TK: Another chapter! I'm so proud. And relieved. I was very much hoping that chapter 8 wasn't a fluke, and my inspiration really had come back for this story.

The book: I know you probably want to read more from the book, but truth be told, I rushed through all those segments in the first seven chapters of this story. I was not supposed to be at Sasori joining Akatsuki by this point, so I need to take it a little slower! Sakura and Sasori in real life need to grow a bit more, and then I'll put in more from the book. But I put a little scene from it right in the beginning because I know people like them :D

Pairing note: Right, so, those who read Upside Down know that that story was mostly about Deidara's unrequited feelings for Sakura, who developed feelings for him after. And you are aware that this is the same modern setting, same art studio, etc. I decided to go a different route, as shown in the past couple chapters. In this story, Sakura is the one who first develops feelings for Sasori, and he will later reciprocate them. Because that's what you're reading this for, eh?! And because it's harder for Sasori to come to terms with feelings than it is for Deidara.

A shoutout and thank you to my beta SpeedDemon315 who has helped me find any typos and mistakes.


A Third Chance

TK Grimm


Chapter Nine:

The Dinner Party


"Really, Sasori-kun," Orochimaru said, watching his partner with perceptive yellow eyes. "I find that hard to believe. Everyone, even the cruelest of us all, has a story to tell."

Sasori's cold amber eyes shifted to the pale-skinned, black-haired Akatsuki at his side. "I do not."

"You have been a part of this organization for what, a year?" Orochimaru frowned for a moment, his mind wandering to thoughts of everything he had left behind in Konoha. The steps he had been forced to take to secure his immortality… "You're far too complex to simply join for the sake of joining. All of us are."

"Do not compare me to the others in this organization, Orochimaru," Sasori said, narrowing his eyes. "I am nothing like them."

"You don't deny you are just as much a killer," the Snake Sannin stated. "Why, you even killed the Kazekage of your village. Quite a feat, Sasori-kun…"

Sasori paused momentarily at the mention of the Third. He hadn't thought of him for a long while. He hadn't thought of her. He leaned back against the cold wall and closed his eyes. "It's none of your business."

"Perhaps not," Orochimaru agreed, "but brilliant minds so similar to my own can't help but intrigue me. No one joins Akatsuki simply for the sake of killing. There's a hidden reason behind each and every one of these people."

"Since when did you become so insightful?" Sasori asked. He waved his hand to gesture to the other members that awaited their Leader's entrance. "What do you care what their stories are?"

Orochimaru looked at them all and then shifted his gaze back to his partner. "I don't. I'm curious about yours. Someone so young – a prodigy, like myself. What drove you over the edge, Sasori-kun? What made you become the monster you are today?"

A wicked smile crossed Sasori's once angelic face. "I have always been a monster, Orochimaru."


Sakura paused in her reading, her green eyes shifting to Deidara. "Dei," she began, her voice unnaturally soft. He looked at her curiously. "Do you know a guy named… Orochimaru?"

Deidara frowned as though he had just swallowed something that left a poor aftertaste. "Not personally," he admitted. "But he hung out with the guys back in high school for a while, before me. You were probably still in middle school when he was a senior – that's why you never met him. Why do you ask?"

She shook her head, unsure of how to tell him that she'd read his name in a four-hundred-year-old book. "Just wondering," she said. "You said he was friends with the guys before you joined?"

"Yeah. I was pretty much his replacement in our little gang."

"Akatsuki," Sakura said, pointing to the name of their art studio.

"That's right. Why the sudden interest?"

"Uh… Was just thinking about the past."

Deidara shrugged simply and nodded. "Okay."

Sakura looked down at a passage in the book that had caught her eye.


Akatsuki was the beginning and the end – the Alpha and Omega. The Jinchuuriki were a means to an end – the world's end. It was an organization made up of the very best. Full of S-class missing-nin, Akatsuki had its own chapter in the Bingo Book.


So the Sasori in the book left the Sand Village and joined an organization of criminals. Akatsuki. The name of their silly clique in high school was Akatsuki. Sakura heard that they got up to a few more… unsavory things in high school. They were a group of bad boys. They drank, smoked pot, sliced tires, skipped class—things Sakura would never dream of doing.

But Akatsuki in the book… in A Third Chance, Akatsuki were murderers. They killed people, stole their techniques, and planned kidnappings of things called Jinchuuriki—whatever that was. And the names…

Sakura closed the book. It was affecting her too much. She needed to step away, to stop thinking about it. She had more important things to think about.

Like her impending not-date with Sasori.

Sakura shook her head, still unable to fully wrap her mind around that. She looked over to where Sasori was talking to Deidara. They were bickering about art again, but that was normal. Just looking at him, usually so serene and now irritated, Sakura smiled.

He was just so beautiful.

She sighed and went back to work.


Sasori and Deidara's differences could be seen in the cars that they drove. Of course, they were so different that a blind man could tell them apart, but their cars were an obvious example. Sasori drove a red Ferrari. He liked the color red. He also liked the long-lasting beauty of the car, and how it would remain beautiful for as long as he owned it. He liked things that lasted.

Deidara drove a black Trans Am from the 70s, one he'd painted a golden phoenix on the hood. It was reliable, for the most part, but the older car required a lot of maintenance, and there was always that doubt that it would last. But as far as Deidara concerned, his car was beautiful because it was temporary.

When Sakura saw the headlights of Sasori's car pull into her driveway from the window, she knew he had arrived to pick her up. She was glad she'd asked him about attire—it would have been awkward to show up to something dressed casual when the attire was formal. Sasori had assured her that it would be casual, however. At work, Deidara told her that he would be wearing the same jeans and rock band t-shirt that he'd worn all day.

Sakura wanted to go casual, but she also wanted to look nice. She almost went with white, but if she had a klutz attack and spilled something on it, she would be stuck with it for the rest of the night. So she settled on a medium length red dress that was elegant, classy, and it fanned out when she twirled. Even though Ino insisted that red didn't go with her pink hair, Sakura liked the color and wore it anyway.

She said a quick goodbye to her kitty in the window and then stepped outside.

Sasori was there, leaning against his car and texting on his phone. "We'll need to pick up Deidara. He—" Sasori broke off when he saw her.

Sakura underwent one of those moments where Sasori tends to stare and analyze before speaking, but this time, since she'd made an effort to look nice, she felt especially scrutinized.

"You look beautiful."

She felt her face heat up, and she smiled widely, but Sasori was already looking at his phone again.

"Apparently he's having car trouble and doesn't have time to fix it before dinner."

"It did kind of rattle a bit when he came to work today," Sakura said, looking thoughtful.

While Sasori texted back a reply, she took in his appearance. He was wearing some dark tan slacks with a black blazer that he left open and unbuttoned to reveal a white shirt underneath. Of course Sasori would believe casual dress code still meant nice. Sakura was suddenly very glad she didn't wear what she'd gone to work in.

He lowered his phone and opened the passenger side car door for her. Sakura bit her lower lip to prevent her obvious smile from being too giddy as she took her seat. Sasori closed the door and took his own seat. He hadn't turned his car off, so he pulled out of the driveway.

Sakura lived a fair distance from Deidara. It gave her plenty of time to think about a subject of conversation, but to her surprise, Sasori actually beat her to it.

"Deidara tells me you were asking about Orochimaru today," he said. Sasori kept his eyes on the road while he drove, occasionally drifting to signs, lights, and other vehicles. One hand was on the steering wheel, and the other was on the clutch to change gears. He glanced at her briefly from the corner of his eyes before switching his gaze back. "Does that have anything to do with the book?"

Sakura lowered her gaze. "Yeah," she admitted. She looked out the window of the Ferrari. "I don't know what it is, Sasori. The similarities, the parallels… and the age of the book, it's just…" she trailed off.

The car came to a stop at a red light.

"Sakura," Sasori said, drawing her attention to him. He was looking at her, his expression calm. "Have you considered returning the book?"

Her lips parted in shock. "Returning it? But I—aren't you curious how it ends? And your grandmother really wanted me to read it."

The light turned green, and Sasori switched gears and drove forward. They were almost at Deidara's apartment complex.

"She will understand," Sasori told her. "I think the book may be doing more harm than good. You're constantly stressed and distracted. If you don't want to return it, maybe consider taking a break."

Sakura felt her heart swell within her chest. A small smile formed on her lips, and she looked down at her lap. "I think I will set it aside for a while. Thank you, Sasori. It's nice to know you care."

Sasori's hand slipped off the clutch in his surprise at her statement. He looked down at it for a moment as if it had betrayed him. Recovering, he continued driving and thought about what she said. Did he care? Sakura was constantly fussing over Deidara and himself. She displayed her emotions on her sleeves. He knew she cared.

But attachment on his part… that was something he hadn't quite factored in to his equation.

"Sasori, you passed Deidara's place!"

He grimaced. "Damn." While he had passed the enter sign, there was another turn right after that said exit. It wasn't as if he paid much attention to rules before. Sasori pulled in through the exit and parked his car.

Sakura looked at him teasingly. "Now it looks like you're stressed and distracted."

His amber eyes shifted to hers. There was a pause in which he collected his thoughts. Then, he sighed, "I suppose you're right. Let's just… forget about the book for tonight."

She nodded to him. "Good idea."

Sasori sent a quick text to Deidara to let him know that they were outside and waiting.

"Oh, I wanted to ask you," Sakura said. She'd actually been trying to figure out how to word this question for most of the car ride and wanted to get it over with before Deidara got in the car. "Um…"

Sasori looked at her expectantly, waiting for her question.

Sakura swallowed down the lump in her throat. "Well, since I'm your, err, date for tonight, should I… should we…"

There was a bit of an awkward pause. Sasori reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose with his index finger and thumb, as if stressed. "Well," he said, lowering his hand, "it's entirely up to you. It would be… convenient to not have to hear Konan's… comments."

"Do you want me to pretend to be your girlfriend?" Sakura asked.

Sasori looked as if the thought left a bad taste in his mouth.

Sakura's heart sank. "I mean, if you don't want me to, that's fine; I don't mind. I just, err, wanted to make sure before we… got there…"

He saw the way Sakura averted her gaze, and Sasori realized that he may have just accidentally offended her, or at least hurt her feelings. "No—Sakura—" he broke off, trying to choose his words. "It isn't you. I just… don't really do relationships. Of any sort."

"Oh," she said, looking even more depressed. "I understand. It's okay, Sasori."

And now he'd managed to hurt her feelings. Sasori sighed and leaned his head back against the seat of his car. He used to be able to read Sakura perfectly. He could tell her moods, and he knew what to say to fix them simply because she had a fairly easy mind and wore her emotions on the outside.

Now, for some reason, none of that was working. He couldn't decipher anything she was saying or doing because it wasn't following the usual guidelines that Sakura's interactions did. Had something changed? Had he changed?

Maybe it was that whole affection thing. He'd grown a little attached to her. Was that making it harder for him to read her? Sasori frowned at the idea. That would be inconvenient. He liked keeping Sakura around, and if he was constantly saying the wrong thing around her and making her upset, he might lose her.

Lose her?

"Sasori," Sakura said, breaking his thoughts. "Pretending for one night doesn't mean you actually have to be in a relationship with me." She tried to smile at him, but it seemed forced. "We can just pretend so that Konan cuts you some slack. Then tomorrow, everything will be back to normal."

She was right, and that had been Sasori's original intention in asking Sakura to accompany him. He didn't know why he was having such a hard time with that concept now, but at least Sakura got the idea.

"Thank you," he said. He tried to think of something that would fix her mood. "You're… a good friend, Sakura."

Sakura's smile faltered, but only for a moment. She quickly plastered it back on her face and said, "Anything for you."

Sasori wondered if she meant that.

Finally, Deidara emerged from the apartment building and approached the car. Sakura got out and said a quick, "Shotgun!" to claim her seat. She pulled the lever to draw back her seat so that Deidara could squeeze into the back. When all were seated, Sasori left the apartment complex and began the drive to Konan's house.

"You'll like Konan, yeah," said Deidara. "She's not fussy like most girls. Not… that you're fussy," he added quickly.

Sakura shot him a playful glare. "Nice save."

Deidara shrugged, and a nervous laugh escaped his lips. "I've been on the receiving end of your punches, yeah. Your temper is not pretty. Not that it's ugly—"

"Deidara!"

"I'm sorry!" Deidara quickly said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "I only meant that it's scary! Not that you personally are scary, yeah, but—"

"Deidara," Sasori said, cutting him off. Sakura looked at his profile while he watched the road and saw his amusement. "The first rule of holes is, when you're in one, stop digging."

Deidara folded his arms across his chest and huffed. "I didn't mean to… yeah."

Sakura giggled, and she found she couldn't be happier. "Can I just say, I love being friends with you two? There's never a dull moment."

"A peaceful moment once in a while would be nice," Sasori dryly commented.

"How boring!" Deidara whined.

Sakura changed the subject back to their original topic. She was usually able to identify the moment when Sasori and Deidara were about to start bickering and then stop it before it happened (or before it got out of hand). "I sort of remember Konan. She was the only girl in your group, right?"

"That's right, yeah," Deidara replied. He put his hands on top of Sakura's chair and leaned forward as he talked to her. "She's got blue hair, couple piercings; she's into origami and papier-mâché."

"Oh, that's right," said Sakura. "Wasn't she dating Nagato?"

"Pein," Sasori corrected. He turned down a street into a subdivision and said, "Nagato changed his name after high school."

"Oh, I didn't know."

Sasori nodded. "We had different crowds, so I'm not surprised. I didn't realize you knew any of Akatsuki, save for Deidara and I."

"Well, I've never properly met any of you," Sakura admitted. "You guys were all older. But anyone could point you out. I mean, who else walked around in those black trench coats with the red clouds?"

Something in Sakura's mind clicked. Deidara was laughing and making some comment, but her ears were ringing, and she couldn't hear. Black trench coats with red clouds? Almost like… black cloaks with red clouds. It was another similarity from the book A Third Chance. But how was that even possible? Tenten said the book was 482 years old. Akatsuki was just the name of their little clique in high school. Sure it was the name of Sasori and Deidara's art studio now, but still. And the characters…

"Sakura?" Sasori's voice broke her train of thought.

She looked at him, and then she realized the car had pulled into a driveway and stopped. "Oh, are we here?"

"Yes," said Sasori, still watching her. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, yes," she promised, smiling at him. "Sorry, I zoned out for a second there."

They got out of the car, and Sasori put the keys in his pocket. He and Sakura walked side by side to the door, and Deidara followed them.

It was a nice house made of bricks with a dark roof. There was a stone arch and short stairway that led to an open front porch with ornate iron railing. Every few feet had a pillar that held up the roof over the porch. There was a display of flowers on the windowsill just outside. When they reached the door, Sakura got a good look at the multi-colored flowers and saw that they were actually made of paper, despite looking so real from far away.

"That's really artistic," Sakura commented as Sasori knocked on the front door. "I'm surprised she didn't join your art studio."

"It's more of a hobby for Konan… yeah," Deidara explained.

The door opened to reveal a man in his mid-twenties. He had short orange hair that went out in messy spikes that reminded Sakura of Naruto. His face was completely different though. Once she was able to look past his vibrant silver eyes, she saw the myriad of piercings he had. Two snake bites on his lower lip, several on each ear, and three studs on each side of his nose. She could hazard a guess to say he had more underneath his clothes.

"Sasori. Deidara," he greeted, leaning against the door frame. One arm was raised and pressed against the side of the doorway. The other hand held a bottle of some beer brand Sakura didn't recognize. She wasn't much of a beer drinker. Then, he looked down at her. "And who's this? New pet?"

Sakura's mouth opened rather comically, but before she could throw a proper fit, Sasori clamped his hand over her mouth and said, "This is Sakura. She's here with me."

Mr. I-Have-A-Piercing-Look grinned then, his lips parting to show white teeth. "I see," he said. He held out his hand. "I'm Pein."

If there was room for more surprise on Sakura's face, it showed. This was Nagato? She didn't remember much from back then, but what she remembered was… not this. Sasori let go of her, and she shook Pein's hand. When their hands touched, Sakura saw that Pein had purple painted fingernails, just like Deidara and Sasori.

"You look… different."

He raised an eyebrow. "We've met?"

"Sakura went to Konoha," Deidara explained. He walked past Pein as if he owned the house, not the other way around, and took off his shoes in the entryway. "You had red hair back then, yeah?"

Pein nodded, seemingly satisfied by that answer. He stepped aside so that Sakura and Sasori could enter politely. As they took off their shoes, Pein closed the front door. Deidara was already heading into the kitchen, and they could hear a fridge being opened and bottles being shoved around.

"Yes, Deidara, help yourself to the contents of my fridge," Pein drawled sarcastically. He shook his head and took another drink from his own bottle.

Sasori turned his head toward Sakura and asked, "Would you like something?"

Sakura was completely unsure of the protocol for this situation. Having never met any of Deidara and Sasori's friends, she wasn't sure what was the polite thing to do. Refusing probably wasn't right. But she didn't really want a beer, either. Would asking for a glass of water make them laugh at her?

She was spared answering, however, when another person came into the room. There was a staircase in the main room that led to the second floor. The woman coming down them had blue hair that she'd pinned into a bun with several white origami flowers. She had dark eye shadow and a single silver stud in the middle of her lower lip. Her dress was dark purple and very elegant. Sakura had to admit, she was beautiful.

"Hi," she greeted when she reached the bottom of the stairs. "I'm Konan. Sasori didn't tell me he was bringing a girlfriend."

Sakura's heart skipped a beat when Konan said 'girlfriend.'

The look that Pein gave Konan was not very convinced, but he was still smirking a bit.

The look on Konan's face was even worse. She looked very much like a cat that had just caught a canary. "It's nice to meet you," she said, looking interested.

Sakura quickly held out her hand. "I'm Sakura. It's nice to meet you, too."

Konan shook her hand, and Sakura saw that she had her nails painted purple as well. Must be an Akatsuki thing. They lowered their hands. "Well, Sakura, why don't you come with me into the kitchen? I was just about to get some Sex on the Beach."

Pein's grin turned absolutely devious. "Perhaps later."

Konan shot him an amused glance and then switched her amber eyes back to Sakura. "The drink, of course. The sex will come later."

Sakura blushed and followed Konan into the kitchen. There was an open archway that connected the living room to the kitchen. There, Sakura helped Konan make a large pitcher of that cocktail. They chatted over a variety of topics while Pein spoke with Deidara and Sasori in the sitting room.

"So how long have you and Na—Pein been together?" Sakura asked.

Konan smiled. She held her glass under the ice maker on the freezer door and waited for it to be filled. "On the rocks?"

"Please," Sakura said, preferring her alcoholic drinks to have ice.

Konan handed her the glass, and then she took another for herself and filled it with ice. "You first," she said, reaching for the cocktail pitcher. It had a sort of peachey-yellow gradient to it from all the different things mixed in. "How long have you known Sasori?"

Sakura held her glass over to Konan so that she could pour some of the drink into it. "Well, I knew them a little bit in high school. Bumped into them a couple times, and they were nice enough. When I graduated, I was looking for a job I could work while taking classes at university, and I found Sasori's studio. He and Deidara remembered me, so they gave me a job. I like to think we've been friends for a while now."

"Friends?" Konan asked. Beautiful and cunning, apparently. Sakura cursed her bad luck.

"Well, Sasori and I were friends before we started… dating," she said awkwardly.

Sakura took a sip of the drink and found it absolutely delicious. It had vodka and peach schnapps in it, but the alcohol wasn't overpowering because of the cranberry and orange juice. "This is really good."

Konan grinned at her. "It's my favorite." She filled her own glass and took a drink, smiling at the taste. "To answer your question, Pein and I grew up together. There was another boy, too, but…" she shook her head. "He died when we were younger. We transferred to Konoha after that, and we started dating when we were sixteen. We've been together ever since."

"High school sweethearts," Sakura said, smiling widely. "That's so romantic."

"Heh," said Konan. "Don't tell Pein that. You know how men are about their masculinity. Then again, you're friends with Deidara, so perhaps not."

Sakura burst out laughing at that. "Deidara is plenty masculine—when he's not fussing over his hair!"

She and Konan giggled together, and it turned into outright laughter when they heard Deidara sneeze from the living room. Sakura decided right then and there that she really liked Konan. She reminded her of Temari in that she had a mature sense of humor without being as obnoxious as Ino tended to be.

There was another knock on the door. Konan leaned her head through the archway so she could look at Pein in the living room. Her face was expectant and a bit impatient—a silent gesture that made it obvious she wanted him to answer the door.

Pein shot her an unimpressed stare. "Woman," he said, "what is the point of living with your girlfriend if she won't answer the door when you're sitting down?"

Konan raised her eyebrows. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty, I just assumed you could get off your lazy ass and answer it. And don't give me that, this woman does your laundry, Pein."

"I got the door last time," said Pein. He had this grin on his face as if he were about to tell a really good joke. "And while you're in the kitchen, make me a sandwich."

Konan leaned back and snatched a piece of paper from the counter. She crumbled it up and threw it at Pein, but he caught it effortlessly with a laugh. He did, however, get up to answer the door.

"You used to make me sandwiches," he said.

He opened the door, and on the other side was someone Sakura did recognize. It was Itachi Uchiha, Sasuke's older brother. His long black hair was straight and pulled back into a low ponytail. His Akatsuki coat was buttoned to the top, and he held a bottle of wine in his left hand.

On is right arm, however, was Shizune. Sakura knew her from medical school. They were on friendly terms, but this was the first time Sakura had seen her outside of university. Shizune had shoulder-length black hair and large, friendly eyes. She was wearing a simple green dress that was perfect for summertime.

"Itachi," Pein greeted. "Shizune."

"Leader," Itachi replied.

"Hello, Pein," said Shizune.

Pein stepped aside so Itachi and his girlfriend could enter. They slipped off their shoes in the entryway and walked toward Konan.

"Konan," Itachi said, greeting her.

Shizune smiled warmly and said, "Konan, it's great to see you again. Happy birthday."

"Thank you," Konan replied politely. "It's good to see you both."

Itachi offered her the bottle of wine, and she gratefully accepted. "Oh, this is lovely, thank you. I always was partial to moscato."

Sakura felt relieved. Wines could really vary, and moscato was one that she enjoyed as well. It was sweeter, not bitter, and it had a pleasant aftertaste.

"I remembered," Shizune told her. She looked at Sakura then, and the same surprise that Sakura felt showed on Shizune's face. "Oh, Sakura. I didn't expect to see you here."

"Same," Sakura replied with a smile. She looked at Konan and explained, "Shizune and I are taking a lot of the same medical courses at university."

Comprehension dawned on Konan's face. "Oh, what a coincidence. Well, at least there's another friendly face for you here."

"This is only my second time meeting everyone," Shizune told Sakura. "It's… quite a group." She smiled awkwardly, looking as if she were trying to think of something polite to say.

"The ones I've met so far have been pretty great," Sakura replied. She meant it, too. She hadn't seen much of Pein yet, but he was amusing enough, and Konan had left a really good first impression. While she didn't know Itachi personally, she wasn't going to let Sasuke's negative opinion get in the way of her forming her own.

"So who are you here with?" Shizune asked, looking curious.

Sakura couldn't keep her blush down. "Um, I'm Sasori's… date." For some reason, the word girlfriend was too hard to say.

"Oh," Shizune said, smiling genuinely. "He's such a talented artist. And very nice, too."

Sakura's gaze wandered over to where Sasori was sitting on the couch talking with Deidara, and she smiled fondly. "Yes, he is."

Konan's smile had widened into a wicked grin, but she said nothing. Sakura didn't notice.

Itachi turned his head toward Pein and said, "Kisame is on his way inside. He's finishing a cigarette."

From his position on the couch, Deidara stood up. "I think I'll—" he broke off when he caught Sakura's glare. There was a brief pause, and Deidara sat back down. "—not join him. Yeah." He stretched his arms and leaned back lazily. "Slave driver."

"Just saving your life," Sakura shot back. She liked to think she was a positive influence on Deidara. He used to smoke cigarettes, and from her constant, well she didn't like to call it nagging, but her gentle encouragement helped Deidara decide to quit. She was quite proud of that.

"I like you," Konan told her, as if she'd decided it right then and there.

Sakura beamed at her. "I like you, too."

There was a loud thud on the door. Pein was still standing there, so he opened it up and let Kisame in. Kisame was buff—very buff. He was also very tall. He had dark blue hair like Konan and three small, angled scars under both of his eyes.

"Heh, long time no see, Leader," he said. Kisame entered the house and slipped off his shoes. "Woman," he said, shoving his shoes to the side of the entryway with his foot. He looked up at Konan. "Here."

He tossed her a small package. Konan caught it, and both she and Sakura looked at it. It was a bag of salty potato chips. Konan laughed and said, "Thank you, Kisame."

Apparently this group didn't do the standard birthday present thing that Sakura was used to. It may be a little childish, but she and her close group of friends still wrapped gifts in paper and bows and gave them to each other every birthday. Granted, Itachi had brought a bottle of wine, but it seemed like less of a birthday gift and more of a dinner party gift.

Still, to each their own, Sakura supposed. She still wanted to add Konan to her birthday-present-giving list, though. Sakura just liked giving presents.

The next person to arrive was a man named Zetsu. He had a sort of punk look to him with spiky green hair and gold contact lenses. He was also very quiet, but it was better than being rude. Kisame was surprisingly polite, but he was still loud and had a bit of a vulgar sense of humor.

Finally, Hidan and Kakuzu arrived. Konan explained that they were roommates. To Sakura's surprise, she found out that they lived just a couple of houses down from hers. Kakuzu had short, dark brown hair and several scars. She wondered if he'd been in an accident when he was younger, but she didn't want to offend him by mentioning it.

Hidan, on the other hand, looked pretty flawless. He had platinum blonde hair, almost white, that he slicked back. His strong bone structure and cheek bones gave him an angular face that was pleasing to the eye. He was wearing a black shirt that was surprisingly low cut. While it wouldn't have been flattering on most men, it showed off Hidan's well-muscled torso, and for whatever reason, he could pull it off.

She wondered why he didn't bring a girlfriend to the party until she heard him cuss like a sailor every other sentence. Then it made sense.

The dining room was next to the living room. Sakura helped Konan bring in the food, even though Konan had tried to politely refuse her offer.

"You shouldn't have to do all the work on your birthday!" Sakura insisted.

"Try telling that to these idiots," Konan replied.

Dinner was not what Sakura had expected. Everyone at the table was completely different, and it led to very different actions and conversations throughout the meal. Some of them, like Sasori, Shizune, and Itachi, were more refined in their ways and maintained a classy image. Others, like Kisame, Deidara, and Hidan, were louder and more obnoxious, talking over others and direction the conversation flow in various ways.

The Sex on the Beaches really helped Sakura get through the dinner. Halfway through the dinner, Sakura and Konan had finished the first pitcher, and Konan brought out a new one. It didn't take long to make, so she was only gone for a couple of minutes.

The second pitcher tasted suspiciously stronger than the first. As you drink, you're supposed to taste less alcohol, so Sakura assumed that Konan was making them stronger now. Still, they tasted so good, she wasn't really going to complain.

"So how old are you, Sakura?" Konan asked. Most of the table was wrapped up in one conversation or another. Sakura was seated between Konan and Sasori, much to her delight. She liked the two of them the most.

"Twenty-one," Sakura replied. "My birthday was in March."

"Oh, okay," said Konan, grinning for some reason. "You're not that much younger than us at all. I'm turning twenty-four today."

"Have you had a good birthday so far?"

"I have," said Konan. "I even made a new friend."

Sakura beamed at her, delighted that Konan felt the same way.

Hidan's voice distracted her. "Fuck, yeah, I remember high school. I try not to. Goin' around with this asshole," he gestured to Kakuzu, who was looking at Hidan irritably, "while he stole other kids' lunch money."

"I wasn't the one whose foul mouth got us in detention every week," Kakuzu retorted.

"Half of those were you! It's not like you needed the money, blaspheming shithead."

"No one cares for your stupid religion, Hidan."

Sakura leaned toward Sasori, looking concerned. "Are they all right?"

Sasori looked completely unbothered. "Unfortunately."

"They're always like that," Konan assured her. "It's an odd group, but it's family."

When the dinner party ended, Sakura had loosened up completely. She found she really liked Sasori and Deidara's friends, more than she ever thought she would. They were an interesting bunch to say the least. As she, Sasori, and Deidara made to leave, Konan told Sakura that she was welcome back anytime. They exchanged phone numbers, and Sakura promised that she would visit again soon.

All in all, it was the best night out she'd had in a while.