Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

"Talking"

'Thoughts'

"Jutsu"

Chapter 6

Naruto's Apartment:

Kin, having finished tidying up the place, was currently sitting down in the kitchen. She had boiled up some of Naruto's ramen cups and began eating, almost chugging it all down. Compared to the food they had to eat at Oto, this was a delicacy. In Oto, they were trained to eat the bare essentials. She could probably go more than a month without eating because of the training.

As she finished, she began wondering what she could do now. She was abandoned by her teammates, had failed Orochimaru's mission, and will probably end up killed, or worse, if she runs into him again. While she has been trained to push out emotions such as fear, even the Jonin of Oto were scared beyond belief of Orochimaru, simply because he knew well over a thousand different torture methods that would make you beg for death. It's because of this why everyone in Oto is so obedient to him, why they wouldn't even think of opposing him. She had even heard rumors that anyone unfortunate enough to simply displease him was simply gone that very next day, never to be heard from again.

Kin tried to calm herself down. Orochimaru has no idea that she was even still alive. For all he knows, she could've been killed by Sasuke and eaten by one of the countless giant animals that were present in the forest. But... What if he did know... Know that she was alive... That she had been saved by the enemy... That she had failed her mission and still lived to tell the tale... What if... What if...

Kin soon found herself beginning to hyperventilate, thinking of the many things Orochimaru would do to her. Her heart raced imagining all the absolute horrific punishments he would give her, making sure that she was completely awake through all the torture. It was almost too much for her. Maybe... She shouldn't give him the chance... Maybe she should just...

Quickly snapping out of it, Kin found herself in a cold sweat. Her breathing was slightly heavy as she slowly calmed herself. But, looking down... Right in her hand... Only a few centimeters from her throat... Was a kunai... A kunai that, having that she didn't stop herself right then and there... Would have pierced right through her throat... Ending her life with a slow bleeding death...

Looking down at her hand, her hand shakily set down the kunai. She knew this won't be the last time this happens. Orochimaru's influence on both her and Oto were simply too strong for that. Maybe next time...

She might actually go through with it...

xXx

Chunin Exams:

"*Cough* *Cough*. The winner is, Naruto Uzumaki." Hayate announced.

'Hm. Looks like he took some inspiration from Sasukes fight earlier. Although, he could've changed the name a bit.' Kakashi thought.

"Yosh! That was so youthful!" Lee exclaimed in pure excitement.

"Way to go Naruto!" Sakura shout, ecstatic with how Naruto won.

"Not really that surprising, what with what we saw him do in the forest of death. Man, going up against him later in the exams is gonna be so troublesome." Shikamaru groaned at the increasing number of tough competitors.

'He... He really won.' Hinata thought happily, looking down at the boy of her affections.

Naruto, panting slightly from the fight, smiled at his first victory using his new abilities. 'Wow... These powers are great... But I better be careful next time. Simply squinting my eyes isn't gonna always help hide my Rinnegan. I was lucky that Kiba was too into the fight to put that much thought into it. But that won't always be the case. I need to find a way to use my Rinnegan without straight-up revealing it to my opponents.' He thought as he began to walk up the steps to head to his team.

"N... Naruto-kun." Hinata said, just above a whisper. Naruto then stops and turns toward her. He recognizes her from his class back at the academy. Although the two never really talked, he remembers her being essentially the nicest girl that was in his class, albeit very quiet. She was also the only girl in class that wasn't completely crazy for Sasuke. Because of this, he had tried befriending her in the pass, but this usually resulted in her stuttering and either fainting or running away. Due to this, Naruto simply chalked her up to just being plain weird, but was still a step-up from the villagers, considering she actually tried talking to him and somewhat acknowledged his existence. Even going as far as to let him cheat off of her during the written portion of the Chunin Exams.

"Hm? Hinata? What's up?" Naruto asked.

"Ah, ah, I... I um..." Hinata seemed to be twiddling her fingers around a somewhat round object, a light blush on her face. She then slowly walked up to him, before stretching her arms forward, as if to hand him something.

Naruto looked at the object in her hands, confused as to what it could be. "What's this?" He asked.

"That's healing ointment Naruto." Kurenai explained.

"Huh? For me?" Naruto said, curious as to why Hinata would give him something such as this during the exam. 'Man, between this and offering to let me cheat off of her test, you would think she had a crush on me or something.' He said in his thoughts. Although, he couldn't help but imagine the possibility. He blushed slightly at the thought. 'Yeah right. She's probably just trying to be nice. No way someone like her would be interested in a guy like me.' He thought before smiling and taking the ointment.

"Thanks Hinata. This will really help."He said. Hinata smiled at him, her blush still on her face. This only caused Naruto's face to fluster a bit before looking away a bit. 'Man. First Haku and now this?! Am I just gonna keep running into people I think is cuter than Sakura-Chan?! And why am I only now noticing this?' He thought before waving goodbye and heading over to his team.

"Great job Naruto." Sakura says happily as Naruto shows up.

"Yeah. That was pretty impressive out there." Kakashi said. Naruto couldn't help but grin and scratch the back of his head at the praise. "Although, I don't remember teaching you Chakra absorption, not even I can do that. Where'd you learn?" Naruto froze. "Also, those rods you pulled out, I don't remember any weapon shop in the village selling anything like them. Where did you find them?" Unlike Sakura, Kakashi wasn't afraid to ask his students a lot of questions. It was his job to look over their progress and improve. So if one were to exhibit skills and weaponry he didn't expect, it was a small red flag. Either they got it by randomly finding it, or they were keeping secrets from him.

"Well uh... You see..." Naruto tried to find an answer that won't reveal his Rinnegan. While he cared and trusted Sakura and Kakashi, he wasn't sure if he should just tell them about it. He wanted to choose the people he told his secret very carefully. Before he said anything, they all heard the sound of screen shuffling through different names. Naruto sighed in relief at seeing their attention shifting to the screen.

Everyone's eyes widened slightly at the names on the screen, especially Hinata.

Hinata Hyūga vs Neji Hyūga

The fight itself started off at a slow start. Neji said everything he could to break Hinata's spirit and make her want forfeit, telling things like how she had no chance since she was fated to be a loser, that will never accomplish anything. And it was working for the most part. That was until, Naruto decided to speak up. He told Hinata that Neji didn't know what he was talking about and that she was stronger than she's willing to believe. He told Hinata that shouldn't-no... can't give up against someone like Neji. Hearing these words from Naruto, someone she looked up to for inspiration and drive, Hinata regained her resolve and got ready to fight, both competitors activating their Byakugan.

Hinata managed to at least put up a fight against Neji's onslaught of attacks. But alas, Neji was far too skilled in the art of the Hyūga Clans Jūken. Neji didn't hold back, hitting many vital chakra points in Hinata's body. It was almost as if he was deliberately trying to kill her. But, despite even getting striked in the chest, Hinata still got back up to keep fighting, Naruto's words motivating her to keep going. This only angered Neji, seeing that she was trying to defy her fate.

Naruto gripped the bar, watching the fight play out. While he was happy that Hinata didn't back out, he couldn't help but feel bad even time he saw her get hit. He felt that it was his fault that she was as hurt as she is now. She even went as far as to say that her ninja way was the same as his. He gritted his teeth as he watches her weakly try to walk towards Neji.

Then suddenly, Neji raced towards Hinata. Despite Hayate calling the match, Neji wasn't listening. He wanted to end her right then and there. For Naruto, time seemed to slow down as Neji got closer and closer, his arm stretched out to land the finishing blow. The Jonin in the room raced towards him in order to stop him from killing Hinata. That was, until an orange blur seemed to pass right by them and stop Neji in his tracks, one hand glowing blur with chakra grabbing hold of Neji's wrist, and a forearm against his throat.

Hinata's eyes widened slightly at who just saved her life. "N... N-Naruto?" Right there in front of her, the boy who had just encouraged her to keep going had just saved her life. Neji was surprised by the sudden interruption. Had he not be filled with rage at the time, he might have seen Naruto coming.

Naruto's were closed as he held Neji in place. Slowly opening them, Naruto revealed his Rinnegan. Fortunately, due to how close they were, Neji was the only one to actually see. Neji froze seeing it up close and personal. 'How... How did he stop me? Even if he did just simply grab my wrist, my Jūken should have at least hit his arm, forcing him to release me. How did he...' He looked down and the glow coming off Naruto's hand. 'I see... By absorbing my chakra through my hand, he managed to nullify and blitz my attack. This one is more dangerous than I thought.' Neji thought.

"Good job kid. Glad to see I'm not the only one looking out for unnecessary fatalities." Hayate said from behind Naruto. Naruto then shut off his Rinnegan before releasing Neji. Neji rubbed his wrist because of Naruto's tight grip. Before any more words could be said, Hinata suddenly began coughing before collapsing to the ground.

Hearing this, Naruto suddenly turned around and went for Hinata. "Hinata!" He said as he kneel down to her side, gently laying her down on her back. "Are you alright?!" Kurenai went to her side to check up on her.

Weakly looking at Naruto, Hinata felt her conscious slowly slipping. "N... Naruto... I... I..." She tried to speak, but her eyes slowly started to close.

"Shh. It's gonna be alright Hinata. I'm gonna get you help and fast." Naruto said before slowly picking her up. Kurenai almost objected to this until Naruto stopped her. "Trust me. I may not be quick like Lee, but I'm still faster than even most Chunin in the village." He said, referring to how he always managed to outrun them whenever he pulled a prank. "I'll find her the best doctor and come back before the matches are over." He said.

Looking into his eyes, she could tell he wasn't gonna take no for an answer. She smiled a bit at Naruto, seeing him care for Hinata so much despite barely knowing her. "Go to the back of the building and you should find the emergency room. I'm sure you can get there quickly with your speed.

Naruto smiled before turning toward the exit. Before leaving however, he looks and glares at Neji. "What? That's what happens when you try and defy what fate has planned for you. It's not my fault she couldn't see that." Neji said, undaunted by Naruto's glare.

Hearing this, Naruto gently wiped the blood coming from Hinata's mouth and held it in a fist towards Neji. "I swear Hinata, that no matter what... I will defeat Neji." He said determinedly before quickly leaving the room, racing past the medics that just came in for Hinata.

"Don't worry Hinata. I'll find you a good doctor real fast."

Hinata, hearing this, weakly smiled at him. She subconsciously cuddled into his chest as he ran, basking in his warmth. Her eyes slowly began to close as she started to succumb to unconsciousness. She didn't know if she will make it, but she is satisfied with her last sensation being Naruto's caring touch. And with that, she promptly drifted to unconsciousness.

AN: Hey guys. Sorry about the long wait. There was school, family, along with my laziness. But it's good to be back. And despite me thinking it could be better, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this chapter. Now, I should be getting to the next one. Hopefully this one won't take so long. Later guys.