Work Text:
“From the Top of Your Head”
Naruto was sitting on his favorite spot on top of the Hokage Monument, enjoying the last warm rays of sun and looking down at Konoha, sturdy, steady stone under him like an anchor.
It both looked familiar and not.
Being destroyed two, almost three times during just three short years definitely left their mark. Most of the buildings were completely destroyed during the Pain attack, not to mention the huge crater that made the village looks like it was placed in the middle of a very round valley.
It looked a bit like Suna now, if one squinted at it for long enough.
The buildings were growing quickly now, since the shinobi managed to rest and replenish their chakra reserves and could help out with the construction work.
Which was making him feel a bit guilty, because he couldn't exactly help - he still hadn't figured out how to perform jutsu with only one hand; the best thing he managed to create was an explosion.
Naruto sighed.
He didn't like to feel useless, not when there was so much to do, but people weren't even letting him mope about it; the moment he mentioned it to Sakura was the same moment he got smacked over the head and then reassured that he had done more than enough.
"Is there room for one more? Or are you hiding from people?"
"Hinata!" Naruto smiled. "I'm not hiding! I'm just... sitting."
She smiled back and carefully stepped forward to sit next to him.
"You don't usually do that. Just sitting.”
“Yeah, well, this is… sort of new,” he waved his hand, unsure if he should gesture at the village, at the stump or the general everything.
Instead, he concentrated on the girl.
She didn’t sit right next to him like Sakura would do, opting for an angle and a little bit of a distance instead, but it was still not what he was expecting from her.
“New things don’t need to be bad,” she said quietly.
“You’re doing this to, aren’t you?” he asked. “Something new.”
Hinata tensed up and nodded, blush creeping up her cheeks and painting the tip of her nose rosy pink.
“Yes,” she nodded. “I’ve promised myself to do a bit more things I like.”
Naruto furrowed his brow.
“You weren’t doing things you like before?” he blurted out.
He knew the conversation wasn’t about it, or rather there was another one right beneath it, the one that he owed her months ago, but the one he avoided with all his might.
“You need a bit of bravery to do this sort of thing, Naruto. I wasn’t… I wasn’t really brave before, just hiding and observing from afar was good enough. But now it’s not. It’s feels wrong to not at least try, you know? Like you always do.”
Naruto squirmed, remembering all too well what the last part was about.
For whatever reason she picked him as an example and ended up almost dying not, once, but twice.
And during that second time-
"I, look, I'm sorry."
"For what?" Hinata blinked. "We're friends. It should be enough, isn't it?"
"But it isn't," Naruto sighed.
Hinata felt silent.
"I really owe you a huge apology," he continued. "Back then, months ago, you told me how you felt, you almost died and I didn't... I never told you anything."
"It's fine," she smiled. "I'm not going to try and push you into anything."
"But I... I don't mind. I don't think so?" Naruto groaned in frustration and messed up his hair with both of his hands. "Oh dammit, it sounds totally wrong, isn't it?!"
"Maybe... just try to talk? And we'll put it together after you're done?"
"Why are you so nice when shit keeps coming out of my mouth?"
Hinata just smiled and Naruto honestly, had no idea what to do with that. Sakura would’ve just punched him hard enough to make him fall down the cliff and that would be it, because she would surely find something more important to do instead of patiently waiting for him to climb back up the mountain.
"I'm not good with people," he finally admitted.
"You? Not good?"
"Well, I can scream at people for long enough that they realize they were dummies?" Naruto shrugged. "But people people are... different. Difficult."
"They can be," Hinata agreed.
"Yeah, right? You try to say something, but words are no good or something you really don’t want to pop out pops out and then it’s all a mess!”
“Oh yes!” Hinata nodded with an uncanny enthusiasm.
“See?” Naruto ran fingers through his hair. “You get me so much, I get you, or I think I do and it’s like we were best friends since forever even if we barely talk and, and-!”
He coughed, because too many words and too little air, feeling even more like dumbass, especially with a bit of a drool on his face. He quickly wiped it off with his sleeve, but the feeling remained.
"I didn't know how to not break it, or destroy what already was so I just didn't do anything," Naruto continued to explain. "You know, like the homework quiz you have no idea how to deal with, so you just put it away and hope that you would get it, but you don't and time passes and then it gets really awkward? To tell the truth this whole thing is getting awkward. It's not homework, you're not homework, but I ah-"
Naruto hid face in the palm of his hand and groaned painfully.
“You’re not going to break anything even if you say no,” Hinata said.
She looked like she wanted to pat him on the back or maybe put hand on his shoulder, but decided to keep hands in her lap instead.
“I w-will be your friend anyway!” she declared with brow furrowed in determination and flushed cheeks. “So don’t be afraid, even if it’s s-stings a bit!”
“You’re so cool!” Naruto squealed before his brain managed to notice that he opened his mouth.
Then it was his turn to become beet-red, right as he slapped himself in the face.
The words still were out there and ringing in the sudden silence.
Hinata coughed and looked away, blushed like she just ran a marathon.
“I’m sorry!” he whimpered. “Didn’t want to make it awkward!”
“I-it’s alright!” she replied quickly, still not looking at him.
“And If I still don’t have the answer?” Naruto asked. “I mean, you’re cool and nice but that’s all I know about you and we barely hang out… can we hang out?”
Hinata blinked.
“Uh, sure?”
“Cool, that’s cool!” Naruto grinned cheerfully, for the first time feeling more like himself. Hanging out with people, that he could do, that wasn’t awkward and if there was nothing to talk about they always could go and get some ramen.
Ramen was always good.