Naruto and Hinata: Stories After "The Last"! (Bi-weekly Updates)

Sleepover: Part One

After an escapade involving Hinata losing her memory, Naruto's true love's kiss had brought it back to her. The cure was later explained to Sakura Haruno, Naruto's teammate and budding medical expert, but she was baffled; how could something so simple remedy Hinata's loss of memories, especially in lieu of a mysterious figure appearing to her? she warned Naruto to keep an eye out for anything strange that he might be feeling, and security was tightened up around the village thereafter. With so little lead to go on, the case went cold, and the hidden leaf was forced back into its normal state of affairs.

But, for the time being, it was blissful. A lull came over Konoha's inhabitants. The only bit of commotion seemed to come from the Hyuga household, in that part of town – and even then, there was a joyous air surrounding the event...well, mostly.

"This is going to be so boring..." Hanabi sighed with whimsical infliction, draping herself over a chair while playing with her kunai knife. Around her, branch family members shuffled through the rooms with bags and gear, as well as preparative chatter to one another.

Hiashi laughed, patting his youngest daughter on the head, while she elicited a cute grimace up at him.

"Hanabi, the journey to our mother land is a rite of passage. All Hyugas in the main branch travel there by their 13th birthday, just as your sister has done before you."

Hinata nodded silently and respectfully at her father's words, sitting just across the way. Yes – it was a sacred tradition for the Hyuga clan to travel to the plot of land where it is thought that their clan had originally settled. It was about a three-day round trip that she had taken, not long after Naruto had left to train with master Jaraiya.

"Come on, sis...just because you've already seen it before doesn't mean that you can't go again. It'll be more fun if you come along." Hanabi tried her best to persuade, her voice curling upward.

"I'm sorry, Hanabi, but this time, you'll have to do it on your own." Hinata gave a light chuckle, and endearing smile. It was simply the rules of the matter. Hanabi groaned, flipping onto her stomach.

"Fiiiine." She hummed.

Hiashi approached his eldest child. "Are you sure that you'll be okay here by yourself, Hinata?" he took her arms into his hands uneasily.

"Yes, father. You won't have to worry about me. Everything will be just fine." She reassured. Truth be told, he trusted her, and acknowledged her strength...but before Hanabi's abduction by Toneri, he had never realized what powerful assets Hinata acquired as a youthful young woman with such unique capabilities. In layman's terms, even in the world of shinobi, a proud father always finds room for worry.

--

The light lavender eyed kunoichi bid her family a well trip even on a rather rainy evening, watching Hanabi's unenthused face with a grin. Feeling as though her sister was laughing at her expense, Hanabi shot a silly face back at her, which involved a protruding tongue, and a tug downward beneath her left eye. What a free spirited little person she was – with amazing, natural skills to boot. Hinata wanted to remind herself to be a bit more like her risk-taking sister...well, maybe someday.

When she had reentered the house, a quietness had set in. With a peaceful sigh, Hinata muttered to herself, "I think I'll take a long bath." Which she did in fact go off to do. She sat tranquilly in a hot, sudsy tub, her hair tied up above her head, and her neck tilted backward in relaxation. After she had finished, she went off to knit for a while – a blanket, for Kurenai sensei. And finally, she made a meal for herself, sitting at a table by her lonesome, the sound of her utensils hitting the plate the only sound to break the hush. Everything went on without much of a hitch; boring, one might argue. That is, until the dark of the night had set into the home, and suddenly, things seemed a bit more ominous.