Chapter 7: Of Dresses & Dangos

(Ok, since we had a story about Kakashi before his wedding, it's only fair that i give his bride her time in the spotlight, right?)

Looking at the mirror for the nth time, Mitarashi Anko concluded that she just might be gaining a few pounds recently.

Inside one of Konoha's most exclusive bridal shops (reccomended by Hinata of course, since this was the place where she had HER dress made & knowing the tastes of the Hyuga clan, they only demanded the very best), she was fitting her own bridal gown & was accompanied by her actual bridal entourage of Kurenai, Shizune, Sakura, Hinata, Tenten & Ino.

But it seems as though the dress would not cooperate with her as she struggled into it. It was a little tight across the waist & hip & the back zipper would not fully close.

At first, Anko had insisted that the seamstress might have made a mistake when she was making the dress. But Hinata had quietly pointed out that they had Anko's initial measurements on-record. They wouldn't be known as one of the best if they habitually made mistakes with their orders.

Finally, Anko admitted to himself that she just might have grown a little bigger since the time when she first had herself measured for the wedding dress.

Not excessively so, of course. She knew for a fact that, even without the help of any sort of genjutsu or artificial aid, she was in the best shape of her life & is stunningly beautiful for a woman in her late 30's.

But then again, a lifetime of eating dangos as well as various other sweet confections & snacks are bound to have some undesirable effects on her figure.

"I suppose a diet is in order then." Anko thought to herself & sighed deeply. For the sake of her wedding, she would have to abstain from eating her favorite snacks just so she could fit comfortably into the blasted wedding dress.

But she would make sure that she wouldn't be suffering alone & made a mental note to think of a way to also make Kakashi suffer whom she irrationally blamed for her predicament.

"Well, I DID warn you that you're gonna regret eating all those dangos one day." Kurenai said with an amused look on her face.

Anko turned to glare at her friend. Hard as it was to admit, Kurenai never had any troubles maintaining her whistlebait figure & still looked as good as she did when she was still single. Asuma is an incredibly lucky man to have her.

"It's not fair. How the hell do you do it Kurenai?" Anko asked. But instead of answering, the crimson-eyed jounin merely smiled.

"She for one knows her limitations while you frequently indulge yourself to god-know-what." This statement came from Shizune. Even though she wasn't the knockout beauty that her friends seemed to be, the medical specialist was in the peak of health & had a homely attractiveness which appealed to many.

"You're one to talk, Shizune." Anko said with a chuckle. "Aren't you also packing up the pounds lately as well?"

Shizune's cheeks flushed red as she huffed & looked away. "How rude. I was just trying to help here." She said.

"Now now Shizune-san, Anko-san..." Sakura said, stepping between the two. Among the younger women present, Sakura was considered as one of the best in Konoha in terms of looks, strength & skills. A kunoichi whose beauty & had assets earned her the distinction of being considered as one of the new Sanin alongside her husband Sasuke & of course, the Roukudaime Hokage Naruto.

"...Let's not fight over this small detail." Sakura said to both Anko & Shizune. "All we have to do is make some minor changes to the dress so it'll fit, right?"

"For once, I agree with forehead lady there." Ino piped in. Any way you look at it, Ino is a bonafide heartbreaker of Konoha. A beauty whose looks alone sparked many fights for attention from the male populace. Ironically enough, the one who finally caught her for his own was probably Konoha's laziest shinobi.

"Everyone of us went through the same thing when we were preparing for our wedding." Ino stated.

"Speak for yourself Ino-pig." Sakura growled then struck a pose. "I NEVER had any trouble with MY figure."

Ino's eyebrow twitched. "It's not like you HAD any in the first place." She said with a snicker.

"What did you say?"

"You heard me."

From a couple of feet away, Tenten could only shake her head in exasperation while Hinata looks at the 2 bickering kunoichis nervously.

"Alright, knock it off guys." Tenten scolded them. The weapons mistress herself is a femme fatale whose killer good looks & extreme skills & accuracy with various sorts of weapons made for a deadly combination.

"Tenten's right. Please stop fighting Sakura, Ino." Hinata seconded, trying to talk some sense into the 2. Hinata, on the other hand, is the epitome of the perfect lady. The wife of the Roukudaime Hokage had an elegant beauty & grace matched only by a select few.

Anko sighs. This was the last thing she needed right now. Her bridal entourage fighting amongst themselves. And it all started with the stupid dress.

"Alright alright. I suppose I can do without the snacks for a little while. At least until after the wedding." Anko said grumpily. "Thank god this only happens once in most people's lives. I don't think I'll be able to handle the stress of a wedding preparation a 2nd time. Gimme a good S-class mission anyday." She added to herself.

"That's the spirit Anko." Shizune said cheerfully. "Think of it this way. Once you're married to Kakashi, it'll be a no return, no exchange kind of thing. It won't really matter how you look."

"I really don't think that's very helpful, Shizune." Kurenai said, observing the large throbbing vein that suddenly appeared in Anko's forehead & massages the bridge of her nose wearily.

"Can we PLEASE get off the topic of my figure?" Anko said in exasperation.

"Anko's right. We should approach this problem in a more adult & mature fashion." Sakura seconded.

"Thank you." Anko said, glad that somebody here had the sense to back her up in stopping this almost childish obsession of talking about her vital statistics.

(Silence...)

"But seriously Anko-san, What are YOU gonna do to fit into the dress by time the wedding date comes." Ino asked with a perfectly straight face.

(More silence...)

AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!

Author's note: This chapter's a little short but i felt that Anko should have the limelight for once. I hope this chapter doesn't sound TOO lame. Please R&R :)