How Kurama Leads Naruto Astray

Hinata sat nervously next to Naruto, her hands fidgeting as her face turned bright red.

Naruto seemed not to notice, happily slurping his ramen. 

"So, you came to buy breakfast for Kurenai-sensei, Shino, and Kiba because they didn't eat yet?" he asked.

"Mm," Hinata shyly nodded.

Since it was early and the sun hadn't risen, there weren't many breakfast shops open. But Ichiraku's ramen tasted great, it was nearby, and a certain fox liked to eat here, so Hinata often came. Recently, Naruto hadn't been coming, so she hadn't run into him.

But today, she happened to show up at the right time.

Kurama, with both hands together, said, "The network connects us, and meeting is fate."

Then, with a loud slap on the ground, he shouted, "This is fate, Naruto! You must immediately sync... no, I mean, you must immediately confess your feelings!"

Naruto gave him a strange look.

"Now... that's not really a good time, is it? We're eating breakfast. I'll talk to Hinata after we're done."

"What are you talking about!" Kurama sighed in frustration. "Confessing quickly can even outrun light! What are you waiting for?"

Kurama was speaking nonsense again. Naruto sighed, ignoring him and silently continued eating his ramen.

Hinata, sitting next to him, stole a quick glance at Naruto, then quickly turned her head away. She wasn't caught, so she took another quick peek. Still unnoticed, her face grew redder as she shyly looked at Naruto.

Kurama: "..."

*sigh* These two... I can't with them.

Time passed as Naruto ate his noodles and Hinata stole glances at him. Uncle Teuchi had already prepared the four bowls of ramen for Hinata and set them aside.

Hinata glanced at Naruto with some regret, then blushed and said softly, "Naruto-kun, I'll leave now."

Just as Naruto finished the last bite of his soup and put down his bowl, he said, "I'll carry it for you. I might need your help with something."

"Eh~" Hinata was shocked, her face flushed with happiness. "O-okay."

Naruto needed her help. Whatever it was, she would help!

Kurama swore there were absolutely no inappropriate images in his mind. Absolutely none.

After packing up four bowls of ramen, Naruto carried two, and Hinata carried the other two. 

They said goodbye to the owner of Ichiraku Ramen and headed towards the eighth squad training field.

As they walked, Hinata seemed lost in thought, occasionally blushing, then stealing a quick glance at Naruto before sighing without knowing why, and her face would go red again.

Naruto was thinking about how to start a conversation with Hinata. He could easily talk to Sakura, so why was it so hard to speak to her?

It was strange. He shouldn't be this shy, should he?

By the time they had crossed the street, the sun was about to rise. More people were on the street now, including a few ninjas and ordinary civilians, all walking hurriedly.

Naruto thought that if they kept walking like this, they'd reach their destination soon. It was time for him to speak up.

But just before he could, Hinata suddenly asked, "Naruto-kun, is there something you need my help with?"

Naruto stopped for a moment and then awkwardly said, "Actually, it's about a test... I'm feeling a bit strange, and it's affecting my training. Kurama said I should deal with it first, or else I won't be able to learn Rasengan."

Though his words were a bit scattered, Hinata understood what Naruto meant.

She nodded gently. "Is it a ninjutsu test? Do you need my Byakugan to help?"

Since Shino had felt that his taijutsu was lacking, he had asked Hinata and Kiba to help him train using Gentle Fist and Beast Mimicry techniques, so Hinata thought Naruto's situation was similar.

Naruto felt a bit embarrassed, unsure why, but he couldn't shake the feeling. "Actually, it's not... It's... about something else. It's not ninjutsu..."

Ah! How do I say this?

Kurama, help me out!

Kurama, lying inside the seal, wore a look of amusement and said, "With your personality, shouldn't you just say it directly? Why are you hesitating? Are you shy?"

Naruto sighed helplessly. "I'm not shy... It's just... because of Hinata's personality, I feel like doing this might not be right. My conscience is telling me it'll make her uncomfortable."

"Heh, since when do you have a conscience?" Kurama scoffed and fell silent.

It really wasn't easy. If Naruto were confessing to someone else, like Ino or TenTen, it wouldn't be as hard. Tenten's personality would lead her to reject him immediately—very harshly, leaving no room for Naruto to explain himself.

And Ino, before Naruto explained, would 99% mock him, probably dragging Sakura into the mockery as well. After Naruto explained, 99% of the time, she'd punch him, and that would be the end of it.

But Hinata was different. Hinata would listen carefully to the explanation, then blush so deeply that she wouldn't hear a word Naruto said. 

Naruto knew this about Hinata, which was why he felt uneasy.

Hinata looked at Naruto curiously, while Naruto scratched his head in frustration. Since this was the case, maybe he should just explain to Hinata that he was testing something first, and then confess. After all, Kurama never said he had to confess before explaining.

"Coward," Kurama sneered, curling his lips.

Naruto ignored him again, turned to Hinata, and said, "Well, Hinata, actually I just wanted to... um, let me think... I wanted to..."

"It's okay, Naruto-kun, if you're feeling awkward." Hinata suddenly interrupted, lowering her head, looking shy as she stared at the ground. "Neji-nii's strength is greater than mine, and his development of the Byakugan is amazing. If you need help, I can go back to the clan and ask Neji to help you."

Naruto froze.

A bitter smile appeared on his face. "I'm sorry, Hinata. I just didn't know how to bring it up. And... Neji can't help me with this."

Hinata didn't mind, and smiled gently. "Naruto-kun, you can definitely do it. Whether it's this matter or training Ninjutsu, I believe in you."

Naruto stared at Hinata, somewhat dumbfounded. "You believe in me that much?"

He himself didn't quite believe that he could master Rasengan in the next two days. He had been full of confidence at first, but now his confidence had taken a hit. Of course, he wouldn't give up.

"Because you're Naruto-kun," Hinata said with an expression as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Her voice was soft but incredibly firm. "There's nothing you can't do, Naruto-kun. Whether it's training or testing, because it's you, you won't give up. As long as you keep going and believe in yourself, you'll succeed."

"I've always believed in you."

Hinata's face turned slightly red. Saying something so bold was also a big challenge for her.

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