THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY PART 2
-Meeting Game-
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and the characters. I only own the plot of the story.
Special thanks to my editor, minashito-sama. You are the best!
[Alternate Universe Fan Fiction]
Some things are meant to happen for a certain reason. And you can either face the consequences ahead, hope for a good result after, or sulk in the corner until the things you are currently regretting grows, until you cannot handle it, and give up.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…
Why, why does the clock has to tick so loud whenever I'm late?
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…
Damn it! I'm really really late-ttebayo! I… I need to run faster. I… I have… to push myself… to run faster…
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…
"Good morning class! I'll be your biology teacher for this semester. Please say you're here when I call your name," said the professor as he entered the semi-circular room with a smile.
Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock…
Almost there, just few steps more…
"I'm here!" The blond sighed as he pulled the door open, hoping that the professor is not yet around. Unluckily, the professor was standing in front of him and was suppose to lock the door.
"Alright, I've already arrange the class according to their class number. I'm guessing you're Uzumaki Naruto. Am I correct?"
"Hai. I'm really sorry professor. My previous class was in the English and History building, and it just ended few minutes ago. It's kind of far from here-ttebayo." The blond explained with a guilty smile on his face.
The professor looked at him seriously and sighed, Well, it is the first day of class, I'll be kind to him, for now. Then he gave him a smile and said, "Alright, you may take the empty seat on the right side, second to the last row. I guess you're the last and only missing student in this class."
"Thank you."
"But you do know that there's a consequence for being late. I can accept your excuse if you were only 10 minutes late. But looks like you were 20 minutes late. It will be unfair for the others who came in early, and I believe some of them came from a building farther than the English and History building," The professor uttered. Naruto looked down with a serious face and crumpled his fist inside his blazer's jacket.
Damn it, dattebayo! Who chose this freakin' schedule anyway? I know the school-head was the one who created Shikamaru's schedule because he applied for scholarship. But I did not! How come the schedule that I submitted was different from what I have now? I bet I'm the only law student in this class. I mean, law and biology don't match at all, Naruto thought to himself. He looked up at the professor and smiled at him as he nodded and headed to his seat. Wait, could it be… no. Kakashi-jii-san wouldn't do such thing. I mean, he is the one who enrolled me in this school… Damn it! He changed my schedule? The blond sat down and rested both his arms on the table, upon reaching his seat. I wanted to be a great lawyer, to help people earn their rights. And aside from all the people who knew my dream, Kakashi-jii-san is the only person who understands me the most. The closes person to me, and he will do anything, everything, to help me reach that dream. And if he thinks that taking this subject will make it easier for me to reach it, then I'll take it! He said to himself as he slowly rested his back on the backseat with a smile.
"Alright, my name is Professor Umino Iruka. Not Eureka, not Urika, but Iruka. Some students confuse my name with those words, for some reasons. But I will promise you that this class will be fun, and exciting."
Exciting? Psh… you sound so boring right now, the blond thought to himself as he pretends to listen.
"Now, I'll be explaining to you my rules. First of all, all students who are late for 15 minutes and above will have a punishment. Second, I don't…" The professor continued explaining his rules as he stands in front of his desk in the center of the platform. Naruto, on the other hand, decided to look around for a while, hoping to see familiar faces. He turned his head from left to right, and noticed that there are about ten columns of seats in the room, five on the right side and five on the left side, and nine rows. All seats are slightly diagonally positioned, following the semi-circle contour of the room. So our room looks like a giant compass, and the professor's desk in the center. Woah, hanging out with geniuses like Sasuke and Shikamaru sure does motivate me sometimes. But Shikamaru's laziness is very contagious. He said as he scanned every row in front of him, until someone caught his eyes, three rows and two columns away from him. Short pink hair, red headband... it looks familiar. If only she would look to her right side. And the girl did. Luckily, her pen fell on her right side and Naruto was able to catch a glimpse of her side profile. Sakura! The girl in the café, he said to himself, I can't let her see me, not until I make a plan B if ever that teme ditches me. He rested his right elbow on the desk and leaned his head on his palm, covering half of his face. Fortunately, the pink-haired girl didn't notice him. He remained his position for an hour, or until the class ended. He hurriedly stood up and headed to the door.
"Wait!" The professor shouted to the blonde as he saw him approached the door, "You have a punishment remember?"
Naruto slowly turned around and face the professor with a guilty smile. "Yeah, I haven't forgotten that. I was… I just… I got carried away, with all the students rushing outside like there's a stampede." He said as he laughed nervously.
"Okay, please come here. I'll be explaining your punishment soon." Iruka said. "Don't worry, Naruto. Haruno Sakura-san will be helping you with your punishment."
"What?" The blonde curiously asked as he turned to his left and saw the pink-haired girl approaches the professor's desk, parallel to his position. The girl noticed him, and unexpectedly made an eye contact.
Sakura…
Naruto…
"Alright. The two of you, please take your seat as I explain your punishments." The two followed Iruka's order quietly and sat on the two seats in front of the desk separated by the center aisle. "From this day forward, the two of you will be partners. Eventually all of you in the class will have a pair, and this thesis will be your final requirement for this semester. So it means that experimentations and theories will also be included in this report."
"So why pair us now if you're going to pair the others too? What makes this pair different from others-ttebayo?"
"Good question, Naruto. Your punishment is to research all the topics that we will encounter. I'll be giving you the syllabus later when we go to the faculty room. And I wanted the two of you to make a summary of each topic."
"When is it due?" the pink-haired girl asked. Obviously, he did not answer the question. She thought.
"Well, I'll be giving you the whole week to do the task. I know it is a short time, but a short summary will do. Can you guys do it?"
"Hai."
"Of course, dattebayo! Expect the best from the future lawyer." Naruto then bumped his fist in his chest to emphasize his point.
"Okay. You may leave now." Geez, he surely got his father's looks, but I guess he got his personality from her mother, Iruka thought as he observed the blond stood up and headed to the door, with both hands rested at the back of his head, followed by the pink-haired girl. When he heard a loud shout from the blond. "See you next week, Iruka-sensei!" He shook his head and sighed. Yep, he got his mother's personality, Iruka concluded.
"So you're a law student?" Sakura asked curiously with a smile as they walk down the hallway. I wonder why he took this biology class. Well. Every student is required to take at least one course for the four general subjects which are Math, Science, English, and History. Maybe he ran out of choices for science courses.
"Yeah. How 'bout you?"
"Medical technology." Yes! He should be smart, this is good. At least I won't have any problems with this punishment. We will finish this in no time, shannaro!
"Wow. So you're planning to become a doctor?" Yosh! She must be really smart. Guess I won't have any problem with this stupid punishment, but I can't rely on her. I need to outrun her so she can notice me. Yeah! I'll research ahead, she'll like me for that-ttebayo!
"A surgeon to be exact, I wanted to be like our school head."
"I see. Are you close to her?" Talk like a genius, most girls dig that… well, according to my observation with teme and his annoying fangirls.
"Not really. But she was the one who saved my father from death when I was young. It was also the day when I decided that I wanted to be like her. To be able to save people, especially the ones you love."
"That's deep. I want to save people too."
"Is that why you wanted to be a lawyer?"
"Yeah. I want to bring justice to people-ttebayo. I wanted to show them that I really am something."
"What do you mean by that?"
"A lot of people hated me when I was in grade school, because I'm an orphan, until I met this boy who became my best friend up till now." And I really wish he will not ditch me. "And as time passed by, people started seeing my potential. Then the next thing I knew, I have a group of people with me whom I call friends."
"That's a very touching story, Naruto." For quirky-looking guy, he's actually kind and sweet. I admire his perseverance and strong determination. I wish I could be more like him.
"Oh, you know my name?" She knows my name! The blond said to himself, and gave her an awkward smile.
"Well, I heard that pig—er… the cashier woman, called you a while ago in the café."
"Oh, right. Yours is Sakura, right?"
"Hai. Sakura it is." I wish he removes that weird smile on his face, it's creeping me out.
"So, you were late?" Naruto asked.
"Yeah, I mixed up my Tuesday class with my Monday class, and I thought that science will start till noon. Good thing my friend checked my schedule. I was five minutes earlier than you." Good thing Tenten accidentally grabbed my notebook where I glued my schedule.
"Oh… and Professor Iruka didn't give you a chance?"
"Sadly no." That professor, he should be more considerate. It's our first day as college students. I want to punch him so bad, shannaro! "But it's okay. At least I'm paired with you than some random people in our class."
She's glad to be paired with me! Naruto thought to himself. "So, where do you want to go? I told my friend to meet us in the café at noon. We still have an hour."
"Oh." Damn it, I really wanted to meet his friend to get this over with. Though, I never thought I'd feel at ease with Naruto in such short time, he seems trustworthy. This will be the first time that I'll trust a man after my break up. "Do you want to go to the park?"
"Yeah-ttebayo! I also have a feeling that he'll be late."
"Why is that?"
"Well. His class ends exactly at noon, and I am not sure if he still has another class after that."
"I see… Well, the park's not that far, and there are food stalls there." said Sakura with a sweet smile on her face, which made Naruto's heart skipped a beat.
"Sounds great!" I hope there's a ramen stand there. I've been craving for it since last week. Then maybe… just maybe, she'll consider it as a date. Wait! Take it slowly. Girls don't like guys who takes them for granted. Well… according to Shikamaru's "story" about girls last time in the beach, Naruto thought to himself as he reminisced the time when the spiky brunet scolded him and Kiba when they were having a debate on who's going to have a girlfriend first. Upon reminiscing, he suddenly realized that they are almost near the park.
"Wow, I can see the park already." Naruto said as he sticks his hand on his forehead, covering the light coming from the sun from his eyes.
"Yeah, it's quite near the science building." Sakura replied while scanning the place for vacant bench.
The blonde noticed that his companion seems to know a lot about the place, like she's been in the university before. Out of curiosity, he gathered all his courage, took a deep breath and asked her, "Are you a shifter?"
The pink-haired girl stared at him for a few seconds. Calm down, Sakura, you're in public. Darn it, why do people always ask me that question? First the costumers in the cafe, and now him? "Why did you ask?" Sakura replied with a forced smile.
"Well, you seem to know a lot about the places here in the university, assuming that you're in the same batch as I am."
"Well, I'm a scholar. During this year's vacation, I took one of my classes in care of our school head. And during long breaks, I roam around the campus." Sakura explained. And have you heard of the word "map"?
"Oh… that explains it. Sorry if I—"
"Don't be. It's okay. You're not the first person to ask me that." Sakura replied calmly. "There's a vacant seat over there." She pointed out.
Naruto nodded and followed the pink-haired girl to the bench. As they draw near the bench, a familiar sight caught the blonde's attention.
"Oi! Shikamaru, Chouji!"
"Oy, Naruto!" the brunette said as they approach, the chubby guy waved at the blonde while holding a pack of chips on his other hand.
"What brings the two of you here?" Naruto asked.
I hope they are not the one who found my clip, Sakura thought to herself as she observed the tall man with a lazy expression on his face, and the chubby guy who continuously stocks chips on his mouth.
"Our professor dismissed us early because of some meeting. I decided to meet up with Chouji since his next class is at one o' clock." The brunette replied to his blond friend while giving short glances at Sakura. "Our professor is quite troublesome though. He smells like cigarette and he always excuse himself for five minutes to talk to someone. But I think he'll just excuse himself to smoke. Geez, I hate cigarettes, it suffocates me."
"Wow he sounds so cool!" the blond replied with enthusiasm.
"Yeah, he is cool. I was expecting his class to be boring because we're going to talk about wars and other troublesome stuffs. But I guess he's knowledgeable enough to joke around in class while lecturing us."
"I see, that is so cool-ttebayo!" Naruto replied with enthusiasm.
Then Shikamaru suddenly approached him and whispered, "Is that Hinata?"
The blond was startled with his question and backed away."Of course not! This is Sa… Sakura. Sakura, this is Shikamaru and Chouji." Naruto cleared out while flailing his hands in denial.
"Hi! Nice to meet you, Sakura-san." Said Chouji with a smile. It's quite obvious that Naruto likes her. With his gestures and all, the chubby guy thought to himself while observing the girl who was checking her phone. The brunette on the other hand, only managed to nod.
"Nice to meet you too, Chouji and Shikamaru. I'm sorry Naruto but I have to go." The pink-haired girl replied as she put back her phone inside her bag. "I have to go back to the café."
"Wh-why, dattebayo?" Naruto replied, shocked.
"Well, you see, I work at the café, and they currently need my help. I have to go. I'll see you later." She replied as she waved at them and walked away, leaving the three boys standing in front of the previously vacant bench.
"I almost forgot. I have to go to the flower shop and help Ino later at noon. Geez, this is too troublesome." The brunet complained as he watched his plans in the afternoon changes because of Ino's command, er… favor.
"Who's Ino?" the blonde asked curiously as he scratched his head with his right hand.
"Don't you remember her, Naruto?" Chouji asked, surprised.
"Chouji, you know her too?"
"We all know her, Naruto. I can't believe you forgot her. I guess you really got old." Shikamaru teased with his lazy expression.
"I am trying to remember her, Shikamaru." Who is this Ino anyway? Think Naruto, think! He said to himself when a familiar word played in his head… Baka! "Oh!"
"You remembered her now, Naruto?" the brunette asked with an anxious expression.
"She was that ugly blonde girl who keeps on calling me idiot when we were young! Oh, and teme's number one fan girl." The blond replied with annoyance, "Geez, you're still in contact with her?"
"Well, it may seem troublesome, but I can't really avoid her. You know that our parents, including Chouji's, are old pals. And she's not that bitchy when you get to know her." Shikamaru replied, hoping to cool down his blond friend.
"Yeah, Shikamaru's right. And I wouldn't call her ugly nowadays if I were you." Said Chouji while opening another pack of chips.
"Why is that? I bet she's uglier now that it annoys her when someone calls her ugly." Naruto concluded.
"Well. Half true, but she's not the girl you used to know. She really did change, physically, but not her personality. She's still loud." Shikamaru replied, which made Naruto laugh. Geez, I wonder what's making him laugh.
"Shikamaru, Naruto, I have to go." The chubby guy interrupted.
"But you still have two hours before your next class starts." Naruto pointed out with a pout.
"It's not that…" Chouji replied with a guilty smile as he showed the two empty packs of chips to his friends. "I'll see you later!" He continued as he waved goodbye at his two friends and immediately walked away from them to look for a store.
"Chouji never changed. He still loves chips. He'll get different kinds of sickness when he grows old." Naruto said with a foxy grin.
"I know. It's quite troublesome though. Ino and I tried to control his eating habits, but we always fail. Even his own parents can't control him."
"Damn it! It makes me pissed off now that I remember her!" The blond exclaimed as he repeatedly slapped his face.
"Woah, relax. It's not your fault though. If I were you I would probably hate her too, by the way she treated you before. It's just not nice." But I can't blame her either, he's a very troublesome and idiotic person. Makes me wonder how Sasuke managed to become close to him. It took me years to become this close to him, but Sasuke never for once, had a problem dealing with the troublesome man. Though, Naruto is kind of cool when you get to know him. The spiky brunet thought
"Maybe when I come with you later and meet her again, I cou—"
"No!" The spiky brunet exclaimed, startling the blonde who was standing in front of him.
"Why not?"
"Well… today's not the right time." The brunet replied for he was planning to ditch Ino.
"Why not?" Naruto repeated, a curious expression plastered on his face.
"Geez, you ask so many questions. Let's just eat somewhere alright?"
"Fine, fine, you're just planning to ditch that girl and watch the clouds instead."
"I am not!" The brunette exclaimed, "I wanted to, but men are not suppose to ditch ladies."
"Yeah, you and your troublesome gentleman attitude." The blond replied as he leads the way, crossing his hands behind his head.
"Oi!" the brunette called, "This way." He continued as he pointed to the route opposite to where the blond was going.
"But I saw a ramen stand over there."
"Geez, all you eat is ramen. Why don't you eat properly?"
"I am eating properly!" The blond exclaimed. The brunette sighed and lazily followed the blonde who was heading to the ramen stand, Ichiraku. There is no point in arguing with this troublesome person, Shikamaru thought to himself as he sighed once more.
The stand has a bar-like counter that can occupy five seats. The color of the tent is beige with its name written on a long cloth in red paint hanging in front of the tent like a curtain. Naruto entered and sat in the seat on the center. Shikamaru followed and sat on the seat next to him on the right.
"Yo pops, one pork ramen, please!"
"Sure thing lad, how about you?" The old man replied as he faced the two lads.
"Chicken ramen." Geez, I'm not really a fan of ramen, and I got used eating in that barbeque restaurant where Chouji always drags me to eat. But I guess I have no choice right now, The brunette thought as he observed his blonde friend who became quiet and serious.
"Oi, Naruto. What's wrong?" I guess something's really bothering him. Whatever it is it must have been killing him. I rarely see him with this kind of expression.
"Shikamaru…" The blonde replied solemnly, the brunette faced him with a worried face."How did you become Temari's boyfriend?" The blonde asked seriously while staring at the glass of water that the daughter of the cook gave them.
The brunette, who was currently drinking, choked and stared blankly at the blond with eyes wide open and asked incredulously. "What is this, some kind of joke?" Geez, and I thought for a moment he was having a big problem. Why would he want to know such things… Mendokuse…
"I'm just curious. You're not the type of guy who would not pick up girls easily like Sasuke. You're a bit introvert and always play chess all by yourself, or watch the clouds all by yourself."
The brunet observes his blond friend and gave him a long sigh. "It's a long story, and it's too trouble—"
"C'mon, tell me." The blond pleaded, "It happened while I was gone right?"
"Yeah. After you left, Gaara's cancer got worst and he has to be bed-ridden. All of us visited him once in a while, until his older brother, Kankuro, asked me a favour if I could help Gaara with his studies."
"Wait, why you? I know you're smart and all, but you're one of the students who are flunking in class, alongside with Kiba and Chouji."
"I don't know either. Maybe all of them refused—"
"Even fuzzy-brow?"
"Will you let me finish?" the brunette sighed. Geez, telling long stories to Naruto sure is troublesome.
"Alright, so you did his favour?"
"I have no choice since all of them are busy with training and family business. Unfortunately, I'm the only one available. And since Gaara was too sick, Kankuro took his place as the manager of their company for a while until he recovers, leaving Temari with me in the hospital taking care of him."
"Oh… So what happened?" Naruto asked, the brunette sighed and remained silent since the answer was pretty much obvious.
"Here are your ramen, lads. Enjoy!" The cook said as he served their ramen.
"Itadakimasu!" The blond exclaimed as he grabbed his wooden chopsticks and break it into two. The brunet did the same and ate quietly until he finally realized Naruto's purpose for asking him about Temari.
"Oi, Naruto. That pink-haired girl, you like her huh?"
"Yeah." The blond replied sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.
"Take it slowly, get to know her first. Things will just happen at the right time. But for now, just be the person she can call friend."
"Dude, I don't want to be friend-zoned—"
"If you two are meant to be together, she would not friend-zoned you." The brunet concluded. The blond remained silent as he finished his ramen.
"I guess you're right!" The blond replied cheerfully as he grabbed his bowl and sipped the remaining broth. The brunette smiled with contentment and did the same thing.
"Ah… Pops, this is the best ramen I've ever tasted!" Naruto said to the cook cheerfully as he wiped his mouth with the sleeves of his blazer.
"Nothing but the best from Ichiraku's ramen!" The daughter of the cook exclaimed as the cook laughed. The two lads laughed with them until Naruto's phone rang. He took it out from his bag and realized that he had received several messages and one missed call from the Hyuuga.
"That's weird, Neji texted me, I wonder what it is." Naruto worriedly. Knowing Neji, he would only text or calls his friends if there's a problem, and if he wanted to meet them urgently.
"Maybe it's an emergency." Geez, a lot of people are having problems today. First, my mother complaining about my dad going home drunk with Ino's father, then Ino with her flower shop, Naruto with girl problems. Now Neji… The brunet complained to himself as he sighed. Looks like I won't be able to watch the clouds today.
Naruto stood up from his chair, and stared at his phone with eyes wide open, "What is it, Naruto?" the spiky brunet urgently asked.
"It's Hinata, she was sent to the university's hospital few minutes ago."
"Why, what happened?"
"Heat stroke, Neji's asking us if we could watch over her for a while. His next class will start in five minutes."
"The hospital is not that far from the park, we'll be there in a minute."
"Yosh, let's go!" Naruto off in a jiff, leaving the brunet startled in the stall.
"You're not forgetting to pay, right?" The cook asked the brunette with a smile while holding his hand up for the payment. Shikamaru sighed and reached for his money inside his pocket, and followed the blond afterwards who seemed to be wandering around under the tree like a lost puppy.
"This way," Shikamaru shouted to the blonde as he led the way to the hospital.
"How come everyone seems to know the directions here?" Naruto asked, devastated.
That's why the university send us a map through email. This day becoming more troublesome, the brunet said to himself as he sighed for the nth time today.
Naruto rushed to the reception area and asked for Hinata's room.
"Room 315, 3rd floor." The nurse replied.
"Thank you!" The blond replied as he grabbed his friend's arm and dragged him to the third floor. As they reached the floor, they saw Neji sitting all alone in the visitor's chair outside Hinata's room.
"Neji, what happened?" Naruto asked as he rushed towards Neji.
"I'm not sure. The doctor said that it might be heat stroke since the weather today's hotter than usual, but they still need to examine her." Neji uttered worriedly. "I don't even know how to explain this to Hiashi-sama. He was counting on me to take care of her."
"Are they examining her right now?" The spiky brunet asked thoughtfully. Neji nodded, then he stood up and faced his two friends, "Thank you for coming, I can't contact the others."
"Yeah, all of them are still in class." Shikamaru replied, "But I can't stay for long, I have to go soon."
"Oh yeah, me too." The blond said immediately.
"Is that so, can you try calling the others? My last class will end at 6pm and—"
"Don't worry-ttebayo! Leave it to me." The blond interrupted cheerfully. Neji gave them a small smile and headed to the stairs leaving his two friends in the hallway. As expected from Naruto, Neji thought, being confident about his decision for calling the blond first.
"Geez, what a troublesome day."
"Don't say that Shikamaru. Think of it as a good excuse to ditch—"
"You know I can't do that, Naruto. Besides, she'll kill me if I do that."
"Geez, you are weak when it comes to girls."
"Hey!"
"You may come in now," The nurse said as she peeked from the door and closed it again. The two stared at each other and quietly entered the room.
"She'll be needing lots of rest, and please tell her cousin that she needs these medicines, he can buy it in the—" The doctor stopped as she turned around and saw a brunet guy and a blond in front of her, "I thought her cousin is a dark-haired man."
"Oh, he left for class, but he asked us to take care of her." Shikamaru replied with a polite nod.
"I see." The doctor replied. Naruto stared and observed the female doctor from head to toe like he saw her before.
"Ah!" the blonde uttered as he remembered something, "You're Tsunade-obaa-chan!" The blond exclaimed. Shikamaru hurriedly covered his mouth with both of his hands as he noticed Hinata's nose wrinkled.
"Not too loud, baka. We're inside the hospital." The brunet whispered to Naruto as he gently released his friend's mouth.
"Oh, I remember now, you're Jiraiya's godson. It's nice to see you too."
"Wait. Why are you here?"
"Well, apparently I'm the new head of this university."
"Wow, that's great!" The blond replied cheerfully, then her words slowly sinks in to his head. "What?" Naruto exclaimed and the brunette immediately covered his mouth once more. He pushed the brunet's hand away from him and wiped his mouth with the sleeves of his blazer, "The new head of the university? What happened to the old man?"
"You know the deceased principal personally?" Shikamaru asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, he was the one who helped me get into the university. I guess it has something to do also with my parents since both of them graduated and worked here—wait…" Naruto halted and stared blankly at Shikamaru, "Deceased?"
"That's right, he died of old age. And his last request was for me or your pervert godfather to take over the school." Tsunade replied with her arms crossed in her chest.
"Wait… why you? You're old and—"
"Baka! I am one of his first students, including that bastard, Jiraiya." The doctor replied in annoyance, "Anyway, give this to her cousin and tell him to buy it as soon as possible. Or better yet, buy it now. She needs to take it when she wakes up." The doctor said as she passed it to Naruto, "Don't create too much noise, she needs lots of rest." She said to the two lads as she exited. Naruto and Shikamaru stared at each other in disbelief.
"Geez, I can't believe you know her."
"I can't believe she's the new school head!" The blond exclaim, but immediately lowered his voice down when he noticed that Shikamaru was attempting to cover his mouth once more.
"Geez, it's too troublesome to argue with you. Give me the paper."
"Why should I? Tsunade-obaa-chan handed it over to me."
"I'll buy the medicines prescribed by her. Since she might wake up anytime, it's better if the person who is watching over her is someone she knows than a stranger."
"Why is that?" The blond asked curiously.
Shikamaru sighed and took the paper from the blond's hand. "Just stay here and watch over her, I'll be back in few minutes."
"Alright, alright. Be back soon. I need to go somewhere in forty minutes."
"Like you're the only one who has to leave..." The brunette whispered to himself as he headed to the door. "Oh, try communicating with the others for our replacement."
"Yeah, yeah." The blond replied as he made himself comfortable with the blue sofa parallel to Hinata's bed. Shikamaru sighed once more and approached the blond. "Oi, you're forgetting something."
"What is it now, dattebayo?" The blond looked up at the spiky brunet who was standing in front of him with his left hand reaching towards him. "What do you want?"
"You could have at least contributed, I already paid for our lunch. I don't have much money left. And besides, Neji will return the money we spent for her medicines as soon as he gets back." The brunet explained to the blond, slowly and clearly.
Naruto grabbed his bag on the floor handed his wallet to the brunet. "Here, take it."
"Naruto, I know I was quite demanding when I was asking money from you, but you don't have to—"
"It's okay, Shikamaru, it's for Hinata. Anyway, Neji will surely return the money we'll be spending for her medicines, right?" Naruto grinned at the brunet and gave him a thumbs-up. "Besides, I trust you. And I also noticed that some brands of the medicines are quite infamous, it must cost a lot." The blond continued as he glanced at Hinata. You'll be alright, Hinata.
"Alright, I'll be going then." Shikamaru replied as he exited the room. Geez, he may be troublesome, but he sure does have a big heart, the brunet thought as he walked down the hallway, in search for the drug store.
It's been a while since Shikamaru left and it was almost time for him to go to the café for the meet-up. "Darn it, Shikamaru where the hell are you?" He uttered to himself while tapping the screen of his phone, when he suddenly received a text message from the said brunet:
Oy, Naruto. The medicines cost more than I thought. And I just found the drug store. It was located at the other end of the hospital, 10 minutes away from Hinata's room. Have you contacted the others? Maybe they can stop here first and contribute some money.
Damn it! Naruto uttered to himself, "And no one's even replying to one of my messages-ttebayo! What should I do? I can't just leave Hinata all alone."
Just when the blonde was about to lose hope, his phone rang, and this time it was a phone call from the other brunet.
"Kiba!"
"Yo, foxy! Where the heck are you? I'm here at the hospital."
"Where exactly in the hospital?"
"I don't know. But there's a drug store nearby."
"What drugstore?"
"Dude, there's only one drugstore here. Want me to buy something?"
"Go inside! Shikamaru's waiting for you there, he'll explain everything!"
"Alright, alright, chill man."
"This is not the time to chill! Hinata will wake up soon."
"Alright alright." The brunette replied calmly, before he took a short pause.
"Hey, Kiba, still with me?"
"Did you just said, Hinata?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?" Then the blond remembered. "This is the start of your mission."
"Mission? Oi, Naruto, don't—"
"You said… you said you'd help me. A man never takes back his words." The blond replied solemnly.
"Yeah, I guess. Be there in a jiffy." Then the brunet hung up.
The blond waited, and waited as he sat on the sofa with both arms on his lap, until he could not wait any longer. He grabbed his phone and was about to call the two brunets when they entered the room in the nick of time.
"What took you so long?" The blond cried out as he rushed to the two brunets.
"Oi, Naruto, stop nagging us, have you forgotten that we were the one who spent for your girl's medicines?" Kiba replied in annoyance.
"Teme, the money you spent for your girl's medicine is my money."
"Well I contributed!"
"Yeah whatever…"
"Geez, what the heck's wrong with these two?" Shikamaru uttered to himself as he stared at his two friends arguing about money, medicines, and their girl. Shikamaru was about to cover their mouths when his phone vibrated. He took it out from his pocket, and his curious and lazy expression lightened up when he discovered that the text was from his beloved blondie:
Hey! Are you free? Want to eat lunch together? I'm here at the park.
The brunette immediately placed his phone back to his pocket and faced his two friends, who lowered their voice after hearing a short grunt from the sleeping girl, and stared at them for few seconds, I guess I don't need to say goodbye to them properly, nice to meet you though, Hinata-san. The brunet thought to himself as he glanced at the said girl.
"Oi, Kiba, Naruto. I have to go." Shikamaru said as he waved goodbye to them while heading to the door.
"Oi, Shika—" Naruto was about to stop him but the spiky brunet already left, leaving him all alone with Kiba and Hinata. "I guess you're his replacement."
"Geez, I know what I promised earlier. I wasn't expecting it to start immediately."
"What are you talking about, Kiba?" The blond asked curiously as he sat on the sofa, the brunet sat next to him after. "You don't have to do it. It's stupid to make someone fall for you. I know you're quite skilled when it comes to girls, but you might end up hurting her in the end." The blond continued as he lean his back on the backrest with both arms crossed behind his head.
"I guess you're right," The brunette replied calmly as he rested both arms on his lap, rubbing his left thumb with his right hand. "So, what's your plan?"
"I don't know, Kiba. I don't want to hurt her too." The blond replied as he lean his elbow on the armrest and rub his forehead.
"You like someone else, huh?" The brunet smirked at the blond as he faced him.
"Yeah. She's my classmate in biology, working at the café."
"Café near your condominium? Dude, that's cool!"
"Yeah." The blonde replied uncomfortably, "I think it's not appropriate to talk about this kind of stuff here."
"Yeah you're right." The brunet replied when the blond immediately rummaged his pocket to silence his ringing phone. "What is it, man?"
"It's Sasuke. I ask him to meet me."
"Is he your replacement?"
"No," the blonde stood up and headed to the corner of the room the answer the call.
"Oi dobe! Where are you? I thought we're going to meet?"
"Teme! Stop calling me that. Where are you?"
"In front of the main gate—"
"Good! Just head to the cafe, I'll meet you there."
"I just called—"
"I'll be there in few minutes. I'm here at the hospital because…"
"Naru—"
"Hinata's sick and—"
"I can't." The raven deadpanned. The blonde paused for a while as he tried to sink in the raven's words, making Kiba worry. I wonder what they're talking about. Naruto looks problematic… or is his stomach aching? The brunette thought to himself.
"What?" The blond finally uttered, "But you said you—" He was about to continue when the raven ended the call. "Damn it!"
"Oi, Naruto. Something's wrong?"
"Nothing," The blond deadpanned and immediately grabbed his bag on the floor near Hinata's bed.
"Oi, where are you going? Oi!"
"You're Shikamaru's replacement right? Just stay here and watch over her."
"Hey! Don't boss me around—"
"I texted the others, they'll be here soon."
"Oi!" the brunette was about to stop him but Naruto immediately exited the door and slammed it. "Damn him." He uttered angrily, still facing the door while seated on the sofa, "What am I going to do now?" The brunet uttered problematically as he gazed back at the sleeping girl. "She might freak out when she wakes up with some stranger watching over her."
Naruto rushed into the main gate of the university and saw the raven crossing the streets. Without looking at the stop light, that happens to turn green, he crossed the street without hesitation. Just when a truck of milk products was about to bump him, someone dragged him back to the main gate.
"What the—" The blond turned around and saw the raven standing in front of him with an emotionless face. The blonde was about to get happy when he realized that it was the other raven. "What the hell, Sai? Why did you do that?"
"I didn't know you were planning to commit suicide—"
"I wasn't planning to commit suicide you freak!" the blond snarled.
The raven sighed and pointed at the stop light, "It turned green when you cross the street. I was able to drag you just before the truck hit you."
"Oh." The blonde looked down, feeling sorry for shouting at his friend who saved his life.
"Why were you in such a rush?" The raven inquired curiously.
"Nothing." The blond replied. The sun's glare reflecting from Sai's watch caught Naruto's attention and noticed that it was noon. "Oh no, I'm in big trouble, dattebayo!" The blond said as he panicked in front of the clueless raven.
What is happening to him? Oh! I read this in the book. If your friend is having a problem, pat him gently in the shoulder, the raven thought to himself. Sai moved closer to his blond friend, who seemed to be losing himself, and placed his arm around his shoulder and patted it. The blond, on the other hand, stiffened, and glanced at the raven with a terrified expression, and immediately pushed the thoughtful raven.
"What the hell was that for-ttebayo?" He said as he watched poor Sai fell on the ground, landing on his posterior.
"I was—" The raven paused as he tried to stand up, only to discover that he's on a kneeling position, and staring blankly at the blond who glanced back at him with eyes wide open.
"Get away from me you freak!" The blond exclaimed and immediately ran away from the raven.
"Naruto, it's not what you think!" The raven shouted as he chased the blond. "Naruto!"
Naruto ran and ran, until he decided to stop for a while to catch his breath when… "Naruto?"
"Ah!" The blond shouted as felt someone tapped his shoulder from behind. He turned around and to his surprise, it's the pink haired girl.
"Sa… Sakura…-chan?" The blond stuttered while trying to catch his breath.
"Are you okay? Is someone chasing you? Geez, you're a bit early. Want to come inside and have a drink?" Sakura replied calmly and smiled at the blond.
Naruto was about to accept her offer when he remembered that he gave his wallet to Shikamaru. "I wanted to but—"
"It's okay, my treat." Sakura cheerfully offered.
"Are you sure?"
"Of course!"
"Naruto!"
"Ah!" The blonde shouted once more as someone tapped him again from his back. He looked around and went pale when he saw the raven standing in front of him.
"Do you know him?" The pink-haired girl asked curiously to the blond, but the said blond made no response to the rosette.
"Oh, hi there!" The raven said cheerfully to her, snapping Naruto back to earth.
"Sa-Sakura, this is my friend Sai. Sai, she's Sakura." The blond stuttered.
The raven moved in closer to the pink-haired girl and offered his hand. "Nice to meet you…" The raven said cheerfully with a smile. Sakura took his hand and smiled back at him, until the last word came out from the raven's mouth. "Ugly." Naruto's jaw dropped upon hearing the word from Sai, while Sakura struggles in composing herself.
"You were joking, right?" Naruto said to Sai as he grabbed the raven away from the rosette. "Baka, don't say such things to girls!" he whispered to Sai. "From now on, do as I say, okay?"
"But how will I—"
"Just ride on to the things that I'll say if you don't want to get hurt." Naruto insisted.
"Alright." The raven whispered back and sighed after. The two guys followed the rosette inside the café, who was hoping that the raven was not the one who found her clip.
Damn that Sai. I want to send him to hell, shannaro! The pink-haired girl said to herself.
Sakura led them to their seat and went inside the counter to serve the two guys some pastries and cold juice.
"Hey, hey, hey—" The blonde girl seized Sakura who was heading to the food display.
"I'll pay for them, pig." She replied as the blonde let her pass. The said blonde raised an eye brow and glared at the rosette.
"Oh, pig eh. Why don't you hide that wide forehead of yours and help me here?"
"There are only few customers here, Ino. And besides, I have visitors." Sakura deadpanned. Ino turned away from Sakura, allowing her long blonde hair in pony flip. She leaned on the counter and glanced at the flower area, when the black haired guy with the blond she met earlier caught her attention. "Speaking of visitors, that black-haired guy looks cute."
"He sure does. But believe me, looks can be deceiving." Sakura replied with an irritated voice as she passed by Ino and headed to the beverages area.
"What do you mean?" Ino asked, still eyeing the raven, he sure resembles to someone, I wonder who… Shit! "Sakura, don't you think that black-haired guy looks familiar?" Sakura peeked from the counter and shook her head "He looks common to me."
"Hey, introduce them to me, would you?" The blonde asked, still eyeing the raven.
"No way, this is not the time to hunt boys, now get back to work." Sakura replied calmly as she put everything in the tray and headed to the two boys who were waiting.
Speak for yourself, forehead girl. Ino thought as she watched her friend join the two guys. Well, if you don't want to introduce them to me, then I'll introduce myself. Ino was about to head towards Sakura and her company when,
"Hey! Where are you going? And where is Shikamaru? I thought he said he'll help us?" The brunette from the kitchen shouted to Ino.
"I don't know either, Tenten." Ino replied with a shrug. "Geez, where is that slug anyway?" I know he's lazy, but he's true to his words, and he was never late. I'm sure he has a good explanation why he's not yet around.
"Oi!"
"What?"
"You can't move that."
"What do you mean I can't?" The blonde asked in disbelief.
The brunette sighed and pointed the white queen who was checking the black king. "You have to protect your king first."
"This game sucks." The blonde ranted as she leaned on the tree and crossed her arms to her chest.
"Yeah, it sucks at first, but it's quite fun once you get used to playing it." The brunette replied as he put the chess pieces inside the pouch.
"Geez, you are old." The blonde teased.
"Speak for yourself, troublesome woman."
"Who's troublesome?"
The brunet sighed and glanced at the blonde. "You." He then gave her a rare smirk afterwards. The blonde rolled her eyes and stared at the clouds.
"When will you introduce me to them?" The blonde asked, still looking at the clouds. The brunet fell silent for a while and lied on the grass with his bag under his head.
"What do you mean?"
"You know what I mean, Shikamaru." The blonde replied calmly. "Do you have any particular reason why you don't want me to introduce to your friends?"
"Why would you want such troublesome things to happen?"
"It bothers me." There was a pause between the two. "Do we always have to hang together secretly?" The blonde asked as she looked down at the lying brunet next to her, but he remained silent as he watched the clouds goes by.
"Oi, Shikamaru, are you still with me? Or the clouds dragged you somewhere—"
"It also bothers me…" The brunette finally uttered. The blonde stared at him, waiting for any continuation from his sentence, "It bothers me that we always have to see each other behind my friends' back. It is also bothering me when they kept on asking about you. But it's just too troublesome—"
"—to tell them." The blonde continued, "I still don't get your point, but after all, you're just a kid." The blonde replied as she stood up and looked at the brunet who was moved by her words. Finally, I got his attention, the blond thought to herself. "You may have the brains of a man, but your actions are still childish for me to handle." She uttered as she gave him a teasing smirk and left.
Geez, Temari. Why do you have to be so frank? You really are a troublesome woman, the brunette thought as he sighed and stood up. "I guess there's no other reason for me to stay here. Better head to the flower shop before another blonde girl lecture me about my manhood." He said to himself as he grabbed his bag and headed to his next destination.
Meanwhile, in the hospital, another brunette encountered a problem when Hinata woke up and stared at him with scared eyes.
"I... I'm not going to hurt you." The brunette said as he sat upright in the sofa with both hand on his lap like a good boy. He tried to give her a friendly smile but it scared her more. Geez, I knew this is going to happen. Where is Naruto? Don't tell me I have to handle this all by myself? "I won't hurt you… I'm your cousin Neji's friend."
"It... It's not that." The girl finally replied, as she pointed at the backrest. The brunette followed her finger and saw a thumb-sized, shiny, black spider next to him. He immediately stood up and tried hammering it with his notebook but the spider was too fast, until he finally got it and threw it outside the window.
"Phew. That was close. Good thing it's not the poisonous one. Nice one eyeing that creature!" He said to the girl as he turn his head and gave her a thumbs-up and a feral grin.
"Thank you." The girl replied weakly, "Where is Neji-nii-san?"
"He has class. But he'll be here soon. But for now, I'm your company." The brunet replied as he closed the window. "Oh, my name is Kiba." He said as he faced the girl. "Yours is Hinata, right?"
"H… Hai." She replied timidly, her fingers unconsciously playing the hem of the hospital's blanket.
"I almost forgot. Naruto told me to give you these medicines," Kiba said as he rummaged his pocket and took out the medicine. He headed to the table next to her bed and prepared her a glass of water.
"Naruto-kun was here?"
"Yeah. He just left, but I'm not sure why. He was in a hurry after taking a phone call." He replied as he put the medicine and water in the tray, then he noticed the girl's sad face. "But I think he has class. I mean, he is ranting about his Monday schedule a while ago." He continued as he reclined Hinata's bed gently until she's in a sitting position.
"He always rants at stuffs." Hinata replied with a shy smile.
She sure is different from what Naruto told me. But she seems okay, though she does speak really softly. But over all she's alright, Kiba thought until he remembered something. "Wait, you can't take your medicine yet with an empty stomach." Kiba said as he rushed towards his bag and rummaged it. Until a low, high-pitched bark echoed in the silent room.
"Is that a puppy?" Hinata asked curiously.
"Ah… No, It's my, um… ringtone… Yeah, my ringtone—woof, woof." The brunette immediately replied when a puppy's head peaked from his bag.
"It is a puppy," Hinata said cheerfully, smiling at the puppy. "Why are you hiding it inside your bag?"
"I found him in the corner of the main gate this morning. He looked homeless so I decided to keep him." The brunet replied as he scratched his head and continued to rummage his bag while avoiding the sleeping puppy that seemed to be dreaming.
"Wasn't he noisy while you were in your class?"
"Nah, not at all, I just gave him my… darn it! So that's where it went." The brunet suddenly exclaimed and slapped a hand on his face.
"What is it?" Hinata asked worriedly.
"My sandwich. I was about to give it to you when I remembered that I gave it to this pup so he would remain silent in the class." Kiba replied as he sat down on the sofa, petting the sleeping puppy in his bag.
"It's alright. I have food inside my bag."
"Really?"
"Yeah, though I don't know where they put it."
"What does it looked like?"
"It's a blue backpack."
"Found it." Kiba replied as he grabbed the bag under her bed and gently handed it to the owner. She took out two sandwiches from her bag and gently dropped the bag on the floor with Kiba's help.
"There you go! Now eat it all up so you can take your medicine." He said cheerfully and gave her a big smile. Hinata shyly smiled back and reached the other sandwich to him.
"Here you go!" she said while looking down, handing the other sandwich to Kiba.
"But it's—"
"I was supposed to give it to Naruto-kun, but it's yours now." She replied with a smile as she insisted it to Kiba, still looking down.
The brunette gently accepted the sandwich from her and smiled back. "Don't mind if I do." They both smiled at each other and ate the sandwich together.
"Does he have a name yet?" Hinata asked as she looked at the puppy.
"Nope, I haven't named him yet. I can't think of a proper name to give him." Kiba replied as he looked at the puppy and rubbed his head.
"How about Akamaru?" Hinata suggested. Kiba glanced at her and saw a sweet smile on her face, making her eyes squint.
"Where did you get that name?" Kiba asked cheerfully. "It sounds so cool."
"Uh… I got it from your bag." Hinata replied bashfully.
"Huh?" the brunette replied as he curiously stared at Hinata.
"Well, the color of your bag is red, so I thought of Aka. But it would sound weird if you call him Aka, so I combined it with Maru since most of the guys in my class names ends with that word." She explained.
Kiba managed to reply a smile. I never thought she'd be this cool, for a shy-type like her, she's quite awesome, he thought to himself and returned his gaze back at the puppy who is still sleeping comfortably inside his widely opened backpack.
"Alright, your name from now on is Akamaru…" Kiba said while facing the puppy. "You should thank Hinata-chan for giving you that name," He continued as he patted the puppy's head. Hinata giggled and both of them continued eating their sandwiches while sharing their experiences during their first day of school as college students.
-End of Part 2-
The person…
Who got away, promised to never come back
Is about to come... are you prepared?