Naruto stood awkwardly near the stone wall, watching Kenji disappear down the street. A moment later, a soft voice pulled his attention back to the corner.
"Hello, Naruto-kun."
Hinata stood a few feet away. She had left her usual heavy combat jacket at home, wearing a simple, light-colored casual top and dark trousers instead.
Naruto blinked, taking her in. "You look different."
Hinata immediately looked down at herself, her shoulders tensing as she suddenly seemed incredibly self-conscious about her outfit.
Naruto panicked, realizing exactly how that sounded. "I mean, good different! Not weird different. Just... you aren't wearing your jacket, so I just noticed that you looked—I mean, you look really nice."
He rubbed the back of his neck, thoroughly embarrassing himself. Hinata looked up at his flushed face, and her sudden anxiety dissolved into a soft, genuine laugh.
The sound immediately broke the awkwardness between them. Naruto let out a breath of relief, grinning as he pushed off the wall.
"So," Naruto said, gesturing down the road. "Where do you want to go?"
Hinata tilted her head slightly. "You were the one who invited me."
Naruto's grin froze. He realized in that exact moment that he had planned absolutely nothing beyond asking her to meet him.
They compromised by stopping at a small, brightly lit stall near the commercial district. Naruto bought two skewers of dango and a couple of cold drinks. He reached out to grab the heavy paper bag with his right hand, completely forgetting his bandaged shoulder until a sharp twinge of pain shot down his collarbone.
He didn't make a sound, but Hinata noticed the slight tightening of his jaw instantly. She gave him a stern, disapproving look that reminded him terrifyingly of Sakura.
"I'm fine!" Naruto insisted.
Hinata didn't say a word. She just kept looking at him.
Naruto grumbled, smoothly switched the bag to his uninjured left hand, and started walking toward the river path without further argument.
The sun was beginning to dip below the tree line as they walked along the dirt path following the river. The golden evening light filtered through the leaves, casting long shadows across the water.
They talked easily as they walked, the conversation flowing from the recent Sound Four mission to what they planned to do once the hospital finally cleared him for active duty.
"You were amazing back there in the forest," Naruto told her, looking over. "When those spiders came down, you didn't even hesitate. You just covered my blind spot instantly."
Hinata's cheeks dusted pink, but she didn't look away or start stuttering. "You already told me that."
"So?" Naruto challenged playfully. "You want me to take it back?"
"No," Hinata answered quickly.
She took a bite of her dango and changed the subject. "What are you going to train first when your shoulder heals?"
Naruto immediately started listing his schedule. He needed to work on speeding up his Rasengan formation, he wanted to run extensive Shadow Clone endurance drills, and he needed to figure out how to counter long-range fighters like Kidomaru.
He completely forgot to mention taking a single day to rest.
Hinata calmly pointed out the omission.
"Medical paranoia," Naruto complained, kicking a pebble into the river. "First Sakura, then Kakashi-sensei, and now you."
"We just want your shoulder to stay attached," Hinata said smoothly.
They eventually settled on a grassy patch of the riverbank, sitting close enough together that their shoulders occasionally brushed when they moved.
After a stretch of comfortable conversation, Naruto looked at the water and finally asked what had been bothering him.
"Why did you agree to come out here with me?"
Hinata looked at him, slightly confused by the question. "Because I wanted to."
Naruto searched her face, fully expecting some other explanation. He expected her to say it was because they were friends, or because she felt bad that he was stuck on medical leave, or because they'd been training together lately.
There wasn't one. She just wanted his company.
Naruto went quiet for a moment, staring out across the water. Then he looked back at her.
"So... is this a date?"
Hinata's face flushed bright red. She looked down at the grass, her fingers playing nervously with the edge of her casual top, but she answered him completely honestly.
"I thought it was."
Naruto stared at her. "You could've told me."
Hinata smiled shyly, glancing up at him through her dark hair. "You invited me."
Naruto opened his mouth, closed it, and realized he had absolutely no answer for that.
Naruto looked down at Hinata's hand resting beside his on the grass. After a brief hesitation, he reached over and took it.
Hinata didn't freeze or pull away. She adjusted her grip, her fingers lacing naturally through his, and held his hand back.
They sat together as the last of the sunlight disappeared behind the trees. Naruto kept glancing at her, his eyes tracing the line of her jaw and the soft curve of her mouth.
Hinata noticed him looking. She turned her head, meeting his gaze, and didn't look away.
Naruto leaned in. Hinata met him halfway.
Their first kiss was incredibly short and slightly awkward. Their noses bumped, the angle wasn't quite right, and their lips simply pressed together for a fleeting second before they separated.
Naruto pulled back, looking completely stunned. "Oh."
Hinata let out a soft, breathy laugh at his thoroughly articulate reaction. Before Naruto could panic and ruin the moment, she leaned forward, tilted her head, and kissed him again.
The second kiss lasted much longer. It was softer, smoother, and vastly more deliberate. Naruto's eyes fluttered shut as his good hand came up to gently cup the side of her face.
Naruto shifted closer, wrapping his left arm around her back and pulling her flush against his chest. Hinata willingly pressed into him, her hands coming up to grip his jacket.
They kept kissing, the quiet sound of the river drowning out the rest of the village. Naruto's hand slid from her waist, moving down over her hip, and settled firmly onto her ass over the fabric of her trousers.
Hinata gasped quietly against his mouth, her face burning hot, but she didn't pull away or try to stop him. She tightened her grip on his jacket and kissed him harder.
Naruto tried to shift his weight to get a better angle, accidentally leaning his upper body heavily onto his right side.
Pain stabbed through his healing shoulder. Naruto broke the kiss with a sharp wince, hissing through his teeth.
Hinata instantly pulled back. "Naruto-kun! Are you okay? Did you tear it?"
Naruto dropped his head back against the grass, staring up at the darkening sky with a look of profound defeat.
"Worst timing ever," Naruto muttered.
Hinata processed what he meant by "worst timing" and turned bright red. Naruto started laughing, and after a second, she did too.
A few minutes later, the embarrassment caught up to Naruto. He rubbed the back of his neck with his good hand, worried that he had pushed too far or completely ruined the evening with his stupidity.
Hinata caught the hesitation in his eyes and leaned over, kissing him firmly on the mouth.
"Does it hurt?" she asked softly, pulling back just an inch.
Naruto grinned, the anxiety evaporating instantly. "Not anymore."
They sat together on the riverbank a little longer before finally brushing the grass off their clothes and starting the walk back toward the main village streets. They held hands on the return trip, their fingers linked as they walked beneath the streetlamps.
As they neared the Hyuga compound district, Naruto swung their joined hands slightly.
"When can we do this again?" he asked.
"I have team training tomorrow," Hinata told him.
"After training," Naruto said immediately, leaving absolutely no room for negotiation.
Hinata smiled warmly. "After training."
They reached the street corner where they usually separated. Naruto stopped walking. He clearly wanted another kiss, but he hovered awkwardly, shifting his weight, unsure of what the exact rules were now that they were standing in a public street under a streetlight.
Hinata noticed him hesitating. She stepped directly into his space, rose slightly on her toes, and gave him a quick, deliberate kiss on the lips.
"Good night, Naruto."
She released his hand and started walking down the street toward her clan compound.
Naruto stood perfectly still under the streetlamp, watching her go. He touched his own mouth, a massive, uncontainable grin spreading across his face.
"Yeah," Naruto muttered to himself. "That was definitely a date."
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