Author's note: oh my god chapter 13 had so many typos! You can tell I rushed it. I hope this chapter is a bit better. Thank you to all those who have read my words, it means a lot to me that you have stuck with me during this journey :)

Chapter 14

The 'sorry you're leaving' party is very simple, just some snacks and soft drinks for the last half hour of the day, before five o'clock officially ejects Hinata from the establishment. It is as she expected and she is content, what she didn't expect was the number of gifts and cards bestowed upon her. Hinata's face feels frozen in happy surprise every time a new colleague she didn't expect to even know her name would give her a small or large gift in appreciation and affection for her and her hard work, compassion and commitment. She hadn't thought that her work had ever been recognized, let alone admired, but the acknowledgment and consideration made her feel a new sense of wonder at herself and a bittersweet grief to be leaving such colleagues.

Truth be told, she hadn't believed she was leaving until her senior had mentioned having a party the day before. She wasn't sure she had made the right decision in retrospect, and though nervous about her future prospects, Hinata's instinct told her that a change was necessary, no matter how discomfiting the change may be. The colleague who had held her attention made their final wishes and left, allowing Hinata to relax her unconsciously tense shoulders and think back to her reflections from the night before.

She was sad to be leaving Naruto, and though he had been jealous of Hamada, and had made an attempt to talk to her, he had not made any other move since discovering her resignation. He had simply been stunned into silence and quickly removed himself from her. Everything was too muddled to make any sense from it all, so Hinata felt resolved in her decision not to delay leaving the civil service. She hadn't ever expected a renewal of love from Naruto while at work, if she hoped to earn his affections, she supposed she would have less mess doing so from a different place of employment. People and their nosiness were her nemesis.

Hinata's eyes drifted toward the man himself, he had stayed at an uncertain distance from her the whole time, but with the agitation of a hummingbird that wanted to move but didn't know where. She exhaled softly, and reminded herself of what Kiba had told her earlier that day upon confiding some of her doubts "if you don't want to be in pain anymore then you have to make changes to your life", said he while ironically not knowing the changes that had occurred. But she had to admit to herself that he was right, something had to change and location seemed like a good place to start.

Suddenly blue met pearl, she blushed and quickly averted her gaze, mortified that she had drifted into her thoughts to the point of staring at him and getting caught.

"Hinata-san, can I ask you something?" Hinata almost jumped from her skin just then, but calmed considerably when she turned to the voice.

"Oh, Sakura-san, yes… o-of course, what can I help you with?"

Sakura looked uncomfortable, a disquiet behind her brilliant green eyes. "Why are you leaving?" Hinata was immediately startled by the question, and it was clear to her questioner, for she continued "I mean, you're so well thought of, and successful here. I don't understand why you would leave all that."

Hinata visibly softened "I just had some personal reasons, though I am sad to leave, it will be hard to find colleagues like here."

Sakura gave a small smile in response, something sad mixed with trouble behind her turned lips,

"Is everything alright Sakura-san?"

"You are perceptive, Sasuke-kun was right. And thank you by the way, for all that you did that day. I might not have been here if it wasn't for you." Hinata gave her a shy but polite response before waiting patiently. At this, Sakura turned to give Hinata her full attention, "I don't know if you're aware Hinata-san but since I've come back from sick leave it feels like everyone is talking about me. It's like I've been labeled the office slut when I haven't done anything wrong."

Hinata's heart clenched, she was aware that people had been talking about Sakura, but she hadn't known how much it had affected the pink haired woman.

"I'm so sorry Sakura-san, that must be difficult."

Her frown deepened "Tell me about it, but that's why I asked why you're leaving, it's because I'm thinking of leaving too."

"Oh no! It can't be that bad here! Surely you have some people who are kind to you."

"I had you and Ino, Naruto doesn't speak to me unless it's necessary now, so I can't exactly call him a friend, but now that you're leaving it will be just Ino, and I don't think I could manage."

"But, where will you go?"

"Probably to a different office outside of Konoha's."

A sudden anger rose within Hinata, "you shouldn't have to be pushed to that. It's not right. What you do in your personal life shouldn't affect you at work."

"I know, but I mixed them up too much. Didn't put a clear line for myself not to cross. I don't really regret anything because at the end of it all I met Sasuke-kun, and he's helped me be a better person. But if I could go back in time I would probably tell myself to not be so focused on finding a man."

"Well, I think you're being quite dignified to not want to tolerate any… discomfort from your colleagues."

"Thanks Hinata-san." A pause and then, "what would you do, if your colleagues were bitching about you and your lover was so far away?"

Shocked, Hinata stumbled, "what would I do?" Sakura nodded, her green eyes almost listening as well as her ears, "I-I…. I would move to be closer to them. Life is short, you don't want to waste time being apart if you both know you want to be together, even if it means changing a lot of important parts in your life."

Sakura smiled gratefully, "thanks, I knew you'd know what to say."

Hinata was about to answer her friend when a male voice called out gruffly: "Oi Uzumaki!" She turned her neck sharply in the direction of the voice, it was one of their younger male colleagues calling for Naruto. The man himself was standing stationary, only three feet away from her, he was looking towards their direction, an indecipherable expression on his handsome face. Their eyes met. Hinata gasped, and turned away. her pulse halting before speeding erratically.

Had he heard her?

Before she could find out, a large card was thrusted into his hand surreptitiously by the younger colleague, clearly it was the "sorry to see you go" card meant for her that the team were collectively signing in pitiful secrecy. She pretended not to notice, and pretended she was not curious if Naruto had written in it or not.

Sakura then excused herself to talk with Ino and grab a few snacks before they all finished. Hinata's mind acknowledged her with as much presence as possible given how occupied she was with another very dominating thought. But she had no time to dwell much on the consequence of Naruto potentially hearing her, when her other boss approached.

"Sad business what's happened to Sakura isn't it Huuga-san." Hinata turned to meet Kakashi, white haired and grave as he took in the frame of his troubled colleague.

"You know about what she's going through?"

"Not many don't, but then again, most are the ones talking about her," he frowned and held his hands behind his back, a reassuring paternal feeling overcoming his features.

"I find it hard to believe the same people showing me so much appreciation are the same slandering Sakura-san, it beggars belief."

He huffed slightly in derisive amusement, "people have capacity for both good and bad Huuga-san, we tend to lean to one side, but we all have elements of both. Some of us learn how we harm one another, others remain ignorant, sometimes deliberately."

There was a wistfulness in his voice that made her curious, "Kakashi-san?"

"You're curious." She blushed, embarrassed. "I don't blame you. I don't normally talk of such things but seeing Sakura suffer has triggered me somewhat."

"Oh you don't have to talk about anything if you don't want."

"Well, seeing as we no longer have a professional relationship, I don't mind divulging a little history. A long time ago, but not so far away, I met a woman and we fell in love. Well, actually we sort of grew to love each other. It wasn't love at first sight like the movies you know, just subtle acts of care that we did for each other that steadily meant more and more as time went by. But I was stupid and arrogant, I thought I knew her better than anyone else, better than herself even."

"Why would you say that?"

Kakashi gave her a wistful smile, "she came from a practically different world to me, different race, different gender, different social group. I was well off, she was poor. I was well educated and she scraped by. I had no idea how hard it was for her to go through life and yet I acted like it was the most natural thing that I should know." He sighed and brushed his fingers through his white hair above a creased forehead, "she tried to tell me, educate me on how being me meant I had it a lot easier than her. But I didn't listen, said she couldn't speak for me, that she didn't know how hard I had had it either. God was I foolish."

Hinata placed a supportive hand on his arm, "I'm sure you didn't mean anything hurtful."

"No, I never meant her pain, but by not listening to her, by claiming to know better, I broke her trust. She broke up with me after that. And even though I learnt to respect communication because of her, I have never been able to find another woman like her. Loving her is all I've ever known, I thought I would get over her."

Just then Hinata heard someone call for Naruto, she turned her head surreptitiously in the direction and could vaguely decipher someone asking about the leaving card to sign. He had made to motion for a pen. She shook her head slightly, and brought her attention back to her uncharacteristically talkative boss,

"Did you get over her?"

He took a few contemplative moments before answering her, "yes and no."

She frowned, "how can that be?"

"In someways time has helped me grow bigger than the pain I feel for her, but at the same time, I do still feel that pain. Maybe it will always be there, I think I could engage in another relationship if I wanted to, but I don't want to, and I think it's because of her."

"And what happened to the lady?"

"We lost touch, but I think she must have moved on, we all thought Sakura was head over heels for Naruto, and she managed to move quickly. I'm not saying she's a bad person for doing that, but I think women move on faster than men."

Something fierce gripped Hinata's heart and pulled her soul out of its comfort zone, "I really disagree Kakashi-san. We must remember that Sakura's boyfriend was once engaged to a woman he had been devoted to for many years, and yet he moved on relatively quickly, which was more surprising given the way she had passed away. I don't think we can easily say whether a man or a woman's love is less solid than the other, but I certainly don't believe women's hearts are easily switched."

He smirked at her, "it's good to see you so passionate Huuga-san, makes a difference to the normal stoicism of your family. But you misunderstand me, I don't mean that women have less of a love than men, only that they can recover and heal better than men."

Her emotion cooled somewhat, then she blushed when she realized how personal she may have sounded, "Oh, sorry about that." A moment later and her instinct told her: no. "But I still disagree, for many of us we are almost glued to our love, even when the object of that love has gone away forever, or found someone else. Even when it feels hopeless we still love, blocking us from ever loving again."

"Is it better to not have loved at all?"

Hinata had no hesitation when she answered "No. Never. To be able to love is a privilege. And if that love is unrequited, or broken, then we grow from the pain it causes us."

The sound of a pen dropping onto the hard floor caught her attention. Dizzy, Hinata turned to see why such a sound seemed so close to her. Only to find Naruto stooping down to pick up the fallen pen, an ashen look on his face. Rising to stand less than two feet from her and her companion.

"Uzumaki are you done with that card already?" Said Shikamaru, annoyed. "You've had it for ages."

"Almost, need to proof read." She noted that he seemed to write something quite strenuously but quickly.

"I think we have found a point which we agree on Huuga-san. I think though, people are ready to go home. They're ready to give you their final goodbyes." And her boss motioned to the remaining staff getting their coats and bags.

And they did, they had shook her hand, or given her a light hug, some sincere, others not. But all welcome by the dark haired leaver. She noticed Naruto hadn't left, but had loitered a little. He had still clutched the leaving card in his hands, she supposed he must have managed to wrangle it from whomever it had passed to last.

Boldly, expressly, he looked at her, trying to communicate something without actually saying anything. He then mumbled something to kakashi while handing him the card, then he walked towards Hinata, her heart thundered within the confines of her rib cage, rebelling at being so close to him. Close, but not too close, he stopped in front of her, taking up her entire vision.

"Goodbye Huuga-san." Uttered he in a voice that seemed to contradict the words he had just said.

"G-goodbye." She weakly replied.

"Thank you for everything." His eyes tried to tell her something important but she couldn't make it out. Then he left.

"Yes, like Uzumaki said, thank you for everything Huuga-san, you've been brilliant." And he unceremoniously handed her the card they had tried to hide under the pretense of a surprise. "Something to remember us by."

She took the envelope in shaking hands, feeling something important was inside.

"Thank you Kakashi-san, thank you everyone. I will miss you all."

After a few more pleaseant words of farewell, she made her way to her desk at the now empty open plan office, waiting for Kiba who had promised to take her out with his girlfriend for dinner as a leaving gift. She looked at the card she had placed on the table, feeling incredibly curious and strangely compelled. Why had Naruto held it for so long? What had he written inside it? At first she had decided to open it at home, preferring the solitude to reflect on any message he may have given her. But, he had looked so expressively at her, like there was something imperative he needed to tell her. Checking her surroundings to make sure she was alone, she opened the card.

She expected the array of short messages of good will from her now former colleagues, what she did not expect was another envelope to fall out and land on her lap. She picked it up with shaking fingers, the front of it labeled with 'For Huuga Hinata.' And written in a messy hand she could tell anywhere. For a few moments she stared at it in wonder, her nerves building into a peak, like waiting for two lines to appear on a pregnancy test. Suddenly she snapped out of her nerves and flew into action, tearing it open and pulling out the contents. Then she began to read.

Dearest most wonderful Hinata-chan,

You have no idea how your words affect me. If only you knew the agony it has been to be around you, and yet how sweet and wonderful it is too. I have to begin first by saying how reckless, stupid and prideful I have been. Too arrogant to believe I could be rejected led me to turn away from you, but never have I not loved you, not for ten years have I ever not loved you. You have cemented my heart to yours, and since coming back from the onsen I have planned and thought for you alone. I come to you now, a cooler headed man than the boy who fell in love with you, but with a love more ardent than when you crushed it ten years ago. Angry and blind I have been, but to you my soul will always orient to, a you are that being that has made mine better, wiser and calmer.

I want to try again, if you do too, I'll be waiting outside near the cafe. This time I'll be the patient one, in my agony and hope. But if you don't want what I want, if I have read you wrong, I'll take my love away and leave you to some other man I can only pray would value you as you deserve.

Yours always,

Naruto

Flushed, incomprehensible and agitated beyond belief, Hinata could hardly tell up from down.

"Oi Hinata." Unmoving she remained staring at the letter now crinkled in her tight grasp. "Ready to go?" It was Kiba, ready with his girlfriend Karin by his side, waiting for her to go to the restaurant.

AN: it wasn't that cruel of a cliff hanger was it?