Just a Little Bet
Naruto Fanfiction
By
Rae and Strange
Summary: Naruto and Sasuke make a bet; whoever can capture Hinata's heart first wins 30,000 yen. It was just a little bet, of course, no harm in that. But then, slowly, and unwillingly, they begin to fall head over heels in love. NaruxHinaxSasu AU
Strange: Seeing as how it's AU, we're gonna make it so Neji isn't Hinata's cousin, kay?
Rae: There will be hints of other pairings too, but it's not quite important compared to the triangle.
Jin: And now we hope you enjoy the story.
Chapter 1:
Kohano Boarding School
It was almost the Hyuuga sisters' first day of high school as freshmen at Kohano Boarding School. The three of them were a nervous wreck, although each had they're own way of showing their anxiety.
For Hinata, the youngest of the triplets, she was fidgeting and fumbling about, tripping over objects on the floor, such as her carpet.
On the other hand, the middle sibling, Rae, was even clumsier. She didn't need solid objects to trip over, oh no, she tripped over air. Not to mention the fact that she cursed much more than necessary when apprehensive, especially when she fell. Before she even reaches the floor, a curse word slips out of her mouth, and then when she's actually down on the ground did the string of obscene phrases erupt from her mouth.
Last, but not least, was Kris, the oldest of the sisters. Instead of tripping over objects—or air in Rae's case—she bumped into things, anything and everything; walls, chairs, desks, you name it. Plus, she was more irritable than usual; the slightest call of her name was enough to send her into glares and annoyed sighs, which was a rare sight for her.
But of course, their mother thought that the acts of fretfulness were quite pointless. She believed that a boarding school for high school students was exactly what the triplets needed. Mrs. Hyuuga deemed Kohano Boarding School as a safe, educational environment with a wonderful student and teacher body, away from the cruel realities of life.
Finally, the triplets dragged their suitcases down the stairs and left them by the entrance.
"Mom," Rae called, rushing into the kitchen. She tied her silk black hair into a high ponytail, her lavender eyes confused. "Where'd you put my shirt?" Rae was probably the loudest, bluntest, and reckless of the family. Always diving head first into situations without a proper plan; her "act-before-you-think" attitude always served to get her into detentions.
"Hm?" Mrs. Hyuuga turned from the sink filled with dirty, formerly white dishes to gaze at her daughter curiously. "What shirt, darling?" She opened a drawer and took out two yellow gloves, slipping them on her pale hands. Turning on the sink, she grabbed a sponge and a bottle of soap and began scrubbing the disgusting looking tableware.
"The black one that you borrowed last week to go on a date with your boyfriend." Rae answered.
"Oh, that one? I'm afraid I lost it dear."
Rae made a face. "Gross, you left it at your boyfriend's house didn't you?" she quickly exited the kitchen, yelling over her shoulder, "You can keep it when you get it back, Okaa-san!"
Mrs. Hyuuga turned back to the dishes, shaking her head with a smile. "That girl," she whispered. "Always jumping to conclusions,"
"Rae, I can't find my jacket." Hinata said softly, opening the closet beside the door and rummaging through it to see if she had left it there. Hinata was the shyest of the sisters; unlike Rae, she always thought about her options and responses first before she acted. Hinata was the only other person with beautiful purple hair like her mother's.
Rae opened her suitcase and looked about her clothes and junk until she found a purple jacket with a picture of a butterfly on the bottom left hand corner. She zipped her travel case closed and then handed her little sister the item. "You mean this, right?"
Hinata smiled gratefully and nodded, taking her coat. "Thank you." she said.
"Sorry, I was borrowing it and I kinda forgot to give it back." Rae grinned sheepishly.
"It's okay."
Just then, their mother walked in as Hinata slipped her jacket on. Mrs. Hyuuga smiled at her two daughters, ecstatic that they had grown up to be so beautiful. "It's time to go." Cocking her head to the right, she noticed that her other daughter wasn't present. "Where's Kris?"
Kris had light brown hair and an air of maturity around her; her dark gold glasses showed her to be someone intellectual and wise. Of course, her sisters knew better; though Kris was a bit more mature than Rae, she was still quite playful, and her love of books rivaled no other.
"Upstairs," Hinata answered, grabbing her backpack. "I think she's trying to get some sleep before we go."
Mrs. Hyuuga sighed.
Scene Change
"This school is huge." Kris muttered, gawking at the large, spacey campus and the size of the humongous school.
Rae rolled her eyes. "No duh; it's a boarding school after all; you need room for dorms and such."
The school grounds had hills and wooden tables for the students to sit and chat; there were small basketball courts and a miniature golf course too. The grass looked healthy and green, and there was a flower bed here and there. Although it was a lovely sight, what ruined it were the hundreds of kids, laughing and chatting—quite loudly I might add.
"There are a lot of students here." Hinata whispered; staring wide eyed at the many teens.
Kris frowned, grunting in agreement. She was never one for crowds; the dozens of shoulders bumping into her, the feel of a total stranger so close to you, she hated it all.
Rae smirked. "Totally sucks for Kris." She snickered, nudging her older sister in her side.
Kris narrowed her eyes at the black haired punk. "Now's not the time, Rae."
Mrs. Hyuuga gently patted Kris's head, and then dropped her hands to her two youngest daughters' shoulders, squeezing it comfortingly. "Alright girls," she said. "Let's go."
The four walked towards the entrance of the school; the students watched them in curiosity, stopping what activities they were doing to gaze at them. Some giggled at the sight of their mother walking them—Krist promptly ignored them, Hinata turned red, and Rae glared at them, yelling offensive phrases in her head—others gave a slight wave, though only Hinata returned to the gesture—quite shyly—for Rae was still glaring and cussing in her head, and Kris was still ignoring everything around her.
It wasn't too hard to find the main office, for there was a large room with a glass window in front of the entrance; on the door was a sign that said "Office."
Mrs. Hyuuga confidently opened the door and stepped inside, her three girls following behind her a bit reluctantly.
Rae never liked principals; they were all stuck up and strict, and power hungry; her immense dislike for them motivated her to make their job as hard and hellish as possible, thus her pranks and attitude. But it wasn't just for principals; she practically hated everyone and anyone who thought they had authority over her—almost everyone at least.
A woman with short black hair smiled kindly at them; she stood up and shook Mrs. Hyuuga's hand. "Hello," the woman said. "I'm Shizune; it's a pleasure to meet you Mrs…"
"Mrs. Hyuuga," she smiled back. "It's nice to meet you too, Shizune-san. I take it you're the principal?"
"Oh no," Shizune shook her head; heading down a short hall that lead to a door, she opened it and motioned for them to enter. "The principal's in this room." She closed the door when all four girls entered.
Behind a large, sleek black desk piled with mountains of folders and papers, was a blonde woman, staring dully at a letter sitting before her. A pen was in her hand, but it looked like she had no intention of signing the sheet.
She looked up and upon seeing her four guests a bright smile erupted on her face. Standing up, she maneuvered her way around her messy desk, and held her hand out; Mrs. Hyuuga shook it.
"Welcome to Kohano Boarding School," the principal said. "I am the headmaster, Tsunade, and these must be the lovely girls you signed up." Her gaze dropped to the triplets; both ladies sweat-dropped at the sight.
Rae glared in pure hatred at the woman.
Kris gave a slight nod, acknowledging her presence, but besides that she completely ignored the two adults.
Hinata seemed to be the only one who cared; she smiled timidly, fidgeting nervously all the while.
"…What a…interesting…group of girls…" Tsunade commented, although "interesting" wasn't exactly the word she wanted to say. Strange was more like it.
Mrs. Hyuuga thanked her, not noticing Tsunade's shocked tone.
These were the girls that Tsunade had read about? These were the girls that had grades that were second to none?
They didn't look like it…
Rae had on blue jeans with silver chains that dangled down, jingling whenever she walked, and a snug black shirt with a tint of red here and there. She looked as if she was on a date with her friends.
Kris on the other hand looked as if she had just woken. Her shirt was gray and long, very long, reaching her knees; and you couldn't even tell if she had shorts underneath!
Hinata had on a purple jacket, a red shirt and skirt; simple, and it looked quite comfortable.
They certainly did not look like the best students their middle school had to offer.
Tsunade was beginning to feel like she had read lies, but, for the sake of the mother, she refrained from speaking her thoughts.
Turning back to her desk, the principal shuffled her papers about as she searched for a folder containing the girls' information, schedules, and report cards. After a few seconds, she found the manila file and opened it; silently flipping through the pages, she grinned triumphantly when she finally came across the girls' classes, handing it to the girls.
They stared at it, and then sighed.
"Is something wrong?" Mrs. Hyuuga asked worriedly.
"Everything's fine, Mom," Kris said; the girls passed their papers to the right. Tsunade had mixed up the girls' schedule, giving the wrong girl the wrong sheet.
Each of the sisters gazed at their own classes, and then traded to look at their sisters.
Rae grinned. "Awesome, we've the same classes, and dorm room!" she exclaimed happily.
"But our homeroom teachers are different." Hinata said quietly.
"Ah, no need to ruin a good mood, girly," Kris chuckled, folding her sheet and then pocketing it.
Tsunade headed towards the door and opened it. "Classes don't start until tomorrow, so you have the day off until then. Don't be late," she told them.
After leaving, they walked down the hallways, searching for the room number D35; Mrs. Hyuuga squealed in merriment.
"My girls are so grown up," she cried, hugging them fondly.
"Mom," they complained, pushing her away in embarrassment.
"It's like you're getting married and moving off on your own!" she dug into her pink purse and pulled out a white hanker chief, dabbing her eyes with it. "Brings tears to my eyes," She stifled a sob, shaking uncontrollably.
Rae raised a brow, staring at her mother in shock. What the hell? She's crying! And we're just staying at a boarding school for Pete's sake! Obviously uncomfortable with the situation, she awkwardly patted her mother's shoulder. "…Its okay, Mom; it'll be years before we get married so uh…don't cry…"
Goodness gracious! Kris thought, inwardly sighing; she had a feeling that that would happen. Their mother was ever the drama queen. "Yeah, Okaa-san; no need to go crazy," With her index finger, she pushed her glasses further up her nose
Hinata was probably the only one good at showing her love and affection for the family; she hugged her mother tightly, rubbing Mrs. Hyuuga's back affectionately. "We—we're only going to s-school, Mom."
"I know but," Mrs. Hyuuga wiped her eyes with the cloth once more. "It seems as if it was yesterday that I was changing your diapers!" she bawled; the three could've sworn that they heard that sentence echo within the school.
Damn…
Oh my gosh…
This is so embarrassing…!
Scene Change
Silence…nothing could be heard but the soft breathings of the students and the faint sound of the pencils scratching against paper, mostly because the students were doodling or replying to a note. Occasionally, a paper airplane would fly across the room, or a note would fling through the air to land on a particular person's desk; sometimes, a paper ball would soar towards the trash can, only to miss and land beside it.
All in all, it was quite dull.
This is the room of Kakashi Hatake's reading class.
And no one but Kakashi was actually reading a book.
His room had four bookshelves, filled to the brim with volumes, paperbacks and hardbacks, even a binder full of essays from his past students. There was even a folder containing all of the letters and notes he had confiscated from students; of course, that was while he was teaching. Currently, he was sitting on his leather chair, feet up on his desk, nose buried in his little orange book, rating too high for the students and content to disturbing for the teenage mind.
Kakashi didn't mind the students' passing notes or throwing paper balls in a pathetic attempt at playing an alternative basketball when he wasn't teaching, but when he was trying to educate the students on the value of reading, he preferred that there was no distractions.
But of course, it was only the first day of Kohano Boarding School, and because his introductions were already made, he silenced the class and started reading, not caring whether or not they were bored. He disliked it when his class was a chatterbox while he was reading, so he banned talking until further notice.
Just then, the door opened, and three girls peered inside. Kakashi looked up from his book, annoyed that he was interrupted.
"Yes?" he said, not bothering to disguise his upset tone. "What do you need?"
Rae huffed, aggravated that the silver haired male was so rude. Was that how he treated students? If so, then she would gladly cause him trouble… "We're the new students, you pathetic excuse for a teacher!" she said, narrowing her white/lavender-ish orbs.
Kakashi raised a brow, surprised at her…outburst.
"…I see…" Sitting up, he placed his bookmark in between the pages and closed the book quietly, gently placing it on his desk.
Hinata bit her bottom lip, nervous; Kakashi reminded her of a robber, what with his mask and all. She wondered why he wore it; maybe he had a horrible scar he wanted to hide, or maybe his face was deformed and he was ashamed to show it to the public. Nevertheless, she didn't say a word for fear of offending the young teacher.
"Please, step inside and close the door." Kakashi said warmly, his irritation disappearing quickly. "I am Kakashi Hatake. You may call me Professor Kakashi; everyone else does." He chuckled, obviously amused, but none of the girls laughed—neither did the class for that matter.
He cleared his throat. "Ah, well then, please, state your names."
"I'm Rae Hyuuga." Rae greeted, giving a smile to the familiar faces that waved at her.
"Kris Hyuuga," Kris nodded, a slight blush crept onto her face; she was a bit embarrassed that everyone was staring at them.
Hinata had a bit more trouble; her entire face was red, and she kept fiddling her thumbs tensely. She brushed a strand of her dark purple hair out of her eyes and stammered out a greeting. "H-hello…I'm…Hinata H-Hyuuga…Nice…nice to meet every-everyone!"
She recognized a few people from her middle school. Her eyes landed on Naruto and Sasuke and her blush immediately deepened.
Naruto's hair had grown a bit longer, and he looked as if he worked out in the afternoon, but his striking blue eyes still held the mischievous gleam.
Sasuke's hair had also lengthened, and he too was toned; he still looked cold and antisocial and so was therefore deemed unapproachable.
They were as handsome as ever.
Back in her middle school, they were judged to be the most popular boys, and not to mention the best looking. Their grades consisted of A's and B's; and they were known for skipping classes and causing trouble.
Her gaze wandered to the other side of the class where she instantly identified Sakura Haruno, as gorgeous as ever, and Ino Yamanaka, also very attractive.
She suddenly felt a pang of jealously; they were so stunning and good looking, where she, Hinata, was ordinary and ugly. No boys ever looked at her twice—they didn't even look her at once! Her eyes scanned the class, noticing that all of the boys' eyes were on Rae for her beauty was undeniable.
She let out a soft sigh.
Kris glanced at her, taking note of how depressed she looked. Discreetly, she poked Rae's hand; the black haired girl turned to gaze at her older sister; with her eyes, Kris motioned towards Hinata. Rae's brows furrowed in concern for her younger sister.
Softly elbowing Hinata's side, the purple haired girl quickly looked up to find her sisters staring at her in worry.
Kris raised a brow, a silent question. Are you okay?
Hinata smiled and nodded. She might've not been the prettiest girl, and her looks were quite ordinary, and she had a horrible habit of stuttering, but Hinata was positive that she had the two best sisters in the world.
They always worried about her; she could never make friends easily for her quiet demeanor kept her from approaching people, but they always took the time to stand by her and help her greet students.
Whenever Hinata had trouble with something, she could always turn to Rae for help; even if Rae was going to be a high score on her game, or if she was busy doing her homework, Rae would always place her sister's needs before her own and stop what she was doing to help Hinata.
And Kris was always there to help her with her homework. Hinata knew that she wasn't as fast a learner as her sisters, and she knew that Kris absolutely hated to repeat things more than once, but even so, Kris always took the time to reiterate when Hinata didn't understand. She even made sure to keep calm.
The two sisters were especially there for her if Hinata had a problem at school. She remembered the time when she was being bullied by a boy in her elementary school. She and her sisters were at the park, and unfortunately, the boy was there too. When Rae and Kris left to go get some ice cream, they left Hinata at the sandbox. Then boy had come to bother her.
Flashback
"Hinata?" Kris stared at her little sister in worry; Hinata had cuts and bruises, and she was biting her bottom lip, trying her hardest not to cry—in the process, she had cut her lip with her tooth. "Stop biting your lip, girly." Kris said, placing a hand on Hinata's head.
Hinata started hiccupping, but she still tried to be strong; she didn't want to cry in front of her sisters. She wanted to be strong like them; they didn't cry for anything, not even if they had a cut!
"Who did this to you?" Rae asked, standing up and looking around the park.
She saw a little boy staring at their little sister, a large smirk on his face; his silver hair flowed in the wind and his evil black orbs seemed to be sneering at Hinata. Rae glowered at him, and when he met her angry gaze, his eyes widened—in shock or fear, she wasn't sure—and then he quickly looked away. Rae gritted her teeth; something in her gut told her that he was the one…
Hinata didn't answer, for fear that if she told, he would come back and beat her up again.
Kris placed her hands on Hinata's shoulders, looking at her square in her eyes. "Listen, Hinata-Imouto," she said. "Tell us who did this to you. We're here to help, Hinata; if someone's bullying you, we want to stop them, okay?"
Hinata but nodded, hiccupping. "…Ka…Kabuto…Yakushi…" she said quietly.
"Where is he?" Rae demanded angrily, the vein popping in her forehead. She was beyond mad; she was absolutely furious.
Hinata slowly raised her head and took a glance around; upon seeing his silver hair gleaming in the sunlight, she pointed at him. "That's K-Kabuto…" she murmured, staring at the back of his head fearfully. He was near the swing set, bullying a few kids for their money.
"I'll kill that bastard," Rae muttered darkly, tightening her fists and then stomping towards him.
"Ah, Rae," Kris called after her. "Don't do anything stupid!"
But Rae was already out of hearing distance, an aura to kill around her. Kris sighed, hoping that nothing bad would come out of the little experience. She helped Hinata up to her feet, and headed after their reckless sister. Hinata suddenly realized where they were going, and she fearfully clutched her sister's hand, attempting to turn around and head in the other direction, away—far away—from Kabuto.
"Come on, Hinata," Kris said quietly, tenderly pulling her. "We need to go and make sure Rae doesn't beat him to death."
Hinata shook her head fearfully, whimpering as the sting of the cuts began to take its toll. Tears slipped down her face as she stared at her sister with wide eyes. "But…I—I don't want g-go over t-there…" she whispered. "K-Kabuto is over t-there…"
Kris gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry." She jutted a thumb at herself confidently, a twinkle in her eyes. "Me and Rae will protect you!"
Still unsure, she nodded, hesitantly following her big sister; they quickly jogged after Rae, and soon they caught up with her.
Rae, with her hands on her hips, stood in front of Kabuto, who was at least three years older than her; he was taller, too. From where Hinata stood, he was a giant, a menace to Rae; he looked as if he could step on her sister and squash her like a bug! Hinata shook her head, trying to rid herself of such thoughts.
Rae's a big girl. Hinata thought, squeezing Kris's hand. She can beat up Kabuto! And from that thought, the young Hyuuga child grew more self-assured that Kabuto couldn't lay a hand on her, and that he couldn't kill Rae by stepping on her. But when Kabuto's glare was sent her way, it sent shivers up her spin, and she quickly hid behind her big sister, staring in terror at him; seeing her so afraid cause Kabuto to smirk.
"Have you been bullying my sister?" Rae asked.
Kabuto laughed mockingly, amused by Rae's tone; the little girl thought that she could stand up to him, Kabuto Yakushi, who was taller, older, and not to mention stronger than her! "So what if I was?" he snickered. "What are you gonna do about it?"
Rae felt her anger increase tenfold. How dare he? How dare he pick on a defenseless little girl? How could he laugh at that? How could he just stand there with an amused expression on his face, as if the entire thing was a joke?
Out of nowhere, Rae sent a punch to his jaw, sending him flying a foot backwards. Every child in the park, every adult, stopped to stare at them, to stare at Rae, breathing heavily in rage, cracking her knuckles; they stared at Kabuto who was on the ground, looking up at Rae with shocked eyes, holding his jaw delicately in his hands.
"Don't mess with my sister!" the black haired girl hissed.
End Flashback
Hinata smiled at the fond memory; it was one of her favorite recollection. Thinking back to it always brought her a surge of courage and gratitude toward her sisters.
Then, the sound of Kakashi's voice broke train of thoughts. "Please, take a seat." He pointed towards the seats in the back near the window. The three quickly headed towards the destination and sat down, Kris near the window, Hinata in the middle, and Rae near the aisle.
Hinata stared folded her hands across the desk and stared at her pale complexion, a smile on her face as she continued to reminisce.
Suddenly noticing her sisters' stare, she smiled at the both of them, taking their hands and giving it a squeeze.
Scene Change
"Oi, Sasuke," Naruto patted his friend's shoulder as they walked down the hall, brushing past people. He ran a hand through his blonde hair.
"What?" Sasuke said crossly. "If this is another one of your stupid pranks, Naruto, I swear I will—"
Naruto rolled his eyes, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "No, it's not a prank."
"Good."
"Will you let me finish?" Naruto sighed, giving his best friend a slight glare. They stopped at their locker, ignoring the looks girls gave them and the jealous glowers the guys shot.
"Fine," Sasuke said, taking out his textbooks. "But if it's something stupid,"
"Geez, it's not something stupid okay?" Naruto snapped, slamming his locker closed in frustration.
"Then get on with it."
"Let's have a little bet."
Sasuke secured his locker shut and then turned to stare at Naruto in puzzlement. "What?" he asked. Usually Naruto would bother him about some mindless joke that he wanted to play on the teachers or the students, and he was always asking if Sasuke wanted to join, but the answer was always "No," though the boy didn't take a hint. Even if Sasuke told him that his reply would forever be the same, the blonde still took time to pester him about it.
Never had Naruto suggested something worth agreeing to, something smart actually worth Sasuke's time.
"A bet?" Sasuke raised a brow.
Naruto grinned. "So you're interested, huh Sasuke?"
Sasuke frowned, a silent command for Naruto to continue or else he wasn't involved.
"You know that new girl?"
"Which one? There are three."
"The quiet one; the one with purple hair."
"Oh, that one." Sasuke pursed his lips; she didn't look very fascinating. As a matter of fact, that girl looked quite boring and plain. She seemed shy beyond compare, and she was probably quite kind, though her jacket was too thick for fall, and her fashion sense was out of whack, not to mention the fact that she fiddled with her thumbs way to much! "What about her?"
"The bet involves her."
"…let me guess." Sasuke sighed. "You want to see which one of us can play a better prank on her, is that it?"
"No!" Naruto protested, shifting his books to under his left arm where it was more comfortable. "I told you it wasn't about a prank."
"Then what about her?"
Naruto chuckled, laughing at some thought that seemed to cross his mind. "Well, I just wanted to see which one of us was better, that's all."
Sasuke scowled, not liking where the conversation was going. "Better at what…?"
"Better at winning a girl's heart!"
The antisocial boy said nothing, and for a moment, Naruto thought that Sasuke was going to ignore him for the rest of the day, but after a while, he said, "Moron."
"Hey…" Naruto glared.
"Why would I want to do a stupid thing like that?"
"Because, we're tied at being the most popular and hottest guys in school, and I overheard some girls talking about who was better!"
Sasuke rounded a corner, Naruto right beside him. Really, he didn't know what was going on in that boy's mind. Why would he even think up a bet like this just to decide who was better in stealing a girl's heart? It was completely stupid, absolutely, positively stupid! "No, I'm not playing, Naruto."
"You didn't let me finish." Naruto said with a smirk, as if knowing that Sasuke would have to accept once he announced his next bit of information. "There's 30,000 yen involved."
"…"