Adopted from Romez

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters provided in the Manga or Anime. Trust me, if I did Sasuke would not have become an emo again.

Dull blue eyes stared out the window in an uninterested fashion. Naruto sighed as he looked outside, watching as the rain fell in an uneven harmony. Rain… it offered a little freedom. The rain delivered him from the constant taunts and jeers and those ugly, malevolent glares the villages threw at him. It freed him from his everyday torture?

Why did it free him?

Because everyone would go inside until the rain stopped. This was a small comforting thought to Naruto, who was abused daily by the villagers. At thirteen, he was already living alone and taking care of himself. He had to. He had no one he could trust or depend on. As much as the rain caused him peace, it also gave him time to think, to dwell on the negative things that have happened throughout his life.

He sighed, as memories surged through his mind like the torrent outside. Flashes of memories appeared before him of him being tortured, of him suffering. He felt something tighten around his chest when he remembered the people who had been friendly… only to end up back-stabbing him. Worse, it had been for 'his own good'. The idea of 'good' was nothing more than a muddled concept in Naruto's mind.

His fists clenched and unclenched as he remembered the cold, abusive words that the villagers yelled at him every damn day. Anger boiled his blood, demanding to exact revenge. But… what good would that do? All the anger faded away from Naruto, leaving a hollow empty shell. He really shouldn't care, he actually didn't care.

As he looked out the window, hearing the soft thumps the rain made on his window, he began to think, 'Wouldn't it be nice if they could just kill me right now?'

A loud knocking was heard, and Naruto turned his head. 'That was quick' He thought with sad amusement. The knocking continued, a little bit more insistent this time. Naruto sighed as he got up from the ledge of the window to go and answer the door. Just a few more steps until he reached the sweet slumber of death.

He opened the door. His eyes widened imperceptibly as he looked down to see dark indigo hair shaking beneath him. "Naruto-kun…" A soft voice said, barely making itself heard over the sound of the rain.

He knew that voice. It was none other than Hyuuga Hinata. But… why was she there? Hinata spoke up again, "N-Naruto-kun…" Her voice was breaking and it wasn't until she looked up to meet his eyes that he found out she was crying. Sympathy grabbed at his heart as he moved out of the way, beckoning Hinata to seek shelter in his apartment.

What happened instead was that Naruto was tackled into the wall behind him by said girl. She held on fervently onto his jacket, as if it was a lifeline. Stunned, Naruto couldn't reply. He just put a hand on her shoulder and just as he was about to say something, he was cut off as sobs emanated from the Hyuuga.

As if things weren't surprising enough, Hinata had let go of him, only to better embrace him. She wrapped her arms around him, still sobbing into his chest. He let cry into his shirt for a few minutes until he was sure she had let out all the tears. Then he asked, "Hinata? What's wrong?"

Hinata's sobs had quieted down, enough for her to regain some of her composure. She let loose the last of her tears as she pulled away to look up at Naruto. The moment was strange, and ironic for the Hyuuga. For most of her life, she had admired the blonde before her. She had been entranced by his words and his bravery. Now, she was standing before him. Not only that, she had cried into his chest and he hadn't said anything. He didn't push her away, didn't humiliate her. Instead, he offered nothing but kindness to her.

After having regained herself, she began, her voice low and sorrowful. "My father…" At that word, her voice clenched, unable to produce any noise. It was just too hard. He'd been so horrible to her. She shut her eyes tightly, thinking that she was just annoying Naruto.

Naruto was a patient person. His mask always let people think he wasn't since he was so active and energetic. But if one had looked closer, they would've realized just how much patience he had. To put up with the villagers, to try and make friends, to never give up; that was quite a feat. But now…

It didn't matter right now because right now, Hinata needed him. "It's alright Hinata. Take your time." Naruto said, soothing Hinata's nerves.

"Thank you Naruto-kun…" She barely whispered. She took a deep breath, trying to steady the quiver in her voice. "M-My father… Naruto. He… He… He disowned me." She bit her lip, her eyes fresh with tears. Tears that she thought she had all used up.

Naruto peered down at her. His heart thudded heavily against his chest. He knew how painful it was to be alone, to have no one care for you. He knew what it was like. Maybe that's why instead of saying anything, he wrapped his hands around her and squeezed her, almost as if he was afraid to let go.

"N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked, a bit startled. This was not to say that she didn't enjoy the sudden embrace. Far from it, she pressed herself even harder against him, taking in the warmth that Naruto seemed to radiate.

"You're alone aren't you?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with understanding.

Hinata's eyes widened momentarily before she nodded. She didn't why, but her slips spoke without her permission as she said, "Yes. Father said that I w-was too weak… he said that I wasn't fit to be a Hyuuga, that I was a disgrace to the name. He told me I was… I was…" Too choked up to continue, she just held onto Naruto for dear life.

Naruto's dim eyes stared beyond her. He stood there in contemplation as he hugged Hinata. He could imagine it. He could imagine Hinata's father doing such a thing, it would explain why Hinata was so quiet, so withdrawn. But now he wondered, did her father hit her? Possibly. He remembered one time he had tried to give Hinata a high-five, only to have her flinch away… rather violently at that.

Naruto's heart burned with anger, and he could feel his heart become wrapped in a cocoon of malice. No one should be subjected to such harsh treatment. Especially not by their own parents! His canines had enlarged as they began to pierce Naruto's tongue, drawing a little blood. But Naruto didn't care. He didn't know why, but he felt that he needed to make Hiashi pay. Yes… he was going to hurt Hiashi. He would end his li…

"Thank you Naruto-kun." Hinata's smooth voice quietly said. Naruto paused in thought, refocusing his attention on the girl he was still embracing.

"Huh?" Naruto asked, his canines having receded by now. Any malicious thought that lingered in his mind was swept away by Hinata's calming voice.

She pulled away from Naruto, but still in their embrace, she said, "Thank you for… for listening to me. Also, thank you for…for… f-for…" Hinata blushed.

"For?" Naruto asked, his eyes now filled with curiosity instead of being empty as they had been earlier.

Hinata's blush now spread from her cheeks to conquer her face. "T-Thank you for h-hugging me a-and letting me cry on your shoulder." She now felt embarrassed. When she had been sad, her nervous nature had been suppressed. Her inhibitions had been hampered and her heart had only told her to seek shelter, the shelter that is called Naruto. But now that her nature wasn't being suppressed, she realized in what position she was in and what she had done to Naruto. His shirt was stained, mostly from her tears, but a little from her own soaked clothing.

Naruto looked at her for a moment… then gave her a small smile. "No problem Hinata. I like to help."

Hinata nodded, her heart beating faster and faster as she realized that she was still hugging Naruto. Suddenly she sneezed.

"Are you alright Hinata?" Naruto asked.

"Y-Yea… I just feel a little cold is all." Hinata said, shivering slightly. It wasn't until now that she realized the extent of how were her clothes actually were.

Naruto noticed too. "You're really wet Hinata. Do you… want to use my bathroom to dry up?"

In response, Hinata nodded. "I would… but I don't have any extra clothing with me."

Naruto gave her a grin. "That's alright, I have extra clothes that you can use… but they might be a little big I think."

Hinata stared at Naruto… and blushed. Her thoughts had images of herself wearing one of Naruto's shirts that were so big, that they reached all the way to her knees. She imagined being able to smell his scent, his fragrance… him.

Stuttering, she replied, "T-Thank you N-Naruto-kun! Are you s-sure?"

"Yea, no problem!" Naruto smiled, feeling a lot better than earlier. Hinata's presence seemed to have lifted his spirits. Maybe it was because he finally met someone who understood, someone whom he could relate to. Whatever it was, he felt glad that Hinata was there.

XXXxxxXXX

Naruto stood, leaning against the kitchen counter as he waited for the ramen cups to finish cooking. He huffed; annoyed that it always took so damn long to cook. It really wasn't instant ramen if he had to wait three minutes. Instant ramen… that was sheer blasphemy! Then he wondered what it would be like to create a ramen jutsu. Would that be instant? Before his mind could continue along this path of thought, he heard a voice call out his name.

"Naruto-kun?" Came Hinata's meek voice.

"Yo Hinata," Naruto said as he turned around, "I made some… some… ra… men…" He turned back around, suddenly having to fight back a blush.

"Are you alright Naruto-kun? Do you have a fever" Hinata asked, suddenly nervous. He had seen him turn slightly red before he had turned around.

"Y-Yea," He reassured her, "I'm just frustrated that it takes so damn long to make instant ramen!" Just as he said it, the timer beeped, indicating that the meal was ready to be eaten.

Hinata smiled. She watched him for a moment. She watched as he took out the steaming cups with his bare hands. She was surprised because most people would flinch and pull away from such heat. But here was Naruto, doing it and seemingly not feeling any pain. She saw as he gestured towards her, asking her to sit down. She complied. She walked towards him, but she had to pull up Naruto's pajama pants. They kept slipping. They were too large on her slender figure, but she would manage. As long as she didn't slip, everything would be okay.

She made it to the chair and sat down. She noted that Naruto had waited for her to sit down, which caused her to blush. "Itadakimasu!" She heard Naruto yell before he broke his chopsticks and started to dig in.

She mimicked him, but at her own and less sloppy pace. She gave a small "Itadakimasu." Before she too began to eat.

Not two minutes passed before Naruto had set down his cup, sighing. "Man… that was good! Did you like it Hinata?"

Hinata nodded. "I liked it Naruto, it's actually very tasty."

Naruto smiled, and then blushed. His large shirt was barely hanging unto her frame. Not only that, but she had leaned forward to blow on her food to cool it down, which gave him a decent view of what was underneath that shirt.

So, being the gentleman he was, he looked away. But… being a man, his eyes slowly traced their way back to what had captured their interest… then they looked away again. His heart started pulsing rapidly and Naruto could feel the blood flow through his veins.

'No, damnit! I'm not Ero-Sennin!' Naruto thought, trying to fight sudden images of Hinata in… provocative positions.

Naruto slowly looked back, only to be captured in Hinata's stare. "Are you sure you're alright Naruto-kun? You're turning red." Hinata asked with worry in her voice. She thought that maybe she had gotten Naruto sick because she had gotten him wet. Oh the irony…

"I-I'm fine!" Naruto reassured, "Anyways, where are you going to stay?"

Naruto wished he hadn't said that. Hinata's eyes had regained their downcast look from earlier. "I… I don't know." Hinata replied as she began to wonder where to go.

Naruto scratched his head, thinking deeply. Then, he said the first thing that came to his head. "You wanna sleep with me?"

Time seemed to freeze as Naruto noticed Hinata's shocked look. Then, replaying his words in his mind, he realized the folly of his statement.

Getting up, he waved his hands as he frantically yelled, "I-I didn't mean it like that! All I meant w-was if you'd like to, you could stay here with me… not WITH me… but… here… Ahh!"

Naruto sat down in his chair again, feeling thoroughly embarrassed for once in his life. He was sure Hinata would think of him as some pervert, as some man who just wanted to use her. How else could she interpret those words? At the moment, Naruto felt like an idiot.

"Really? I would appreciate it." Came Hinata's reply.

"Huh?" Naruto asked, wondering if he had heard right.

Hinata blushed slightly. "I-I would like to stay here, if you don't mind. I have nowhere else to go."

"You don't think I'm a pervert?" Naruto asked, amazed.

Hinata gave him a puzzled look. "Why would I?"

"Because of… of what I said…" Naruto wondered that maybe she might not understand. But once she did, he thought she would surely think of him as a pervert.

"Oh… to tell you the truth, I was a bit shocked." Naruto hung his head in shame, knowing what Hinata would say next, "No one had ever been so kind to me, so I was shocked… speechless. Thank you Naruto-kun" Looks like Naruto had guessed wrong.

One word came to Naruto's mind that perfectly described Hinata: Innocent. But Naruto let out a relieved sigh. This meant that nothing strange would happen and he wouldn't get in trouble. Naruto mentally frowned. For some reason, he felt dirty.

A small, cute noise was suddenly heard. Naruto looked up to see Hinata yawning. For some reason, Naruto couldn't help but smile at that. It looked… cute. Then, he yawned. Both of them gave a small laugh at this.

"I guess we're both tired." Naruto said.

"I guess we are." Hinata agreed, giving Naruto a small smile.

"I guess we better hit the hay then." Naruto said as he got up and proceeded to his bedroom, forgetting about Hinata's sleeping arrangements. Hinata merely followed.

Naruto snuck underneath the covers, not changing because he had already been in his pajamas when Hinata had arrived. Plus, he was too lazy to change since his clothes had dried up plenty with the amount of time that had passed. As he snuggled in, he closed his eyes… only to feel something wriggle next to him.

He turned his head to the right… and saw Hinata staring right at him. He blinked. "Hinata… what are you doing here?" Currently, his mind was going through a process known as brain failure. This happened when something so unexpected happens, that your brain can't help but shut down momentarily.

"Sleeping… with Naruto… kun…" Hinata said as her tired mind lost itself to needed rest.

"No… it's just…" But before Naruto could reply, Hinata had already fallen asleep. "It's just… men and women don't sleep together on the same bed unless they're lovers…" He finished.

Naruto looked at her, and then shrugged. It's not like he was a pervert, so it was all okay. His eyes suddenly became heavy as his mind started losing consciousness. But not before he noticed something. Hinata had snuggled closer to Naruto so that his chin pressed against the top of her head.

"Naruto-kun…" She whispered in her sleep, sending a small chill down Naruto's spine.

He embraced her, causing her to let out a peaceful sigh. He couldn't help but chuckle. Hyuuga Hinata really was an innocent girl. For a moment, as he embraced her, he took in her wondrous scent. She really did smell nice. Finally, as his mind relaxed, he began to lose himself to the unconsciousness called sleep.

AN: Well that's chapter one. would I just leave you with one Chapter to bite at? OF COURSE....not. I have chapter two already up, just look down and to the right.