FullMetal*Panic!

A/N: Alright. here you go. But, if the Editor kicks me out on my butt, I know who to hold responsible....

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The years were passing faster than Naruto would have imagined. The training with Jiraiya was going splendidly---well, as splendidly as anything could go with a man who continually stole his frog wallet... ran off to peer at bathing beauties... or pouted until his pupil used the Sexy No Jutsu.

Naruto's skills were increasing. His stamina had become even more miraculous. He had hit a growth spurt, and his voice had changed.

That, and his thirst for pranks had returned with a vengeance.

When the perverted sennin would leave---telling him in no uncertain terms to pour over the forbidden scrolls and practice the lessons inked on the stack of parchments---the rebellious young genin would find his way to a nearby town or village, intent on having a little fun.

Now, what was wrong with that?

One night, or so the gossips would later claim, a beautiful woman called at the temple to see the priest, worrying at the fox fur ruff of her fancy coat. Tears in her eyes, she asked him to come keep watch over a deathbed. All night long the holy man read the prayers, never wavering in his solemn task. But, when the first rays of the morning sun appeared, what do you think happened? The priest looked around in surprise. Instead of a house, he found himself deep in a lonely wood, reading prayers over a tree stump!

It was merely a coincidence that the same priest had brow beaten a young ninja who had bumped into him while running for the last available stool at the soba parlor.

Jiraiya had not been the only teacher that Naruto was learning from. On certain mornings, while his master snored loudly, his hands clutching the latest girlie magazine, the young Leaf shinobi would sneak away into a dark cave in the hills, intent on rather risky instruction.

He had struck a deal with Kyubi.

The boy would continually look for ways to give the demon a bit more freedom, certain he was smart enough to keep the great fox in check. Nine Tails, in turn, began sharing more than just chakra. The inner Naruto---something he would never admit to having, especially to Sakura---rubbed his hands in glee with each new bit of 'fox magic' that he seemingly coaxed out of the beast who had one admitted that it would gladly eat him.

Naturally, it was all due to his own cleverness and suave persuasive nature.

The kitsune were the thing of legends, tales to tell young men all too eager to chase after any pretty woman they stumbled upon. It never hurt to put the fear of evil consequences into the heart of the restless and hot-blooded.

Just the same, the abilities that storytellers gave the trickster foxes, Kyubi called his very own. Those, and then some. To fictional kitsune, their illusions served as their own special brand of reality. What they crafted in their own mind for themselves, or for other beings, was supposed to be as real as anything found or crafted in nature. Anything that a kitsune built or transformsed, was said to become whatever the kitsune desired. A kitsune can create people, creatures, and objects, which can't be distinguished from actual things.

So too could Naruto, with the help of his special 'friend.'

The more kitsune that team up to make things, the more that could be made. A handful of kitsune could build a city if they desired. A fox demon, greater than 1000 years old judging by the presence of the nine majestic tails, could do so much more, but not just in the tales of toothless grannies or sake drenched vagabonds. Sharing just a smidgen of that potential made Naruto a force to be reckoned with.

Much to the boy's great satisfaction.

The great fox demon was a jealous guardian, stingy in his power. But, when its need for death and destruction peaked, it settled for the petty mischief and harmless tricks performed through its proxy. It was better than nothing.

And, the more that the foolish boy came to believe himself to be in control....

Another day, an important and pompous townsman was returning from a neighboring town when he met an old friend, who invited him to stop by his domicile for the night. The self important man climbed naked into a sumptuous hot bath which his friend has prepared for him, a great satisfied smile on his lips. Before he knew it, the room was filled with a terrible smell. Instead of bath water, he found he was sitting in slimy mud, filled with rotten leaves, sticks, and human waste! Naked, surrounded by a crowd of aghast passersby and scandalized town council men, he realized that he was up to his waist in the filth issuing forth from a broken sewer main.

A small carved wooden fox lay on the ground nearby, a brazen admittance that Naruto dared anyone to connect to his mischief.

The poor victim had once taken the last bowl of noodles at a certain young ninja's favorite ramen den, laughing as he shoved that angry afficianado out of his way.

Such episodes served as a safety valve of sorts for the quickly maturing young man. Jiraiya was a much harder task master than Naruto ever would have guessed. Sure, he was passing on wisdom and secrets at a prodigious rate, but the weight on Naruto's shoulders was so great at times that he dreamed about running off into the would to become a hermit, his dreams of Hokage long forgotten. Not wanting to become like his flamboyant master, he quickly erased such thoughts from his head each time they appeared.

Still another time, a wine merchant set out one day to sell his wares, the envy of distillers and fermenters for miles around. That same man had sent his dogs after Jiraiya one evening, when the drunken sennin had made an exceedingly awkward pass at the man's youngest daughter. One of those dogs had made it a point to get overly friendly with Naruto's leg.

Walking along the road with his wine jugs on his back, the shopkeeper met a very wealthy traveler, a man of great riches and boundless thirst. The man bought all of the exquisite wine, and in return, gave him many gold coins in a splendid sequined purse fashioned like a fox. But when the wine merchant opened his purse later, what do you think happened? Instead of heavy gold coins, out fluttered a handful of leaves! That, and a drawing of his naked daughter visiting the ladies' hot springs.

Over time, Naruto's tricks grew more and more complicated, and numerous times he needed to escape before being caught. Another of Nine-Tail's talents often came in handy, the ability to create small pockets in reality, folding space and time to suit the great youma's needs. The young ninja found himself able to turn a hole under a floorboard into a small estate if need be, or to turn a small field into a separate kingdom unseen by human eyes. To his great joy, he discovered that days could pass in such wondrous realms, while only hours had passed in the real world. Squirreled away with forbidden scrolls and a seemingly endless supply of instant noodles, his education passed much quicker than anyone might have expected.

Unaware of the godlike skills that his pupil had been given, Jiraiya had christened Naruto a genius... one perhaps far exceeding the capabilities of the Fourth... a statement that only served to swell the lad's head and expand the young man's opinion of himself.

Almost to reckless levels.

More and more, the headstrong youth playyed with other new abilities, sometimes to the detriment of his more mundane studies. A form of mind control, the storied kitsune ability of 'seduction,' is a skill commonly referred to in legends. By using their tail or tails in a swaying manner, or by meeting the gaze of a target, the kitsune is capable of taking over his or her mind. While under the control of the kitsune, the targeted individual sees, thinks, and lives in a world designed by the tricky beast, all inside the poor victim's mind. The target is controlled until the feisty fox spirit or some other capable individual breaks the apparent spell. Sporting tails of Kyuubi's grudging construction, Naruto found ways to satisfy his never-ending desire for sweets, squid-on-a stick, and ridiculous night hats.

Such skills might well prove useful in battle as well, or so Naruto made a point of convincing himself whenevr his concience grew too prickly.

So too might the power of possession, a trait which very closely mimicked the talents exhibited by Ino and her father. Likewise, there could very well be a role for foxfire the next time that he ran across Sasuke, Orochimaru, Kabuto, or anyone from Akatsuki. By rubbing his borrowed tails together, the formidable young genin could bring forth lightning or fire, all through the increasing number of unbound jutsus the demon fox shepherded. With more practice, he was certain that he could also learn to breathe out fire or create small 'fox lanterns' for light, and small balls of fire as a weapon complimenting his rasengan.

'Ha! Let's see that old Toad Hermit do that!'

Thoughts like that often had him puffing out his chest and strutting down the street, leaving bemused onlookers to wonder weaher or not the young man was touched in the head.

One misty morning, marching down the street to the beat of his own drum, a huge smile on his face and his eyes more than half closed in self preening, Naruto ran head on into someone he hadn't seen in many many a month.

"N-N-Naruto-k-k-kun???" Hinata's shy voice had Naruto's eyes snapping open with an almost audible sound.

Hinata smiled a shy smile. Naruto hadn't caught sight of her for the longest time. That did not, however, make the converse true.

"Hinata?" Naruto did a double take. It was Hinata. But, not as he remembered her. She was taller. Her face had grown much less plain. In fact, Naruto had reason enough to stand with his jaw frozen open. She was cute.

Really cute.

Really r-e-a-l-l-y cute.

Naruto had started noticing such things. More and more each day.

Chuckling evilly, Kyubi used its chakra to tweak the host body's hormonal responses, revelling in the chaos and confusion it threatened to cause.

"Y-Y-Yes...." Hinata blushed. She had spent weeks gathering up the courage to return to this area of the village, with hopes that she could actually speak with Naruto. It had gone very well in her dreams. However, her hands were trembling somewhat catastrophically now.

"Um..." Naruto swallowed. Forcing himself to look around him, he caught sight of other women. They were dressed far less conservatively than Hinata, displaying attributes that the shorter girl likely did not have hidden under that ubiquitous heavy coat of hers. Good. That would make it easier... and safer... to talk to his fellow ninja. "Long time no see. No doubt you came looking for me, needing some more inspiration. Ah hah hah haaa."

Hinata blushed again, rubbing her finger tips together. "Um. Uh huh. Y-Y-Yes. I've been training very hard, thanks to you, Naruto-kun. My memories of you are inspiring, even though it has been quite a while that you have been absent from our lives. I have accomplished many things."

"Of course! I am quite the inspiration. But I'm afraid I have some bad news...." The young man put his hands behind his head, fighting the sudden unbidden urge to flex his muscles. "I'm no longer a proud failure."

"Huh? Naruto-kun?" Hinata's eyes went incredibly large. She bit her lip. "Y-You no longer have the confidence to get up from your defeats?"

Naruto tthrust his thumb back towards himself and stood with his legs apart. "Nope. Far from it. I'm no longer a failure! I'm well on my way to becoming Hokage." The grin he sported threatened to extend beyond the confines of his face.

"Oh." Hinata clasped her hands together.

"But, you probably realized that was going to happen. You noticed my talents long before anyone else." Naruto nodded his head, his eyes repeatedly coming back to the young girl's face, causing him to wonder how anyone could blush that much. "Are you overheated or something? It's warm out. Why don't you take off that coat. It looks too small for you, any way."

"Oh. I'm sorry. Sure." Hinata swallowed. She felt as if she was going to explode. That, or melt into a formless puddle of goo. What would Naruto's reaction be?

She slipped out of her coat.

Naruto froze. A small bead of drool formed at the corner of one lip.

"Naruto-kun? Is something wrong?" Hinata felt a surge of vindication, moments before her heart began fluttering like a trapped bird. Her blossoming instincts and her long time habits were at war with each other.

Naruto blinked rapidly, unable to speak or move any other muscle. Hinata had grown noticeably in other areas. Suddenly, that fact was very important to him. Important, and woefully disabling.

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata felt her face grow warmer and warmer. But, she clenched one fist and set her lip for the briefest of moments. She forced herself to stand where she was, despite the irrational urge to run away and hide.

Naruto tried to look up at a hawk circling overhead. His eyes wouldn't move. He tried to close his eyes. No such luck. Words echoed off the corners of his mind, as he told himself it was only Hinata. 'Now if it were Sakura....' That thought hung limp and useless as well.

Pink-haired girls were so yesterday.

The Nine-tailed fox was soon growing bored. The amusement value of the situation was spent. The host body was so discombobulated, that things had started growing annoyingly dark, almost as dark as it had been when Naruto teetered on the edge of death thanks to Kabuto's chakra disrupting attack.

Naruto jumped, feeling as if he had been goosed by a bolt of lightning. His voice and voluntary actions returned.

"Yes. Hinata. Ah. Hmmm. I bet you feel more large... I mean comfortable. You're certainly much more rounded... I mean well-rounded." Naruto bit his tongue, hard. There was a tangy taste of blood. Deep inside, a sepulchral voice chuckled as a caged form closed its great eyes. "Um... no doubt you are more accomplished ninja now."

Naruto kicked hard at a rock in the middle of the street.

"I-I-I think so. Kurenai sensai has said as much too. Even my cousin has admitted that I have grown more skilled." Hinata felt a warmth spread through her. It was a surge of confidence, something she never had before Naruto cheered her on during the middle ninja exams. "I have become especially good at transforming."

She had.

In honor of a certain young man, she had spent countless hours on her own trying to master skills that seemed to come so naturally to that important person.

"Really? Sounds like you are still the kind of person I can like!" The words had come spontaneously, with no hidden purpose. Nevertheless, Naruto somehow felt as if he had suddenly found his foot poised above the waiting jaws of a bear trap.

Hinata's mouth dropped open.

To cover his feeling of embarrassment, Naruto rushed ever onward. "Of course, I have been training hard too! I doubt that you could have become as adept at transforming as me!" Hooking his thumbs through his belt loops, he conjured up a renewed sense of balance. "But that doesn't mean you should stop trying! Be straightforward. It's our... I mean your... Ninja Way...."

Hinata felt somewhat piqued. It was a new feeling for her, and she wasn't certain how she should react. Part of her felt mortified, ready to merge with the very earth itself, if only she could fade from view. Another part felt somewhat perturbed. Naruto had noticed her; but, he sounded like he was intent on selling her short, just as many people had done before him.

She had stood up to Neiji. She would stand up to Naruto. It was his own fault, after all. In more ways than one.

"Yes, I will be straightforward." Hinata tugged at her hair a moment, before setting her jaw. "I think I can defeat you in a contest of transforming." Her eyes sparkled mischievously for a moment. "I can remember your skills before you were a genin. I was the only one who saw who you really were back then, but that didn't change the fact that you were a bit... challenged... at the time." She quivered a bit, amazed at her own audacity. More so, she was surprised to find that she enjoyed it.

Naruto began coughing, feeling as if he had come close to swallowing his tongue. "Huh? Hah hah hah. I was always joking back then." He grimaced a moment, before restoring his effervescent smile. "We all know that the boys have developed much quicker than the girls ... in uh...." Naruto swallowed, distracted by Hinata's figure again. "In our jutsus. I don't see the need for any contest. I don't want to hurt your feelings."

Naruto took of his forehead protector... breathed on it... then began polishing it to an admirable sheen.

"Oh. I see. I understand." Hinata shook her head. "We'll keep it our little secret. I promise I won't tell anyone. I hope it doesn't change my opinion of you, Naruto-kun." Hinata had been a good student in many ways. Her eyes more open to the world around her, she had studied the reactions and interrelations of various male and female chuunins and jounins she had worked with during training sessions and missions.

Knowledge is the most deadly weapon of all. All she needed was the strength and courage to see things through.

"Hinata?" Naruto looked puzzled. Tying the protector back in place, he raised an eyebrow.

"I won't tell anyone that you were afraid." Hinata blinked repeatedly, then fluffed her hair. "Actually, you've made me feel strong again, Naruto-kun. Just knowing that I am better than you fills me with a great deal of confidence. T-T-Thank y-y-you."

Naruto frowned. He swallowed a number of angry responses, knowing they would make him seem foolish and weak. What the hell? Why not? If the girl was looking for trouble, why not give her some?

"Hmmppff! Try and do someone a favor, and this is how they thank you." Naruto crossed his arms over his chest, then stuck his chin in the air. "Let's do your contest, why don't we. Not because I have anything to prove, of course!" Naruto grinned, then winked. "It's just that I don't want you to get over confident. You might stop learning that way."

"Oh. Thank you, Naruto-kun!" Hinata fought back the impulse to laugh. "I'm still sort of shy. Would you mind if we found an isolated area in the hills or forest? Maybe we could bring a picnic lunch?"

Hinata didn't need to say any more. The thought of food overwhelmed even the new found surge of hormones within Naruto. Before the young genin knew it, the object of her affections had grabbed her hand... pulled her jerkingly from one food vendor to the next... and made a bee-line for his favor patch of meadow.

The meal went well, with each sharing stories from the past couple of years.

"Excuse me," Naruto warbled happily after an unintentional belch. He laughed at the look on Hinata's face. "That was a fine lunch."

"Um, yes. I should pay my share." Hinata bowed her head some, holding out a handful of coins and paper money.

"No. My treat. It's the least I can do, seeing how I'm going to kick your butt in the contest." Naruto folded his fingers together, then cracked his muscle. "So, what's the contest?" He spoke with the utmost confidence. There was h no doubt that his chakra reserve was many fold greater than that of the no-longer-as-petite girl in front of him.

But, that was the lesser cause of his bravado. Another skill he had picked up from the Fox demon was that of shape shifting. A kitsune can transform into anything found in nature. This means they can turn into trees, forests, rocks, water, or other people. Kyubi's powers went far beyond that. In contrast to the mythical trickster foxes, the great entity could take on the innate abilities of the form it chose to transform into, without being vulnerable in that form.

Naruto could transform at will, for long periods of time, without tapping into his own much more limited supply of chakra. He was still at proportionate risk in whatever form he took, but that only meant that he had to be on top of his game.

It wouldn't be cheating. He would merely be making use of the resources at hand, something a ninja was expected to do.

His overbearing pride at his newest abilities had him in a faux drunken state. It had his heart beating strongly, but his thoughts were somewhat dulled. The price of being young, male, and enthusiastic.

"Y-Y-You want to kick me in the...." Hinata put her hands protectively on her shapely posterior. Coyness didn't come naturally, but she was up for the challenge.

"Ummm... uhhh...." Naruto's eyes were suddenly following the white-eyed girl's hands. He closed his lids tightly, and counted to ten. He wasn't some perverted sennin after all!

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata bowed her head, then crossed her arms in front of her body, standing in a falsely dejected pose. There was no way that Naruto could have seen the look in her eyes.

"Just a...... uh...... figure...... of speech. Ha ha hah! It's much too nice to kick...." Naruto had the urge to slap his forehead. "I mean you are much too nice to kick...... literally."

"Oh......I'm...... I'm so very relieved." Hinata straightened up.

"Good. So, how do you want to do this?" Naruto scratched the fuzz on his chin. "Hmmm? Should we have a bet?" If he won, he could have her tell all of their friends what happened. Just because they hadn't seen him in a while, didn't mean that he had become any less determined to get their attention. Attention, respect, and admiration.

No, there was still something even better. Better, and more visceral.

"O-OK. We can bet. I don't mind." Hinata blushed. She thought a moment, and decided what she wanted. At least she thought that was what she wanted.

Right?

"Well, if I win... I mean when I win... I want all the ramen I can eat for a day!" Naruto rubbed his hands together. This was great. It wasn't difficult to trick the populace into giving him money, but sooner or later they would figure out what he was doing. Besides, it would be much more fun to have someone buying him noodles because he had one-upped them in a battle of skills. "What do YOU want to compete for?"

"Umm...I...." Hinata exerted every iota of willpower she had. He gaze had settled upon a rather large tree, and she felt a compulsion to run and shield behind it. Damn! She still had so much work to do. Old habits die hard. "I'll tell you if I win...."

"Huh?" Naruto shook his head. "Is this some kind of trick? No way! You could ask for the Hokage necklace or something like that. I'm no fool...."

"No... I mean... not that. I'm just too shy to say I...... now." Hinata swallowed, then squared her shoulders. "But, if you're afraid I might beat you...."

"W---h---a---t---?" It was as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water on Naruto. He bunched his shoulders, then sputtered. "There... is... absolutely... no... way... I... can... lose..." He shook one fist at Hinata, then stopped, feeling foolish. "Fine. Whatever you want."

"Promise?" Hinata held her breath.

"Yes. That's my Ninja's Way!!!" Naruto smiled, then straightened his forehead protector. "Mmmm. R-a-a-a-amen...." For a moment, he felt sorry for Hinata. He was taking advantage of her. But, she should have known better. And, he did love noodles. "So. What are the rules?"

"We'll do animals," Hinata responded. "One after another, taking turns. We'll stop when someone has a clear advantage."

"OK. What kind of advantage?" Naruto tried to stop the furious mental gears that moved his thoughts. Nonchalantly, he attempted to shake off any and all vestiges of hesitation. "Uh, whatever...." His advantage would make itself clear soon enough. When Hinata lay panting on her hands and knees exhausted, that out to be a sure enough sign of victory. Coughing abruptly, he felt his face grow warm as he pictured Hinata doing just that.

"You first," Hinata said with a small wave of her hand.

"Piece of cake!" Naruto smiled. His thoughts wandered down deep within him. 'OK bastard fox, let's do this. The better I eat, the better I feel. The better I feel, the better you feel.'

Naruto made a little bow, did a quick somersault, and in the wink of an eye, turned into a mundane every day fox.

He chuckled to himself. It was appropriate. Hinata didn't know the significance, but he did. It took every ounce of control not to embellish the look with nine small tails.

Sitting on his haunch, he gave his opponent a vulpine thumbs up sign.

"Not bad," said Hinata. Making the appropriate seals with her hands, she turned into a fox.

"Hmmppff." Naruto licked his fur. "I'm bigger." Not by too much. "And, I didn't have to use hand seals...."

"Yes, Hinata said. "But I'm cuter. Ummm...at least I think so...." Her face froze, as her fingers dug mercilessly into her palms. What would his response be to that blatant remark?

"Uh huh...." Naruto coughed, as if trying to dislodge a hairball. "I mean.... damn." Without saying another word, he transformed into a frog. That too had a certain significance to him. He breathed a secret breath of relief. Had he ended up a tadpole by mistake, he would have thrown himself into a great chasm again, but let himself hit bottom!!!

Plop, Plop, Plop. He hopped happily around the small glen. For a moment, he had visions of Jiraiya accidentally summoning him while he was in this form. Wouldn't that be a hoot!

Soon enough, Hinata had followed suit.

"Hah! I bet I cut a much more dashing figure as a frog," Naruto bragged. "Besides, you have two overly large bumps!" He turned a critical eye towards the Hinata frog. "You're supposed to be a frog, not a toad."

"I'm a girl," Hinata said, turning an un-froglike shade of pink. "I'm supposed to have those bumps. Uh...I...."

Caught off guard, Naruto transformed again abruptly, rather than follow through on that rather distracting thought. He changed himself into a snake. Oh great. What an inspired choice! He silently cursed himself, remembering all too well it was like being in the belly of a gigantic reptile. Also, he felt a moment of great sadness, thinking that Sasuke might well be capable of summoning such beast, given that he had essentially apprenticed himself to old Giant Tongue.

The three years that Jiraiya had mentioned were almost up. What would happen to his erstwhile friend?

Sssssss Sssssss. He slithered through the grass. Picking his serpentine body off of the ground, he stared at a disgusted looking Hinata. Hah!!! if she refused to go snake, he would consider that her admission of defeat.

Hinata glowered at the Naruto snake for a moment, then moved her hands swiftly and confidently. She too became a snake.

"Not bad... for a girl." Naruto tried to laugh, but only sounded like the air rushing out of one of the balls he had practiced rasengan on those years ago. "But, something's wrong, I think. It looks like you have too many curves!"

"That'ssss becaussssse I'm a girl ssssssnake." Hinata frowned a reptilian frown, then reshaped her tongue. "I'm supposed to have more curves. Right???"

"Uh. OK. OK. You don't need to get all huffy or something." Once again, Naruto had no choice but to concede Hinata's point. It was a good thing she wasn't overly observant. He was sweating up a storm. A snake shouldn't be doing that. Time to change again.

There was a small whirlwind of feathers. When it cleared, Naruto could be seen up on a tree branch, hopping on small feet, resplendent in the plumage of a colorful finch. In a moment of mischief, he flipped out a dropping, nearly hitting Hinata's boot.

"It's good to see that you stay in character when you transform." Hinata tried not to blush. But, she couldn't help herself. For some reason, she had a vivid memory of how Naruto had once defeated her teammate Kiba. "Maybe I should buy you a bag of seeds instead of ramen."

Naruto chattered something rather rude in birdspeak. It was a good thing he waited until after that to find a human tongue. "Ramen ramen ramen. Ramenramenramenramenramen!!!" He had gone a bit too deep in. He made it a point to purge all birdlike tendencies from his psyche.

Hinata crooked her finger. Naruto came very close to flying on down. Damn that girl!

"Nice little bird," Hinata cooed. "Little.... bird...." She hid a smile behind her hand.

With an exploding puff of feathers, an irate Naruto appeared on a branch too thin to hold his weight. A loud and resounding crash followed his plunge earthward.

"Hmmm. I choose not to view that as a defeat on your part, Naruto-kun. I'm quite certain you could have held that form a bit longer." Hinata felt triumphant. Even if she lost the contest, she had certainly scored her share of points.

"Of course. Your turn!" Naruto spoke in a very annoyed tone of voice. Clenching his teeth, he tried to convince himself that it was just a game. Just a game with a one time dark, gloomy, shy, dark weird girl!

For a moment, Hinata cringed, loosing her feeling of ebulience. Then, looking over at her opponent again, she worked up a smile and pointed. "You missed a few. Tsk. tsk tsk. Boys...."

A number of feathers still protruded from Naruto's neck. He yanked them out, tossed them to the ground, then trampled on them.

"Uh... the tail too...." Hinata bit her lip. She was joking! She felt like doing more.

"WHAT-T-T-T???" Naruto reached behind himself. There was nothing there.

"Oh. Must have had something in my eye. Pardon me please, Naruto-kun." Hinata chirped, before turning herself into a bird.

"Ha! I win!" Naruto sounded over eager to have the contest over. He stuck out his tongue as he looked down at the Hinata bird standing on the meadow floor. It was very well shaped, but remarkably drab in color. "My bird was much more colorful."

Hinata let fly with a raucous series of cheeps, squawks, and squeaks. "Chirp, Chirp, Chirrup...." Her voice changed over to human. "Female birds are not supposed to be as colorful as the males. No wonder Sakura says you're an idiot! Ooops...." That last bit slipped out, shocking the two of them.

"Uhhh... yes, of course. I knew that. I almost had you there. If you had changed your color, I would have won!" Naruto congratulated himself on a good save.

The Hinata bird blew an avian raspberry.

"Huh? What was that?" Naruto wrinkled up his nose.

Hinata turned back to human, a perturbed look on her face. Naruto stared at her for a moment, not remembering ever seeing Hinata anything like that. For a moment, he found himself admiring her new spunk.

"Hope you don't keep any birdlike qualities when I beat you," Naruto quipped.

"W-W-What?" Hinata was caught off guard.

"Cheap. Cheap. Cheap." Naruto grinned at Hinata, who couldn't help but grin back.

Hinata's eyes lit up. She opened her mouth to speak, but couldn't get the words out. Even though she had been about to joke again, she was still too worried that Naruto might take the comment the wrong way.

"What?" Naruto asked, curious.

Hinata shook her head.

"Hmmmm. And I thought you might be the kind of person I might like." It was his turn to feel his tongue grow heavy. He had come perilously close top saying 'the kind of girl he might like.' He didn't like girls yet. Well, not really. Right?

"I was going to say that even a short time as a bird seemed to improve your wits." The words came out in a tremendous rush. Suddenly mortified, Hinata looked at Naruto out of the corner of her eye. She hoped that he wouldn't darken up like a thundercloud or go all sour on her.

"Sure. Takes one to know one, right!" Naruto's immediate frown morphed into a smile.

Hinata blushed. "Right." She nodded her head, suddenly feeling somewhat dizzy. Dizzy and giddy.

Why?

"Ummm... Hinata... your tail...." Naruto had a serious face.

Squeaking like a mouse, Hinata reached around behind her. He had fooled her. She should have known better than that. The same damn trick!!! Get a grip, girl.

"You're learning, Hinata. But, you're still not in MY league." Naruto struck one of his confident poses, and Hinata couldn't help but smile, her mind drifting back to the practice fields on the morning of the third stage of the chuunin exams. "OK. Back to work."

The sound of Hinata's inarticulate response gave Naruto his choice of the next transformation. He grew a different kind of tail, along with whiskers and perky round ears. He shrunk down to appropriate size, an energetic little field mouse.

Hinata had a sudden flash of insight. She went bird again. This time, she became a huge and fierce looking eagle. Hopping, she took to the wing, the curious and somewhat concerned mouse following her course. When she turned back and dove towards the ground, Naruto knew an uncontrollable moment of fear.

Eek ee eeeek. He couldn't transform back to human. What was going on? He could move either, despite the fact that he had spied a large hole in a nearby tree.

What was wrong???

Deep within him, there rose a chorus of great chuckles. Kyubi was amused. The young human was long overdue this comeuppance.

The Naruto mouse giuped frantically, as the Hinata eagle settled to the ground, its talons wrapped gingerly around the squirming rodent.

"Looks like I won the contest," Hinata's voice said. "Wouldn't you agree?"

Eeek eek eeeeeeee-e-e-e-e-e-k!

Hinata didn't need to know mouse speak to interpret that. She opened her razor sharp beak and leaned down towards the small furry Naruto. Soon enough, the mouse began nodding its head in assent.

"OK. That was fun." Hinata was Hinata again.

A dyspeptic looking Naruto transformed soon thereafter. "Dirty... rotten.... tricky....."

Hinata blushed, but felt somehow felt free and emancipated again, just as she had after her losing battle with her cousin. But, it was more than just a win.

Even though he might not admit it to himself, Naruto realized that there was an undercurrent of respect and admiration in the words that he automatically began to grumble.

"Well, you win. I will honor my word. It's my Ninja Way." Naruto began grinning again. "You were great, Hinata. You got me. You got me good."

Hinata began blushing yet again. She was working hard to gather up the courage to ask for her winnings. She knew what she wanted. Or, what she thought she wanted. Well, if not at that very moment or on that given day, then soon enough in the future.

Could she do it? Was there any way to get herself to say what she wanted so desperately to say?

"So, what do you want? Dinner? A new coat? Some nice healing cream?" Naruto jingled his money purse. Whew! That damn ero-sennin had left him enough coinage to buy Hinata something nice in honor of her victory.

"N-N-No...." Hinata began wringing her hands together.

"What then?" Naruto cocked his head, wondering why Hinata had reverted to her earliest behavior. For some reason, she couldn't meet his eyes any more.

"U-U-Ummm...." Hinata felt faint. She was so close. If only someone else could say the words for her. She felt so timid, just like a mouse.

She saw an image of a mouse with white eyes, feeling a touch of disappointment and self-loathing. But, something burned deep within her. The image changed. It was still a mouse, but a mouse with whisker-like scars instead of true whiskers. Soon, the mouse in her imagination began squeaking 'It's my Ninja Way. My Ninja Way. My Ninja way.' It grew a wild tuft of yellow hair on its head.

She grinned, despite her trepidation.

Gathering up her courage, Hinata pictured an eagle's talons grasping the mouse. Yes, she could do this.

She could.

"You promised, Naruto-kun? Whatever I ask?" Hinata swallowed hard, but kept her chin up and her eyes on Naruto's.

"Yeh yeh yeh...yeh-h-h-h-h. Of course. You know me. I promise. P. R. O. M. I. Well, you get the point!" Naruto flicked his hand, as if it was no big deal. That sealed things, in a manner of speaking.

Feeling a brief irrational spark of annoyance at Naruto's gesture, Hinata rubbed her hands together. "Ino has a boyfriend. Ten Ten has a boyfriend. Sakura is still pining after Sasuke, or else she could choose from any number of suitors." Hinata smiled. Poor Lee! "Kurenai sensai...... Anko...... Shizune...... they all have boyfriends. Shikamura has long since given up turning back Temari's advances whenever the sand siblings stop by on business or pleasure." Hinata found herself tensing up, feelings of melancholy beginning to nip at her heals. "Even Moegi has a b-b-boy chasing after her."

"So?" Reverting to his uber-dense ways, Naruto still didn't see where things were going.

"Ummm....I... uhhhhh....." Hinata bit her lip. The look she turned on Naruto should have clued him in. It didn't. "I don't have a boyfriend."

"That's because you're so shy. You need to lighten up some, Hinata. And...." Naruto's eyes went exceedingly large. "Uhhh... you're not saying......"

Bingo.

"Yes." Hinata said.

"But...." Naruto looked like a fly hopelessly stuck in a spider's web.

"It's your Ninja Way," Hinata said, running her hand through her silken mane.

Well storywise i can't say it's bad since i haven't got a clue what naruto is about. but the mention of Sexy No Jutsu send chills down my spine, and at this moment i'm not sure if it's the flu or unhealthy curiosity.

but the writing is great, you already knew that.

Very nice as always, dd. Heh, the contest was humorous, never saw that one coming when I started reading. So Naruto and Hinata getting together, eh? I wonder how Naruto will handle this one, and that thing with the Nine Tails too(I´m sensing that something evil is developing out of that). By the way, I was wondering if this fic is based on the manga version? There were some things that I haven´t seen in the anime or am I just imagining things.

I´m glad that you didn´t totally retire from writing fics and I´m also glad that you decided to write about Naruto which is my other favourite anime(though the latest eps suck. Too bad).

Before this I haven´t read any Naruto fics 'cause I thought Naruto wouldn´t turn well into a text-version, but I knew you wouldn´t disappoint with this one. I hope you keep writing FMP/Naruto/whatever(I´ll read them in any case) fics after this one.

Stories are based on the manga and the anime (which for the most part follows the anime VERY closely... except for the recent filler episodes that I haven't ssen. Sounds like the anime will pick up with the manga again. Hope so, since the stuff coming next rocks).

Ahhh damn you DD after reading your fic now I must watch Naruto. There goes my money for the month