Log: Complete

[silence-bringer.livejournal.com]

When; Dec. 27th, PM
Rating; PG
Characters; Uzumaki Narutorelimited, Tomoe Hotarusilence_bringer
Summary; Naruto, determined to try and change Hotaru's mind about her "Itachi-sama", asks her to meet him by the fountain, to just talk.
Log;

Hotaru glanced around nervously. She'd asked Archer to stay back out of sight, and even though he'd initially resisted, she'd managed to convince him that she was perfectly safe and that not only would he be able to see her, he'd be only a shout away. But...that didn't make her feel any less nervous. He'd asked to meet her, to give her a present. The black-haired girl wasn't foolish, she knew very well that the blonde boy also wanted to try and talk her out of her association with Uchiha Itachi. But...he was so much like her, in a way. Hated and despised by his companions the same way she was. And so, she now found herself standing by the fountain, shivering slightly in the thick black and red cloak with the Uchiha's crest on the front of it, thin legs in black tights looking even thinner against the oversized black boots she wore.

She'd agreed to meet him, and that in itself was enough to give him hope. Thanks to a conversation Shizune had already had with the girl, Naruto knew a little more about Hotaru's past. The two of them were more similar than he'd thought. The only difference was that Naruto's outlook had changed since then. He'd had a reason, the friends, to help him improve himself. From the sounds of things, Hotaru hadn't found that yet. So if the opportunity ever came round, Naruto had already decided that he'd help her out, ignoring the fact he'd never actually met the girl yet.

Bounding toward the fountain, he slowed down as the lone figure came into view. Despite the fact she seemed to be on her own, the feel of eyes on him was enough to make him realise that that wasn't the case. It had to be Archer, the man who'd taken it upon himself to look after her. Coming to a stop a few feet in front of the other, Naruto grinned happily, holding out a sealed cup of hot chocolate for her. He had his own, already opened, providing its own protection against the warmth.

She paused, noticing his orange-suited figure almost immediately. Backing up a step or two at his over-exhuberant approach, she clutched the cloak tightly to herself and simply watched. As he held out the cup, she studied it with a narrowed purple gaze. "What's that?"

Cocking his head to the side, Naruto looked between the cup and the girl. "It's hot chocolate. It's really nice!" He seemed to have taken to living off of the stuff each time he went outside. Vaguely registering the clothing she wore, or more precisly the familiar logo, he moved back a little himself, trying to appear unthreatening. "You don't have to have it if you don't want it. It's just 'cause it's cold out."

"No, I....thank you." One tiny pale hand reached it's way out of the cloak to grasp the cup, the motion setting the tiny chime on the clasp into a familiar jingle as she brought the drink back towards her, lifting the cup to her lips and taking a sip.

He couldn't help his reaction to the sound. Dropping into a fighting stance, he glanced round, before realising the fact that the sound had merely come from the girl in front of him. Only once he was completely sure did Naruto let out the breath he seemed to be holding, body relaxing a little. "Did...how was your Christmas?"

Hotaru gave a startled yelp and backed up as he suddenly dropped into a crouch, her motion only serving to make the chime sound louder. Eyes wide, she paused as his body relaxed. Blinking slightly, she shook her head, eyes flickering back over her shoulder to where she knew Archer waited. She was relatively certain that he'd almost been right there between her and the blonde, and was mentally thanking the boy for backing up. She wouldn't have wanted to see him hurt, afterall. Slightly puzzled at the normalcy of his question, she tucked a stray strand of black hair behind her ear. "My..my Christmas? I...I suppose it was alright. I didn't have many people to shop for. And some, like Hinata-san, I didn't really know WHAT to get for."

He gave an apologetic look in response to Hotaru's reaction to his movements. He couldn't help but be prepared. If and of Akatsuki was there right now, he didn't have a clue how they would react to the situation. At least he could be sure that he wouldn't hurt the girl. It was something he just couldn't bring himself to do. Even if the others wanted him to think otherwise. "Did you enjoy yourself?" The presents, well he could fully understand. It didn't matter how close he was to his friends, some of them were increadibly hard to think up gifts for.

She nodded slightly. not sure where he was going with this. Afterall, he'd never even met her. She studied him carefully, taking in the blond hair, bright blue eyes, the stripes like whiskers on his cheeks, and the black and orange clothes. He was very....bright, she decided. And not just his outfit. His personality, his hair, everything about him seemed bright. Quite the opposite of the other Uchiha, the younger brother. She smiled slightly to herself. A bit like Usagi and Rei, they were. Night and day, and just as close.

"I'm glad. I...know what it's like when you don't have a family there to spend the holidays with." Though that'd changed for him this Christmas for the first time in his life. "Did you spend it with..." He shook his head, looking down at his cup. "...with Itachi?" It was something he just couldn't see happening. Not if he was back to normal again. Not if... An internal sigh and he forced his thoughts away from a certain drawing he now owned.

The girl shook her head, black hair swinging slightly. "No. Itachi-sama wasn't there. I spent it with Archer. I...I don't know where Itachi-sama is, most of the time. Even though I'm sure you probably don't believe that." She sipped the chocolate slowly, watching him as she did so. "Were you alone? I thought you have friends."

"No, I believe you." And now, he'd probably end up annoying her, knowing his luck. "I wouldn't expect him to tell you much about what else he does." How would he keep up the charade if he did? "I spent it with my...my dad." A smile slowly grew on his face at the memory. There'd been others around, sure, but that wasn't the memoriable part for him.

A soft smile suffused her face and she nodded. "He must be very special to you. Poppa was my only family too. But...he's gone now. Like everyone. Except Archer and Itachi-sama. They're my family, now." She ignored his comment about Itachi not telling her things. Of course Itachi-sama didn't tell her a lot about what he did. It was for her own safety, of course. If she didn't know, then she couldn't be targeted by his enemies as a source of information on him.

He nodded his head slightly. "This was my first Christmas with him. He died when I was a baby, so I've only been able to meet him because of the City." And a smile. "You'd like him. He was the Hokage too." Scratching his head, he laughed nervously. She wasn't from his world, so he probably needed to explain. "The Hokage is the strongest ninja in the village. They're in charge of looking after everyone who lives there."

Hotaru nodded at his story. So, he'd been even more alone then she, in a way. But then...he had friends. He had friends who cared for him and looked out for him. Those few people who had cared for her were all dead, by her own hand. "Is that your dream?"

"Yeah!" He responded without even needing to think. "I'm gonna become the next Hokage and protect all of Konoha!" The very same thing he'd wanted since he was a kid. Of course, his reasonings had changed since then though.

She smiled a bit. He really reminded her of Usagi, in a bit. So bright and cheerful, so noisy and friendly, determined to save the world one person at a time, if he had to. "You remind me of someone I used to know. She wanted to protect everything, too."

A grin. There was only one person right now that he'd been getting stronger to save, though he refused to let it be at the expense of his own dream. Naruto was determined to still become Hokage, there was just a small detour he had to take along the way. "If I've got enough power to protect people, then that's what I'm gonna do."

"She thought that way too. In fact, a lot of what you say reminds me of her. She was one of the only ones who fought for me....instead of trying to destroy me." She cast her eyes downward, watching the bubbles pop in her cocoa.

He turned quiet for a few moments, simply watching the other with a sad expression on his face. He knew some of what had happened to this girl, but that hadn't meant it made any sense to him. Besides, it was only fair if he got the information from her. She could tell him as much or as little as she wanted him to know. "...what happened?"

"You mean why they were trying to destroy me? Because of who I am. They were afraid." She crouched down and drew a symbol in the snow. "See this? It's the symbol for the planet Saturn. The planet I'm blessed by."

"Because of your power?" He looked down at the symbol, clearly confused. And he'd already had a headstart. "...I don't get it."

Hotaru nodded. "You see, in my world there are 9 people who are blessed by the planets, each bearing the symbol and powers of their patron planet. Those people are the ones who defend the innocents of the world against the darkness. I guess....some worlds would call us "superheroes", but I never really thought of us that way. In my world, there was a great and powerful civilization a thousand years ago. All of the planets were populated, even the moon. In fact, it was the moon that led the rest of the planets. Each planet's heir was the bearer of the power bestowed by that planet, and they all used that power to protect the princess of the Moon Kingdom and the Silver Millenium. But...darkness overthrew the light. And Queen Serenity, who ruled the Moon, used her power to send everyone from that time to the future to be reborn. Including the soldiers who protected her daughter. I...I was one of them."

...which only served to confuse him even more. "...So you're from the past and were sent to the future? And you've got power from a planet." But he still didn't get... "...why would they want to hurt you?"

"Because the soldier of Saturn is never supposed to awaken. Each planet gives power of a different nature. Mars; fire. Mercury; water. Jupiter; thunder. See? But Saturn....Saturn is the planet of destruction. And the soldier of Saturn is the bringer of ruin." She sat down on the edge of the fountain, the cup cradled in her hands. "During the Silver Millenium, the soldier of Saturn was never to be awakened. Because when she awoke, she would bring down the Silence that would destroy everything. But when we were all reborn, none of us knew of our past lives. When...when Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune found out that I held the dormant power of Saturn inside me, they decided that I needed to be killed to prevent me from ever awakening."

And now...it finally all began to make sense. "Were they...your friends before?" She was being held accountable for something that was beyond her control. Something that he could relate to, to an extent. The only difference was that she had found a friend in the person who was planning to kill him.

She shook her head. "No. They were students at Mugen Gakuen, where Poppa was a teacher. It's the school that I went to. The other Senshi were kind to me, even though they didn't trust me at all, because of Poppa. Only Chibiusa and Usagi really wanted to be my friends. I'd....never had any friends before.." Sipping the cocoa, she frowned. "They shouldn't have. Afterall, the others were right to not trust me, in the end."

He knew he was going to regret asking it, but he needed to know. There was no point him saying anything until he knew what exactly had happened. Turning to face her properly, he gave an encouraging look as he asked, "...what happened? In the end?"

She stared down into the cocoa, violet eyes studying the steam that rose from the drink. "They...didn't know. When I was only 6, there was an explosion. Poppa...he was the only one who survived. But he...he was so upset that he wanted to do anything to bring me back. He...he sold his soul. A demon, called Pharoah-90, answered him. It posessed him. And...he wasn't Poppa anymore. He rebuilt my body, and put a demon called Mistress-9 inside me. She...he would steal the crystals that are inside pure hearts, and feed them to me to give her power. I didn't know, of course. Whenever she was in control, I couldn't remember anything. She...Pharoah-90 wanted the Holy Grail. To plunge the world into darkness, make it a world for HIS kind. He..he used me to get it. I...I don't remember much, just flashes. As...as Mistress-9, I took the Grail and I hurled it into the darkness. And the world fell..." She sipped the drink. "That was when I awoke. As Saturn. That power overpowered hers. And that's when I woke up. I...I stood there, with Sailor Moon, the reincarnation of the princess I had served, begging me not to. But..I had to fulfill my purpose. So...I threw myself into the darkness, and brought down the Silence." Setting the drink down, she folded her hands. "I destroyed it all."

"So that thing inside you. You don't blame yourself for it, do you?" If it was beyond her control in the first place, he couldn't see a reason for her to blame herself. "You didn't have a choice with any of it. Before and after. That thing that was put inside you wasn't you." This was all hitting a little too close to home. "You did whatever you could to stop it though, right? So you can't be blamed for any of it."

She smirked slightly, tossing the empty cup into the snow with a flourish.

"It doesn't matter that she was. It wasn't HER that destroyed everything. It was me. Because I was born with Saturn's blessing. With the blessing to destroy the world." She glanced up at the snow that had begun to softly fall. "But...Itachi-sama doesn't see it that way. He says I'm a gift to the world. Because even though I destroy, without me nothing new could begin."

A poorly concealed frown was his first response as his name came up into conversation again. "Some things are out of your control. Even if you hurt people, it wasn't you who was doing it. It was the role that was given to you." Which was his own reasoning for not wanting to have to rely on Kyuubi for certain things he had yet to do. "Do you blame any of the others for what happened?"

She was still for a moment, then she shook her head slightly. "I...I wanted to. I wanted to blame them, for the way they treated me. For trying to kill me. But...I couldn't."

"They're your friends." A faint smile. "Even if they did things that...hurt you, you can't turn your back on them." Looking across the snowy landscape, Naruto continued, his voice low. "It's real friends like that that you can rely on when you need to. They don't want you just because of what you are, but who you are."

"I killed my real friends, if I had any. Now all I have is Archer. And Itachi-sama."

"They may be gone now, but it doesn't mean you can't get more real friends." His shoulders dropped as he realised he was going to mention the one thing he hadn't wanted to. "Don't...get upset with me for this, but..." His fingers tightened around the cup as it buckled in his fist, warm liquid seeping out through the top. "I don't know Archer that well, but I know he wants to protect you. He cares about you, and I'm glad about that. But Itachi..." A sigh. "...he'd only known you for a little while before he was asking you to help him. He's done things that-" He cut himself off with a shake of his head. "...do you really think that we'd all lie to you? ...I've got no reason to. None of us do."

She frowned, eyes hardening. Of course Archer wanted to protect her. Archer was her most precious person. He'd protect her, and she'd protect him. No matter what.

"So you're just like them, then? You judge Itachi-sama without even knowing anything." She glanced at him, eyes frozen chips of amethyst in her face. "You think I care what he did before? I DON'T! Because he doesn't care what I did before! It doesn't matter to him. Just like it doesn't matter to Archer."

"I know enough about him. I know that he killed his family and even now, he's still hurting his brother. I know that he's still killing people, just because of what's inside them. Things have happened here that..."

What was the point? Itachi had what he wanted. He'd brainwashed her or something. But whatever he'd done, it was enough to corrupt the girls thoughts.

"I should just stop, shouldn't I? Nothing is gonna make you change your mind. Itachi is dangerous, but you already think what you want to think."

This conversation wasn't going anything like how he'd hoped it would, but at least he'd been given a chance. So, deflating himself a little, he finished.

"...things aren't going to stay the same forever. But once he shows you what he's really like, I just want you to know that...that you wont be alone. Even if the others refuse, I'll still be around...if you want me to be."

She looked up at him, shock evident in her eyes. THAT was something she hadn't heard before. Not that she believed that Itachi-sama would lie to her, but still...the idea that this boy was promising to stand by her, no matter what. Like...like a real friend. Glancing down, she nodded slightly. "I...thank you, Naruto-san."

A weak smile and Naruto nodded his head. He wasn't going to back out on his part. Once things went wrong and Itachi either slipped up or decided he'd had enough (He expected the latter), then Naruto would be there to help her in any way he could. It would be some form or reprieve for having failed to protect her in the first place.

Violet eyes glanced sideways at him. So this was the boy that Hinata-san always spoke so highly of, the one that the other girl claimed she used to love as more then a friend. Fidgeting slightly, she cleared her throat to get his attention. "So....Hinata-san said you liked ramen. I...I hope I got you an ok kind..."

"Yeah, it was great." Of course, he'd already eaten the packet. "Thanks!" Which reminded him... Putting down the crumpled cup, he wiped his hand on his trouser leg, before pulling his pack off his back. Digging around for a few moments, Naruto pulled out a certain plushie that he'd brought. Holding it out to Hotaru, he grinned, feeling completely at ease once again.

A light blush spread across her pretty face, eyes wide like those of a child. She tentatively reached out and took the stuffed dog from him, studying it. With a small smile, she hugged it, rubbing her face in it's soft fur.

"Thank you....you really..didn't have to do this."

"I told you, didn't I? I wanted to." Closing his pack, Naruto reshouldered it. "...I'll talk to the others and see if I can get them off your back a little, okay? But they're just worried about you too. They're just a little...uh...more forceful about it, I guess."

She nodded. "I...I won't say that I necessarily think they're completely bad people. But...before they condemn someone as evil, perhaps they should look at the whole picture. Afterall, they say that Itachi-sama is a bad man, but then one of them did something so horrible as burning his eyes to cinders in his head. As though Itachi-sama being "bad" somehow justifies it. It's horrible, I hope that awful person gets to see the terrible thing he did replayed in his head every night."

He had to bite his tongue at that, not just for the fact that getting rid of Itachi's eyes had been a benefit to everyone, but at the fact she was currently complaining about his father.

"His eyes are the most dangerous part of him. He has an ability to force people to see things they don't want to see. He uses it to torture his victims. The man that did that helped everyone in the City by doing that." A pause. "I'm not happy that they're back to normal again, but I don't blame you. He was the one who talked you into it. Even if you think you chose to do it."

Eyes like irises narrowed, and before the rational part of her mind could remind her of what Archer said about keeping her help of Itachi a secret, she'd blurted it out.

"He didn't talk me into it! He wanted to see me, and when I saw what that "hero" of yours did to him, I offered to heal those horrible wounds. And I'd do it AGAIN, if I had the chance!"

He held up his hands in a show of surrender. He really didn't want to start an arguement with the girl. Especially not after how well things had seemed to be going during this meeting.

"...I just wish you'd met someone...safer when you got here. Instead of him. Things would be so much better, and none of this would've had to happen."

She paused, staring down as the snowflakes melted into the whiteness at her feet. "I did..."

"Huh?" Okay, cue confusion. If she'd met someone better, why wasn't she still talking to them? ...or was it that they'd left the City now? "...who?"

"She was...my friend. One of the only friends I've ever had. Her name was Tsukino Usagi. She...she was the one who was...the reincarnated princess. I...I killed her when the others died. But...she was here. And...she let me stay with her, and for a while...I could pretend things were normal. But....she disappeared..."

She bit her lip. Of course Usagi had disappeared. Afterall, she was dead. Hotaru had killed her. It didn't make sense for her to stay.

"Everyone leaves....."

He was silent for a few moments, thinking over her words. This wasn't a time to make things worse.

"She came back, and she let you stay with her. So that obviously meant that she didn't blame you for any of it."

Another pause as he gave a small smile.

"People disappear and reappear here all the time. There's a chance she might come back."

She shrugged. "It'd be better if I disappeared... But...I think Archer would be sad...he likes me, afterall."

"I don't think Archer would be the only one." Of course, any thoughts of the Uchiha were far from mind. "You're friends with Hinata, aren't you? And...I'd like to be able to call you a friend too, if that's okay?"

Hotaru nodded slightly.

"I...I do know Hinata-san. She...she's a kind person. And...she's in love. I..kindof envy her that. I...don't really know what that feels like. Everyone else does, it seems. Usagi-chan, little Chibiusa-chan, Hinata-san. Even Archer has been in love before. I...I wish I knew what it was like." She glanced away slightly at his question. "I...it's not up to me what you call me."

He scratched his head in a nervous gesture, the slight laugh only further proving how uncomfortable he was with this topic of conversation.

"People fall in love all the time, and I don't think most of 'em really know. Not till it's too late."

He glanced over toward the trees where Archer hid briefly.

"You might find it pretty soon too though."

She cocked her head at him slightly, as if confused. "I might? I...don't really know what would make you think that..."

"I can't really say for sure, but uh...I think that people in love are normally good friends too. They care about each other more than anything else." Another nervous laugh, and "...kinda like you and Archer."

At his mention of her and Archer, in the same sentance as the L-word, her face turned bright red and her eyes widened. In all, she very much resembled a younger Hinata during the days where she couldn't even work up the courage to speak to Naruto. Hotaru even made the same sort of startled squeak.

"I...I...you don't mean...?"

And as had been the case all those years ago, Naruto's reaction was...

"Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

Though this time, he at least managed to catch on to what the problem was...after a few minutes.

"You guys are really good friends, aren't you? And you both care about each other a lot, right?"

She nodded, face crimson.

"I...we are, but....I mean..that is...he likes me, and....and I like him, but....l..love?"

Ah, so that was the problem then?

"I don't know for sure. I mean, it's not like I'm an expert or anything."

Considering he'd been completely oblivious to Hinata for all those years, in fovour of a crush on a girl who was now his other best friend.

"But you'll know for sure, eventually."

She nodded slightly. "Well....I guess. But...but I love Archer AND Itachi-sama. But....I don't think it's the same...."

Because one cared for her and the other was simply using her? Or because one wanted to protect her, and the other was going to end up hurting her? Or... He forced himself to stop thinking along those lines for too much longer.

"It's not a rush though. When you know, you know, I guess."

She nodded. "I...I guess so. Have...have you ever been in love, Naruto-san?"

Now that she was becoming more comfortable with his presence, she couldn't help but be curious about the boy who everyone said was so like her.

Has it been physically possibly, a huge sweatdrop would've appeared on the side of his head at the reversal of the question. Well, what could he say? It was something he didn't really have an answer for.

"I'm not sure." Well... "there was Sakura-chan when I was younger. But then stuff happened, and I guess... She just a really really good friend now."

She nodded.

"It must have been nice to have someone special when you were younger. I...I thought I was in love once. But he...it was just a joke. He had just wanted to see if I'd actually believe that someone would like a freak like me."

"I don't think things would've been the same if we weren't put into the same three-man unit. None of us would've been friends like we are now."

Sakura and Ino would probably still be fighting over Sasuke, who would've probably still been as quiet and easy to annoy. Well, if he hadn't left. But if he and Naruto hadn't been friends, would Sasuke have had the push to leave? He shook his head, wanting to clear his current train of thought.

"It was one sided, but in the end, she kinda got used to me. They both did."

And still, they were some twisted form of friends, despite everything that'd happened.

Hotaru smiled slightly.

"It was a bit like that for Chibiusa and I. She...she lost her hat, in the park. And I..caught it and gave it back to her. She skinned her knee while chasing it, so I..I healed it for her. And she, unlike everyone else, thought it was neat. Something special. She didn't think I was a freak.."

Another sign as to how different their worlds were. In Konoha, her ability to heal would've been seen as normal. Many ninja knew some kind of medical jutsu, so her abilities wouldn't be looked at with shock.

"It only takes one special person to be able to make things easier."

She nodded. "It did."

Noticing how nonchalant he seemed to be about her, she frowned slightly.

"You...don't seem unnerved by me. Are there...people like me, in your world?"

"Yeah, there's loads of medic-nin around. Shizune's one. So is Sakura-chan. They both learnt from the Godaime Hokage."

Something he was definately proud of Sakura for doing.

"There's loads of different things we can do that people from other worlds can't. It's the same for others here too though. They can do things we can't."

"Medic-nin? They...can do the same thing as I can?" She seemed doubtful.

"They use their chakra to heal injuries. I can't really explain it that well 'cause I don't know much about it. Except what people have done to me."

Which had been significantly less than it should've been.

"If you wanted to know more about it, Shizune would've been a good person to ask."

Had she and Hotaru not been on such bad terms.

"I..I'm not sure what chakra is...but I guess I understand. Mine is....I don't really know. It's like...almost like I can just make things the way they're supposed to be, you know? Like...make the skin and muscle back into one piece."

She nodded slightly. Shizune. That woman, the one who she didn't trust at all.

"It's um...the energy inside you. I can show you, but it'd be better during the day."

As for her own power though... "Does it only work on injuries?"

Because if they could make things as they were meant to be, there were a few people he knew who may try to exploit that
She shrugged.

"I...I don't know. I've never...tried it for anything else.."

In fact, she'd never even thought of using her power for anything other then injuries. But...could it be used for something else? She made a mental note to ask Archer later, in case he might know something. Afterall, he was the one who seemed to know more about these sorts of things.

"Some people are trying to use other peoples' powers for themselves."

For him, that meant Orochimaru and Akatsuki especially, for he and Sasuke. Though while they were here, the snake didn't seem to be a problem.

"I don't want them to come after you 'cause of your powers."

Even if it had already happened with Itachi.

She nodded slightly. Even though she knew perfectly well that he was referring to Itachi-sama, Hotaru didn't say anything. Afterall, she knew there were other people who'd taken a degree of interest in her.

"I know.....There...there was a man who spoke to me. A..strange man, with dark hair and burning eyes. He...he frightened me."

Now this, he didn't know about.

"Who? What did he want?"

If there were more people around who were after others with power, it meant there was more to warn people of.

She shook her head.

"I...I don't know. He..he gave me a bracelet. Said he...thought I was beautiful, that....he was drawn by my energy...that I was...innocent."

She hadn't thought much of it at first, but then the man had spoken to her again. And..something about him had sent chills down her spine.

"Do you know his name?"

He shook his head lightly, realising he seemed to just be asking question after question.

"If he's worrying you, try to avoid him, alright? I wont let him hurt you either."

Though it'd help if he at least knew who the guy was, Naruto wasn't the type to ask someone to put themselves into danger for that information.

"No...I don't. But...another man told him to go away. He...kindof reminded me of you, a bit."

She knew the blonde man's name, of course, but she wasn't about to tell Naruto that. Because she also knew that he was the same man who had injured Itachi-sama. Which meant that, should she choose to exact retribution, it wouldn't do to have someone she was beginning to consider a friend knowing about it.

"No one wants to see you get hurt," he answered.

Even if it didn't seem like it at times, he knew for a fact that none of those from Konoha would want to hurt her. Most would even try to protect her, if the opportunity arose.

"If he starts to bug you again, tell me, alright?"

Even if this other person had tried to help, how could he be sure that the man wasn't an enemy too?

Smiling slightly, she nodded.

"OK...Naruto-san." Glancing back over her shoulder for a moment, she smiled and leaned forward to give him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"You're a good person, Naruto-san. Thank you. For the gift, and...for being my friend."

He blinked, a nervous blush appearing on his face at both her actions and words. Even if things weren't the same between her and everyone else, at least she could now know that Naruto wasn't going to turn his back on her. And why would he? Itachi was the reason for everything that had happened. Hotaru was just the unlucky victim this time.

"You don't need to thank me," he answered, smiling gently. Glancing back over to the trees once more, he nodded to himself.

"You should go back and get yourself warmed up. I don't want you to get sick. And I don't think Archer would be happy if I let that happen either."

She giggled.

"No, I don't think he would. He'd scold me."

With another bow, she turned and walked off into the snow, the dark cloak and the chime making her seem for a moment like those who she associated with.

Lifting a hand to wave, Naruto waited where he was, simply watching and waiting until The shadow of Archer met with the disappearing figure of Hotaru. Only then did he turn back around, eyes moving to the fountain as he stared at it for a few moments. Even if he hadn't been able to convince her about how dangerous it was being around Itachi and Akatsuki, she at least knew that he wasn't the enemy. Or at least, he hoped she did. So with that in mind, Naruto took a deep breath, before dissappearing from where he stood as he made his way back home.