Naruto took the lunch box Hinata handed him. It was warm to the touch.
He sat on the massive stone railing at the village entrance and opened the lid. Inside were simple rice balls, two side dishes, and an apple cut into the shape of a rabbit. It was homely, but it eased the tension that had gripped Naruto's nerves all day.
"I haven't eaten either." Hinata spoke softly as she magically produced another, slightly smaller lunch box from behind her and sat down beside him, keeping a fist's distance between them.
The evening breeze swept past, carrying a few withered leaves along with it.
"Do you think we're the kind of... villains you see in stories?" Naruto asked indistinctly around a bite of rice ball. "Forcing the great nations to submit, exporting weapons, inciting rebellions."
Hinata turned her head. Her Byakugan looked crystal-clear in the moonlight. "Villains and heroes are just a matter of perspective. Actually, you could say it's, um..."
Hinata was not particularly good with words. She set down her chopsticks and bowed her head, struggling to find the right vocabulary. "Promoting... um... the international order, and conducting, uh, security... cooperation! Yes, security cooperation!"
Pleased with her little stroke of cleverness, Hinata raised her head slightly. At the same time, she stole an unconscious sidelong glance at Naruto.
Naruto froze for a moment, then smiled.
"That's right, that's right. Your ideological education wasn't wasted."
He swallowed the food in his mouth, and his gaze sharpened. "I'm not a villain. I'm the one who's going to break the old order and flip the table."
"No matter what you do, I'll support you." Hinata's voice was soft, but there was not the slightest hesitation in it.
The two of them ate in silence, enjoying this moment of peace. In