Fireworks
Chapter 1: Pressing the Powder
By LadyDetia
It was harvest time and the Village Hidden in the Leaves was abuzz with excitement. Besides spring, harvest time was one of the most exciting times of the year because this was the time the people of Konoha celebrated the bountiful harvest. It's almost the equivalent of Thanksgiving but with a lot more fanfare. Most of the village artisans prepared the whole year for this time, setting up booths decorated with bright ribbons and paper lanterns. Business was always booming during the afternoon hours at the food and game booths because many of the families with young children would come to enjoy the pleasantly comfortable weather and entertain themselves while laughing and enjoying each other. It was after the sun went down that the more adult entertainment took place at the crowded bars filled with music and merriment. The celebration lasted a whole week and one of the most entertaining parts came on the final day. That's when fireworks lit the night sky. And not just any fireworks, but spectacular displays of light crafted by the very talented and jovial Miyamoto Geninji. Every year he seemed to outdo himself with surprising and dazzling shapes flashing across the sky. The show from the year prior was being discussed amidst the exited giggles and smiles among a group of four teenage girls. However the fireworks were not the main event in this discussion, but what happened while the dazzling show was taking place.
"I so can't wait until the last day of this year's festival!" A pink haired girl nearly squealed with joy as she turned to her blonde haired friend grinning from ear to ear. The blonde simply laughed at her friend's enthusiasm before returning a smirk.
"Oh, Sakura, I know why you can't wait. You just want to get know that cute new boyfriend of yours a little better. A whole lot better, if you know what I mean," Ino winked adding a wiggle of an eyebrow for emphasis.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Ino-pig! Shino and I have only been dating a few months so we haven't even gotten to that point yet, you dirty minded girl!" Sakura hollered back as her right eye twitched.
Ino sneered at the insulting nickname she so hated to hear coming from Sakura's mouth. She wanted to shoot back with 'billboard brow' but decided to let it slide for now. Sakura was a little too excitable around this time of year and her having a new boyfriend just made her even more animated.
"Damn it, Sakura, you need to drop the innocent act. I mean what are you waiting for? Shino is hot, even though he is kind of creepy because of the bugs." Ino spoke the last sentence in a rather thoughtful manner. Sakura glared at her with nostrils flared in irritation. Sakura could hear giggles for the other two girls.
"Ino…shut the hell up." Ino just sniffed and turned to another one of her friends. She had brown hair, big brown eyes and an athletic build. She wasn't as curvy as the others, but she was just as likely to turn heads with her energetic personality and her well built yet delicate looking feminine body. "Ten-Ten, you've been with Neji for about 7 months. How long did you two wait until you did the do?"
"You're kidding right, Ino?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Do you know how long it took me to get Neji to go out with me? Did you think I was going to waste my time playing kissy-face? Hell no!" Ino burst out laughing giving Ten-Ten look that said 'well, well, I'm very impressed!"
"You didn't waste anytime snagging your man, did you, Ten-Ten! You are the woman!" Ino gave Ten-Ten a high-five as Sakura rolled her eyes and mumbled, "Hentai," under her breath. Ino then turned to the least animated one of the group, a quiet young lady with indigo colored hair and eyes like soft, lavender pearls. Of the four young ladies she was the most developed, though it was hard to tell because of the oversized clothing she wore. She was modest, but her friends constantly told her she was just a little too modest. "So, Hinata…" Ino paused to give the more reserved teenager a knowing smile. Hinata had a feeling what was coming, her eyes first widening at the sight of Ino's expression before quickly turning away. "Have you told him yet?"
"I…I…well…that is…" she stammered whiled looking down at her hands which were now perched in her lap. The other three just sighed and moaned in frustration. Sakura then leaned over to Hinata, putting a hand on her shoulder. Hinata flinched slightly then slumped her shoulders.
"Hyuuga Hinata," the rosy haired girl stated in a stern, almost motherly tone, "you've got to tell Naruto how you feel about him. I mean you know how dense he can be. I mean everybody and their grandma knows how you feel about him and he has yet to get a clue!" Hinata's alabaster cheeks turned a faint shade of pink. "You already know he likes you as a friend, but if you want to be more than friends you need to speak up, woman!"
"Yeah, Hinata! Show some backbone!" Ino chimed in.
"I agree, you should just tell him before you drive yourself crazy!" Ten-Ten added with a smile mixed with support and concern. Hinata opened her mouth, and then closed it again as her eyebrows knit together. She really wanted to pour her heart out o the only boy she ever loved but she just didn't know how to go about it. She came to the conclusion that it was futile to try to muster up the courage on her own. She didn't want to humiliate herself or most of all, be rejected and left heartbroken. She also didn't want to ruin the wonderful friendship that had developed between her and the goofy blonde. Yet she did have deeper feelings than just friendship towards him. For a long time she was just happy to be near him any chance she got. And anytime she went on missions with him that was the icing on the cake. Hinata sighed then finally found her voice once again.
"You guys, could you please…help me?" The other three gave each other knowing glances.
"Of course we'll help you, Hinata!" Sakura replied as she hugged the shy girl. "I think I know a way for you to tell Naruto your feelings without making a complete fool of yourself." Hinata's upper lip twitched at the last part of Sakura's sentence. "Hinata, I think you should sing to him." The indigo-haired heiress' eyes now opened in surprise. "Hinata, I've heard you sing before and you have a beautiful voice, but I don't think you should sing a song that sweet and soft sounding. I think you should sing something that's full of raw emotion. A song so hot that it will even get Naruto's attention in spite of him being so clueless. I know the perfect song for you to sing that will make the message so crystal clear there won't be a doubt in his mind how you feel about him."
"But…but…what if he doesn't feel the same way?"
"Hinata, stop getting ahead of yourself!" Ino snapped. "The most important thing is that he'll finally know! But I tell you this. If he does anything to hurt you or act like a jerk we'll kick his ass!" Ino made a fist and punched the air.
"And don't worry, Hinata. I happen to know Naruto cares about your feelings so I doubt he would want to hurt you anyway. But for right now you need to focus of opening up to him like never before, ok?"
"We'll help you in this, too, Hinata! We're with you all the way no matter how it turns out!" Ten-Ten added, clapping her hands together with a smile.
Hinata thought about what her friends were saying and smiled. It made her happy that they were willing to help her find her courage and let her voice be heard by the person she admired and loved most, Uzumaki Naruto.