Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto!

Naruto had a routine that he went about for years in the academy. After greeting the few people he inwardly hoped were friends, he'd go on to challenge his biggest rival.

"Not today loser..." Sasuke mumbled.

Or at least he tried to.

"You don't have to be annoying everyday Naruto." Sakura spoke from her seat in the middle of their table. Sasuke was seated to her left and Naruto to her right. She fought Ino for this position and she wouldn't lose it.

"Blah~" Naruto made a disgusted noise. "Sasuke is just being a baby, don't defend him Sakura-chan." His words caused Sasuke to narrow his eyes at the blackboard ahead.

"You're the one that's always picking fights with Sasuke-kun!" Sakura turned to him with a glare.

"I have to prove I'm better than him!" Naruto shot back.

"It'll never happen." Sasuke chimed in coldly.

Before the whiskered boy can start another childish fight, the door opened and their teacher strolled in.

"Okay everyone! As you already know, this is your graduation year! We have a lot more to cover but most of this year's focus will be on putting what you learned into practice." Iruka, an instructor who genuinely cared for his students' progress, yelled out.

Naruto started to tune out the man's lecture, as he didn't exactly have the best attention span. Glancing at his side, he noticed Sakura paying attention and Sasuke lazily watching their teacher. As he was studying other people, he never noticed the gaze locked onto him.

Seated at the back of the classroom, one very unique girl studied the village's Jinchūriki intently. Her dark hair was messily cut short, showing that she may have done it herself. Strange lavender colored eyes squinted at the back of Naruto's spiky hair. She practically radiated an aura of unpleasantness, judging by her expression.

Hinata Hyūga was not a girl that many wished to bother. Even Sasuke averted his eyes whenever she glared in his direction, although he claimed she wasn't worth the trouble.

Hardly anybody knew what caused the once shy little girl to transform into a rude and sassy twelve year old. Her own father gave up years ago on trying to change her, and the clan didn't want to gain her ire either.

"After we cover chakra control once more, you all will be sparring! I will allow you to choose your partner this time." Iruka-sensei informed his class.

'Perfect...' A smile bloomed on Hinata's face.

She watched Naruto jump up and point a finger at Sasuke. Already knowing what was coming, she continued to study him.

"I want to fight him! I won't have it any other way Iruka-sensei!" Naruto demanded and Sasuke was about to stand up now.

"No. You both take simple sparring to the next level. You'll be partnered up with someone else." Iruka refused Naruto in an instant. The boy deflated and sunk into his seat.

"I want him."

The entire class paused at the cocky voice coming from the back of the room. Iruka pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. It was one problem child after another...

Naruto whipped his head back at the girl he tended to avoid. He was by no means shy, he did what he needed to for attention. However, around Hinata he felt weird.

Standing with one sandal covered foot placed on her desk, she leered down at him. Her outfit was hardly special. An open beige jacket and black shirt underneath, along with her dark purple pants. It was her eyes and face that stood out to Naruto.

Sasuke's face soured as he looked to the other loudmouth in the class. She was the only person he knew that could outdo Naruto in the confidence department.

'She can back it up though.' He absentmindedly rubbed at his arm from a previous spar with her.

Sakura sat up straighter upon hearing Hinata. She did not like her at all. As a young girl she was self conscious enough about her forehead, something Hinata preyed on whenever she pleased. In Sakura's eyes, the Hyūga was a bully. She wondered how Naruto would respond to the challenge.

"I'll kick her ass too!"

Sakura dropped her head. Of course...

Hinata grinned at the boy, her lavender eyes zeroed in on blue.

Iruka looked to the ceiling for divine moral support and received nothing in return. Sighing, he figured he'd allow it this one time. A fired up Naruto and Hinata were a dangerous duo.

"Fine. You both have to pay attention to the chakra control lecture though!" Iruka made sure to set a stipulation for the two slackers. Hinata was more like Shikamaru, meaning that she knew the material but preferred to ignore it. Naruto on the other hand, he sorely needed to pay attention.

Grumbling, Naruto placed his hands on his face and stared at his teacher. Hinata sat back down and kicked her feet up on the desk, making her Hyūga ancestors roll in their graves.

It was at times like this that Iruka felt more like a glorified baby sitter for shinobi in training.

Naruto dropped his hand from the unison sign as both he and his opponent stood in the sparring circle outside the academy. After managing to get through the hell that was Iruka's lecture, they finally were allowed to spar.

Staring down his opponent, who was the only other person in class who was roughly his height, Naruto felt a couple of things. Anger and embarrassment were going hand in hand due to the way she was looking at him. He's never seen a look like that directed towards him and he wasn't sure what it meant. It was nothing like the hatred filled eyes of the villagers or the empty eyes Sasuke had.

"How's about we put a little wager on our spar?" Hinata's voice once again quieted her classmates down. Iruka shook his head at a potential deal being made, but he wouldn't stop it.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Tilting his head, Naruto appeared clueless. Hinata struggled to keep a big smile off her face.

"The loser of the spar has to do whatever the winner wants. Deal?" Sliding into a stance that her clan honed for decades, she waited for him to accept. She knew how he acted, he wouldn't back down.

"Whatever I want?" Naruto wasn't sure what he would want from the Hyūga... but that didn't matter! No way would he deny getting something for free. "You're on!" Getting into his own stance, he nodded towards a deadpanning Iruka.

Hinata couldn't stop the wild smile from showing on her face. Any of the students who've seen other Hyūga clan members were always shocked at the emotion Hinata showed. Though her condescending attitude fit right in with her clan.

Wordlessly activating her Byakugan, she waited for Iruka to signal them. The older shinobi raised his hand before bringing it down in a flash.

"Begin!"

Naruto, as usual, was the first to move. He rushed her down and threw out a quick punch to her face. It was a straightforward attack and Hinata merely raised her palm to push his outstretched arm away with ease.

Seeing his attack going sideways, Naruto attempted to fold his arm and smash his elbow into her head. His style of fighting imitated his personality greatly.

Years of sparring with her father and family prepared her for any predictable attacks. When that elbow was about to reach her short hair, Hinata ducked low and moved into his personal space.

Naruto blinked at seeing Hinata so close to him, and before he could back up, she slammed her palm into his stomach. Feeling the wind knocked out of him, he couldn't move when she quite literally tackled him to the ground.

None of the surrounding students made a single noise. Chōji even stopped munching on his chips to witness the quick defeat of a boy he kind of saw as a friend. Sasuke shook his head, expecting that outcome from the beginning.

"... It's over! Hinata wins!" Iruka called it when he noticed their position. Hinata held her palm to Naruto's face while the boy watched with wide eyes.

Naruto took in her facial expression as he was pinned down underneath her. He didn't feel embarrassed at a girl sitting on him right now. He was right before, it was entirely different from the way Sasuke looked at him after winning in a spar. The Uchiha practically stared through him. That was the complete opposite in Hinata's case. Naruto felt his face flush slightly.

"I win." She whispered simply. It was quiet enough in the surrounding area that everyone heard.

Naruto didn't have it in him to argue the loss. He was outclassed by her. It left him feeling a little bitter, but he should have expected it. Hinata noticed his own expression shifting and pushed off his chest with her hand. Standing up she reached down to him with an open hand.

Sakura and Ino waited for the 'Hyūga Bitch' to brag about her win. She did that every time she won in a spar.

Still stunned at the quick loss, Naruto numbly reached for her hand. Hinata pulled him up and brought the appendage she used to her face for a second to fake a cough. Iruka was the only one to notice the tiny bit of red on her cheeks for a split second.

"Since we had a deal before going into this spar, you better honor it." She made sure to glare at him for emphasis. Despite being twelve, Naruto knew being on the receiving end of a females glare was not an amazing thing.

Murmurs broke out among the class. Sakura and Ino gave Naruto small looks of pity. They didn't really care for him, but Hinata would probably go out of her way to humiliate him.

"Oh man, Naruto's in big trouble." Kiba commented while idly petting Akamaru.

"What do you think she's going to want from him? Naruto doesn't have much to give." Chōji's assessment was surprisingly accurate.

"It's probably going to be a pain in the ass for him. I'm glad that's not my problem." Shikamaru rubbed the back of his neck. Hinata was the kind of girl he wanted the least to do with.

"Judging from her past history, it can be quite demeaning for Naruto." Shino spoke from his position behind the trio. They nodded when recalling the mean spirited things Hinata did in the past.

Sasuke watched the interaction with disinterest. Hinata would be someone worth his attention if it wasn't for her crude personality. It was too much of a hassle to deal with her. Whereas he could relate to Naruto to some degree, Hinata was too different.

"Hmph!" Hinata crossed her arms and looked Naruto head to toe. "You can't get out of this." She finished arrogantly. Naruto's face scrunched up in annoyance. He knew he lost, but couldn't she just get it over with?!

"Since you lost..." Hinata paused dramatically. "I am taking you out for ramen."

"Eh?"

Naruto's confused noise summed up the thoughts of his classmates.

Seated at a very familiar counter in a restaurant that was special to him, Naruto felt nervous. He hid his emotions pretty well, his fears and anxieties always faltered under his positive outlook.

"I'll be right out!" The voice of Teuchi, one of Naruto's favorite people, shouted to the pair.

Out of the corner of his eye, Naruto spotted Hinata watching him like a hawk. He didn't know much about Hinata and never made an effort to correct that. Gulping, he decided to face her like a man.

"H-Hey Hinata?" He managed to squeak out and Hinata's face displayed her amusement.

"What do you want Uzumaki?" She swiveled on her stool to face him fully. Naruto gulped again at having her full attention.

"You beat me but... you wanted to go have ramen. I don't understand." Naruto appeared helpless and Hinata laughed loudly. Her laughter sounding like anything but a proper Hyūga member.

"You're dense Uzumaki. I guess I like that though." Shrugging, Hinata offered him little in the ways of a true answer.

Scratching at his cheek, Naruto turned his gaze towards the ground by his feet. Hinata picked up on his demeanor changing. It seems like he did that often.

"It's just um... I've never had anyone our age eat with me before. I never had a friend ya know..." Naruto's eyes widened and he almost slapped a hand to his mouth at revealing that. It made him seem like a bigger loser than ever before.

Hinata pursed her lips and remained quiet for a few seconds. Her usual fierce eyes softened, something that he wouldn't see due to his current fascination with the ground.

"I like ramen. You like ramen. Got it Uzumaki?"

Naruto picked his head up and faced her once more. He didn't 'get it'. Although... that sounded like she wanted to be friends? He hoped so. He heard all sorts of rumors about Hinata, but he never cared for them. It was too familiar to how people whispered about him when he walked the streets.

Before he could ask her to explain what she meant, the ramen bar's owner appeared before them. Teuchi was one person that cared for Naruto for as long as he could remember. He hid his surprise well at seeing Naruto sitting with someone for once. It was a nice change of pace from the boy being alone.

"I bet I know your order already Naruto." Teuchi smiled kindly at his favorite customer. Naruto brightened up considerably at hearing the old man's voice and gave him a blinding grin. Hinata was almost mesmerized by it.

"Yup! No menma this time though old man. I hate menma!"

Teuchi laughed and nodded at the boy. Turning to the other customer, he realized it was a Hyūga girl. That was very rare for his little restaurant.

"I'll have the same thing as him." Hinata broke eye contact with the chef to glance at Naruto.

"I hate menma too."

Naruto didn't understand the sly smirk she sent his way. He wouldn't for years.

A/N - I lied about not posting new stories. Whoops. This idea popped into my head while trying to speedrun Resident Evil 3. I have no idea why or how it did at that moment, but I had to write it out. I figured I might as well post it too lol.

I don't have much of an idea of where I'll take this but it's basically Road to Ninja Hinata with some adjustments.

I'd simp for Road to Ninja Hinata. No cap.

Anyway I hope you guys enjoyed this. There's a billion Hinata fics out there, and I know people get tired of them, but how many are Road to Ninja personality ones? Who knows, I don't. All I know is I had a good time writing this little chapter.

Thanks for reading :)