Hello Everyone! Lu Lu-Chan is here! I have decided to write a NaruHina story, due to the lack of well written NaruHina stories. Do not get me wrong. There are several I find that I thoroughly enjoy, and are well written. But there aren't very many. So I decided to write a NaruHina story.

I want to thank Kyuubi123 for reading my story and giving me his input. I'd also like to thank my new Beta, Hinatasgreatestfan.

Disclaimer: DOES NOT OWN! Wish I did...I would have warped this manga/anime so badly!

Please enjoy everyone!

Getting Serious

The sounds of laughter, crying, screaming, and some children shouting in complete joy were being shared around the academy. Children were hugging their parents and laughing; some were crying tears of joy. What was being shared by the children and their parents was a very touching moment: these children had finally reached Genin. And even the few children that did fail, they were cheered on by their parents or siblings that they would make Genin next time. The celebration in front of the academy was in full swing, then their eyes fell on one child that failed the Genin Exams. They all stared, or rather glared, at him as he walked through the crowd of families. Uzumaki Naruto was that one failed ninja.

Naruto had golden sunshine hair, sun-kissed skin, exotic whisker marks sweeping across his cheeks, and bright blue eyes that put the sky to shame. However, his eyes were downcast and had lost their shine. Tears threatened to spill down his tanned chubby cheeks. He could feel the hatred piercing him through their eyes. He couldn't take the hateful looks anymore and broke into a run.

A pair of lavender, pupil-less eyes watched the boy run. The owner of the eyes was browsing through a little open-air market when she spotted Naruto in the crowd. She gasped slightly when he ran, pressed her two fingers together nervously out of habit, and stared at the vendor's table in front of her. She turned away from the table and began to follow Naruto's path.

Once Naruto was far enough away, he finally let those tears fall. He was so disappointed in himself. This was the second blasted time he failed that test! All because of that damned Clone Jutsu! Naruto kicked the dirt underneath his feet out of rage. He walked further into town, receiving more hateful glares. Many of the villagers cursed and yelled at him as he passed. Some even spat at him. He took off towards the forests, where the training grounds resided. He ran and ran until he came to a clearing that had one very large, padded training log.

He just seemed to stare at it. He let out an angry scream and began to punch the log with everything he had. With anger, hatred, sorrow, pity, any negative feeling he had, he was releasing it into this log. He cried and cried as he punched, but it just didn't seem to make him feel any better. With a half-hearted punch, he fell to his knees and sobbed.

Hinata was standing behind a tree, watching her crush cry and punch the defenseless log. She felt bad for him. She wanted to go help him. Reassure him. But she didn't have enough confidence in herself to even take a step forward. She hid amongst the trees watching the blond cry his heart out on the cold dirt. After watching him cry for what seemed like hours, Hinata watched as Naruto stood up and wiped his tears away. She thought he was going to leave the training grounds and get some ramen or go home. She was taken by slight surprise when Naruto started taking deep breaths before striking the padded log. He was striking the log with all the strength he had. Soon the punches turned into kicks. Soon he was performing combinations of punches, palm thrusts, and a variety of kicks.

Hinata's eyes followed every move Naruto made. His moves were far from elegant or graceful, but Hinata still found it irresistible to watch. She stood there behind the trees watching him for hours, training against the padded log.

Dusk was quickly approaching when Naruto collapsed from exhaustion. He laid on his back, his eyes squinted shut, gasping for air. He could tell, tomorrow he was going to be hurting. Bad. Naruto heard a strange noise, after he had fallen. He slowly sat up and turned towards the trees. "Who's there?" he called.

Hinata was still hiding behind the trees, with her hands over her mouth. She had gasped aloud when Naruto fell backwards. She started to panic and started walking backwards. She froze when she stepped on a dry twig, hearing it snap.

Naruto stood up, the soreness in his muscles already taking effect. "Show yourself!" he demanded, having a kunai at the ready.

Hinata looked slightly afraid. What if he yelled at her? What if he called her a freak?

"If you don't come to me, I'll come to you!" he threatened.

Hinata took a deep breath and slowly approached Naruto. "He...H-Hello N-N-Naruto-kun..." Hinata said in a quiet voice. Her face was a rose color, and she was fiddling with the hem of her jacket.

Naruto looked at Hinata and blinked. "Wait...Aren't you that girl from that one clan?" He had to think a moment. He placed a finger on his forehead, and squinted his eyes. He still couldn't think of which clan it was. "I got nuthin'!" he said with a sigh.

Hinata blinked. He didn't know the Hyuuga Clan? Hinata couldn't help but giggle but quickly placed her hands over her mouth. "I-I'm s-sorry N-Naruto-kun!"

"What's so funny?" Naruto blinked.

Hinata pressed her fingers together. "W-Well...Y-You d-don't know wh-wh-which clan I-I'm from. I-It's one o-of the most f-f-famous in K-Konoha," she said quietly.

"Well, you aren't from the Uchiha Clan! They're all dead, except for Sasuke-teme. Besides, before the Uchihas were killed, they didn't have those eyes like you have," he confirmed.

Hinata slowly nodded. "I-I'm from the H-Hyuuga Clan. M-My eyes a-a-are m-my clan's K-Kekkei G-Genkai."

"Cool!" Naruto exclaimed. "I learned about the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan from the academy, and from Sasuke-teme bragging about how he'll one day obtain the Sharingan," he said, mocking Sasuke.

Hinata giggled at Naruto's antics. Naruto smiled. "So...Uh...why were you watching me?" Naruto asked.

Hinata grabbed the hem of her shirt and fiddled with it. She wasn't sure how to answer that.

"Well?" he asked crossing his arms, tapping his foot impatiently.

Hinata swallowed hard, and took a deep breathing before speaking. "I...I s-saw you i-in town. Y-You looked...You l-looked so upset. I f-followed you t-to see if y-you were okay..." She said looking at her feet. "I'm sorry..." she added, bowing to him.

Naruto stared at Hinata in shock. No one had ever come to check up on him if he was upset. And she was bowing to him?! This was something Naruto never experienced. "No...it's okay. Um...Sorry for thinking you were going to attack me," he said, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

Hinata blushed, smiling slightly. Here she was, talking to Naruto. She was having an actual conversation with Uzumaki Naruto! She was still smiling on the outside, but, on the inside, she was dancing.

Naruto looked at Hinata and blinked. She was smiling. Not directly at him, more so at the ground. But she was smiling. She also stuttered, a lot, her face had been red since the second they'd met, and she seemed rather anxious when she spoke. She was rather weird in his eyes. "Well...I have to go. I promised the old man I'd meet him at Ichiraku's for dinner," Naruto said, starting to walk off.

Hinata's eyes widened. "A-Ah! N-Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out. Her face grew hot and red. She called his name, when she really didn't mean to.

Naruto stopped and turned to face her. "Yeah?"

Hinata panicked. What was she supposed to say now? "A-Ah...I-I-Is th-this wh-where you t-train?" she asked, pressing her forefingers together.

"Yeah. I come here all the time to train. Why?" he asked.

"W...Will you be here t-tomorrow?" she asked quietly. She wanted to see him more.

"Yeah. Why do you wanna know?" he asked. 'This girl is really weird.'

"I...Is it...C-Can I...I-I...M-May I...t-train with you?" she asked in a very soft voice, looking at her feet. She was almost embarrassed to ask.

"Eh? Can you say that again? I didn't hear you," he said, cupping his hand behind his ear.

"C-Can I t-t-train with you?" she asked a little louder.

Naruto was shocked. This girl...this weird girl wanted to train with him? She wanted to train with him! Nobody had every offered to help him train, let alone train with him. Naruto just couldn't refuse her offer. "Yeah!" Naruto was smiling from ear to ear. "I'll see you tomorrow!" he exclaimed, running off with a wave.

Hinata watched him run back into the forest. She stood there staring at the spot where Naruto disappeared, looking almost dumbfounded. 'N-Naruto-kun...is...Naruto-kun is going to train with me tomorrow! It's going to be almost like...' Hinata's face became a deep red. 'Almost like a date...A date!' Hinata squealed aloud. She was rather glad her father wasn't there to see her. She would have been scolded and possibly slapped for performing such an immature gesture. She looked towards the sky and decided it was time to head home. Supper would be ready soon, and her father would be most angry if she were to return after dinner was served.

Hinata walked back into the village with a smile on her face. She couldn't help it. She broke off into a run back to the Hyuuga compound. She was just so happy! She spoke with Naruto today, and tomorrow she was going to be training with Naruto! She raced home, smiling all the way.

When she finally reached the compound, the smile was still gracing her lips. As she entered the premises, she saw several of the clan members in the courtyard training.

As she walked through the courtyard, the clan members gave her a respectful bow before resuming their training. She hated it when the other members bowed to her. She may have been the heiress to the Hyuuga Clan, but she didn't like how the Main Family was always so cruel to the Branch Family. Whenever a branch member passed her sister, her father or herself, they were to bow or risk being punished. She nodded to them, giving them a soft smile.

A majority of the Branch Family adored Hinata. She was like her mother Hitomi. They were both quiet, gentle, warm, and caring. They were also similar in looks. They had eggplant-colored hair and beautiful light lavender eyes filled with kindness, not hatred like most members of the Main Family.

Before Hinata made her way into her home, she noticed her cousin among the other Branch members. He was standing tall, wearing a Konoha hitai-ate proudly around his forehead. Her cousin Neji was one of the graduating students in this years class. He was considered a genius. He was glaring at her.

Hinata stood there in shock. He was always glaring at her lately. 'Why does he glare at me with eyes so full of hate? Is it because I am in the Main House? I don't want him to hate me.'

Neji turned his glare back towards the other Branch members and pushed on with the training.

Hinata shook off Neji's glare and walked into her home. She was greeted by her younger sister Hanabi. "You're almost late for dinner, Neesan," Hanabi said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Sorry, Hanabi-chan. I was with a...w-with a friend," Hinata said with a slight blush.

"What kind of friend?" Hanabi asked with a slight grin.

Hinata blushed and bit her lower lip. "...N-Naruto-kun."

Hanabi's eyes widened. "Are you serious? What would Otou-sama say if he found out you were with him? You know Otou-sama doesn't take well to him."

"I know. Please, Hanabi-chan, don't tell him. I'm going to be training with Naruto-kun tomorrow," she pleaded with her sister.

Hanabi eyed her sister and smiled. "I promise Neesan." Despite their father's favoritism towards Hanabi and his cruelty to Hinata, the Hyuuga sisters were very close. Hanabi wasn't cold to Hinata like she was when she was around her father or other members of the family, and Hinata didn't stutter around her sister. They shared everything with each other: secrets, feelings, crushes (Hanabi already knew Hinata's), and they tended to spend their evenings together talking about their day.

They heard the dinner bell ring, and they quickly walked to the dining room so Hiashi wouldn't get angry. They sat on their designated sitting pillows and waited. After waiting several moments, Hiashi walked in and sat on his sitting pillow, not looking towards his daughters.

A few moments later, their food was presented to them: Gyūdon, tempura vegetables, and miso soup. A typical dinner in their household. Hanabi and Hinata waited patiently until their father took the first bite of food. Soon, the family of three were all eating.

After a few moments of silence, Hiashi spoke. "Hanabi, tomorrow I shall be working on your Jūken Style. You are progressing well," he said, sipping his soup. "Hinata," he continued with a stern voice.

"O-Otou-sama?" she asked quietly.

"I implore you to work on your Jūken Style. It is below par," he said sternly.

"I'm sorry Otou-sama," she said hanging her head.

"The Elders and I have spoken about your abilities and skill level. We have decided that this will be your last chance. If your skills are not up to par for your age by your graduation date in the Academy next year, you will be stripped of your title as heiress," he stated, folding his arms over his chest.

Hinata was surprised. She knew that her self-confidence wasn't the best, and it affected her shinobi skills, but she didn't think it would come to this. She really wanted to become the Head of the Hyuuga Clan. If she did, then she'd be able to drastically changes things. "I p-promise to b-become strong, O-Otou-sama. I...I won't let you down," she said, looking at her food. She clenched her fists on her lap. She would get stronger. She would for herself, for her clan, and for Naruto-kun.

After dinner, Hinata and Hanabi excused themselves, and ended up in Hinata's room. "What are you going to do, Neesan? I know it's your dream to be Head of the clan and change things. How are you going to get stronger?" she asked.

"I don't know, Hanabi-chan. Training with Naruto-kun may help. He's very strong."

"But Neesan...he's failed the Genin test twice. How strong could he be?"

"If I train with Naruto-kun, maybe I can get stronger," Hinata said with a nod. "I will grow stronger...I just..."

"You just need to believe in yourself, Neesan." Hanabi said, placing a hand on her older sister's shoulder.

"Yes. Thank you Hanabi-chan."

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.

Naruto sat on his usual stool at Ichiraku's Ramen stand. His teacher Iruka was with him. "Naruto...You really need to start taking the Genin exam seriously. You need to start taking training seriously!" he scolded. Of course, Naruto wasn't listening. He was too wrapped up in his sixth bowl of ramen.

"But Iwuka-thenthei!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Swallow before you you speak, Naruto," Iruka said, rubbing his temples. This child could be so hopeless sometimes.

Naruto did as he was told and swallowed all the noodles in his mouth before speaking again. "But Iruka-sensei! I was being serious! I tried my hardest and I couldn't do it!" he exclaimed, slurping the broth from the large bowl.

Iruka sighed. "Listen Naruto...I really do want you to graduate, but I don't think you're trying your hardest. You do the minimum school work that is required. Your taijutsu is horrible, you can't produce any genjutsu, and your ninjutsu is just as bad as your taijutsu."

"But-"

"Naruto...I really don't want to see you fail again. Promise me that during the break you'll train hard. You'll study."

"But Iruka-sensei! I hate studying." Naruto groaned.

Iruka sighed. "Sorry then, Naruto. If you don't study and don't train hard, you won't be able to become Hokage," he stated bluntly. He cared for Naruto like a little brother. He wanted Naruto to succeed, and would help Naruto over the break if he could. But when Naruto became this difficult and lazy, he honestly wanted to do nothing more than give up on Naruto. He would become so hopeless sometimes.

"But Iruka-sensei! I have to become Hokage! It's my dream!" he exclaimed.

"You want to be Hokage that bad? Then prove it," Iruka said with a stern voice. He paid for his meal and left Naruto to think about his words.

Naruto watched Iruka walk off and sighed. 'Maybe Iruka-sensei is right...Maybe I should be more serious about my training. I slacked off so much last break that I was way far behind the other students.'

"Something bothering you, Naruto-kun?" Ayame, the owner's daughter, asked.

"Oh...hey Ayame-neechan. Just...thinking," he said quietly.

"What about?"

"Well...right now, my skills are nowhere near where they should be. I need to study and work harder...but it's so hard and boring," Naruto whined.

"Well, you know how I make studying easier? I study with a friend. To me, it's more fun," she suggested with a smile.

Naruto thought for a moment. "Yeah, it would be..." 'Wait a minute...That weird Hyuuga girl said she wanted to train with me tomorrow. Maybe she'll train with me over the whole break!' Naruto stood up, pulled out his froggy wallet, and paid Ayame for his meal. "Thanks, Ayame-neechan! See ya later!" he said with a large smile before running back to his apartment. He was honestly excited about tomorrow.

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Hinata woke up just before dawn. She quickly dressed in her normal attire: her black shinobi Capri, black t-shirt, and her cream colored jacket. She made her way towards the kitchens to make bento boxes for Naruto and herself. She was very thankful her father allowed her and her sister to not attend breakfast or lunch with him or with members of the Main Family. As she walked in, there were the Branch Family cooks cooking breakfast. They bowed their heads to Hinata, who smiled in return.

The cooks were used to Hinata's presence in the kitchen. It wasn't unusual for her to be in there making her own breakfast or lunch. Hinata spent the next several hours making two delicious lunches that she prayed Naruto would enjoy. Once the meals were in their respective bento boxes, she waved to the cooks and quickly left the kitchens with a bright smile. She reached the front door and placed on her ninja sandals. She thanked Kami-sama that she didn't run into her father. If she had to explain why she had two bentos and why she was leaving this early, she wasn't too sure what she would tell him.

She walked through the streets of Konoha, noticing that many shops and restaurants were just opening up. She headed through the forest to the training ground she was supposed to meet Naruto at. The closer she got, the more nervous she became. Her face became slightly pink, and she could feel her heart begin to pound. As she stepped out of the forest and into the clearing of the training ground, she noticed Naruto wasn't there. She blinked. She looked up towards the sky and realized it was just after sunrise. Realizing she was early, she decided to start her training. She placed the lunches by one of the three training logs and took her normal fighting stance. She took several deep breaths before striking the padded log with her palms.

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Naruto woke up with a groan. He let out a huge yawn and pulled off his night cap. He got up out of bed with another yawn and stretched. He reached up in the air, then bent over and touched his toes. He let out a sigh and smiled. "All right. Today I'm going to get serious." He turned to his clock and gasped. "AAAAH! I OVERSLEPT!" He raced to his closet and began to tear off his clothes. He quickly put on his orange jumpsuit and sandals. "Stupid, friggin alarm clock! It can never go off on time!" he yelled. He got out of his apartment, locked it, and raced to the training area.

When Naruto finally got there, he saw Hinata striking the padded log with as much strength as she could muster. Naruto watched her for a few minutes, before he approached. "Uh...H-Hey," Naruto said, somewhat embarrassed about being late.

Hinata gasped softly and turned around. "N-N-Naruto-kun...H-Hello."

"Sorry I'm late. My alarm didn't go off. Kind of a lame excuse, but I swear it's the truth!" he exclaimed loudly.

Hinata giggled slightly. "I-It's okay, N-Naruto-kun. I h-h-haven't been h-here too l-long." It was a lie. She had been there for a little more than three hours. But it wasn't a total loss. She was able to train on her own for a little while without any distractions.

"Um...I know this sounds bad...but I didn't catch your name yesterday. What is it?" he asked, folding his hands behind his head.

Hinata blushed slightly and pushed her forefingers together. "U-Um, i-i-it's H-Hinata..." Her voice was almost a whisper.

"Hinata? That's a nice name," he said with a smile. "I saw you were already training without me! You looked really good."

Hinata went a bright red. 'He...He said I looked really good...!' Hinata couldn't help but let a small smile grace her lips.

"So...Um...I kinda went to the library last night and checked out some scrolls," he said, pulling about six scrolls out of his jacket.

"I d-didn't know the l-l-library w-was open a-at night," she said looking at the scrolls in his hands.

"They aren't."

Hinata blinked. "Y...You st-stole scrolls from the l-l-library?" Hinata was a little shocked. Why would he steal scrolls when he could just check them out?

"Uh...The people at the library don't like me because I pranked the place so much as a kid. So I've been banned from going in there," he said, rubbing the back of his head. It wasn't a total lie. He was banned, but he had no idea why. The librarians would never let him get past the front door without shouting at him to get out or calling him a demon. "Anyway, these scrolls have some of the basic chakra control and taijutsu styles," he said, opening a taijutsu scroll. There were so many styles!

Hinata looked at him and slowly took a chakra control scroll. They seemed to sit and read their scrolls for hours. What Hinata read, it seemed to get her thinking. 'In the Jūken Style, we aim for precision, but we tend to use more chakra in case our aim is off so we can still shut down tenketsu. From what Otou-sama taught me, Hyuugas are great at chakra control, but we aren't masters.' She continued to read about simple chakra control exercises: Leaf Concentration, Walking on Trees, and Walking on Water. She nodded as she read and continued down the scroll.

Naruto was reading over the different forms of Taijutsu styles. 'There are so many styles: Crane, Tiger, Panther, Snake, Dragon, Monkey, Mantis, Lotus. How do I figure out which one belongs to me? Well...let's start with Crane. Crane Style: The Crane Style embodies elegance, patience and evasion. The Crane style is more of a defensive style of taijutsu, rather than offensive.

Tiger Style: The Tiger Style is one of power, directness, and simplicity. For the Tiger Style, footwork is minimal, only being used to interfere. A Tiger Style user must have good ground contact to develop its power. The Tiger Style will allow you to discover the power of Simplicity and Directness.

Panther Style: The Panther style is for those who promotes thinking, strategy, and cunning. The Panther Style is for users who think their opponents can be out-thought, out-maneuvered, and out-classed. A Panther user prefers to dodge and hide, but in the most honorable of ways.

Serpent Style: The Serpent Style is one for wisdom, knowledge, precision, experience, and clarity. The Serpent Style isn't one for offense, nor is it one for defense. It is a style of order and control, not of random strikes; it is a style of power without violence, speed without haste, and knowledge without dominance.

Naruto read the first five styles and none of them seemed to fit him at all. He thought maybe the Tiger Style would, but he liked to use his feet in fights. There was no way he'd be able to keep good ground. He read over several others. None of them would work for him either. But he finally found one, he thought would work.

'The Dragon Style: The Dragon Style is one of concentration, willpower, hard work, and protection. Dragon Style users are known more for spiral types of attacks. The Dragon Style is like the Serpent Style in a sense. It isn't one for offense or defense. The Dragon Style is one for creating peace, harmony, and safety.

Naruto read the basic information on the Dragon Style and smiled. This sounded perfect! He didn't particularly like to fight. He just wanted to protect the ones he loved and his village. That was the reason he wanted to be a Shinobi. He was about to continue reading about the Dragon Style when he heard his stomach growl. He looked down and blushed slightly.

Hinata was brought out of her concentration when she heard Naruto's stomach growl. She looked at Naruto and giggled. "A-Are you h-hungry, N-Naruto-kun?" she asked, wrapping up her scroll.

"Uh...y-yeah. I kinda of forgot to eat breakfast," he replied with a laugh.

"I-It's okay, N-Naruto-kun. I m-made some b-bentos," she said grabbing the bento boxes. She handed one to Naruto, and placed one in her lap.

"Wow, Hinata! Thanks a lot!" he exclaimed, opening the bento. "Kami, Hinata! This looks delicious!" Inside the bento were three onigiri, tempura fried shrimp, tempura fried vegetables, and some sunomono. Naruto stared at the food, practically salivating over himself. "I don't know where to start!" He picked up an onigiri and bit into it. He nearly teared up.

"This is the best thing I've ever tasted that isn't ramen!" he exclaimed. He began to practically shove the onigiri in his mouth.

Hinata watched him eat and giggled. She broke her chopsticks and began to eat as well, but she started with the fried vegetables. While they ate, Naruto praised Hinata on her cooking, and told her of the latest prank he was planning.

"N-Naruto-kun, I-I don't think the v-village w-would like it if y-you painted the H-Hokage M-Monument," she said, nibbling on her onigiri.

"But it'll be funny," he exclaimed, poking the sunomono with his chopsticks. "What is this stuff, Hinata?"

"S-Sunomono. It's a c-cucumber salad in s-sweet v-vinegar," she explained, taking another bite of her food. "It's r-really tasty N-Naruto-kun."

Naruto stared at it, and poked it a little more. He picked up a few slices of cucumber and sniffed it. He put it in his mouth, chewed and swallowed. "Wow! That is tasty!" he exclaimed, taking more of the cucumber slices. "Ne, Hinata, would you come back tomorrow? I think...I think it would be more fun to train if I had a friend to train with," he said, eating more.

Hinata dropped her chopsticks onto her bento box. Her eyes were wide, her mouth hung open a little, and a bright blush was spread across her face. 'He...a friend? Are we...?'

"Are you okay, Hinata?" Naruto asked trying out his fried vegetables. It was a carrot. "Is this a carrot? Wow! This tastes so much better than a normal fresh one!" he exclaimed, biting it again.

Hinata slowly nodded. "N-Naruto-kun...A-Are we...f-friends?" she asked gripping her pants tightly.

"Huh? Well...yeah! You've been so nice to me, and made me a bento, and we're gonna train together! Yeah, I think we're friends!" Naruto answered, holding out his hand.

Hinata blushed, and slowly reached out. She took his hand, and Naruto began to shake it. Naruto let go and stared at Hinata's bento. "Ne, Hinata? Aren't you going to eat your shrimp? It's so good!"

"U-Uh...n-no. I d-don't like sh-shrimp," she said with a blush. "W-Would you l-l-like it?" she asked, holding out her bento. Naruto nodded and took the shrimp, quickly downing them. "D-did you e-enjoy th-the lunch."

"Oh yeah! It was so good. I love ramen, but this homemade lunch was fantastic!" Naruto answered with a smile. "So, what did you learn?" he asked, handing her back the bento.

"Basic ch-chakra control. C-Can I borrow this? I-I w-w-want to practice a-a-at home," she said, holding the scroll.

"Sure. I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Tomorrow we'll do some real training! Not just reading! Bye Hinata!" he said, running off with a wave.

Hinata blinked. He was so spontaneous. She giggled lightly. She looked on the ground and grabbed a leaf. Hinata remembered what she read about the leaf exercise. 'Channel chakra to the point where the leaf is. Concentrate on that specific point to keep the leaf from falling.' Hinata also read to start the leaf on a larger surface on the body, such as the forehead, the palm of the hand, back of the hand, etc. Hinata placed it on the palm of her hand, and channeled some chakra to the leaf. She continued to channel the chakra as she walked through the forest. The leaf fell twice, due to her losing concentration because a sudden breeze picked up.

She walked through town, staring at the leaf in complete concentration. She reached the Hyuuga compound, where she heard her sister and her father sparring. Hanabi and Hiashi stopped and watched Hinata. Hiashi was a little confused as to why she had a leaf in her palm. "Hinata, what are you doing?" he asked a little sternly.

"Concentrating, Otou-sama," she answered quietly. She turned her palm over, still channeling her chakra to the leaf. The leaf continued to stick to Hinata's palm, while her hand turned upside down. Hinata was still concentrating, but smiled slightly to herself. She turned her palm over, so that her palm was right side up again. She stopped channeling her chakra, and let go of the leaf. 'I did it!'

"Hinata."

Hinata turned around and saw her father and sister staring at her. "H-Hai?"

"What were you doing?" he asked, sliding his arms into the opposite sleeves.

"U-Uh...I was d-doing chakra c-c-control. I-It w-was the l-leaf ex-exercise." she stuttered.

"I could see that." He frowned slightly. "It's good to see you taking your training seriously," he said, before turning back to Hanabi. "We are done for the day Hanabi. Clean up for supper. You too, Hinata," he ordered, going back into the house.

Hanabi bowed to her father. She ran over to Hinata and smiled happily. "Wow, Neesan! That was cool what you did with the leaf! Could you teach me?" she asked excitedly. Hanabi loved to learn, even though Hiashi practically shoved knowledge down her throat.

"Maybe when you're a little older, Hanabi-chan." she replied with a bright smile.

"So...how was training with Uzumaki-san?" Hanabi asked, gently poking her sister with her elbow.

"H-Hanbi-chan!" She blushed. "It...It was nice. W-We mostly read," she answered, fiddling with the hem of her jacket. "I-It was nice. I-I think t-tomorrow w-we'll d-do more than j-just read."

"Well, that's good. I think Otou-sama is happy with you," she said with a nod.

"Y-You think so?"

"Yeah. He didn't sound quite so cold when he spoke to you." She nodded. "Come on, Neesan! I wanna bath!" she exclaimed, tugging Hinata's arm.

.

.

.

Naruto was back at Ichiraku's eating a bowl of Pork Miso Ramen. The Third Hokage was sitting next to him, eating some vegetable ramen. "So, Naruto, the library was broken into. Do you know anything about it?" Sarutobi asked, eying Naruto.

"Yeah...it was me," he said, slurping more noodles. "I wanted some scrolls to study. The librarian wouldn't let me borrow them."

"Why not? I sent them a letter saying you were allowed in the library." He was shocked. He even received a letter from the librarians saying they received it.

"Yeah, well, apparently, the note was either "lost" or "misplaced", because they can't find any record of the letter," he said, sipping down the bowl of ramen broth. "It's okay, old man. I got what I needed. You know...for the most part." He patted his stomach, content and full.

Sarutobi's face darkened. He was rather upset that the librarians "misplaced" his letter, and were keeping Naruto out of the library. He would have to talk to the librarians. "Anyway, Naruto, why did you want those scrolls?"

"Well...me and this girl named Hinata are training together. I figured I could borrow some scrolls to help our training."

Sarutobi was shocked. Not only because Naruto was taking his training seriously by borrowing scrolls...but because he was training with the one person that cared about Naruto more than anyone else. "Well Naruto, I'm glad for you. I wish you luck in your training. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must get home. My grandson is waiting for me." Sarutobi paid for both his meal and Naruto's and left the stand.

"Bye! And thanks, old man!" He waved. Naruto thanked Ayame and Teuchi for the ramen and went to his apartment. He opened it up and went to his room. Dropping the scrolls on his bed, he began reading again. He read more about the Dragon Style, and the other scrolls he had on basic chakra control. He would pass this coming year. He wanted to get stronger, and be smarter. He would do it. He had to.

So...? What did you thiiiiink? I hope you all enjoy it, and please...pleasepleaseplease review. I would like to see what you liked, what you didn't like. What you think I could improve on, what you want to see in the future. I really, honestly take my reader's suggestions into consideration. Thanks again!

~Lu Lu-Chan25

Edited 1/1/18