Heeeyaa, buuuudsss. Howya doing...?

Yeah, uh, this is a fic about Konohamaru and Hanabi. It's not exactly romantic, just sort of...a picker-upper...? Whatever. It's just a oneshot. I hope you like it.

The young Hyuuga genin struck out at the tree, yelling out a cry of frustration and disappointment. (And if you assumed I was talking about Hinata, congratulations. You just made Hanabi's day even worse.) All she ever heard about lately was Hinata, Hinata, and more Hinata. How had this happened? There had been such a long time of no growth for the other girl that Hanabi had assumed that her sister had finally reached her limit.

But then that boy came back to Konoha. That loudmouth Uzumaki Naruto. Suddenly, Hinata was a different person, training harder and longer, pushing her limits farther than previously possible. Rather than giving in when she hit the floor, she would pick herself up again and keep going. She was getting strong.

And suddenly—okay, six months isn't sudden, but you get my point—Hinata was the heiress again, and Hanabi was the beginning of just another Branch Family. Just another Caged Bird. Everyone had assumed that the cruel curse-marking had ended with Neji's battle with the heiress-forming Uzumaki, but obviously the Hyuuga Elders had different ideas. Byakugan had to be protected, after all. So today, Hyuuga Hanabi had that despised green mark tattooed on her brow.

Her father had been hurt by this. For some reason, Hiashi had invariably assumed that neither of his precious daughters would be subjected to such humiliation and pain. He'd thought he could protect them.

Damn those Hyuuga Elders.

Hanabi refused to wrap up her wound, though, deciding to wear her Konoha headband around her neck like Hinata always had. She wouldn't hide herself like so many before her. She would dedicate her life to fulfilling her pre-chosen purpose, and would not hold a grudge against her love-empowered sister.

At least that's what Hanabi told herself. In truth, she was seeing red. She was supposed to be the Hyuuga heiress! Her father had said so himself! For a few too-short years, she was Hanabi-sama, not Hanabi-chan. She had surpassed her own older sister and did not want that to be taken away just because—

"Oi, Moegi-chan, Udon-kun! I'm gonna head home! See ya tomorrow! Oyasumi!"

"Oyasumi, Konohamaru- kun!"

Hanabi's furious thoughts were interrupted by the three loud voices, so she looked up to see a brown-haired genin from her Academy Class passing by the training ground. She'd never really paid much attention to this particular boy, except for when she had learned of his status as the Honorable Grandson of the Third Hokage. She'd been interested in him for maybe two minutes, but she forgot about him as soon as Iruka-sensei's next lesson started up. And then of course she'd noticed how the usually boisterous troublemaker had quieted down around the time of his grandfather's death. Hanabi had been human enough to miss his annoying voice in the background of all her thoughts, and to mourn over his loss quietly from the recesses of her mind…

But other than that, the Honorable Grandson was a stranger to her, and not worth her time. She averted her attention back to the tree in front of her, remembering as she looked at the damaged wood why she was out here to begin with. She could feel the chakra flowing through her veins, the pent-up rage flowing through her mind, and the hot, disgusted tears flowing down her face. She focused the chakra into her hands, but her unruly emotions made it impossible to control. Letting out a frustrated growl, she thrust her hand out towards the wood in front of her, trying to release the chakra in a way that didn't include blowing up her hand.

Bad idea. Newton's Third Law, after all. The force of her released chakra sent her flying backwards. She hit her head upon landing, which sent her flipping to her stomach, completely knocking the wind out of her. Feeling quite broken and embarrassed, Hanabi commenced in silently weeping, burying her face in the ground. Her green wound stung a little, as if trying to remind her that she was a Hyuuga, and should not wallow in the dirt like this. But she didn't care. She just pressed her forehead to her hand as if to block the pain on its way out.

"Hey, girl!"

Ugh. Hanabi squeezed her eyes closed, and her hand curled up into a fist. She'd forgotten all about the Honorable Grandson, and hadn't considered the possibility that he would stick around and watch her.

"Hey, are you alright?!"

His voice was closer now. Right by her ear. She lifted her head to find herself an inch away from the face of the Honorable Grandson. With a yelp, she jumped up and did a back-flip, landing on her haunches, five feet away from the newcomer.

He watched her with awe, and smiled. "WOW! That was so COOL! I guess you are okay!" He grinned sheepishly, and then put a hand to the back of his neck. Hanabi's eyes widened at the very Naruto-like position and expression. "You see, eh, I thought you were unconscious or something. Either that or you'd snapped your neck when you landed like that, and you were, ahem, dead." He tapped the top of his spiky head.

"I'm fine," she replied curtly, flopping onto her bum, criss-crossing her thin legs.

He watched her with intent eyes, looking for bleeding or signs of a concussion. "You're really strong, aren't you?!" He pointed behind him to her training tree—or lack thereof. Hanabi looked past him to see that there was no more tree. Just splinters.

"I like to think so," she muttered, wondering what she was doing, talking to this boy when she really should be off punishing some other tree with her disappointment.

"Hey, what's that thing?" He pointed to her face.

She blinked at him, having not the slightest intention of replying.

"You know, that green mark on your forehead…?" He crawled towards her on his hands and knees, and stopped when their faces were about a foot apart. He crouched in front of her, supporting himself with his toes. Before Hanabi could think of what to do, he poked her curse mark.

Her wound sizzled under his touch, and she had to chew on her lip to avoid biting his grimy finger off.

"I don't want to talk about it," she growled, slapping his finger away. He rocked backwards, and landed heavily on his butt.

He cocked his head to the side, meeting her gaze evenly. He usually would have yelled at her to be more polite to people she didn't know, but her damp cheeks pulled at his sympathy. So he switched to the other side of the spectrum and grinned hugely. "Okay. It doesn't matter anyways."

She gaped at him. What was he talking about? Didn't matter? Of course it did… At least it did to the Hyuuga Clan. Why not to the Honorable Grandson…?

He was still talking, of course. "Hey, you look really familiar. Your eyes, at least…your face, not really, sorta, but not really…But your eyes are SUPER familiar. You know what?!"

She stared silently at him, mentally calculating how long it would take for him to get bored and go away. But the sweet innocence in his dark-eyed gaze made her realize that he was completely expecting a response, so she half-heartedly raised and dropped her skinny shoulders and mumbled, "Nani?"

He smiled, strangely proud of the fact that she had spoken for him. "You look just like my Boss's girlfriend! Except your hair is darker…Hey, do you know Hyuuga Hinata?!"

Hanabi's curse mark burned at the name, and automatic, unwilling thoughts forcefully coursed through the girl's head. Protect her. Defend her. Be willing to give your life for her. The Main Branch is your Main Priority. Remember this, Hanabi-chan.

"I should. She's my nee-chan."

It was the Honorable Grandson's turn to gape.

"Really?"

"Hai. Hyuuga Hanabi, at your service."

"Hanabi…? Hey, I know you! You were in my class at the Ninja Academy!"

"I know that. You're the Honorable Grandson of the Third Hokage, Konohamaru-sama."

The genin's cheerful face uncharacteristically darkened. "No. I'm not Konohamaru-sama. If you're going to call me anything, call me Konohamaru-kun, or san, or even just Konohamaru. Anything but sama."

Hanabi stared at him. "You don't want…you don't like sama?" How odd. She would've given anything just to be called Hanabi-sama.

He shook his head. "Nope. I haven't earned that suffix yet," he said sagely.

"But you're the Honor—"

He silenced her with a wave of his hand. "You shouldn't get honor because of who your parents or grandparents were. Honor is—or should be—based on who you are, what you do. When I succeed Naruto-nii-san as Hokage, then you can call me Konohamaru-sama."

"But Naruto isn't Hokage…"

"He will be."

His voice left no room for disagreement, so she nodded. She'd been getting the same thing from Hinata anyways…

"And besides, you're just a rookie genin, like me."

He grinned widely, somehow still maintaining the sagacious look in his eye. "Who says I'll be a genin forever?"

"Nobody, but…you're reaching kind of high. You shouldn't get your hopes up so high. It'll only cause huge disappointments." Don't be like me, Konohamaru-kun. Someone like you shouldn't have your dreams crushed like mine were.

Konohamaru got a strangely serious look on his face, and for a moment, Hanabi could tell that he really was the grandson of the Sandaime. "You know the founders of Konoha, the First and Second Hokages…? Well, at one point, they were our age, too. Just a couple of snot-nosed brats with high hopes. And well…we wouldn't have Konohagakure if those couple of kids didn't reach high. Yeah?"

He met her gaze, and then gave her a crinkly-eyed, toothy grin, falling out of his stony-faced façade.

She stared at him, open-mouthed and wide-eyed. This boy, this loudmouth troublemaker, was lecturing her about Hokages? Hyuuga Hanabi? But if that was strange enough…Hanabi didn't mind. Something about his undying cheerfulness drew her in; maybe it was how he seemed to see the world differently than anyone in the Hyuuga Complex did. Whenever she thought of Hokages, she pictured adults, strong and mature. Not one time in all of her twelve years of life had she pictured a child.

But this boy, this Konohamaru, he was different.

Maybe this is what Hinata saw in her Naruto.

Hanabi suddenly stood. Konohamaru followed suit, his interest piqued by the steady determination in her pale, usually unreadable eyes.

She stuck out her hand, scowling in a way that wasn't exactly unpleasant…just serious. Stoic. She furrowed her delicate eyebrows to show that her next words were deathly important. "Konohamaru-kun, I want you to be my comrade!"

Konohamaru looked into her eyes and knew instinctively that comrade was just her word for friend. "Aw, I was going to say that," he giggled, grabbing her hand and squeezing it reassuringly. He looked her squarely in the eye. "Now that we're friends, Hanabi-chan, you've got to understand something."

She blinked for a couple of seconds. "What is it, Konohamaru-kun?"

He laughed grandly, squeezing her hand again. "You gotta understand that I'll always be there for you. Always, okay?"

She let go of his hand and put hers on her hips. "That's quite a promise. Are you sure you can keep a promise like that?"

Konohamaru crossed his arms over his chest. "If I've learned anything from the Boss, it's that a shinobi always has to keep his promises, and has to be ready to put the lives of his comrades before his own. That's my promise, and of course I'll keep it!"

Hanabi stared at him in awe. This boy was so impulsive, yet so sincere at the same time. He had just promised to protect her with his life, and by the look in his eye he meant it. What kind of kid was this?

The good kind.

For the first time since she was a small child, Hanabi let loose a small, sweet smile. "I'll protect you, too, Konohamaru-kun. I keep my promises, as well!"

The genin grinned at his newfound friend. "Yatta!" he shouted, throwing his fists into the air, the action nearly causing the Hyuuga kunoichi to giggle.

Konohamaru looked up at the darkening sky. "Well, I should probably head home now, Hanabi-chan." He smirked wickedly, and then flicked her tattooed forehead. Then he froze, seeming to notice something. He reached towards her face, and then wiped her right cheek with the backside of his hand. He looked at the tears on his hand for a moment, and then wiped off the left side of her face.

"There," he said proudly, gently. "You look way prettier when your face is dry!"

And then Hyuuga Hanabi blushed for the first time in her short life.

He grinned, and then ran off, yelling a too-loud, "Ja, Hanabi-chan!"

"Ja na!" she shouted back, smiling widely. Her shoulders seemed lighter than usual, and her breathing was suddenly easy, as if a heavy vest had been taken off of her. She felt an odd warmth building up just under her skin. It made her want to…do anything, really. Sing. Dance. Laugh.

Happiness, she decided. She was really, genuinely happy.

"Konohamaru-kun," she whispered. "I'm going to reach high, too." She touched her green wound and giggled slightly. "I won't let something like this keep me from being great. I'll show you."

After all, she had been the Hyuuga heiress, even if only temporarily, acting as a placeholder as the true heiress found her strength. Hanabi had earned a small amount of greatness once—she would do it again. Only now, she wouldn't be bound by titles.

Thank you, Konohamaru-kun.

Hahahaha!! Pointless and cheesy, as always with my fics! I hope you weren't bored to tears! Not really my best work, but i hope you guys liked it anyways.

Well, neither of these characters get a lot of recognition, and neither does this couple, so i thought i might as well try to develop them a bit to my liking...

By the by, i know full-well that Konohamaru is older than Hanabi, and i actually have no knowledge of how the whole heiress thing works. I just remember a flashback where Hiashi was talking about how Hanabi would be more fit to lead the Clan than Hinata, and it stuck with me, even if it's totally inaccurate.

Much ai to all readers and/or reveiwers. Ja na!

Miyazaki A2