NARUTO IS PROPERTY OF MASASHI KISHIMOTO
"Kyuubi talking"
'Kyuubi thinking'
"Normal speech"
'Characters thinking'
Author's note:
This one is for the NaruHina fans that never lost hope and that have to cope with Boruto's shit character development of Hinata.
If you liked, review!
Generation Lost
Chapter 15:
"Every little thing she does is magic
Everything she do just turns me on
Even though my life before was tragic
Now I know my love for her goes on."
"Duuude." Kiba exclaimed, not even trying to hide his surprised face. "Do you really live here?"
The Inuzuka took his heavy winter jacket from his shoulders and placed it in the hooks dangling from the wall, next to the other numerous coats. It had started to snow just a while ago, and the weather promised to get colder in the coming days.
"For now. Haven't decided yet." Naruto replied, reciprocating his half hug as he entered the recently cleaned place. "You didn't bring Akamaru, right?"
Kiba made a face. "Yeah, like Ino told me. But here, brought you this." He handed the blond a plastic bag with over a dozen beer cans and a big bottle of some amber-colored liquid. Although the label of the bottle wasn't clear, the blond could tell it was hard liquor. "I told you we didn't need more booze. I have right here."
"Just in case." The Inuzuka said with a toothy smile as he patted his back. "'Sup everyone! The heart of the party has arrived!"
"Late as always, Kiba." Shikamaru drawled from his place. He was sitting not on the couch, but on the floor with the couch as his back support. The green couch was already claimed by Sakura, Ino and Tenten. 'Talk about matriarchy.' Thought the Nara sourly.
"Suck my dick, Shika." The brunette sneered at him. Shikamaru only rolled his eyes and dipped his hands on the emptying bowl of chips. He had to eat some before Chouji wolfed down all of it.
"Do you really need to talk like that, Kiba-kun?" Hinata piped from behind. She was crossing the hallway that divided the kitchen and the living room with two big bowls of popcorn and doritos.
Kiba turned and noticed the frown on Hinata's face. Thankfully it was a harmless frown, not like the one she had when fighting Naruto's and Tsunade's attacker. "If I want to stablish myself as the alpha, then yes." Without waiting for her reply, he hugged her and lifted her off the floor.
"Glad to see you, Hinata." He grinned from side to side. Naruto watched as Kiba made a few chips fall from the plates the girl was carrying, and closed his fists in mortification.
'Why did I even bother to clean?' The whiskered man pinched the bridge of his nose, but caught Hinata's stare. She was asking for him to take it easy. Naruto threw his head up in defeat. Why was he caring so much for a few spilled chips? By the end of the night his whole living room was going to end up like a shithole.
"You better stop touching her, Kiba. Don't you know she's taken?" Tenten called from her spot on the couch. Neji, who had been calmed up until now, couldn't help to glare at Naruto out of habit.
"She was my teammate first. We go way back! Right, Hinata?" Kiba turned to his flushed friend, and immediately knew she wasn't going to answer him. Putting her down, he turned to the whole crew. "Anyways! What should we play first?"
They Hyuuga glanced, thankful, to Kiba's retreating back. He might not be as clever as other guys, but he was definitively the man who understood just what she was feeling based on her corporal language. Something that took Naruto seventeen years to learn, and he was still way behind on knowing her.
"Oh!" Lee's hand shot upward like lighting. "Gai-sensei and I always enjoy a good game of tag across the village!"
Ino groaned at Lee's childishness.
"How about we postpone the games for a while?" Sakura proposed amiably. "Sai was just telling us about the time he accepted an offer from Mrs. Toho to make a naked portrait of her."
"What?! That's disgusting." Kiba concluded. He brought a chair from the dining table and sat on it. "Did you really need money so bad?"
The pale man smiled serenely. "Not at all. I actually enjoy doing naked portraits. And it's easier to make one of a chubby person."
The only response he got was a lifted eyebrow from everyone in the room. "If anyone of you desires, I'll be happy to paint your portrait."
"No thanks." Tenten was quick to answer. Shikamaru looked disgusted, as every other ninja youth on Naruto's house.
"How about we play something now?" Sakura hurried to say, trying to disperse the awkward atmosphere that formed between them. She regretted having prodded Sai to tell one of his stories.
"Arm wrestling, anyone?" Kiba said in a sing song voice, placing his elbow down firmly on the table. The motion made the beer cans and glasses shake dangerously.
"That idiot." Naruto seethed under his breath. He had to turn around to try and ignore Kiba's antics. He was greeted by a pair of gorgeous lilac eyes. "He's going to make a mess!"
"It will happen sooner or later. Is this the first time you host a party?" She knew the answer before the words left her lips. "I never took you for a cleaning freak." The young woman said jokingly. She saw how Naruto twisted his head away from her.
"Yeah, I just…" The blond hung his head in defeat. "I mean, it took us so long to clean this whole thing… I need to stop worrying so much."
"And start enjoying yourself." Hinata finished for him. "I'll help you clean tomorrow." The girl offered with a gentle smile.
"You've done so much. Don't worry." He took her hands and tugged towards him. "How about… we take some time off and head into the garden?" The blond suggested while placing a hand on the small of Hinata's back and bringing her just inches away from him.
"You have guests, Naruto-kun." Hinata placed a manicured hand on his chest to stop him from coming closer to her. "And Neji-nii is always watching."
"Hn." The blond clicked his tongue in annoyance. If he wanted some genuine privacy tonight, he'd have to figure out a way to intoxicate Neji. The small crowd from the living room started yelling and whistling at Kiba's first victim. Chouji sat back down with a throbbing arm.
"Wanna go next, Naruto?" Kiba yelled from the other side of the room. Hinata smiled sweetly at the Kyuubi container before he turned back to his guests.
"Not really, my body still hurts." The blond said truthfully as he walked towards his lively crowd. He placed a hand on Hinata's forearm gently, before he spoke. "Anyway, how about a toast?"
"Nice! I'll serve the sake." The unruly Inuzuka said with a hungry grin in his face. "Except for you Lee, sorry 'bout that." Kiba really meant it.
Lee looked visibly put out by the reminder on his weakness against booze.
Hinata gave the whiskered chuunin a puzzled look, but the blond didn't elaborate.
Naruto watched as Kiba made everyone accept the generous amount of sake in everybody's glass, until he finally got his shot.
"Go ahead stud." Ino prodded, feeling excited as she always was at gatherings. "Stop eating, Chouji." The Yamanaka dug an elbow deep on Chouji's side that caused him to stop munching on his Doritos.
"Thanks." The blond looked at the clear liquid dancing inside his glass and cleared his throat.
"He's nervous." Sakura giggled on Ino's ear. Everyone could clearly hear them.
"Shut up." Shikamaru hushed his two loud neighbors. His friends didn't realize it yet, but it was the first time Naruto was addressing them after being considered for the temporary Hokage role.
"So, I've been very close to death in these last few days. You of course know that because all of you were there." Most of the group nodded silently. He felt his grip tighten on the glass. He wasn't used to thanking people formally, least of all his friends. "And I wouldn't be here speaking to you if it weren't for all your help, so thank you all for keeping me alive, I know it's not an easy task."
"Aww." Tenten couldn't help looking back at Ino and Sakura with glowing eyes.
"I owe each and every one of you big time. But for the time being, accept this small gathering as a little thank you."
"Cheers!" Kiba said, clearly excited. The Inuzuka was at his happiest when all of his friends could attend to the same event.
"Right." The blond raised his glass at the chorus of 'cheers' that erupted after Kiba.
"Anytime, Naruto." Sakura said as she stood up and enveloped him in a hug. "Not that I have a choice."
The blond grinned as he returned the hug, but felt as each second that passed, more arms wrapped around him.
"You're welcome, Naruto. Anything to keep Hinata from crying." Tenten piped up from behind his head.
"Or yelling." Ino piped up, way too close to him.
"Amen to that." Tenten replied.
"Ok, Ok, c'mon let's keep this classy." The blond said hurriedly, as he escaped from the huggers. Hinata giggled from her spot on top of a dining chair she brought.
"You know you love us." Ino said with a pout. She, too, was feeling ecstatic for a chance to party with her girlfriends.
"We'll see." Naruto went on to thank the guys personally, and only Lee tried to hug him when he approached.
"Naruto, despite being your friend, I have a duty to speak of my clan's repentance. Never again will an Aburame be a danger to the village or its inhabitants." Shino was wearing several layers of clothing, even though the inside of Naruto's new home was warm already.
"It's Ok, Shino. Either way, I have something to tell you." The blond said, lowering his voice. Shino allowed himself to raise an eyebrow. Thinking it over, the blond turned and called all the members from Gai's team aside.
"Where's he taking them?" Ino demanded, her bad temper starting to flare up. Shikamaru rolled his eyes, and Hinata hurried to calm her down.
"He's going to tell them about his condition." The Hyuuga beauty told her, taking a drink from her bottled water.
"Oh, I see." Sakura and Ino said at the same time. Immediately, they each pointed at the other with identical grins. "Jinx! Drink, bitch."
The girls erupted in laughter, while Chouji started to pour them their third shot of the night.
Hinata couldn't help but laugh silently with them. It really had been a very long time since they were all gathered at the same place and time. From the corner of her expert eye, she could see her cousin's frown deepening as Naruto explained what she supposed to be how he came to be the jinchuriki. Needless to say, she was nervous, as well as Naruto must be, since Neji was a very critical thinker, and his condition might serve as a perfect excuse for them not to be together.
But she waved that thought away. Not only did Neji liked Naruto, but also, her father had already agreed to their relationship, and if Hyuuga Hiashi said they could date, then Neji could do nothing to stand in their way.
She looked at the broad back of her boyfriend as he motioned to his stomach, and couldn't help but feel her heart sing with joy as she remembered that he accepted her feelings for him.
"Hinata, hey! Could you stop swooning at him for just a second and drink with us?" Ino said brashly, digging a painful elbow at her ribs.
The girl blushed at her words, and silently accepted the cup being handed to her.
"Don't shame her for being happy." The Nara chastised his teammate. "Go on, Hinata. This is for you and Naruto."
An affirmative chorus echoed Shikamaru's words. Hinata, at first relieved that Shikamaru was defending her, seemed to sink deeper into her warm coat on his comment about Naruto and her. She drank silently.
"Why are you picking on her?" Neji said suddenly behind everyone that was sitting down. He frowned at Hinata's blush and obvious embarrassment. Tenten, Shino, Lee and Naruto loomed behind Neji.
"We're not doing anything." Ino said defensively. Waving her empty cup in front of her.
"You're embarrassing her." He deadpanned.
Sakura rolled her eyes. She didn't remember Neji to be this protective.
"We were just toasting for Naruto and Hinata's relationship." Chouji added innocently, ignoring that Hinata was getting redder by the second.
Naruto noticed.
He smirked.
"You can't toast for a couple if the couple isn't complete." He made his way to the glowing woman, who was following him with her timid stare.
"You're right." Ino retorted, a smile forming on her face quickly. She liked the drinking pace the group was showing.
"Drinks for everyone!" Kiba exclaimed happily as he handed drinks all around.
Naruto took advantage of the momentary distraction as everyone turned their attention to Hinata.
"The more they drink the more they're gonna tease." The blond said wisely. He knew very well drunken behavior by watching Tsunade and Jiraiya drink together.
Hinata groaned in mortification. The blond chuckled. "Booze will let you forget about how embarrassed you are. That's exactly how it works."
"I don't want to get drunk, Naruto-kun." She meant it. Hinata could tolerate sake, but it was quickly running out. There were 5 bottles of either tequila or scotch sitting patiently on the kitchen table. The Hyuuga hated hard liquor.
"Then don't." The blond replied simply. "Just drink enough to make you feel bolder."
The girl didn't seem convinced.
"Fine, look. If you don't wanna drink anymore just give it to me."
"This one's for the happy couple." Chouji offered two glasses with a beaming smile at the two of them. Naruto took his and Hinata's with an awkward smile.
"Cheers." The whiskered hero of Konoha exclaimed, as they all lifted their glasses and poured the liquid down their throats. Hinata was the only one who needed three gulps to down the contents on her cup.
She made a face.
"Lee advances to the next round!" Tenten announced loudly, a grin adorning her face. "Remember! The male who wins the all-male round will have to face Sakura."
Ino applauded at Sakura's name. The girl was wearing a smug smile as she defeated every single girl easily.
Watching as Sakura climbed to the top, Naruto was motivated to participate in the male arm-wrestling contest. He was sure that, with the amount of sake and some tequila he had ingested, he would barely feel twinges of pain coming from his body.
"Next up! Naruto and Neji!"
Ino started pounding on the table, followed by Chouji as each teen chanted the name of the one they thought was going to win.
"Sit down, gentlemen." Kiba said courteously. Even if he had lost against Neji earlier, he still felt pumped up as a referee for the boys. Even more when he added a twist to the whole competition. "Chose your drinks."
"Sake, please." Neji said seriously, measuring up the blond with his stare.
"Sake's for pussies. Give me some whisky, Kiba." Everyone mumbled excitedly at Naruto's trash talk, even if the blond only said that to mess with the Hyuuga's head. He didn't like whisky that much. Neji narrowed his eyes at the blond, wanting to reprimand him for using such foul language in front of his cousin, but he needed to gather his thoughts if he wanted to emerge victorious.
"Well said, Naruto." The Inuzuka chuckled warmly. Naruto was a man after his own heart. "Will anyone bet?"
"Me!" Chouji raised his hand, followed by Sakura, Ino and Tenten.
"Choose your betting mate. The one who wins will be able to demand a dare from the other one."
Hinata sat still and quiet, focusing solely on Naruto's confident smile and Neji's concentrated frown. It would be wrong for her to bet against either of them. But she sure wanted Naruto to win.
Once the bets were dealt, Kiba handed Naruto a big glass full of whisky and the equivalent of sake for Neji.
Naruto took off his coat, and Neji did the same. Even if this was just a drinking game, Neji and Naruto seemed to be taking it very seriously. Ino couldn't help but smile at the sight of Neji and Naruto's defined muscles as they linked hands together.
Shikamaru leaned over towards Chouji to whisper something in his ear. Ino, his betting mate, frowned at them. The Akimichi nodded a few times as he listened closely to Shikamaru. His eyes then diverted to his female teammate. "Naruto wins. Two and a half minutes."
Ino pursed her lips. She could barely feel them at this point. "Fine. Naruto wins. One minute."
Neji felt himself starting to get grumpy, as the only one who was betting for him was his girlfriend. He was a jounin for Kami's sake!
"Ready…" Kiba said, making sure they linked their wrestling hands without swaying one way or the other. The two contestants held the glasses near their mouths. "Set…"
Hinata sat on the border of her chair. A sudden silence fell amongst the teens.
"GO!"
Their biceps swelled at the instant force was applied to them. Naruto looked at Neji fiercely as he started to chug the whisky from his glass. Neji did the same with his, a small vein forming on his jaw.
"C'mon Naruto, you can do it!" Chouji chanted from the sidelines.
Ino grinned widely at the sight of Neji's arm loosing height against Naruto's. "Finish him!"
The blond started to make faces at the disgusting taste of his drink. The cup was already half empty. Neji took his chance and pressed with all his strength, forcing the blond's arm to recede. It was a few inches away from touching the table.
The blond was still trying hard not to let his hand fall. Finishing his drink, and emitting a disgusted gulp, he let go of his glass and focused entirely on his hand. Slowly, but surely, his arm was beginning to gain height again, until they reached the starting point.
He could feel his muscles screaming at him to stop, and his neck and back starting to throb painfully due to the stiffness that still ailed him.
"No!" Ino screamed in Sakura's ear.
Kiba was watching intently at the clock on top of the stove. Two minutes had passed.
With a grave grunt, the blond pushed steadily. Neji's teeth were bared as he looked, displeased, how his hand was slowly giving way to Naruto's, until finally he couldn't bear the blond's strength anymore.
"The round goes to Naruto!"
"Damn it!" Neji swore loud enough so everyone could hear.
The blond didn't made a sound. He was busy catching his breath, and trying to forget the awful taste in his mouth.
"Well done, Naruto-kun. You too Neji-ni." Hinata congratulated as the chuunin walked back slowly to his seat next to her and flopped over it. He put his hands over his head. "Are you okay?"
It took him a while to answer. "That was disgusting." He lifted his head and glared daggers at Kiba. "You filled the cup to the fucking rim, Kiba. Neji's wasn't even as full as mine."
The Inuzuka smiled guiltily at him. "Dude, you need to drink way more to catch up with a normal person's tolerance."
Naruto shook his head at Kiba's sound logic. He was right. "Fuck you, my head's spinning."
"Lee, Shino. Now's your turn."
Lee, although excited to keep climbing to the top, wasn't allowed to have a single drop of liquor.
The blond kept his head in between his hands for a few minutes, listening to Kiba repeat the rules.
There were two gentle pokes on his shoulder. He raised his head to greet Hinata's concerned eyes. "Eat this, Naruto-kun."
The Uzumaki looked from her face to the popcorn bowl she was offering to him. He immediately forgot to be mad at Kiba and felt a smile house itself in his face. He must look like an idiot, because for some reason, his cheeks were getting pink.
"Thank you, you're the best." He took the bowl from her hands and placed it on his legs, but didn't stop looking her way. "How are you doing?"
She smiled gracefully at him. "I'm having fun."
"SET!" Kiba roared in front of them.
"Let's bet for a dare." The blond hurried to say. As he looked at her, he felt a twinge of excitement growing in his belly. He was obviously happy she could be with him tonight. "You and I."
Hinata raised her eyebrows, surprised at the sudden request. "Oh… okay."
"Shino wins." The blond said quickly, before Kiba gave the start.
This also surprised Hinata. No one would bet against Rock Lee, even if Shino was her dear teammate. "Lee, then."
Just as Kiba swung his hand downwards on a cutting motion, Lee pushed with all his force and carried Shino's hand easily towards the wooden table.
"Lee wins!" Kiba barked with laughter.
"Thank you for your time, Shino-kun." Lee said formally, sporting a grin on his round face. The quiet Aburame nodded, and left the space available for the next round.
"I guess you win." Naruto said with a big grin. Was this his plan all along? Why would he want to lose?
"That wasn't very wise, Naruto-kun." Hinata said, playing with a strand of her hair. Naruto's eyes were latched to her mouth.
"Why not? He's a jounin." He replied firmly, taking her hand in his. Hinata smiled bashfully.
"Who specializes in bug jutsus." Added the most beautiful girl his eyes had ever seen. Naruto shook his shoulders nonchalantly.
"Hey! Lovebirds!"
Naruto actually jumped at the outburst just a few feet from him. He was getting sloppy.
Hinata noticed everyone was watching them either with a big smile or a disapproving frown.
Only Neji was sporting the frown. Tenten was placing a painful grip on Neji's forearm, preventing him from starting something.
Naruto quickly unlinked his hand from Hinata's, much to the heiress disappointment.
"'Sup." He said with a carefree smile.
"We're gonna play some card games. If you want to join us." Shikamaru said, placing a hand in front of Ino's mouth before she said something that would embarrass them even more.
"Let's play Bullshit. I'm great at it." Naruto wasn't going to let himself be intimidated by his friend's presence. Not when they were playing at his house.
"No kidding." Sakura replied.
Hinata was envious of Naruto's care-free attitude at being caught showing any sign of affection. It must be the alcohol, obviously.
Without saying anything, she took a long sip from Naruto's glass of whisky.
"Are you getting in on the fun?" Naruto noticed the girl putting his glass down next to him. Chouji was dealing the cards.
"Wooo! I wanna meet drunk Hinata." Ino yelled from her spot. Neji looked pointedly at his cousin. "Ow." Tenten had kicked her in the shins.
"Let's just start playing, ok?" The older woman in the gang called, looking at her cards.
"So, Hyuuga Hinata." Naruto said playfully, as he looked at his cards with little interest. "I lost, remember? You get to ask something of me."
Ino was explaining everyone the rules. Rock Lee was paying close attention.
Hinata was mulling the answer while looking at the bad hand she got. Her eyes then lit up. "Why don't you cook something for me?"
"Oh." The blond said, honestly surprised. "I wouldn't have asked that. Not unless you are fond of food poisoning."
The girl turned to him with a small laugh. "You have survived up to this point. How bad can it be?"
"Depends on the dish." Naruto said, selecting his first card. "Let's talk details later. At the garden. Let's say… in about twenty minutes?"
She would love some privacy between them, but with Neji around it wasn't going to be possible. "We'll have to wait for my cousin to leave, Naruto-kun."
The blond cursed under his breath. Neji was becoming a real pain in the ass.
"I'm tired of this. Can't we do something else?" Said Tenten throwing her cards on the growing pile that had sprouted in the center of the circle.
"But I was about to win…" Lee commented with a big pout on his face. Kiba and Neji, curious at such claim coming from the man that lost every single card game, peered behind Lee's shoulders to take a look at his hand.
Kiba scoffed merrily. "Dude, you didn't even have anything good." He then started to laugh freely and loudly. Sakura made a face at his volume.
Neji merely shook his head at Lee's oblivious face. He was also disappointed with himself for thinking that Lee would change his luck just like that, and took another sip from his maturely-made whisky. Kiba thought he did that just to make fun at everybody who wasn't such a fancy drinker as him.
"Don't be a stuck up, Hyuuga. Why don't you just drink shots with all of us?" The Inuzuka was dangerously close to being a full on drunk. His shirt had various spilled liquor soaking parts of it, and Hinata was thinking seriously to pull the bottle out of his hand if things got too heated with him.
"Booze isn't supposed to be drunk in such a sloppy manner, Kiba. I'll join you on my own terms."
"Okay, okay, we get it, you're better than all of us." Naruto said rapidly, feeling the electricity coming off of Kiba. "Let's just play something fast, I'm getting sleepy." If by sleepy he meant buzzed, then yes, the blond had all the signs of being inebriated.
By just seeing the easy smile that had been plastered on his face for the last two hours, you could easily deduce that something was not normal with him. He would just smile and laugh freely at anything slightly amusing, but he was still conscious enough to think about his new house's wellbeing. And after Rock Lee's propension of becoming chaotic with a single drop of whisky, came Kiba's easily triggered temper. And the dog owner actually loved a good old drunken fight.
"I know, lets play Never have I ever, to spice things up." Said Ino with a malicious smile on her face. Her hands became very active in touching Sai's face and arms. The man didn't seem to notice or care, as he was just too snared in the whole drunk socialization. He hadn't received a single shot of vodka or tequila, since he wanted to be sober for everything that might happen.
"You are too young to have anything spicy." Tenten said pompously, suppressing a bark of laughter that threatened to squeeze out of her throat. She was a laughing drunk.
"Get off your high horse, missy. You're only like a year older than us." Scolded Sakura, who was as fresh as a lettuce. She had actually taken after her master in polishing her alcohol intake. She and Tsunade would sometimes hold drinking competitions out of fun. She hadn't been able to beat the Hokage, though.
"Besides, we can be very spicy." Kiba countered, wriggling his eyebrows.
"Agh, let's just play something!" The blond complained, dramatically throwing his head back in impatience.
"All right, all right. Shikamaru, you go first." The Nara conceded with a lazy nod of his head. His eyes were close to dropping close, as drinking too much made his energy fade away. "Never have I ever peed on my bed."
"C'mon, no one would voluntarily accept that." Tenten mocked from her sitting position on the floor. All of them had actually moved from the uneven and different kinds of chairs, to the floor of the living room.
"That's when friends enter the scene." Ino said happily. "Drink up, forehead."
"Fuck you, pig." The pink-haired medic glared at her so called friend, and held her shot glass so Kiba could fill it up.
"You too, Chouji." Ino was actually having the time of her life. She liked to know the gossip in case she'd have to use it someday. Unfortunately, her vision had become double thirty minutes ago, and Chouji didn't think she'd last long.
The plump and enormous man looked embarrassed as he gulped down his drink.
"Your turn, Shino." Sakura said, turning her head to the jounin among them.
"I apologize, but it's time for me to retire. I have a long day ahead of me." The man said with a curt head movement. He then stood up and graced all with a formal good-bye.
"Bye, Shino-kun. Thank you for joining us." Hinata offered a smile to her teammate, which Shino answered with a nod of his head.
"C'ya dude!" Called Kiba as Shino shut the door behind him. "I guess that means it's my turn!" He said with glee.
"Just don't make it about dogs." The whiskered young man said, shifting positions so he could lay down sideways on the floor, with his arm propping up his head. This earned a smirk from Shikamaru.
"Shut it Naruto." The Inuzuka said, flashing his fangs at him. Naruto couldn't help to imagine a rabid dog when seeing Kiba's half lidded right eye. "Never have I ever stayed away from Konoha for more than six months."
"Aren't you a little prick." Commented Naruto, holding out his hand for Kiba to fill. Shikamaru, Neji and Hinata also extended their arms, albeit Hinata was doing it without much enthusiasm.
As soon as Hinata got hers to the rim, the blond carefully took it from her. "Give whatever's meant for her to me, all right dogboy?" The blond took both glasses to his mouth one after the other. When he finished he exhaled a deep sigh and shook his head.
"Aww, aren't you sweet Naruto?" Tenten couldn't hold her tongue. But she did agree that Hinata looked very uncomfortable drinking as they were.
"So sweet I might get diabetes." The bun-haired girl heard his boyfriend mutter from behind his drinking glass.
"God, I hate whisky." The blond muttered.
"Wouldn't that make you a pussy?" Neji commented with a smug smile on his face. The booze hadn't left him untouched either. Kiba, instead of laughing at his comment, lifted his eyebrows to the top of his skull, and turned to Naruto to see how he would react.
But Naruto's mind was still dangerous. "Nah. Losing in arm wrestling to a wounded guy would."
Kiba's barking laughter didn't wait. Shikamaru was laughing even as he was resting his eyes. Hinata saw how Neji's smile turned upside down way too quickly. She shared a worried glance with Tenten.
"I had forgotten how much of an imbecile you actually were." The jounin's words came out like poison.
"Man, I'm too drunk to understand big words. Wouldn't "idiot" suffice?" Naruto was letting his tongue run free. And his relaxed posture made him even more unnerving.
"It wouldn't, actually." Neji said, sporting a popping vein on his temple.
"Woah, chill out." Sakura said promptly.
"I am extreeemely chill." Naruto slurred a bit. "It's not my fault that drinking only makes Your Majesty more stuck up than before."
"Naruto-kun." Hinata whispered firmly, loud enough for him and Sakura to hear. Even if it was a whisper, it made Sakura do a double-take and look at the Konoha princess. 'I wouldn't have guessed that voice belonged to her.'
"Fine." Naruto answered, without turning to look at her. "My turn. Never have I ever kissed a guy. Drink up, ladies." A smile formed over his lips, just when he realized what Ino was already saying.
"You idiot, you're just gonna have to drink for Hinata again."
He was laughed at openly, especially by Neji himself. Good thing that being drunk let him care less about being an idiot in front of everybody else.
"Screw all of you." He gulped down the hated liquid down his throat yet again. Apparently seeing Naruto making a fool of himself was all Neji needed to believe he had won their argument.
"Ooh! Never have I ever…" Tenten paused to think for a second. "Kiss two girls/guys on the same day."
Everyone turned their heads to look for culprits.
"You think that's embarrassing? Fill my glass, Inuzuka." The Yamanaka was happy she was the only one with such an achievement among their friends.
"Never have I ever kissed someone in front of the whole village." Neji said with an ample smirk. It was clear for Hinata that his cousin wanted to mess with Naruto as much as he could.
Kiba's mouth immediately formed an "O" shape and he started saying "ohhh" for an extended amount of time.
Naruto was seen debating with himself whether he should stand up and smack Neji on his bitch mouth or just play it cool. But Hinata's next actions made his heart warm up.
"Kiba-kun, give me Naruto's please." The Hyuuga said without a shadow of a doubt in her voice.
Everyone turned to look at her like she had two heads. Neji was confused for a moment.
"Hinata-sama…" He started. His eyes watched, horrified, as his sweet cousin gulped down one shot after the other. "Wait…"
Naruto was having the night of his life. He grinned to the Hyuuga, and everyone else shared his grin.
It didn't end up there, though. Much to Neji's dismay, Hinata grabbed the Uzumaki by his collar and brought him up to him, kissing him fully on the mouth right in front of everyone to see.
The room exploded into laughter and applause. That was right after the Konoha ninjas fully took in Hinata's actions. It was actually unbelievable but it had happened right before their eyes.
Neji was staring, agape, at his cousin's defiant yet courteous smile directed at him. Naruto was rolling on the floor, holding his stomach as it hurt too much from laughing. He was imitated by Kiba and Ino. Who spilled lots of glasses as they rolled around.
"Shika, please don't let me forget this day." Ino said between pants.
Sai was mesmerized by everyone's reaction. He started writing everything down.
Sakura hugged Hinata tightly as she showered her in proud comments. And the Hyuuga had about thirty seconds more of composure before her adrenaline dissipated and she had to take all the embarrassment in.
Taking his coat and grabbing Tenten by the arm, Neji stood up. "We're leaving."
"Oh c'mon…" Tenten, Ino, Sakura and Chouji all complained at the same time.
Without saying good-bye, and with a perturbed look in his eyes, Neji took to the door and left before anyone could stop him.
"Shit." Tenten cursed out loud. "Sorry guys, I guess it was too much for him. Great party, Naruto."
Sakura and Ino turned their stunned eyes to their friend. "Wait, Tenten. Are you really going?!"
Tenten made an apologetic face. "Yeah… I've never seen him like this." She hurried out the door.
"Hin, I think you broke him." Naruto said, regaining his breath. Kiba agreed with a delirious voice, as he still couldn't stop laughing.
Hinata's mortification was slowly getting to her. Her face began to change radically.
Naruto anticipated what was about to happen. He stood up quickly.
"Take five, you guys." He forced Hinata up to her feet, and guided her to the main room. "Don't follow us."
"Wait!" Ino called after them. "Where are you going!?"
"Damage control." Answered the blond simply.
"Good idea." The pink-haired girl said with a nod. "Let's order some pizza."
"Hin. Take it easy." Naruto said to her as soon as he closed the door behind them. The room was silent and tidy, unlike the living room.
"What did I just do?!" The girl asked in shock, squeezing her two hands together and pressing them against her chest.
"You stood up to him in the greatest way possible." Naruto said in a low tone. He grabbed her hands in both of his and stood on eye level to her. Hinata's face was slowly loosing color.
"What if he tells my father?" She asked in horror.
"He wouldn't dare." The blond placed a hand on the side of her face and spoke with a calm voice. "He just never expected you to do something so bold."
"He thinks I insulted him." The girl was close to hyperventilating, and Naruto was running out of things to say. "Oh God…"
"No, Hinata, listen to me." But the girl was looking beyond him, into a vision of the worst case scenarios that could happen the next time she saw her cousin. "Really, you need to pay attention to me, Hin."
"Hin."
His persistent voice brought her back. Her vision now consisted of only his eyes looking at her closely.
"We are all drunk right now, or close to. Neji's not stupid, but he also needs to know that you're not a child anymore. He's also drunk, believe me. So he won't think less of you. I might dare say he will respect you more since you showed him not to mess with you… or me for that matter."
"Naruto-kun… I kissed you in front of all of them." She said, not believing her words. It seemed that her worries had moved on. Naruto's eyes lit up.
"Yeah! And it was awesome." He said with an excited grin. He could almost taste the alcohol that lingered on her breath.
"What are they going to think of me?"
"That you don't care who's watching. I mean, you kissed me in front of the whole village and still made it."
The girl held her face between her hands. She could feel how hot it was. "I wasn't thinking properly."
"Yeah, that's the alcohol's fault." Naruto chuckled. "It also helps you to care less. And also lets you kiss me whenever you want to."
"Maybe…"
"Don't you want to kiss me now?" Naruto asked with an innocent smile. Hinata had just noticed they were alone in his room.
"Naruto-kun…"
"Don't you?"
His innocent tone was transitioning into one of mischief, as he stood closer to her, and cornered her against his body and the wall. A playful smirk danced close to her face. Her cheeks lit up at the new feeling of being just the two of them in his bedroom.
"I-I…" Her voice quivered loudly. His breath stunk of alcohol, just as hers. She felt one of her legs might give way soon.
"Why are you stuttering?" The blond asked, with authentic surprise. "Am I… coming on too strong?"
Hinata licked her lips. "Maybe." His body retreated one step back.
"I'm sorry." He apologized with a sheepish smile.
"Naruto-kun." Her face suddenly came up to his. He noticed her arms snaking their way behind his neck. He gulped. Hinata recognized she might be a bit drunk, since she wouldn't believe the words coming out of her mouth. "That doesn't mean I don't like it."
Naruto's head took a couple of seconds to process her words. He felt his heart speed up, and his mouth turn into a grin. "Wow." He captured her lips after that. And was she on a roll! Her tongue invaded his mouth first and Naruto didn't know what to do with his newfound energy.
The need to get closer to her made him push her up against the wall again. Maybe a little too hard, but she didn't seem to care. 'Oh my God.' She was actually pressing up against him. He didn't think he could last long enough without his excitement getting the better of him. But did he care? The only thing he seemed to care about, was ravishing her lips as much as he could. There was a soft moan she emitted as he sucked on her lower lip, and the blond was sure a boner was about to come up. As drunk as he was, he was mortified of the thought she might notice.
"Hin, wait." He pulled away but the girl pulled him back down. 'Holy shit! Would it really be so bad?' Maybe. He did it again, this time with more force. "Hin, there are people waiting for us outside."
She gave a breathless "oh."
"Yeah…" The blond agreed, sympathetic. "I don't want them to think we're doing something else, you know?"
Hinata blushed bright red. "You're right. We should go."
"Wait." He hurried to adjust her shirt, which had slipped down her shoulder. The girl bit her lip in embarrassment.
"Thank you. Is my hair okay?" If Okay meant a tornado had gone through it, then…
"You might want to gussy up a bit." Naruto pointed to the bathroom, and Hinata agreed.
While she was looking at herself in the mirror, the blond decided to meet the others.
"Is everything OK? Or do you need us to leave the house?" Ino asked with a knowing smile. Naruto would take her seriously, if it wasn't for the droopy eyes and slurred words.
"She's calming down in the bathroom." He announced. He didn't think anyone was suspicious of his words. "Where's Sai?"
"He left about a minute ago, with Shikamaru on tow."
"Bummer." Naruto said, sitting down on the couch. "Is he dead?" He pointed at Kiba's body lying motionless on the exact spot he was rolling on minutes before.
"In a way." Sakura said, shaking his head at the ungraceful pose Kiba had right now. He was drooling all over the wooden floor. "Pizza's here." The bell was ringing, and Sakura stood up to take it in.
"Here. My treat." Naruto took out a few bills from his pockets. He saw Sakura and Chouji about to protest. "My party, my treat. Just take it, I'm starving and my head's spinning."
"How is he gonna get home?" The blond wondered out loud. Just then, Hinata came out of into the dining room. Her appearance as graceful as ever.
"What happened to him?" She asked, a little alarm in her voice.
"He fell asleep." Chouji answered, getting a few napkins from the counter. He was eyeing the pizza dangerously.
"Should we…"
"Leave him be, Hin. The party's about to end, anyway."
Sakura placed the two boxes in the center table. "This one's pepperoni, and the other one has bacon and shrooms."
Naruto made a face at the combination.
"My favorite!" Chouji exclaimed as he took two pieces at once. Naruto started with a slice of pepperoni. Ino didn't want to touch the food.
"Are we gonna keep playing or what?" Ino asked with her arms crossed across her chest. Naruto ignored her.
"I can take Kiba home. But I need to take her too." Chouji said with a mouthful of cheese and bread.
"You're not taking me anywhere, the party just started."
Naruto and Sakura rolled their eyes. An idea occurred to the Uzumaki.
"Oi, Ino. I dare you to stand up and spin in place five times." Sakura, Hinata and Chouji gave Naruto a weird look. The blond winked at them.
"Why in the world would I do that?" The blond asked, pompously.
"Because if you do, you can ask whatever you want of me." Naruto took another huge bite off his second pizza. Chouji was already on his fifth.
"Whatever?" The Yamanaka asked, suspicious.
"Yup!"
Ino mulled over it. "Fine." 'I can finally get my lapdance!' The girl stood up abruptly and started spinning in place. Naruto smirked at how ridiculous she looked. He stood up slowly.
On her fourth lap, Ino's eyes rolled to the back of her head and her feet gave in. Luckily Naruto had predicted the happening and was there to catch her falling form.
Sakura laughed loudly. "Good one."
Hinata looked from Ino, to Naruto, to Sakura, not getting why or how that had happened. Chouji noted her confusion. "You aren't supposed to stand up too fast if you've been sitting down all night drinking."
"The booze goes to your head." Naruto said, handing Ino's unmoving body to Chouji and going towards Kiba.
Naruto grunted when he stood up with Kiba's arms on his shoulders. "Tomorrow's hangover will be legendary."
"Just sleep it off." Sakura said, finishing her third slice.
"Like it's so easy. Here you go, big boy." Chouji received Kiba on his big shoulder. "Thanks for taking care of them."
"Kiba's house is very near Ino's. It won't be a problem." He smiled at Sakura and Hinata. "I gotta go now. Thanks for everything, Naruto. It was a lotta fun."
The house owner smiled and waved at him. Sakura hurried to Chouji's side. "I'll be going too. C'ya tomorrow guys."
"Goodbye, Sakura-san."
"Bye, Hinata. Don't stay up too late." Sakura turned her green eyes to Naruto. "Naruto, you might wanna fix your shirt."
She nudged at Naruto's shirt, who had the left side of the collar pointing up.
Once he noticed, the blond turned to look at his teammate with a frown, but she was already gone. Only hers and Chouji's laughter could be heard.
"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, I only noticed up until now." Hinata apologized, watching as Naruto pulled down the fabric.
"It's okay. They're harmless."
They finally had the house for themselves.
"I dare you to sit on my lap." Naruto called playfully. Hinata, smiling, shook her head.
"If I remember correctly, you lost the bet." The Hyuuga said with a smile.
"Is that a no?" Faking sadness, he blond pouted. Hinata giggled to herself. Slowly and delicately, she sat on his boyfriend's lap. Naruto gave her a winning smile. "Nice."
"Did you have a good time?" She asked, playing with his spikes. Naruto felt tiredness coming unto him.
"Still am." He hugged her middle while looking into those wonderful eyes.
"Naruto-kun, if I had lost…" The girl started. Naruto knew where her train of thought was going and smiled. "What would you have made me do?"
"Well, if you weren't my girlfriend, I'd surely ask for another date. Maybe at Ichiraku's this time."
"But I am your girlfriend." She grinned as she spoke. Hinata could never get enough of that phrase.
Neither could he.
"Yes you are." He kissed her tenderly, while massaging her back. The Hyuuga heiress could smell the alcohol in his breath. She wondered if he could smell whisky off her too.
"Well?"
Naruto seemed to ponder about it. He was getting really sleepy. "I would've like you to help me restyle my parent's place, since I'm sure you have better taste than me. And I'd get to spend more time with you."
Hinata blushed at his words, and Naruto grinned at her. "Naruto-kun… You can spend all the time with me that you want."
"Can I?"
"Of course!"
Naruto's eyes lightened up yet again. "Then, maybe… and feel free to say no, I really won't blame you. Would you…" His enthusiasm faltered, and he casted his eyes aside.
"Would I?" He was clearly scared to ask, and Hinata thought that was cute. But she had no idea what he was about to say.
"You're beautiful, did you know that Hin? Like, seriously."
The girl laughed freely. She placed a hand on his neck. "What were you going to ask?"
"I don't know…"
"Go on." She prodded, thinking he was acting weird. And not just because he was drunk.
"Would you stay with me tonight?" His adam's apple moved up and down after throwing the bomb. He couldn't hide his nervousness for her answer, whether it'd be a no or a yes.
As he had anticipated, Hinata's face went blank. It was clearly too much for her. And maybe for the right reasons.
"It's nothing dirty, I swear Hin." He tried to apologize.
"I-I know it's not, Naruto-kun." The girl was seriously thinking about it.
"I just, I would like to keep spending time with you. We could watch a movie or talk, or whatever you like. We can even go out and look for something to eat. I'm sure something must be open even at this hour and-"
"I'm thinking."
"Sure, sure. I mean, it's not like you have to comply. I lost, remember?" Naruto laughed nervously. His hands had started to sweat, and his heart and head were pounding really bad. "I need to go to the bathroom."
He lifted the girl away from him, placed her gently on the sofa, and walked towards the main bathroom, inside his new room.
'Shit.' The sound of pee hitting water filled the whole bathroom. 'I shouldn't have asked. I'm not thinking clearly. Her father would never forgive her if she did stay the night.' He was actually more afraid of her saying yes than no. What would happen if she did stay? He was running out of excuses to say when things got too heated, and he absolutely didn't want to disrespect her.
"But she's so hot…" He mumbled out loud. For the first time in that night he gazed upon his reflection on the mirror. He looked really funny. His hair was looking wilder than ever, courtesy of Hinata running her hands through it. His eyelids were hanging extremely low, too. And there was a big stain of sake adorning the lower part of his green shirt.
"I look like a hobo." He smirked at his reflection.
After washing his hands, he pulled his shirt over his head and was decided to look for something else to wear. He didn't like to be filthy next to Hinata. She always looked so clean.
Crossing the big bedroom towards the closet that was on the other side of the room, Naruto threw his green shirt aside.
"Naruto-kun?"
"Shit!" He jumped out of his skin. The girl was standing on the doorway looking at him with confusion.
"What?" The girl got startled too.
"You scared me!" He claimed, managing a smile after his heart stopped pounding.
"You look tired." The girl said, walking closer to him. "Why are you shirtless?" The gauze hanging to his skin was the most prominent thing in the dim-litted room.
"I wanted to look nice for you." He confessed without a second thought. He couldn't actually think twice. His mind was close to shutting down. He took the first shirt he encountered on the drawer and put it on.
Hinata giggled, and his heart melted. "You have it backwards." Naruto looked at the front of the shirt and realized she was right.
"Oh man…"
"Why don't you go to sleep?" The girl suggested, taking him by his hand and guiding him to the king-sized bed. The whiskered man's eyes widened in alarm.
"What?! No! I want to keep spending time with you."
The girl smiled discreetly. "Me too, but you'll fall asleep any moment now."
"Aren't you also tired?" Naruto slowly enveloped her in one of his tender hugs. Hinata relished the feeling of his arms pressing her against him. The girl nodded her head against his chest. "Then you should sleep with me."
Did he even know what he was saying? Hinata tried to look into his eyes but he was hiding behind his face behind her neck. "Naruto-kun…"
"I'd love to sleep next to you if you'd let me." His hot breath on her ear made a chill run up her spine. She trembled.
"Naruto…"
Unfortunately for her, Naruto noticed. The smile he was sporting was concealed to her. "Do you like it when I whisper in your ear, Hin?"
The woman bit her lip. She didn't think he could still reason after all that alcohol intake. "No." The waver on her voice betrayed her.
"Would you like me to stop?" Naruto felt how her whole body was shivering quietly. He was amazed that just talking next to her caused such a reaction.
Hinata took her sweet time to answer. The soft ticks of the clock in the kitchen was all the sound that could be heard. It was amazing the kind of feelings he could impose within her. Only he could have such a big impact on her. But still she hesitated. What would happen if she opened the gate? Would she be able to close it? Would she want to close it? Would it make their brand new relationship weird all of a sudden?
Her thoughts were cut short when Naruto stepped away from her. His missing heat was evident on her naked arms and neck.
"I'm sorry, Hin. I'm very drunk." He said, downcast.
"I think I changed my mind." The Hyuuga said, looking at the floor.
Naruto lifted an eyebrow to her. "Huh? On what?" His clear stupidity left him feeling exposed.
"On my request." She lifted her eyes to him. Naruto couldn't see how her blush was covering her whole face.
Why was she so cryptic all of a sudden? He didn't want to think any more than he had to. His head felt like exploding. "You mean the dare? Don't you want me to cook for you anymore?"
Hinata shook her head decidedly.
So she was referring to that.
"Then what should I do?"
Hinata took her time to answer. "K-Kiss me."
Naruto was really confused about her change of heart, but he didn't need to be told twice. The path was clear, and she was waiting for him.
"Done."
Her hands were ready for him when he approached. He caught her by her waist, so she wouldn't go anywhere, and brought her towards him. She, of course, complied. How could she resist the man that she had always pursued ever since she was six years old?
He kissed her tender at first, but it escalated in less than three seconds. Naruto was nuts for her, and he showed it in the way he caressed her neck as he nibbled on her lips every three kisses. She cracked open her lips, just enough so he could slip his tongue gently inside her mouth. He kept pressing her closer to him and she wouldn't let go of him either.
Without a warning, his lips strayed from her mouth and began drawing circles on her neck. He felt her muscles stretch to grant him more access. 'Oh right. Jiraiya said women loved it.' He kissed her repeatedly on her neck and collar bone, leaving Hinata panting for more. He was about to venture closer to her breasts when a slender hand squeezed his ass without a warning.
His eyes widened and he pulled his head away. He looked at her equally surprised eyes accusingly. "Did you just-"
"I-I…" Her mind was too exhilarated to feel any shame. She was just mildly shocked at his reaction.
Naruto's heart was close to bursting out of his chest, and a hammer seemed to be pounding on his head. He reduced the space between their foreheads and snaked his right hand under her jeans. Hinata felt his warm hand squeeze her naked ass firmly. Her mouth opened in exaltation and her body instinctively tried to escape from his hand by pressing her waist against his hardened dick.
It was too much for Naruto.
Hinata noticed how his eyes rolled to the back of his head, and his body took her down with him.
"Naruto."
Only a soft grunt answered his call.
He tried again, only this time he gripped a corner of the bedsheet and pulled with enough force to pull it all on the ground.
"Wake up, Naruto." Kakashi called again. His visible eye twitched in annoyance at the scent of distilled alcohol coming from the blond's body.
His eye traveled to the photo by the bed stand and looked longingly at the image of his mentor. 'Would you mind if I smacked your son, sensei?'
Thankfully that wouldn't be necessary as Naruto, noticing the immediate cold that escalated from his back to his feet, shivered hard enough to lift one of his eyelids.
"Who this?" Mumbled the blond, obviously thinking he was in some kind of dream. He didn't recognize the bedroom he was in, and the figure standing next to him was obviously a trick of his mind. There was absolutely no way that Kakashi would be wearing the Hokage robe.
Or was it?
"Sensei?" He asked in a slur. The gray haired man winced at the scent of alcohol coming from him. "What the fuck are you doing dressed like that?"
His teacher handed him a glass of clear water. The blond took it and spilled a third of its content on top of his bedsheets.
"Drink up, Naruto. You need to sober up promptly."
The whiskered man looked from the water glass on his hand to his sensei. His head was spinning painfully. "What?"
"Drink." The man ordered. Naruto, now a little bit more lucid, pressed his eyebrows together at the uncharacteristic attitude of the Hatake.
"All right, all right." He said, gulping down the remaining contents. After a millisecond, he made a face. "What did you put on it?"
"That's for your hangover. You need to get rid of it as soon as you can." The acting Hokage took a seat in the corner of the bed, and turned to look at the disoriented blond.
"Hm…." Naruto was tugging at his hair confusedly. "What the fuck is happening? I'm supposed to be on leave." He then turned to the clock standing on the nightstand. "And it's only eight in the morning! No wonder I feel like shit!"
His own volume made his head pound. He reminded himself to pay Kiba a visit and kick his hairy ass for mixing so much alcohol in his drinks.
"Naruto, if you hadn't noticed already, I am the Hokage now." The jounin said seriously. He waited for Naruto to take it in. "Tsunade's still in a comma, but after Danzo fled, the Council couldn't leave the seat empty." Kakashi now sported a grudge against Shikaku for putting his name in the pile.
If he weren't so tired, he'd laugh at his teacher. Hokage was the least favorite job for the Hatake. It was funny how all of his teachers hated the title.
"Congratulations, I guess." Said the blond sarcastically.
"I have a task for you." Kakashi ignored Naruto's words. The blond's eyes widened.
"But I can't even fight yet!" Naruto said, signalizing to the bandage that was still adorning his chest. The exact same spot where Pain's last rod had pierced him.
"It's not a fighting mission, Naruto. But worse." Kakashi said ominously.
The blond felt dread slowly rising from his stomach. "Worse?"
"It's diplomatic." Kakashi stated. Naruto's muscles tensed in distress.
"You have GOT to be-"
"And you have to be in Fire Country by night fall." Added Kakashi, mercilessly.
"WHAT THE-"
"But don't worry, you'll have the best Hyuugas with you to support you." The man was fast in his explanation. He could only handle one of Naruto's tantrums at the time.
"But-"
"Also, you need to get yourself a couple of black suits, and a tuxedo." Kakashi's words were as deadly as a kunai. "Pay them with this."
"Kakashi, I don't want your money! I need rest!" The blond stood up abruptly, sweating due to the impending hangover that slowly crashed over his system. He sat down heavily.
"You can rest plenty on your way. You'll be given a carriage and escorted by a Hyuuga entourage."
"Stop." The blond pleaded, hunching his shoulders. This was too fucking much.
"I'm sorry, Naruto. I could have told you this earlier in the middle of your party, but I wanted you to take it easy at least for the night. But we're in the middle of a crisis, with three different Hokages in three days, and the Village needs you to help it as much as you can." He placed a supportive hand on his pupil's shoulder. Naruto turned to look at him tiredly.
"I suck at fancy dinners and stuff. The Village would be better off if I just do what I do best." The blond's voice was weak and pleading. His eyes reminded Kakashi the look on his own eyes when he was announced acting Hokage.
"You are a hero now, Naruto. You don't need to be someone you're not, but your presence will be key to attract wealthy people that could help Konoha's reconstruction. Plus, I put Hinata in charge of the mission, it'd be a piece of cake."
The name of his girlfriend brought flashbacks of him asking her to stay the night. She clearly didn't, as he was the only person in the bed.
Naruto sighed deeply. He placed his elbows on top of his knees. "Even so, you're killing me."
His submissive posture indicated Kakashi that his work there was done. He stood up and placed a file on top of the bed.
"Read the details, you don't want to miss anything."
As he was about to leave the blond's and his master's bedroom, Kakashi turned around.
"Just FYI, kid. If the Council deems you capable of doing something more than fight and kill, the Hokage role is practically yours. I'm just saving the seat for you."
The carriage would leave the village at 11 am. Meaning they would be arriving at the country's capital at roughly 8 pm, for the first of three scheduled nights of fundraisers. That sole word brought a throbbing headache to his poor head.
Even if time was of the essence, the jinchuriki needed to rest desperately. He called onto a clone for suit shopping, another one for etiquette reading and one last one to clean the mess that was of his new house.
Setting the alarm for 10.30, the blond went to bed again.
Their walk to the east gate of the Village was a quiet one.
Neji had nothing to say to his cousin, and Hinata didn't want to talk to him either, fearing they might start fighting about last night. Besides, the Hyuuga heiress had her plate full with memories from yesterday. She hadn't been able to get rid of the candid flush that adorned her upper face, nor the flashbacks of her buttocks being taken hostage by Naruto.
Last night had been a night of firsts.
Their encounter had been unexpected, but at the same time she knew something like that might've happened. She just didn't think she'd start it.
She also had never masturbated, but she just couldn't ignore the night's events and feelings.
It took a lot from the Hyuuga to act as casual as she was doing now. Only the responsibility of being in charge of the mission made her head stay in place.
But what would she do when she saw Naruto?
"The chariot is already waiting for us." Were Neji's first words to her that day. Hinata lifted her eyes to see a white and red vehicle, chained to four studs, waiting for them. It was big enough to carry four grown adults inside. On either side of its doors, the Fire symbol was embedded.
"Morning." Hinata jumped in her skin at Naruto's voice so close to her. She turned to look at him timidly, much like she did when younger. "I brought some dango if either of you want some. I really need to eat."
He offered the bag of dangos to Neji first, apparently on a gesture of friendship to make up for their tense encounter just hours before.
"No thanks. I already ate." Although stiff, Neji didn't seem that mad at him.
"Sure. You also left your wallet yesterday." He chucked the black leather wallet to its owner. Neji widened his eyes, because apparently he still hadn't notice it was missing.
"Thank you." Neji replied. "I'll take our luggage to the top of the chariot." He said without looking at Hinata, who had yet to say a word at Naruto.
"Did you rest Hin? You look kinda weak." He placed an arm around her shoulders and lowered his head to try and look at her eyes. "Is something wrong?"
Hinata thought he'd behave different than this. He'd at least feel a little embarrass for their unusual encounter.
"Did he do something to you?" Naruto inquired, looking back at Neji who was handing the luggage to a maid.
Hinata shook her head. "N-No."
It was easy for Naruto to see she was acting really strange. He was reminded of any encounter he had with her when they were kids.
"Is everything okay? You're acting really weird." He stepped in front of her, catching her nervous gaze.
His face was pure worry. Even as embarrassed as she was, her expert eyes could deduce that either he forgot all about las night's encounter or he didn't feel like it was a big deal.
Naruto, even with the hammering headache, felt something was very wrong. "Hinata…"
His serious voice stopped her from fidgeting in place. She raised her head to meet him. Naruto found it hard to say the next words. "Did I… Did something happened last night?"
His worried tone and his words answered the girl's question. 'He doesn't remember a thing!' The weight she had been carrying on her shoulders suddenly dissipated. With a sweet smile, she shook her head.
"I'm just tired Naruto-kun. I was woken up too soon." Her body language changed completely. She stepped closer to him and placed a delicate hand on his forearm.
"Tell me about it." The Uzumaki agreed with her. As soon as she smiled at him he knew everything was okay. "Dango?"
He was carrying a couple of suits behind his back, both neatly placed within their own respective plastic bag. He had his backpack slung on one shoulder and a book on his hand.
"Gentlemen 101." Hinata read out loud, tilting her head sideways. Naruto lifted his eyebrows and remembered he still hadn't finished the book.
"It sucks. I stopped reading at page 13." The blond threw the book on one of the public trashcans near the gate.
"I can teach you all you need to know." Hinata said, walking next to him. "It's actually part of my mission."
This caught Naruto's attention. "Is it?" The girl nodded with a gentle smile.
He caught her hand before getting closer to the vehicle, where Neji was already waiting for them, although he made a point to look the other way.
"Just a moment." He made sure there was no one around that could tell Hiashi about their proximity.
"Yes?" A twinge of fear ran down her back at the thought of him remembering their near passionate encounter last night.
"I don't remember saying goodbye to you last night, but I just wanna tell you that I really enjoyed every part of it." His hand navigated to her cheek, and in their proximity, Hinata could still smell the lingering scent of alcohol. Hinata blushed and smiled widely at his gesture.
Resting her face against his warm hand and reckoning his tender eyes as he looked down at her, the young Hyuuga couldn't help her next words. "I love you, Naruto-kun."
Naruto felt his energy pump up at those especial words. He opened his mouth slightly, as if he was going to say something, but thought better of it and instead leaned down to kiss her gently.
Author's section
(Every little thing she does is magic – The Police )
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- Paty