Waiting and Feeling (Naruto X Hinata)
Chapter 9: Never Thought

Before reading, I want to remind you.

Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto Sensei.

The name, setting and character of the character are his.

this story is purely my fantasy.

Some things I might take from the original Naruto story,

But many things are also my writing.

Happy reading 😉

***

"Welcome..."

Ayame's cheerful voice echoed in the tavern that happened to be quiet. A smile was on the corner of his lips to welcome the customer who came.

"Gee... Hinata-chan, Naruto-kun! It's been a long time, huh..." Serve with spirit.

"Haha... Well that's how Ayame-nee is. I'm a little busy this end."

"Hmmm... Being Hokage is hard." Ayame laughed, and so did Naruto. "Come sit down."

Naruto and Hinata chose the front seat.the long table facing the store's pantry.

"Why is Nee-chan so lonely? Not usually. Where's Uncle Teuchi?" Naruto extended his neck, looking for the old man he meant.

"Touchan is not feeling well, so I asked him to take a break. If Iruka-san had just come home, it might still be cleaning up."

"Aahs... So yeah. And Tenshi? Is he usually always shunned?"

"There's in Hiruma's room, sleeping."

"So late afternoon you're asleep?"

"Yes, for not taking a nap so it's still late."

"Oh, what a pity, when I wanted to meet him. Kangen with his chatter who likes to advise me, like a parent." Hinata smiled considering Ayame's 3-year-old daughter.

"Because Hinata said so, now I miss her too. Remembering her little mouth that kept nagging this and that."

They laughed while recalling Tenshi's funny behavior.

Tenshi used to be slow to walk, but he was able to talk earlier than his peers. Now Tenshi is growing up as a chatty kid. I don't know who he was copying, as far as Naruto, neither Ayame nor Iruka are talkative people. But Tenshi, her parent-like style of speech made many people anxious about her.

"Tenshi often asked when Naruto-nii would come. Once when she cried, she thought Naruto forgot her and did not remember the way to her house. Because it is difficult to persuade, Iruka-san finally drove Tenshi to your house, Naruto-kun."

"hee... Really true?"

"Hu 'um... After seeing his own Naruto-nii house empty and dark, Tenshi finally understood that his Nii-san was working hard."

"Tenshi-chan's..." Hinata is deeply moved by Ayame's story "Naruto-kun is so lucky to be loved so much by a child as good as Tenshi."

"Unnn... I didn't expect Tenshi to miss me to such an extent."

Ayame smiled sincerely. To be honest, he doesn't know why his son loves Naruto.

"Ayame-nee, please don't tell Tenshi that today I'm coming. I don't want him to be disappointed. Sunday let me take Hiruma and Tenshi for a walk to the playground."

"Ha 'i... Of course I'll allow it, Tenshi will be very happy." Actually not only Tenshi, Ayame was also happy to hear it.

"Yeah... I forgot to ask for your order. I'm sorry, I made you wait a long time."

"Don't worry about it, Ayame-san. We're glad to talk to you."

"Hmmm... Then I order one Miso Char Siu Ramen" Naruto said.

"Me too, I want a jumbo portion."

"Gee... You're so hungry, Hinata."

"Hm... That's it." Hinata smiled slightly.

"What about the drink?" Ask Ayame.

Hinata was silent for a while, her eyes looking at the board used to paste promo information.

"Now there's Ume Syrup too, Ayame-nee?."

"Yes... Just for the summer, Hinata-chan. According to Iruka-san, it would be better if we serve seasonal drinks and complementary foods. As long as it feels still connected with ramen."

"Oohs... That's a good idea. Then I want Ume Syrup."

"alright... Naruto-kun?

"I'm Ocha cold. Oh yeah, I want extra eggs for my ramen and also 1 serving of Gyoza. Ramen me a jumbo serving too, Ayame-nee"

"Unfortunately..." Ayame muttered softly as she continued to scratch the pen on her note.

"I'll get ready soon, please wait a minute."

"Don'i..." Hinata nodded her head and returned ayame smile.

The atmosphere became quiet after Ayame. While Naruto put down the Hokage robe that he had folded before, Hinata busied herself by reading a small brochure placed on the box on the table.

Naruto remained silent. He looked closely at how the look on Hinata's face was so enthusiastic. Though the brochure only contains a new menu Ume Syrup, Umeboshi and watermelon juice. Something he had actually seen on the board.

'Very beautiful' So thought Naruto.

Very simple beauty. Hinata does not need thick makeup or elaborate makeup to make it look special. To Naruto, Hinata is like water. So clear, innocent, yet always enough to incline his heart.

"Ooh... There's Hinata and Naruto!" Iruka's arrival broke that silence.

"Hisashiburi village, Hinata. Looks like it's been a long time since you two didn't come like this."

"That's it, Sensei."

"You must be very busy. Naruto too, you usually come home late at night, don't you?"

Naruto nodded "A beginner has to work harder, Sensei."

Iruka smiled looking at Naruto's face. Since childhood, he has been like that. Although he was stupid and always failed, but he always tried hard to be better.

"Take care of your health, Naruto."

"Don'i...." Naruto smiled as he bowed his body "Thank you very much for your attention, Iruka Sensei."

"Heeiii." Iruka blushed shyly "Better now you just enjoy your leisure time. I don't want to interrupt, after all I also have to help Ayame do some things."

They only replied with a nod, then Iruka left them towards the sink not far from the table.

The two of them were still watching Iruka who was accompanying them. The man began to pick up the cloth, wiping the bowl - the bowl that Ayame had washed but was still on the table with the face down position to drain the water.

"Hinata, have you accepted Sai's wedding invitation?"

Hinata turned her head, turning to look at Naruto. "Yes... Where does Naruto-kun know?"

"You said it in the tomb."

"Actually since when was Naruto-kun there?"

"It's just a while before you say happy birthday to Neji."

'That means Naruto-kun heard everything I said' Inner Hinata.

"Why, Hinata?"

"Nope-no. It's okay, Naruto-kun." Hinata smiled faintly then she shifted her gaze to avoid Naruto.

"So, can I see it?" Ask Naruto cheerfully.

"Of course." Hinata took out the invitation from her waist bag and gave it to Naruto.

A good invitation. The top is light beer colored. The bottom is light green. Although only a color scratch, but Naruto felt it was a meadow on a bright day.

Shimura Sai and Yamanaka Ino.

The writing was printed in shiny black. Naruto grabbed her for a while, then said "Sai will turn her family into Yamanaka after they get married."

Hinata frowned. "Why is that?".

What Naruto said was not normal. Usually after the wedding, the bride is the one who changes her surname following the husband surname, not the other way around.

"Shimura is just the name Danzou gave. Sai can't remember where he came from. On the other hand, Ino is a talented Shinobi whose name is quite strong heard in the Yamanaka Clan. A few months ago Ino was designated as one of the 16th generation Clan leader candidates. But that will certainly change if Ino releases the name Yamanaka. So Sai chose to leave his name so Ino could get the position he wanted."

Hinata did not answer. His mind had already run far away leaving his tongue.

Hinata understands why Sai did it. Shimura is a dark time for Sai. Even so Hinata was convinced, Sai must have thought deeply enough about his decision to leave that name.

"Goddess..." The call returned the name owner's attention. He looked at Naruto, who had looked at him first.

For a moment they were silent. Hinata waited for Naruto without wanting to start any remarks.

''No matter what it will be like, in the future I will also definitely have my family joints**ri' Naruto remembered Hinata's words a moment ago at Neji's tomb. It's been so disturbing since he heard it.

"Are you getting married too?".

Hinata's pupils widened, the girl swallowed so much she was surprised by Naruto's question.

"I-i..." Hinata could not even continue the word - he said. The girl threw away her face because she could no longer look into Naruto's eyes.

"Married..." He said softly after being silent for quite a long time. "Because they often attend weddings. The word marriage seems familiar to me." Hinata paused again.

" Unlike the Yamanaka Clan who chose its leader based on individual ability, the Hyuga Clan determined its leader through lineage."

"Even though I know for sure what kind of destiny path I have to go through, until now I still can't imagine what if I get married."

"Well, maybe it's better this way. I leave this matter to Otou-sama. Of course he wouldn't drag me to a bad guy, would he? As long as Otou-sama agrees to it, I will follow it."

Hinata smiled at the end of that sentence. A smile wide enough that both eyes narrowed.

Naruto notices her, but he more than understands Hinata about which one is really a smile and which one is just a fake.

"What about Naruto-kun?"

Naruto let out a deep breath - in the aftermath he replied "I've wanted to do it, but not again in a few years."

''Yes... I know, because Sakura-san isn't it?' Think Hinata.

"For now, I just want to focus on my work. Protecting the villagers and improving their lives. I think that's the best way for me to go."

"Haaah.." suddenly Hinata took a heavy breath. He looked at Naruto again, right in his eyes "Getting grown up is really not easy huh, Naruto-kun."

Naruto snorted and then drew a smile

"Then let's keep fighting. I will always support Naruto-kun."

"Ha 'i... Arigato na, Hinata - hime".

They laughed and ended the heavy conversation that night. Decided to enjoy Ramen and their cold drinks with a feeling of excitement.

They did not know, in the room there was someone staring at them full of anxiety.

Iruka, who had heard the conversation since, had a bad feeling for both of them.