Hey guys! With my SasuSaku fanfic 'The Endearment of Fake Dating' coming to a close soon, I thought I'd try out another story. Make it revolve around Ino and Shikamaru instead this time. (I'll still have SasuSaku in there somewhere, and others).
I was in a phase of watching Korean dramas over the summer. One of my faves is Dream High, this k-pop drama where kids go to this school to become kpop stars. Taking lots of influence from that into this story - make it all Naruto-y XD Hope you enjoy!
CHAPTER 1:
Ino Yamakana's parents are trying to send their daughter overseas to study something she isn't even passionate about. That means throwing away her friends, her home life, and her choice to find out what she wants to do in life after high school. All that changed after her best friend, Sakura, flings them to an Open Call Audition at Hidden Leaf Entertainment - welcoming students to try out for their subschool's Trainee Program. Three prized and coveted scholarships will be awarded among the dozens of talent. Ino never meant to actually get accepted, and she never meant to actually win the scholarship, either. Even more so, she never meant to run into this Pineapple-Head at the auditions who wasn't even supposed to be there, either!
Most kids contemplate their future through pre-college aps and career tests. Ino's in for a whole new opportunity to discover herself and her heart.
"And so begins the college search-process," Ino frowns lazily, looking at one of the various college fliers handed out to her class today. She crumples it and tosses it into a nearby trash can before exiting the classroom with everyone else.
Ever since Junior Year began a few weeks ago, all the focus has been on academic and college-consideration. And for Ino, that was the last thing she wanted to think of. Any mention of college and her parents will immediately turn the conversation into one of nursing and medical school and the like.
The school day's ended, and despite this being only one month into Junior year, Ino knew the routine already.
Plugging her earphones in, she heads to her locker, contemplating the day-after-day cycle that will inevitably lead to, well, college. Whatever she did here these next two years, Ino knew her gut was telling her she didn't want to go into the medical field. Ino wanted to be a-
"INO!"
Ino looks over the crowded halls to see someone running through. Her pink hair is impossible to miss – impossible to believe it wasn't dyed. "Ino!"
"Over here!" Ino waves, opening her locker. Despite the school cycle, one thing kept the day alive; her one friend Sakura. Best friends since elementary years. "What's up? I thought we were meeting up at your locker."
"Not important - Look what I found in the school bulletin!" Sakura gushes, looking through her messenger bag for this paper among papers.
At first Ino thinks it's another college advertisement, but when Sakura finally pulls out the slightly dented flier it's… not. "What is it?"
"Look look; HL Entertainment is holding open auditions this Friday. Tomorrow Friday. For their Subschool Trainee Program," Sakura explains, hitting and digging her finger into the paper. "If you prep today and leave exactly after the bell tomorrow you can make the last hour of the audition."
Ink blinks. She's heard of the famous Trainee Program before. A technical 'school' for teens who dream of working in the music industry as pop idols. You get to learn how to be a star all in the working industry building under teachers and classrooms built within the hq of HL (Hidden Leaf) Entertainment, in the same air as actual stars. The ideal vocational high school, but totally out of reality's reach. You'd have an easier time trying for Julliard. "I didn't know they held open auditions in the middle of the year."
"They don't. But they are now and I say you should check it out."
Ino makes a face before looking at the poster again. If this were 8th grade, Ino would be screaming right now, but her state of mind's changed now. Ino turns to her locker to get her jacket. "Come on, Sakura, we're too busy as it is with homework. We have a lab report due tomorrow."
Sakura watches Ino for a moment before looking at the flier, then back at her friend. "How ironic is it that I'm more excited about this stupid thing than you are," Sakura says, dropping her arm. Just as Ino shuts her locker, Sakura slams the flier onto the green metal in front of Ino's face. "You'll change your mind later."
Leaving the flier there, Ino catches it before it can slide to the floor. Sakura takes her leave to go get her own books and stuff, leaving Ino be.
Sakura's always been the more rambunxious out of the two. More willing to try new things, less censoring of words, leaving Ino to balance that out with ahead-thinking and realistic borders and limits. And their expectations are way before this, Music Idol Audition thing.
And just like the college flier, Ino takes the HL Entertainment Audition advertisement and crumples it, throwing it into her bag as trash before her leaving.
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Later that evening, Ino sits at her desk in her room with her single lamp, reading a letter from the mail.
"Scholarship to attend West Coast Prep," she reads again. It's a boarding school across the country, all the way in California; in the U.S. Her parents have mentioned it to Ino many times, bragging about how it has one of the best nursing programs in the West.
According to the letter, Ino's grades and 'interest in the medical field' have been keenly observed and they want her there. No doubt Ino's parents know about the scholarship and attendance offer for the next semester. She found the letter opened. With any luck, she'll be shipped off before Thanksgiving. Greatest pre-college Med-Prep in America.
Ino groans and tosses the letter onto her table, scratching her head. So much frustration. All she wanted to do was sing and perform. Have fun. (Stay in Japan) Live life in the prime of her youth doing what she loved. Maybe when she was older and had her fun then she could get a 'serious' (not as fun) job.
Two years left until college – something she's heard countless times this past month. She's heard it; Sakura's heard it. And the question could always be: how will you spend the ticking clock? As if asking for an answer, Ino eyes all the music-group posters caving her room. The amount has surely accumulated into a wallpaper, but music was her hobby. Interest. Love. Whichever, it never got boring.
Thinking to herself for a few more minutes, (and realizing she's been stuck in her room for hours) Ino searches for her phone and speed-dials a number. It rings a few moments until the other line picks up.
"Good news bad news?" Sakura says automatically, sounding pre-occupied. She always asks that, Ino notices.
"Question," Ino smiles, going through her school bag. She finds a crumpled purple ball and unrolls the audition flier. "Remember that HL Entertainment Audition you mentioned earlier?"
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The following day, the two friends follow along downtown – away from the suburban homes and to where the offices, malls, shops, the life of Leafville City is.
"Oh this is so exciting," Sakura grins, videoing their walk through the city. They came fresh out of school. Neither had time to change either, so they'll be going to the audition in their Leafville Prep Uniforms.
"So you really have to film this?" Ino asks with a laugh. "You already said you're not auditioning. Why'd you tag along?"
"Sheesh Ino, ever hear do of moral support?" Sakura scoffs, pointing her tiny camera at Ino's face. "Besides, I don't get to hang out with you as much as I'd like already. What if you nail the audition and they turn you into a pop star instantly, like that? Anyway in that case I'd see even less of you."
"I don't think I'll get in."
Sakura lowers her camera. "So why are you doing this then?"
Ino shrugs, keeping up their walk. "For fun," she replies. "Yesterday after I got home, I found the acceptance letter scholarship thing for California's high school med-program." Ino keeps her eyes forward, refusing to see her friends' reaction yet. "I hid it under my pillow so my parents can't confront me about it, but they already opened it before I came home yesterday…"
Sakura's eyes widen a little. She knew the deal. "So, you're really leaving?"
"Most likely," Ino says sheepishly. Their walking has slowed significantly. "Better I do this today since I probably won't be able to do anything fun anymore."
"What…" Sakura's voice sounds like her mind is still processing it. "B-But, if you go then who's going to make a big deal about prom for me? Force me to wear a dress?" she tries to laugh. Sakura runs up in front of Ino, walking backwards with her stupid camera. "W-Who's going to attend the school Arts Festival with me and watch my videos? Who's going to be the stereotypical straight-A overachiever who's blonde? Ino you're like the only one!"
"And that's why I should stay," Ino nods, laughing. That brings a smile back to Sakura's face. "You're unusually chipper today."
"Well in return you're unusually melancholy today," Sakura rebuttles, walking back side-to-side with Ino. "After the audition, let's go to my place and brainstorm ways of keeping you in Leafville City. Bribery, robbery, you name it. You're staying here."
Ino can't help but laugh. She can't tell if her friend is serious or not, of if she's really this… energetic. Sakura was normally as serious as Ino most of the time, but the positivity helps.
"Okay, here we are," Sakura grins, the two of them standing outside the prestigious Hidden Lead Entertainment building. It was a very tall building. Very welcoming, very wide. Very intimidating at the same time. "Wow…."
"Beige and gold," Ino reads from the company flag and logo.
"… Weird school colors."
Ino hits Sakura on the arm, causing her to close her camera finally. "Come on, we better get in line. There's a lot more people than I thought there'd be." Despite it being the last leg of the audition, a lot of talented looking people still wait.
Nonetheless, the waiting period doesn't last too long. If anything it gives Ino time to take in her surroundings.
As a little girl she'd dreamed of attending HL Entertainment's Trainee Program, and instead she and Sakura made it to the average and predictable Leaville Prep. This 'school' had pillars the size of trees, and statues that made you dream of owning one for your own home one day. It barely blended in with the other city buildings that blandly stood around it.
The line led through the entrance, then down a short hall, The lower part of the building resembled a normal historic high school in many ways, just with many embellishments. Pictures along the walls showed the more business-y floor residing upstairs.
Ino arrives in the very front of the line, at a blue table with three people behind it, signing in kids. Sakura and Ino make it to the guy on the left. The man next to him puts up a sign that says 'closed', and Ino feels a nervous swallow.
"Aha," the man behind the table smiles. "Last entry number. Only one of you can audition."
"Ah no that's okay! She's auditioning!" Sakura grins, grabbing Ino's arm and pointing at her. Ino makes a face while other teens behind them groan. The cut off line has been made.
"H-Hey hey what're you doing?" Ino frantics as Sakura collects Ino's sticker and pass for her. Sakura slings a lanyard around her neck.
"Thank you very much!" Sakura grins, taking me and our stuff out of the line. We follow the last few people who've been admitted into the audition through some blue doors and make it down into a huge gym – like a high school gym. Just full people with numbers.
"Whoa," Ino observes. What kind of music entertainment HQ has a school gym?
"Come on Ino now's not a time to be star struck," Sakura urges, grabbing Ino's school bag for her. She slings one back pack over each shoulder. "This is it! It's really happening!"
"Y-Yeah," Ino says breathlessly, looking at her Lanyard. Number 558. That's a lot of people.
"Dude, we were literally the last people to get in. This HAS to be a sign," Sakura elbows.
"That or really good luck," Ino says. Looking around she can see they seriously stood out. The only ones in school uniform. In the gym alone there were countless other contestants, all with lanyards and stickers on their torsos. Some had professional performing costumes like in k-pop or j-pop music videos. Others had make-up people hired. "Sakura look at all these people."
"I know. You can just say you're going for the natural look," Sakura tries, only to be given another look from her friend. "Look I'm going to go look for a bathroom okay?"
"Wait you're leaving me?"
"Ino you'll be fine! Besides they might all your number." Ino frowns, unconvinced. "Just think of this as high school orientation again. Mingle. Who knows? Someone might be famous one day." Gee thanks, Ino says in mind.
With that, Sakura runs off to go find a restroom, and Ino is once again left alone. This time in a totally out of place environment. "Geez…" High school orientation was a nightmare. Ino had no intention of making friends with all the losers who didn't even care for their education. Running into Sakura was pure luck – they met by repeatedly returning to the food table for snacks (the only entertaining thing at orientation) before realizing they were familiar faces. They'd attended elementary school together as childhood best friends. They drifted during the junior high years and practically stopped talking all together. Freshman year changed all that and they bonded once more.
Ino slowly wanders the gym, observing her so called competition of fellow auditions. There's this one guy who skates past her on a penny-board. She's about to say something, but she notices how attractive he looks from the back and shuts up until he disappears into the crowd.
Elsewhere, Ino spots two boys practicing their dancing and rapping, gathering up a small crowd of peers too to watch and entertain. Their name tags have similar numbers, and reads 'SAI' and 'KIBA'.
Across from that crowd there's a small section of unfolded bleachers. No one's sitting on them except one person, all the way at the top. And they're- "Sleeping…?" Ino mutters in surprise. The teen has the blackest hair, and the most beautiful complexion, with headphones plugged over his head as he lays on his back on the very top bleacher, away from anyone and everyone. Gorgeous really. A slacker, knowing his type. – With fangirls glancing up at him too now and again.
Adverting her attention, Ino also catches a food table (how familiar), where there's this one figure, with blue eyes and pointy blond spikes for hair, just piling up a plate full of free food. That guy came for the food definitely. Ino feels compelled to say Sakura would too.
As Ino's eyes are merely wandering while her feet are doing the walking, she doesn't see where she's going until she bumps into someone with a ponytail who also incidentally isn't watching where he is going either.
The guy winds up spilling a cup of fruit punch over Ino's front. Lucky Ino has a big scarf to soak up most of the damage instead of on her uniform, but the scarf is pure white.
"I am so sorry," he starts out, looking at her then at the cup. Then at her once more. The blond girl before him is just staring. Or glaring. The teen can't tell. "… Wow that's gonna stain," he says awkwardly after the silence.
"Watch where you're going next time," she lectures, taking off her scarf to try and shake off some of the loose liquid. She knows it's just an accident, but Ino can't help but feel a small grudge over this. This is so not coming off. Ino looks at pony-tail guy and notices he doesn't have a name tag. Now she can't even make fun of his name. "You're not auditioning?" she asks first, waving her scarf to dry.
"Huh?" He was expecting another snappy remark. "A-Ah, no. I'm, here for my cousin," the boy says, pointing over to a crowd of girls a bit further off. "My parents wanted me to watch her then bring her home after."
He sure sounds like he doesn't want to be here either. "I feel bad for her. No wonder she's not standing next to you," Ino says instinctively.
The boy arches his eyebrow at her. Ino also normally isn't this crude, but she has a mini grudge at the moment. His fault. "Ouch. I don't even know you."
"Well you owe me a new scarf," Ino demands, holding up hers with the huge red stain on it. "God… you better hope this washes off."
"Like you can hurt me if you find out it can't," he scoffs, further irritating Ino. He's totally asking for it.
Ino is about to make another comeback, but her name is called. "INO YAMANAKA NUMBER 558!"
"Oh that's me," Ino notices, checking her sticker. She jumps once to look for the stage past the tall crown around them. She's supposed to meet with the judges backstage. "I thought I had more time! Ah!"
Without even bothering to say goodbye, Ino runs off with her wet scarf, leaving Pony-Tail dude in the fray. For some reason that guy whose name escapes her really pisses her off, but then again she found it quite enjoyable to argue with him. Much more fun than arguing with Sakura.
Then she mentally argues: oh well. Pineapple-Head isn't auditioning. So it's not like she'll ever see him again or have to deal with his rude insults. Who did he think he was anyway?
Ino arrives at the base of the side of the stage, and she takes a huge steady breath before ascending the steps to audition. For a moment while arguing with that guy, she lost that nervousness that's been following her all day for this stunt. Calm down Ino. It's just for fun remember? It's not like I'm trying to actually make it, much less afford it.
Now behind the curtains, there's another small group of people, waiting it would seem. Not as many as outside. Four other people, practicing their own things. One guy's dancing. Another lip-syncing in a mirror. Ino squeezes the lanyard around her neck, nervous definitely down to the pit of her stomach.
"Did you hear?" one of the girls says, doing their make up by another mirror. "The subschool's giving away scholarships to the top autidioners today."
What?
"No way," the other girl scoffs, clearly interested anyway. "Did they already pick people or do they give it to you as you audition?"
"Who knows?"
"Scholarship huh…?" Ino mutters, imaginative thoughts already running through her head. But it sounds too out there to even consider. The thought loses itself too easily.
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"Ah…" Sakura sighs, wandering the empty halls of HL Entertainment's subschool. This branch of the building was very much like a high school. Lockers, doors. Even more so when lugging two school bags on her shoulders. Her's and Ino's. "You think a place like this would've had a bathroom near the gym. Now I'm lost."
It's not all bad, being lost. But each hall looked the same. Not even a vending machine with water, which Sakura was now consciously searching for.
When about to finally give up and just collapse somewhere (hopefully Ino would find her), she passes a door with a faint light inside. Sakura backtracks and looks into the door window, peering into the darkness.
At the corner of the room looks to be a lit up vending machine with drinks. Her eyes light up.
YES.
Checking to see if the door is unlocked, Sakura enters. It's a dark room, and the light switches don't appear to work. And only now does she realize the clutter all around the basement classroom. It's a storage room.
Wood planks and broken instruments line the floor as Sakura maneuvers with the book bags, trying to get to the vending machine at the other end. When she finally reaches it, she wraps her arms gratefully around the rectangular machine. "Ahh~ An oasis in a basement…!"
Only then does Sakura notice the red words 'out of order' resonating near the bill insertion slot.
"Aiiiissh….." Sakura slumps to the floor of the vending machine, dropping hers and Ino's bags on either side of her. "This is depressing."
Lost in a giant school, stuck in a dark and dim and dusty instrument room, and beside a perfect broken water-haven too.
"I'll leave in a minute when I get my strength back," Sakura sighs to no one in particular, hitting her head back against the broken vending machine.
Beside though, a few feet away, in the midst of the broken trash and hole-stricken drums stands a wooden piano with a bench, in the dusty light of the stain glass windows above. Sakura doesn't have to think too long about it before her legs pull her up towards the thing.
She sits on the bench, standing up to dust the dust off her skirt, then sitting again. The keys of the large rectangular piano have yellowed, and one by one she can tell they're out of tune. One ivory key is broken too, and they're all dusty. But, there's a quaintness to it.
"Hm…" Sakura smiles, thinking. One key. Then another note. Before long her other hand lifts to play too, and little by little a sad but nostalgic tune starts to play itself out. It's not on purpose, nor is it accidental.
And listening as well is another figure with headphones, and sleek black hair, sleeping behind a table in the same room. He lifts his upper torso from his nap, after failing to find quiet in the gym – only to hear something even more soothing than silence or music from his mp3. He sees the pink haired girl playing this piano in her 'secret solitude', her sound mysteriously alluring. Like a siren.
At the same time, another blonde woman passes by the halls outside the door, having heard the sound of piano. Her silhouette can be seen past the door window.
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"Thank you very much!" a young teen girl bows after her performance in front of the three school judges. She like everyone else has a number on her arm and a card within her lanyard. "I've brought a DVD of my dancing as well if you don't mind."
"Leave it here," Asuma, the man in the middle smiles as he writes finishing notes on his clipboard.
"Thank you very much!" the girl bows again before leaving – still bowing.
"Very young," the old man beside Asuma remarks.
"And very out of your age range," Shizune reminds, tossing a crumpled piece of paper at the old man's head. "Remember, you're only a guest judge here! At least let your opinion remain professional."
"Especially when it's my daughter," Asuma smiles, knowingly cornering Jiraya.
"That's yours and Kurenai's daughter, Asuma?" Shizune asks, sincerely shocked. "She's all grown up now. Is she thirteen already?"
"She's been wanting to audition for HL Entertainment for years," Asuma smiles, trying to remain unbiased but hopelessly failing.
"Hmm," Jiraya wonders. But he can already feel Shizune's glare. "Professional, professional, I know," Jiraya frowns, holding his hands up. "And where the hell is Tsunade anyway? CEO of HL Entertainment and the technical principal of the subschool Trainee Program. Lazy hag won't even judge her incoming students."
Shizune frowns on the other side of Asuma. "You know her – she has her ways."
"And we didn't even get instructions on how the scholarship award works," Jiraya reminds, flipping through papers in his clipboard. "We have one kid left and we haven't even awarded a single cent."
"There's only three scholarships. Remember that," Asuma speaks calmly between the two. "Lady Tsunade didn't even tell me what the standards were for the scholarship, but we'll be displaying the acceptances after this last audition." Asuma hits a button beside a microphone. "Ino Yamanaka?"
From the glass doors, the blond high schooler enters meekly, holding her hands together as if there was nothing left to hold. "Number 558. I bet you waited long for this audition," Jiraya greets.
Ino eyes all three of the judges, unsure what to expect. "Y-Yes sir," Ino nods. She's never felt so small before. In front of her stands a microphone.
"What will you be performing for us, Ino?" Asuma asks her, leaning forward with his own hands clasped. Ino can see a cigarette behind his ear. An unusually casual atmosphere. "Will you be singing?"
Yes. "Yes," Ino pushes through her throat. Why am I so nervous now?
Ino steps up to the microphone, and just like what she wrote on her entry form when at the start of the line, an instrumental starts to play form speakers at the corner top of the room. She begins to sing, a familiar song between her and Sakura's childhood. A song they used to sing at sleep overs, jumping on the bed and during pillow fights.
As awkward as it feels at first, it soon becomes as easy as breathing, and before long, Ino feels like she's in her own skin – and for the first time in a while, too. Singing, entertaining people, connecting with those listening, that was what made her smile.
Her hands would move in tune with her emotions, the words. And as the song reached its end, Ino's voice softened, her eyes lowered, and she finished with one of the greatest pitches. In a way… it felt freeing.
The song ends, and the silence that follows is what's loud enough to wake Ino up from her trance. She sees the woman with short hair writing something down, the man with the cigarette nodding at her, and the old man with long white hair just staring, genuinely… shocked? Not quite sure if that's good or bad.
"Very nice," Asuma says, giving the first claps. "Very… different."
GOOD OR BAD? "Um, thank you," Ino nods shyly.
"Good performance," another woman's voice alerts from behind. The three adults sit up straighter, and Ino turns around. In walks a very beautiful woman in black heels, and a green cardigan. Her lips are as red as her skin is pale. Very beautiful indeed.
Ino stands up straighter herself as the important woman circles her, as if inspecting her. "Raw… but doable."
"I-Ino Yamanaka," Ino blurts out, not sure whether her own introduction was necessary.
"Mm," she smiles, finally stopping. "I think I've found our scholarship student."
As if hearing bells for the first time, Ino's eyes widen, as does those of the judges behind the table. Was her singing was that great was it? Did she do something out of the ordinary? Dress especially? (Nope)
"L-Lady Tsunade?"
"She's the last of the batch isn't she? No harm in telling her she got in now right?" Tsunade looks to the man with white hair. "Jiraya, go hang up the acceptance display in the gym."
"Right."
Once he leaves, "Shizune," Tsunade calls.
As if knowing what she needed, the lady Shizune walks up to the woman and hands her a fancy print envelope, with a school seal on the front in gold wax. Tsunade formally turns to Ino, holding it out to her. "Enclosed here is the scholarship description, as well as your acceptance. Perks of being last to audition is that you don't have to wait for the results."
Ino couldn't believe this was happening. A dream. It had to be a dream. "No disrespect, M'am, but… why me?" Ino asks, not fully understanding. "For the scholarship I mean."
"There's something interesting about you," the tall Tsunade offers, not that it's much of an answer either, but it's something. She holds her hand out to shake, and Ino gratefully takes it. "Congratulations."
In the minute that follows, students are bombarding Jiraya as he's hanging the student acceptance names on the bulletin. It's a large poster board, and the man leaves practically trampled. 40% of those who auditioned were accepted.
"Aha!" Naruto cheers. "I got in!"
"Hn," another pale face reads. He sees his name, Sai, with a green check next to it. "I made it."
"Sasuke-kun got accepted!" a bunch of girls fawn, though the Uchiha is nowhere to be found. Out of the spotlight, as always, listening to his headphones somewhere.
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That evening, when the school gym has finally emptied, and all the formal acceptance letters have been mailed out, the janitors are left to clean, while Manager Shizune collects papers in the audition room.
Tsunade enters once more to help with last minute cleaning. "Good work today, Manager Shizune."
Shizune smiles back at her mentor, papers in hand. "And where were you? As CEO you think you would've been judging alongside us. And you sent in Jiraya as your replacement of all people?"
"He has an honest mouth," Tsunade figures, walking across the room to her friend. "A new school year, a new batch of talent."
"Did you ever find your other two scholarship students?"
"I have," Tsuande says. "I found this girl wandering the school, playing the piano." Tsunade smiles. "And this."
Shizune looks to see what she's talking about, and she holds up a CD in a red case. She recalls Asuma telling a girl to place it on the table earlier. "Mirai Sarutobi's dancing?"
"That's what I thought I was looking at," Tsunade begins, looking at the CD once more. "But they're not dances. They're music composition samples, from someone else, with the initials S.N on the files." She hands the CD to Shizune. "Find me the composer who made these."
"Y-Yes, M'am," Shizune nods, looking at the case. The girl must have brought the wrong CD.
"Nonetheless," Tsunade smiles, looking out the sunset colored window. "This will be a very entertaining year."
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Here you go, guys! Hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think!
PREVIEW:
"Sakura?" Ino blinks, definitly believing this to be a dream now. The girl wears a sheepish smile, and the boy who got the last scholarship – Pineapple-Head? He looks just as surprised as Ino does to see her.
"I see you know each other already," the woman at the desk announces. And her! That blonde woman who gave Ino the scholarship. Tsunade. She's the CEO of HL Entertainment? "I'm glad all three of you could make it this morning."
x-x-x-x
Gorgeous-guy just stands there, staring everyone down.
"Well?" Danzo asks, almost impatiently.
"I don't get the point of your test," he speaks out, saying what practically everyone's been thinking. Only he's had the balls to actually say it. "You aren't even paying attention to us."
"… Next," Danzo skips, leaving Headphones to walk off stages. By the whispers of giggling girls nearby, Ino overhears name must be 'the' Sasuke Uchiha.
x-x-x-x
"Sakura," she nods, shaking his hand. "This is Ino."
"Cool," Naruto smiles, nodding. Probably one of the first friendly faces they've seen. He looks towards Shikamaru.
"That's Shikamaru," Ino says instead.
"The infamous scholarship students," Naruto nods. "I've heard a thing or two about you guys." Ino looks to Sakura, both wearing the same concerned expressions. "Hey come on. If Chairman Danzo has it in for you guys then you can't be all bad."
Hearing that is pretty assuring. "Good to know," Ino nods.
x-x-x-x
"I bet, that if I do this, and I make my debut before the end of the school year, then I get to stay. Here. In Leafville City."
"Ino don't be-"
Her mother holds out her arm in front of her dad. "And if you don't."
Ino gulps, not quite sure what she's saying either. "If I don't make it by the end of this school year… then I'll go to California without any complaints."