zumaki Naruto seemed to be a traced state as he stared into Hinata's eyes. A light pink colour had began to creep on the girl's face and ears. What could he be so transfixed on? Subconsciously, she fidgeted with her hands as she said "Naruto? Is there something on my face?"

The blonde snapped out of it with a sheepish smile. I can't believe she caught me STARING. In his mind, all he wanted to do was shove his head into a wall. "Hahaha sorry, I just umm thought of something." Seeing Hinata's concerned expression change into a sweet smile melted something in side him. It was like she was the sweetness in the every much bittersweet postwar era they were living through right now.

"Oh, that's okay. Anyway, what were you curious about?"

Palms growing sweaty and his knees were very much feeling like spaghetti. All of a sudden he felt shy talking. Self conscious, as if he might say the wrong thing. "Ne, umm, Shikamaru's great isn't he?"

"Yeah, he's really reliable and knows how to defuse stressful situations while remaining calm. I admire his ability to figure out strategies with time crunching. I think he's a powerful ninja as he doesn't relay on brute strength." Hinata truly held deep respect for every member in Konoha 11 and Sasuke. She had watched them all grow and master their styles and she simply adored them for it. Shikamaru was someone who she looked up to as she hoped that one day she would also find balance in her battle style.

Seeing the bright smile that played on the Hyuga's face welcomed a stinging sensation into Naruto chest cavity. Seeing her smile so sweetly and knowing that it was for another man made his chest fell hollow. "I agree, he's a pretty remarkable ninja. He's good with kids as well, basically the perfect man right?" That felt a bitter taste in my mouth more than I had thought, the blonde thought.

The kunoichi let out a small giggle. Though he was a remarkable man on the battle field, only one woman could put up with his aloof and lazy side. Only the fan wielding woman of the Suna with sandy blonde hair and emerald green eyes could. Hinata simply enjoyed watching the two interact as they both showcased small things to one another that not the everyday person would see, in fact she was lucky to stumble upon one of their dates in a small clearing in the forest. Hinata wished she could share such a beautiful thing with someone. She had confessed to Naruto during the war however the blonde seemed to dodge her in a friendly manner. She wasn't going to lie, it hurt. It hurt a lot. However, the Hyuga respected his choice and was happy to be by his side as a friend.

Hinata stared at the man in front of her, a boy who was changed into a man due to the weight of the world hanging on his shoulder. His sea blue eyes still sparkled in the light with his smile always beaming. He always gave her the push to continue with his ninja way, she still held him in such high regard for his ability to always stay positive and see the brighter things in life even after he had been dragged through the mud by life.

"Mmm it seems like he is huh?" Hinata replied, missing the small displeased expression flash by Naruto's face. Deciding he didn't want to talk about this subject that was making him feel god awful, he switched up the subjects. "How are the kids at the academy?" Seeing her face light up made his heart swell.

Unfortunately, Naruto had to leave early due to a knock on the door. It was Shino and Tenten informing Naruto that he had a last minute mission the next morning for an undisclosed amount of time. Naruto felt a little deflated knowing that he wouldn't see Hinata for an uncertain amount of time however he determined to win Hinata's heart and was ready to become Shikamaru's rival. It would seem that his mission would need to be completed successfully and quickly.

Before he left, felt a small tug on his shirt. He turned around to see Hinata with a shy smile on her face with her eyes looking off to the side.

"Naruto...um, stay safe please."

They had a team briefing before heading off to the gates. Naruto hated early morning missions but it couldn't be helped. The mission was simple, something seemed fishy so off they must go to investigate. He did his best to pack and he was rather proud of himself, given the last minute notice, it was pretty good. Letting out a yawn, he just hoped that this mission was easy. Hinata's words seemed to echo in his head the entire night.

"Naruto!" I miss her so much already that I'm already hearing her voice. Much to his surprise, there was the woman herself standing by the gates. "I hope you don't mind b-but I wanted to see you off. I bought a bento for you as well. I really hope that you like it, I don't really know-" He simply found her rambling cute.

"Thank you Hinata. I'll make sure to eat it, I'm sure it'll give me the strength to fit off the enemy off" He smiled before patting her head. The smile she gave in return was too much, he could just refuse and stay with this woman all day. Wouldn't that be nice? At least she saw me off. "Alright, I'm off."

"Come back safe!" He faintly heard in the distance as he set off, a smile printed on his face as a result.