Aftermath - 4

Three Days Later

Kurenai could honestly say she had never been brought out to a nice restaurant before by a younger man…especially a man who was twelve and kept snapping pictures of unwilling people on the way there.

They were seated at a small table out in front of the establishment, out in the sunlight. Kurenai frowned at him as he fiddled with his camera, "Sato, may I ask what this is all about?"

"I'll tell it to you straight, sensei," The young Hatake caved, "This isn't a date."

"If it had been you would have regretted it." She warned. She would've happily smacked him back to his senses.

"You see, I've been having trouble with a technique I've been working on..." Sato explained, his dark eyes shifting nervously about the place.

Kurenai could tell something serious was afoot, "What is the nature of this problem?" As his mentor it was her ritual duty to spare him from certain destruction.

As an answer, the silver haired boy handed her a photograph which she took from him with a questioning look.

After a moment, she frowned at him, "Sato, this is a picture of the Academy with no roof."

"Whoops! Wrong one!" He took it from her and riffled around through a small pouch of other pictures he kept on hand. Sato handed her a different photo, this time certain it would explain his query.

The waiter stopped by while she inspected the picture, so Sato took the liberty of ordering for the both of them, "Coffee for me please and...shochu on the rocks for my sensei here."

The man taking his order frowned at him, taking him for a punk-ass kid, "That's a bit strong don't you think?"

"Not for my sensei!" He had confidence in Kurenai or at least in her tolerance of alcohol.

Astounded and slightly insulted, the waiter left, muttering to himself in irritation.

After a long moment, Kurenai looked up at her pupil, "I've determined that this photograph clarifies nothing."

Sato grinned at her, "Aw, but you know a picture says a thousand words!"

Her glare silenced him.

The boy sighed heavily, deciding to get to the root of the matter, "Sensei, I took that picture a mile away from her!"

Kurenai's ruby eyes widened in understanding, "I see your point..."

"It's like this sensei," Sato began, looking a bit distressed, "I never met my dad, but mom refused to get rid of his stuff after he died..."

The waiter returned with their drinks and set them down.

"I see." Kurenai nodded, "That explains where you got this summoning contract from. It is not typical of the Hatake family."

"Yeah well...the boss that my old man originally called died two days ago apparently," A nervous look came over his pale face, "The new boss, if I get around to summoning her that is...I don't know if she'll tolerate me or if any of the others for that matter."

"That is problematic." Kurenai answered darkly, "There is only one way for you to find out with certainty..."

Sato frowned, "I'm serious sensei! A new leader of the flock might make my contract invalid. I mean, it's all the way from Hidden Dragonfly...it's not like I can renew it or something."

The waiter returned and set their drinks down without a word.

"Why did you come to me with a dilemma such as this then?" Kurenai could name another silver haired nin who'd be able to relate to Sato, "How am I supposed to help you?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure how to talk to a girl-leader..." He admitted, sheepishly, "I was hoping you could help me out!"

If it was something that basic he had a lot to work on. She was flattered that he considered her the foremost female authority he knew.

"Sato, I'm not so sure about this particular situation." She muttered, weighing the prospects, "It doesn't look too good. I can supervise you during your appeal to the new leader, however I cannot guarantee you won't be harmed."

Kurenai took a proprietary sip of her drink, ignoring Sato's horrified face.

*

When Naruto had woke up the following morning both Haku and Gaara were gone. It was something he was getting used to, they had different agendas after all: Gaara reconnecting with his siblings and Haku...well, he wasn't so sure what Haku was up to.

After dressing and a delightful breakfast of ramen Naruto set out for the Hyuga compound. He had been told Hinata had been discharged from the hospital perfectly healthy, but he felt it would be a good idea to see for himself.

Not many of the white-eyed people were about the estate that day, he had noticed after jumping the wall and entering. What that indicated he didn't know, and Naruto had made a bee-line to Hinata's bedroom window which had been left open.

"Hey! Hinata-chan! You're feeling better?"

She wasn't present. He frowned, plotting the next course he should take in order to locate her. Naruto by now had a thorough cognitive map of the estate in his head.

Out on a nearby porch, he noticed Hanabi, who wasn't nearly so pleased to see him, "Yo! Hinata's sister!" That certainly got her attention, "Where's Hinata-chan?"

With a sigh of irritation, she responded, "She is on the Eastern side of the grounds and my name is Hanabi, you fool."

"Er, right. Sorry!"

He moved across the sunny lawn, hands jammed into his pockets, 'I wonder...maybe Neji's around here?' It had occurred to Naruto that encountering his opponent before the final match would be terribly awkward, especially with the fact that the only thing he could think to do once he saw Hinata's cousin was to beat him upside the head.

Naruto kept a wary eye open for the Hyuga prodigy, 'I'll beat him! I will! He can't go around thinking that it's alright to just bulldoze everyone in your path...he's got to learn to compromise just like me, Gaara and Haku have.'

He bumped headlong into someone, too deep in his own thoughts to see where he was going. Hiashi turned around to face him, annoyed, giving him an inquiring expression.

"Whoa, Hyuga-sama! I didn't see you there!" Naruto had been told countless times by Haku to address Hinata's father properly and now it was second nature, even if it came out a bit goofy.

"Is there something you need, Uzumaki-san?" The clan head had grown startlingly tolerant of Naruto.

The blonde boy paused in thought, "No, I'm good. I'm just looking for Hinata-chan!"

"Of course." Hiashi walked away, not very interested.

Naruto continued on noting that, as of recently, that was the most Hiashi had spoken to him. He couldn't tell if the clan head was stingy simply because of his knowledge of him being the Kyuubi container or if he needed better people skills. It could have quite possibly been a bit of both.

As Hanabi had instructed, the Eastern garden had occupants. The blonde boy was momentarily startled by the presence of his jounin sensei standing nearby as Hinata tossed feed into the koi pond, answering his questions.

Naruto exploded onto the scene, attacking Jiraiya and he was easily evaded. He had surprised the pale-eyed girl, "Grr! What the hell do you think you're doing here, Ero-sensei!"

The toad sage raised his eyebrows, "So you finally showed up, Naruto! And what's with that hostile tone, eh? Just visiting is all," He frowned at the blonde nin, "Princess here has begun to use Shadow Clones, I hear. It's a bit dangerous don't you think?"

Oh crap. He had forgotten about that.

He decided to play dumb and grinned, "Yeah! How about that?"

Hinata's face was very, adorably red.

Jiraiya pulled Naruto by the ear, leaning in close so he could whisper, "That is a jounin-level technique! If she gets hurt while using it, you know who to blame, right?"

Naruto nodded, frustrated, but he also understood Hinata needed training and discipline to master the jutsu.

"I've said my piece." Jiraiya announced, drawing out his pipe. He waved goodbye to Hinata before he had left.

Naruto had wondered if there had been a double-meaning, perhaps, in his sensei's method of communication, 'Oh whatever! He's just being a crazy, old pervert again.'

Hinata's smile was meant to be welcoming, but it was sad and frail. It was upsetting him immensely and he wished that she'd do away with it. Naruto swallowed before he spoke, "Hey Hinata-chan, how are you feeling?"

She hadn't the ability to lie about her current state, but she could delay the subject, if only a little, "I...I would like to be somewhere else right now."

His blue eyes softened. He could fix that; he just needed to know how, "Sure! Where do want to go?"

"Somewhere far away f-from here..."

Naruto nodded, "You got it! Just follow me. I know this place, well...you'll see."

She hadn't once questioned him on their way to the Hokage monument, even if it had been a slightly longer trip with a companion by his side. Naruto had settled in his usual spot overlooking the village and Hinata sat down beside him, very quiet and very bemused.

Hinata had, being the attentive girl she was, noticed which Hokage's head they were roosted on. She made no comment about it and gazed out over the city below, hoping she wouldn't cry.

She had missed him so much and it was slightly overwhelming that he had rescued her from the intolerable stiffness of the Hyuga compound. He broke the silence, even if it had been peaceful; it needed to be done.

"Is...everything going to be alright with your family?"

She shook her head. Her smile was gone, "My father is...so upset w-with me...I knew h-he would be, but still...there was a chance that I could have made him p-proud. I thought m-maybe..."

"Hinata-chan, I told you, I'm going to help you!" Naruto wouldn't stand for it, "I'll make Neji and your dad come to their senses! They just don't get it!"

"I just don't know anymore..." Hinata was uncertain and her faith had been shaken since her match.

It was quiet after that and Naruto waited for her voice to return so she would pour out all of her worries for him to hear, just like Gaara and Haku would when they were frustrated. But it never happened. Her silence was chilling and he could feel the pain and effort it took for her to keep all of her thoughts bottled up inside.

He would wait. It didn't matter to him how long it took. He believed in her and was sure she had yet to bloom.

"I think that the only way I can help you is if...you help me a bit first," Naruto scratched his arm, thinking of what to say, "What I mean is...you'll have to put me through the ropes of Gentle Fist and stuff if I'm gonna pound Neji, you know? I've seen you and you're..."

'Amazing.' He thought.

It was strange how he never said the word but she had still heard it, somehow.

She refused to let him down. He was the last person on earth that she would abandon, "I'll do my best to h-help you, Naruto-kun. I can get you prepared, but..." Her voice lowered, "You will have to look after Gaara-kun and Haku-kun as well. They need you too to prepare for the tournament."

Hinata rubbed absently at her eyes. They were hurting again.

Naruto had noticed, "Hey, you feeling a bit sleepy? We can go back if you want."

"N-No, I just...I'm not tired." She didn't elaborate further so he let it go.

After a long moment he chuckled, "Heh...Ero-sensei didn't know I taught you how to make Shadow Clones. I guess I surprised him! Well, you surprised him. It's a jutsu not many people can do you know."

A small smile appeared on her lips, it was getting easier for her to remember how, "He stopped by and said that you probably shouldn't have showed me, b-but...he was proud of me." Her smile brightened, "It made me happy that he was pleased."

Naruto could understand her reasoning. Her father was almost never pleased with her, so she must have been glad at least Jiraiya had seen potential in her. It was a start.

"Yeah, and I bet your sensei is proud of you too, right?" He couldn't help but add to the idea.

Hinata hugged her knees to her chest, nodding, "Yes, you're right...Kurenai-sensei was glad too."

"You're getting stronger, I told you," Naruto glanced over to her, smiling, "The only person who has a hard time believing that is you."

Color returned to her cheeks and she changed the subject, "When you came to see me at the hospital...you said that you m-met Gaara-kun's brother and sister. You never told me what they were like."

"Oh yeah! That's right!" Naruto nodded, remembering the news from days earlier, "Overall, they're mostly just like he is! Except that they live in the Sand village," He smirked at the thought, "Come to think of it...he hangs out with them a lot. I can see why. I've got to say, I liked them!"