Hi everyone. I'm sorry it's taken me longer than usual to write this chapter. Over the weekend my family has been constantly going out. We can't just waste this beautiful weather! Also, I'm very excited to tell you that I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENCE! I've been practicing a lot for that, thank goodness I passed. So, once again sorry for the delay and here is the next chapter. *From now on, I think I might have to update within the week, rather than in a few days. Sorry about that.*
Chapter 4: If Words Were Bullets
Now, Sakura had decided to hear Hinata out. She would remain calm through the whole thing and before she knew it, this little rant would be over and she could go back to doing her job. After all, she had been working on her, uh, anger issues ever since Tonton, Shizune's pig, almost had a heart attack after Sakura turned the table she was sleeping under into a pile of firewood because of something Naruto had done earlier that day. She could clearly recall Shizune looking at her with huge teary eyes, holding a hyperventilating Tonton. Shizune made Sakura swear that she would attend weekly lessons with her on how to control her anger. "Oh come on Sakura, don't look at me like that! The lessons will pay off, I promise! I even got Tsunade to agree to do them from before, and I can tell you for a fact that she's a lot better now then she used to be. Trust me, the Shizune method really works!"
How Tsunade could have been any angrier than she would get nowadays, Sakura had absolutely no clue. Shizune continued to look at her with puppy dog eyes and Sakura really didn't want to hurt Tonton even by accident, so she agreed to take the lessons. And, she had to admit they were working quite well, so she was one hundred percent sure she could listen to Hinata without blowing up. Okay, maybe eighty percent sure. Or seventy five percent sure. Yes, that was right, she was seventy five - no - seventy percent sure that she would not explode. Oh, what was she worrying about? Whatever Hinata had to say to her, it couldn't be that bad.
"Do you love him?"
Sakura was so busy recalculating her chances of keeping cool, that she didn't fully hear Hinata's question. "I'm sorry, what?"
"Do you love Naruto-kun?" Hinata was absolutely serious, patiently awaiting Sakura's answer.
"Of course I love Naruto," Sakura heatedly replied.
Hinata squeezed her eyes shut tight and gave a short sigh of frustration. "Let me rephrase my question then. Are you in love with Naruto-kun?"
Sakura suddenly became unusually quiet and her gaze guiltily fell to the floor. But that was all Hinata needed to see to know the answer to her question.
"Then why?" Hinata's voice started getting louder, and she had to remind herself to stay calm. "Why won't you tell him that you're not in love with him? Why won't you tell him that he has no chance with you, that you'll never love him!"
"I don't need to tell him something he already knows! Ever since we were gennin, he has always known that I have never thought of him that way!"
Hinata's expression started to soften. "But don't you understand Sakura? You need to tell him those exact words, that you will never love him because he will never give up on you. He will try and try again because that's just how he is. Don't you realize that in the end you'll just hurt him more?"
Sakura's eyebrow ticked, and she was starting to go over the edge. "Hurt him? I'm trying to protect him! Don't you think he's been through enough? He's already lost his best friend! He doesn't need to lose me too!"
Hinata looked to be deep in thought. She looked so out of it that Sakura wasn't sure if she was even paying attention to their conversation anymore. All of a sudden Hinata gasped, and a look of understanding crossed her face. "Wait a minute. You… you're not scared of him feeling that he's lost you. It's you who's scared of losing him because, because he's the closest thing you have left to… to Sasuke."
Sakura's mind froze. Everyone knew that his name was like a taboo around her. The thought of him brought her so much pain. She tried so hard to forget about him, but she couldn't. She could never forget about him. So when she couldn't keep him from entering her thoughts and the suffering became too great, she spoke about him to those closest to her, and she cried. She cried for the pain she felt, but more than that she cried for him, for what he had become. But not to just anyone. Never to just anyone. And suddenly, her fury spiked. Who exactly was this girl in front of her, to dare to speak as if she knew what this kind of torture felt like? As if she had to live through it every day. Sakura wasn't just upset or angry anymore, she was livid. And even though she might regret them later, she looked at Hinata and spat out words that were as deadly as kunai laced with poison.
"It's not my fault Hinata that no matter how hard you try Naruto still doesn't love you! It's not my fault that even though you were willing to die for him that he didn't so much as thank you let alone tell you that he cares for you! Face it Hinata, he has never loved you!"
Hinata's face lowered, her lip slightly quivering, her hands clasped together tightly. Even though her eyes were now hidden behind her bangs, you could still see the lone tear trickling down her cheek. Sakura immediately started to regret what she had said to her. That is, until Hinata looked up, her eyes hardening, and spoke the words that no one dared to speak.
"Well, I guess you would know all about that, considering Sasuke decided he would rather leave with Orochimaru of all people then stay here and let you love him."
Hinata could see it coming before she even activated her Byakugan. Sakura sprinted forwards and jumped in the air, her arm pulled back, fist formed, ready to deliver a deadly blow to the head. Hinata, having already activated her Byakugan, readied herself to use her Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists, the same attack she used to break the chakra rods restricting Naruto during his battle with Pein.
All of a sudden, the room filled with a strong whirlwind as Kiba and Akamaru entered the room using their Piercing Fang Taijutsu in the centre of the room. Sakura, not having expected Kiba's dramatic entrance, was blown to the other side of the room. Hinata saw Akamaru jump towards her and slammed her attack into a nearby counter last minute, while being smothered by the very large, very heavy dog.
Having instructed Akamaru to get off of Hinata before she suffocated, Kiba grabbed her by the waist, threw her over Akamaru's back, and got on himself. Then he looked towards Sakura.
"Yo Sakura, Hinata and I've got some business to take care of so we'll catch you later. Sorry for messin' up your office."
And with that they leapt out of the seventh story window, leaving Sakura lying on the floor in a daze.
Thanks for reading guys. Remember if you have anything you would like to point out about this chapter or if you liked it, please review if you can.
thelastshanghai: Wow! I'm flattered to hear that you like my story so much. And the fact that you think I'm a good writer makes me want to happy dance! Thank you so much, it's reviews like yours that make me want to write more. :D
Catherine3: I see we have a Hinata fan lol. I'm glad to see that you like how she's portrayed in the story. Thanks for the review. (:
Myomi-chan: You are one of my favourite reviewers so far! What you said means a lot, so of course you deserve a thank you. I think it's interesting that my story is different from others you've read, so hopefully I won't disappoint you in future chapters. (:
