Disclaimer: Naruto and its associated works do not belong to me. I'm just playing in the sandbox created by Masashi Kishimoto.
Konoha, two and a half years after the Fourth Great Shinobi War.
Music was playing in the large hall where the wedding reception was being held- soft, gentle tunes that fit perfectly for the first dance between husband and wife. Naruto, one of the heroes of the Fourth Shinobi War, looked on with his bright blue eyes and a small smile on his face as his very first, and only, crush- who was wearing a bright blue kimono and other accessories- was led to the dance floor in the hall a few steps away from the Hokage Tower. It was his best friend, the very man who was once considered by others to be a traitor to the village of Konoha- a former A-rank international criminal- and someone who had known nearly the same pain as Naruto had his entire life. He was a man that Naruto never gave up on no matter the cost to himself, he was another Hero of the war- a fact that helped in his release from prison, after a year, before he left on a journey of self-discovery and redemption.
He was Sasuke Uchiha, and Naruto had never seen him smile with the warmth that he was giving Sakura as they began to dance. Naruto knew that his heart should have broken when Sasuke, after returning to Konoha from his journey of redemption nearly six months ago, was waiting for him in the corridor in front of his apartment.
"I'm going to ask Sakura for her hand,"
Naruto realized, after he was told about what Sasuke wanted to do, that he must have looked like a fish out of water with his mouth formed into an 'O' shape and his eyes wide open in shock. Sasuke, on the other hand, simply looked calm and collected- at least that was what he was trying to portray. Naruto could see how tense his best friend's shoulders were when he said those words to the blonde.
"I know you've had a crush on her since the Academy," Sasuke continued as Naruto looked away and towards the floor, and then back up to the dark eye staring back at him- the other eye… the Rinnegan was covered by jet black hair, "I thought it would be appropriate if you were the first person I told."
Naruto closed his eyes and took in a deep breathe. His heart was pounding- he felt an emptiness start to form before he shook his head and a smile formed on his face. 'Sakura was a crush. She was, and is, someone I care deeply about. But she was a crush… just a crush', Naruto thought to himself as the sounds of chirping birds flew past underneath the brightly lit sky while a warm breeze brushed through the corridor where the two Shinobi stood facing each other.
"You do realize that all you have to tell her is…," Naruto then made an utterly terrible impression of Sasuke when he continued, "let's get married." The blonde then smirked staring at his friend and rival, who was himself mumbling that he didn't sound anything like the way Naruto portrayed.
"Yes, I know," Sasuke said as the left side of his mouth twitched upwards, "I think she'd still prefer the gesture. Dope."
"Teme'," Naruto growled, narrowing his eyes, while putting his hands behind the back of his head and stared at Sasuke. A grin soon formed on his face while a small smile appeared on Sasuke's face. Naruto then stepped forward, "I care about Sakura-chan very much, Sasuke," Naruto started taking another step before he continued, "she doesn't have any brother or sisters, so…" the blonde Jinchuriki stopped and raised his hand, pointed it at Sasuke while making a fist, "if you hurt her feelings in any way.. then I'm gonna come and beat you to a pulp, Dattebayo!"
"I know," Sasuke nodded his head.
Naruto then stepped forward again with his arms by his sides. Once he was closer, the blonde extended his right hand- still wrapped in bandages- and shook the hand that Sasuke extended.
'And now, here we are,' Naruto thought as more and more of their mutual friends from what remained of the Konoha 11, along with some of the other Jonin and Chuunin; the current Hokage Kakashi; Tsunade who was sitting at her table with a cup of Sake in her hand as she stared at the dance floor with reddened cheeks; then there was Shizune who happened to be dancing with Kakashi, and many others were on the dance floor with the wedded couple. And that included Sakura's parents. Naruto turned back towards the drunk former Hokage and chuckled before he looked back at the drink on his table.
And the smile that had been on his face was slowly wiped off. He was happy for Sakura and Sasuke, he was happy that everyone else was having a good time. But there was a loss in his heart that he couldn't begin to really understand. The more he thought about it, the more he realized he couldn't fill the hole in his very being. Yes, he would be genuinely happy most times… but when that moment of happiness faded away, the emptiness would return.
Naruto knew that he would feel that emptiness again tomorrow. He simply knew it, and he feared it. He didn't want it in his life.
"This could have been us," a female voice whispered. Naruto's eyes widened and he slowly turned his head towards a sight he never expected. A dark blue haired, pale eyed beauty in a blue off-shoulder dress sat down next to him. Naruto's eyes went wide in surprise as he took in the sight of the woman who crossed her legs and stared at the people on the dance floor. The woman, a smile on her face, turned her head toward Naruto and leaned forward with a blush on her cheeks, "I… I…"
"Hinata?" Naruto whispered as the music continued to play. He then snapped his head towards the dance floor and saw that he couldn't connect his eyes with any of his teammates, or any of the other people on the dance floor. He then turned to Tsunade; he was about to wave his hands at the woman… but before he could, Naruto saw the buxom blonde lean forward before her head slammed onto the table.
"I… I suppose Tsunade-sama can't… can't take her drinks," Hinata chuckled before she turned back towards the stunned Naruto. The blonde shinobi turned towards the dance floor again and tried to connect his eyes to someone, anyone. He tried to move, but he couldn't… his friends were enjoying themselves too much, Naruto realized, before turning back towards the stunning Hyuuga Hinata sitting next to him, "you… you…." And Naruto knew in his heart that his friends didn't need to be saddled with his hang-ups, especially not this night. This was his issue to deal with for tonight.
"You… you can't be here… you…" Naruto gulped as a memory flashed in his mind, "you're…"
"I'm here because you needed me, Naruto-kun," she said without a stutter as she looked away, and towards the dance floor, and then back to Naruto once again, "I wish things had gone differently. I… I told you how I felt and…" Naruto remembered facing off against Pein, followed by Hinata's confession when he was badly injured onceshe arrived to protect him. And then his mind went back to the battle against the Jubi in the second night of the recent war while he continued to stare at Hinata in her blue dress.
"Hinata!" Naruto remembered yelling as everything around him seemed to stop- the death, the destruction, the sound of screams from around him as people continued to die- after she stepped in to save both Neji and himself after the latter pushed him away from being impaled. There were so many deaths already by that that time, and Naruto saw the latest death.
"Hinata-sama!" Neji yelled as he and Naruto rushed to Hinata who was coughing up blood from her mouth while she fell onto her knees. She had used the Kaiten, a technique she was still learning, to block the wooden spikes that were being thrown by the Jubi… but she couldn't spin fast enough to protect Neji and Naruto. Three poles went through her body, and Naruto heard himself scream her name as he ran towards her during a lull in the battle.
"Get a medic!" he yelled while Neji used his Byakugan to search for Sakura, or any other available medic. Once he did find Sakura, he looked back at Naruto who was hugging Hinata, her head resting on his right shoulder while blood gushed down the sides of her mouth and onto his back. He saw blood blood gushing down her front- from the locations she was impaled- before looking down at the blood covered ground in shock. "Sakura! Sakura!" Naruto yelled as Hiashi, Hinata's father, jumped and stared stunned at the sight in front of him. Neji shoock his head, and then told his uncle that he knew where Sakura was, and that he was going to get her. Hiashi didn't nod his head, he simply stared at Hinata with eyes wet with tears. Neji, his vision also clouded from the tears in his eyes, heard an unintelligible whisper from Hinata before turned and then dashed for Sakura.
"And it was too late to do anything," Naruto whispered looking away from Hinata's eyes, his mind bringing him back to the present day in the reception hall. And then he thought back to his battle with Pein. Hinata attempted to save his life because she loved him. She also admitted as much on the second night of the war, "you…"
"Had to move on with my life," Hinata whispered looking straight into Naruto's eyes.
"That's a funny way of putting it for dying," Naruto shook his head before reaching out for the glass of wine on the table, grabbing it with his hands, and then gulping it down. He heard Hinata chuckle as he put the glass back down onto the table. Naruto then turned back to what he believed was the image of Hinata that existed only in his memory, "I guess you're here because…"
"You feel alone?" Hinata finished his sentence with a smile on her face while Naruto turned back towards the dance floor. He lifted his glass and nodded his head at Sakura who was looking back at him with a smile on her face, while dancing with Sasuke.
"Times like this make me feel alone," Naruto whispered as Sakura closed her eyes and lay her head on Sasuke's chest, "I wonder if I'll feel like this when the others start pairing off and marrying."
"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered as she reached out and placed her left hand on Naruto's bandaged right hand laying on the table. It was the physical contact from a dead girl… a girl he thought was a figment of his own imagination, that Naruto snapped his head back to the warm hand laying on his own hand. He moved his head, mouth agape, and stared up towards Hinata's eyes which were staring back at him, "I wish this was our wedding. I wish that we had a chance and… I wish that I could have given you a family."
"Hin…. Hinata?" Naruto, his heart beating fast, 'how can I feel your hand?' he thought while saying, "why… why can I feel…."
"We always feel the souls of the people we love," Hinata whispered with tears in her eyes as she leaned forward, "even if the other has gone away from this world."
"I…," Naruto stopped talking when his voice began to crack as memories flashed during the times Hinata said that she loved him, and through all the other times she had tried to show the love and affection she had for him, "I wanted… I… I wanted to say that…" The song playing in the background started to fade away, as did the people. And all that remained in the room was himself and Hinata, the both of them looking into each others eyes.
"I love you," Hinata whispered as she leaned forward after Naruto shifted his body to face her, "I have always loved you."
"I love you too," Naruto whispered leaning forward while his mind swam with images of the times Hinata and he would spend together the times they went on missions. "I…." He focused on her lips- he was so mesmerized by her very presence.
"Hey Kid!" Naruto heard a gruff sounding voice in the background as he imagined his lips meeting with Hinata's warm, ruby red lips. Naruto, as he imagined kissing Hinata, knew he recognized the voice from somewhere, but he couldn't place it. As he stared at Hinata's inviting lips, he pushed the voice to the back of his mind. He wanted to focus simply on what it would be like to feel their lips together. "Naruto! What are you…? Naruto! Your... our chakra, what are you doing?! Get away from it and…." The gruff voice was suddenly gone as Naruto, his need for Hinata so deep while he imagined the look of happiness on her face after she sacrificed her life for his, leaned forward to kiss her.
'She sacrificed herself… she…' Naruto thought as her tongue slipped into his mouth. He felt her lips then kiss his jaw while whispering "I love you."
"I love you," Hinata whispered between kisses down from his ear and down the side of his neck. Naruto brushed his hand through the thick hair on the back of her head while feeling her hand rest on his chest. Hinata continued to whisper before she gently bit slightly into his neck.
"Hinata…" Naruto moaned, his whole body feeling a rush of pleasure as Hinata licked the area on his neck where she bit down earlier.
"I'm so hungry, Naruto," Hinata whispered before she bit down into his neck hard. Naruto opened his eyes wide as pain shot through his body before he yelled out in pain. He felt something sharp break through his chest and bite down into his heart. Naruto felt as if the world was going upside down. The last thing he saw was Tsunade sharply waking up from her drink induced nap, and then looking around confused, before her eyes settled down towards him.
Naruto saw her widening her eyes in surprise as he felt himself fall out of his chair and towards the floor.
"I'm hungry," Hinata's voice echoed in his mind as he felt himself getting weaker, "so very hungry."
Naruto heard distant yells- from men and women, and the sounds of people running. But they were fading away fast. Even the initial pain from his chest and neck was gone now.
"Hungry."
He heard that same female voice, Hinata's voice, once again as everything started getting dark.
"Hinata," Naruto whispered.
"You are mine, Naruto," Hinata's voice echoed even when he was shrouded in darkness, "so much life force. And I am so very hungry. I will feed, and then I will make you my Prince."
"Hin…"
"Shhhh," Hinata's voice echoed in the darkness, "rest. Let me feed, for I am hungry."
"So very hungry," the voice said again. And the voice continued on until it started to change, and Naruto felt himself lying on a soft bed.
"Hungry!"
"Ummmm," Naruto groaned as the voice of a female yelled while he felt himself being pushed by two pair of hands.
"Hungry!"
"Hungry!" a tiny voice yelled out. A voice sounding like that of a little girl.
"Old Man! Oi, Old Man… wake up!" the voice of a male, a boy, yelled out.
Groaning once again, Naruto opened his eyes slowly, only for his eyes to come into contact with two pairs of bright blue eyes looking back at him.
"See I told you shaking the Old Man would work," the blue-eyed male Blonde said looking at the shorter blue eyed and blue haired little girl. The blonde then looked back at Naruto with a frown, "you said you'll be making pancakes for Himawari before you have to… you know… do your stupid Hokage stuff. So don't you dare…"
"I remember, Boruto," Naruto said. He felt his heart ache at the fact that his son didn't seem to like him very much, 'can't be helped. I'm the Hokage, and the village is my responsibility now. But I wish I had more time to spend with him.'
"We'll be downstairs," Boruto huffed at Naruto before grabbing his sister's hand and turning around to walk away. Before he reached the door that led to the hallway outside, Boruto looked over his shoulder and said, "don't disappoint Himawari by sending one of your clones."
Naruto slowly sat up and looked over at his ten-year-old daughter, "I'll even make the monkey shaped ones." He then gave his children a thumbs-up and grinned, "Dattebayo!"
Himawari clapped and jumped up and down excitedly before she was led out by her twelve year old brother, who then close the door to the master bedroom. Naruto then sighed and rubbed the back of his head as he turned around towards the woman lying on the bed next to him. His wife and the mother of his children.
"He misses you Naruto," Hinata said with a smile as she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at the short haired blonde who was her husband, "but we… and I mean all us… understand why you have to stay up late as Hokage."
"Wish I was home sooner though," Naruto whispered looked at the closed door, and then back to his wife, "well, I better go fix up breakfast."
Hinata nodded her head before Naruto leaned down and kissed her on her lips. After a few seconds, he pulled back and stared lovingly into her eyes.
"Go," Hinata laughed after he leaned back down and kissed her again, "I've got to get up too."
"Big day planned?" Naruto asked as he turned his body and moved to get off the bed.
"I have training with Hanabi, and then I have lunch with Kushina-san, and…"
"Oh, that reminds me," Naruto grinned turning around after putting on his toad-slippers, "dad's coming back from his diplomatic mission to Suna. How about dinner tonight with the entire family?"
"If you can get out of your duties for tonight, then sure," Hinata replied before smiling, "but can you? You know, get away from the office?"
"I was wondering how to spend more time with the kids, maybe I'll have one of my clones do the work… you know, anything that doesn't involve signing things," Naruto shrugged before continuing, "and I suppose Shikamaru can get involved more with the job. That should give me some time to spend with Boruto… maybe help with his training."
Hinata smiled and nodded her head, "but not Himawari. At least not now. We're living in peace with the other villages, so there's no war… for a long time I hope. So let her have her childhood for a few more years before we start training her."
"As we agreed, 'ttebayo." Naruto replied with a thumbs-up before he rushed out of the room yelling, "I need to pee!"
"SHUT UP, OLD MAN!" Boruto yelled from the downstairs kitchen while HImawari could be heard laughing.
With Hinata in the room alone as she got out of bed, no one saw the evil smirk on her face. No one saw the jet black eyes looking out the window to the Hokage monument in the distance. "I have been hungry for so long," Hinata licked her lips before getting up off the bed, "his life force is so delicious. So very delicious."
TBC
