Chapter 7: Feeding the Heart
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or it's characters
Reviews:
FelonGT- The Rasengan being an A rank jutsu and not S actually just slipped my mind. I was probably thinking about the Wind Style Rasengan being S and mixed it up in my head. I'm going to change the wording in the previous chapter to make it correct when this chapter is published. Also the Sasuke retrieval arc isn't going to be for a little while. I just wanted to go ahead and use the hospital fight scene to start the wedge being formed between Naruto and Sasuke.
MaxPrime- I'm glad you think the NaruHina is good! Hopefully I can do Temari justice as well. Temari and Hinata will indeed both like the Icha Icha series and talk about it. As for the lemons, I haven't actually decided. I've thought about it but I'm not sure if I could write it well. I guess people can say if they've got a strong opinion about them one way or the other. Either way that wouldn't be coming up for a while anyway.
Caspian123- Thank you for the kind words! As of right now I'm not planning to have Hinata and Temari be romantic to each other. They'll be very close and the most important person in their lives besides Naruto, but they won't necessarily be dating each other when he's not around. I want to aim for where they're obviously attracted to Naruto but don't shy away from each other when they're together. Both in public and behind closed doors.
To the north of the Land of Fire lies the Land of Rice Paddies. It was a mostly peaceful region, where it's people spent their days living off the land. To most, it was a nice place but held nothing that really made it stand out. However, the region held a dark secret that was known to only a few.
Below the surface lies a series of interconnected tunnels. They weave in haphazard directions, spreading out for miles in a veritable maze. To anyone who didn't know the way, it would be an almost certainty to get lost. But to a few individuals, they called this place home. They called it Otokagure.
In this dark and dreary place, people of all different kinds could be found. Some joined willingly, either down on their luck or finding a sense of purpose in what could be done. Others were forced to reside here against their will. A few had even been created here, knowing nothing of the outside world. They all had one thing in common though. They all served some sort of purpose to their leader Orochimaru. Even if they didn't like it or know it yet.
Speaking of their leader, his quarters were the most well hidden and known only to his most trusted subordinates. His room held a vast multitude of books on varying subjects and shelves full of what seemed to different chemicals. There was even some vials that contained parts of both people and animals. None of it was what held Orochimaru's attention though.
Instead he was lying on his bed, hissing and writhing in discomfort. Every time his dead arms made contact with the sheets or moved the wrong way it sent shocks of pain into his nervous system. 'Curse that foolish Third Hokage for doing this to me" Orochimaru hissed in his mind. 'And curse Tsunade for not healing my arms when I needed her to! When did she suddenly get the spine to once again step onto the field of battle! She even took up that blasted Hokage hat!'
Before he could devolve into more ranting in his head, a knock on the door shook him out of his thoughts. With great effort, he managed to sit up straight on the bed, keeping his grunts of exertion quiet. When he was ready, he put on a facade of strength and called out "Enter."
The door opened and Kabuto slowly slipped through the crack in the door. Spotting Orochimaru sitting on the bed looking at him, Kabuto entered into the room fully before closing the door behind him. Kabuto then kneeled before Orochimaru and said "I have returned from my mission, Lord Orochimaru."
Orochimaru gave Kabuto a wicked grin and asked "Well? Go ahead with your report. How fares Konoha? I assume you were not detected."
Kabuto got up from kneeling and shook his head "Of course not, Lord Orochimaru. They never knew I was even there." He used his finger to push his glasses up before saying "As for Konoha, Lady Tsunade has now been officially sworn into office. It's still too early to tell for sure, but the reception to her has been mostly positive so far."
Orochimaru nodded but didn't show any other visible emotion. Kabuto, knowing not to test his lord's patience, quickly continued on to what Orochimaru really wanted to know "With Sasuke, things are progressing even better than you expected. The curse mark is reacting to his negative emotions and causing his alliances to Konoha to stray further away. It seems that there is a great source of friction between him and his team as well."
Licking his lips, Orochimaru chuckled "Good, the less bonds Sasuke has, the more willing he will be to come to me. How quickly do you think you would be able to draw him here?"
Grimacing on the inside but keeping his face blanket to not show weakness, Kabuto replied "That might be more difficult than we originally thought. Sasuke could be willing to come but the village is watching him like a hawk. His sensei, Kakashi Hatake, is keeping him under tight supervision as well. I've left the Sound Four to keep an eye on him, but told them not to make contact since I'm not sure they would be able to avoid Kakashi's watchful eye."
"I see. How disappointing" Orochimaru said with a frown. "And when do you expect to be able to extract Sasuke."
Kabuto started to sweat but answered "It could take several weeks, Lord Orochimaru. If we see an ample opportunity we will take it, but I'm not sure if we will have one available." Orochimaru's frown deepened and Kabuto delicately stated "I-In light of this, I think we should go ahead and start preparing your next body. You won't last much longer in this state, and if we wait till the last minute, we will be unable to do the transfer."
Orochimaru sighed "I had so hoped to be able to have the Sharingan in my next body. Very well, begin the preparations. But I want the Sound Four notified to be on the ready to lure Sasuke here at any opening."
Orochimaru's nonchalant tone masked the disdain he felt for not getting the body he desired. However, Kabuto heard the unspoken threat loud and clear and he nodded quickly. "At once, Lord Orochimaru."
"Is that all, Kabuto? Or do you have more disappointments to tell me" Orochimaru asked with vitriol. This time, Kabuto was unable to hid his wince, but composed himself enough to answer "Actually, Lord Orochimaru, I have one more piece of news to relay. One you might find very interesting."
With his interest peaked, Orochimaru chuckled "Well, go ahead then." Kabuto took off his glasses to wipe them off and replied "Konoha has been in peace talks with Suna since the invasion has ended. It hasn't been announced but I was able to find out that one of the terms is that Suna is sending the Kazekage's daughter, Temari, to Konoha. She is to become part of their ranks and supposedly bring their nations closer."
Orochimaru raised an eyebrow and spoke "While it is a bit unorthodox and a dated system, I do not see how that has any relevancy."
"Oh, but it has some interesting strings attached to it, Lord Orochimaru" Kabuto said with a chuckle. "It's being kept under tight wraps but she is being sent to marry one of Konoha's shinobi. And the best part, the one chosen as the groom is Naruto Uzumaki."
That got Orochimaru's attention. Slowly, Orochimaru asked "Really? They're marrying her to the Kyuubi jinchuriki?"
Kabuto nodded "Yes, and that's not all. Apparently, they're also arranging the Hyuga heiress, Hinata Hyuga, to marry him as well. They seem to have worries about him being tied to much to Suna and want to have ways to ensure he stays loyal to Konoha."
With that, Orochimaru feel into deep thought 'They're marrying off the Kyuubi jinchuriki instead of someone like Sasuke or another clan child? They might be doing this because of who his parents are but I don't see the full angle of it.'
Remembering something Kabuto said earlier, Orochimaru started chuckling. After a moment, it turned into full blown laughter. Kabuto was unnerved by his master's laughing fit but didn't dare to interrupt him.
After he calmed down, Orochimaru opened his mouth and licked his lips with his abnormally long tongue. "This is very interesting news indeed Kabuto. I believe I have a way we can use this in our favor. It will just require a bit of patience and I will be able to have Sasuke in my grasp." With those words echoing, Orochimaru began to explain his plan to Kabuto, intent on luring Sasuke to his side.
Back in Konoha, Naruto was sitting up against a tree. He had been training all morning and was taking a break at the current moment. It had been three days since his fight with Sasuke at the hospital and things were still tense. Sasuke had arrived the next day at the training ground but Naruto could tell that nothing had changed. He just ignored him and Sakura and went straight into practicing with his shuriken.
Sakura had, of course, went back to fawning over Sasuke like always. Although, to Naruto, it seemed like she was less enthusiastic about it and more subdued.
Shifting his weight against the tree, Naruto leaned over to grab his bag that he had brought with him. Opening it up, he grabbed the box that was in it and took it out. It was his lunch for the day, a bento that had been packaged nicely just for him. He smiled as he recalled how his meals had been changing the past few days.
Naruto was in his apartment, getting ready for the day. He had already had his breakfast and was about to leave when he heard a soft knock on his door. Confused as to who would be visiting him, Naruto walked towards the door and opened it.
He was surprised when he saw Hinata standing there awkwardly with a blush on her face and a box clutched in her grasp. Naruto quickly got over his surprise and a grin replaced his shocked expression.
"Hinata-chan! Good morning" he exclaimed and went to wrap her up in a hug, taking care not to crush whatever she was holding. She squeaked in surprise and fumbled out "G-Good morning, N-Naruto-kun!" After a moment, he released her and stepped back to look at her before asking "What are you doing here? Did you come to walk with me to training?"
Much to his disappointment, Hinata shook her head. "N-No Naruto-kun, I have training w-with my own team today. I-I just wanted to give you something f-first" she said nervously.
Naruto tilted his head and closed his eyes in a way that made him look like a fox to Hinata. She had to fight the urge not to faint from the cuteness he was projecting to her. Taking a deep breath she thrust the box towards Naruto and bowed her head so she wouldn't have to look him in the eye. "PLEASE, ACCEPT THIS GIFT FROM ME" she shouted with urgency.
Jumping from her sudden shouting, Naruto quickly took the box she offered. Once it was in his hands, Hinata quickly said "IhopeyoulikeitpleaseexcusemeIhavetogototrainingnow" and bolted for the door, not giving Naruto a chance to respond.
Naruto stood there frozen, unable to process what just happened. After his brain had caught up with everything, he sighed "Hinata-chan sure is nice, but I don't know if I'll ever understand her."
Turning his attention to the box in his grasp, he donned a curious expression before opening it up to see what was inside. As soon as it was opened, an intoxicating aroma hit his nose. He started salivating and looked to see that she had made him a freshly cooked meal.
She had obviously put a lot of care into what she had cooked. Everything looked fresh and there seemed to be an assortment of different food for all the nutrients he needed. It also looked like she had tried to make everything fit into the box in the neatest possible manner she could.
Naruto wanted to taste it but was hesitant about messing up her hard work. In the end, he decided that she wanted him to eat it so it would have to be messed up eventually. He grabbed the chopsticks that she included in the box and used them to grab the first bite of food.
As soon as the taste hit his tongue, his eyes widened. He had to restrain himself from shoveling the rest in his mouth. Instead he slowly put the chopsticks back in the box and closed the lid. He wanted to eat the rest but forced himself to save it for his lunch.
"I need to wait to eat it after training. After all, I'm sure I'll work twice as hard if I know I've got such good food waiting for me after" Naruto exclaimed trying to convince himself. As he continued to stare at the box, he started tearing up and even let out a little sniffle. Not just because of how good the food tasted, but also because it was the first home cooked meal he had ever had.
Wiping his eyes, he tucked the box carefully into his bag and started to head out. His expression changed to one of pure happiness and he went on his way, thoughts of Hinata and her deep kindness floating around in his mind.
Since then, Hinata had continued to make him more lunches. He had wanted to ask her why she was doing it but he didn't want to accidentally offend her and have her stop. He was enjoying them far too much and it would feel like a gut punch to lose it all now.
Although, as a side effect of her cooking for him, he hadn't been able to visit Ichiraku's as much as he normally would. It felt kind of wrong not to go there whenever he could but he didn't want to just disregard Hinata's cooking.
'I'll just have to find some time to visit even if I don't eat much' Naruto thought, nodding to himself. 'I can probably still go once or twice a week. Maybe Hinata will even go with me if I tell her ahead of time! That way we can still eat together and I can treat her to a meal for cooking for me!'
Naruto grew excited with his plan and would try to find a time that would work with Hinata. Besides, he liked to visit Ichiraku's even if it wasn't for a meal. Old man Teuchi and Ayame were important people to him and seeing them always lifted his mood. They might be sad not seeing him everyday but they would probably understand his reasoning. Plus, Ayame was always getting on to him to eat better anyway.
He was aware that so much ramen wasn't good for him but he never had too many options. A lot of places wouldn't sell to him or would try to give him bad deals on everything. That's why he was so surprised that Ichiraku's would give him food when he first came across it. They didn't even charge him any for that first time!
Ever since then, ramen had been his favorite food and the ramen from Ichiraku's was at the top of the list. Not just because of how it tasted but also because of what it meant to him. A kind gesture that likely saved him from despair. One that continues today with Teuchi and Ayame always having a smile on their face and a warm bowl of ramen for him.
It's for a similar reason that Hinata's cooking is so special to him as well. Ichiraku's may have given him his first happy memory of meal but it was different to Hinata's. Even though the Ichirakus fed him, it was with ramen they were already cooking. It was something that was prepared for all customers and usually not someone specific in mind.
With Hinata, she made a meal that was just for him. She wasn't running a restaurant and didn't try to make it for other people. She did it thinking solely of him and put her time and effort into it thinking of nothing in return. It still shook him to think that she would do something like that just to try and make him happy.
So now he found himself having another source of food that was quickly growing to be his favorite as well. He wasn't sure if he could pick one that he liked more than the other though. They both meant a lot to him. Although, he had to admit that Hinata was pretty talented at cooking for how young she was. She probably would only get better with more experience as well.
'Now if only I could get her to cook me some ramen with her special touch! I might really die of happiness that day' he thought with excitement, some drool escaping his mouth. Wiping his mouth, his thoughts turned to something that happened yesterday 'Still though, I wonder why she's so funny about accepting praise for her cooking? I was just trying to tell her how good it was.'
Yesterday, Naruto had arrived at the training ground late, body still sore from what he had been put through the day before. However, when he got close he heard the sound of someone hitting a training post. Growing curious, he stepped into the field fully and was surprised to see Hinata there practicing her gentle fist.
Fatigue forgotten, a wide smile took over Naruto's face and he rushed over to her. On the way over he took notice of Sasuke and Sakura who were practicing at a different part of the area. Sasuke just gave him a passing glance before snorting and returning to his own training. Sakura gave him a smile and a small wave but chose to stay where she was watching Sasuke. Kakashi, of course, wasn't there yet but Naruto wasn't as late as Kakashi usually is.
Naruto slowed his pace as he neared Hinata, who had heard his approach and perked up, slight blush taking over her face. "Hey Hinata-chan! Good morning" he exclaimed in greeting when he reached her.
Hinata ducked her head slightly and stuttered out her own greeting "H-H-Hello Naruto-kun. G-Good morning t-to you as well."
Hearing her soft voice lifted Naruto's spirt even higher and his grin grew, threatening to split his face. "I'm glad you were able to make it today! Sorry I was late but I was just so tired after yesterday" Naruto said.
Growing worried at his statement, Hinata lifted a hand to her mouth and gasped out "O-Oh no! A-Are you ok?" Realizing he had worried her, Naruto quickly shook his hands in front of him and stated "Y-Yeah! I'm fine, I'll probably just be a little slow today! Nothing I can't handle!"
Hinata squinted here eyes and glanced over him, not believing what he said. Trying to avert her attention Naruto quickly asked "S-So are you training your gentle fist over here? Weren't you trying to develop a new style for yourself? So why not work on that?"
She knew he was trying to distract her but decided to indulge him anyway. "I-It's true I want to m-make a new style, b-but it's difficult to t-test it by myself. S-Since it relies on dodging h-having someone to s-spar with will help me out m-more than training alone. B-Besides practicing the g-gentle fist is still helpful. I-I'll need to incorporate it into my s-style and it's never harmful to k-know something else" she explained to him.
Understanding what she was saying, Naruto replied "I see, but if that's true why don't you get someone to help you. Did you try to ask Sakura or Sasuke?" A dark look then crossed Naruto's face and he asked in a low tone "Sasuke wasn't mean to you right? He didn't say or do anything hurtful to you?"
Sensing his rising tension, Hinata quickly shook her head in denial. "N-No, he didn't do anything!" In truth, when Hinata had arrived that morning and greeted Sakura and Sasuke, he just grunted and returned to his own training. Sakura had, of course, excitedly greeted her and thanked her for yesterday once again. Hinata, embarrassed, just said it was no big deal and went to training by the post alone.
Pleased that she was alright, Naruto perked up and nodded his head. He then got an idea and let a smile onto his face. "Well if they won't spar with you, then I will! I'm not the best but I can probably help you out!"
Hinata smiled in return and accepted his help "O-Ok, thank you Naruto-kun! I-I'll do my best to h-help you too!"
Happy that she accepted, Naruto grinned and exclaimed "Ok, let's both get warmed up and then we'll spar!"
After he said those words, the two of them both began stretching and practicing their stances. When they both felt like they were ready, they faced each other and began to spar. They continued for several hours, both seeking to improve and help the other improve.
Throughout the matches they both noticed things about the other. Hinata noticed that, for some reason, Naruto seemed to be moving slower. However, it was only a marginal amount and the few times he managed to hit her, it felt stronger than last time. He was also rapidly fixing the holes in his own fighting stances. Whenever he lost, Hinata would give him tips on what went wrong and how he could adjust it. He was a fast learner too, as whenever she told him what was wrong, he corrected it the very next time.
On Naruto's end, he saw how much potential Hinata's style had. She lost very few of the matches they had, and the few times she did were because she was hesitant to go on the offense. He remedied that though by reminding her to give it her all and take any opening she could find. She took it to heart and Naruto was amazed by the growing confidence he saw in her. The focused look on her face caused a tight feeling in his stomach that was hard to ignore even if he grew frustrated the more times she avoided his attacks.
Near lunchtime, the two of them both stood facing each other having just finished another spar. They were both panting and were covered in dirt on different parts of their bodies and clothing. Even so, the two of them were both wearing grins and seemed to be having the time of their lives.
The slight moment of peace was broken by the sound of clapping. Looking around, they noticed Kakashi leaning against a tree nearby. When they turned their attention to him he stopped clapping and eye smiled saying "Good job you two, I can really see your improvements."
Hinata blushed and tried to bury her head in her jacket at the praise. Naruto however grew a tick mark and shouted "YOUR'E LATE KAKASHI-SENSEI!"
Kakashi just shrugged it off and replied "I was on my way here when I remembered I left the stove on and had to go turn it off." Naruto and Hinata both sweat-dropped at his comment. Naruto was used to it but Hinata thought 'Is he always like this? I only have Kurenai-sensei to compare him too, but he seems far more relaxed than her.'
Trying to change the subject, Kakashi addressed Naruto "So how are you handling those weights I gave you? From what I could see you were slower to start with but you seemed to get your foothold pretty fast."
Naruto nodded "Yeah, I'm getting used to it but I still feel sluggish. I have a hard enough time hitting Hinata-chan but today I was really having trouble!"
Feeling Naruto's frustration, Kakashi chuckled "That's probably how it's going to be for a while. You're going to have to keep them on until you're used to them and when you don't notice the weight anymore we'll increase it again."
Naruto groaned at that but didn't say anything else. Hinata however tilted her head and questioned "Weights?"
Realizing that he hadn't told her yet, Naruto perked up and nodded "Yeah, Kakashi-Sensei got me weights yesterday like Bushy Brows!" Naruto then pulled his arm sleeves back where she could see the weights he had there. "I have these and then some on my legs too. Kakashi-Sensei got the idea to use them to help increase my strength and speed!"
He then pouted his lips before continuing "Although he really ran me ragged yesterday! Even though they were only five pounds each, it really felt like a sack of bricks! And then he had me running laps around the whole field! I ended up passing out as soon as I got home and that was why I was so late today!"
Naruto gave Kakashi a fierce glare at that but he had his nose in his book ignoring Naruto. Naruto sighed and turned his attention to Hinata but was confused when she had a far away look in her eyes.
Meanwhile, in Hinata's mind, she had thoughts of her own. 'Naruto-kun's using weights? That means he'll be building up muscles right?' Possibilities of what Naruto could end up like flew through her head. Each one had him looking buffer, either at his age now or a few years in the future. Sometimes, she would be hugging his body or his arm. Others, he would be picking her up in his arms and holding her close to him. They all served the same purpose though. Every mental image got her more excited at what she could have.
On the outside, Naruto was waving his hand in front of Hinata trying to get her attention. He was stumped on why she wasn't responding. After a moment she started to giggle "Hehehe." Naruto grew concerned at her reaction and that concern doubled when he saw a trail of blood start to leak out of her nose. Alarmed, Naruto grabbed Hinata by the arms and started to shake her, trying to snap her out of it.
Kakashi watched it all happen, amused by the antics of the two. He giggled pervertedly, thinking 'You're a lucky man, Naruto. You've got a real winner there that'll show you some fun in the future. And to think it's just one of the girls you've got! Is this what it feels to have a sense of pride for a student?'
Stuck in his thoughts he watched as Naruto seemed to have an idea and whispered something in Hinata's ear. Whatever it was, had the intended effect as Hinata jumped out of her trance and started shaking Naruto instead. When she seemed to notice what she was doing, she "eeped" and let go of him, blushing a scarlet red.
While he was highly entertained by them, he figured he should bring their attention back. Clearing his throat, he waited until they both turned to him, blush present on both their cheeks. Resisting the urge to say how cute they looked, he instead said "Well like I said earlier, you seem to be getting a handle on things Naruto. In fact, your taijutsu looked much better as the day went on and I believe I have you to thank for that, Lady Hinata."
Hinata shrunk when the spotlight turned to her and she sputtered "I-I-It was nothing!" Kakashi merely chuckled in response "Oh no, it was much more than that. In fact, I would like you to continue helping Naruto in taijutsu whenever you have the time. I would help him but I think having someone closer to him in age and skill level would be a greater boon to him. Besides, it seemed like he was assisting you as well."
Embarrassed at being put on the spot, but not wanting to let either of them down, Hinata nodded. "Y-Yes! I-I would be happy to h-help Naruto-kun whenever I can" she exclaimed excitedly.
Naruto gave a soft smile at her eagerness to help. Kakashi gave a thumbs up and an eye smile saying "Well that's great then! I'll leave the two of you to it, although you should probably take a break with how much you've been working. Hurting yourselves won't let you make progress after all."
Giving them a wave, he started to walk off towards where Sakura and Sasuke were at, planning on giving them some instruction as well.
With his suggestion both of their stomachs let out a growl in unison. They both flushed red and looked away from each other. After a moment, Naruto let out a chuckle and scratched the back of his head. "W-Well since it seems like we're both hungry, how about we take a break for lunch" Naruto asked nervously.
Hinata nodded shyly and said "I-I would like that N-Naruto-kun. H-How about we g-go sit over in that shaded area? I-I brought s-some lunch with me that we can s-s-share."
Growing excited at the prospect of having more of her food, Naruto agreed excitedly "Yeah, let's do that!"
The two of them made their way over to where Hinata suggested, stopping by her pack to let her grab the food she talked about. Once they arrived, Hinata handed Naruto his box and he sat down ready to dig in. Hinata wanted to sit close to him but was nervous about it as well. In the end she decided to sit a couple of feet away so she would be close but not so much that she would panic about it.
Naruto was about to open the lid to see what she had made when he remembered something. Putting his lunch to the side for a moment he turned to Hinata to address her "Hey Hinata-chan?"
At the sound of his voice Hinata turned to look at him questioningly. Seeing that he had her attention, he continued "I-I just wanted to thank you for the food yesterday. It was really good and really nice of you to do that for me! I've never had anyone make a home cooked meal for me so it meant a lot to me."
Hinata blushed and ducked her head at the sudden confession. Trying to control her breathing, she stuttered out "I-It was nothing Naruto-kun. I-I just wanted to help you as a f-friend and let you eat b-better. I-I'm not particularly good at c-cooking but I hope it was g-good anyway."
Looking at her like she had grown another head, Naruto confusedly stated "Not good at cooking? If that was you not being good at cooking then words won't be able to describe how it'll be if you get great at cooking!"
Hinata was stunned by his fierce declaration of her skills and he took the opportunity to continue "It was some of the best food I've ever ate! I don't know what you did but I hope you'll let me eat whatever you make whenever I'm able to!"
Averting her eyes, Hinata turned scarlet and let out a small "T-Thank you, Naruto-kun." She was using every shred of willpower she had not to faint from his words. Naruto chuckled at her reaction but stayed quiet not to embarrass her anymore. Instead, he decided that he had waited long enough and opened the lid to his lunch to see what she had made today.
His grin faltered when he saw what was inside. There was an assortment of rice balls, one of the things he disliked the most. To top it off they were made to look like him as well. They had yellow tops to resemble his hair and grinned like he usually did. They even had his signature whisker marks.
'Why did it have to be rice balls' Naruto thought depressingly. 'They're always so dry and never have any flavor. And why do they look like me? That's pretty weird and I'm not sure how I feel about eating myself.'
He then noticed Hinata had turned her gaze back to him and was giving him an expectant look. Gulping, he looked back at the rice ball thinking 'Well, now I have to eat it. Especially after I just went on about how good her cooking was.'
Slowly, he inched his mouth towards the rice ball and took the smallest bite he could. As soon as he got a taste though his eyes widened. 'What! That's the best rice ball I've ever tasted! I didn't even know they could be this flavorful!'
Doubts gone, he rapidly consumed the rest and turned back to Hinata. He gave her a thumbs up and exclaimed "That was amazing Hinata-chan! You made these rice balls take amazing! You're gonna make one heck of a wife!"
When he said that Hinata's face burned scarlet and her thoughts went crazy 'Wife! Marriage! Me with Naruto-kun!' With almost visible steam coming out of her ears she fainted and fell straight towards Naruto. Somehow it had seemingly slipped her mind that she was already promised to marry Naruto.
Thinking fast, Naruto quickly caught her and leaned her against his shoulder. He sighed "She's such a weird girl." Using his hand that wasn't currently holding Hinata stable he got out another rice ball. Taking a bite he thought 'Still, even though she's weird, I'm starting to like her more and more. She's so nice and fun to be around, I can't help but want to see her more.'
Hearing her soft breathing, he glanced over at her resting on him. He took his hand and brushed away some of her hair that had fallen in front of her face. He paused and took a moment to observe her facial features again.
'She is really pretty too' he thought with a slight blush. 'I first thought she looked plain but the more I see her, the more beautiful she looks.'
Realizing that he was staring at her and thinking such thoughts he quickly looked away and shook his head. Trying to distract himself, he focused on eating the rest of his lunch. Still, he kept an arm around her to keep her steady and close to him. Listening close to every breath she took that filled him with a sort of happiness he didn't know how to describe.
Naruto smiled as he recalled the time they had together yesterday. Although it fell when he thought about how fast Hinata had left after she woke up from fainting. She had made a quick apology and then bolted off saying something about clan training that afternoon, giving him no time to say anything in response.
Sighing, he muttered to himself "I know she was embarrassed but I don't know what the big deal was? She was just leaning against me and I didn't mind it anyways. I guess I'll just have to tell her it's alright when I see her next."
He would have told her this morning when he got the food from her, but she had just left it on his doorstep today. It had a note attached to it saying that she would have liked to see him but she was running late for training with her team and didn't have the time.
Shaking his head, Naruto thought 'Eh, I'm sure I'll see her soon anyway. I can clear things up then and tell her about all the progress I've made at the same time too!'
The progress he was talking about was due to all the extra training he had been doing. After Hinata had left yesterday, Naruto decided to switch his efforts into his Rasengan and the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu once again.
After spending several hours yesterday and most of this morning practicing both he had achieved significant progress. He was finally able to perform the Rasengan completely one-handed and had brought the time taken to form down to one second. It could still be brought down more to almost be instantaneous but he was happy with the progress he had made.
As for the Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu, he had almost mastered it. He was able to perform the jutsu reliably every time he tried. He even started using kunai and was able to get it down after only a few attempts. He just needed to practice a little more to be able to make the exact amount of copies he needed and not more or less. Which was usually just a matter of experience and getting a feel for how much each duplication cost in terms of chakra.
However, for now he was resting and decided that he needed to actually start eating the lunch Hinata had made for him. After taking the first bite he was once again amazed by the cooking she did. Because he was very hungry from his training today, he quickly ate the rest of the meal and set it to the side.
Closing his eyes, his thoughts drifted once more. 'For how much I wasn't sure about being married before, it's not turning out so bad so far. Hinata's so sweet and she's already helped me a lot. If getting married to her is always like this I could probably get used to it.'
With that thought swirling in his head, his attention shifted to something else. 'Although, she's not the only one I'm getting married too. I don't know much about Temari but she doesn't seem to be as shy or sweet as Hinata-chan. Hopefully we can get along though and I'll try my best to make her feel welcome.'
Naruto slowly became more drowsy as he thought and he started to become less aware of his surroundings. Before he fell completely asleep he had one last thought 'I'm not really sure when she's supposed to be arriving though. I wonder when we're going to see each other.' With that, Naruto fell into a slumber. Unaware that the question he asked himself would get answered so soon.
While Naruto was taking his nap, Tsunade was standing at the entrance to the village. By her side were the two village elders, Koharu and Homura. Even though they both had blank expressions on, Tsunade had her lips set in a fine line and was impatiently tapping her foot.
Finally having enough she growled out "Where is that old perv! Our guests could be here any moment and he's not even here!"
As if he was being summoned, Tsunade heard a cry "I HAVE ARRIVED!" Looking up, she saw Jiraiya leap off the village wall and land in front of her. With a wide smirk on his face, Jiraiya turned to Tsunade and said "I may be late Hime but if I knew you wanted me so bad then I would have arrived earl-".
The rest of his sentence was cut off by Tsunade's fist driving him into the ground. Tick mark on her forehead, she berated him "You good for nothing pervert! You were supposed to be here twenty minutes ago! This is one of the most important meetings for our village in years and we need to show a strong front!"
Tsunade raised a fist to hit him again but someone clearing their throat interrupted her. Tsunade's head swiveled over to look at the two village elders who were giving the two of them disappointed expressions.
Seeing she had Tsunade's attention, Koharu spoke up "Lady Tsunade, while it may be true Master Jiraiya's behavior should not be excused, his punishment will have to come later. I can sense the approach of our guests and they're almost here."
Tsunade huffed at that but followed her advice and lowered her hands to pull Jiraiya up to his feet. He was wobbling a bit but still had a goofy grin on his face. Tsunade whispered to him "Don't think you're off the hook yet" and then went back to stand at the front of the group.
Jiraiya pouted but wasn't given much time to dwell on it before a blur of motion came from the trees nearby. Four figures had just dropped down in front of Tsunade and her group. In the front was Baki, one of Suna's top jounin, and behind him was his team.
Baki and his team all quickly bowed, with Baki greeting Tsunade "Greetings Lady Hokage. I am Baki and this is my team. We are here to solidify the alliance between our two villages."
Tsunade nodded and waved a hand to show they could stand straight again. "Greetings to you as well. I am pleased you all arrived safe and sound."
After straightening back up, Temari let her gaze wander on the surrounding sites. She had seen it once before but under the pretense of planning an invasion. Now she was seeing it for a different reason. As the place she would come to live for her future.
'It's really happening' she thought with both sadness and a little bit of anticipation. 'I'm finally here.'
A.N. Alright, finally got this chapter done. I'm gonna be honest, I had a really hard time with this chapter. Part of it was due to work and part was because I had a hard time getting motivated for it. I don't know what it was about this chapter but it slowed me down a lot. Maybe it's not too rough to read. Hopefully the next chapter goes better.
It's also kind of why I cut it off where I did. I was originally going to have the meeting with Temari happen this chapter, but I was already late as it is. I could have kept going but then this chapter would either be absurdly long and take even longer to come out or it would cut off in a weird spot. In the end, I just decided to cut it here and have the bulk of next chapter be all the meetings.
Anyway for recommendations I'll go with an important one. Political Alliances by Agent-G. It's a Naruto and Temari story and is one of the leading inspirations for this fic. It's the first Naruto and Temari story that I read and of course has the political marriage angle as the starting point. It's also actually the only Naruto and Temari arranged marriage fanfiction that's actually finished that I've read and isn't a one shot or something. There might be others but this is the only one I know of.
Once again, thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to more! Like usual, let me know what you think and hope for. Later!