A Mistake Not Meant to Bear Fruit [Naruto x Hanabi]

Chapter 13: Burdens

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Naruto wasn't happy. 

When Hanabi told Naruto of her going on a mission, Naruto didn't like that. It wasn't like he was afraid for her or anything, he was sure that she was a capable shinobi. It was just that he wanted her to stay. 

It was a bit embarrassing to think that he wanted someone to stay with him, but he had recently discovered that he very much preferred if Hanabi was included in his day. He found that her not being present made for a pretty boring and uneventful day. Whether it be her bad cooking or the weird feeling he had started to get when he was around her, Naruto couldn't help but acknowledge the fact that Hanabi made his day, every day.

Naruto tried to eat something to take his mind off of her, but seeing the dishes in the sink had made him think of her cooking breakfast, and how it wasn't good, but she had started to improve. His appetite was lost, so he tried to be happy about the fact that he got to sleep in his bed for the first time because he had to admit, his back hadn't been holding up well. 

Though he found even that hard to do since the bed smelled like her, and the warmth of her was not yet lost in the bed. So as he lay down, his thoughts were filled with her. Naruto figured that the universe must hate him since not long after he realized he cared about Hanabi being there, she leaves, even if not permanently.

He didn't get much sleep that day, but at least his back pain had disappeared. 

The next day was good but bad at the same time.

Good because Hanabi was coming back today, but bad because he discovered yet another thing about himself, he depended on Hanabi way too much. Upon waking up, Naruto headed to the kitchen, forgetting that Hanabi was gone and expecting there to be breakfast waiting for him. As a substitute for breakfast, Naruto decided to have ramen, since it'd been a while since he'd had it for breakfast. Sitting down at the stall, he was greeted by Teuchi and Ayame.

"Naruto! It's been a while since you were here this early." Teuchi said, happy to see his favorite customer again, though he did notice that he looked a bit down.

"Yeah! I decided that it's been a while and I wanted to catch up with you guys." Naruto said, plastering a smile on his face. The two noticed this, but figured there was a reason for it, and decided not to push him to tell them what was wrong.

"I was starting to think that you'd forgotten about us!" Ayame joked. This evoked a genuine chuckle from the blonde.

"I could never do that." He said, a more genuine smile on his face. 

"So, how have you been doing lately?" That question sent him right back into a bad mood.

Naruto was silent during the rest of his meal.

Once he arrived home, the next few hours were uneventful, Naruto just did anything he could to pass the time. By the time Hanabi came back, it was about 6 PM, and there was a very noticeable difference in Naruto's mood once she got back.

Naruto was eating some Instant Ramen he had bought for dinner when he heard a knock on his door. He knew that it was Hanabi because not many people knew where he lived and the people who did know where he lived probably didn't have any reason to visit him this late.

He opened the door to see Hanabi, no different than how she looked when she left the day prior. A smile formed on his face and his heart warmed at the sight of her. It felt so relieving having her back. 

"Hanabi! You're back!" Naruto was so relieved to see her again, that he engulfed her into a hug. He knew that it was a bit forward, but there was no other way to express just how much he missed her. 

"N-Naruto-kun?!" Hanabi hadn't expected this from him. 

"Sorry, I'm just relieved to have you back, welcome home." He said, the two of them still embracing each other.

Hanabi's thoughts narrowed on that one word, 'home'.

Did Naruto think of this place as her home too? Hanabi had only thought of herself as a burden, and that Naruto would be better off with her gone. But if he thought of it as 'their' home, did that mean Naruto enjoyed her company, did it mean he wanted her to stay? She realized that Naruto seemed to think of her in a pleasant light, and she wondered if she felt the same. 

She hadn't really thought of herself during these past few weeks, only about how she could help and repay Naruto for letting her stay here. But she never asked herself a very important question.

Did she want to continue staying with Naruto? 

Naruto on the other hand, was wondering something. He discovered that he liked the fact that Hanabi was staying with him. He was well aware that one day Hanabi would most likely get her own place to stay, leaving him alone again. 

But he didn't know if he was ready for that yet. If he was being honest, he wanted Hanabi to stay. 

It made Naruto wonder about their friendship. For some reason, something about calling Hanabi a friend felt wrong. 

Did he want something more? Was it wrong for him to want something more? If there was one thing Naruto was sure of, it was this; Naruto didn't think of Hanabi as a friend, but as something more. What that was, however, was unknown.

A/N: Naruto finally realizes that he sees Hanabi not as a friend, but as something more, while Hanabi starts to think about what her next steps will be in regards to her situation. Only about 4 or 5 chapters until the story will end, there will be an epilogue, but I'm not sure about a lemon, let me know if you'd like another lemon.