Naruto found his confidence well placed as sure enough his team did make it through the first round; rather easily if their cocky grins were to be believed. He hoped that didn't affect their judgement too much and make them lower their guard, not with what he knew about the upcoming second task. As it was he was watching the trio, amongst others, through one of a few video monitors set up in a tall building Naruto would have compared to the tower in training ground forty four, in purpose at least. It sat at the edge of the cave system and acted as a staging ground for the genin before they were lead out to the various entrances, and a waiting room for the Jounin sensei.
"You guys nervous?" Asuma asked, chewing on his cigarette more than he was sucking on it. This was the first time his team had really been out of the village in a dangerous capacity, out of his supervision.
"I'm not worried, between Hinata's Byakugan, Kiba's nose and Shino's bugs' practical immunity to Genjutsu my team should fly through this test." Kurenai stated boldly, although the sentiment didn't seem to quite reach her eyes. While it was true her team would have little trouble navigating the course, defending themselves was a different issue.
"I'm sure they'll be fine, even if they don't actually pass." Naruto placated, with a dismissive, wave, his eyes flicking between the different screens and gauging the strength of the genin he could see. His team was the opposite of Kurenai's. They might have a bit of trouble getting around, likely relying heavily on Sasuke, but when it came to combat he was very sure they were the strongest team in the exams. He was just lucky that the two male students of Gai's squad had already passed their exams otherwise they would pose a very real and tangible threat.
"How can you be so calm about this? I know you're not like that lazy Kakashi, but I thought you would care at least a little more." Kurenai scolded lightly, sending a disapproving glance over at Naruto who was simply relaxing comfortably on one of the provided sofas. In contrast Kurenai was leaning on the back of it, her fingers digging into the fabric and Asuma was pacing a short circuit behind them.
"I do care." Naruto defended lazily. "It's just I know my team can handle themselves against anything in these exams." He never took his eyes from the screens, briefly spotting Fuu doing her rounds as the genin nervously awaited the start signal.
"Oh really?" Asuma interjected, pausing behind his fellow sensei. "Even against our teams?" He threw out with a challenging smirk, somehow managing to stop his acing for a moment. Even Kurenai loosened her grip, leaning back and looking at the redhead with interest.
"Oh absolutely, your guys wouldn't stand a chance." Naruto shot back without even having to look around; it didn't stop the two from seeing his cocky smirk though.
"Oh really? Care to bet on that?" Asuma challenged with a smirk, walking over from his pacing spot to stand just behind the redhead. "Say, if my team make it further than your two you guys have to pick up on the next five checks when I take Chouji out for barbecue?" Naruto snorted into his hand while Kurenai's lips curled up.
"Sounds fair." The woman admitted, moving her hands like a set of scales and bobbing her head slightly. "But when my team wins, you both have to attend the Hyuuga's next tea ceremony." Both men's eyebrows raised at that before they shuddered slightly. The Hyuuga's infamous tea ceremonies were notorious for both lasting hours at a time, and being the most dry, boring affairs imaginable. However in Naruto's mind it at least made his terms justifiable.
"Okay, okay; but when my team wins… and they will." Naruto started, looking around at both the jounin and grinning. "You two have to teach each of my genin a technique they wouldn't be able to find in the library." He challenged with his eyebrow raised tauntingly, watching as both of his fellow sensei faltered before grumbling to themselves and nodding slowly. Good, maybe that would finally get Sasuke off his back for a while and get Sakura some much needed Genjutsu. With that Kurenai and Asuma moved around the couch before joining Naruto on either side, the tension in the air dispersed by the friendly banter.
"I almost wish we had some snacks or something." Kurenai started up, settling into the seat before glancing up at the screen that showed her team. Shino and Hinata stood still, arms crossed and waiting for the task to begin silently. Kiba on the other hand was bouncing around excitedly and looked as though he couldn't shut up; it was a good thing the monitors lacked sound.
"I could go out and get some, it'd only take me a moment." Naruto offered helpfully, only to have Asuma and Kurenai stare at him strangely. "What?" He looked down, as if to check if he had something on his flak jacket.
"Did you… you know…?" Asuma began awkwardly, his eyes glancing around at the Taki jounin in the room before he gestured to Naruto's kunai pouch. Naruto raised an eyebrow but caught onto what he was saying.
"Oh, no, I'm not that inconsiderate; they're allies after all. I wouldn't just go around placing Hiraishin markers where I liked, it's betraying their trust." He shot back, but in a hushed whisper that still sounded conversational. No need to go and make the indigenous Shinobi suspicious or anything. "I'd just run out, I'm still pretty fast without it you know?" He added, winking at Kurenai as Asuma rubbed his arm from a phantom pain.
"Yeah, I remember." The grizzled smoker replied with a hint of irritation. In one of their little jounin get-togethers the man had challenged Naruto to a spar after a particularly cocky outburst from the redhead; the only condition was that Naruto not use his Hiraishin. According to Asuma it was a 'broken' and 'unwholesomely unfair' technique. He had agreed and one high-speed thrashing later Asuma had reluctantly admitted that maybe Naruto's boast wasn't just that.
"But I don't think you should all the same." Kurenai amended, glancing across the room and drawing her fellow sensei's eyes along with her. "There's a Taki sensei that's been eyeing your spot; I think she'd take it if you leave." Both men leaned forward and sure enough spotted a young female jounin, around Kurenai's age, looking at Naruto. However when she realised she had been caught staring she blushed and looked away, suddenly finding what was out the window incredibly interested. Asuma let out a guffaw as he leaned back, patting Naruto on the back even as Kurenai levelled a withering glare at him for reasons she didn't fully understand.
"Oh yeah, his spot is what she's interested in all right." The man forced out between chuckles, wiping away an invisible tear with a content sigh. Naruto simply leaned back into the sofa again, a slight, unnoticeable dusting of pink on his cheeks.
"Nobody tell Anko about this." He stated quickly, not quite pleading but his tine wasn't friendly either.
"Or what?" Asuma challenged, crossing his arms over his chest with a smirk.
"Or I'll tell your brother how often you've really been smoking." Naruto shot back quickly, causing Asuma to immediately pale. His brother was not the one he was frightened of though, the man wasn't even an active shinobi anymore. His brother's wife on the other hand... it was enough to say the thought made him shiver.
"How do you even know my brother?" Asuma shot back. Konohamaru's father didn't exactly get out much, a paralysed lower body would do that to most men. Naruto just shrugged as the blackmail argument leaned in his favour. Kurenai just looked confused; she had never met the Hokage's eldest son or his wife after all.
"I've spent more time with the Sandaime that I'd care to remember these last few months; I've met almost the entire Sarutobi clan at this point." Naruto waited before deciding that Asuma was suitably cowed from any treasonous thoughts, nodding to himself with a grin.
"And what's stopping me from telling Anko?" Kurenai piped up, appearing over Naruto's shoulder with a mildly uncharacteristic grin. However Naruto was prepared for this and replied easily.
"I'll set Sakura on you." He rebutted, grinning at the instant reaction from the Genjutsu-user shying back and returning to her spot on the couch.
"I'll be good." She muttered weakly, her eye twitching. She remembered the last conversation she had with the pink haired Genjutsu-user in training. Let it be said that when Sakura gained a passion for it, she was relentless in its pursuit; Sasuke knew this all too well. Kurenai enjoyed discussing the finer points of Illusions and their uses as much as any practitioner of the art. However doing so for almost two hours as the girl took down innumerable notes only to promise to be back the next day? She'd rather be trapped in one of her own techniques.
At some point while the jounin had been bantering, the second task had begun and the displays showed fixed views of the various teams as they blindly searched through the tunnels for the scrolls they needed. Now that they had something else to focus on the trio settled into a comfortable silence, waiting for something exciting to happen. However the beginning of the task was rather dull, just the teams scrabbling around in the dark. Only Kurenai's team walked with any semblance of confidence, Hinata's activated Byakugan likely the reason.
"I hope they play it smart and don't try to search out other teams." Kurenai admitted softly, watching with a hint of worry as Hinata strode through the tunnels with a cold look in her pale eyes. "Hinata has had this strange notion that to prove herself as clan heir she needs to fight strong opponents. Her team losing in the second round of the last chuunin exams only seemed to reinforce it." A sigh escaped the raven-haired woman's lips; she was truly worried for Hinata, wondering where the sweet, innocent girl had gone.
"Well, she'd do well not to search my team out, Sasuke has the very same issue." Naruto commented, actually rather intrigued about the outcome of a clash between the two Doujutsu users. He was sure Sauske would come out on top, but it was a tricky subject as the Uchiha and Hyuuga had been in nearly direct competition ever since the Senju all but died out during the second Shinobi war. The two families had grown rather good at exploiting the other's weaknesses. It would be an entertaining bout all the same.
"And you think your team would beat mine?" Kurenai shot back indignantly only to have Naruto cock his head in her direction with a lopsided grin. Asuma just sighed from the other side of them, blowing out a small cloud of smoke much to the chagrin of nearby sensei from other villages.
"Can we not get back into this" The older man cut in, trying to find his team amongst the monitors. It was a rather disorienting set-up as the cameras were fixed and the screens kept cycling through the various feeds, only stopping on fights that sprung up.
"You're only saying that because you know your team is the weakest when it comes to direct confrontation." Kurenai surprised both men with the comment, although it was said playfully it did have a grain of truth to it. The Ino-Shika-Cho formation was certainly a famous one, however it was specifically suited for capturing or incapacitating single opponents. In a team situation they were somewhat vulnerable to separation and subsequent overpowering. Asuma simply grumbled something under his breath and focused on the screens, not dignifying the jab with a response.
"Heh, good one." Naruto grinned at Kurenai, getting a mischievour smile back that wouldn't have looked out of place on Anko's features.
"And you can talk? Each of my students are well suited to dealing with yours in a straight up fight you know. Shino's kikai would be practically immune to Sakura's Genjutsu, Kiba's speed and claws would be more than able to deal with whatever sword-play you've managed to teach Ami in a single year and I still maintain Hinata would be able to match Sasuke with little difficulty. She was Kunoichi of the year for a reason." Kurenai argued resolutely, crossing her arms under her chest and smirking challengingly.
"Well, if they were smart; which I know they are…" At least when Sasuke actually kept his head on and didn't let someone goad him into frustration, but he left that unvoiced "…they'll know not to attack so straightforwardly." He finished with an infuriatingly calm, but still cocky smile; the Taki sensei that had been sending discrete glances his way for the past few minutes nearly fell over as the arm she had been resting on slipped out from under her, a hint of drool on her lips.
"So how would they attack?" Kurenai pried unsuccessfully as Naruto simply gave her a conspiratorial wink, tapping his nose and turning back to the screens. "How can you be so insufferably cocky all the time?" Kurenai vented, wanting to pull out her hair; had the Yondaime been this way too or did Naruto get this from his mother? Kurenai suspected the latter given the stories she had heard about a certain red-hot habanero. Naruto shrugged, motioning to a specific screen with a lazy flick of his wrist.
"That's how." He replied casually. Kurenai looked up to the screen only to see team seven standing around looking at the scroll in their possession. Nearby, either tied up or knocked unconscious, a team from Amegakure lay on the ground of the tunnel. The team seemed to be discussing something but the lack of audio prevented the jounin from listening in. Whatever they were saying Ami seemed rather happy about it while Sasuke was smirking, flipping the scroll in his hand. None of the team's members had so much as a scratch on them even though the walls of the tunnel showed signs of a fight.
"That… doesn't mean anything" Kurenai stated defensively, a mildly childish pout tugging at her lips that only her naturally dignified nature prevented from showing through. "My team simply started further away from any scrolls." It baffled her that Hinata, with the Byakugan, couldn't find a scroll as quickly as team seven. She vehemently argued that it was just dumb luck; in her head of course. She didn't want to actually irritate Naruto; despite his cocky, friendly nature, he frightened her just a little. It was a bit irrational when he had been nothing but kind, but she had heard about his time in ANBU; he had been given that nickname for a reason.
"Sure, keep telling yourself that." Naruto grunted as he jerked forward off the couch with a flourish, quickly flashing a grin at the two jounin. "I have a team to go greet and congratulate." And with that he strode from the tower, a bright grin on his face as he ignored the other jounin sensei scowling at him around the room.
"They could still be ambushed on the way out!" Kurenai called only to have Naruto wave at her cheekily, still striding away.
"You wish." And then he was gone, a swagger in his step that was just uniquely his. Kurenai turned back around, practically glaring at the screens as her fingers dug into the cushions before she let out a muffle cey of frustration.
"He's so damn insufferable!" She growled out through gritted teeth, only to have Asuma chuckle carelessly to her side.
"And yet you stick around him." Suddenly the full force of her glare was on him, instantly shutting him up.
True to prediction, team seven made it out of the tunnels relatively unscathed; relatively because they had been ambushed on the way out, three times in fact. Other teams had the idea of staking out the exits once they found them to capture teams on the way out, who naturally would have scrolls and would be tired from fighting. A good plan in theory, in practise not so much. It was rather predictable and the tunnels didn't exactly offer a lot of hiding places, making ambushes work in both directions. He was rather proud that his team hadn't humoured the idea; there was always the chance of another team deciding upon the same plan, forcing them to fight for the entrance.
They weren't the first team out, apparently that honour belonged to a team from Kirigakure, notably the first team Kirigakure had ever sent to the chuunin exams. It was a rather historic moment all things considered and the three young genin from the mist weren't disappointing. There was also the fact a certain Yuki happened to be a part of the team, something Naruto was sure Ami was excited over, and would be excellent teasing material. Somebody had to balance out all that overconfidence Anko was instilling in the girl.
However his team were by no means the last, coming out of the tunnels third overall, getting stalled quite a bit on their way out. However much to Naruto's satisfaction and his voiced pride, they had beaten any other team from Konoha out. He had naturally congratulated his team upon their arrival, ragged looking as they were and swiftly took them out for some victory Ramen. It wasn't as good as the stuff he could make at home, but it was still a nice meal; much banter was exchanged. The next task of the exams wasn't scheduled for the next day so he urged his team to rest and enjoy the down time; they would need to be fully prepared for the team matches to come.
Kurenai's team made it through, right after his own in fact; with Hinata's Byakugan they had easily skirted any potential ambushes. Somehow, as improbable as their skill-set would allow you to believe, Asuma's team also made it through. That wasn't to say Naruto thought badly of the smoker's trio; however their skills, both individual and as a team, didn't exactly lend themselves to such retrieval-esque scenarios. When asked what exactly they had done to get through Asuma had been frustratingly tight lipped, citing revenge for Naruto's earlier cockiness.
In any case the rest of the day passed smoothly, with the team getting in some last minute light training from Naruto amongst various pointers. He expected them to be the ones to scope out their potential opponents, but it didn't hurt to give them some pointers where they really needed them. After all he had talked a big game; now he needed to help them smash the competition and see it through. He still felt confident in himself, but as he made the walk towards the amphitheatre-like stadium Taki was using to hold the final task, a little apprehension crept into his thoughts.
He couldn't even ease them with his usual teasing of his team; they had been collected early in the morning by a Taki chuunin to ensure that no participant would be late to the exam. The people here really wanted to make sure there were no delays; after all they did want everyone out of their village as quick as possible. But there was also the fact that visiting nobles would be arriving and as a small village they didn't have the political pull to be excused for making them wait. Naruto wondered if the various nobles, in the heavy, expensive clothing also had to go through the normal entrance to the village; the thought made him chuckle
"And what's so funny?" A recognisable voice piped up to his side as Fuu dropped down from the sky; oddly enough though Naruto was standing in the middle of the street and there were no buildings around to let her fall from such a height. Shaking the oddity from his mind Naruto put on a bright mile and inclined his head at the foreign jounin.
"Drenched nobles." Naruto explained casually, as if Fuu hadn't just dropped out of nowhere and they had been talking for hours. The verdette nodded sagely for a moment before cracking a grin.
"I agree; unfortunately they are escorted in via a different set of tunnels. The path is more winding and it takes longer, but there's less wetness." The peppy Jinchuuriki admitted brightly, before glaring slightly into the distance. "Doesn't stop them complaining about it though…" She grumbled under her breath, causing Naruto to chuckle and her smile to return in turn.
"Yeah well, what are you could to do? Merchants peddle, fisherman fish, shinobi fight and nobles complain; these are the facts of our world." Naruto explained in a voice of mock-condescension, as though he were some aged scholar trying to get his point across for the thousandth time. The act didn't last long before both Jinchuuriki began to laugh, drawing a few untoward eyes in their direction. It seemed people didn't take to kindly to their resident demon-container consorting with a foreign shinobi, especially if they actually recognised the redhead.
"Eh, you're alright Naruto-kun." Fuu admitted through a contented sigh, punching him lightly on the arm in jest; however the redhead only raised an eyebrow, his smirk overtaking his features.
"Oh, it's Naruto-kun now, eh Fuu-chan?"The jounin stressed playfully, enjoying seeing Fuu's caramel cheeks turn a sudden and bright shade of red.
"I-It's, ah, well…" Her eyes twitched violently as she looked away, hand twitching up to her chest before she forced it to stay down. "Y-yeah it is!" She yelled suddenly, swivelling on Naruto and staring him in the eye as if daring him to say anything else. "You got a problem with it?" She challenged, hands coming up to cross under her chest; and not just because she was afraid of what they might do otherwise, nope, not at all.
"Nope, not at all." Naruto admitted cheerfully; if he noticed Fuu's distress he didn't act like it, turning back to the street and continuing his low walk to the stadium. The third task wasn't scheduled to begin for another twenty minutes anyway. The two lapsed into a semi-awkward silence after that as the wound through familiar and unfamiliar streets, for Fuu and Naruto respectively. The verdette trailed slightly behind him, fumbling with her hands and looking as though she were struggling to say something.
"Fuu?" Naruto finally spoke up, not looking around but bringing his hands up behind his head in a relaxed manner. The teen's head immediately shot up, her eyes wide at the sudden and unexpected acknowledgement.
"A-Ah yeah?" She fumbled awkwardly before mentally slapping herself.
"What's up with you?" Naruto asked seriously, finally turning to reveal two genuinely concerned violet eyes, boring into Fuu like he could see right through her. The white-clad Jinchuuriki froze on the spot, orange eyes going wide for a moment as her surprise caused her usual emotional mask to slip. It was only brief though and she was able to re-collect herself in a flash, smiling distractingly.
"I'm fine, what's up with you?" She shot back, adding a lacing of sultry undertones to her voice in an attempt to diver the conversation. The redhead stared for a moment before giving her an odd smile; his eyes were indecipherable to the girl that was usually so good at gauging people's intentions. Figures that the one person immune to her gaze was someone in the same situation as her. Naruto turned away, continuing his walk as they lapsed back into silence; it didn't last long.
"It's weird isn't it?" The redhead threw out, casually, looking around at the shops they were passing causally. "That we really don't know each other too well, but I still feel a connection with you." Not noticing as Fuu's eyes went owlishly wide, nodding almost to herself as she silently agreed with him.
"But we do!" The verdette blurted out, clasping her hands to her mouth as if she could take the words back as soon as she realised her error. However it was out, and she couldn't so she smiled weakly and elaborated. "We do know each other." She stressed intently, hands clasping together in front of her body as she skirted around until they were facing one another and she could look into his eyes. "We're both Jinchuuriki; we know each other better than anybody else could, because we understand." She whispered, not wanting the other people passing them by on the way to the stadium to overhear.
"You shouldn't be so quick to give up on people Fuu." Naruto urged softly, his eyes gaining a saddened, downward look. "Just because we are what we are, doesn't mean that we are the only people we can let in." He smiled, it was small but it was real and that was more Fuu could say for most of her expressions. "If you just allow yourself to trust someone, I'm sure you can find anything you're looking for." He noticed Fuu looked increasingly conflicted as he spoke, culminating in her hands clenched tightly by her side, her eyes trembling slightly as she waited for him to finish.
"But I do, and I have!" She protested quickly, taking a step closer as Naruto cocked his head to the side.
"But then-" Naruto started, only to have anything he might have said lost to the wind as Fuu suddenly launched forward, pressing her lips up against his and throwing her arms around his shoulders. She stayed like that for a few agonizing seconds, moving her lips in what she hoped was a passionate way; she was rather inexperienced at this. However even with her lack of knowledge when it came to kisses she was able to notice that Naruto was not kissing her back; in fact he was just frozen there, eyes wide in shock.
"A-Ah I'm sorry!" Fuu blurted as she jumped back, bowing quickly a few times in succession to hide the red flush that had overtaken her features. Naruto was still standing rigidly in a daze, unresponsive until Fuu uttered her seventh apology. "I'm sorry if I'm not very good, I mean, I've never, well, I don't know… I ah…" The girl faltered at Naruto's lack of response; the redhead seemed troubled, his brow creasing into a frown as he looked down at her. However it wasn't scolding, or irritated, he just seemed confused, as if his mind was connecting gears that just hadn't meshed before.
"Fuu, I…" He raised his hand only to pause, looking at it as though it held the answers he was trying to express. The verdette simply lowered her head, already hearing the rejection in the older teen's voice.
"Oh." She wasn't quite sure what to say; she hadn't honestly expected this… or at least, she hadn't really though anything.She had simply acted without a fleeting thought for the consequences, or possible reactions Naruto might have had. She had allowed herself to be hopeful and now it felt like there was a heavy weight pressing down on her chest. "I-I see…" She muttered, taking another step back, her mouth opening again only for a half-strangled noise to emerge, her lips moving like a beached fish.
"I-Is it because of how I look?" She started, fumbling her words a little as her hands wringed anxiously; she felt so awkward at the moment, so stupid!
"No!" Naruto immediately blurted, apparently just finding his voice." I-I mean, you're very cute." He continued, only to wince at the girl's reaction; that might not have been the best thing to say.
"Then is it because I'm younger?" She tried again, only to have Naruto immediately shake his head, waving his arms in denial. Dammit this was hard for him; he was used to teasing and playful banter with Anko, but this was real. This girl had legitimately opened herself up to him and now he had to stand here and crush that; there was really no easy way to do such a cold thing.
"No…" He replied again, his voice now carrying a rather defeated twinge as he simply resigned himself to the task. "I wouldn't care about something so superficial." It was only one or two years anyway; that was nothing compared to some relationships he had known. To be honest Naruto wouldn't have cared about a great many things if they were in the way of love; at least, he wouldn't care if it was Anko. Village, country, age, appearance; if it was the woman he loved and had grown up loving it mattered so very little.
"Then-" Fuu tried again only to have Naruto hold his hand up, cutting her off; he repeated a mantra in his head over and over: 'rip off the bandage, just rip it off'.
"I have a girlfriend, one I love very much." He stated, perhaps a bit too quickly as it appeared to take a moment for it to sink in for Fuu. However when it did her eyes widened owlishly.
"O-Oh, I, ah, I see." They both just stood there a moment, looking down at the floor with near identical red tinges to their cheeks. Naruto felt incredibly awkward having to do this and Fuu just felt like the biggest idiot to ever walk the planet. Of course someone like Naruto would have a girlfriend; if even her, a demon vessel, could see how special he was, then any normal girl would to. Why should he, a potential candidate for Hokage, ever go for somebody like her. Why would-
"Don't do that." Naruto suddenly cut in to Fuu's thoughts, surprising the girl as he gently lifted her chin so that they were looking into each other's eyes again.
"W-Wha?" Fuu blurted ineloquently, blinking in surprise as Naruto seemed to read her thoughts.
"That, don't do that. Don't think of yourself like that, ever." Her orange eyes only widened further, wondering if his violet orbs were somehow able to peer into her mind; she had heard people in Konoha could do that.
"B-But…" She trailed off uselessly, her tongue unable to get around the words. Naruto saw what she was trying to say though, it was reflected in her face which, for the first time since meeting her again, was completely honest. Whatever shell she had built around herself had shattered in her embarrassment, letting her thoughts practically shine in her eyes and face.
"I'm not reading your mind." Naruto explained with a saddened tinge to his tone. "I don't have to; I've had those thoughts too you know." He sighed softly before smiling. "The girl I love… she isn't what most would call normal, but all the same when we first started to go out I was worried." Despite this being about the girl who had denied Fuu her chance with Naruto, she listened intently. "I feared for what kind of life I would bring her into just by being associated with me. Do you want to know what happened?" Fuu nodded quickly; she really did, the cute sight made Naruto's smile grow a little.
"She punched me in the arm and told me to suck it up, stop worrying, that she could take care of herself and that my concern only meant the feelings were that much more real." He finished, causing Fuu's yes to widen comically.
"B-But then…" The verdette tried only to fumble the words again.
"What I'm trying to say Fuu, is that just because you are a Jinchuuriki, does not mean that you are different from everyone else." He poked her in the forehead playfully, smiling a true smile that seemed to actually get through to her. "You're human too, and one day someone will see that." He stuck his hand out and after a hesitant, ponderous moment, Fuu took it. "Trust me." Naruto told her with a bright smile, and she did; as Fuu clutched that hand with both of hers like a life-line, she did trust Naruto.
"I… need to think about things." She finally admitted, letting go of the warm hand a little reluctantly before taking a hesitant step back. "Thank you Naruto." She bade farewell, only to have the redhead pout playfully.
"What, no Naruto-kun?" He chided, earning the smallest of giggles from the green haired teen before she turned on a heel and decided to surprise Naruto for once. And surprise she did; the redhead's eyes widened to saucer proportions as four insectoid, semi-translucent wings sprouted from the girl's back, buzzing happily as they lifted her up into the air. He whistled lowly at the sight as she disappeared into the sunless sky before shaking his head with a smile. He was sure she'd be fine; she was a fighter, like him.
With that thought he turned on a heel and made his way to the stadium, a hand running through his hair; this was going to make him late and he knew it. He didn't need any more comparisons to Kakashi from Kurenai…