Chapter 7: Naruto Strategized!

Hinata lay on the grass, with her eyes closed, and a book opened on chapter Seven. Kurenai had been sent on some sort of mission, so team 8 had a small break. It wasn't supposed to be a break. They were supposed to be training together. But Shino said he was going to take the opportunity to learn more about his clan's technique, since Kiba had recently learned the four leg technique. Meanwhile Kiba was also being trained by his family since he had yet to learn a move that incorporates Akamaru.

As for Hinata, she had been using her free time to beat up inanimate targets with her gentle fist, and catching up on some of her clan history. But upon turning to chapter 7, she had dozed off on the grass, by the riverbank.

"Ne, are you alive?" A familiar voice awake her from a short lucid dream she was having. Her eyes fluttered opened, and she looked to her side to see Naruto looking down.

"N-Naruto," Hinata grabbed the book off her stomach and closed it. "How have you been?"

The blond took a seat next to her and brought his knees to his chest.

"I've been bored. This genin thing is an overly hyped hoax. We're just being used as slave to work for civilians." He complained. "I wanna go on a C-mission so badly! Maybe an escort mission to some land I've never been to."

"I know what you mean…" Hinata replied, as her eyes hands played with the book cover. The book cover had an interesting leather texture. It looked ancient, yet it smelled new. "Um…how has your team been treating you?"

"Sasuke's still a bastard. Kakashi-sensei doesn't give a damn about my training. And Sakura's still the same, fawning over stupid Sasuke." Naruto's response left Hinata speechless. She hadn't realized how hard other teams had it. She had always assume that all teachers were as nice as Kurenai and as awesome as Asuma. Although she didn't know much about Naruto, his background or his likes and dislike, one thing she remembered from the academy was that he enjoyed sparring. And pulling pranks. But she wasn't about to suggest they go off and pull prank on people.

"My sensei went off on a B-rank mission." Hinata said, with pride. "A-And if you don't mind, maybe we can train together?"

"Seriously? You're not pulling one on me are you?" Naruto replied.

"I promise I'm not deceiving you. I enjoy training." Hinata's words made Naruto go quiet for a bit, before he spoke again.

"I wish we had been friends at the academy." Naruto said, sincerely.

"Me too." Hinata replied. "B-But to be honest, I was always kind of scared of boys." She admitted. "I used to get bully a lot by them, until Ino came and stood up for me." She explained as she reached for her backpack and stored her book away.

"Whoa that's weird, it's like my mind is censoring the imagine since I can't picture Ino doing that at all." Naruto said. "I mean I sort of do, but her face is a blur." He imagined a young girl with blond hair coming to Hinata's rescue. But Ino's facial features were blurry. Even her mint blue eyes looked pixilated. Hinata giggled. Naruto's words had painted a picture inside her head which matched up with his imagination. "Ne, Hinata, let's go to where my team trains!" Naruto said as he stood up.

"O-Okay!" Hinata said and followed him.

The training ground was not much of one. It was just a large clearance in the middle of the forest, where the memorial stone for fallen heroes stood tall. There was no benches or wooden dummies. Not even round posts for target practice! It made Hinata wonder why this place had been chosen by Kakashi.

Not far from the memorial stone, was three thick wooden poles stabbed onto the ground. Hinata walked up to the one at the center, and placed her hand on it. Her eyes trailed downward, where she noticed a decomposed rope. She examined it in confusion, as the Naruto came from behind her and laughed.

"What's so funny?" She asked.

"I was tied there once." Naruto replied.

'Eh?! P-Pervert!' As if reading her thought, he went ahead and tried to defend himself.

"Not in a weird way!" Naruto explained. He went ahead and told her the story of the bell test Kakashi put them through. And how his team almost failed and went back to the academy. He then explained how he was tied up with a rope as he watched his classmates eat. After he had finished the story, Hinata dropped the rope as she had touched some sort of cursed object.

"I-I can't believe any sensei would do that." She said. "Kurenai-sensei didn't give us a test. We just started training right away." Hinata explained.

Naruto further into the forest clearance until he picked a spot. He turned to Hinata and with a smile he said he was ready to train.

"Hinata, Taijutsu is not my strongest suit right now. Can I use Ninjutsu?" Naruto asked.

"S-Sure. That way, it would be even more fun." Hinata replied as she took her spot at a good distance across from him.

"Great!" Naruto said as he took out a weapon from his leg pouch. "When this kunai hits the grass, we'll start." He said.

"Okay!" When the weapon stabbed the ground with a soft thud, Hinata activated the Byakugan as Naruto created twenty shadow clones.

'What is this?! There's so many!' Hinata thought to herself, clearly impressed at such feat. She noticed that she couldn't even tell them apart from the real on. 'I can't back down now! I'm the one that suggested this!' Hinata dashed forward, both hands ready for palm strikes. To her disappointment, several Naruto clumsily threw themselves in her way as though they wanted to be struck down by her. 'H-He wasn't kidding when he said Taijutsu is not his strongest.' But then again, how could it be? Naruto was an orphan and all his fighting got taught to him at the academy. It was such distracting thought that made her almost lose her footing as she clumsily dodged three shadow clones.

"Alright, it's time to get serious!" Naruto's battle cry gave his position away as the real one. Hinata fought her way through five more clones as she approached what she thought to be the original. She leaped into the air and came crashing in front of him, while thrusting her palm forward and striking him once on the shoulder. To her surprise, it disappeared with a puff sound while the real one; who had never spoke so far, had summoned even more.

"Haha!" One of them taunted her. She wasn't sure at this point whether it had been the actual Naruto. "Guess it's time to end this, grab her guys!" Another one yelled. Hinata was able to see all around her, and she counted over twenty shadow clones.

"Huh?" Hinata leaped in the air in time to avoid Naruto coming out of the ground as though he was a fox or a badger. "I'm not going to let it end so easily!" Hinata said. She was still in midair when she struck down each Naruto that tried to grab her or attack her. When she landed to catch her breath, she noticed a Kunai by her leg. At the time, she hadn't though any of it, until she realized there should've only been one kunai stabbed on the ground, not two. "No!" She yelled, but it was too late. Her fear was realized when the Kunai puffed and its place lay Naruto, holding onto her ankle.

When she tried to kick her away out of his grasp, he didn't dissipate. Soon her surrounding darkened. The source of darkness came from the shadows that the seven Naruto created as they came down from the sky and tackled her to the ground.

"Gatcha!" Came the muffled sound of the real Naruto as he spoke. He had also become the victim of his own plan as he felt the weight of his shadow clones on him and Hinata. He released her ankle and struggled to make the hand seal to release his shadow clones so that they could breathe again. "That was so fun!" Naruto said as he sat up. The young kunoichi remained on her back, panting.

"I can't believe I lost…" Hinata mumbled. "Y-You beat me with numbers…" She sat up abruptly, with her eyes looking wide. "Naruto!"

"Yes?!" Naruto asked.

"You actually strategized!"

"Huh? I did?"

"Mhm!" Hinata said as she nodded.

"Yey! I strategized!" Naruto said as he threw both of his hands into the air.

"I never knew you were this amazing..." Hinata's comment, and the honesty in her tone, made Naruto blush. More out of happiness for being acknowledged by a girl, than embarrassment.

'Take that you Sasuke jerk! Not everyone likes you!' Naruto thought to himself. 'Wait, does she?' He wondered.

"Ne, Hinata. What do you think of Sasuke?" He asked.

"S-Sasuke? Um I don't really know much about him even if Ino used to talk about him all the time. S-So I don't know what to think of him." Hinata glanced at her legs and decided to dust off her grey shorts. She then looked back at Naruto. "Why did you ask me that?" She said.

"I just wondered if you were part of his fan club, that's all."

"O-Oh, no I'm not." Hinata said.

The two young genins parted ways and said their good byes. Naruto went home to his apartment, but today he didn't feel as depressed as he normally did. While Hinata arrived at her home, but felt more sad than she ever has. Kiba knew a new clan technique. Shino was in the process of learning one. She was obviously falling behind, and the proof of that was when Naruto beat her during their training. She doesn't have perfect defense. Hinata wanted to go up to her father and beg him to train her. But her courage diminished upon her encounter with him. He merely glanced down at her as he walked past her, and said nothing. While Hinata stood there, in the middle of the hallway, with her fist clutching.

Is this how things will always be between her and her father?