"Naruto..."
A soft voice.
"Hey... sleepyhead... wake up..."
Naruto moved. He was warm. Comfortable. He felt incredibly good.
He opened his eyes.
Everything was blurry. Warm and a soft skin color.
Soft skin?
He blinked.
His vision cleared a little.
He saw a small pink protrusion.
It was right at his mouth's level. It looked small. Cute. And, as his half-asleep brain recalled, very "squeezable."
He recognized the sight. A breast.
Hinata, his brain thought. A little smaller than usual. But still good.
He didn't give it any more thought. He opened his mouth and gave it a soft, playful nibble.
A light laugh sounded right above him.
"Ngh!"
"Hey... that tickles."
The voice was amused, not sleepy. "You're lucky I was already awake. If not, you would've earned yourself a Jyuuken strike out of pure instinct."
Naruto lifted his head, confused.
It wasn't Hinata.
It was Hinata's sister, Hanabi. She was kneeling next to the massive futon, smiling at him.
And she was naked from the waist up.
It was a habit of hers. One that Naruto quite appreciated. She knew he liked the view upon waking up.
"Enjoying breakfast, sleepyhead?"
Naruto rubbed his eyes and sat up. The futon was huge and mostly empty. He was in his boxers.
"Hanabi." He yawned. "Where is everyone? It's... quiet. It's weird. Was there an evacuation or something?"
Hanabi stretched, a deliberate movement that made her breasts sway slightly. "Almost. Tsunade-sama had that boring meeting with the Kage. You know, the one you avoided."
"I didn't avoid it," Naruto grumbled. "I was strategically fatigued. It's different."
"Right. 'Strategically fatigued'." She laughed. "Sounds very official. Well, Sakura-san had a shift at the hospital. She left hours ago, muttering something about Ino and a bandage budget."
Naruto let out a laugh. "Sounds like Sakura-chan. What did Ino do this time?"
"Apparently, she ordered silk gauze for an academy patient who scraped his knee. Sakura-san was threatening to use Ino's hair as sutures next time."
"Noted. Don't piss off Sakura-chan until the budget thing is sorted." He got a little more serious. "And Hinata?"
"And my sister," Hanabi said, her smile turning a bit mischievous, "had to go to the compound. Something about a complaint from the elders."
Naruto's good mood vanished. "Crap. Again? What did I do now?"
"The usual. 'Improper conduct on the training grounds,' I think Kō-san called it."
"I was just showing her an application of the Rasengan! How is that 'improper conduct'?"
"Well," Hanabi said, leaning a little closer, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "You were... very 'close' while you were doing it. And she was very... 'blushy'. And Kō-san was watching from the tower. You're an idiot, Naruto."
"Great. So she's getting a lecture because of me."
"She's always getting lectures because of you," Hanabi said matter-of-factly. "Anyway, between Grandma's meeting, Sakura-san's shift, and my sister's scolding, we decided to let you sleep. You've been covering for Tsunade-sama too much lately. You have terrible dark circles."
"Ugh. Thanks. You're so kind."
"Always."
"Good plan, anyway," Naruto said. He yawned again and pulled her toward him by the waist.
She fell softly onto his chest, settling in without complaint. She was light, but firm, noticeably curvy.
He hugged her. His hand rested, idle, on one of her breasts.
They were exactly as he remembered. Large, firm, and perfectly "squeezable." The pink of her areolas was light. They were almost the perfect size to pinch gently between his thumb and forefinger.
"You're comfortable," he murmured.
"Hey, I'm not a pillow," she replied against his shoulder. "You still seem tired."
He brushed his thumb over the nipple. Hanabi trembled a bit, a satisfied sigh escaping her.
"I guess I am tired," Naruto said, his voice a bit deeper. "I was dreaming... well, not dreaming. Remembering."
"Oh yeah?" Hanabi murmured, moving her head so her black hair tickled his chin. "Anything good? That time you snuck into the women's baths?"
Naruto winced. "No! Stop bringing that up! That was an accident!"
"An accident that earned you a beating from Sakura-san and made my sister faint. Very heroic."
"I was remembering... well, the aftermath. Right after Kiba ran out of my old apartment. The panic."
Hanabi laughed. The movement of her laugh was felt against his hand, making her chest move. Naruto's gaze instinctively dropped.
"Ah," she said, noticing his gaze and smirking. "The 'Incident'."
"Is that what you guys call it?"
"The elders call it 'The Day of Disgrace.' I prefer to call it 'The day Naruto used the worst strategy of his life and somehow it worked'."
A visible shiver ran down Naruto's spine.
"That was the 'almost end'!"
"Almost?" Hanabi lifted her head to look at him, grinning. "I was there. I saw my father's look. He was ready to execute you."
"Don't remind me! I had nightmares for a week! Nightmares involving lots of Byakugans and chakra points!"
"And they brought out the clan's execution scrolls! The old, dusty ones! It was so exciting!"
"It wasn't exciting! It was terrifying! Your father hated me!"
"He hates you," she corrected, her voice softening. "And you were absolutely right to be scared. He was going to kill you. For real."
"But he didn't," Naruto said, remembering.
"No. He didn't." Hanabi's smile changed, becoming softer, less teasing. "And if you hadn't been the biggest idiot in Konoha, the only one stupid enough to do what you did..."
"Idiot?"
"Incredibly idiotic," she confirmed. "If it hadn't been for that, you never would've ended up like this. Here with me... while you caress my breasts."
Naruto looked at her. He saw the smile on her lips, the amused look in her pale lavender eyes.
"I guess you're right."
He lowered his head and captured one of the nipples with his mouth.
"Ah... Naruto..."
It was small and instantly firmed up. He gave it a gentle tug with his teeth and then moved to the other, covering it.
Hanabi let out a soft moan, arching her back and tightening her hands on his shoulders. "Hey... you were... supposed to be tired..."
"I am," he murmured against her skin. "This is... recharging."
She laughed breathlessly. "What a bad excuse..."
Naruto smiled against her skin.
Yeah. She's absolutely right. It was worth every second of terror.
Now... where were we? Ah, yes...
The panic. Right after Kiba left...
The apartment door was still vibrating from the slam.
The sound of Kiba's boots hitting the wooden hallway echoed loudly.
"HEY EVERYONE! GUESS WHAT! NARUTO FINALLY DID IT! THE IDIOT GOT A FIANCÉE!"
A distant shout that sounded like Choji replied: "Did he manage to trick some girl at Ichiraku?"
"BETTER! HE'S MARRYING HINATA! YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST! I'M GONNA GET SO MUCH BBQ FOR THIS!"
There was a pause, and then, louder:
"SHINO! YOU OWE ME A THOUSAND RYO! I TOLD YOU HE'D DO IT BEFORE TWENTY! PAY UP, MY FRIEND! PAY UP!"
Silence.
The silence that followed was worse than the shouting.
In the apartment, the only sound was the drip of a faucet in Naruto's kitchen.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Naruto was frozen by the door, his hand still on the knob. He was gripping it so tightly that the wood creaked under his white knuckles.
Hinata was frozen on the floor, half-tangled in a dusty orange jacket from years ago.
They looked at each other.
The horror on their faces was identical.
Naruto's brain was trying to process the sequence of events. Kiba. Baths. Onsen. Hinata. Together. Seen. Shouting. Marry. Fiancée.
Oh.
Oh, no.
Naruto swallowed. The sound was obscenely loud in the silent room.
He opened his mouth. Closed it. Tried again.
His voice was a choked croak, barely a whisper.
"...Oops."
That was it.
That single word broke Hinata's paralysis.
Hinata's eyes, which had been dry from shock, filled with fresh tears. They were tears of pure panic, born from a new terror.
Her voice was a tremor, a thread of air that barely managed to form a word.
"F-f-fiancée...?" she repeated, her voice rising an octave.
"Hinata, calm down!" Naruto finally let go of the door and took a hesitant step toward her, holding up his hands. "It's Kiba! He's just kidding! You know how he is!"
"He... he shouted it! In the street!" Hinata jumped to her feet, tripping over the orange jacket. "Everyone... everyone heard him! Shino-kun! Choji-san! The whole street!"
"They're our friends! They're... well, they're Choji and Shino! They'll understand it was a mistake!" Naruto tried to sound reassuring. He failed miserably.
"You don't understand!" She started pacing in circles in the small apartment, a pattern of panic. "It's not a 'mistake'! It's a... it's a disaster!"
"Disaster? Hinata, he just saw us... well... he saw us!"
"He saw us together in your room!" she shouted, her voice hitting a high pitch. "Together! A-a-alone! And now... now he thinks... everyone thinks...!"
"We'll tell them the truth!" Naruto shouted, starting to feel the panic himself.
"The truth?" Hinata stopped short and stared at him. Her pale lavender eyes were wide with fear. "What is the truth, Naruto-kun? That you touched my breasts?..."
"I... uh..." Naruto's brain shut down.
"Right, then think of something better!"
"There is nothing better!" She ran to the apartment's only window and looked down at the street. "Oh no... oh no, no, no, no..."
Naruto ran to her side, clenching his fists. "What? What is it?"
"There are... there are people... talking." Her voice was a trembling whisper. "They're on the corner. They're looking this way. They're looking at your apartment!"
Naruto peeked out. Sure enough, a small group of civilians and a couple of off-duty shinobi were murmuring and pointing. He saw one of the Ichiraku guys point directly at his window.
"Crap," Naruto whispered. "Kiba is damn fast."
"He's not just fast!" Hinata backed away sharply from the window, breathing hard. "He's an Inuzuka! They're the unofficial town criers! They talk more than their dogs! By the time this afternoon arrives, the entire Hyuga compound will know!"
The mention of the Hyuga compound paralyzed Naruto.
"Oh," he said, the word coming out airlessly. "The compound. Your... your father."
Hinata's face lost its last trace of color.
"My father..." she whispered. She brought a hand to her mouth. "He... he'll kill you."
"Come on, Hinata! It's Hiashi-sama! He's grumpy, yeah, but he's not a... a murderer!"
"He will kill you," she repeated, with an absolute, icy certainty that chilled Naruto's blood. "You stained the honor of the heiress. In public. Kiba made it public. There's... there's no way to undo this, Naruto-kun."
"Of course there is!" Naruto started pacing. "I'll go there! Right now! I'll talk to him! I'll explain! I'm the Hokage's protégé! He has to listen to me!"
"You don't understand the clan rules!" she shouted, and Naruto recoiled. He had never heard her yell at him like that. "That doesn't matter at all! Only blood matters! Tradition! What Kiba-kun shouted... 'fiancée'... is the only thing that could save your skin right now!"
Naruto stopped. "What? Why?"
"Because if we're engaged, then... then it's just... inappropriate. Embarrassing. But forgivable."
"But we're not engaged!"
"I know!" she wailed, tears streaming freely down her cheeks. "But when my father finds out you were with me in the women's onsen, that you saw me naked, that you touched me, and even kidnapped me... he... he will invoke the regulations. Ex-execution for dishonor!"
Naruto felt his stomach drop to his feet.
"Execution? Seriously? They still do that? I thought Granny Tsunade banned that barbaric stuff! I thought that was just a joke from Pervy Sage."
"Not if it's internal clan business! She can't interfere in the main house's affairs!" Hinata started to hyperventilate, her breaths short and sharp. "And I... oh no... me! They'll... they'll seal me! They'll put the Bird Seal on me!"
"The... the branch house seal? The one Neji had?" Naruto's panic hit a new level. This wasn't a joke. This was real.
"They can't! You're the heiress! The main branch!"
"They can if the heiress brings disgrace! It's the law, Naruto-kun! They'll mark me... they'll make me a servant for Hanabi... they'll... they'll disown me!"
"No!" Naruto's protective instinct finally kicked in, cutting through the thick layer of terror. "No! I won't let that happen! Over my dead body!"
"That's the plan, Naruto-kun!" she sobbed. "Literally, over your dead body!"
They stared at each other, panic vibrating between them in the dusty air.
Naruto slammed the door shut.
He leaned against it, banging his forehead against the wood. "We're dead. We are so, so dead."
Hinata slid down the wall to the floor and hid her face in her knees. Her shoulders were shaking.
"Dead," she repeated in a choked mumble. "My father... Hanabi... oh, God, Hanabi will find out... She... she'll laugh so hard before they seal me..."
"Okay." Naruto took a deep breath.
"We won't talk to your father. Not yet."
"Right."
"So..." Naruto walked over and sat on the floor in front of her, cross-legged. "We just... we just have to calm down. Let's think. Let's use strategy."
"Think?" She looked up. Her face was a mess of tears and red blotches.
"Yeah. We're ninja. We're supposed to be smart. Strategic."
"I... I don't feel strategic," she whispered. "I feel... stupid."
"Me too," Naruto admitted. "Okay. Strategy. What's the worst-case scenario? The absolute worst."
"My father ritually executes you in the compound courtyard, and I get sealed and exiled to a hut on the border."
Naruto winced. "Okay. Let's start over. What's the second worst-case scenario?"
"My father beats you half to death, forbids you from coming within a hundred meters of me, and I get locked in the compound for a year?"
"Better! I like that one! I can survive that! I've been beaten up before!"
"Not like that."
"...Crap."
"Naruto-kun..." Hinata looked at him. "Why don't we just find Kiba?"