Hinata Hyuuga stood outside the oaken door to the Hokage's office. She smiled to herself, securing her ANBU mask in place so her face was hidden by that of a purple cat. Flowers, orchids specifically, interlaced with the indigo designs marking her identity within the ranks. Smirking under the molding she knocked somewhat confidently on the door. A formal "enter" sounded behind it signaling her right to enter. Turning the knob and pushing it open she expected to be greeted by her usual team consisting of Inzuka Kiba, his four-legged partner, Akamaru, and Aburame Shino. Instead there was a single other ANBU who was already present and facing the Hokage. Regardless, she knew right away who her partner would be; the shock of unruly blonde hair assured her of that. It was the love of her life, Uzumaki Naruto.

"Ah, you're here Cat-san, so glad you could join us."

"Gomen, Hokage-sama. It will not happen again," she bowed to her leader respectfully.

"Ne, Hinata? You're going to be my partner? I thought I was going with Sakura-chan."

Hinata had to fight to keep from physically wincing at the tone of disappointment lingering in his voice. Suddenly she was extremely grateful that all ANBU were required to wear masks, so she wouldn't have to hide her heartbroken expression. The blonde Hokage, an expert at reading her shinobi, saw the immediate change in the shy girl's demeanor and decided to resolve the situation as soon as possible.

"Yes Gaki. She is your partner," she shot an angry glare at the clueless blonde.

"What about Sakura-chan? Won't we need a medic on this mission?" he argued.

"You should, Naruto," she stressed his name in irritation, "that Hinata has been trained in various medial arts by and myself, and you will find this skill along with her taijutsu and byakugan she will be use on this mission that Sakura."

Tsunade glanced over at Hinata to gauge her reaction to the unexpected praise. Even with the mask the shy kunoichi was like an open book. She could tell from the young woman's posture that she was probably blushing from the appraisal of her skills, but still sad from Naruto's continual insistence for Sakura.

"Ano, Hokage-sama? What exactly is our mission?" she asked, obviously eager to change the subject from partners.

"Well, I'm glad one of you had the sense to ask. Your mission is estimated to take two weeks to complete, give or take a few days with the possibility of complications. The details are in this folder," she offered them a rather large sealed folder with an outstretched hand, "basically; in a nutshell you are to escort the brother of the daimyo, his daughter, and small party of servants from an ambassadorial trip to the land of Wind. Now, I trust Suna completely, but it's the other nations I'm worried about. They may see this as an opportunity to stir up trouble, so I'm counting on my best ninja. You shouldn't encounter too much danger and you'll be accepting more than decent pay. If you accept your mission, Naruto will be the mission leader; so this is a chance to prove yourself. Any questions?"

Both shinobi glanced at each other before turning back to Tsunade.

"We have no questions, Hokage-sama," Naruto answered seriously.

"Do you, Hyuuga Hinata, codename Cat, and Uzumaki Naruto, codename Kitsune accept this mission?"

"Hai!" they answered in unison.

"Good. Then you have one day to pack and prepare. At sunrise tomorrow you will leave from the main gate for a seven-day journey to the Wind Fire border. From there you carry out your mission. You are dismissed."

"Hai!"

In a flash the cat and the fox were gone.

'Good luck...Hinata…Naruto-gaki…' she thought as sun dance on the face of the Hokage monument, her eyes drifting to one face in particular.

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Okay so here's a preview, since I like doing those and getting feedback as to wether or not I should carry through with the story. So tell me what you think and I hope you like it!

-moonlight's goddess21