That day of early October, Naruto approached her hesitantly after class was over and everybody else was gone.

"So… I wanted to know if…" he started, looking to the other side and scratching the back of his head, trying to appear nonchalant. Hinata was thrilled at this behavior. It wasn't usual for Naruto to look so unsure.

"Y-Yes, Naruto-kun?" she asked, patiently, halting in the process of putting back her stuff inside her backpack. She wanted Naruto to know she was listening, and that what he said was important to her.

It seemed to work, because he finally looked at her, though he still seemed bashful. He smiled, a small thing compared to his usual grins, and said; "tomorrow is my birthday, and…"

"R-Really? I didn't know!" she exclaimed, surprised, before realizing she had interrupted him. She covered her mouth with her hands and glanced down, blushing. "I-I'm sorry, Naruto-kun… I d-didn't mean to…"

"Nah, don't worry" he shrugged, before continuing; "as I was saying, tomorrow is my birthday, and… Iruka-sensei promised he would take me to ramen, and, you know… I've never really had anybody to share that day with, so…"

"S-So?" Hinata prodded, her heart starting to pound. She had a small hunch about what he was going to ask her, but she couldn't be sure until he said the words.

"So… I wanted to know if you'd like to come with us… it's not much of a celebration, I know, but it's still the first time ever someone's gonna spend it with me, and I wanted it to be as big as it could be and since you're my friend or at least I think you're my friend I wanted to…!"

"I-I'll be glad to, N-Naruto-kun" Hinata said, interrupting him before he got too worked up. She felt butterflies flying inside her stomach. Naruto had said she was his friend. And he was inviting her to his birthday. She felt like she could just float.

The boy stopped blabbering, looking at her with wide eyes, before an equally big smile appeared on his face. Hinata felt a blush growing at that.

"Neat! Then I'll see you tomorrow for lunch at Ichiraku Ramen! You know the place, right? It's in the food district of the village… They have the best ramen ever!"

"I-I think I've heard a-about it…" she said, trying to remember. She thought she heard one of the servants talking about it with Ko once. She would ask him where exactly it was as soon as she arrived home.

Naruto nodded, crossing his arms; "of course. After all, nothing can compare to their ramen. You know, the place is run by this old guy and his daughter that's just a few years older than us. They're nice people, and when I don't have enough money to pay they let me do it later. They agreed to open only for us since tomorrow's a holiday and all that. You know… for the thing with the Kyuubi."

"I k-know" she nodded. October tenth was the anniversary of the Kyuubi attack that devastated the village nine years ago. The stores usually closed to pay their respects to the fallen, and people visited the temples and prayed at home. Now that she knew Naruto's birthday coincided with the date, she was starting to wonder if…

"Anyway, don't be late, ok? And don't worry about the money, Iruka-sensei promised he would pay for us!"

"B-But…"

"No buts! It's my birthday so you have to do as I say!" he announced, stomping his foot. Hinata sighed, but nodded, obtaining another grin from Naruto. He turned around, raising his arm and waving, "ok, I'll be leaving then. See you tomorrow, Hinata-chan!"

"S-See you tomorrow, N-Naruto-kun!" she waved back, watching as he left, running. She smiled, placing a closed fist over her heart, feeling it beating steadily. To think that Naruto would actually invite her to eat with him on his birthday…

She blinked. If she was going out tomorrow, she had to ask her father for permission. She hesitated, afraid he would tell her no because of the date, but then remembered how he allowed her to bring Naruto bentos and didn't discourage her to seek him out, and thought that maybe he wouldn't be against it. She was actually more worried about Ko, if she was being honest. He, unlike her father, had actually warned her once about getting too close to the whiskered boy.

She also needed to find a gift. What could she give Naruto for his birthday? A bento was out of the question, it wasn't special after all. But then, she realized, she didn't really know much about Naruto and what he liked. As much as the boy liked to talk and talk, he never actually said much about himself. And she never asked. The only thing she knew with certainty he liked was Sakura, but she couldn't possibly give him Sakura for his birthday, right?

What a dilemma. She'll have to ask for advice. In the meantime, she'd better get back home and talk to her father. After all, she definitely wanted to spend Naruto's birthday with him, and for that, she needed his permission first.