I'm guessing. I think this is the one for me. I can actually pick the amount of orange I want on it, and you can even help me decide what looks best on me."

"You... you sure I can be helpful for that?"

"Who else am I going to ask? Sakura-chan or Ino? When have they complimented my appearance?" He asked.

"Good point." Hinata replied. "Too bad for them though. They're missing out on one good-looking man."

"And I'd be missing out on one great-looking woman if they were here instead." He added.

She adverted her gaze but never lost her smile. 'How can he make me like this without even trying? I bet if he really did try to romance me I'd turn red permanently.'

Naruto folded up the jacket. "I think I'll take it. It'll look great with my chuunin vest."

"But won't the vest cover up some of the white?" Hinata asked, pointing at the white front.

"I'll adjust it when I get it. C'mon, let's get out of here. There's somewhere I'd like to go with you." He told her.

'Yep, permanently red.'

"Okay, open your eyes." Naruto said, excited to see Hinata's expression. He had led her to his secret destination blind as to offer her a sense of surprise, and she was happy to go along with it.

The Hyuuga princess did open her eyes and gasped at what she saw. She had the most perfect view of the entire village of Konoha from here. She could see everything from the Academy and the training grounds.

She had known the Hokage monument was the tallest point in the village, but she also knew that people were not allowed to come up here, so she never imagined she would be able to see the village like this. It seemed too small now.

Naruto walked up next to her with his hands at his side. "It's pretty awesome, huh?"

"Na… Naruto-kun, this is amazing!" Hinata exclaimed.

"It is my favorite spot in the whole village. I liked to come up here a lot when I was a kid and just look down at everything below. And since everyone is pretty adamant on 'respecting such a historic monument' no one ever comes up here."

"But what if someone did?" She asked.

He shrugged. "So what? I'm not breaking any law. People aren't forbidden from coming up here, they just choose not to. If someone came up here they couldn't force me to leave anymore than they can forbid me from using the public streets."

Hinata looked back over the village, seeing clouds passing thru the sky and some birds flying. And if you looked really hard you could see people walking in the streets. "I wonder how this looks at night."

"Oh it's wonderful." He told her, then found he couldn't take his eyes off her. "Just like you."

She blushed and turned to him with a flattered smile. "Thank you Naruto-kun. Not to sound ungrateful or anything but... why are you so... complimentary to me lately?"

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I'm very flattered and happy you've been saying such nice things to me, but you never used to be like this for me. What changed?"

"Do you want me to stop?"

"No!" Hinata all but shouted. "No, I like this a lot. I'm just curious." 'And hopeful I can encourage it further if I know what I'm doing right in getting him to notice me.'

He smiled and held her hand. "Part of it is me being thankful for all the care you've given me since I came back. It's strange, ever since I got out of the hospital you're the only one who's wanted to spend time with me. The others say hi in passing, but it barely lasts more than a few minutes. But you, you're actually enjoying being with me, and I'm actually enjoying time with you. It means a lot to me to have this opportunity. Makes me feel like I for once have a real friend."

The Hyuuga heiress blushed deeper but did not have any signs of fainting this time. Instead she strangely found herself a bit turned on. To hide this, she scooted right next to him. "I'm happy to be your friend Naruto-kun. Will you be mine too?"

"Of course Hinata-chan. Maybe even best friends." He said enthusiastically.

'And hopefully more someday.' Both thought at the same time.

They stared at each other, crystal blue at pearly white. Then both Hinata and Naruto found themselves slowly leaning towards each other. Neither of them seemed to actually be acting on their own, but both of them made no attempts to stop it.

"Naruto-kun..." the Hyuuga girl said softly.

"Hinata-chan..." the blonde prankster responded.

Their lips were so close now, only an inch away, they were completely ready to kiss each other when suddenly-

"Uzumaki Naruto?" An ANBU agent said, appearing almost out of thin air.

"Like you really don't know who I am." Naruto replied, a bit bitter about having the moment ruined.

"Hokage-sama has requested you, saying it is time for you-know-what and to meet here at the Konoha Arena."

"Already?" He asked, then smiled. "Great." He then got up and held his hand out to Hinata. "You wanna come along?"

"I... I can?"

Before the Anbu could say a word, Naruto answered for him. "Of course you can. I'd feel more confident if you did Hinata-chan."

The Hyuuga heiress's head was swimming at his praise. 'I... I would be giving him confidence?' Before the risk of fainting approached break-neck speed, she took his hand and got to her feet. "After all the times you've supported me Naruto-kun, it would be an honor to be the one supporting you."

The Anbu looked like he didn't know what to make of this, but decided it was now out of his hands. "Just head there right away." He then departed.

The Konoha Arena was a large stadium that was mainly reserved for special events such as the Chūnin Exams. It was large enough to hold up to 600+ hundred people but at the moment only the lead members of the shinobi council and Hinata were present, seated in the front row of the stadium while looking down at the only person on the field, Naruto, who seemed very confused.

He stood in the field itself alone, until Tsunade came up to him. Next to her was Shizune and Kakashi.

"Naruto, we will now test you to see if you are yet worthy of the rank of chuunin. Before we go any further, are there any reasons you are not yet capable of undertaking this test?"

"I feel fine Baa-chan. A few uneasy nights but I'm as good as ever." He told her.

"Good. Now, since this will be a solo exercise, it will be done differently than the standard chuunin exams. We will test your strengths in two rounds of combat. But we will not be testing just your ability to fight and win. Like before, there will be other things you must prove to earn a promotion."

Naruto gave his trademark grin, "I am ready Tsunade-sama, believe it."

Tsunade smiled. "Then let us begin."