Lesson #06: Manners

Manners: Polite or well-bred social behaviour.

"Sasuke-kun comes from one of Konoha's most respected clans, the Uchiha clan. Because he was raised in a noble household filled with many formal traditions, it was only natural that Sasuke-kun grew up with lots of manners. From what I've seen, Sasuke-kun doesn't seem to like girls who don't have any manners. Whenever someone gives him something as a gift, he doesn't accept it because they are always so forceful and they aren't polite toward him. If he grew up in such a noble household, it's only natural for him to be attracted to girls who act with similar mannerisms. Formalities are your best friend." – Ino Yamanaka

Goal: Impress Sasuke with your manners.

Ino's Tip: Act more ladylike such as using formalities, eating using cutlery instead of your hands and walking with a straight posture.


Tenten had been acting strangely throughout the course of the whole day. He couldn't pinpoint how exactly, all he was certain of was that she was definitely not acting like herself. Sasuke couldn't really describe it but it was like she had become more polite in a sense.

Instead of her usual relaxed and rather colloquial greetings which consisted of "Uchiha!" or "So are you going to get your ass over here or am I having to go over there?" she greeted him with something along the lines of this:

"Hello Sasuke-san. It's great to see you. I've been wondering on the outline of today's training. Are we going to practice ninjutsu or taijutsu today?"

The sad part was was that it didn't just stop there. In fact, she had greeted him with a ninety degree angled bow before giving him one of those formal waves as he came over. She had also kept her hands on top of each other, her posture upright and her face fixed with a very bright smile.

It was during these times that Sasuke was glad he was Sasuke. Instead of freaking out like Naruto probably would have done, he was able to just stare at her blankly like nothing happened, though his mind was going into overdrive as several questions kept popping into his head. Did she eat something that was past it's expiry date? Or did she eat something from Naruto's pantry?

Throughout the whole two hours of their training session, Tenten kept apologising every time she hit him and because of that, she was more prone to his attacks. She had lost all her previous vigour that usually came with these sessions and every time she pronounced the name of her jutsu, she didn't shout it like she usually did but she more or less enunciated it like she was reading off a scroll.

It got even worse during break times. During their first break after their sparring match, Tenten had kept her legs tightly together as she sat on the log, placing a large tissue over her thighs as it hung off her knees. Her posture was super straight and the way she ate compared to how she usually ate, well he almost choked on his tomato from the shock. It was like she was copying him. She was eating the rice balls with a knife and chopsticks, slicing the rice balls into even smaller slices before popping them into her mouth and keeping her lips tightly shut as she chewed. After eating, she grabbed a napkin and wiped her mouth before continuing the process.

Sasuke didn't know how to respond to the girl's weird behaviour. He had never been more stumped. It didn't help that he wasn't exactly capable at handling social situations. He was usually one to avoid such situations altogether. However, nothing could have prepared him for what happened after training. It was what made him finally snap from being unable to deal with Tenten's strange behaviour.

Usually their routine after training consisted of them taking a short walk until they reached the main streets of Konoha before splitting ways but due to Tenten's sudden change in behaviour, it was only logical that their usual routine had been broken. Along their walks, it was a common sight to see a few of Sasuke's fellow fan girls approach the two, but Tenten usually scared them off before they got close. It was because of this that Sasuke enjoyed these walks better (though Tenten was the main reason). However, due to this weird Tenten as Sasuke liked to call her, she actually encouraged these girls to approach him.

One fan had approached him with the intent of giving him a bento box she had created. Normally, the bento box would have been taken by Tenten who would devour it herself but this time, Tenten made sure that he ate it in front of the girl as proof that he wouldn't throw it away. What made it a lot worse was the fact that the girl couldn't cook. The eggs were undercooked and it tasted very salty.

His torture didn't stop there. When another girl had come up to ask him on a date, Tenten stepped in and began making plans for him! She had asked for the girl's name, the girl's contact details and what she wanted to experience on the date. Tenten practically became the date planner for the date he never even wanted. Of course he wasn't able to refuse because well, how could you when she was looking at you with those big brown eyes of hers?

Though, the one thing that finally made him snap was when a girl came up and wanted to give him a kiss. Sasuke had attempted to walk away but Tenten didn't let him as she kept an iron grip on his arm, forcing him to stay put. She had forced him to stand still as she directed the girl forward so that the two could meet in the middle with a kiss. When the girl leaned in for the kiss, he had officially lost it.

"Stop this madness! I'm not kissing this girl!" He shouted as he pushed past the girl, dragging Tenten along with him.

"What is with you today? Why are you acting so strangely?" Sasuke spoke as they walked toward her apartment.

Refusing to answer, Tenten decided to play dumb. "What do you mean Sasuke-san? How am I acting strangely?"

He scowled at her feigned innocent. "Don't play dumb with me! You would never call me 'Sasuke-san' in your normal state."

"Do you dislike Sasuke-san? Should I call you Sasuke-kun instead?" She asked.

Sasuke stopped in his tracks as he turned to her with a glare. "Don't you dare call me that. I've had enough of being called Sasuke-kun," he said to her in all seriousness.

"Then Uchiha-san?" Tenten tried. He only replied with a glare as he tightened his grip on her wrist. "No honourifics. No formal language. Just speak informally, and act like you usually do. Whatever you're trying to do is not amusing me."

Things went silent for a few moments after that with Tenten just staring intensely into Sasuke's eyes. When he saw a twitch of her mouth, he inwardly smiled sensing her return. He hated how she had been acting the whole day. It was quite unlike her. He didn't like formalities. He wanted casual and laid back because he knew he could never be like that.

His hope was broken however when Tenten walked past him saying, "I am acting normally Uchiha-kun."


Lesson Outcome: Either Sasuke doesn't seem to like girls with manners or you went a little overboard.

Feedback: Screw noble household logic. He hates being called Sasuke-kun but Uchiha-kun has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?