„Tora? Can't you replace me? I feel like my eyes are burning out, really now."

„What? No, that would be unfair. I've been sitting there for twenty seconds longer and I've got lava in my eyes and my nose is running. Help, I can't smell anything anymore! And Akamaru left a long time ago. Please Tora..."

„That's what you get now. Calling me a wimp and howling like a dog yourself..."

„Take that back. You're howling too..."

Oh boy. This was going to be a disaster. But the two of them had promised to help me. And now, on just the third task, they seemed to be failing. I really didn't know whether I should be annoyed or amused. The sight of the two of them looking at each other with red eyes, red cheeks and runny noses was hilarious.

The two biggest show-offs that had ever existed in the history of Konoha failed here at...

„My God, Naruto, Kiba. We just have to cut onions... if you keep getting on our nerves, I'll use the shadow possession and then you'll finish cutting ALONE."

A triumphant grin stole into the corners of the black-haired boy's mouth. He would definitely enjoy ordering the two around, as his mother had the upper hand at home. I still had a huge amount of respect for her.

Thoughtfully, ignoring the boys' arguing, my eyes wandered over the things I had already prepared. What else did I need? It was only going to be a small party, for everyone who wanted to come. And it was to take place in the forest. I had prepared my old hiding place especially for it. I had renewed the fireplace and cleaned out the camp. In the truest sense of the word.

Meat had already been bought and there was enough for even a ravenous Naruto. I grinned wryly. The Uzumaki had been back from his mission yesterday. Together with Sakura and Jiraya, he had followed Sasuke's tracks. I hadn't noticed much of the outcome yet. Naruto had been pretty silent.

Supposedly they had met Kabuto. Oh, ... if I could get my hands on that arrogant, despicable, sneaky traitor, then...

„Weren't you going to buy some apples?" Hinata, who had been sitting across from me the whole time, focused on her work, spoke up.

„Tora. Weren't you going to buy some apples?" Hinata, who had been sitting across from me the whole time, focused on her work, spoke out of the concept - filled with death threats - I looked up in surprise.

„Hm...what...ah yes...can we do...do you know a good merchant?"

The Hyjuga nodded hesitantly and I grinned with satisfaction before turning to Shikamaru, who was still calmly cutting his onions. Jeez... how many had he bought? Naruto and Kiba seemed to be on the verge of going crazy, but they had soon made it. And actually, the two of them had gotten themselves into trouble.

Cocky as they were, they had claimed that they could deal with the onions without my tips. And voilá, there they were with the salad.

„Keep an eye on them until we get back and try to leave everything where it is," I said with a laugh and he grinned wryly.

„With the greatest pleasure."

Then I took Hinata by the hand and pulled her out of the house. Let's see what kind of trader she was talking about. There weren't many. I was really curious now.

„H-H-Hinata... you can't be serious... do you want to kill me? A thousand horses won't get me there. No ... and no sandstorm, no shadow possession ... I'm not going to buy anything there ... besides, the apples taste much better when they've been stolen ..."

„Tora."

„...delicious, ..."

„Tora."

„...succulent...and..."

Something grabbed my arm forcefully.

„We're going to the fruit stand now! Daichi has the best apples in all of Konoha. Besides, it's your birthday...you'll be able to treat yourself to a few apples."

„Y-you don't want to do that Hinata," I said, completely taken aback by their courage and looked around for possible helpers or supportive forces. But there were none. My only hope... Kakashi and Genma, who were leaning

against the shelter of a house wall but deep in conversation, were dashed when the Kopierninja raised his head and waved at us. Was everyone taking the piss out of me today?

„Hello young ladies. How nice of you to take the time to stop by my humble stall on a wonderful day like this."

Modest? Ha! Don't make me laugh. Cheapskate!

Hinata smiled kindly and Daichi's face brightened a little when he saw the girl. Confused, I looked back and forth between the two of them.

„Lady Hinata ... how nice to see you here. It's an honor," he smiled.

Slimebag.

The Hyjuga returned it slightly and looked with interest at the goods offered by the merchant. My stomach began to growl slightly, which made me blush slightly and drew the merchant's attention to me.

„Oh ... young lady ... are you with Lady Hinata? Tell me ... I bet you haven't tasted my good apples yet, have you?"

If only he knew.

„Here ... try one. I'll give it to you as a present."

PLEASE WHAT?!

I stared at him, taken by surprise, no, run over. Surely he couldn't be serious? He just offered me an apple like that? There had to be some ulterior motive!

I hesitantly reached for it and bit into the juicy fruit. The sweet juice flowed through my teeth, onto my tongue and down into my gullet. Help. I had actually forgotten how good these apples were.

Daring a small smile, I turned to the merchant.

„How much does one cost?"

Maybe he had changed a little. Couldn't everyone do that? Gaara was the best example of that."

„Thirteen ryou."

No. He hadn't changed at all. The prices had even gone up.

Hinata didn't seem at all impressed by the whole thing. She just nodded and then pointed to a box of particularly nice apples.

„We'll take fifteen of these..." she said with unusual determination.

„Ehh...Hinata...", I began cautiously, but the blue-haired girl didn't let me finish, but that didn't matter anyway, because the next sentence left me speechless.

„And I'm paying!"

That...she couldn't be serious. But unfortunately she was. I had rarely seen her as determined as she was at the moment. I wanted to contradict her, to say that she didn't need this, but her look forbade me to say a word, so I kept quiet. No one would believe me.

„Thank you... how can I make it up to you?" I asked quietly as she silently packed the apples.

„You've already done that ... Tora ... through your friendship and ... your trust ..."

I fell silent and it was the awkward Daichi who cut in, interrupting Hinata.

„But... we all do that," he huffed.

The merchant fell silent as Hinata's gaze met his. Chilling. It confused and horrified me in equal measure. I had never seen that look in her eyes before. I didn't know how to deal with it. At least not at the moment. All too suddenly, this unknown side of Hinata had emerged.

„...no...no one trusts me to be able to get stronger, except for a few," Hinata said before she went her way.

And I made an effort to follow her.

The Hyjuga's look had changed again and had given way to the typical shy and cautious one.

It was already evening when we set off into the forest. Hinata had brought a few lamps with her to hang in the trees, while the rest of us carried food and something to drink. I was grateful for every helping hand. We had prepared a few things together and I could feel that this was going to be a great evening.

When we arrived at the camp, I walked firmly towards the place where the fire would later be lit. I put the bags with the meat down next to me. Akamaru came along and sniffed at it, but scurried back to Kiba's side when he called him back. Reaching deep into the weapon pouch, I finally unearthed two flints.

Naruto appeared beside me with fresh, thin wood. But that wouldn't be enough, as it was a little wet. Knocking the dust off my pants, I walked towards the hollow stump right next to where I used to sleep and reached in. I had put some moss in there yesterday to dry out. My fingers carefully felt the plant for possible moisture. But it was really dry. Perfect.

I carefully spread it over the wood and shortly afterwards grabbed a small stick and a knife. With practiced movements, I began to peel off the bark to get to the young wood underneath. The fine, thin fibers were also perfect as fuel. And now all that was missing was the fire. Making sure that the sparks flew in the right direction, I began to bang the stones together.

Something crunched next to me, then I felt a warm body close to mine. Surprised, I realized that it was Kiba. He had left Akamaru with Hinata, who had taken the meat to sprinkle some spices over it. A grin crept onto my lips when I saw what felt like plate-sized puppy eyes looking up at the hyjuga, begging for some meat.

„So you survived the two and a half years without any problems, huh?" the Inuzuka asked and I shook my head slightly.

„There's no question of problem-free here. I fought my way through. Taught myself how to hunt. And if I didn't catch anything, I had to go to the village to steal."

„Why apples of all things?"

„Well, I didn't just steal apples, but they taste good, fit perfectly in your hand and are nutritious and healthy. Plus, by the way, I had a lot of fun getting one over on that cheapskate Daichi," I grinned wryly.

„Bah apples. I prefer meat."

A smile crept onto my lips.

„Have you ever eaten an apple?"

He shook his head. I turned my head. Who had the basket of apples again? Oh yes, Naruto. But he was engrossed in a discussion with Shikamaru. The Nara had probably made another comment that the Uzumaki didn't like at all. Well, despite everything, the two of them were good friends and a perfect balance for me.

„Then it's high time now."

I quickly got up and fished one of the wonderfully shiny ones out of the basket, returned to Kiba and held it in front of his nose. He wrinkled his nose and looked at me as if I was completely out of my depth.

„You won't die from it. And it's not poisoned either."

He hesitantly reached for the sweet fruit and bit into it. Nothing happened for a moment, then his eyes began to darken and he paused. But I didn't fall for it.

„You stupid stubborn idiot. Stop playing games with me. I can see you like it."

Kiba swallowed the bite and growled something unintelligible before he began to eat the rest of the apple. I grinned imperceptibly. Another success. I had gotten Kiba, who usually ate nothing but meat, to eat an apple. Akamaru, who had given up hope in the meantime, came towards us and stopped when he noticed his owner devouring the last remnants of the apple.

He yelped a few times and Kiba paused, his eyes wide with horror.

„What the hell Akamaru. How can you accuse me of that? No, I'm not becoming a vegetarian because of the apple. Certainly not!"

"That would be the eighth wonder of the world," a slightly mocking voice sounded behind us. We drove around. But there stood only Shikamaru, who had apparently broken away from the little discussion with Naruto and was looking down at us.

When Kiba started to reply, Naruto interrupted him. His eyes shone with excitement and impatience.

„So what is it? Can we put the meat on and the other stuff too? I'm really hungry right now."

Naruto's interruption actually eased the tension a little and the others' tummies started to respond too. I laughed and got up to go to Hinata. She had just finished the last piece of meat. Even now, still uncooked, it smelled delicious and I nodded gratefully at her. She really was a great help to me. That was all I wanted for this birthday. Actually, my only wish was that I had the people I liked the most around me.

The more the evening progressed, the nicer it became. We laughed, talked about our missions together, what we had experienced during the chunin exam. Yes... that was a topic that caused a lot of tension in some of us. Especially the situations with Kabuto and the Ninjas of the sand or the one with Orochimaru, which had triggered a lot of things that shouldn't have happened. But that's the way it was. Unfortunately. But it was also positive for the Suna-Nin. Naruto and I had managed to change a person who was downright consumed by hatred.

At least that's how it seemed. But we had found that little light in Gaara that still believed in the good. And unconsciously used a stronger battery that had actually helped him to go the right way. And he would never be alone again for the rest of his life. Because his relationship with his siblings had definitely improved. Kankuro would probably still need some time, but time would tell.

Shikamaru skillfully avoided the topic of Sasuke before Naruto got sad again. No. None of us wanted to be sad or angry now. Everyone's goal, I hoped, was to enjoy this evening. Who knew when we would be able to sit together like this again.

The meat tasted delicious. Hinata was showered with compliments and Naruto couldn't resist making a joke or two about Daichi and the apples, which I only acknowledged with a grin. He was only teasing. Besides, absolutely no one could spoil my good mood tonight.

When everyone had finished eating, we sat back a little and watched the starry sky for a while, which could be seen through an opening in the sky. A few star constellations twinkled brightly towards us. Akamaru snuggled up to Kiba and began to doze off a little. But the Inuzuka didn't seem tired at all. A smile had appeared on his lips, one that was all too rarely seen. It was neither mocking nor arrogant. It was simply content and that made me happy. It could always be like this.

The grass rustled softly as someone stood up next to me and leaned over me. It was Naruto.

„I'd say it's time we give you our present, Tora."

Confused, I straightened up and realized that the others had done the same. They came closer in the glow of the campfire. Naruto had closed his hand into a fist and lifted mine slightly.

„Close your eyes, Tora," Shikamaru said and I followed the instruction, still taken by surprise. Never would I have expected to actually get a birthday present, let alone that they had all put it together.

Something cool wrapped itself around my wrist. Not too cold, rather pleasant.

When I was tapped, I took it as an invitation and opened my eyes, examining the wrist. A beautiful bracelet was hanging there. I had never been a fan of jewelry. But this one was special because it was simple. Single dark leather cords, brown and black, woven together. But they left space every few centimetres for ... possibly a pendant or something similar.

„I think you've already noticed the gaps. Then I'll start and explain it to you. "

With his hands buried in his trouser pockets as usual, he approached me and held up a small silver pendant with the image of a deer. That. . . that was. . .

I looked at him in dismay, but he grinned only slightly and attached it to the chain. The material lay cool on the skin and I stroked fascinated and still surprised about it. But there was something I could feel about it. . .

„Shikamaru, that's not what I think, is it?"

But he grinned.

„That's exactly what it is. In each of these pendants is something of our chakra that you can use in an emergency and you'll never be alone. You'll never have to feel alone. I'm not going to say so much now, it's just annoying and the others will surely want to give you something. "

The Nara took a deep breath and looks at me.

„So. . . I have to make a statement. You are and will always be the only girl I really recognize as a friend. . . "

„And Ino?" Naruto interjected, something that brought him a deadly look from the spokesman.

„You're annoying. . . , Ino doesn't matter. She's my teammate and I respect her, but she's not my friend. End of discussion. Oh, and before I forget, you're the only person who hasn't managed to get on my nerves in any way. "

„Thank you. I can only give that back, but it also applies to Hinata," I replied, glancing at the shy Hyjuga. For a short while the Nara still squeezed my hand, when he already made room for Kiba.

He seemed a little surprised that it was his turn now.

„So Tora. I haven't prepared a speech like the guy before me, but I'm just saying it out. To be honest, I didn't like you at the beginning and I know too well that it was mutual, I hope so. "

I grinned lightly. Kiba's honest words touched me as much as the Shikamarus.

They both found it hard to give compliments like that. Because both Kiba and Shikamaru had their pride and I liked them for being themselves.

„Maybe it was even good that we got into a team, but the beginning was pretty bumpy and we couldn't really work together, which is still not going well, which is mostly due to your big head. . . "

I laughed. That's how he saw it. I had almost thought of that and it did not surprise me in any way. Why not? Besides, the Inuzuka had already overcome much of his pride by the words just said.

„. . . but yes. . . I'm still glad that we're more friendly than rivalry and I hope that teamwork will be even better in the future, not just between us. "

With these words he hung a small claw-shaped pendant on the bracelet and withdrew to the others.

Hinata was the second to last in the league. The familiar shyness had spread in her gaze and I smiled kindly at the Hyjuga, trying to give her a little self-confidence.

„Yes. . . I. . . so," she stammered, interrupted herself and began to take a little posture.

„In the beginning I couldn't get a picture of you Torah. You were so closed, mysterious and sometimes even repulsive. But over time and especially when I was poisoned I saw that you have a good heart, that your friends are above all rules for you. And you fight for what is important to you. That's what I really appreciate about you. So I also want to . . . thank you . . . for everything. "

Surprised by this sudden burst of words, we all paused briefly. Hinata, who was now quite old again, looked around insecure.

„H-have I . . . said something wrong?"

„On the contrary, Hinata. I think she is quite moved by your words. "

No, not just that. I was just so overwhelmed by these beautiful, honest compliments coming from people who wouldn't just say something like that, which I was really grateful for. Taking Hinata in my arms and tightly wrapping the silver pendant in the shape of a white eye, I smiled into my friend's shoulder.

Naruto made the tail light. A typical smile had crept on Uzumaki's lips before he hugged me tightly. Surprised I let it happen before he detached himself from me again and continued grinning as if nothing could stop him.

„So. . . then I guess it's my turn. You Tora, you were really there for me. By my side, even if you didn't tell me everything about yourself – at the beginning – I know then as well as today that you understand me. Especially my feelings. And I'm just so grateful, really now. No crap. For your friendship and for not seeing this ugly monster in me like so many others. "

He glanced at the others and added softly, "Well, except you, of course. "

„You are my best friend Tora. And that will always be. I will always stand by you, no matter what happens, I give you my word, for real now. And I will never break it. "

My shoulders began to twitch irregularly. Blurry I recognized the little fox pendant he handed to me, but ignored him and hugged the surprised Uzumaki, who tumbled slightly backwards.

Thank you," I whispered in his ear, deeply moved by all the beautiful words that strengthened me so much, like nothing for a long time.

Not far above us, well hidden in the branches of the trees, four figures sat and looked down. No one had noticed them, as they had suppressed their chakra.

„What do you mean? Do you think we can increase your gift here? "a silver-haired, tall man asked in the direction of a man of the same age with half-long brown hair, who concentrated a Hari from one cheek into the other.

„That is not relevant. The important thing is that the people she loves thought something about it and we thought it as well as this young genin," the voice of a blonde woman, who looked down on the action with interest.

„And I'm glad that the whole evening went quietly and they didn't notice us," added a black-haired woman. Affirmative, affirmative murmur was the result.

But please, never let them find out that we were paying attention here," Genma retorted.

„These young people have no idea about the world," the blonde added.

And I hope that they can have a reasonably carefree childhood without further tragic losses."