'North Academy for Hybrids'
By: GaaraFox
Chapter VIII: Dream of Sleep
I knew I must have looked like an idiot just staring into space, but at that moment I had no idea what to do. 'Should I sit down at an empty desk, or should I sit in the empty seat next to him? Should I avoid him, or introduce myself?'
I mulled over my thoughts. If I avoided him and sat at an empty desk, or next to someone else, I could prevent myself from looking like more of a scared idiot than I already am right now. My mouth and crazy thoughts would also stay quiet, and it would be less likely for me to blurt something out that I might not want to, 'Like the conversation in Hybrid History today.'
On the other hand, I could prove to myself that I mostly certainly do not have a werewolf phobia. Talking to him might also ease my nerves about the many "dreams" I've been having lately, and put my racing heart at rest.
Were there any risks? Besides looking like an idiot, talking to him may in fact increase my fear of werewolves, if he is a pompous jerk. 'Or kills me, and I end up like Father . . .'
My heart began racing in my chest. The chills came naturally to me and I welcomed them as I reminisced on the 'dream' I'd had in the Infirmary just last night. I felt exactly how I felt a few days ago when I found out I was a Hybrid . . . split in half. While part of me hated it (because I once hated Hybrids), another part of me was curious. At this moment, I wasn't sure whether to take my father's side and try to understand this werewolf who was a mystery to me, or if I should hate and be afraid of him, just as everyone else.
'Well . . . you do normally do the opposite of everyone else . . .' I thought to myself, deeply considering every option.
Was dying a risk I was willing to take? 'Father took that risk . . .'
I took a deep breath and decided in that moment, that I would no longer be like Mother. I would no longer be afraid. I would be who my Father first raised me to be: a strong Hybrid. This was my opportunity to settle everything that has been bothering me lately.
Step by step I made my way across the room and with every step I became less and less confident. Of course, Father had more practice with werewolves than I had. I felt like a grown adult just now confronting her fear of the boogeyman . . .
Finally when I arrived at the capacious desk he was seated at, I stood awkwardly next to the empty stool, completely unsure as to what to do. I looked around the room for a moment, hardly being able to hear my own thoughts with my heart beating in my chest, and finally asked, "Is anyone sitting here?" I cursed myself for being so obviously nervous.
Sasuke didn't look up at me, and still continued to draw as he replied, "No." His voice was quiet and rumbled in his throat, just as most male voices do.
I nodded my head and rocked back and forth from my toes, to my heels. 'Could this be any more awkward?' I screamed inside my head. Finally I asked, "So can I sit here?" I wanted to hit myself for (like I predicted) being such an idiot. 'Of course you can sit there! Otherwise he wouldn't have said anything, right?' Then I thought, 'But that doesn't mean I can just sit there! Maybe he likes sitting alone and prefers it that way?'
One minute I'm afraid of whether or not he's going to kill me, now I'm suddenly concerned with whether or not he prefers sitting alone?
Adjusting my weight distribution to my other leg, I realized how anti-social I really was. I shook my head, trying to keep my thoughts from arguing with one another (or my brain from exploding). After a few minutes of silence, and him not answering me (or simply ignoring me) I finally caved and sat down quickly.
He didn't seem to mind, and if he did, he was doing a good job of hiding it. I wasn't about to be nosy and ask him what he was drawing, so I just sat there in my puddle of awkward silence. Finally I decided to pull out my usual supplies, paper and pencil, and wait in silence for class to begin.
Having the sudden desire to draw, but not knowing what to draw, I simply begin twirling my pencil onto the paper creating random lines. Eventually certain lines began to seep through and catch my interest, so I bolded those and pushed more lines onto the paper. Soon my random lines became a sketchy tree and I steadily began bringing it to life.
"You're Sakura." A voice next to me spoke, startling me.
When I looked over at him he was still thoroughly focused on his drawing. It was almost as if he hadn't said anything at all, and the lack of communication between us caused me to think that he actually did say something. Of course I'd rather not admit that I was insane (idiotic, yes, insane, no), so I went with the understanding that he had indeed spoken.
Not wanting to waste the opportunity to make some sort of conversation I said, "Yes, I am . . . what's your name?" It was obvious that practically everyone in the school knew his name, but since I was new I figured that he knew I wouldn't know his name. 'But then again, he knew mine.'
He stopped drawing and sat up from his hunched over position (scarily reminding me of the hunched over position he'd gone into yesterday, just before . . .). With his hands still on the desk he turned over to look at me and said, "You know who I am."
My heart once again began beating frantically inside my chest, and I had to focus on circulating the oxygen to my brain or else I'd pass out. It only took him a second to say it, and then turn away, and I hadn't had time to respond before he went back to drawing. I wasn't entirely sure what he meant, but I was either insane (which, like I said, I wasn't about to admit) or those five words were intended to have a double meaning.
Before I had any more time to ponder over anything Sasuke related, the Art III instructor began speaking, "Okay class," The young man situated himself at the edge of his desk, "I've got the results in for End of Semester Art Project, and I'm sure you will be happy to know that it is being hosted at the South Academy."
Everyone in the class began hollering and clapping, 'South Academy?' I thought to myself.
The students began to quiet down as a girl raised her hand and asked, "Have they sent out the specifications yet?"
The Art instructor seemed to think this over for a moment before he said, "We won't know anything official for another month or so, but we do know is that they want to see as much collaboration as possible."
A few students in the class groaned and began whispering complaints about how they "don't like working with others". While everyone else fist pumped and turned directly to the person sitting next to them.
"Are you going to let us choose our partner for the End of Semester Project?" One girl asked excitedly.
"Well . . ." The teacher put his hand on his chin as he sat in thought, purposely teasing the students, "Sure, why not?" The class began cheering once again and finally the instructor stepped in again and said, "But, for this next project I have, I will be choosing your partner for you."
Groaning and disdainful mutters were heard once again and the art instructor waved his hands in the air as if he were physically dismissing their complaints, "You'll get over it." He smiled and everyone glared at him.
"So what is our next project?" One of the boys in the front asked.
"Good question," The young instructor said as he stood up from the edge of his desk and walked around to his computer. "Could someone get the lights?" He asked as he began typing in a few things and pulled up a website that was visible to us through a projector. Once the lights were off he asked, "Anyone recognize this piece?"
The photograph on the website was black and white, and held two living beings. One was a tall, dark figure holding some sort of blanket around themselves, as well as a cane. The other being was what appeared to be a type of dog. In the photograph they were standing next to one another, the tall, dark figure looming over the dog as it looked in the direction of the figure.
The picture seemed to have been taken in a plain white room with wood paneled floors, and only a few tall windows. In the corner was what appeared to be a pile of hay, and in the center of the room was another one of those blankets that the figure was wearing.
The photograph was overall beautiful in its own way, and I couldn't help but have seen the picture before.
"I Like America and America Likes Me." A boy in the class randomly yelled out.
"Very good," The instructor laughed, "But do you know what it's about?"
When asked, the boy shook his head slowly, though seemed to be trying to think of an answer.
"Is it about . . . dark emotions looming over you?" One girl suggested.
"Not quite," The instructor said. "But that's a pretty good answer, anyone else want to take a guess?"
I almost knew that I had the correct answer, because I could have sworn that I'd studied that photograph from somewhere, but I was way too nervous to speak my mind. Of course if I was right then everyone in the class would think, 'Oh man, she's so smart.' And I could then bask in me getting the answer correct but having actually guessed it.
"Just say it." Sasuke spoke next to me in almost a whisper.
'Could he read my thoughts?' I thought to myself, paranoid, but suddenly decided that was ridiculous. It was so obvious that he could see just from the corner of his eye that I thought I knew the answer, because of the way I was twiddling my thumbs. Finally I took a deep breath and raised my hand.
"Yes, in the back." The instructor called out.
"Interdependency," I answered, my nervousness causing it to come out as a whisper.
"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" He asked.
I cleared my throat. "The photograph is about interdependency." I spoke a little more confident the second time.
"Yes, that is correct!" He said excitedly, probably not expecting anyone to guess the right answer.
Everyone in the class then took the opportunity to turn around and look at me, which I thought would mean that it would be my moment to bask in glory, but instead it just made me self-conscious. They turned back toward me, whispered something to their neighbor, looked at me again, and then turned back around to the front.
"Oh, I'm sorry, you're our new student, right?" The teacher asked, which would have seemed completely unprofessional if it hadn't been for the fact that this was an Art class, and sometimes unprofessionalism meant "individuality".
"Yes, I'm the new student," I shrugged. "Sakura Haruno."
Again everyone whispered, and luckily the lights were off so no one could see that my face was turning red. "Well it's nice to have you here Sakura! Well my name is Kotetsu Hagane, but you can just call me Kotetsu," 'Ha, didn't see that coming . . .' "Of course you probably know by now that I'm the Art III instructor, so again, welcome to class." Then he stopped for a moment and looked over me, then to Sasuke, and then back to me and said, "There's a few empty seats up here if you want to get a better look at the image," Kotetsu suggested, and I had a feeling he didn't ask me to move just to look at the image better.
"No thank you," I smiled, "I'm a little farsighted anyway, so this distance works out perfect." I lied. This was a really dumb lie, if an artist was farsighted then that would pretty much stink.
He looked like he wanted to argue with me for a moment, but then eventually shrugged his shoulders, "Suit yourself." Then he continued explaining the photograph, "As Sakura said before, this image by Joseph Beuys shows him and a coyote isolated in an art gallery. He spent three days locked in this room with the coyote, with only a felt blanket, cane and gloves to protect him with. Eventually they learned to co-exist in the same space." Then he began reading a quote from the website, "The action was Beuys way of signifying, on one level at least, that human beings need to take a closer look at the dynamic interactions of nature, and culture. Understanding the complexities of interdependency is one of the first steps toward ecological sustainability."
When he had finished speaking he looked up at the class curiously, "What do you think it means to understand the complexities of interdependency?"
A few minutes of silence went by and he waited patiently for someone to think of an answer. Finally, a girl that had spoken earlier said, "One way that we, as Hybrids, understand interdependency, is having to co-exist with Humans."
"That's very true," Kotetsu scratched his chin thoughtfully, "Didn't it take years before Hybrids and Humans could walk down the same street without glaring at one another? It even still happens today! I think that what Beuys was trying to get across, was that nature isn't something we can just push aside," He made the gesture as if he were pushing aside the air, "We have to learn to live with it. As Hybrids, aren't we genetically a part of nature?" He allowed the class to soak this through as he turned on the lights and began passing around sheets of paper.
"For your next assignment," He began licking his fingers in order to get the pages to stick to them, "I want you and your partner to spend this week thinking, planning, and observing the world around you and how everything co-exists. I want you and your partner to find what you guys believe to be the best example of interdependency, and capture it using your photographic skills. Look everywhere, just here at the academy are millions of examples."
"Photography?" Someone shouted, obviously not impressed with having to take a picture instead of creating one.
"Yes," Kotetsu smiled mischievously, "I wanted to try something a little different this time, and I thought it would be fun-"
"But this isn't photography class!" Another student whined.
The art instructor sighed, "I know this isn't photography, but just trust me on this one. Find an example of interdependency, and take a picture of it." Finally he came by our table and placed two sheets on our desk, and then walked back up to the front while adding, "And don't think you can just take a random picture, call it interdependency, and then think you're going to get a good grade. I want the picture to have meaning, and you need to use at least one prop."
More students groaned out loud. Kotetsu just snickered.
"Now, here are your partners," As he began calling out names my heart pounded in my chest. I didn't know anyone in the classroom on a personal level, and group projects aren't really my cup of tea, so I was incredibly nervous with whom I was going to be partnered with.
When he had finished calling out all the names, he looked back at the room toward me and said, "Oh! Sorry Sakura, I made this list last week and hadn't realized you were going to be here . . . I'm sure there's someone in another class I can partner you with-"
But before he could finish the voice next to me rumbled, "She can be my partner." He suggested. The entire room became silent as his words caught everyone by surprise. My pulse picked up again and I realized that if it kept doing that I just might have a heart attack.
'Why in the world would he want me to be his partner?' Besides the fact that he was a werewolf, Sasuke was obviously attractive. Not all of the females in the Academy could deny that fact, regardless of his heritage. But to be partnered with me? This was clearly a trick, or a joke of some sort.
Kotetsu hesitated before asking, "Are you sure . . ?" The way he asked it seemed to apply more than that, as if he were really saying, "What are you up to?"
"It's fine." He replied solemnly.
"Okay then . . ." He muttered, and then wrote on his list, "Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno . . . partners."
Kotetsu then continued with his lecture on interdependency, but I couldn't hear anything that he was saying after that. My mind was too busy someplace else to realize what was going on in the classroom. Well . . . besides the young werewolf sitting next to me.
I looked over at him, hoping he would glance over so I could ask him why he did what he did, but his focus was on Kotetsu. Confusion washed over me; I wasn't sure whether to be excited to work with someone as attractive as himself, or terrified to work with someone as dangerous as himself. Yet the combination of attractiveness and danger somehow seemed appealing, and I wasn't sure how.
Memories of red eyes and razor sharp teeth mixed with his current image, somber, yet somehow complacent. He seemed at ease with the world on the outside, but on the inside I knew there must be something going on. Werewolf, Hybrid or Human, we all contained emotions that needed to be understood and valued by others, no matter what. It was a part of all of us, and perhaps no one has ever taken the opportunity to understand Sasuke because of the fact that they're all afraid of him.
I sighed in my newly formed puddle of thought, wondering how we were going to get along for the rest of the year. But even more recent, how we were going to get along during the current assignment where we needed to verbally discuss and share our opinions and perspectives. 'That should be interesting.'
"Oh! I forgot to mention something!" Kotetsu exclaimed, pulling me from my puddle. "At least one of you needs to be in the photograph with your example of interdependency."
The class began griping again about the project, which caused Kotetsu to laugh. Silently I groaned, not really wanting to be in any photograph, but I knew that it had to be me. Honestly, did Sasuke look like the "I-wanna-be-in-a-picture" type of guy?
Suddenly everyone began standing up and gathering their supplies and I once again assumed that the "bell" was ringing. "Okay everyone, this assignment is due exactly one week from now! Don't procrastinate! If you need to borrow a camera from me, just ask!" It was kind of funny how he was yelling over the bell in which everyone could hear, and I couldn't. To me, it just sounded like he was yelling for no particular reason but to speak very loudly.
Sasuke was one of the first students to leave the classroom, and I wasn't sure whether to follow him and ask him about what happened in class, or keep my distance. 'Think fast, Sakura!' Well we are partners now, so didn't that mean that I was obligated to following him around and asking him random question? 'Yes, yes it did.'
I silently chuckled and ran out of the classroom to find him. Hybrids crowded the halls, and it was difficult for me to see around everyone. I forced myself not to be distracted by the ostrich that strutted by me or the hawk that almost hit me as it buzzed through the air. 'These are just things you'll have to get used to.' I thought to myself while secretly wanting to scream.
Finally I spotted onyx hair and pushed myself passed the rear end of a moose in order to be close enough for him to hear me. Unfortunately the moose didn't appreciate it very much and ended up "yelling at me" in moose, which is really actually that moose sound they make. Once I apologized for pushing passed him (or her, I wasn't about to check) I had successfully caught up with Sasuke.
I probably spent a good minute with my hand hovering over the side of his arm, debating whether or not I should poke him, or tug on his shirt to get his attention (or neither, just in case he gets mad).
"I'm not going to bite." He said almost humorously, yet his expression betrayed what little humor he had intended.
"Oh, I know." I quickly replied, feeling stupid. "What's your next class?" I asked quickly, wanting to change the subject, if it was even a subject at all.
"Pre-Calculus." He answered. I paled as I thought about math, 'Pre-Calculus?' I gasped inside my mind, 'Dang, he must be really smart.' "That's cool." I said nonchalantly out loud, completely betraying my thoughts. "I have Algebra II next."
"Who do you have?" He asked, and the questions were taking me by surprise.
Here was Sasuke Uchiha, a werewolf, having a conversation with me, Sakura Haruno. By the expressions worn by the students walking by us, I assumed that conversations with werewolves didn't happen very often. It excited yet frightened me, but I pushed that aside and answered his question after glancing at my schedule, "Ibiki Morino . . ?"
I looked over at him in curiosity as he seemed to become serious for a moment as he said, "I trust you're a good student." I nodded my head, a little confusion coming over me, but he just nodded his head in return.
When we reached a set of doors that led outside he opened one and waited for me to walk through. "Oh," I said, suddenly surprised, "Uh . . . thank you." He followed after me, and this time when we came to the next set of doors that was on the building over, I opened the door and walked through, but held it open so he could walk through right behind me.
Even though the movements were normal compared to what this school was all about, I couldn't help but find myself blushing. We walked side by side down the hall in silence, and yet my head was buzzing with random subjects we could talk about. Unfortunately any chance of that was cut off when he suddenly stopped in front of a classroom door and said, "This is your next class."
Completely caught off guard, I walked up to the door and placed my hand on the handle to open it. Then when I turned to tell him thank you, he was already on his way to his class. I sighed and walked inside the classroom, trying to keep all my thoughts under control.
"Sakura!" A male voice yelled out my name and I held my breath as I waited for the impact that was surely to come.
Right on time, Kiba wrapped his arms around me and twirled me in a circle before putting me down. I exhaled when I was back on the ground, but was caught off guard when another male tackled me with a bear hug. I looked down at who was hugging me and it was none other than Naruto.
When they both stepped away from me a good distance I sighed and then yelled, "You guys barely know me, why are you already invading my personal space?"
"It's what dogs do." Ino sneered as she walked inside the classroom at the perfect moment, 'Perfect . . .', "They invade your space," Then she stopped and glared at Kiba, "Like this mutt is doing right now."
Kiba growled, "Watch it, pussy cat."
Ino rolled her eyes and pushed passed Kiba to sit in a desk that was in the middle of the two girls I'd seen her with during lunch. When she sat down she turned to glare at the three of us for a second before turning back to her sidekicks to probably talk crap about us.
"Kiba, you can stop growling now." I looked at him in concern.
He cleared his throat and muttered, "I'm not growling . . ." Then he took a seat in one of the desks, completely avoiding the fact that he had indeed been growling.
"Yeah, not anymore," I stated obviously and sat next him, then Naruto followed suit and sat behind me. I watched Kiba for a moment as he sat in his own personal bubble of anger and thought, and turned around to Naruto and asked, "What's up with him and Ino?"
He thought about it for a moment and finally said, "Well, besides the fact that Ino is a compulsive bitch-"
I interrupted, impatient, "Yes, besides that!" I used my hands to motion for him to keep going.
He flinched and continued, "Besides that, they've known each other since like, way back in the day."
"Seriously?" I asked, somewhat astonished, yet it did make sense.
He nodded, "Yeah, they practically grew up together. Then eventually they ended up like this." He gestured toward Kiba and Ino, who were occasionally giving each other sidebar glares.
Completely unaware of our conversation, Kiba randomly turned to us and said, "I really hate her. I mean, I don't just strongly dislike her, I hate her." Then he turned away again in his own little world of hate.
"Yeesh . . . I wonder what happened to them?" I asked.
Naruto shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, but if you want to find out, you'll probably have to ask him when he's feeling less . . . hateful." He grimaced and I sighed, "But as for Ino? Yeah, stay away from her."
"Don't worry you don't need to ask me twice." I smiled and laughed, and so did he.
Suddenly someone's voice boomed through the classroom, scaring my skin off, "Class! Attention!"
All of the students in the classroom quickly faced the front with their hands neatly placed on top of their desks. I fumbled my way into the position they were in, completely confused and caught off guard. As I looked to the front of the classroom with everyone else, I saw a large man with two long scars on his face, and looks that could (quite literally) kill.
'I hope that isn't Ibiki . . .' I held onto a bit of hope that the man at the front of the classroom was not my Algebra II teacher, and that maybe the real Algebra II teacher would step inside after the big scary man was finished saying whatever needed to be said.
He began checking attendance, and whenever he called out someone's last name they would respectfully say, "Here, sir." All the while the entire class stayed quiet, as if they were afraid he was going to hurt them. 'Well, Kiba did say that he hit Naruto and another student with a thick Algebra II book . . . and everyone knows how thick those books are!'
When he called my last name I copied everyone else and said, "Here, sir," out of fear that he might bight my head off if I said something different.
When he was finally finished checking attendance, he said, "At ease," and everyone went back to their original positions, facing the front. The first person he turned to was me, "Haruno, welcome to North Academy for Hybrids." I nodded my head (scared crapless with what to say) and he continued, "My name is Ibiki Morino but you are to address me as General Ibiki. Having served in the Hybrid Military for thirty years I expect a level of respect out of my students and that includes you." He stared.
I swallowed and whispered, "Yes, sir."
Then he began pacing, "I will not hesitate to humiliate you if necessary or personally assign disciplinary measures if I see to it that they are needed." Then he stopped abruptly and said, "Understood?"
"Yes, sir," I said quickly, not wanting to find out what sort of disciplinary measures he was speaking of.
"Good," he smiled, and the action didn't suit him. Though just as quickly as it had appeared, it disappeared, and he was back to his military demeanor. "Students, open your textbooks to Chapter 25. We will be continuing our discussion on logarithms." Just like in the other classes, everyone groaned (except not as loud as in the other classes), which caused General Ibiki to turn on his heel and shout, "Who's whining?"
Everyone quickly straightened up and he glared at the entire class before turning back around and writing incredibly confusing problems on the white board.
'I hate Algebra, I hate Algebra, I hate Algebra, I hate Algebra.' I recited over and over in my head. There was a clock next to the whiteboard and every time I would glance over at it, it hadn't even moved a tenth of a centimeter.
"Isolate logarithmic term before you convert the logarithmic equation to an exponential equation." 'Blah, blah, blah,'
Even though General Ibiki was big and scary, he was boring as hell. His voice droned on and on, and it seemed that the rest of the class agreed because most of the students were writing with their eyes closed. Then when he would suddenly turn around everyone would jump back into their proper positions and nod their heads enthusiastically, as if Algebra was fun. I rolled my eyes at the thought and decided to draw instead of listen.
"Hey Sakura," Naruto softly whispered from behind me, scaring me to death.
"What?" I asked sharply, yet quietly, as I tried to avoid General Ibiki from hearing us. That didn't seem too much of an issue because of the fact that he was so engrossed in logarithms.
"I was wondering if you wanted to hang out this weekend." He asked casually.
"Um . . ." I thought for a moment, suddenly getting nervous. "I already have plans with Tenten." I lied, but he didn't seem to notice.
"Oh," he sounded disappointed. "That's fine."
Then as he went to sit back into his seat, General Ibiki turned in our direction and shouted, "Naruto! Do you have something you need to say?"
"No, sir," Naruto replied irritably.
"Good," he grinned and folded his arms, "Then I guess you won't mind giving me fifty push-ups!"
Naruto sighed and said, "No, sir." Then he stepped out from his desk, dropped onto the floor, and began doing push-ups as if it were just as easy as breathing. 'Damn . . . note to self: don't get on General Ibiki's bad side.'
Someone in the room scoffed, as if amused by Naruto having to do push-ups. General Ibiki must've heard it too, because he immediately directed his attention to a boy with long brown hair tied very low toward the end, "Something funny, Neji?"
"No, sir," He quickly replied, and it seemed that "no, sir" and "yes, sir" was all anyone could really say in this class. "Good, then you won't mind giving me fifty push-ups, too!"
The boy named Neji seemed to bite back what he really wanted to say, and instead dropped on the floor next to his desk and began doing push-ups too. When I looked over at Kiba, somewhat in shock and yet somewhat amused, he had his lips sucked into his mouth. His eyes were glossy and his face contorted into pain, "Kiba, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly.
His shoulders shook, and as he tried to slowly open his mouth to respond, he burst out laughing. I sucked in my lips and faced the front, trying hard not to laugh as well, but also doing my best to stay away from having to do push-ups.
"One hundred push-ups Kiba!" General Ibiki automatically yelled, and Kiba obliged, now trying to stifle his amusement. "Anyone else want push-ups?" The class became quiet and when no one responded he shouted, "Well?"
"No, sir," everyone responded in unison.
Suddenly Naruto stood up and went to sit back in his seat but then General Ibiki turned to him and said, "Fifty clap push-ups." Naruto sighed, and when the teacher heard it he said, "Oh, you want more? One hundred!"
Kiba started busting out laughing again as he was doing his push-ups and General Ibiki began yelling at all three of them, ordering them to do more clap push-ups. The entire time I kept my mouth shut tight, but if he so much as glanced at my eyes he probably would have made me do push-ups too, amusement was written all over them.
When class was finally over Kiba and I began cracking up laughing when we knew we were far away from General Ibiki's classroom. "Is he always like that?" I said between laughs.
"Oh, yeah!" Kiba replied, having to stop to breathe for a moment, "He seriously hates Naruto and Neji!"
When I finally began to calm down, I asked, "What about you?"
"Nah," He shrugged his shoulders, wearing a cocky grin, "He just enjoys torturing everyone else, myself included, but he really enjoys making Naruto and Neji's life a living hell!"
Naruto was walking with us, but he didn't seem as amused as we were. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and he was wearing a sour look like he was pouting.
"Oh come on, Naruto! At least Neji did them with you!" Kiba reassured his blonde friend.
Eventually Naruto smirked, "Yeah, and he didn't even do anything!" He shouted enthusiastically and even laughed for a moment, which caused Kiba and I to start laughing as well.
"Well," I said after catching my breath for a second time, "At least the push-ups made you stop thinking of Ino." I smiled, but quickly regretted saying anything.
Kiba glared into the abyss, making everyone that was walking his way think that he was glaring at them. He growled and under his breath muttered, "Ino . . ."
Naruto scoffed and said, "Way to go Sakura."
I turned to glare at him but he was smirking, so I couldn't help but smirk back.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence (in which Kiba was still continuing to glare at nothingness) Naruto turned and asked me, "What's your next class?"
I pulled out my schedule and read, "English IV with Iruka, what about you guys?"
"English IV?" Kiba suddenly shouted, scaring the skin off of us, "Damn, smarty pants."
I held up my index finger, "Only in English," I stated matter-of-factly.
"Kiba and I have English III," Naruto answered my question from before, "Actually, our class is right up here," He pointed ahead, "Yours is a little farther down, but it's on the end and says 'English IV: Iruka' on the door, so it shouldn't be heard to find."
"Yeah, especially with you being so good at English and all . . ." Kiba muttered. I rolled my eyes and gave him a look and he grinned.
"Well, we'll see you around Sakura," They smiled and waved good bye as they walked into their English class, and I continued on to mine. I was looking forward to it just as much as Art III.
When I walked inside the classroom had the average English classroom feel to it (which I enjoyed, and caused me to smile my nerdy smile). There were posters on the walls that had English literature quotes, some that I recognized and some that I didn't, but still gave me that swelling in my chest that meant many adventures were ahead. Many books to be read and essays to be written! 'Wow, no wonder my social life is non-existent . . .'
Among the students I quickly recognized Hinata, who was sitting in the very front and studiously reading. Although I wasn't one to enjoy sitting in the very front, I decided it would be okay for this class. Algebra II? No, because knowing my luck General Ibiki would ask me for the answer to a question I couldn't even comprehend. As for English IV? Yes, because I could always think of something on the spot.
As I sat next to Hinata she looked up at me and gave me a soft smile, "Hello Sakura."
"Hey Hinata," I smiled back, except a little more enthusiastically than hers, "What are you reading?" I asked, being nosy.
She blushed and placed the book off to the side so I couldn't see it, "It's uh . . . it's nothing really, just a boring book on the 1920's."
"Oh awesome, I love reading about the '20's! May I see it?"
"N-No, it's awfully boring, you wouldn't want to see it."
I eyed her suspiciously, "I'm sure I would, I've read quite a lot of non-fiction."
"Well this one is even more boring than the rest." She stuttered, avoiding my gaze.
"You're a bad liar." I smirked.
"I'm sorry," she sighed, then handed the book to me after placing the book mark in its proper place.
When I saw the front cover, it was most definitely not a book on the 1920's. I gasped, "You like The House of Night Series?"
Her blush deepened and she quickly said, "It was a present from a friend and when I read the first one I had to read the rest and-"
Then I interrupted her, "This is one of my favorite series! I can't believe you're reading Burned, I totally haven't read it yet, can I borrow it when you're done with it?" I asked eagerly.
She seemed completely caught off guard, "S-Sure . . ."
Once I gave the book back to her I asked, "Why are you ashamed that you're reading it?"
"It's not that I'm ashamed-"
"Hinata . . ."
She sighed, "It's because my parents don't like me reading fiction, they believe it's going to keep me out of medical school and completely destroy my future."
"Seriously?" I asked incredulously.
She nodded her head, "But ever since I started coming to this Academy, I've been able to read as much fiction as I want," She had been smiling but suddenly it faltered, "Unfortunately I have to hide it from Neji . . . he's my cousin," She remarked suddenly when I gave her a look, "And if he sees me reading anything fiction he'll tell my parents, because they asked him to." She sighed.
"Dang, that really stinks . . . well I'm glad all of that hasn't kept you from reading fiction, I honestly think it's good for the brain."
She smiled, "Me too."
"Okay class," a man at the front announced his presence as soon as everyone was settled and in their seats. "As you know there is a major portfolio coming up soon and you have the choice between creative writing, or a research paper. Since some of you are still in research mode I want to kind of help everyone get into their creative mode by doing a little fun activity today."
The class sighed and cheered in reluctance that there wasn't anything too strenuous on them for the class period.
"You can do this with us too, Sakura," He smiled warmly, and seemed to be the most normal teacher out of the rest. "By the way, you can call me Iruka." I nodded and smiled, and he continued with the activity.
To get our creative juices flowing- 'That sounds really weird . . .' –Iruka had us take out a sheet of paper and write one random word in the top right corner, and then another random word in the top left corner.
'Hmm . . . Dream and paint.' Those were the two words I wrote in the top two corners of my college-ruled paper.
"Now I want you to write fourteen more random words underneath both of those two words." Iruka stated, and we looked at him like he was insane.
"What is the point of this?" One boy whined.
"You'll see." Iruka smiled slyly.
'Okay, twenty-eight more random words . . . pristine, gleam, light, fight-' and I continued to write more words as they popped into my head. Finally I finished and wondered curiously where he was going with this.
When the entire class had finished writing everyone looked up. Iruka then said, "Now I want everyone to put all of those words into a poem."
A few students got excited, but the majority of the class groaned and complained about being terrible at poetry, "It doesn't have to rhyme! There is such a thing called free verse poetry." When everyone began writing he suddenly said, "Oh, and you can't add any words, not even 'and' or 'the'." He smirked and everyone whined.
'Alright, random poetry time . . . you can do this Sakura!' Then I began switching around my random words into the most abstract poem I'd ever written (and not in the good way either).
"Oh," Iruka interrupted again and we glared at him, "You can't use the same word twice, either." A few people sighed and began erasing what they wrote, including me.
Finally I was finished with my paper, and wouldn't have minded its strange, randomness, if it weren't for two words that did not go with the poem at all.
"Is anyone still working?" Iruka asked, and when no one answered he said, "Now I want you to go ahead and erase two words from your poem, and then rearrange them if you need to."
'Oh thank goodness!' I sighed in relief. The two words I immediately erased were: milk and cow. I had no idea how those had come into my mind, but finding a place for them in the poem was awkward, because they didn't go anywhere.
Once everyone had finished Iruka said, "Now erase one more word."
This time it took me a little longer to find a word I wanted to erase, but once I had, I felt that the poem was perfectly fine the way it was. Random? Yes. Completely terrible? Not necessarily. I smiled my nerdy smile.
"Alright, go ahead and title your poem, and you don't have to use the words on the list." Once he allowed everyone to take the time to think of a title he said, "Now I want everyone in the class to say their poem out loud."
"No!" Most of the class screamed in protest, completely taking him off guard.
"It's kind of funny how, I didn't ask if you wanted to or not." Iruka cockily smiled and the class glared at him again.
A few girls, who were bigger nerds than me- 'Gasp,' –decided to go first and recite their poems. Eventually I gave in and said mine, which went like this:
Title: Better Tomorrow
Dream Pristine
Light might gleam
Oak Tree
Writing, Thinking
Sitting, Feeling
Knowing Love
Paint Brush
Fight Bear
Tiger Tight
Reading Words Define Dictionary
Live Life, Love Art
I smiled when I was finished and realized I had a bit of a blush on my cheeks. Okay so maybe it was slightly embarrassing to have to recite a silly poem out loud, but I'll survive.
Everyone else's poems were indeed extremely random, while others made sense in their own confusing way. Some students had silly poems where absolutely nothing went together, and even one student had something that sounded more like a grocery list than a poem.
When it finally came to someone's turn in the back, my heart skipped when I heard their voice. I quickly turned around and saw the raven haired teen from my Art III class sitting in the back of the classroom. 'I didn't even see him walk in . . .' But then again, I had been engrossed in a conversation with Hinata.
All of the students in the classroom seemed completely transfixed on Sasuke as he recited his poem, "The title is: Knowing," He cleared his throat and began,
Drawing Clear Mind
Blossom Tree Green, Without Pity
Watching World Live
Knowing Today Will Not Change
Come To Find, Decisions
Right From Wrong
Writing Chaos
Second Dream
The way he spoke it made it sound dark and disturbing, though the words were optimistic in some way. His voice betrayed all optimism and instead gave it an overall melancholy feel that had everyone begging for more; of course they would never say that out loud, especially to a Werewolf.
Instead everyone applauded him in their own mind and on the outside, simply nodded their heads and turned back to the front of the classroom.
Soon the entire class had finished reciting their poems, and Iruka merrily said, "You're the first class to not have someone fail."
"How could you possibly fail this?" One girl asked scornfully.
"By simply refusing to share with everyone else," he smiled and everyone sweat dropped. He then glanced at the clock and noticed that class was almost over, so he quickly said, "Last week we covered research, so the rest of this week we will be discussing creative writing. Tonight I want you to come up with a one page creative essay, about anything you want. Then next week we will get started on your projects by taking a trip to the library!"
The class grumbled and began standing up and gathering their items. A few students continued to openly complain about creative writing, while others relished in it. I never really had a preference, though I did find creative writing to be more enjoyable than a research essay, especially since research wasn't necessary for creative writing.
I gathered my supplies and placed everything into my messenger bag, and followed Hinata out of the classroom, all the while watching Sasuke from my peripherals. It didn't seem like he noticed me on the way out, but I knew that he heard my poem. Just knowing that he heard that caused me to blush again, and I mentally gave myself a face palm.
Hinata and I walked down the hall, and out of the building. I noticed that Sasuke wasn't too far ahead of us. "What's your next class?" I asked her curiously while staring straight ahead at onyx hair.
"Athletics," she replied. "I'm pretty sure it's yours too, a lot of students have it at the end of the day."
I took my eyes away from him and checked my schedule, "Yeah, I sure do . . ." 'Great . . . I forgot about Athletics . . .'
I sighed, hoping with every bit of hope in my body that Sasuke didn't have Athletics too, otherwise I might explode with embarrassment.
"What's wrong?" Hinata asked as we made our way to the giant building I'd gone in with Tenten just yesterday. It held the many stadiums and single gym necessary for training and fighting. I assumed that Athletics was going to be held in the gym section.
"I'm not really the athletic type," I admitted with another sigh.
"Oh . . ." She replied. I'd hoped that she would say something like: "It's okay, Athletics isn't hard!" but instead she said, "Anko will help you," which really didn't help.
"Joy . . ." I muttered to myself. At San Arcos students only needed 1.5 athletic credits in order to graduate, and luckily I'd already been finished with any sort of athletic activities after the first semester of sophomore year. Yet here I was again, one year later, facing something that I was even worse at than Algebra II. 'And that's saying something!'
Sasuke made it to the gym before us, and by then I was still holding a small ray of hope that it was a total coincidence that he happened to be going to the gym at the same time as we were, and that he wasn't in my Athletics class. Hinata and I soon followed after, and so did a few other students that I recognized, one of those students being Tenten.
"Tenten!" I yelled exasperatedly when I spotted her inside the gym. "I haven't seen you all day!"
"Sakura . . ." Tenten gripped my shoulders, "You saw me at lunch."
I gave her a look and then smiled and nodded, "Oh yeah . . . wow this has been a long day . . ." I sighed.
"It'll get better, trust me," Tenten reassured me, "Now let's go get dressed for Athletics! Who's ready for a work-out? I know I am!" She shouted in the gym and a few other students shouted with her.
I sighed and felt the embarrassment creeping up on me. Suddenly a thought struck me, "Hey, I can't do anything today, because I don't have any Athletic clothes!" Then I added, "Or shoes!"
"Sakura Haruno," a female voice called my name and I turned around and saw a woman offering me a set of athletic clothes and shoes. "Use these until you can get your own." She smiled as I (unfortunately had to) accept the items. "There's also a lock inside the shoes with a sticky note with your locker number and combination." 'Damn, she thought of everything.' Then she patted me on the back before walking off to yell at some boys that were acting stupid.
I wanted to cry as I held the set of gym clothes and shoes in my arms. "Hey look, now you have clothes and shoes!" Tenten said excitedly, but was completely oblivious to my misery.
"Joy . . ." I gave Hinata and Tenten a fake smile and followed them into the girl's locker room. I had to admit, the locker rooms were decent compared to what San Arcos had. At San Arcos, some of the toilets didn't have doors, the showers leaked, most of the mirrors were broken or completely missing, plus pretty much all of the locks didn't work properly and you had to yank or kick them off, and overall it smelled like chlorine because it was shared with the swim team.
As for this locker room, it was much more decent. The lockers were larger and there were changing areas connected with single celled showers instead of one large shower area, and it smelled fine, surprisingly. Even though the locker room was okay, that didn't mean I was going to enjoy Athletics. I still grudgingly dragged my feet to find my locker number, which was only a few lockers down from Tenten and Hinata.
I tried to hurry as I changed, not really wanting anyone to see me without clothes on. Then as I sat down to put the athletic shoes on, I saw a pair of socks inside. 'Ugh, she did think of everything!' I pouted and shoved the shoes on before following Tenten and Hinata outside.
"Here, you might need this." Tenten handed me a hair tie.
"Thanks." I mumbled.
As we were about to walk out into the gym, the Ino trio strutted in front of us, "Good luck, Sakura." she sneered. "You're going to need it." Then she flipped her hair to the side and walked off with her other robots.
Tenten turned around with an angry look on her face and muttered, "I really hate her." 'Sounds familiar,' I thought to myself as we walked out into the gym.
There were a lot of students. Not just about twenty, but more like thirty or thirty-five. And yes, that's a lot. Compared to the nine others I had in my pathetic P.E. class whom I was embarrassed to even run in front of, thirty-five was a lot. Fortunately it was also less personal because there were more students, but unfortunately, everyone I knew was there.
I plopped onto the gym floor with everyone else, and copied what they were doing, which right now was stretching. We stretched our arms, legs, backs, and every other muscle I hadn't realized existed. Even worse, when everyone bent over to touch their toes, I couldn't. Touching my toes was always something I couldn't do, and it may not seem like a big deal, but it is when everyone else is doing it and you're not, and the gym teacher is eyeing you.
"Okay, everyone down on the floor," Anko announced, and everyone did as they were told.
All of the students began getting into push-up positions and I wept inside as I wished that this whole thing wasn't happening, and that I was anywhere but in Athletics. Even Algebra II would be better than this hell!
"Up," she shouted, and everyone went up, "Down." 'Damnit' "Up," My arms shook under the weight of my body, "Down." 'Damnit' "Up," I could feel my face burning red from strain, "Down." 'Damnit' "Up," My breathing faltered, "Down." 'Damnit' "Up," Crying would be really good right now, "Down. Now everyone sit up." 'Oh thank goodness' I sighed in relief and ignored the sweat on my forehead.
I looked around the room and everyone else seemed perfectly fine, as if they weren't having the worst experience of their life. Hinata didn't even look like the athletic type and yet she was doing push-ups like she was reading a book!
I groaned when I realized everyone was getting into sit-up positions, but knew that it couldn't be as bad as push-ups . . . I was wrong.
Athletics class continued like this for a torturing fifty minutes. We alternated between push-ups, sit-ups, jumping jacks, heel slappers, and many other forms of exercise I'd never experienced in my entire life. Glancing around the room there were students smiling and having occasional casual conversations, while I stood in my puddle of sweat (literally), hardly having the breath to breathe.
Out of an unfortunate hereditary gene, my face turns red a lot faster and darker than anyone else's during exercise. From the time I was born I was told that this just meant I had "good circulation" and that I should be thankful. No, actually I'm not thankful. Especially at this moment where I'm not only embarrassed by my inability in athletics, but that embarrassment has caused my cheeks to turn red, and on top of that, my "good circulation" makes me even more red; thus causing me to look like a tomato.
During the whole process I averted my eyes away from Sasuke who was breezing through the whole process just like everyone else. Using my peripherals I could see that he was a little off to the side away from everyone else, or it might have been that everyone else was away from him. Either way, he was just as fit as everyone else, therefore permanently tomatofying my face.
When the class was officially over I fell to the floor, hardly breathing and sweating more sweat than I'd ever sweat in my life. The best way to describe it is that it felt like I'd just swam in the ocean. While everyone was casually making their way to the locker rooms they glanced in my direction, muttering words I couldn't hear or actually could care less to hear.
Ino (of course) snickered with her sidekicks, "Told you so," she muttered. I was too exhausted to glare.
"Ignore her Sakura, you did well." Tenten encouraged. Hinata nodded her head and smiled, then offered her hand to help me off my puddle of sweat on the floor.
I mumbled "Thanks," but her encouragement didn't make a difference.
Reluctantly I followed Hinata and Tenten to the female locker room, but didn't speak a word as I miserably changed into my clean clothes. There almost didn't seem a point in doing this, except for the fact that I felt a tad bit cleaner (though unbearably sticky).
Once we were changed we grabbed our bags and headed outside. The whole time I felt apathetic and didn't hear a single word in the casual conversation Tenten and Hinata were carrying. My mind wandered to different places in time, each memory floating through me like jelly. They stuck and slid off me, but were soon dissolved. The only ones that stayed were those of a certain Werewolf. His jet black hair hanging in front of his eyes as he drew, and his body looming over his work in complete concentration.
I hadn't seen him since the beginning of Athletics, and was now hoping that I'd 'accidentally' run into him. Perhaps then we could have a conversation about . . . anything. Perhaps then my mood would change. 'Yeah, I'd be so nervous I'd pass out or go into a panic attack. Get your head back together Sakura! He's a Werewolf!'
I shook my head of all thoughts, and sighed. Maybe not thinking at all and just looking would help me to see. Finally I looked up at the sky and everything that was around me in order to feel at least a little less apathetic.
The sun shone through the beautiful cotton clouds that swam across the ocean blue sky, enjoying every bit of the day. Even the breeze that swept past us felt beautiful, and just as perfect as the sky. The oak trees danced to the rhythm of the Earth while the grass swayed in tempo. It was as if each part of nature was celebrating the fact that this very long first day of hybrid school was over.
For a moment I allowed a small smile to graze my lips.
"This is where I depart . . . see you guys later!" Hinata smiled and tried to run off, but Tenten caught her sleeve.
The sudden change in conversation caught my attention and pulled me out of my thoughts. I hadn't even realized we were only a few feet away from the front door to the girl's dorm.
"What's the rush?" Tenten eyed her suspiciously.
Hinata didn't meet her eyes as she responded, "You know, just got some things that need to get done."
"Some medical things?"
"What's going on?" I asked, completely confused.
Tenten turned to me, still holding onto Hinata's sleeve, "Hinata has an addiction to Hybridology, and therefore has no social life-" She then made a gesture between us, "-besides us."
Hinata sighed, "I'm actually working on Telepathy right now," Then she eyed Tenten, "it's very important."
"What's that?" I asked curiously, suddenly incredibly intrigued.
Tenten sighed in defeat as Hinata went on a nerd rampage, "It's a difficult medical maneuver used in the Hybrid Military, Police Force, and by any and all Hybrid doctors. It allows you to see everything in someone's mind, while also recovering memories . . . if you choose to do so, anyway."
"It's also part of what Doctor Biba did to you yesterday." Tenten added.
I scrunched my eyebrows, "Seriously?" 'Maybe that 'dream' was real . . .'
As I stood in thought, Tenten and Hinata continued discussing Hinata's social life and how it didn't really "exist". When the subject of hanging out with Naruto came up, Hinata dismissed it quickly saying, "He said he was busy . . ."
Tenten finally let the whole thing go (including her sleeve) and let her "nerd-it-up" in the Advanced Hybridology lab.
Finally Tenten and I headed to the elevator, and up to "Floor D", and into our amazingly wonderful room with my amazingly comfortable bed. I smiled sleepily, and dropped my bag before falling face flat onto my bed. The sensation was wonderful. I'd never felt so comfortable in my entire life. After such a long, hard day of Hybrid school this was all I wanted to do.
As I began drifting to sleep, I heard Tenten walking around the room as if making as much ruckus as possible. Too exhausted to open my eyes, it sounded as if she were getting everything on her side of the room organized, while preparing to go somewhere. Though it didn't matter to me if she did . . . it'd be quieter that way.
Suddenly the room became quiet and I felt her eyes on me.
"What are you doing?" She asked, as if it weren't obvious.
I peeked one eye open, "Trying to sleep . . ."
"Sleep?" She sounded appalled. "Sleep isn't good right now!"
I glared at her with my face squished into my pillow, "And why not?"
Tenten went into a hysteria, throwing her arms in every direction, "Cause if you sleep now, you're not going to want to sleep tonight, thus causing you to stay up late. Then if you stay up late, you go to sleep late, but you have to wake-up early for classes. Thus forcing your body to wake-up and stay awake during the whole entire day! Then you'll really be sleepy!"
I pushed my face into my pillow, angry, "So what should I do?"
"Go jogging with me!" She said a little too cheerfully.
For a second I thought she was just joking, but when I pulled my head up and actually looked at her, she was already dressed in athletic shorts and shirt, and running shoes!
I squinted at her, "Are you crazy? Why would I want to go jogging when I just had the most painful experience of my life in Athletics?"
"Because," She held up a finger, as if about to state a fact, "Jogging can be a relaxing experience when you do it often, and-" She held up her whole hand, stopping me from speaking. "-it is not only good for you, but it releases stress." She smiled. That smile was beginning to annoy me.
Before I knew it, I was clad in a borrowed work-out outfit from Tenten, complete with an older pair of running shoes. She held up her thumb and index finger to her chin, looking over the whole outfit to see if it fit.
"That actually fits pretty well." She nodded approvingly. I glared in response. She noticed and giggled. 'Ugh.'
Unwillingly, (and outwitted by her many facts) I followed Tenten back the way we came. It had only been fifteen minutes ago when I was relieved to head back to my room and go to sleep, and yet here I was back outside, dressed to jog. The world around me didn't even feel the same as it had before; in fact, it felt more dreadful than before. The sun and sky, once bright and shining, was officially being suffocated by a blanket of clouds. Even the wind no longer caused the trees and grass to dance, it caused everything to tremble.
As Tenten and I jogged she cued me in on many helpful tips – 'Not that I care.' – such as keeping your hands open, because closing them uses more energy, and breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth.
After a while I began to submerse myself into the steady pace of the jog and actually began to enjoy it. I slowly realized that this is what I should have been doing, instead of staying inside and studying all the time. 'No wonder I'm so out of shape.'
"You're doing well so far, keep it up." Tenten looked over at me and smiled, and this time it didn't annoy me.
We followed a concrete path through the school grounds, allowing me to see more of the Academy. Tenten explained that there were five main buildings that held classrooms, not including the Primary building. The one I'd gone in for Art III was in the shape of a perfect square, then the building next to it went around the square like an "L". Next to the "L" was a long rectangular building parallel to it, and then next to that building were two square buildings right next to each other, parallel to the rectangular one.
As we jogged through these she pointed out where some of her classes were, "Though no one knows where some of the senior classes are . . . they're a secret until you're a senior." She added mysteriously, and that made me excited (and nervous) about senior year.
Once we cleared the buildings we took a dirt path that branched off of the concrete one. Looking ahead, I could see that the dirt path began descending into the woods . . . any farther than that was obscured by the forest.
"Are you sure we can go in there?" I asked hesitantly.
She gave me a funny look, "Of course we can, it's a part of the school grounds . . . I jog this way every day."
I sighed in defeat.
When we began passing the first few trees I began feeling a little claustrophobic, and paranoid. It could just be in my head, but I just didn't feel completely safe in there. The oak tree forest slowly became thicker with each step we took deeper and it felt as if every tree had a pair of eyes set on us. When a twig would snap underneath our feet I couldn't help but glance around, waiting for someone to jump out.
Slowly the minutes ticked by and eventually I felt at ease again. Though instead of the silence, I suddenly began to hear other people talking and yelling. Up ahead a large wooden fence began to materialize before my eyes.
Tenten, sensing my curiosity, said, "That's the Training Grounds," When we were close to the entrance we slowed to a steady walk. "Come on, I'll show you around."
As soon as we stepped inside I felt as if I'd entered another world. Within the large fenced-in area were many different Hybrid students practicing skills that went with the specific spirit inside them. Not that I knew what that felt like yet- 'At least not completely . . .' –but it's how Tenten described being "one" with your Hybrid spirit. I wondered how often I'll be seeing this place, especially three months from now when practically everyone in the school decides to fight me.
Walking through I observed all that there was to do in there, some of which actually seemed fun. All around the perimeter of the training grounds was a running track where students were racing, jogging, or sprinting in short spurts. In the middle of the track were obstacle courses, tires to run through, ropes that you would carry yourself across on, and rock climbing walls.
Besides all of these things that appeared to be simple Human activities, there were also many targets randomly placed around the inside of the training grounds where students were using their chakra to levitate weapons and throw them at the target. For a moment in time I felt a sense of nostalgia wash over me as I recalled a piece of the 'dream' I'd had just last night in the Infirmary.
"Hey Sakura!" A familiar voice called to me, pulling me from my thoughts.
I smiled at the sight of blonde hair, "Hey Naruto, what are you doing here?"
"We were just about to ask you that." Kiba laughed while raising one eyebrow, "Training already?"
"No, Tenten was just showing me around."
Naruto and Kiba were both wearing athletic clothes and had only a few small sweat spots, thus reminding me how much more athletic they were than me.
"Wanna train with us?" Kiba asked excitedly.
I held up my hands, as if trying to physically stop that stupid idea from reaching me, "No thank you!" Noticing the disappointment on their faces I quickly added, "Maybe some other time."
Satisfied with that answer they turned to Tenten and she shrugged and said, "Just one race." Kiba jumped in excitement and Naruto fist pumped the air. "But in Human form."
"What?" They whined in unison. Tenten gave them a look and together they sighed and said, "Fine . . ."
I watched from the side as all three of them lined up next to one another, preparing to race each other around the track. Before they began, Tenten turned to me and said, "Be sure to keep an eye on us, if you lose us, you might not see the real winner."
"That'll be me," Kiba smirked.
"In your dreams," Naruto teased.
"Sakura, tell us when to go, the boys often cheat." Tenten winked.
A bit of excitement ran through me as I said, "Ready?" They crouched forward, "Set," Their muscles tensed under their clothes, "Go!" I jumped back in surprise when dirt scattered around them, as if they were each sending off sonic vibrations into the ground.
Quickly I searched the track for any sign of them but felt at a loss when it seemed there weren't any students racing on the track.
"See? Told you . . . only in your dreams!" Naruto teased and I jumped around to find the three of them standing behind me. "Did you see me, Sakura?"
I stared at them wide-eyed. All three of them were just standing there as if they hadn't even moved. "No . . ." I said hesitantly.
Tenten walked up to me and patted my shoulder, "It's okay, no one ever does the first time."
Kiba smirked and held up his finger, shaking it at Naruto, "Don't you worry, one of these days I'm going to win . . . and when I do, I'm going to rub it in your face."
Naruto laughed in mockery while Tenten shook her head and sighed. I smiled at their competitive nature, for once feeling thankful that Tenten dragged me out of bed.
"Well as much fun as it has been running in circles, Sakura and I are going to continue jogging on the trail. See you guys later."
After we said our good-byes and Tenten promised she'd be back tomorrow to kick their butts, we walked back outside the training grounds and continued jogging on the trail we'd been on earlier. It was nice to have a small break from jogging, but having the minute amount of time to rest caused my body to go back into sleep mode. Running wasn't much help either, and I began to feel my calves cramping.
All of the helpful tips Tenten had given me earlier about jogging completely went to the wind as it became harder to breathe. The stitch in my side grew and became more and more difficult to ignore, but I pressed on, knowing there wasn't really any place to stop and rest.
As we turned a corner on the trail, I saw a clearing in the distance. A small hill protruded from the ground and for some reason there weren't any trees on that hill, except for one large tree at the very top. When we were closer I could see that the top flattened just enough that it would be a comfortable spot for a few people to sit and rest.
The spot appealed to me and a strange sense ran through me, as if it would one day hold a lot of meaning. As we jogged I became more and more intrigued, wanting so much to run up to the top of that hill and fall asleep.
"Hey Tenten," I breathed out, slowly coming to a steady walk.
She looked at me confused, keeping only a few paces ahead of me, "What is it?"
"I think I'm going to rest here for a little while."
Practically jogging in place, she asked, "Do you want me to wait here with you?"
"No, it's okay, you go on ahead." I smiled reassuringly.
"Okay . . ." She smiled back, still unsure. "I'm going to go to the end of the trail and circle back around; I'll meet you back here in a little while, okay?"
"Sure." I nodded.
Tenten gave me one last look before she bounced forward and jogged at a much faster pace than we'd been jogging before. That's when I realized she'd been going a lot slower than usual just to keep up with me. 'Well, that was kind of her.' Though it didn't help much with my confidence, and only made me feel worse knowing that I was holding her back.
Once Tenten was out of sight, I turned to my left where the hill was now located, and began walking off the trail in order to reach it. There was probably a safer path somewhere else, but I didn't care to look for it at the moment.
As I stepped through the edge of the clearing and onto the soft, green grass, it felt like an entirely different place. At some point in time when I'd been jogging through the forest, the clouds had parted just enough that a ray of sun was peeking through. Enough light reached the clearing that everything appeared to be glowing with a soft intensity.
Presented before me was the hill, covered entirely in lush, healthy grass, except for that one stop on the very top that held a large oak tree. The hill appeared a lot larger than I had seen from a distance, but was small enough that I could almost see the top. Still, my muscles protested at the effort I was about to force them to make, but I ignored them.
One step at a time I climbed the hill, taking my time as my feet and calves ached. Finally I reached the top and sighed, looking back out at the direction in which I came. I placed a hand on the tree and rested against it, allowing the large shadow produced by the tree to cover me and cool my body down as the wind swept through. Expanding my lungs I breathed in, and out. Gazing over the forest I could almost see over the tops of the trees, but nothing past that. In a sense I was thankful, I would have felt self-conscious if other students could see me standing at the top of the hill.
Being up there I felt a sense of protection, as if nothing or no one in the world could get to me, or see me. I took a few steps back, around the other side of the tree, and felt the back of my foot collide with something. Before I even had time to think, I found myself hitting the ground, butt first. I sighed at my clumsiness, and looked up to find that it wasn't a rock I'd tripped on, but a person.
I gasped in surprise, "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know anyone was up here!" I babbled in panic and hoped that this particular person wouldn't get mad at me.
He looked up at me through his long, dark bangs, a hint of laughter floating in his onyx eyes. It was strange seeming him so peaceful up here, surrounded by the innocence of nature. Without even realizing it, my heart had been racing in my chest. I placed a hand there to calm it down, doing my best to avert eye contact.
The young werewolf before me continued doing what he had been doing before I tripped over his foot, drawing. I sat up in a more comfortable position, taking great care in not getting too close to him.
Without thinking I asked, "What are you doing up here?" The wind rustled the leaves above our heads, in some way putting me at ease.
"It's quiet." He replied solemnly.
I nodded my head in return, wondering if I was becoming a nuisance to him by being up here. "I'll go," I said suddenly after a few seconds of silence.
When I began to stand up, he said, "You're my partner."
"Yes . . ." I replied, confused as to where he was going with this. For some strange reason I felt relieved that he spoke before I left, something inside me didn't quite want to go yet.
"I have a camera," He held up an object that was hanging by a strap around his neck, and sure enough it was a small black camera. Well, everything was small except the lens, but that just showed that it took beautiful shots.
"Oh," I said, surprised. "Good, now we don't have to borrow one. . ." I cleared my throat, trying to prevent any awkward silences, "So uh . . . basically we have to find an example of interdependency and take a picture of it, right?"
He nodded, and I picked at the blades of grass. "Any ideas?" I asked hopefully.
Sasuke closed his sketch book and placed it on the grass next to time, sitting up to get a better view of the forest. He sat in thought for a moment while I quietly observed his facial features through my peripherals. For once taking the form of a terrifying werewolf, he now held an expression that completely contradicted that fact, making it merely fiction.
His eyebrows pushed forward slightly as he spoke his thoughts out loud, "Interdependency can be better described as mutual dependency. Simply meaning two beings depend on one another for any means necessary, depending on the situation."
I was surprised at how calm he was and didn't doubt that he could probably hear my heart trying to beat its way out of my chest, "Like a mutualistic relationship?"
"Exactly," He looked in my eyes, and I turned mine away.
"So," I started nervously, "I'm guessing I'm the one who's going to be in the picture?"
When he finally looked away, it gave me the chance to look back at him. The clouds moved smoothly over the sun's single ray of light, causing the clearing to become slightly darker than before. The wind seemed to respond to this and moved his hair gently away from his eyes. They reflected something I hadn't imagined to see . . . 'Sadness?' I pondered.
"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it." He spoke quietly, his voice at a distance, almost as if he wasn't aware of my presence.
My eyebrows scrunched together in confusion. I wanted to know what he meant by that, but as he stood up to leave, it seemed the questioning would have to wait for another time.
"Where are you going?" I asked quickly.
He turned to look behind me, "Your friend is coming." Then without another word or glance, he turned back around and began his descent down the hill.
Before I could even mutter a good-bye, Tenten leaped up next to me, causing my heart to drop into my stomach. "What are you doing up here, Sakura?" she asked a little too happily.
I sighed, trying to lower my heart rate. Inconspicuously, I glanced over where Sasuke had retreated. I wished she would have run a lot slower. "Nothing, just resting," I finally answered. She eyed me suspiciously for a moment but didn't seem to notice where my eyes had drifted. Finally I stood up on my feet, "But I'm ready to head back now." I forced a smile, hoping she'd buy it. Fortunately she did, and together we skidded our way down the hill, and back onto the trail that had originally brought me here.
The jog back was less thrilling than the first time, and now that the sun was beginning to set the atmosphere around us became cooler. The wind drifted through our clothes and hair, gently using our sweat to cool us down. All of the pains I felt pulsing throughout my body were pushed to the back of my thoughts as that young werewolf stood alone in the middle of them.
'Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it.' His voice echoed in my mind. 'What did he mean by that?' I pondered silently. His expression had seemed . . . almost pained as he said it. He reminded me of a stray animal that no one wanted to look at or save, fearful that he might carry a disease or bite. I felt pity in my heart as I stood amongst that very crowd, watching the stray creature try to defend itself and yet never caring what he felt inside.
As Tenten and I arrived back to the school and began running through the main buildings, I remembered a mental note I'd tucked away earlier that day, "Hey Tenten, I just remembered I need to get my books and an I.D."
She made a clicking sound with her tongue as she remembered too, "Oh yeah! That's right! I'll go with you."
Together we arrived at the back of the primary building and made our way through the double glass doors. As we passed the snarling wolf statue it suddenly held a whole new meaning for me. Just yesterday I'd seen this very same statue as it glared down at me, ready to pounce and attack its prey. I still saw aggressiveness, but I also saw need; a need to protect and defend. I smiled at the statue. Tenten seemed to notice and raised an eyebrow, but didn't question me.
When we reached the office we walked inside and asked Shizune about my books and if I could get a Hybrid I.D. "Oh yeah! That's right . . . I'll go get your books, they're in Tsunade's office." When she returned she had a large stack of school books, every single one I'd seen today, except for one. She placed all of the books on a chair nearby, and held out a bright blue paperback book titled, 'Hybrid Handbook'. "I actually forgot to give this to you yesterday." She said sheepishly, and handed me the book.
"Thanks," I said, but internally I sighed and thought, 'This would have come in handy . . .'
As for my I.D., she took me into another room that had a plain white backdrop for me to stand in front of. I completely forgot I had to have a picture taken for my I.D. and suddenly regretted waiting until after I'd been to Athletics and the after-school jog. I groaned in annoyance, pulling down my hair and fingering through it so that it looked a little more decent than my windblown ponytail. I smiled and hoped it would be decent enough.
After the process, she let me look at the picture, and it actually looked a lot better than I'd imagined. If someone didn't know that I'd just jogged and sweated before the picture, they would have thought that I purposely blow dried my hair that way.
Satisfied with my I.D., I placed it inside the Hybrid Handbook and placed that on top of the stack of books Shizune had brought me. Tenten picked up half and as we left the office I yelled, "Thank you," a little more enthusiastically than I'd intended, but it sufficed.
When we walked back outside the primary building and into the courtyard, dark clouds began rolling in. The wind was chillier than earlier and caused my spine to tingle and goose bumps to appear on my arm. There weren't as many students as there had been outside earlier, but that could have been for the need to study, since it was still beautiful outside. 'A dark beauty . . .' I thought to myself, and quickly remembered Sasuke's words, 'Everything has beauty in it, but not everyone sees it.'
"Looks like it's going to storm tonight," Tenten noted, scrunching her nose in disappointment . . . or disgust, it was difficult to tell.
"You don't like storms?" I asked, sounding surprised.
She gave a fake laugh, "No, not really . . ."
"I do." I muttered to myself, glancing back up at the sky again.
When we arrived to the girl's dorm we had to work together to get the door open. The elevator was easy, because it was just a button, but then back at our room, Tenten had to place the books on the floor in order for her to unlock it. I sighed in relief when I was finally able to place my books down on my bed, not caring that they were sprawled out. Tenten placed the rest right next to them, then went over to her side of the room, looking around and finally taking out a few books.
I stared at the books in front of me, feeling curiosity and resentment come over me. "Now what?" I asked, hoping it was time for something exciting to happen. I knew that if I didn't keep my body moving I'd fall asleep, fast.
"Now," She held up a large textbook, "We study."
I stared at the wall, pouting, "Anything after that?"
Tenten was already situated on her bed, all of her books and papers around her, "After we study, we go to dinner."
"What time is that?"
"Seven fifteen." Tenten replied, as she licked her first finger in order to turn the page of one of her textbooks.
I glanced at the clock, 'Ugh, an hour and fifteen minutes . . .'
After a minute went by I finally gave up and decided to do something productive. Slowly I dug out one book at a time, each I recognized from using it in class. I went through all of them, reading the chapters I was supposed to be reading, doing my best to memorize the new information. I took out the supplies I used today during school and jotted down notes and definitions that I figured would be useful.
Fifteen minutes had gone by and as every second past my eyelids would become heavier. When their weight became unbearable and my eyes felt as if they were drying out, I closed them. All of the running around and exercising and thinking came down on me in a heap and the only thing that brought me comfort was the bed I was laying on. 'When did I lie down?' I thought, but didn't care to find the answer.
"Hey Sakura, you awake?" Tenten's voice slowly brought me back to reality.
"Huh?" Slowly I sat up, stretching my arms and back, "Yeah . . . what time is it?" I asked while wiping saliva off the side of my face. Unfortunately I'd fallen asleep on one of my open textbooks, decorating it with a drool spot.
"It's about seven . . . I've taken a shower already, so go ahead and take one before dinner." I looked at Tenten and noticed she was already clean and dressed.
The idea of food caused a spark in me and suddenly I was awake and alive. I jumped out of bed, grabbed some undergarments and random jeans and shirt, and rushed into the bathroom. First I turned on the water to allow it to warm up while I stripped off the hard, sweat covered clothes I'd fallen asleep in. My head pounded a little from taking a very short nap, and also for falling asleep on a hard book, but it wasn't anything that a shower and food wouldn't fix.
The second the water hit me I was in euphoria. All of the stress that had leaked its way inside me seeped out of the cracks and down the drain. The sweat and dirt melted off my skin and as I lathered, I felt as if I were in heaven. Warm water hit my muscles, knowing just the right spots to soothe them. The warm steam drifted around the bathroom, caressing everything in its path, and I soaked all of it in. Never had a shower seemed more wonderful than now.
Unfortunately the bliss didn't last long; it was interrupted by my stomach protesting that it was now time to eat. I agreed, and got out of the shower. I dried off and dressed quickly, not caring to blow dry my hair, but instead put it up in a wet bun.
Finally I exited the bathroom with a content sigh, and the steam rolled out. Tenten looked over at me with a knowing smile and said, "Showers always feel better when you know you've earned them, especially by sweating your butt off."
I laughed, "Yeah, no kidding . . ." Then I slipped on a pair of flip flops, too tired to look for socks. "Oh! Almost forgot something . . ." My roommate raised an eyebrow at me, and then rolled her eyes when she saw me take my I.D. out of the bright blue handbook Shizune had given me. "Okay, ready?"
Tenten nodded, and together we left our room, locking it before we went to the elevator. As we left the girl's dorm, I noticed that there were a lot of students outside, heading to the cafeteria just as we were. Some were dressed in pajamas, holes cut in different places to allow space for their tails or other hybrid features. Seeing these suddenly made me conscious of my own. I ran my fingers across the petite horn on the side of my head, no longer flinching away from its rigged edges.
We took the dirt path that led up to the courtyard, which were all lined with tiki torches. I looked up at the sky and saw that it was slowly beginning its descent into darkness, and by the time dinner was over, it would consume the school. Along with twilight, the wind dropped several degrees as the moon became the new host to this side of the world. I shivered as my body adjusted. With eager eyes I searched the sky for stars, and only found a few.
As we arrived at the courtyard I looked back out at the line of tress that created our own forest. Chills ran up my spine and I hoped that I would never have to go in there at night. It seemed as if there were colossal black curtains all around us, and we were center stage.
Finally we approached Cafeteria A, "Hey Tenten, I'm just going to go ahead and go to the next one, then I'll meet you in the middle, okay?" I said, with obvious resentment at the idea of having to ever go back into the gruesome room.
My roommate smiled in understanding, "Sure Sakura." Then she turned and walked into the blood filled cafeteria. I shivered at the thought, feeling my stomach churn. I quickly pushed all thoughts of the red meat into the back of my head, and concentrated on getting to Cafeteria B where appetizing entrées awaited me.
When I opened the doors to the cafeteria, I inhaled the sweet scent of water. Everything in the room was filled with water. All the way from the fruits and vegetables, to the grain and sugar cubes. Water flowed through the room, into the food, and into our bellies. There was even mist in certain areas where water was visibly being used to keep the greens as green as possible.
Feeling my mouth water – I giggled at my attempt at humor – I grabbed a tray off one of the counter tops that held them, and began filling it up with delicacies. This time I opted for trying something different, so I scooped up a variety of seeds, nuts, and dry fruits. Some of which I knew the names of, and others I didn't. Then, knowing this wouldn't fill me up, I raided the salad bar, this time not caring (or noticing) that this school didn't have any type of salad dressing. I finished off my dinner creation by grabbing a banana that had small spots all over it, 'My favorite.' I thought with a hungry smile.
On my way to the registers, I grabbed a cup and filled it up with ice and water. This time when the lunch lady asked me for my I.D., I reluctantly sat my drink down, and pulled it out of my pocket. She quickly scanned it and before I could blink, handed it back to me. After my soft 'thank you', I headed through the doors, and out into the light of the silvery moon.
"Hey Sakura, over here!" I heard someone call my name, and sighed in relief when I saw Naruto waving his hands in the air like an air traffic controller. I was hoping they'd spot me quickly; I hated walking around like a lost puppy, not knowing where to sit when you find yourself in those awkward cafeteria moments.
Reluctantly I made my way over to my new group of friends, and sat in between Naruto and Kiba, "Hey guys!" I said enthusiastically to everyone, surprised at the sudden joy that came over me. Everyone responded in the same amount of enthusiasm . . . except for Ghoul. He was still a mystery to me.
"Oh, bugger! You're an herbivore?" Rikart suddenly yelled out, his English accent completely taking over his voice and causing everyone to laugh as he pointed accusingly at me. Everyone could see he meant it humorously but he kept a serious façade.
I sighed, half smiling, half irritated, "No Rikart, I'm an omnivore. I just don't enjoy eating raw meat!" I glanced down at the plate in front of him. It held a raw t-bone steak, already cut into. I scrunched my nose in disgust, "Like you."
He made a face at my plate, "Yours isn't much appetizing, either."
Tenten sighed, "Rikart, leave poor Sakura alone, just let her eat her plants."
I raised an eyebrow at the girl across from me, "What's that supposed to mean?"
She didn't seem phased by my question and continued to cut into her food, "It means that you're eating plants."
I scuffed, not knowing why I was offended. They weren't just plants . . . I shook my head for a moment, 'Wait, what was that supposed to mean?'
I sighed again, resting my elbow on the table as I picked at my plate. My lips squeezed into a tight line as I held onto my thoughts as tight as I could, doing my best not to let them slip out, 'At least I'm not eating another fellow friend.' But as I chewed my salad and heard the seeds crack against my teeth, I couldn't help but feel that eating these products from the Earth was just as bad as eating raw meat.
My body eased out of the tense state I'd been in, and I put a smile on my face to show everyone that I wanted to join in on the conversation that was going around the table. It had something to do with everyone's "born abilities".
"What's your Origin, Sakura?" Rikart asked curiously. I raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"You can't expect her to know that," Kiba replied, crunching on his Kibbles as if they actually were Cocoa Puffs . . . except without the milk.
I began peeling back my banana, "What's that?" I took a bite and savored the sweet taste.
"Not everyone has an Origin that can be traced, but sure enough, everyone has one." Tenten smiled.
Rikart stepped in to better answer my question, "An Origin is . . ." He made hand gestures as if looking for the right words, "Basically where you come from, here," he pointed to the spot on his chest where his heart is. His eyes sparkled.
Naruto cleared his throat so everyone would listen to what he had to say, I giggled at his gesture, seeing as I was the only one who got it, "In simpler terms, if you can trace the Origin of your surname, you can figure out what your bloodline is."
"Sometimes it literally means something, and other times it's recognized by others, like Hinata's." Rikart added, and I glanced over at her, sitting across Naruto and next to Tenten. She smiled in conformation, then continued eating her meal, using small bites to consume the bit of meat she had on her plate. I scowled in disapproval, but no one seemed to notice.
"So what's your full name, Sakura?" Rikart asked curiously, bending over the table with his arms on it, as if being closer would get the answer faster.
"Sakura Haruno."
Everyone became quiet.
"Well," Hinata began speaking when no one else would, "In literal terms, your first name means cherry blossom and your last name means blooming fields. But I'm not sure of that Origin –" She quit speaking when Rikart gave her a look that said, "Are you serious?"
Rikart's lip twitched up, "Are you serious?" He said, and I had to keep myself from laughing.
"What?" She asked, trying to hide her confused shame.
"Her father is Sol Haruno!" Rikart held his hand out excitedly at me, and Hinata finally understand what was going on.
She let out a small gasp, "Oh . . . sorry Sakura."
"It's okay, you didn't know . . ." Sol was my father and even I didn't know what was going on.
"Oh my gosh," Naruto whispered to himself, continuously.
Kiba's jaw was hanging open, and Tenten just gazed over at me in deep contemplation. They all watched while I sat in my veil of complete confusion.
"Okay," I sighed, releasing a breath of air I hadn't realized I was holding, "Yes, Sol is my dad –", "I knew it!" Rikart cut me off and I glared at him. He quickly closed his mouth. "-but I honestly know nothing about him." 'Except for that dream I had, but even then . . . what if that was real? What if those were my real memories, and not just the ones that Mother told me about.'
"Your father," Rikart started, seeming to be the only one who could speak or think, "Was an Officer in the Hybrid Military, I don't recall what rank though, but he's remembered highly." The use of past tense caused me to flinch; he noticed and apologized quickly before continuing, "He taught HJROTC at the South Academy for many years, and helped Gautama Uchiha save Shodai's life." He whispered in wonder, as if there was so much more to know.
I kept my eyes on the table, feeling something in my mind tugging and pulling, pleading for me to remember my real past, but I still felt something in the way. Like a wall, keeping me away from uncovering my memories. The dream I had last night was my only anchor.
"I don't remember." I mumbled, "I-I don't know . . ." I stuttered, feeling myself ready to cry.
My friends around me watched me, they thought silently to themselves and I could see them wanting to know why. Why wasn't I able to remember my own past?
Naruto cleared his throat, disrupting the uncomfortable silence, "What's your Mother's maiden name?"
I thought about my Mother for a moment. Now her I remember, clearly. I didn't want to believe she would ever hide my past from me, but Tsunade spoke of the doctor, whom Mother seemed very close to . . . "I'm afraid that he may have influenced your Mother in some way." 'I'm afraid she was already influenced . . . from the very beginning.'
"Arciere, Amory Arciere." I said my Mother's maiden name first, then her first and last together, in order to satisfy their curiosity.
"Archer." Hinata smiled, finding joy in making up for her shame earlier.
"Hmm . . ." Rikart thought, making that annoying sound I hadn't heard since Mrs. Florelock, the nurse at San Arcos. "Your Father a Warrior, your Mother an Archer . . . and you have the Hybrid feature that only one other Hybrid has had."
I'd heard that somewhere . . . from the doctor? Yes, I could remember clearly now, the doctor's words, "-but what Hybridologists actually know is that that specific type of horn is incredibly rare, and that only one other Hybrid has been known to possess it."
"Who?" I asked, realizing I never even considered my horn's importance until just now, when Rikart made everything seem very important.
"Hashirama Senju," He smiled, noticing how my eyes widened, "Or simply Shodai," He added.
I noticed my Dad clench his fists in anger, and the bow's flames rose higher, "Unfinished business? You've already killed your own Father, who died protecting Hashirama Senju!"
The memory jolted in my mind, 'The wolf leader's Father was Gautama? But . . . that can't be right . . . Sasuke's grandfather is Gautama . . . that could only mean-' I gasped in horror. Finally pieces were beginning to fall into place. Not everything, but just enough for me to figure a few things out.
I pictured Sasuke's face, contorted into pain and misery as he turned from Human to Werewolf. Eyes blazing red, lips pulled back in a snarl and claws out and ready. His form hunched over into a predatory killing mode. Then it quickly changed, and I saw him outside on the hill, drawing peacefully as the wind pushed his hair out of his eyes. Those dark, black eyes that seemed almost . . . kind . . ? I could never imagine those eyes being the owner of a murderer . . .
"Leave her alone! Respect her life! Maybe she doesn't feel like talking about her life right now, especially on her first day!" Tenten suddenly shouted.
I looked up and felt something wet and salty touch the corner of my mouth. My hand moved quickly, wiping away the lone tear that seemed to find its way out of my thoughts.
"Sorry . . ." Rikart, Kiba, Naruto, and Hinata mumbled to me.
"It's okay," I smiled, "Y'know, I'm starting to get kinda sleepy, I'm going to go ahead and go back to my room. I'll see you guys in the morning." I looked at each one of their faces, making sure my smile reached all of them. Then I picked up my tray and stepped away from my seat.
"I'm going with you." Tenten announced, making sure everyone was clear on not speaking to me about my life.
As we walked away I saw Kiba smack Rikart on the arm, mumbling something about staying out of my business. I smiled and rolled my eyes, honestly not caring too much about them talking about my life. It was interesting . . . to say the least.
Tenten and I didn't speak on the way back to our room, the silence was comforting enough. Darkness tightened its grip on the sky but my thoughts were too busy to notice. When we were inside our warm dorm room, we both threw ourselves onto our beds, and sighed.
I turned over to look at Tenten as she began getting up and putting away her study items, "Thanks," I muttered.
She glanced over at me with a quick smile, "You're welcome."
Minutes later we had our pajamas on, school supplies packed, teeth brushed, and light off. I lay down on my bed, inhaling the scent of home. It felt like years since I'd been there, and I felt centuries different. All of the information that had been crammed into me in such a short period of time had my head spinning, and yet brought me to a place of comfort and . . . excitement.
'Definitely exciting . . .' I thought sleepily, too tired to think of anything else . . .
When I opened my eyes, I didn't know how long I'd been asleep. A few hours, maybe . . ? I glanced over at Tenten, and she was still asleep. Rain pelted against the window that sat on the wall between Tenten and I. Cracks of thunder tore the silence in the night sky, and the lightning that flashed whiplashed the atmosphere. I sighed in contentment, and knew that was among the few who found comfort in lightning storms.
Before I closed my eyes to fall back sleep, something in the corner of the room caught my eye. Even with the moon's silver light shining through the window, the dorm room was still dark. Clouds in the sky covered most of the moon's rays, blackening the room. Occasionally a bolt of lightning would send a flash of light throughout the room, and I could see a dark mass.
A large, black figure moved, causing the hairs on the back of my neck to rise. My breathing picked up and I tried to remain calm, but my shaking hands deceived me. I felt the same fear I experienced the night I had that first dream . . . the one with the red eyes. I knew now that I was dreaming of a Werewolf, but at this moment I knew I wasn't dreaming at all.
Just as before, something repeatedly told me not to be afraid, and to stay calm. A warm sensation washed over me, as if something had wiped all of my fear away.
Overcome with drowsiness, I fell back asleep.
Finally! I'm finished! -sigh of relief-
Review please!(:
