Hide and Seek: College Style

Chapter One- Setting the Stage

Sakura's POV

'"'"'"

"Oh beauuutiful, for spaaacious blue skies, and summer on the waaaves!" Ino sang in a loud, obnoxious voice.

"Ino, shut up, why don't ya?" I growled. "We're not on summer vacation yet, and besides, this summer will be a huge turning point in our lives before they throw us out into society!"

"Boy, Sakura, way to make the future sound boring." Naruto sighed and received a glare from me. "It's our senior year, and it's almost over! We should be celebrating, because soon we'll be college students!"

"If they even accept your low grades." Sasuke snorted. "You know, there's this thing called an application, and colleges typically like taking people who have a brain."

"Hey, Teme, I do so have a brain!" Naruto protested. "My grades aren't that bad!"

"The teachers in study hall say they'd give you a 'D' at best." Sasuke replied. "I think that's a good indicator."

"Well, it's not my fault that class is so boring. It's not like we actually do anything in there. At least I try to liven it up! You and Sakura just pass little love notes to each other!" Naruto retorted.

I grimaced and reddened at the same time as I reached over and punched Naruto on the arm. He fell back in shock at the sudden contact and yelped in pain.

"Oooowww, Sakura!" Naruto cried. "What was that for?"

"Gee, I wonder." I grumbled sarcastically. "How do you even know what we write? It could be other stuff."

"I typically take you two silently laughing and your blushing and giggling as a flirting sign." Naruto clarified. "That and the fact that I found one of your many letters that Teme kept. You two sure know how to verbally get it on!"

I blushed a deep shade of red, and only Sasuke, who grabbed me securely around the waist, kept me from jumping on Naruto and effectively beating him to a pulp.

"Calm down, Sakura." Sasuke told me in a soothing tone. "If you kill the Dobe, there'll be no one to insult on a daily basis who will take it. That, and Hinata will be out a boyfriend."

I settled down and Sasuke switched his arm from around my waist to around my shoulder.

"Good girl." Sasuke whispered in my ear.

"Where's Hinata been anyway?" I asked as I looked around to search fruitlessly for our shy friend.

"Beats me, she hasn't called me, and she won't pick up her phone." Naruto answered as he took out his phone to check for any calls from his missing girlfriend.

"I bet ya she's being dragged around by Neji." Ino stated. "You know, Neji's still all upset about Hinata dating you of all people, Naruto."

"I don't see why he's got to be such a jerk." Naruto grumbled. "What's so bad about me anyway?"

"Where should we begin?" Sasuke snorted which earned a vicious glare from Naruto.

"Ah, shut up, Teme." Naruto growled. "Besides, remember what happened when you brought Sakura over to your house for dinner and your older brother—"

"Don't even go there!" I interjected. "That has nothing to do with your Hinata-Neji dilemma!"

"Oh, I never heard this one." Ino piped cheerily. "Do tell, Naruto."

"Well, like I said, Teme brought Sakura to his house for some dinner. Since he lives with his brother, of course it'd just be the three of them. The second Itachi saw Sakura he—"

"Naruto, if you finish that sentence, I will personally rip out your vocal cords!" I threatened sharply.

"Let's just say there was a lot of Uchiha jealousy!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Oh, wow!" Ino squealed.

"Damn it, Naruto!" I yelled and began to chase after him. Sasuke didn't even bother to hold me back.

Naruto's eyes widened and he dashed off down the road we walked on as fast as he could go. Unfortunately for him, I was faster, and I tackled him to the ground. I swung a hard fist at his head and made contact.

"Ow! Ow! Sakura, please stop! I'm sorry, okay?" Naruto whimpered as I took another fist to his head.

"Well, what do we have here?" A voice suddenly rang out.

I looked up and immediately frowned in disgust. Just down the road was Karin.

"What's it to you, slut?" I growled vehemently.

"I just never knew you had such a physical attraction to blonds." Karin snorted.

I glanced down at Naruto and my position to decipher what she meant. I was sitting on Naruto's chest with my hands keeping his shoulders down. I flushed in annoyance and glared back at Karin.

"For one, I'm not a whore, seeing as I actually have a boyfriend, unlike you. Two, I think you need some new glasses, because not only can you not see that I'm obviously beating him up, but they're hideous, too. Wait, I take back the glasses thing, they're probably the best looking thing when anyone looks at you." I snarled in response.

"Hmph, just keep thinking that, bitch." Karin glowered and walked past us.

I turned my head to glare at her back as she passed Ino and Sasuke, who were still behind us. Karin stopped for a moment when she passed Sasuke, and said something I couldn't hear to him. Sasuke's form went rigid at Karin's words, and she walked off with a new spring in her step that unsettled me. The two of them reached Naruto and me just as I stood up. I looked right at Sasuke and stood in front of him.

"What did Karin say?" I questioned.

"Nothing," Sasuke answered.

"Then what was with your reaction?" I pressed and turned to Ino. "Did you hear what she said, Ino?"

Ino glanced at Sasuke for a moment before she looked at me and shook her head. "Beats me. She was whispering."

Sasuke sighed and grabbed me around my waist. "Don't worry about it, Sakura. There's no need to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous, I'm curious." I pouted. "I don't want that slut messing with your mind."

"It's alright." Sasuke stated. "Let's get going, okay?"

Sasuke forced me forward with his arm and everyone else followed after us. What Karin had said to Sasuke still bothered me on the inside. I mentally shook myself from the thought as best I could.

"Why am I getting so worked up about this anyway?" I asked myself. "I feel as though I should just trust what Sasuke told me about it being nothing…but I just feel so apprehensive…."

Well, not a very exciting first chapter, but I know where it's going, and at least I just managed to fit in the hints of the main conflict. Now you people, as readers, just have to see where it'll go. Well, things are probably going to be running slow like this for a while. One, because my inspiration is still in a jar somewhere out of my reach, (besides trying to write this) and two, because I am feeling really under the weather…yes, Okami-chan has fallen to the power of sickness…you'd think that'd keep me in front of the laptop longer, but it doesn't. Anyway, I guess at some point the next portion of this story will be up. Later!