So, whatever, people, I'm makin a story and stuff, so... well whatever. Review and stuff. Peace.

Uzumaki Naruto was bored out of his skull. Granny Tsunade had sent him on some boring mission with Hyuuga Hinata to investigate a reported disturbance just south of Konoha village. So far, they had circled the area once and found nothing. Hinata had requested in her awkward stutter-y way that they go around just once more, and though the idea of orbiting around a square mile of boring stupid land wasn't particularly inviting to Naruto, he always made sure to honor anything Hinata asked or said, if for no other reason than to encourage the shy girl to speak.

He glanced at his friend. She was really pretty cute. Beautiful, in fact, but her shyness always distanced her from the guys. Naruto suspected that Kiba had a thing for her, but wasn't absolutely sure. Hinata always acted different around him, either extra-shy or unusually bold. He didn't understand it, but hey, a lot of people seemed to catch his determined spirit, so he thought nothing of it.

All of a sudden, an explosion shook the whole area. Naruto saw Hinata stumble, and in a flash was beside her, catching her as she fell. He helped her up, not noticing her deep blush.

"Hinata, are you okay?"

She nodded, and they were abut to find the cause of the explosion when the cause found them.

Barreling towards them was a giant creature unlike Naruto had ever seen. And the creature seemed to be headed... straight... for... them. Naruto's first thought was to protect Hinata. Stepping in front of her, he formed a Kage Bunshin seal. A single clone appeared next to him.

"Hinata-chan, stand back," the clone ordered gently. She could only nod.

The person dashed at them, then all of a sudden disappeared. Naruto redirected his attention to the giant beast in front of him. Naruto extended his hand, focusing his energy. The creature had now decided that Naruto and Hinata looked like better targets than one person. It charged, letting out a roar that felt like a hot gust of wind. But Naruto didn't flinch. His clone began spinning the energy that Naruto had focused in his palm. It soon turned into a glowing blue orb. The creature was coming closer... closer... almost in range...

"RASENGAN!!!" Naruto thrust the chakra sphere into the gaping maw of the monster. The force of the collision sent waves of pain through his ram, but he pressed on. The beast resisted, but eventually Naruto's signature technique won out. The monster disintegrated, leaving Naruto confused and Hinata paralyzed in shock.

"Hinata? You okay?" She shook herself out of the trance.

"H-hai."

Naruto's tense muscles relaxed. "I'm glad that's over."

He spoke too soon. As he ended the sentence, several more of the creatures appeared out of nowhere. He and Hinata stood back to back, ready to fight. The beasts attacked. The two were a blur, gentle fist and Kage Bunshin left and right. They made a good combo, but the creatures seemed endless.

"Hinata," Naruto panted. "We need to retreat. There's too many. These things are too strong... we need to regroup."

She nodded. "But how?"

"I'm going to use my rasengan to clear a path. As soon as it's clear, run through. I'll be right behind you."

Naruto created a chakra ball once more. "RASENGAN!"

Hinata dashed through the opening, followed by Naruto, fending off the whatever-they-weres so Hinata could get out. Hinata glanced back to see a monster sneak up behind Naruto. The world moved in slow motion. Without thinking, she dove towards the blond-haired teen, knocking him out of the way. She, unfortunately, was crushed by the monster's barrel fist.

Naruto stared in shock at what had just happened. He screamed Hinata's name, but it felt like no sound was coming out. Perhaps no audible sound could express all the emotions he felt at that time. He only saw Hinata. Hinata at the academy, shy as ever; Hinata on missions. Hinata at the Chuunin Exams, offering him ointment. Him rooting her on; the courage she gained from it. Them talking before the final round. All the awkward moments between them. All of it came rushing back to him.

"HiinaaataAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!" He felt the Nine-tails's chakra course through him, strengthening him and healing his wounds.

"You will pay for this..." His teeth sharpened to fangs, his fingernails becoming claws. His vision warped, and increased greatly. He could smell the monsters from there. It was a disgusting, filthy smell.

The monster that had hit Hinata charged. So did Naruto. WHAM!!!!! His punch connected solidly with the creature's jaw, sending it flying in to a rock, where it disintegrated. The others advanced, but one roar was enough to send them scurrying into the woods. Naruto felt the Fox's chakra recede back into the seal in his stomach, and he suddenly was exhausted. He fell to his knees, and his vision began to fade to blackness.

"Hinata...-chan..." Naruto collapsed next to her.

When Naruto woke up, his head was still throbbing. It was then he realized where he was. Lying in Hinata's lap. He shifted, alerting Hinata to his regaining of consciousness.

"N-naruto-kun!" she stammered. "I'm sorry. I-"

"No, it's okay," he said, rolling over to look at her. "Some day, huh?"

She giggled. Naruto had never heard her giggle before. He decided immediately he liked the sound.

"Naruto-kun, it's three days later."

"Three days?" He tried to recall what had happened.

Then he remembered his newfound crush on Hinata. How was he supposed to tell her? He wanted to as soon as possible; his feelings were incredibly strong all of a sudden, and he didn't know if he could contain himself.

"Hinata..." He changed his mind at the last second, and looked for something else to say.

"Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"Um, how are you not injured?"

She looked away. "I don't know... I-I woke up, just for a second, and remember touching your hand as we lay there. It glowed red, and the red flowed into me. I blacked out again, and when I woke up, I was healed." She looked back to Naruto. "What was that red stuff?"

It was Naruto's turn to lie. "I don't know." He hated to lie, but he couldn't let anyone know about the Fox. Still, how had the red chakra healed Hinata? It wasn't compatible with anyone but him.

"Hey, Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"There's something that's been bugging me for a while."

Naruto glanced questioningly at Hinata. "What is it?"

"I-I think I... have..." Hinata took a deep breath, like saying it was difficult. "Naruto-kun, I... think I'm..."

Naruto was confused. "You're what?"

"Naruto-kun, I-I'm in love with you!" she burst out. Naruto stared in shock. She's been in love with me? For how long? How did I not notice?

"Ever since the Academy I've loved you. You were always so... different, so noticeable. You were always happy, and made me feel happy being around you. I wanted you to feel the same." Hinata couldn't believe the words that were coming out of her own mouth.

"Hinata..." Naruto looked into her eyes. They were strangely beautiful, with their lovely lavender irises and no pupils. It's like they were whole worlds, endless beauty. He was getting lost in them. He barely noticed their faces getting closer. There was almost no space between them, then none at all.

"Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered, barely believing what was happening. Their lips touched. Hinata could've sworn she was flying.

Finally they had to pull apart. Hinata gasped, realizing that at some point during their kiss she'd forgotten she needed to breath.

"Hinata, I love you too." Naruto's sparkling blue eyes blocked out everything but him. Words couldn't describe how happy Hinata was. She tried to speak, but ended up just kissing him again. Once again, they had to break apart so Hinata could regain her ability to inhale.

"You're going to have to work on that," Naruto teased. Hinata collapsed against his chest, listening to his heart beat, feeling the steady rise and fall of his chest. She had never felt so full of energy or completely peaceful at the same time. It was exhilarating and exhausting. Naruto rested his head on hers, kissing her gently and inhaling the scent of her hair. They stayed like this for some time, in absolute silence, a part of them still trying to comprehend what had just happened.

At long last, Naruto lifted his head. "Hinata-chan, we should go back to the village before they start to worry."

"You're right," she agreed. But then another thought struck her. "Naruto-kun, how do we tell the others? They might not understand. And Father really doesn't like you."

Naruto remembered how Hiashi had shunned him because of the Fox. The man hadn't said that was the reason but Naruto could see it in his eyes. The hatred he'd been scourged with all his life.

"We'll have to make him understand somehow."

She hugged him tight. "I don't want to leave you again! I know! We can run away!"

"Run away?" Naruto seemed uncertain.

"Of course! Nobody can oppose our decision then." Hinata's mind was twisted with love. She didn't realize the possible risks of her suggestion.

Unfortunately, neither did Naruto.

"That's a great idea!" he said. "Let's do it. We need to leave quickly, though, before they start searching for us."

The two lovers gathered some supplies and set off, not even looking back.

So, that's the prologue. Read and Review, thanks!