CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Not That Stupid!
XXX
70 Days Since Sasuke
They had finally done it!
After days of deliberation, the Uzushio representatives and the Kage had finally come to a proper conclusion. They'd spent days going back and forth between what was reasonable and what was even possible. Turns out a blank cheque didn't really mean much, other than, 'we'll cut you a bit of slack'. But after nearly a week of debates, they all sat down and read out the terms of the treaty.
1. From this day forth, the Land of Eddies will be considered one of the Five, now Six, Great Shinobi Nations, and its village, Uzushiogakure, will be the sixth major shinobi village.
2. The Uzukage, leader of Uzushiogakure, will be acknowledged as a Kage and held at the same level as the Hokage, Kazekage, Mizukage, Raikage, and Tsuchikage.
3. The Villages agree to do everything in their power to maintain decent agreements and relations with Uzushio. This includes freedom of travel between nations and freedom of trade.
4. The jinchuuriki of Uzushio will be allowed to remain in Uzushio. All tailed beasts are the property of Uzushiogakure.
5. The jinchuuriki will come to the aid of the Villages in times of war, so long as the Villages promise to come to Uzushio's aid if any major village declares war on it.
Those were the terms. Five terms that all Five Kage were willing to sit down and agree on.
"What are we going to call the treaty?" Tsunade asked, signing her name on the pact. They looked around the room for a moment as the pact was passed to A.
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"How about…" since no one was suggesting anything, Naruto decided to speak up, "We call it the Utakata-Kaede Pact. They were the first casualties of this war, and their spilt blood is why we are here right now."
"Fine by me," Mei was the first to agree.
Once Naruto signed his name on the dotted line, it was official. The Utakata-Kaede Pact was set in stone, and the jinchuuriki entered the Fourth Great Shinobi World War.
Bless their souls.
XXX
Hinata, Hotaru, Akiko, Karin, and Fuu decided to celebrate together. Akiko had become a bit of a cheerleader over the last few days since Naruto was too afraid to let her out of his sights in case she ran back to the army. But she'd assured him, that his sobering speech had gotten to her.
Hotaru, who'd drank the most out of the group, went around the table pretending to hold a microphone, asking each jinchuuriki, "How does it feel to finally be at war, Miss Karin?"
"I'm not a jinchuuriki," the redheaded rolled her eyes.
"Fair point. What about you, Miss Hyuuga?"
Sarcastically, Hinata replied, "I'm struggling to control my excitement."
"Miss Fuu?"
"Woo-hoo, go war, ssu," she said before giggling, "I just can't wait for it to be over, so I can go back to Uzushio and rest"
"How are you all so confident you're going to win?" Akiko asked, she'd been given juice by Hinata, so she was the only sober one in the group.
Only then did Hinata remember how sensitive a topic this was for her. "Uh… when you can do the things we can do, an army of White Zetsu clones doesn't sound as terrifying," she tried to explain.
"The things you can do?"
"Transform into a 100-metre-tall bug and turtle, ssu," Fuu said.
"Wow, can you all do that?"
"No," Karin said, "But, I can release giant chakra chains to attack and seal things away," Karin tooted her own horn.
Hotaru's head dropped, "And I can't do either of those things."
"You're the next Six-Tails jinchuuriki, ssu. There's nothing to feel sad about."
"I wish I had something like that," Akiko said.
"You really don't," Fuu tried to usher her away from that train of thought. "Being a jinchuuriki is hell. Your life is hell. Your upbringing is hell. And everyone treats you like you're some kind of hazardous material. As if, out of nowhere, I'm just gonna get bored and let the Seven-Tails rampage around the city."
"But doesn't it feel nice knowing that you can protect your friends?"
Hotaru shook her head, "Unfortunately, even for us, that's not a guarantee."
"Nothing ever is in the shinobi world. That's why you should never let a day go by without appreciating it," Karin said.
"I can agree to that one," Akiko nodded.
"Unless you're Orochimaru," Karin noted. She was met by general nodding and agreement, including the phrases, "Yeah, he's pretty immortal," and, "Oh yeah, I forgot about him."
A sixth person joined the conversation, silencing the group. It was one of the waiters. He leaned over the table and slid a drink across to Hinata, who was sitting in the corner. "This one is a special order from the gentleman sitting by the bar," the man said before stepping away. All five ladies looked across to a tall, muscular man, sitting at the bar, with curly blonde hair, and enchanting green eyes.
The man flashed her a smile before returning to a conversation he was having with a friend. All eyes went from the man to Hinata. Fuu spoke first, "Holy shit, Hinata's got men buying her drinks!"
Hinata just giggled before sipping her new drink. It didn't taste that bad.
"So…" Hotaru began.
"So, what?" Hinata asked.
"So, are you gonna go up to him or should I ask him to come here?"
"Neither. Unless you feel like thanking him for the nice gesture, there's no need for either of those options," Hinata replied.
"Oh shit, wait. Are you still going after Naruto?" Hotaru groaned.
"What do you mean 'still'?"
"Hinata, how many years have you been chasing after him now? Maybe Naruto just doesn't like you back?"
"No, he definitely likes me back. Or he will after I actually tell him," Hinata protested. "He's just clueless."
"Hinata, no one is that stupid when it comes to women."
"Eh," Karin questioned it.
"I've met Naruto. I wouldn't put it past him," Fuu reasoned.
"Okay, either he's that stupid, or he knows you like him but doesn't know how to reject you," Hotaru said. She looked back at the pair of guys by the bar, "And I think today is the day you should force him to make a decision."
"Force him? I can't force him to make that type of decision."
"Yes! You! Can! Tonight, you're going up to his room and you're telling him to his face, 'Naruto, I love you', and if I'm right and he skirts around your confession rather than accepting it, we're coming back to this bar tomorrow and snagging ourselves a pair of hotties."
"Tonight? Why tonight?" Hinata sat up.
"Because I'm going on a mission in two days," Hotaru said, sipping her drink. The attention shifted from Hinata to Hotaru. Where was she going on a mission to?
"A mission?" Karin asked, "Look at you, being a proper kunoichi. What kind of mission are you going on?"
"I'm heading back to the Tsuchigumo Village with Yugito Nii to get the Fury Jutsu removed from my back," she explained, "We have a village elder who knows how to remove and utilise the jutsu, perhaps he can teach it to me before he passes on."
"Oh yeah, you've still got that icky jutsu on your back," Karin recalled.
"It may be icky, but it's one of the strongest jutsu in the shinobi world. It's better to have it in my mind than dormant as an orb on my back."
"Wait, you're going on a mission with Yugito? I wanna come! I wanna come! I never just get to chill with Yugito."
"Why on earth would you want to chill with Yugito?" Karin wondered.
"She's so cool."
"Fine. I'm sure I could find a way to squeeze you in. We're leaving with Yugito, Gaara, Han, and Roshi tomorrow around 5 pm."
"Gaara, Han and Roshi?" Hinata asked.
"Gaara's being sent to Yugakure tomorrow. The Kage want to start gaining ground on the frontlines so they want to make a statement. And what a hell of a statement Gaara is."
"Gaara? The funny red-haired one?" Akiko asked, "They can't send him to Yugakure, he'll get hurt."
Hinata wrapped an arm around Akiko to calm her down. She hadn't even processed that Akiko had called Gaara funny, "Don't worry about Gaara. He can protect himself better than any one of us," she assured him. "I'll even take you to him tomorrow morning before he leaves."
"What about Han and Roshi?" Fuu asked.
"Han doesn't like the idea of having no jinchuuriki in Uzushio, so he's leaving with us and heading back to Uzushio with Roshi. He also just wants to see his girlfriend, I'm sure," Hotaru argued.
"Oh."
"People are in love, Hinata, and unlike you, they're willing to show affection to the ones they love."
"I'm out of juice," Akiko interrupted.
Hinata waved down the waiter, "One small cup of juice, to go please."
"Large."
"No, you're gonna make us stop on the way home to pee again."
"I won't."
"You will."
"I won't."
"Okay, one large cup of juice to go, please."
XXX
Later that day, as the sun set over the mountains surrounding the Base, drowning it in darkness, Hinata knocked on Naruto's door. She bowed her head to sigh before leaning it against the Uzumaki's door. At first, she didn't plan on taking Hotaru's challenge seriously, but as the day went by and afternoon turned to evening, Hinata figured… why not? Why not go for it? It's been four years, so what's the worst he could say? Either she'd get a yes, and they'd be a couple, or she got a no, and she could move on with her life.
"What's up?" Naruto asked, opening the door. He looked down at her. Hinata looked up at him. For the first time in two months, Naruto was standing up. She looked down at his legs. They were still skinny and bare of muscle, but somehow Naruto was standing on them. He was a week early. "Oh, hey Hinata."
"You're standing up," Hinata nodded.
"Yeah… would you like to come in?" Naruto asked.
"Uh… sure," Hinata agreed before entering Naruto's room. He closed the door behind her and made his way into the living room before collapsing onto his couch. "How were you standing?"
Naruto got up, "I started yesterday, but I can only do it for a few minutes at a time. So, I can walk to the door and back, but if I'm leaving my room, it's probably better to do it in a wheelchair or with my walker," he explained, digging through his bar fridge, "Would you like a bottle of water?"
"Yes, please," she replied. Naruto walked over to her and handed her a bottle before twisting the cap of his own. Naruto was shirtless, with a towel around his neck and sweat dripping from his body. "Have you been working out?"
"I've been trying to learn this new jutsu that Jiraiya gave me," Naruto explained, "The only problem is that, in my current state, I don't have the physical strength to do it. I need to get stronger before I can even start practising it."
"A new jutsu?"
"The Flying Thunder God Jutsu. It allows me to travel through space and time. I can be here, then disappear, and reappear behind you, then disappear again, and reappear in an entirely different country."
"An entirely different country?"
"Yeah, it was created by the Second Hokage and used by the Fourth Hokage. Next, it'll be used by Second Uzukage to kill Sasuke Uchiha…"
She did it. She punched him across the face. Hinata was surprised Naruto had gone a whole week without mentioning the Uchiha's name, but after all that time, he ruined it.
"What was that for?" Naruto groaned, stroking his cheek.
"I promised myself that the next time you mention Sasuke's name, I'd punch you in the face," Hinata explained. "And I'll do it again," she warned.
"Why didn't you at least tell me that first," he whined. He stroked his cheek a bit more before turning to Hinata and asking, "What are you even doing here anyway?"
Hinata's eyes widened. She'd forgotten why she was here. She looked around a bit before stating, "Shizune sent me to get a reading of how your healing was going."
"Well, you can tell her that you've done nothing to help," Naruto joked.
"Shut up, and lie down, so I can examine you properly."
Naruto did as he was told and lay down on the couch, so Hinata could run her bright green aura over his body. She was lying, of course, Shizune hadn't said anything about Naruto since that last check-up a week ago, but Hinata needed to stall for time while she decided how she was going to make a move.
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"Find anything?" Naruto asked, playing with his fingers.
"No, uh, you're looking all healthy so far," she replied. Hinata had to think of something. She had to think of a transitionary tool. How was she going to switch this into asking Naruto out? How was she even going to ask Naruto out? Oh no, she was panicking.
"How's Akiko doing by the way?" Naruto asked.
"She's doing great, when I left her, she was just watching some TV," Hinata replied, "You've taken a liking to her, haven't you."
"She just reminds me of myself. Not necessarily in terms of her personality, but she's just a little girl, potentially all alone, in a world that's forced her to grow up way too quickly. So, I just want to protect her innocence for a while longer, dattebayo."
Hinata flashed the Uzumaki a warm smile, "You know, you'd make a great father," she'd found it! She stopped healing the jinchuuriki to continue the conversation, "That is… you would make a great father if you weren't such a tough person to be in a relationship with."
"What do you mean? I'm not a tough person to be in a relationship with, I'm probably the easiest person to get along with in the world."
Hinata sat back on the coffee table just in front of Naruto, allowing him to sit up on his couch, "Being easy to get along with is only half the struggle," she said, "Do you even have a type, like, in terms of women?"
Naruto looked at her as if she was speaking a different language, "I don't really understand those things, but I like anyone and everyone. My standards are on the ground, so I'd be willing to enter a relationship with anyone at this point, as long as they loved me back."
"Is that why you were so quick to fall in love with Kaede?"
Naruto paused to think. "I guess I fell in love with Kaede because she was beautiful, and she showed that she loved me back. It's not every day that a woman as pretty as her goes for a guy like me, dattebayo. So, when she told me she loved me I held onto her with both hands… too bad it turned out to be a trap."
"… Do you think I'm pretty?"
Hinata could feel her heartbeat in her ears. Her palms were beginning to sweat. She was past the point of no return now.
Naruto turned to Hinata. "Of course, you're gorgeous," he replied. "Plus, you've got a great personality, and you put the lives of others before your own. I mean you've visited me every day to check up on me and take me out for walks. Only a woman with a heart of gold like yourself would do something like that. I'm sure any guy would be lucky to call you their wife."
"Would you ever want to call me your wife?"
"I'd love to, but I don't think I'd ever have the confidence to ask a girl like you out. Unless you asked me out, I think I'd need the confidence of… ten thousand men to even think about marrying someone like you."
"Say, if I were to ask you out then. How would you want me to do it?"
Naruto stopped to think about it. He tapped his chin repeatedly. "It would have to be obvious."
"Obvious?"
"Very obvious? You're a very friendly person, so I think it'd be hard to differentiate between if you were being your normal friendly self and trying to flirt with me."
"So, you'd need me to smack you across the face with it?"
"Oh yeah, really hammer it in."
"So, something like, straight up, saying it to your face. I love you."
"I think a little more obvious," there was no way he was this clueless, "Love can mean so many things. I love ramen, but I wouldn't want to marry it. Actually…"
"Let's stay on track… how would I get more obvious?"
"I don't really know. Spice it up. I guess with your tone, your face, how you say it, add a few more words to really drive it home."
Hinata straightened her face. She locked eyes with the Uzumaki and steadied her breathing. With her pale lilac eyes boring deep into his eternal blue eyes, she told him, "So, something like, I, Hinata Hyuuga, am in love with you, Naruto Uzumaki… and would like to date you, kiss you, hug you, and spend every waking moment of every day with you, because you are the love of my life and always have been since that day on the training field when we were children…"
Naruto punched his open palm, "Yosh. Something like that! Exactly."
"Well?" Hinata asked.
"…" Naruto looked at her. He shrugged, "Well? Yeah, if a girl who actually liked me said something like that to me, I think I'd accept it in an instant. That would be pretty obvious, so I don't think I'm that stupid to have that fly over my head."
?
"So…"
Naruto shrugged again, "So, are we done with the medical check-up?"
Hinata's face sunk.
That's all she needed to hear.
She stood up and scratched the back of her neck. "Uh… yeah… I'll be heading back to my room. I don't want Akiko to eat any of my soaps again."
"That's a good idea. Say hi to her for me," Naruto said before standing up and walking to the window, testing out the strength and ability of his legs as he moved.
Hinata let out a harsh sigh. She walked to the door. Opened it. Looked back over her shoulder at Naruto before leaving. She closed the door behind her.
It hurt.
Naruto had said it himself. Even he wasn't that stupid to get hit in the face with such a confession and have it slip over his head. The only reasonable assumption was that he really didn't like her and just didn't have it in him to say no.
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What was she supposed to do now? Does she move on? To whom? It felt like getting a divorce after a ten-year-long marriage. Having your heart set on one person for so long, waking up every day with them on your mind. For so many years, Naruto was the first thing Hinata thought about when she woke up and the last thing she thought about before going to bed. Then having him reject her like that just felt so… she felt so empty. She wasn't going to force him or anything but… why didn't he just say yes?
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.
.
A door flung open behind Hinata.
She froze.
"I'm stupid, aren't I…" Naruto yelled from down the hallway.
"What do you mean?" Hinata asked. Not turning around.
"You… Hinata Hyuuga, are in love with me, Naruto Uzumaki. You have been ever since that day on the training ground…" he repeated. She remained silent. "I don't know what to say Hinata… other than that you're the girl of my dreams. You have been… ever since that day on the training ground. Since that day, throughout our academy days, the Chuunin Exams, and the four years we've spent together, you've always been there for me, and I've honestly never gone a day without thanking the gods for the day I found you in that forest, being kidnapped by those Kumo shinobi… because if it wasn't for that happy accident, I don't know where I'd be right now… so, I, Naruto Uzumaki, am in love with you too, Hinata Hyuuga."
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The silence was broken by every door in the hallway opening up.
Gaara, Han, Yugito, Fuu, Hotaru, Akiko, and Karin all poured out into the corridor to make sure they'd heard what they just heard. Everyone stood there in silence. Attention shifted from Naruto, then to Hinata, and then back to Naruto.
"Holy shit," Gaara broke the silence.
Hinata darted across the room to give Naruto a hug. The Hyuuga princess burst into tears as she nuzzled her head between Naruto's pecs. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head.
"It's about time," Fuu sighed, giving the pair a round of applause. Hotaru joined in; she didn't think Hinata had it in her. Akiko joined in too; mainly because she wanted to feel included. Then Yugito. Then Karin. Then Han. And finally, Gaara.
"You don't know how long I've waited to hear those words," Hinata whispered.
"Honestly, I didn't even know I had those words in me," Naruto whispered back before kissing her forehead.
They held that position for a few more minutes before everyone agreed it was getting late. They stood there for so long that Naruto's weight began shifting as his legs lost feeling. They would celebrate this momentous occasion better when the sun came back up, so Hinata offered to take him back to his bedroom.
She laid him down on his bed before kissing his forehead.
"I love you," she said.
As she pulled away, Naruto pulled her back down to kiss her lips, "I love you too."
"What happened to your face?" a ten-year-old Naruto interrupted Hinata. She tried to cover up, but Naruto didn't understand the meaning of personal space yet, so he yanked her hands away and touched Hinata's face in an attempt to get a reading of how bad her injuries were.
Hinata's blushing didn't really help with the healing process. "No, you'll… get in trouble." She squirmed at first, but the Uzumaki didn't listen. At first, Hinata just wanted to spy on the blonde. Watch him from the shadows. But him catching her by surprise, then physically touching her sent her brain into overload.
"I have just the solution," he said, reaching into his pouch and pulling out a tube of ointment that was almost finished. "I got this from Iruka-sensei a few weeks ago. This stuff's magic, fixes all my wounds up in minutes." He squirted some onto his index finger before rubbing it over her wounds. The Hyuuga princess twitched at first, but the pain soon turned to relief.
"I don't… Aren't you afraid I'll finish it?" Hinata wondered.
Naruto didn't think that far ahead. He just laughed it off, "I'll probably bother Iruka-sensei for some more the next time I get into a fight."
"Do you often get into fights?"
"Oh, all the time. I got into one just last week because some boys wanted the whole training ground to themselves when I got here first. I got into another fight the week before that when I wanted a cool mask from a shopkeeper, but I didn't have the money to pay him yet. The grownups, I don't think they like me very much… but it's okay. I'm sure they'll all acknowledge me when I finally become Hokage. Heck, I got into a fight just yesterday with some of the chuunin when I painted over the Hokage Monument."
"That was you?"
"Of course, it was me."
Why… would you do that when you know you're going to get in trouble?" Hinata wondered.
Naruto paused for a minute. He'd run out of ointment, so he threw it into his backpack and pulled out a roll of bandages. Hinata must've hit her head on something because her hair and scalp were covered in dried blood. He pulled her over to the river, where he washed most of the blood out before wrapping the bandages around the top of her dome. "I wanted the attention. I live alone. I have no friends. No family. The grownups don't like me. And their kids aren't allowed anywhere near me. Sometimes I just need someone to play with, you know?"
"I'll play with you," she wanted to say, but the words never left her mouth. She just sat there in awe as Naruto treated her wounds. Instead, she said, "I don't think I could ever get into as many fights as you do… I'm too… weak."
"Fighting is easy. Every time someone hits you. Just hit them harder. Every time they knock you down. Get back up and knock them further down. I've fought guys two, three, four years older than me and bigger than me, but because I always got up afterwards, I'm still here to fight them again," Naruto chuckled. He took a step back and marvelled at his work. Hinata was covered in blotchy patches of white cream from him trying to spread the ointment too thin, and her bandage was already damp because he forgot to dry her hair before wrapping it in a bandage. "Perfect. Now let's get you home."
"No!" Hinata protested, "I… I… I mean… I wanted to see you train. It's okay if we don't go back. Can I stay here… with you?"
Naruto burst out laughing, "In that case, sit down and watch the magic happen."
As Naruto spent the rest of the day training, all Hinata could do was sit down with her knees tucked under her chin and her tiny arms wrapped around her shins, thinking, "one day, I'm going to marry this kid."