Hinata's arms were crossed over her chest and she glared at anyone and everyone that entered her room. Just because guess where she is once more. Oh yeah, she's right back in the hospital, and this time there's no escaping because they have security posted at her door. Her eyes flickered over to the gamer box that Hashirama, Tobirama, Izuna, and Madara had left with her. She sighed as she stared at it, not one of them would tell her who spent all the money to get her these nice things. They all had one so she had no idea who had actually done it.

A knock at her door brought her out of her thoughts and she looked up to see Izuna standing in the doorway with a sly look in his eyes and a grin on his lips. "Hey Izuna-kun." She greeted and he shuffled past the guards at her door. "Have you come to visit me while I'm imprisoned once more?" she asked with a noticeable amount of stale humor. "Sadly,so. I can't break you free, and if I tried they wouldn't let me come see you anymore. But I do have secrets to spill." He said and she sat up in her bed swiftly. "Oh really?" she asked with a grin and he nodded. "Yeah... a lot of people have come through my shop today complaining about one thing or another, but the main one was that Madara hasn't showed up to work today." He said and she looked at him oddly.

"Don't you live with him? Wouldn't you know if he went to work or not?" she asked and he nodded. "Yeah, but here's the thing, he said he was going to work today but never showed up." Izuna said and Hinata furrowed her brows. "Are you sure you shouldn't be worried about him? I mean really, isn't that like how people end up murdered on the side of the road somewhere?" she asked then he frowned at her. "I mean... he isn't the nicest of guys... I think you should be worried." She said and he shook his head with a sigh.

"He's fine, trust me... he has been seen everywhere but at work today." He said then eyed her oddly. "What's the deal with you and my asshole of a brother anyways... yall have like... this love hate thing going on. Is there something I should know about?" he asked and a deep red blush covered her cheeks. "So I suppose there is then?" he asked and she redirected her gaze away from him. "I promise I won't tell him..." Izuna said and she looked at him unsure.

He offered a smile and she sighed. "Fine..." she said with a sigh and he laughed lightly. "Is it that embarrassing to think about?" he asked and she nodded. "When I was in the coma... he was... exceptionally rude, but he had his moments that made me wonder if he was really as rude as he put off to be, he is by the way..." she began with a frown and he nodded. "Yeah, my brother is a bit unorthodox... the reason I'm asking is because he's different around you, and I've never seen him like that. And then there is the fact I think he ditched work for a reason that he would refuse to admit." Izuna said and Hinata shrugged lightly.

"I don't understand why he would suddenly just act differently after I woke up... he was always mean to me before I even fell into the coma." She said and he nodded. "I remember, he used to taunt you and bother you when we were younger, but I think it was because of something he had said to mother when we were all children." Izuna said with a laugh and Hinata eyed him carefully. "What do you mean?" she asked and he blinked. "Oh... uh... well I'm not sure if I should actually bust my brother's bubble." He chuckled as he scratched the back of his neck.

Hinata smiled slightly and shook her head. "It can't possibly be as bad as the dream in my coma where he tortured me because apparently I had called him cute as a child." She said with an eye roll. "I never called him cute though... so I've been wondering where that had come from." She said and Izuna was staring at her wide eyed. "Hinata..." he began and she looked at him oddly. "Hm?" she hummed her response and he watched her carefully. "Uh... when you were in the coma... do you know if my brother ever came to visit you?" he asked and she shook her head. "I don't think so, I don't think I ever heard his voice, only Hashirama's, Tobirama's, my family's voices, and the voices of my friends. I think I would remember hearing his voice." She said and he nodded, not quite as sure as she was but he wasn't going to press her upon the matter.

"Hello, it's lunch time Hinata." The nurse said while holding a tray out to her, which she took with a small smile and a thank you. She set the tray down and waited for the nurse to leave before she glared at the oval covered plate and she hesitantly lifted the lid on it, only to sigh in relief when she did so. "What was that about?" he asked and she frowned at him with a dark look. "They had put nasty bitter things on here and I refused to eat it." she said and he raised a brow. "Like what?" he asked and she stuck her tongue out. "Lentils, and other beans. I honestly think it was punishment for trying to escape. I told them I would run away again if they continued to give me beans." She said and he chuckled.

"Well what did they give you this time?" he asked and she smiled. "I have blackened tilapia with sweet peas, three rolls of different types of sushi, red bean paste buns, and a side of cinnamon rolls." She said and her eyes lit up when she looked over her food. He chuckled and shook his head as she began eating. "Oh... uh.. Izuna." She began and he turned to look at her. "Why the sudden questioning as to if Madara had come to visit me here, anyways?" she asked and he shook his head. "No reason... none at all. I promise I was just wondering." He said and she watched him carefully but nodded soon enough.

"Hey... can you do me a favor and move that closer over here?" she asked, pointing to the gamer box and he nodded with a laugh. "Sure, it's no trouble." He said and set the box right beside her bed so that as soon as she was done eating she could reach it. "Well, I'm going to head out, I'll see you later alright?" he asked and she nodded as she waved him off. She wondered about what he meant by him asking whether Madara had come to visit or not. This was confusing and it hurt her brain. She sighed and finished eating her food, and not even five minutes after she had she heard a knock on her hospital window.

She was on the ground floor, so it did make sense they would be able to knock on the window... but what didn't make sense was why they were knocking on the window. She glanced over at the window and a blush crossed over her cheeks, because that grin spelled trouble. Especially since the screwdriver in said grinning persons' hand was motioning towards the screws on the window. She debated it for a moment, then shook her head. The feral grin became a pout and Kiba walked away from the window. Soon enough he walked through her door, the screw driver was obviously left in his car.

"That's no fun, you would run away any other day." He said and she shrugged. "Yeah... I know... but I don't feel like an escape attempt right now." She said and he shrugged. "I had come by to see if you wanted to go to the movies with us, but I guess you're not in the mood for fun right now, I'll catch ya later." He said and offered a wave before he left and she shook her head with a smile. Kiba always was a rebellious one, and he had always wanted her to be rebellious with him. Now that she'd hit her rebellious streak, he wanted her to hang out more than ever she supposed.

She had sat there for about an hour before a noise caught her attention. Her gaze flickered to the now open window and her breath hitched. "Hey." His voice came out amused as he sat in the open window, which he had just climbed in through. "What are you doing here?" she asked in a hushed whisper, seeing as her guards hadn't noticed the window had been opened yet. "I don't know actually..." he said and she frowned at him. "Have you come to torment me?" she asked in the same hushed tone. "What? No. I honestly was just bored so I figured I could be nice and see how you were doing." He said and she sighed.

"But..." he began and she glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. "I did bring something..." he said and she repressed a laugh as he pulled his gamer box in through the window. "I thought it would be fun, since you have wifi and a gamer box, but no one to game with." He said and she shook her head. "Alright, you can stay, but you have to walk through the doors so they actually know you're here and not give them a heart attack because they didn't know anyone was in here." She said and he shrugged.

"Fair enough." He said and dropped himself back out the window, but left his box in the room as he shut the door. Soon enough he came running into the room. "So, Hinata..." he began and she narrowed her eyes at the glint in his eyes. "What?" she asked and he grinned. "Did they put you in a hospital nighty?" he asked and she pointed at the door. "Questions like that get you the express trip out, Madara." She huffed with a blush and he held up his hands in amused defeat. "Alright, alright, don't call your coppers on me." he chuckled and she rolled her eyes in slight amusement. "By the way..." he began and opened his gamer box to reveal a familiar bag.

"I brought snacks." He said and she laughed lightly and shook her head as he handed her the bag of cinnamon rolls. "I think I can get used to you hanging around in here." She laughed and he offered her a smirk. "Oh, so if I bring you food I can hang out?" he asked and she smiled. "Nah, just don't be rude." She said and he rolled his eyes. "I'd never be rude to you." He said and she glared at him. "Being perverted is being rude." She said and he raised a brow. "Since when have I been perverted?" he asked with an amused glance and she blushed.

"Ah so you dreamt about me while in your coma? I'm honored!" he chuckled and she glared at him. "Shh... I dreamt about everyone, not just you. Don't get a big head." She grumbled as she turned on her gamer box. "Besides, I dreamt more about Tobirama, Hashirama, and Izuna than I did about you, I just thought would mention that." She said and watched him so she could gauge his reaction. He frowned, but then clutched his chest and flopped over backwards. "Oh how you wound me! it hurts!" he said as he flailed his arms and rolled in the floor. She couldn't help but laugh at his overly dramatic display.

He stopped and looked up at her with a grin. "So did I win?" he asked and she looked at him with amused eyes. "Did you win what?" she asked and he offered a smile. "The chance to sit at the foot of your bed and play games with you?" he asked and she laughed. She shook her head and crossed her legs, setting her gamer box in her lap and giving him just enough room to climb up there and sit facing her in the same position. "Yes, you won that." She laughed and he grinned at her.

:-:-:-:-:

Izuna had bumped into both Neji and Hashirama, whom he didn't think he would be seeing either of today. "Oh hey guys, sorry for opening up shop late, I went to go visit Hinata. Who by the way is actually being obedient and staying in the hospital like she's supposed to today." He said with a chuckle and Neji smirked. "Oh yeah, I know. I asked the hospital to set up guards for her." He said and Hashirama chuckled. "She is quite determined isn't she?" he asked and they nodded.

"So what brings you both here so early?" he asked and the two brown haired males exchanged looks. "I have something to share with the both of you." Hashirama said and Izuna quirked a brow. "Oh really now? Is it about my brother?" he asked, it started off excited but upon mention of his brother his mood deflated. "Yeah actually." Hashirama said with a laugh. "Oh dear... what now?" Izuna asked and Hashirama laughed. "Ah, it's nothing. Honestly, I think he's embarrassed of it." Hashirama said and both Neji and Izuna quirked a brow at this.

"So what is he doing today, or have you two seen him?" Izuna asked and Hashirama smiled. "He stopped by his shop, made some cinnamon rolls, and left. I think he might be going to mean a certain someone." He chuckled and Izuna raised a brow. "He took his gamer box with him, no doubt." Izuna said and Hashirama chuckled. "I think I saw it in the back seat of his car. But I can't actually be sure as to who he is going to go see." Hashirama said and took a seat in a booth by the window.

"So, what exactly do you have on my brother?" Izuna asked as he sat down and crossed his legs in his chair. "Oh, just a little bit of this and a little of that. Mainly I know where he would go when he would suddenly take off work and vanish." Hashirama said and Neji raised a brow. "How you found this information, I will never understand but my guess is as good as any. You went Sherlock?" he asked with an amused look and Hashirama laughed. "Pretty much. I did a lot of asking around." He said and small smile crossed his lips. "You seem a bit Happy for this..." Neji said and Hashirama nodded. "Yeah, it excites me that my friend has found someone he wants to spend his time with, and not just drinking. I think the need to see said person has always been there, because more often than not I would see him be just a little less mean to her when we were children." He laughed and Neji raised a brow.

"You mean..." he began and Hashirama's swift nod cut him off. "Well damn... that's unfortunate." Neji sighed and the other two glanced at him. "Unfortunate for who?" Izuna asked and Neji laughed. "For her of course, she's been trying to avoid him." He chuckled and Izuna sighed. "Well... it's kind of hard to avoid him when you're stuck in a coma and have no idea he's even been there." Hashirama said and the two gave him a surprised look. "So he did visit her! I knew it!" Izuna laughed as he jumped up from his seat with a victorious fist pump.

"How did you figure that out?" Hashirama asked and a glint flew through Izuna's eyes. "I was talking to Hinata this morning and she said something odd, something she should have no idea about in the slightest. When we were all kids, Madara had said something to our mother and she never let it go. Madara had pretty much admitted to her that he's always liked her, but she just doesn't know it!" he said haughtily and the door chimed shut, causing the three of them to turn to the group of people that had just entered.

"You've got to be shitting me..." Hidan began and Izuna froze in place. "You can't be serious... the party king may actually settle down?" Kisame asked and Izuna blinked. The group of guys all stood in silence but a certain blue haired woman ran around the group and squealed her delight at the revelation of what Izuna had said. She grabbed him up by his shirt and squealed again. "Tell me! you must explain!" she snapped excitedly as she shook him. A fiery glare found itself on the group of guys and they edged away slowly. "We will just... resume our silence on this topic..." Deidara said and the rest of them nodded.

Konan turned back to them and smiled. "So is it my little doll after all?" she asked in a hushed whisper and they stared at her. "Uh... could you let me go?" Izuna asked and she nodded and dropped him. She then proceeded to sit down beside him and smile. "So, I guess I could begin." She said and they all looked at her oddly. "Madara stopped by the hospital today, and I'm going to hazard a guess that none of the Uchiha are in the hospital, now are they?" she asked and Izuna shook his head. "Well it wouldn't be the first time he would have snuck in to see her." Hashirama chuckled and Neji blinked.

"So he's visited her before, how many times exactly?" Neji asked and Hashirama repressed a grin. "The nurses gobble like turkeys on the run. Especially since none of the nurses claim to have never seen so many attractive young men visiting one sweet young girl, before. Now, they said if it had been someone like Tayuya... they would have had other thoughts. But seeing as every one of them knew Hinata from when she had taken her CNA classes in high school, they knew differently about her." Hashirama explained and Neji laughed, but it was a stressed one. "So they paid more attention to her guy visitors than anything else?" he asked and Hashirama shook his head.

"They took care of her, but it was the one that they hadn't noticed come in that startled them the most." Hashirama explained and Neji furrowed his brow. "Madara would somehow sneak in while they were doing rounds and he would sit and talk to her for hours, or he would sit in the room until he fell asleep in the chair. They would either get him a blanket, and let him sleep, or they would wake him and ask him if he wanted to go home." Hashirama said and Konan smiled. "Ah, how cute..." she squealed and the guys chuckled. "Well obviously those two have something good going that neither of them really know about, so who else is in on the idea to try and urge them together?" Konan asked and Neji chuckled.

"I am, but if he hurts her there will be an issue. I'm just curious to see if they are actually as compatible together as they were in Hinata's comatose state." He said and the other three stared at him intently. "She dreamt of him?" Konan asked with a sly glint in her eyes. "Ok, just so you don't get any ideas, she dreamt about everyone that came to talk to her, that's why I was curious about the mental friendship she had with Madara." Neji said and she huffed. "Before you all go in and start playing matchmaker how about you leave them alone and see how it turns out naturally instead of forcing them together." Itachi butted in with a sigh and the three shrugged. "I was going to see how it went on their own instead of forcing them together more than I already do. I ditch her at his shop a lot." Neji said with an amused look and Konan laughed.

"Well, that's good enough for me, seeing as she's not going to be able to drive all that much and it seems she likes to walk." Konan said with a light laugh and Neji nodded. "See, we don't have to rush the inevitable." Itachi chuckled and they all shrugged. "Oh, Hidan, Deidara, I'm sure you know what that means..." Konan said with an amused look. "It means we will die if we touch the bunny." They said in unison, but the look in their eyes said they weren't going to give up just yet.

:-:-:-:

Madara closed up Hinata's gamer box and silently set it in the floor. He carefully slid himself off of her hospital bed and softly readjusted her leg to where she would be comfortable, he managed to do so without waking the slumbering young woman. He did his best to put her room back to the way it was that it had been before he had arrived. He grabbed the tray from the dinner the nurses had brought her. It had been the same as what she had eaten for lunch, is what Hinata had said. She had offered him her food but he had declined, seeing as it was her food and not his.

But... she was going to have none of it and had forced him to eat some of her food. A slight smile crossed his lips as he looked at the strange girl before him. He grabbed his things and turned to make his way out of her room but instead came face to face with an amused look. "What Izuna?" he asked with a sigh. "I didn't think you would come back here twice in the same day..." he said and pushed himself off the wall. "Well I did, so what. Not like this has anything to do with you anyways." Madara muttered snidely and shoved past his younger brother.

"I'm fully supportive of you, I hope you know this. It's just I've never seen you like this." He said and Madara gave him a look. "Yeah, well don't expect to continue to see it, because if you think you will continue to see this, you'll be getting your hopes up too high." Madara snapped and hurried down the hallway to get away from his younger brother. Madara knew his younger brother was nosy and would do anything to figure out what was going on, but Madara was stubborn and refused to let him in on his personal agendas.

Those eyes of hers, he wished they wouldn't have the effect on him that they did. The feeling of having his soul tugged from his body wasn't one he had liked, especially not as a child... but he didn't know how to stop it. From the very first day her eyes had captured his attention, then the rest of her did...

He had been nine when he had first remembered actually meeting her. She had walked in with her mother and father. He had first noticed her mother, who had been a stunningly beautiful woman as well; which even at his young age he could understand why she was an attention grabber. She had long Violet locks that cascaded down her back in a low ponytail and had such soft motherly lavender eyes that he understood why the elder Uchiha boys had always talked about how pretty Hinata's mother had been.

But his attention was then stolen away by the glowing lavender eyes of her daughter, who looked like a tiny version of her mother with ebony blue hair cut in a cute little bob. He had said it before he had even realized it had slipped out and his mother had giggled when she heard him. "Beautiful." He had whispered and his mother, repressing yet another soft giggle, nodded. "That is why she is a model dear." Aurora had said but he had shaken his head. "Not her, I mean... she is lovely... but..." he had fumbled with his words, but his mother had caught on soon enough and she looked at him in surprise.

When the little girl noticed him staring at her, she blushed a brilliant red and hid behind her mother's leg, who then released a soft laugh and patted her on the head. He completely ignored the conversations that his mother had with her mother, but instead he focused on her whenever he could and would try to talk to her whenever he got the chance, which was rare being as she would run and hide from him; which upset him. So, as the years passed on by he had gotten the idea that maybe if he was mean to her she would get curious as to why he was mean to her and talk to him.

As the years went by he would see her come in and look around, but leave the moment she saw him. Which aggravated him to no end and made him decide to become a background person in the shop... Which basically meant he was shadowing his father and learning how to make all the delicious treats that they made in the shop. She had begun coming in more and it both excited him and angered him, angered because she wanted nothing to do with him, and excited him because she was there and he could see those pretty eyes of hers.

He had realized why she had avoided him for the longest time when she had come in covered in bruises and poorly done makeup. She saw him as she saw the ones who hurt her, and she wanted to avoid those types at all costs. Day after day she would come in and either she would hide under the tables because someone was chasing her, or she would go into the bathroom of the shop and do her makeup in an attempt to cover up her bruises. It tugged at his heart seeing her all broken and defeated like that.

When he had turned sixteen his father brought him in to work at the shop, which gave him the perfect chance to see who all came and went in the store. Of course the older women would come in and comment on how handsome he was getting, which he would flash them a smile for because they had spent years building up his ego without them realizing it. The girls from his school would come in and flirt with him and he would give them dirty looks, but they just kept coming back.

He had begun developing an attitude, which would stop the girls from his school from trying to latch onto him every time he came out from behind the counter, but they still flooded the shop and kept them in business. His father hadn't approved of his attitude change, but it worked for him. Then there was the car accident and everything had begun falling apart. His two younger brothers... Hinata's mother... they were gone and nothing had been the same after that...

He had become abnormally hateful to everyone and had actually snapped at Hinata one time, which in turn had made her stop coming to the store all together. Which in turn had sent him into a depression because the look in her eyes hadn't left his mind not once, the image of her tear filled eyes had haunted him and he felt awful about snapping at her. His father had noticed the change in his demeanor and had left him a note saying where Hinata's school was, which had given him an idea for a nonverbal apology.

He had taken a bag of cinnamon rolls over to her school and had left them in the office for her and told the people at the front desk that she needed to get them as soon as possible, and then he left. Needless to say she had wandered back into the shop later that day, only to catch sight of him and become all flustered. His father had found it amusing but he had huffed and waddled off into the back to mope. All the while he listened to his father tell her not to mind him and his attitude.

Not long after she had turned fifteen, she had been involved in an incident concerning a local group of kids he knew and a kid named Naruto. There had been a big fight and things had gotten out of hand. It ended up that Hinata had jumped in front of Naruto and ended up hurt herself. She had been in the hospital for four weeks, and was put on bed rest for even longer. The fact she had survived so many awful things had proved just how strong she was in his eyes. She'd survived a car crash, she'd survived being beaten by the bullies at her school, and she had survived being stabbed in an altercation that could have had nothing to do with her, but she made herself a part of it because Naruto had been her friend.

The reason she had gotten in the way, is actually what had hurt him the most, because she said she had loved the blonde boy she almost bled out for. He then knew he would never receive affection like that from her, but it never stopped him from trying. He never gave up even though she never paid him any mind other than the occasional returned insult or the snide remarks he would receive from her because he was always rude to her. She never paid him much more mind than that though...

On her seventeenth birthday her cousin had brought her in and told her that she could order anything she wanted and as much as she had wanted. Well, by this time his father had already passed the shop on to him and she had no choice but to deal with him. From the moment he had seen her walk into the shop his throat had gone dry, she had dressed up exquisitely and her appearance had taken all words away from him. He fought to maintain his composure because it wasn't just her and her cousin there, but all of her friends as well.

He could easily pick out all of those in the group that were in a relationship, the blonde with the spiky pigtails and the dark haired guy. Her cousin and the girl with the buns in her hair, Naruto and one blonde girl were a bit close for Hinata's comfort it seemed, but he couldn't say anything, he was slightly Happy that Hinata was not with the blonde boy, it told him that he still had the slightest bit of a chance. Samui Thwacked him on the back of the head and he turned to glare at her.

"Stop your daydreaming and go get this nice young lady her cinnamon rolls dammit." She snapped and he released a sentence that shocked half the group, but not Hinata and Neji. "Get over it you old whore, I'll handle it just chill." He had snapped at her and she glared at him. "Just go and stop your complaining." She had snapped back and he sighed and rolled his eyes as he walked away. "I'm sorry about him..." Samui began and Hinata spoke up with a small smile.

"Don't be, I know how he is. I understand that he is misunderstood and just doesn't know how to respond to people." Hinata had said with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen. He handed her the bag of cinnamon rolls and she smiled at him, he didn't smile back, that was... until she turned around and realized her friends had all wandered off without her. "What the..." she stammered and he chuckled as he dangled her keys in front of her. "Ugh!" she growled and he released a laugh as he handed her the keys.

She sighed and turned back to him as she calmed her features. "I was told to ask you if you wanted to come to my graduation in may..." she said and he was taken aback. "Who, me?" he asked and she nodded. "Uh... yeah... sure I guess..." he said and the confused look on his face made her giggle. "See, you're not always mean. You can try to hide it all you want, but you do have some niceness in you." Hinata said and Samui snorted. "I don't see where you see it, but alright I guess. Whatever floats your boat." She laughed and Hinata giggled as well. "Well I guess I should be going to figure out where my friends all went." She laughed as she took off out the door and he sighed as his head hit the counter top.

"Seems like the legendary player has girl issues." Samui snorted and he glared at her. "Shut your damn mouth..." he grumbled and she rolled her eyes. "Whatever then... you big ass baby." She said and he glared at her. "One more word, and you will be lacking a job, cougar." He snapped and she sneered at him. "Alright then, don't get your undies in a bunch doll." She said as she began turning off all the appliances for the night.

Before he had realized it, the time for Hinata's graduation was upon them. He had actually gone out and bought a nice set of clothes to wear to her graduation. He wore a set of black slacks, a shirt as red as his eyes which he had tucked in, a nice black tie, and he had grabbed his black suede jacket. He slipped on his dress shoes and looked himself over in the mirror. His ebony hair reached his shoulders and spiked however the hell it had wanted to, so much so that no brush would truly tame it. He sighed and grabbed his car keys.

The moment he had opened his car door, the passenger side door had opened as well and Izuna had slipped into the passenger seat, dressed up as well. "Ah, so she invited you as well?" he had asked and Izuna shook his head in amusement. "No, actually this very attractive blonde girl did, she said she wanted to hang out afterwards, so I figured why not." Izuna laughed and Madara shrugged. "Hinata invited me." Madara said and Izuna choked on his air. "Hinata? She invited you? Way to go man, way to go!" he said and Madara shook his head.

"Lets just get over there, it's not what you think in the slightest." He had sighed and Izuna shrugged. They pulled into the school parking lot and they locked up the mustang. "Whoa... there's so many people here..." Izuna said and Madara chuckled. "Yeah, let's go on in though." They had sat through the ceremony and once it was all over Izuna vanished into the crowd to go find the blonde girl. Madara had actually gone to find Hinata, who was easy to find, actually.

She had grinned and waved him over happily, which he hadn't been expecting in the slightest. She went on and on about how she had graduated salutatorian, which was the second highest you could get. The valedictorian had actually been Sasuke. "Thank you for being here, Madara." She had said and he blinked and a smile had crossed his lips. "No problem." He had said, although the thought of 'anything for you.' Had fluttered through his mind. The moment she had wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace was the one where he had no idea what to think anymore.

Her cousin Neji had snapped a picture of her buried in his side with a smile and him holding her hat just above her head where she couldn't reach it. When she had disconnected from him, he felt a sense of loss. Which in all reality he never should have felt as if he had gained anything because he truly hadn't. She then motivated around, taking pictures with all of her friends and smiling ever so beautifully. He was envious of all the people who she felt so much more comfortable around, but he knew he had forced this upon himself by the way he had always treated her.

It came time for everyone to start heading home and Hinata had come back over to him with a smile. She told him to lean down a bit and he had, only for her to place her graduation cap right atop his head with the cutest laugh. He grinned and stood right back up to his full height, thanking her for the gift. She laughed into her hand and waved goodbye to him as she walked over to her blue bug and slipped inside, only for her cousin to slip into the other side of the car.

Madara chuckled to himself and slid into his own car, placing her cap in the passenger seat. He started his car and pulled out in the same direction Hinata had, he figured she was headed home just because he was and they both went the same way home. They pulled up to a four way intersection and just as she began to pull out, his chest clenched in fear because something hadn't felt right. It happened so fast that the yell of terror had barely escaped his throat.

He threw himself from his car as soon as the initial collision had happened. He watched in panic stricken horror as her car flipped three times down the street, the driver of the truck having been flung from the windshield of his truck. Despite his shaking hands, Madara ran over to the young man that had been thrown from the truck first, only to discover he was no longer breathing. He placed the young man's coat over his body and then stood and run over to the bug, which was emanating a gasoline like smell and he knew he had to act fast. He ripped open the passenger door and sliced through Neji's seatbelt. He pulled Neji from the car, only for him to mutter Hinata's name.

Madara then fought to get into the driver side of the car, but the door wouldn't budge and he knew he couldn't get her out from the passenger side. He leaned into the passenger side and busted out the cracked windshield. He then sliced through her seatbelt and pulled her out of the windshield. "You're going to be alright Hinata, I promise." He whispered as he pulled her free. He was covered in blood, but had no idea if it was her blood, his blood, Neji's blood, or the young man's blood. He had called 911 but it seemed like forever before they had arrived.

He had pulled Hinata into his lap and had held her close, seeing as she was beginning to become cold, while Neji on the other hand was beginning to wake, but was still groggy and couldn't make out his surroundings. "Rest your head Neji... I promise you'll be alright." Madara had said to him, only for him to reply with a weak nod and lay his head back down on Madara's suede jacket. He ran his fingers through Hinata's hair and he had no idea who exactly he was trying to comfort, himself or the unconscious young woman in his grasp.

The wailing of the sirens had gotten there faster than he had thought they would, but it had still seemed like forever. He supposed the reasoning was because as soon as he had gotten Hinata to safety, he himself had fallen into a state of shock. He had noticed when they were lifting her from his grasp and they'd had to attempt to explain to him that they were taking her to the hospital for treatment. "Sir, do you know this young woman?" they had asked him, but he wasn't really registering the questions.

"Help Hinata and Neji. Leave me be, I will be fine." He had snapped and had lifted Hinata onto the gurney. "So her name is Hinata?" they asked and he had paid them no mind. "Take care of her... take care of Hinata." He had said and they told him that they would take care of her and her cousin. They wrapped him in a blanket and had set him on the back of an ambulance. "Sir, can you tell me your name?" the EMT continued to ask him this while shining a light in his eyes, trying to see if they would dilate, he supposed.

"My name is not important." He had said after what felt like about an hour of them asking questions and trying to figure out who he was. "Sir, you have been in shock for about two hours... all the ambulances left. You refused to get into the ambulance so I stayed with you to make sure you were alright..." the EMT said and he frowned. "Forgive me for the trouble I've caused you..." he said and she frowned and shook her head. "Don't be, it's my job. I'm here to help. Can you tell me about yourself?" she asked and he frowned deeply. "Is she alright?" he asked and she frowned.

"I think they have her stabilized, but that's all I know for sure. Her cousin, he made it and is awake in his hospital room. It was shocking for the young man because his father passed away when he had gotten the news, he had rushed over to the hospital and was felled by an aneurysm when he entered the hospital." she said and he frowned. "What a horrible night..." he groaned and rubbed his eyes. "I have no idea what his must feel like... but... if you'll take a look... her car is burned to a crisp. It was engulfed in flames by the time we had arrived." She said and he sighed in relief.

"You saved that young woman's life..." she said and his hands fisted and he released a pained yell, surprising her. "Are you alright?" she asked frantically and he shook his head rapidly as he lunged to his feet and ran over to his car, the EMT following close behind. "I thought everything was going to be just fine... she had... she had finally noticed me and we were actually getting along... and then this..." he ground out and held the pure white graduation cap tightly in his blood smeared hands.

Madara's hands gripped the steering wheel in his grasp tightly as he had snapped out of his reverie. "Dammit all!" he snarled and leaned his head against the steering wheel. Tears stung at the back of his eyes, she had no idea... none at all. None of them had any idea what so ever who had pulled them from the car, no one knew... and he was glad they didn't know... he didn't want them knowing that he risked his life for them, that would make them think they owed them something.

They owed him nothing, nothing at all. He just wanted her to smile, he just wanted her to be genuinely happy and able to do as she pleased. He released his grip on the steering wheel and took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. A knock to his window startled him and he saw a set of familiar silver eyes. He rolled down the window and Neji offered him a coffee. "You've been here for hours... I come here to sit sometimes and dwell on the fact that I could have died that day..." Neji said and Madara's head snapped up to see that he was parked at that exact intersection where it had happened.

"This is the last place I would ever want to be..." Madara said and Neji nodded. "Oh I fully understand, but you're like me... you end up here without even noticing it. Tenten kindly stated that I was demented and that I should move on... but I find that I cannot. She left me because whenever I would vanish, I would always end up here and continuously torture myself with the pain of having almost lost my cousin as well as my own life. But... that doesn't quite explain why you come here though." He said and Madara watched as he took a sip of his own coffee.

"But I understand fully why you do." He said and Madara stepped out of his car and made his way around his car to sit on the curb. Neji crossed over behind him and sat beside him. "When did you find out?" Madara asked with a sigh and Neji smiled at him. "Go to sleep Neji, it's going to be alright." Neji had said and Madara chuckled lightly. "I do believe I told you to rest your head, and then I promised it would all be alright..." he said and Neji shrugged. "That wasn't what mattered to me though, it was the fact that you wanted no recognition for it." he said and Madara frowned and gripped his cup of coffee tightly.

"Personally, I find it honorable..." Neji said and Madara raised a brow at him. "The fact that you saved us, but refused to tell us a thing about it... You remained the anonymous hero... and I respect that." Neji said and Madara shrugged. "I'm serious... no one but that EMT and I knew about who saved us, but now it's only me. That EMT moved away, wanting nothing more to have with this crazy place." He said and Madara nodded. "Promise me you won't tell her..." he said and Neji nodded. "I promise man... I wouldn't do that to you, I know you have some sort of feeling for her and if she knew that you had saved her life; it might just get her attention stuck on you... but not in the way you would like to have it." Neji said and Madara nodded.

"Thank you." Madara said softly and Neji chuckled. "Don't sweat it... just... don't let her hurt, alright?" Neji asked and Madara nodded. "Never... I'll never let her be hurt like that again." He said softly, his knuckles whitening around his cup of coffee, which in turn made Neji smile. "You're a good man, you just prefer to be seen as the bad guy... it gets you the space you need." Neji said observantly and Madara chuckled. "You read me pretty well..." Madara chuckled and Neji shook his head. "No, I just know how it is... I used to be like that... but Hinata has a tendency to change people like that." He said and Madara nodded.

"Yeah... I suppose she does." Madara said with a slight smirk. "You know... I did everything I could as a child to get her to notice me, and she did alright. She avoided me like I was the plague, so I had begun being mean to her because well... I thought maybe I would get some sort of reaction out of her, and in truth I did... It was never the one I had wanted though." He admitted with a small laugh and Neji chuckled as well. "But... that night... on her birthday when she walked in and looked ever so stunning..." he sighed and Neji blinked and watched him for the emotional change. "She was absolutely stunning, although I could never admit it to her, she was always beautiful in my eyes. Even when I was nine I thought she was gorgeous, although my mother thought I had been talking about your aunt at first..." Madara laughed and Neji watched him in surprise.

"She invited me to her graduation and my whole night was instantly better... I had been at such a loss for words..." he laughed and Neji couldn't help but repress his smile at the mirth that had flashed through the normally closed off man's eyes. "It shows..." Neji said and Madara looked at him in confusion. "When you talk about her... it shows that you care." Neji said as he fiddled with the lid to his drink with a small smile. "To be honest... the scariest thing that had ever happened to me... was when I had seen Kawarama and Itama's truck coming... " Madara said clutching his cup tightly once more. "And then... the car had just gone flying and I couldn't yell out fast enough..." Madara said and stared at his cup, goose bumps littering the exposed skin of his arms.

"Madara..." Neji began and the darker haired man looked at him. "Here..." he said and handed him the picture he had taken of them at Hinata's graduation all those years before. "Think of her like that, and think of her as she is now. Try your hardest not to think of how she was that night, because the only thing you will ever do is cause yourself to worry even more." Neji said and Madara stared at the picture with a small smile. "Alright..." he said softly and Neji nodded.

"Alright... so, Hinata likes getting in trouble and being rebellious as of the moment." Neji began and Madara raised a brow at him. "And I was thinking about why. I think I know why. I think it's because she's been pretty much gone for three years. She's been sleeping, trapped in that hospital bed, dreaming of life outside the walls of her mind..." Neji said and Madara listened intently. "What would you like me to do?" Madara asked and Neji smiled at his companion.

"I want you to show her what life is actually like. Steal her away from the hospital, Get into trouble, play video games until you pass out, eat until you both get sick, sing until you can sing no more... have fun until fun isn't fun anymore..." Neji said and Madara smiled widely. "I want you to be her bad influence, and show her how to live life to the fullest with no regrets." Neji said and Madara released slow laughs, his lips trembled through his smile, and the happy tears shone in his eyes. "And I never want you to leave her alone." Neji said and Madara nodded.

"I want you to change her life. I want you to make her the happiest she's ever been. Can you do this for me, brother?" Neji asked and Madara nodded and laughed as the tears trailed over his cheeks. "I'm a pansy ass..." he laughed as Neji grinned at him. "No, you've been strong for too long and you need a break sometimes. Deal with it." Neji laughed and Madara tossed an arm around Neji's neck and proceeded to give him a brotherly knuckle sandwich.

"You're one hell of a friend, practically marrying your cousin off to me in a single night." Madara laughed and Neji snorted as he attempted to fix his hair. "I had hoped you would admit to yourself how you felt about her since the night of the graduation and even before that. But you see that look right there, the one in your eyes. That's the look of a man who would die for that girl, and I had noticed that look so many times from you it was ridiculous." Neji said as Madara helped him stand.

Madara tossed a genuine smile at Neji and offered him a hand, which Neji shook with a smirk. "Do your best, she really wants to see this side of you... but she also said that while in the coma she dreamt that the both of you would run off and do ridiculous things and she said she enjoyed it. She's honestly hoping that you will show her who you really are." Neji said and Madara nodded. "Hop in and I'll give you a ride home." Madara said and Neji nodded, seeing as he had walked to the intersection.

"I can't promise that I'm a hopeless sappy romantic though." He chuckled and Neji laughed. "That's not the version of you that she's looking for. She's wanted to see the version of you that would sneak into the hospital while she was in a coma and would tell her stories, and would tell her that he wished she would wake up because he honestly missed her smiling face." Neji said and he could see the slight tint of red that coated Madara's cheeks. "She wants the version of you that worried himself into the ground for her and would pass out in those god awful uncomfortable hospital chairs." Neji said with a nudge to Madara's elbow and said dark haired man narrowed his eyes at him.

"The nurses from the hospital?" he asked and Neji shook his head. "Hashirama." Neji said and a laugh escaped Madara's lips. "That sneaky bastard always could find out anything, couldn't he?" Madara asked no one in particular, but Neji shook his head at his friend's amusement. "We are going to have three years worth of a party for Hinata this summer, that way we don't have to stay here in konoha. That way we can go somewhere that Hinata wants to go, anywhere at all." Neji said and Madara nodded. "I'll be there. I wouldn't miss it for the world." He said and Neji nodded.

"I know you wouldn't man, you're just that awesome of a friend." Neji said and Madara blinked at him then grinned.