Disclaimer: I don't own the unparalleled Naruto. I am not making money off this fanfiction story.
A/N: Original completion date: 9/7/10, while on family vacation. A "shipping" story! My first, and likely last. Is everyone in character? Tell me what you think in the reviews! But please no flames for pairings. Horizontal bars represent change in scene or POV.
Rated K+ for drug reference.
The Festival
Springtime in Konoha meant the annual Sakura Festival, and if Naruto hadn't been reminded by the blooming cherry trees, and the long lines outside tailor and clothing shops around town, he would have found it hard to forget about it, with all the girls buzzing about it for the last month. He wasn't all that enthusiastic about it, until he realized that this year things would be different. This year, he was a genin. This year, he could ask a girl to go with him, and he knew exactly whom he would ask.
Ino had never been more eager for her shift to end, but customers just seemed to keep flocking to Yamanaka Flowers in a never-ending stream. She had kept up an insincere smile for the past hour, but enough was enough. She burst out, "Come on, people! It's just a bunch of dumb flowers! Just go out and enjoy the festival, why don't you?!" Her father came up to her with a stern scowl.
"Ino, haven't I told you several times today to be polite to the customers?" he prompted her. She hung her head.
"Sorry, Dad," she sighed. "It's just that the festival is tonight, and . . . well . . ."
"And you had someone in mind," Master Inoichi finished with a hint of a smile. He handed out a bouquet to a dashing young man and took the money. "Who's the lucky boy?"
"Daaaad. . ." Ino groaned. She was not about to talk about prospective dates with her father. He tugged on her ponytail as her mother walked up.
"Go on and find him, my kunoichi," she told Ino. "Your father and I will finish up here." Ino vaulted over the counter instantly, running off to her bedroom to change. As she left the shop, she yelled over her shoulder gratefully,
"Thanks, Mom! Thanks, Dad!"
She had a handsome young ninja to find.
"Go forth!" Guy-sensei proclaimed, pointing to the moon which was just rising over the horizon. "Go, my young students, and celebrate love, destiny, and little white flowers!" That said, he vanished in a poof of smoke, leaving Lee awestruck. Neji didn't appear to be listening; he was using his byakugan to stare at the surrounding countryside.
"Hey, Lee, you want to go with me?" Tenten asked, swinging her legs as she sat on a log. Lee shook his head.
"I am sorry, Tenten, but my heart belongs to another." He raised his gaze and declared, "Tonight, I go to seek her, or perish in the attempt!" He took off running so fast that he was a blur. Tenten shrugged and tried again.
"How about you, Neji? If you don't have anyone to take, I'll go with you," she offered. But Neji only replied vacantly,
"I have obligations." Then he, too, vanished in a puff of smoke. Sighing, Tenten got up and stretched.
"Well, I guess I'll have to find someone else to take me." She leaped off into the air. "Hmm, I wonder what Kiba and Akamaru are doing?"
Kunoichi weren't allowed to ask anyone to the festival—that was the boys' job. Still, Sakura was playing every card she could to get her dream-come-true partner to ask her out. She hadn't left Sasuke's side all evening, often commenting on how beautiful the night was, what lovely weather for the coming festival. "The festival's going to start soon," she remarked awkwardly. "Don't you think it'd be fun to go?" Sasuke grunted. He was stubborn, but she was determined to make him see things her way. He would ask her yet.
Just then, young shinobi came into view and halted nearby. There were Lee and Naruto—ugh, not them! Sakura groaned inwardly. And Ino was there, too. Sakura glared fiercely in her direction. You're not getting your hands on him, you dirty—
"Hey, Sakura." Sasuke's voice broke into her thoughts. He abruptly leaned toward her with a smile that was more of a smirk. "You want to go to the festival with me?" At first, she thought she might faint from ecstasy. Then she found her voice.
"Oh, Sasuke! Yes—yes, of course I'll go with you! Thank you!" She winced even as she said the last words. Man, I sound pathetic—like I'm begging him to take me. But as Sasuke extended his arm and she latched onto it, her spirits soared. Inner Sakura punched the air in triumph. Yeah—Sasuke's mine and don't you forget it!
Satisfaction rushed through her when she heard a trio of moans behind her, as Naruto, Lee, and Ino watched their prospective dates walk away. Unseen by her, Sasuke smirked in Naruto's direction, and Naruto bared his teeth in fury, disappointment, and defeat.
Hinata was dressed in her finest, all set to attend the festival, but she lingered nervously in the most abandoned reaches of the woods on the east side of town. She wanted to go to the Sakura Festival, but she was afraid to, as well. What if someone asked her to go with him? Wouldn't that be so . . . terrible . . . wonderful? She couldn't decide.
Suddenly Neji appeared in front of her. Taken by surprise, she slipped into a defensive stance before she really thought about what she was doing. Neji's eyes narrowed. "Do not raise your hand against a member of your clan," he told her coldly. Hinata blinked and lowered her guard.
"I'm—sorry," she said, ashamed. When Neji stepped right up close to her, she had to fight the urge to again take a fighting stance. But his words surprised her much more than his appearance had.
"I'm here to escort you to the festival," he announced. Immediately Hinata went beet-red, and her jaw dropped open. Neji hated festivals. He hated asking girls to festivals. And he hated Hinata more than all the former combined.
Overcome by a case of the stammers, Hinata managed to get out, "B-b-b, wh-why?"
"Because you have no one to take you." Neji seemed to find pleasure in that, because he smiled a little. Had he been waiting for his opportunity to take her? It didn't make any sense at all.
"B-but why are . . . y-you asking . . . me?" Hinata squeaked.
"I'm not asking you; I'm telling you. No one has asked you; therefore you will go with me," Neji ordered her. Hinata fidgeted anxiously.
"O-oh—but—someone might still ask me. . ." she suggested timidly. "The festival hasn't started yet. . ."
"Are you blind, even with the gift of the byakugan?" Neji said scathingly. "The moon is above the hills. The festival is already in progress." He stared hard at her. "It is forbidden for a member of the main branch to attend the festival unescorted." His glaring eyes didn't leave hers as he bowed to her. "My obligation is to you, m'lady."
"I-I release you from your obligation," Hinata quickly recited the words she had spoken to countless cadet members over the years.
"Do you think I would be here if either of us had a choice in the matter?" asked Neji scornfully. "You will not be absent from the festival, and you will not attend the festival without an escort. You will go with me." He held out his arm to her. Hinata could hardly imagine a worse person to go with than Neji, but everything he said was inescapably true. She took his arm meekly and allowed herself to be marched off to the Sakura Festival.
"So, you missed out on Sasuke, huh?" drawled Shikamaru. "Tough luck," he sympathized to Ino, although it was pretty obvious that he didn't really care much. Choji's smile was more genuine, and he shrugged sadly at her.
"Maybe next year?" he suggested hopefully. Ino balled her hand into a fist. She didn't need their pity! She was quite capable of snagging a date on her own.
"Oh, come on, Shikamaru," she commanded, disgusted. She grabbed his hand and dragged him in the direction of the lighted paper lanterns.
"Hey, where're we going?" protested Shikamaru.
"You're taking me to the festival, of course," Ino told him flatly.
"Wait, who said I wanted to go with a girl? And what about Choji?"
"Don't worry," Choji assured them with a quick smile. "I'll find someone to go with." Shikamaru groaned.
"This is such a drag. . ." Choji watched them leave as his smile faded. He might have sounded confident, but he wasn't at all sure he could find a girl in the whole village who wanted to go with him. He was considering his prospects—not many—when a cough came from nearby. He turned to see one of his cousins sidling up to him.
"Hi, Churu," he greeted her.
"Uh, hi, Choji," she replied. Hesitantly, she suggested, "You know, we don't have to ask anyone else to go with us." She bit her lip. "I mean, we could just go together, couldn't we? That would be all right, wouldn't it?" Choji instantly took to the idea.
"Yeah, sure! Okay." He offered her his arm and asked, "Churu, will you go to the Sakura Festival with me?"
"I will," Churu replied happily. They grabbed one another's hands and ran off to join the fun.
The village elders were, unsurprisingly, very dignified about the customs of Konoha's Sakura Festival. They fulfilled the traditions to the letter. Homura bowed and Koharu kept her eyes deferentially lowered. "Will you, Lady Koharu," Homura asked solemnly, "favor me by attending the festival with me?"
"With pleasure, I accept your invitation, Lord Homura," Koharu murmured, taking his proffered arm. "I am honored to go with you." They walked off together, so sedate and somber that it wouldn't have been surprising if they had been attending a funeral. Watching them from nearby, Tenten and Kiba had a hard time hiding their guffaws. They were so stuffy! Kiba, inspired, went down on one knee. "Oh, fair Lady Tenten, please shower your favor on me! Say you'll go with me to the festival, lest my heart break in my chest!"
Tenten snorted with laughter. "Yes, honorable Lord Kiba, I shall attend with you—and may it be my honor to do so." They linked arms and walked into the hubbub of people.
"Come on, Shikamaru," Ino commanded him again, pulling him away from the noodle bar. "You can eat any time!"
"What?" complained Shikamaru, although he allowed himself to be herded to the plaza where dancing was underway. "The food's the only good part of this whole festival, anyway."
"No, the dancing is the only good part," Ino contradicted him. She fluffed out her long hair and smoothed her kimono. "C'mon, let's go."
"What?" Shikamaru backed away from her and sat down at a table. "Dancing? No way!" He stared out at the boys and girls dancing together with a look that said he couldn't picture a worse fate. "No way."
Ino ignored his protests and dragged him into the throng by the collar. "We're partners at the Sakura Festival. We're going to dance," she said forcefully.
Shikamaru dug in his heels. "You mean you're going to dance," he told her bluntly. Suddenly he leaned against her, and it made Ino afraid that he was going to go all romantic or something.
"Hey, Ino, guess what?" he whispered to her. "You're standing in my shadow."
"What?" Ino's eyes flew wide open. "Shikamaru, don't you dare!" But Shikamaru knelt down and formed his possession sign.
"Sorry—too late. Kagemane no jutsu! Shadow Possession!"
Sakura sat with her ankles crossed, doing her best not to fidget or be unladylike. It was hard to be sedate and lovely like the flower that she was, when Sasuke gave her nothing to go on. He said nothing, did nothing besides stare into space, his thoughts unknown to all but himself. Sakura had been watching the couples in the plaza, dancing the night away. Choji and another girl from the Akimichi clan were like two paper dolls folded against one another. They danced with nearly all of themselves touching their partner, always pressed either back-to-back or belly-to-belly. Even though it seemed like quite an uncomfortable way to dance, they looked like two cute nesting dolls having a great time. Ino appeared to be almost possessed: she was throwing herself up into the air, doing the splits, making strange catcalls, dancing with complete abandon. Sakura had never seen her rival act so weird—and that was saying a lot. Hinata and Neji's dance was the complete opposite. They had turned the age-old combat stance of their clan into something beautiful. Across from each other, they stood with one arm extended, palm up, as though they were planning to fight one another. But instead, they touched wrists and circled each other slowly. Then they switched to the opposite side and began turning in the other direction. Sakura was immensely envious of their grace and poise, despite the fact that Hinata looked miserable. At least they were doing something, instead of just sitting here! But Sasuke surprised her for the second time that night when he said, "Sakura, do you want to dance?" He was practically debonair, holding his hand out to help her up, smiling casually. Taking her shock in stride, Sakura hopped to her feet and accompanied him gaily into the plaza.
She wouldn't have been so delighted if she had noticed that the only reason Sasuke had asked her to dance was that Naruto had poked his head out of the trees nearby.
There was no pleasing Neji. Hinata could never be graceful enough or talented enough for him. His lip remained perpetually curled, and his eyes never lost their contempt. He had done everything that would be expected of a respectable escort. Already he had taken Hinata to the food stalls; they had gone to light the ceremonial lanterns; and now they danced, same as they had been for a long time now. The longer they danced, the more morose Hinata grew. Like a training weight that she couldn't lift, Neji weighed her heart and mind down until she feared that she would break down and cry in front of everyone. When the flutes faded and the dance ended, she and Neji lowered their arms and bowed to each other. Hinata took a chance. "I-is it all right if . . . if I watch the moon, in the forest?" When Neji wrinkled his nose, she rushed on, "I-I mean—it's just that I—need some air." Actually, she just wanted to be alone, but it didn't sound remotely convincing. Neji would just offer to take her, and she held her breath, wondering how she could get out of going with him.
"As you wish, Lady Hinata," Neji assented to her request coolly. He nodded at the bluffs. "Go if you like, but come back soon. I will wait for you here."
Even though Neji was of the cadet branch, he was very much in charge. Hinata wasn't feeding him a lie when she promised, "I'll be back soon. Thank you." She hurried away to get what little time apart from him that she could.
Sasuke, that lousy jerk! He didn't even want to take Sakura to the festival—in fact, he hadn't even wanted to go to the festival in the first place! He was only pretending to be all suave so that he could make Naruto jealous!
The only problem was . . . it was working. Sasuke had single-handedly ruined what would have been a wonderful night for Naruto. Naruto kicked at a tree trunk. That jerk!
"Hey, Naruto." Naruto turned around and saw Iruka waving hello.
"Oh, hi, Master Iruka," he replied. Though he tried to sound chipper, Iruka seemed to see the truth.
"Wouldn't you rather be at the Sakura Festival instead of standing around in the woods, Naruto?" he asked, not unkindly. Yep, Iruka knew everything, as usual. Naruto's lip poked out petulantly, and he replied, still trying to sound casual,
"Yeah, but . . . no one wants to go with me."
"Well, I think I might know someone who would like to go with you." Iruka smiled and said, "Hinata from Cell 8."
"Hinata?" Naruto repeated. He scratched his head. "Why would I want to go with a weirdo like her?"
"Naruto!" Iruka snapped indignantly. "Don't talk that way about your fellow students!"
"Sorry, Master Iruka," Naruto apologized, wincing.
"I think you'd enjoy going with Hinata," Iruka continued pointedly. "Why don't you ask her?" Naruto looked behind him at the spot which Iruka had been eyeing. As he squinted at the bushes, he saw that Hinata was standing there, hidden by leaves and shadows.
"Hey, Hinata!" he called, running over to her. Behind him, Iruka grinned and crept away. Hinata was blushing like she had done something wrong, but that didn't matter to Naruto. He just asked, "Wanna go to the festival with me?"
"O-o-oh!" Hinata squeaked. Now she was even redder than before. "Y-yes, I want to, b-but I-I can't, I mean I—" She took a deep, trembling breath and went on, "W-well, you don't have anything to wear, and I already—"
"Oh, is that all?" Naruto grinned—for a minute, he had thought Hinata was like the rest and wouldn't be caught dead with Uzumaki Naruto at the Sakura Festival. "It's all right. I can get something from the Academy like what Master Iruka has on." He grabbed her hand and took off at a run. "C'mon, let's hurry before all the good ramen is gone!" Hinata was too elated to protest.
Naruto, true to his word, stopped off at the Academy and slipped a Konoha kimono on over his clothes. "I'm one of the shinobi of Konoha—don't mess with me!" he crowed. Hinata laughed despite herself.
"I-I know you'll become a chunin soon, Naruto. You're really talented," she told him shyly. Naruto looked taken aback.
"You really think so? Whoa." He folded his arms, musing. "No one has ever said that to me before." Without warning, he leaned right into Hinata's face and pointed at his striped cheek. "Hey," he said seriously. Hinata trembled madly, imagining kissing and other things, as he paused. Then Naruto went on, "You can hit me if you want."
"Wh-wh-what?" Hinata stammered. What on earth was he talking about?
"I was a jerk before, calling you a weirdo," Naruto admitted frankly. "Go ahead." He again pointed at his face. "Hit me. As hard as you want."
"What?! No, Naruto!" Hinata cried, shaking her head so hard that her trailing locks of hair flapped.
"Why not?" Naruto seemed perplexed. "Sakura does it all the time."
"B-because I don't want to!" Hinata squeezed her eyes shut. "Besides, y-you won't think I'm so nice when you see what I'm going to do next." She ran away, toward the lanterns, and Naruto raced after her.
"Hey! Where're we going?"
Where they were going, of course, was to see Neji, who stood beside the lanterns as promised. "Huh?" Naruto wondered aloud. "Neji?"
"S-see, Neji, Naruto asked me to go with him." Hinata was too embarrassed to do anything but stare at her feet. "S-so . . . you're free to go, now. You're not obligated. Y-you don't have to be with me." She was ashamed for jilting him, but at the same time, glad that he wouldn't have to put up with her anymore. Neji's reply, as usual, gave barely an inkling of his real feelings.
"Very well, as you wish, m'lady." The corner of his mouth went up in a semi-smile. "Uzumaki Naruto and Hyuga Hinata. You were made for each other," he commented graciously, with something like a hidden meaning behind his remark, which Hinata couldn't decipher. "Enjoy yourselves." He bowed to Hinata and joined the crowd.
During their dance, Tenten and Kiba saw couples like Anko and Gekko—which was just creepy. Kiba also saw his big sister dancing with Kabuto. Tenten thought that that was kind of creepy, too, but she had to admit that Kiba's sister was sure-footed, and Kabuto was surprisingly graceful. Certainly they were a better sight than Tenten and Kiba, who were basically stumbling through their clans' traditional dance steps. Finally they gave up trying to dance in step and took up mirror-image dancing. They mimicked one another deftly and accurately, and Kiba said, "You're pretty good."
"Thanks. You are, too—for a rookie," she teased him. Kiba's dander was instantly up.
"Oh, yeah? See if you can keep up with this!" He went down on all fours in an amazingly flexible move and growled like a dog. Tenten tried, but there was no way she could make her body do what Kiba's did—his knees were sharply bent, the soles of his feet touched the ground, and even his torso was pressed into the grass. She growled, but it was feeble in comparison to his feral snarl. Irritated as Kiba laughed, Tenten got back up and said crossly,
"Fine, so I can't do dog tricks. But I bet you can't do this." Taking a kunai knife, she balanced it on the palm of her hand, blade up. Then she placed a second kunai knife blade-side down atop the first. The two points touched and remained perfectly balanced. Kiba tried and tried to make his kunai stay up, but they kept falling to the ground. Casually, Tenten placed a third knife on her stack, the blade pointing to the sky. It stayed in place, and Kiba growled again.
"How do you do that?"
"It's chakra. I send a thin stream of chakra through the blades to magnetize them. It's easy to make them balance then." Tenten let the stack down, still stuck together, and brandished it at Kiba like a sword. "I'm a kunai expert. You can't keep up," she finished smugly.
And so began the competition between them.
It seemed impossible to Sakura that she could be more happy than she already was. It was as if for the past . . . however long it had been . . . she was dancing on air. She knew every dance worth knowing, naturally, and Sasuke danced smoothly alongside her, acting almost bored. He was so handsome . . . so dashing . . . more so than she ever dreamed he could be. She was entranced by him.
Her and a bunch of other girls. Some dateless hussies had nothing better to do than hang around Sasuke like flies at a lantern. Posers! Get your own man! Inner Sakura raged. Even Sasuke seemed quietly annoyed. He muttered, "Can't they just—?"
"LEAVE US ALONE!" Sakura finished his thought, bellowing in the direction of the tittering girls.
"Shikamaru, you jerk!" Ino screeched the instant she had control of her body again. Right away, she leaped into the copse on her left. "You'll pay for this! You think I don't know exactly where you are?!" But the bush he had been hiding behind was now shinobi-free.
"You mean, exactly where I was," Shikamaru called down. He was standing in the branches of a tree above her. With a roar, Ino launched herself up at him. He grinned and was off like a shot. "Hey, you said you wanted to dance," he mocked her.
"Shut up! I'll get you for this!" Ino snarled. "You'll regret ever coming to the Sakura Festival with me!"
"I regret ever coming to this drag of a festival at all," Shikamaru retorted dryly. "It's such a bummer, every year." He smirked in Ino's direction. "This, however, is fun."
"I'll get you!" Ino screamed again. "If it takes me all night, I'll GET YOU!"
Kiba was too hot-headed. He just couldn't take Tenten's teasing with good humor. The term "rookie" was an especially sore spot for him. All it took was one too many jibes on Tenten's part before he burst out, "You think you're all high and mighty, huh, because you're a year ahead of me? Well, I'm sick of it!" He waved his hand and walked away from her. "Go by yourself, if you want. I can't believe girls are so stuck-up!"
"All right, get out of here, then!" Tenten yelled angrily. "I'll find someone else to take me!" Kiba turned to scowl at her with a dare in his eyes.
"Hah," he barked a laugh. "I'd like to see you try." Incensed, Tenten stamped her foot.
"I will! And it'll be easy!" Looking around to see if anyone else was alone, she saw that Lee was hanging around under a lantern tree, and went over to him. "Hey, Lee, want to go to the festival together?" Lee looked over at her with a mournful gaze: it was obvious he had been rejected by someone.
"I am sorry, Tenten, but my heart belongs to another," he said disconsolately. "And besides that, I refuse to be anyone's second." Tenten sighed and nodded her understanding, and was about to continue her search when Shino came out of the shadows, causing her to jump back in surprise.
"I heard your plan to prove a point to Kiba," he said and held out his hand, across which a beetle scuttled before vanishing into his sleeve. "Might I join you in the endeavor?"
"Is that all?" Tenten grumbled. Putting her hands on her hips, she demanded to know, "Doesn't anyone like Tenten for Tenten?" When no one in the general vicinity answered her, she frowned and took Shino's hand. "Oh, all right. Come on, Shino, let's go prove a point."
Shikamaru was quite light on his feet, and he knew every trick in the book for staying out of Ino's range. But at last, through sheer determination, Ino framed his fleeing body with her hands and executed her mind-transfer jutsu. Then she put Operation Payback with Interest into effect. Among other things, she made him smash rotten apples against his head and parade around with his shirt off. Everything would have gone quite nicely if Asuma hadn't wandered onto the scene with Kurenai by his side. His mouth dropped open, and his cigarette fell onto the ground and went out. Burying his face in his hand, he groaned, "What am I going to do with you guys?" He grabbed Shikamaru's wrist and dragged him behind a stand of trees, where he grunted flatly, "Get out of him." Ino released Shikamaru from her hold and returned to her empty body, which was lying behind some brambles nearby. She sat up with a smirk while Shikamaru put his shirt back on. Asuma pointed at them and declared, "Okay, don't think I'll forget this, but I'm a little busy right now, so I'll make you a deal. I'll go easy on you tomorrow if you two can behave yourselves for the rest of the evening."
"Yes, Master," the two of them answered in unison, Ino sweet, Shikamaru disgruntled.
Hinata was so so glad that she was with Naruto, even if only for an evening. His fair hair and sparkling blue eyes made him look so different—so much more handsome!—than the other village boys. Actually, he looked even better than usual in his robe, although it was too long for him and trailed on the ground. It made him look like a chunin—which was exactly what he and Hinata both liked about it. But Hinata's favorite part about being with Naruto was that she could actually have fun. Naruto wasn't always belittling her or putting her down. When she was with Naruto, they could join in the activities that Neji had dismissed as childish—like a ramen-eating contest, and the acrobat show, and kite-flying. She gazed up at the kites that captivated her so. Naruto was holding the end of the roll and moaned when the kite disappeared behind a cloud. "Aw! Now we'll have to bring it down if we want to see it."
"I can see it," Hinata told him, her voice hardly above a whisper. "If you want me to. . ."
"Wow! You can?" He began paying the line out, letting the kite go even higher. "Okay! Tell me when it's above all the rest!" he told her eagerly. Hinata put her fingers together into the sheep kata and concentrated hard.
"Byakugan," she murmured. Her vision whizzed to a new level. Suddenly she could see through the clouds to the scores of kites above. Naruto's billowing toad kite was steadily rising higher and higher, beyond dragons, kunai knives, boars, and many others. When it was at the top, Hinata exclaimed, "There! It's above everyone's else's." She relaxed her chakra and the jutsu subsided. Naruto tied his string around a tree.
"Yeah!" he cheered out loud. "Now mine is the best kite around. Just like I'll be, someday—Hokage! The best ninja in Konoha!" He giggled with anticipation and looked over at Hinata with a smile. "Hey, Hinata, I'm glad you wanted to come with me. No one else would, y'know. I mean, I know I was your second choice, and all that, but thanks for letting me go with you."
"N-no, Naruto! You've got it wrong!" Hinata burst out earnestly. "Y-you're not my second choice—but when Neji asked me to go, I had to—I mean. . ." She swallowed and forced the words out. "Y-you could never be my second choice."
"Really?" Naruto slowly smiled until his grin covered his face. He rocked up and down on his toes and propped his arms behind his head. "You're pretty nice, you know that?"
When the fireworks exploded overhead, that was the signal for the close of the festival. Boys walked their girls home in the darkness, but Naruto must not have known protocol, because he smiled, waved good-bye, and ran off home. Hinata was nervously contemplating going to her house by herself, but Neji made her choice for her when he appeared in front of her again. With her eyes downcast, Hinata took his arm and let herself be escorted by him for the last time. They came to the most grand house of the Hyuga main branch—Hinata's home—and Neji solemnly turned to her. Taking off his headband and dropping it, he cupped her cheeks in his hands and pressed his forehead to hers. It was a gesture of undying loyalty and servitude. Hinata accepted it with her head bowed. "Thank you for escorting me," she said in a tiny voice. "I . . . had a good time."
"Then my obligation is fulfilled," Neji replied tonelessly. He bowed low. "Good night, Lady Hinata." He returned to his own home, one of the cluster of tiny houses on a knoll—the servants' quarters, little more than shacks, really. Hinata watched him go inside and shut the door.
Sometimes she hated being a member of the main branch of the Hyuga Clan.
The moon was full, the petals were falling, and Sakura was walking home on Sasuke's arm. What had she done to deserve such an exquisite night? She never wanted it to end. But to her great surprise, Sasuke brought her perfect evening to an even more perfect end when he picked up a cherry blossom and pushed it behind her ear. Her heart thrilled, and she sincerely thought she might melt or swoon on the spot. With every ounce of composure that she had learned in her years at the Academy, she clenched her hands into fists, shut her eyes tightly, and said—a little shrilly but still civilly—"Good night, Sasuke. Thank you for . . . everything." She smiled coyly at him and went into her house before she could do something that would make her look like an idiot. Sasuke turned to where he knew Naruto would be standing—in the shadows at the edge of the road. He smirked and flashed his pinky briefly in a "girlfriend" gesture. Naruto stuck his nose into the air and stormed away: it was obviously the best comeback he could come up with at the moment.
= The End =
Bonus! (If the manga writers can do bonus pages, then so can I!)
Profile—Costumes and uniforms: what were they wearing?
Okay, these descriptions didn't quite make it into the story, but I had every detail in mind, and I didn't want my mental pictures to go to waste.
^Naruto: Naruto didn't know it, but he put on a robe intended for chunin and jonin instructors only. The robe is supposed to be worn to the festival once a year, only by those shinobi who teach at the Academy.
^Sakura: She's wearing a velvety scarlet kimono with white accents—a variation of the dress she normally wears. Her hair is curled and primped to perfection.
^Sasuke: wore a simple gray robe with a huge Uchiha crest covering the whole back of it. His family often wore these same robes to any special ceremonies they attended.
^Kurenai: wore a white kimono with delicate red stripes.
^Kiba: has a deep purple robe on with black fur edging the sleeves and collar.
^Hinata: All the Hyuga Clan members wear silken lavender kimonos with smooth white fabric running a few inches upward from the sleeves, collar, and lapel. Main branch members display the Hyuga crest on the back; cadet members do not. She curled the two locks of hair that hang
down by her ears, too.
^Shino: has on a light orange robe with a black sash.
^Asuma: wore black with a white sash. Not very imaginative.
^Shikamaru: Why would Shikamaru wear anything else than his normal outfit? He didn't even want to be here!
^Ino: wore a flowing, silky pink kimono decked out with as many flowers as would fit into the collar. She also braided a belt of flowers for her waist, and let her hair down.
^Choji: The Akimichi Clan are the stars of the show! They all wear festive robes with designs of
various stripes, polka dots, and intricate patterns. Something like leather breastplates cover their round stomachs, and they paint their faces like clowns. Every one of them looks like the cutest china doll!
^Guy: is wearing a floral-print kimono.
^Neji: wears the robe of the cadet branch. See description of Hinata.
^Tenten: wore a soft, light brown robe, kind of like animal fur.
^Lee: had no one to take, so he didn't dress up.
^Iruka: was wearing the same type of robe as Naruto later put on.
^Gekko: Same as Iruka.
^Anko: wore a garish robe that looked like she splattered the dye over it herself. The dark red blotches looked like blood, but no one dared ask her about it.
^Kiba's older sister: wore a similar robe to Kiba's, but more feminine.
^Kabuto: doesn't dress up well. He removed the hood from the traveling cloak he later used on the Tenchi Bridge, and just wore that. Plus, he used (although no one knew it) a strip of linen bandaging for his sash.
Homura: wore the white-and-dark-orange kimono of the village elder.
Koharu: Same as Homura.
Profile—Others that weren't involved: where were the rest of the characters?
I didn't have time to bring everyone in, but here's the scoop. Alert me if I've missed anyone!
^The sand trio: Why would they be here? This is a Konoha festival! Besides, the Sand shinobi would never involve themselves in something so frivolous and fun.
^Kakashi: Like Master Guy, Kakashi urged his team to go to the festival, but unlike Guy, he didn't attend.
^Third Hokage: He didn't go with anyone, but he presided over the festival, so you could say he attended.
^Ibiki: This guy, at a festival? No way.
^Tsunade: hadn't yet become Hokage. She was absent from the village at this time.
^Jiraiya: was doing his Prodigal Shinobi thing somewhere far away.
^Orochimaru: No comment.
^The parents of Sakura, Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Hinata, Kiba, and Shino: were all in attendance, of course. They reached varying levels of the romantic, and generally enjoyed themselves.
~A side note: Iruka didn't actually attend the festival, either. He spent the night matchmaking for any of his students who didn't find themselves a boy or girl to go with.
A/N: Hinata and Neji aren't supposed to be romantically involved. He's simply her escort to the festival. Neither of them are feeling remotely attracted to each other, as I hope I've made clear in the text of the story.