Coach, I Want to Get Stronger

"Where am I?"

When Naruto woke from his coma, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling and smelled disinfectant drifting into his nose.

"Hinata, Hinata—ah! What happened? (°д°)"

Naruto had barely tried to jump off the hospital bed when a sharp pain shot through his entire body. Calming down, he looked himself over. Was this even human? He was clearly a mummy. Aside from his eyes, nose, and mouth, his entire body was wrapped in white bandages.

"Naruto-kun, thank goodness. You're finally awake. You've been asleep for three days."

Hinata, who had stayed by Naruto's side the whole time, hurriedly grabbed his hand and burst into tears. Her tears rolled down her cheeks and fell onto Naruto's hand. Even through the bandages, he could feel their warmth.

"You're okay. That's great... but Neji..."

Naruto sighed in relief, then remembered Neji dying right in front of him that night.

"Naruto-kun, listen to me..."

"I'm sorry I couldn't save you, Neji! You died so horribly!!!"

"Shut up! I'm not dead yet!"

The patient in the neighboring bed had finally had enough. He yanked open the curtain and threw an apple at Naruto, hitting him squarely in the head.

"E-E-Eh? You came back to life? (°д°)"

"Is dying the only possibility your brain can come up with? Who told you getting stabbed through the body with a kunai meant certain death?"

Neji glared at Naruto and spoke irritably. He had been lucky—the injury to his lung was severe, and he had gone into shock from blood loss, but with the Medical Ninjas' efforts, he would recover soon enough. Compared to him, Naruto's full-body burns were actually more serious.

"But... but..."

Naruto opened his mouth but could not explain himself. Yue Guanhai had been stabbed through and died back then, so Naruto had assumed Neji had died too.

"Naruto-kun was hugging Brother Neji's body and shouting so loudly back then. Hehe... You two actually get along quite well, don't you?"

Hinata covered her little mouth and giggled softly.

"Who gets along with this guy?!" X2

"Let's get one thing straight. I was only upset because seeing you die annoyed me. I'm the one who's going to defeat you, so dying before then doesn't benefit me."

"Hmph."

Neji ignored Naruto's tsundere remark, turned over, pulled up his blanket, and gave him his back.

"Naruto-kun, can you tell me what you did then? Dad and Mother won't tell me. You were so scary at the time, like a wild beast."

"Me? What did I do? I don't know. When I saw Neji die, I got really angry. Then I thought about you being kidnapped too, and I got even angrier, and then... I can't remember."

Ignoring Neji's "I'm not dead," Naruto patted his head. His memories were all hazy, which troubled him greatly.

"So you went berserk?"

"Yeah. No matter what, I have to protect Hinata. I promised Aunt Hokuto. This guy Neji was just included as a bonus."

Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand and spoke seriously. There was not the slightest hint of a joke in the feelings shining from his azure eyes. Faced with that gaze, Hinata could do nothing but blush and nod.

"My, what an adorable son-in-law."

Having happened to hear Naruto's declaration, Hina Hyuga entered the hospital room arm in arm with Hyuga Hiashi and spoke cheerfully.

"Aunt Hokuto, you're back."

"Mhm. Go on, say it."

After gently replying to Naruto, Hina Hyuga gave her husband a push, sending him in front of Naruto.

"Naruto, thank you for protecting Hinata. If you hadn't been there, the consequences would have been unthinkable. I acknowledge you."

Hyuga Hiashi, who was usually stern and imposing, spoke his thanks somewhat awkwardly. It was not because of Naruto, but because he had to hand his daughter over.

"Acknowledge me... does that mean, Father?"

Naruto slowly understood Hyuga Hiashi's meaning and called out in delighted surprise.

"Hold it. I've merely listed you as a candidate among the men who may marry into the Hyuga Clan."

"Eh? Why's it like that?"

"Before that, however, you must fulfill three requirements of mine."

"What are they? I'll do them."

"First, become a genin. Second, become a chunin. Third, become a jonin."

Hyuga Hiashi's demands were excessive. Excluding the ninjas in ANBU, Konoha had fewer than fifty jonin—no, perhaps even fewer. After the Nine-Tails incident, Konoha was in an even weaker state. Becoming a jonin required not only strength, but also knowledge, judgment, and many other important qualifications.

But he believed Naruto could do it. At merely five years old, Naruto had defeated a jonin from the Land of Lightning who had dared to infiltrate Konoha alone to carry out a mission. What an achievement that was. Yet it would never be made public, because Naruto had only borrowed the Nine-Tails' power. Thus, the Third Hokage had handed that credit to the Hyuga Clan. As for what deal the unconscious Land of Lightning jonin would be used for, nobody knew.

For secretly invading another country's territory and abducting someone, the Land of Lightning would likely have to pay a steep price to settle the matter.

"That's easy. Super easy. I'm the man who'll become Hokage, after all. Just wait and become my father."

Naruto did not even need time to think before answering in a confident voice that rang through the room.

"It's good for a young man to have ambition."

Hyuga Hiashi looked at Naruto, whose only visible feature was his hair. Under the sunlight, that tuft of blonde hair looked remarkably like the Fourth Hokage's. Unfortunately, that man had already sacrificed himself to protect Konoha.

"Hinata, isn't that wonderful?"

Hina Hyuga hugged Hinata and rubbed her cheek against hers. She could feel that her daughter cared more and more about Naruto.

"What are you saying, Mother? I'm not happy at all."

Hinata threw herself into her mother's embrace with a pout, taking the chance to hide her little face, red with embarrassment.

"Ah, you're all leaving?"

Naruto clutched Hinata with tears in his eyes. Neji was being discharged today, and Hinata could no longer stay with him every day. It dealt a crushing blow to his young heart.

"I could've left the hospital ages ago. I only stayed for a few extra days of observation. See you later, sickly mummy."

"You bastard, when I'm better, I'll beat you flat!"

"Naruto-kun, I'll come see you tomorrow. Get plenty of rest and recover."

Hinata was also a little reluctant to leave, but not to the point where they had to stick together. It was not as if they were a couple in love. They were merely two little kids who had yet to awaken to romance.

"Ugh, then goodbye."

Naruto still let go of Hinata. He just did not want to stay in the hospital alone. The smell of disinfectant was pretty scary.

"So boring!"

After wasting an entire afternoon, Naruto was nearly going crazy. He was so bored that he counted the patterns on the ceiling over and over again. Just as he decided to sneak out of the hospital, the door suddenly opened, and the two people he knew best walked in.

"Sasuke, Brother Itachi, why are you here?"

"We heard you were hurt, so we came to visit you. It really looks pretty serious."

Itachi gave a gentle smile, placed the dango in his hands beside Naruto, and thoughtfully raised the upper half of Naruto's bed.

"Yeah. They said something about Chakra burns, but I don't really get it. I'm a lot better already, though."

"You look like a mummy."

"I hate it when people call me a mummy!"

"So what if I say it?"

Naruto and Sasuke were like sworn enemies. Whenever they met, they would inevitably argue first, then continue playing afterward. It was probably their unique way of having fun.

"Sasuke talks like that, but he nagged me for days before I brought him here. It's not like I'm that free, either."

"Brother!"

"Oh? You were worried about me? It's okay, Sasuke. I won't die before you do."

"Are you cursing me to die young?"

Sasuke was unhappy after hearing that, as though he would die early. Itachi also glanced sideways at Naruto. Naruto did not seem like the sort to say something so hurtful.

"Because we're best friends. Best friends don't leave the other person behind and go first."

Naruto said with a silly grin. That smile, like a spring breeze, washed every trace of dissatisfaction from Sasuke's heart.

"...You. Hmph!"

"Hahaha, that's Naruto for you. I'm truly happy that Sasuke has a friend like you."

Itachi was also infected by Naruto's smile. The heart he had immersed in missions and killing warmed slightly as well.

"Want to play Old Maid?"

"Brother isn't allowed to cheat with the Sharingan."

"That really puts me in a difficult spot."

The three of them played like children until eight in the evening, when Itachi suggested going home.

"You're leaving? Play a little longer."

"Brother, just a little longer."

Faced with the two of them pleading like little animals, Itachi nearly agreed. Fortunately, he came to his senses in time and lightly tapped both of them on the forehead.

"Forgive me, Sasuke, Naruto. I still have a mission tonight."

Itachi left, tucking the dissatisfied Sasuke under his arm and departing quickly. It seemed he really did have a mission. Naruto returned to his bored state and simply closed his eyes to sleep.

Drip, drip.

The sound of water droplets falling remained pleasant in that sealed space. Naruto trudged through knee-deep water, making his way toward the Nine-Tails and Minato.

"What is it, Naruto?"

Minato sensed something different. Something about Naruto had already changed.

"Dad, I want to get stronger."

Naruto raised his head. His azure eyes held a little less innocence and a little more sharpness and determination. This was also the first time he had entered the place where the Nine-Tails resided through his own power.

"Getting stronger is very hard. Can you endure it?"

"Yeah!"

After going through so much, Naruto deeply felt his own helplessness. If he had been stronger, Neji would not have been so badly hurt, and Hinata would not have nearly been abducted. If he wanted to protect something, simply saying so was nowhere near enough!

Achievement Unlocked: Itachi's Forehead Tap

PS: All right, we're still a little short of 400. To repay everyone's enthusiasm, I'll update daily. Please keep the bookmarks and recommendations coming!

PS: Everyone who watches Naruto likes that (°д°) expression when Naruto is surprised, right? I'll use emoticons to represent it.