Hi everyone! This is just a short little story that was inspired by another tumblr post where Himawari was generally distressed by her mother's lack of whiskers. I was given permission to use it and this was born. Fair warning, this does follow the canon ending, so if you didn't like it, please be respectful.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Enjoy!

Whiskers

One-Shot

"Daddy!"

Naruto looked up from his report as Himawari's cry pierced through the normal morning calm. He was barely given any chance to react before the little girl was tottering her way into his office, her face scrunched up in obvious distress. Tears pooled in her eyes and her little lips sat firmly in a pout. Naruto was up and kneeling in front of her before the little girl had time to speak.

"What's wrong, Hima? Are you hurt?" He looked her over closely, searching for any cuts or bruises she might have. None of the clones he had disguised around the house had popped, but it didn't hurt to be sure.

Himawari shook her head. "'Ey're gone, daddy!"

"What's gone, princess?"

"Mama wi'ckers!" She wailed. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Mama's wickers?" He asked, not quite sure what she was referring to.

"No~o!" The two-year-old brought her hands up to her now teary cheeks and laid two fingers over the marks permanently etched there. "Her wi'ckers, daddy! 'Ey're gone!"

Naruto blinked. "You mean mama's whiskers?"

Himawari pulled a face. "What I said," she stated, stomping her little foot in a way that was supposed to be indignant, but was really just adorable. "Where t'ey go, daddy?"

"Well…" How to explain this to a two-year-old? "They, umm…they got lost." And Naruto resisted the urge to smack himself. What kind of explanation was that?

Apparently a bad one.

Himawari's eyes widened. "T'ey go' lost?"

"Yes," Naruto said. "They got lost." There, that should do it.

But it didn't. The little girl gasped; her eyes began to water again and Naruto felt his heart clench. He chanced a glance at the report still sitting on his desk, then back to his daughter. The choice was obvious.

Naruto gave the girl a smile. "You know, I bet mama would be really happy if we found them." Himawari sniffled, but Naruto was glad to see the tears drying up.

"Foun' t'em?" She asked, rubbing at her eyes.

The blond man nodded. "Mmhm. What do you say we go looking for them?"

Himawari's whole face just lit up at the suggestion. She grabbed her father's bandaged hand and began to pull him away. Naruto had to catch himself quickly on the floor to prevent himself from falling over. "Le's go, daddy! We find mama wi'ckers!"

The blond laughed. "Alright, alright, Hima-chan. How about we start in the playroom?"

"Okay!"

The duo spent the next fifteen minutes turning the playroom upside down. There was a part of Naruto that cringed at the mess they were making, but figured it all evened out if Himawari enjoyed herself. He could always make a few clones once she went down for a nap. They looked under tables and teddy bears, inside baskets and closets. Himawari even emptied out the entirety of her dress-up bin, leaving princess gowns and animal costumes strewn about the floor. Naruto was about to suggest checking the next room when another little voice piped up from the doorway.

"What are you doing?" Boruto stood there, his face screwed up in confusion, as he watched his father and sister tear the room apart.

Naruto smiled sheepishly as Himawari let out a squeal. "Boru-nii!" She leapt up from her spot behind the plastic kitchen set and bound over to her brother, barreling him into a hug.

"Oof! Hima, get off!" Boruto struggled to push the girl away, but Himawari had a very strong grip.

She peered up at him with adoring eyes. "We find mama wi'ckers."

"Huh?" Boruto sounded, still not understanding.

"Mama wi'ckers gone. We go' find t'em," Himawari repeated before swiveling her head around to look at her father. "Right, daddy?"

Naruto nodded. "Right, Hima. We're gonna find mama's whiskers."

Boruto's mouth opened in shock, as he finally understood what was going on. Inwardly, Naruto chuckled. At least Himwari wouldn't get frustrated about the boy not understanding her – not with Naruto throwing out information.

"Mama lost her whiskers?" And Boruto looked positively scandalized. His father was glad for the child's age – if he were any older, he probably would have connected the fact that she'd never had them. As it were, the boy looked just as distressed as Himawari. "Is that why she's sad?"

Oh. Naruto's eyes widened. He'd thought they'd managed to hide that. Why did kids have to be so observant? He was about to respond – the reminder of the upcoming anniversary sending him a bit off balance – when Himawari beat him too it.

She gasped and said, "We have find t'em, daddy. We make mama happy."

"Yeah!"

And that was how Boruto joined them on their hunt for mama's whiskers. The search eventually moved from the playroom to the living room to the kitchen where Naruto attempted to distract them with the promise of lunch, but had no luck; Boruto and Himawari were far too focused on their goal to pay much attention to their stomachs. Naruto made them sandwiches anyway.

With lunch over and the kitchen a mess, the trio returned to the living room. Both children looked very put out at their failure to find their mother's whiskers, and Naruto – hating the fact that they were so disappointed – was frantically trying to come up with something for them find. He couldn't draw them on paper or pretend they had turned into something else. Besides that, they would expect Hinata to wear them and he doubted this was something they'd forget after a nap. Naruto really wished his wife were here. She'd know what to do.

"I'm back!"

And Naruto could have kissed something. Preferably his wife, both for her amazing timing and the fact that he just liked to kiss her. The only thing that held him back was that his children got to her first.

"Mama!" They both cried out, running into her outstretched arms.

"Boru! Hima!" She exclaimed, surprised. "What are you two still doing up? It's naptime." Hinata looked up, probably to ask him why they weren't sleeping, when she caught sight of the wreck that was their living room. Her eyes widened. "And what happened here?"

"We want to find your whiskers, mama," Boruto supplied.

"My what?"

"Mama wi'ckers. 'Ey're gone!" Himawari chimed in, and Naruto felt it best to let Hinata know what was going on before she became any more confused.

"We can't go to sleep before we find your whiskers. They got lost and we don't want you to be sad about it anymore. We've looked everywhere, but we just can't find them," he finished it off with a carefully pleading look.

Naruto watched as comprehension dawned on her face. Her lips turned upwards in a smile and she leaned down to kiss the tops of their heads. The slight sagging of her shoulders that had been there all week lessened and she sat a little straighter. He saw an idea spark in her eyes.

"Oh thank you, sweethearts," she began and threw a quick wink in Naruto's direction. "But I'm afraid your search has been in vain."

"What?" Boruto asked, perplexed.

"Well I already know where my whiskers are."

"You do?" You do? Naruto echoed his daughter's question in his head. He couldn't think of anything.

But his wife wasn't looking at him. She nodded her head as she gazed down lovingly at their children. "Mmhm," she said. "I know exactly where they are."

"Where?" questioned Boruto.

"Why, they're right here," she cupped her son's cheek, "and here," she cupped her daughter's cheek.

"But those are our whiskers, mama. Not yours."

"Yeah, ou's!"

Hinata laughed. "Yes they are yours, but when you were babies, mama gave you her whiskers because she loves you so much and she wanted you to always know that."

"Really?" Boruto asked, grinning from ear to ear as he clutched at his cheeks. "We have your whiskers?"

"Mmhm."

"Yay!" Himawari cheered, and Naruto couldn't help the silly little smile spreading across his face. He smiled even more when all three turned to look at him. "Daddy, foun' mama wi'ckers!"

"We sure did," he agreed, looking at Hinata affectionately. She blushed prettily and he chuckled. "You two did a good job. But mama's right – it is naptime and we've been very busy."

"Awww~w," they groaned simultaneously, but put up no resistance as their parents picked them and brought them to their room. If nothing else, destroying the house had tired them out and so, after a quick story each, both children fell asleep with little hassle.

On quiet feet, Naruto and Hinata tiptoed from the room and shut the door softly behind them. It wasn't until they'd made it back into the living room that Naruto finally gave into the urge to kiss her.

Hinata smiled into the kiss – the contact more sweet than passionate – as Naruto wound his arms around her. Pulling back, the blond jounin then rested his head on top of her's as he took in her scent and the feeling of her against him.

"Are you okay?" He asked, noticing how tightly she was holding on to him.

She sighed. "It's better now."

"That's not the same thing."

"I know, but I'll be alright. This time of year…"

"Yeah, I know." He threaded his fingers through her hair and sagged a bit. "Neji would have adored them."

"He would have spoiled them rotten," she choked.

"Taken them out for ice cream whenever he wanted."

"Paraded them around the village."

"Helped them hunt for whiskers," Naruto grinned and pulled back a little to look down at her. "He probably would have found them, too."

And there was her smile! "But we did find them," she stated softly, poking him in the chest.

"Oh, right," he teased and chuckled as she playfully swatted his arm.

"Well, I did, at least. You just made a mess."

"Oi!" He cried, indignantly. "It was a justified mess. We were looking for something very important."

"Oh? And what might that be?"

His smile brightened and he pulled her in for another kiss.

"You."

And that's that. I hope you enjoyed and please review. While constructive criticism is appreciated, flames are not welcome. They do nothing to help a writer improve. Thank you so much for reading and have a wonderful day/night!

~Alabaster Ink