A/N: Yo! It is good to write for you guys again. I know it's been awhile, but I have no excuse other than I have had my hands in alot of projects, both on fan fiction and in life. This was by far the worst chapter of the story in my opinion, and I apologize sincerly for that.
Treasures Ignored
Ch.8: Fortune Cookie Wisdom
The breeze chilled his face keeping the warmth of the sun at bay. This was it, he was giving up, first time for everything…right? Now if only he could figure out why the hell he wasn't moving. Then it happened he began to fall…backwards? 'What the hell!!! I can't even kill my self right!!!' His thoughts where brought to an abrupt halt as his body met the ground, his body sat up of it's own accord and he stared out over the village. Then like a right hook from Tsunade it hit him, why else would his body disobey his mind? 'That bastard.'
" You know Naruto, some people might be shocked, all I really am is kinda disappointed really." drawled the lazy tone of Nara Shikamaru. " I mean jumping off of Hokage monument, really…where's the pizzazz, the flair that is Uzumaki Naruto eh?" He chuckled lightly.
" I don't suppose you would believe it was meant to be symbolic would you?" Naruto smirked.
" Not a chance, more like this was the only thing you could come up with on such short notice, right?"
"Yeah your right, so you gonna release your damn shadow bind and let me go?"Knowing it was useless to struggle aginst the shadow user's signature technique.
" Not while your on this suicide trip. So? Ya wanna talk about it?"
" Not really. I'm just tired of it ya know?" Naruto said with a weary sigh.
" No can't say I do. I do know however that as tired as you maybe you don't really want this."
" I don't?"
" Nope. You want to live, you want to love, you want to raise some kids, and you want to be acknowledged. So how do you plan to do all those things when your nothing more than a splotch on the ground below."
" How exactly do you know what I want?"
" It's the way of the world Naruto. The ordinary crave to be extraordinary and the same extraordinary that we all strive to be, would give everything just to have what we do."
" Geez you get that out of a fortune cookie?" Naruto grumbled.
" No greater source of wisdom on the planet." Shikamaru replied. Afterwards a small silence enveloped them. "So? What's wrong?"
" Exile. Plain and simple exile. Though I have to say I expected execution, I guess that counts as a small victory. That's not the reason for the whole flying leap though."
" It's Hinata isn't it? Only someone as troublesome as you two would finally realize your feelings when one of you is about to be banished. So I assume she knows."
" No, not from me any way. You should have seen it…she was so cute…mustering all her confidance. I couldn't…I didn't even let her get the words out of her mouth."
" And of course you didn't tell her how you felt." Shikamaru sighed.
" I couldn't do that to her Shikamaru. Could you? ' I love you…now I must leave and never comeback'. I'd kill myself before I would due that to her, and here I am. That's also why I never planned on telling the others about this damned exile. So…will you let me go?" a now teary eyed Naruto asked.
" Dude I let go of you somewhere around the fortune cookie comment. All that resistance is all you. Look Naruto, in the end it's your decision, but doing this is gonna hurt her and the others worse than if you just walked out those gates. Now I'm gonna go tell everybody about the exile, if only because I know you are damn well too selfless to take your life away from us. I won't say good bye Naruto…so see ya around."
Naruto stood up, hot tears blazing down his cheeks, the village down below. What to do? Where to go?
"DAMN IT WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT FROM ME!!!" He screamed towards the heavens. " YOU DON'T WANT ME TO LIVE, AND YOU DAMN WELL WON'T LET ME DIE!!!" he fell to his knees sobs wracking his body. " I CAN"T HATE, I-I can't LOVE, I Can't - I CAN'T DO ANYTHING!!!"
Then he cried for the first time in years he had a full blown breakdown. So wrapped up in his grieving he didn't even know he was not alone until a pair of slender arms wrapped his shoulders from behind.
" Naruto-kun it's o.k. Let it all out." the soft voice of Hinata Hyuuga called as she pulled the distraught boy from the ledge. She eventually settled for sitting down under a tree, the weeping boy she loved sitting between her legs, his back being held against her chest. " It's o.k. Naruto-kun, I'm here, and I never going to leave your side." After about half an hour later Naruto had calmed enough to gently switch their seating position to put him agaist the tree and Hinata in his lap. They sat there quietly Naruto using his hands to rub Hinata's back and stroke her hair, Hinata rubbing small circles on Naruto's chest, softly humming a melody.
" Hina-chan?"
" Hmm"
" T-thank you and I'm sorry."
" It never happened Naru-kun."
" What never happened?"
"Exactly." Hinata giggled.
" There's the sound I love."
" Love?"
" Yup." Naruto took this times to capture Hinata's hands inside his own. " Hinata Hyuuga…I Love you with every thing that I am. I don't know what happens from here, I can't promise you wealth, or acknowledgment, hell I can't really even promise you a home. I can only promise you my love, devotion, and protection. That being said Hinata Hyuuga." Naruto dropped Hinata's hands and closed her eyes. She heard the rustling of cloths and then felt a sudden weight around her neck. She opened her eyes to find the prized necklace of the Shodaime around her neck.
" Naruto-kun?"
" Hinata Hyuuga will you make me the happiest man on this earth? Will you agree to become Hinata Uzumaki?" Other than a gasp Hinata was speechless. Naruto was offering to fulfill one of her greatest wishes. " Before you panic, we can wait as long as you want I just need to know that you feel like I do."
" Oh Naruto-kun yes! Gladly." announced Hinata as she captured Naruto in a hug/tackle sending him to his back. After a few minutes of simply being in each other's arms, Naruto planted a small chaste kiss on the lips of his love. For the rest of the day there was nothing in their worlds except for each other.
The days passed and Naruto made his final preparations before leaving. The reaction around Konoha to the news of his leaving was mostly joy. After a long discussion with Tsunade he was treated to the news that he would have some traveling companions in his Baa-chan and Shizune. Yes Kohonagakure would be losing it's Godaime Hokage the day that Naruto Uzumaki walked out the gates. Shikamaru and Hinata had both decided that they would leave with their friend as well, the rest of the Konoha 12, where a mystery, if only for the fact that Naruto was avoiding them. He still preferred to make a quite escape.
Those where the ponderings of Naruto as he stepped out of his apartment and began his final trek to the west gate of Konoha. He would meet up with his companions at the gate. As said gate came into view Naruto was treated to the sight of the whole of Konoha's shinobi population as well as the entire council there waiting for him. " I don't suppose your all here to wish me well are you?"
Yo so there are only two chapters left and both are endings. So until then, I promise that they will be up to par.