Chapter 10: The Ninja Known as Cupid?

No tree near the Memorial Stone was safe from Tenten's barrage of weapons as she flung them from her hands; shuriken of all sizes and varieties embedded themselves into the trees as swords and other close range melee weapons lopped large limbs off of the surrounding trees.

'I'm still not strong enough. I need to become even stronger,' Tenten thought as she launched several shuriken from her hand, each one landing with a satisfying thunk on the tree's trunk, each one within a centimeter from each other.

'To preserve Lee's memory,' thought Tenten as she slashed at one of the tree's branches with a chakra infused wakizashi, slicing it clear off.

'To show my own worth,' she thought as she started going through some kata with a quarterstaff, not failing to notice the presence behind her.

'To prove that I truly love him,' she thought as, in the middle of her kata, pivoted her backfoot sharply and swung around the quarterstaff at breakneck speeds to catch the intruder in the upper body. But instead of hearing the rewarding sound of reinforced steel come into contact with bone, there was a clang of metal meeting metal.

"It's nice to see you also Tenten-chan," remarked Neji as he pushed the offending metal pole away from him.

"You," she growled. "This is your fault!" she yelled as she pointed her finger at him accusingly.

"What is my fault?" Neji asked, feigning innocence. In fact, he formed a hypothesis after visiting the Sataki clan head, and his belief in it was already beginning to be proven.

"You placed the doubts about Naruto in my head!" Tenten shouted, "Because of you I…I…" stammered Tenten.

"Don't love him anymore?" guessed Neji as he walked closer to his former love.

"I'm…I'm not sure anymore," Tenten whispered. "I'm not sure if I love him or if I just need to be loved. After everything he's already gone through, I just don't want him to hurt even more because of a stupid mistake." She then felt a pair of arms embrace her and pull her into the chest of one Hyūga Neji.

"Do you know; of what's in him?" Tenten asked.

"Yes, I do, but does it really matter that much if I do know?" Neji answered, which prompted a small smile from his past lover.

"Neji-kun…thank you," said Tenten as she hugged Neji back. "But…what…what am I supposed to do?"

"You need to figure that out for yourself," answered Neji as he held onto Tenten for a few more minutes, committing every aspect of her to memory as the gentle wind caressed their faces, until they finally released each other.

"Would you like to accompany me to dinner?" Neji asked, knowing full well her answer ahead of time.

"Don't you remember? I have a date tonight," she answered as she left Neji at the Memorial Stone, gazing thoughtfully at the Memorial Stone.

'Do you see her now Lee? How happy she seems? It's the happiest that she's been since you've died; I only hope that it'll last,' thought Neji as he finally turned around and decided to find out what out what had happened between Hinata and Naruto.

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"Two pork ramen," the teen ordered as he leaned back on the stool and faced the boy sitting next to him, grinning. "So, how was your first taste of what a real ninja is?"

"It was alright," the boy answered as he tapped his fingers rhythmically on the wooden counter as he inhaled the delicious smell of ramen being cooked, emerald eyes bright with anticipation.

"So who's the unlucky bastard that's teaching you?" the older boy asked.

"Uzumaki Naruto-san," answered Hige nonchalantly, and sniggered when his older brother fell off of his stool in shock.

"Are you alright nii-san?" Hige asked as his brother rubbed the back of his head, where a bruise was already beginning to develop.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Now tell me the truth; who is really your sensei?" asked Kiba. "The Hokage would have to have gone off her rocker to have allowed him to become a squad leader," he proclaimed loudly as two other people his age approached Ichiraku's Ramen Stand, where the Inuzuka brothers were waiting for their own ramen.

"Let who not become a squad leader?" asked Naruto as he a sat down on the stool next to Hige as Sakura took a seat next to the elder Inuzuka.

"Hey Naruto-sensei! Nii-san was just saying how you couldn't possibly be my sensei because the only way that they would let you is if Hokage-sama was off her rocker," explained Hige cheerfully, which caused Naruto to get very, very angry.

"What is that supposed to mean Dogboy?" Naruto boisterously asked.

"It means that the Hokage would have to be insane if she let you become a squad leader, loser," retorted Kiba just as boisterously.

"At least I don't smell like dog!" shouted Naruto.

"What's wrong with dogs?" demanded Kiba as he pounded his fist on the counter.

"They smell!" answered Naruto. And so the two began shouting and insulting each other as if they were genin again.

"Do they always fight like this? Oh, and by the way, I'm Inuzuka Hige," Hige said to the so far silent Sakura, both of them at least slightly annoyed at the loud voices attacking their ears.

"Yeah; even though they're eighteen they still fight like little kids all the time," sighed Sakura. "So is Naruto really your sensei?"

"Yeah; Hyūga Hanabi, Sataki Kazuki, Naruto-sensei, and I all compose of this year's Team Seven," explained Hige. "But may I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?" asked Sakura as she tried to block out the yelling of her peers.

"Uhm…can I ask you somewhere a little more private?" requested Hige just as Ayame brought over three bowls of ramen; the pork ramen for the two Inuzukas and a bowl of Naruto's favorite, miso ramen. Instantly the two stopped their bickering and broke their chopsticks.

"Itadakimasu!" Naruto practically yelled as Kiba muttered it. But both of them immediately began devouring their ramen like animals. As the two ate, Sakura pulled Hige away from the stand and out of the main street; into an alleyway.

"What did you want to ask me Hige-kun?" Sakura asked.

"Uhm…first of all you're Haruno Sakura right?" asked Hige tentatively.

"Yes," affirmed Sakura. Somehow, she knew that she would not like the question that would come out of the young Inuzuka's mouth.

"Would you date my nii-san? He really likes you but he's too shy to ask you out," requested Hige as he kept his eyes fixated on a point behind Sakura and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.

'Is this some sick joke? Kiba, shy; no way, I couldn't imagine it,' thought Sakura. 'The hell are you waiting for? Say yes dammit! Say yes and live again dammit! Live!' exclaimed Inner Sakura, who the real Sakura tried her best to just ignore.

"So, will you?" he prodded after a few minutes of silence.

"I…uhm…I," stammered Sakura, not really knowing how to respond. She didn't want to make fun of the question in case what Hige was saying was the truth, but if she said yes and it was all a stupid joke...

"I'll tell you what; if your brother asks me out himself I'd go out with him," compromised Sakura; her logic being that if Kiba really did like her, she wouldn't embarrass him by saying now, but if it was a joke she wouldn't be humiliated.

"Fine," agreed Hige quickly. As he and Sakura began to leave the alley, he suddenly stopped and gazed quizzically at the back wall. "Hey, is that blood on the wall there?" he asked as he pointed to a slightly off color spot on the wall.

"No, you must be seeing things," dismissed Sakura, seeing nothing wrong with the wall, as she left the alleyway with the younger boy and returned to the hospitable ramen stand, where she ordered a chicken ramen as Hige started eating his ramen, however less voraciously as his brother.

As Kiba was taking a rather large bite of his ramen, Hige decided to start a conversation with him.

"Nii-san, guess what?" Hige tantalizingly asked. Kiba turned his gaze towards his younger brother, brimming with bored apathy. "Sakura-san said that she wants to go on a date with you!" he cheerfully proclaimed; causing both Naruto and Sakura's eyes to bug out in disbelief and Kiba to choke on his ramen.

'He did NOT just do that,' thought Inner Sakura angrily. 'Just wait until I get my hands on you kid,' threateningly shouted Inner Sakura before cackling madly. During Inner Sakura's monologue, Sakura had sprung out of her seat and began performing the Heimlich maneuver on Kiba and managed to expel the food from his body.

"Are you alright?" asked Sakura as she stepped back from Kiba, who was coughing and gasping for breath.

"Yeah, I'm fine," answered Kiba. "But is it true?" he asked as he turned around to meet Sakura's nervous gaze, a hopeful look in his eyes as the lanterns that hung from the ceiling of the stand seemed to spotlight the two.

"Uhm…well…you see…I…uhm…" stammered Sakura, having no clue whatsoever what to say in this situation as her eyes frantically searched for something, anything, to get her out of this situation.

"I can't believe that you chose the dogboy over me!" pouted Naruto like a little kid. "I mean, I've had a crush on you for how long? Seven, eight years and now you just decide out of the blue to date dogboy out of all people! I mean, if you disliked me that much then you could've at least have told me!" shouted Naruto as he grew angrier and angrier.

"You know what; I'm through with you! I've been nothing but kind to you and you've treated me like shit for the past eight years; and I'm done," announced Naruto as he got up from his stool and violently stormed off from the ramen stand, leaving its occupants and proprietors stunned by the blonde's uncharacteristic anger.

"Hey bastard!" shouted Kiba as he practically leaped from his chair in his anger. "Who the hell do you think you are; talking to her like that?" demanded Kiba as he ran up to Naruto, pulled his shoulder to the side so that he was facing Kiba, and then Kiba's fist connected with his jaw, causing Naruto to stumble back. "Don't talk to her like that, ever," growled Kiba as he clenched and unclenched his fists. "You think it's bad that Sakura chose me over you? I had to endure Hinata not only choosing you, the dead last, but her own cousin over me," he snarled. "Now get the hell out of my face."

Naruto turned around and turned his gaze on Sakura, but there wasn't anger or resentment in his eyes. Instead there was something else; something that Sakura couldn't put her finger on.

"Sakura, I'm sorry that you had to see that," apologized Kiba as he trudged back to his seat and began to eat his ramen with much less vigor than before.

"He's right you know, Kiba," admitted Sakura. "I really haven't given him what he deserved after all that he's done for me." 'Your undying devotion to the Uchiha prodigy will be the death of the one you covet the most.' The demon fox's words rang throughout her head at this particular time. 'Are you happy now Sasuke? Are you happy that I'm so miserable? Are you laughing at me in Hell right now?' bitterly thought Sakura. She then felt a pair of arms awkwardly wrap themselves around her from the behind, and found herself facing a sight she thought she would never see; Kiba blushing. She soon felt the blood rushing up to her cheeks as he kept the hold a little bit longer and she rested her head against his chest.

"Thank you…Kiba," whispered Sakura.

Hige just sat there slowly eating his ramen, amazed at what his actions brought upon the people around him. At that moment, he truly began to question the identity of his sensei.

'Is he a happy-go-lucky idiot or is he filled with anger and fit to burst at any second?' he asked himself. 'Damn…I really should apologize to him though…I had no clue how close he was to that Sakura girl,' he thought.

"I'm gonna go home, alright nii-san?" said Hige as he stood up from his stool, leaving a bowl of half eaten ramen on the countertop. Kiba then seemed to realize that his younger brother was there and quickly let go of his hold on Sakura and sat down next to her.

"Yeah sure," he answered quickly.

'I hope I didn't ruin their friendship, though…but they were only fighting over a girl, right? How much could that possibly affect their friendship?' thought Hige as he left the ramen stand and breathed in a large breath of the crisp air that was around only at twilight as he began walking back to the Inuzuka compound, where his sister and mother would be awaiting his return.

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After aimlessly wandering about the streets of Konoha for a few minutes, Naruto leaned against the wall of a building and slumped down onto the ground perpendicular to it as he rubbed his tender jaw, wincing as he felt a slight dislocation.

'Damn, the amount of crap that I have to put up with just by trying to help make the situation a tad less awkward really wasn't worth this,' thought Naruto as he hugged his knees to his chest like when he was younger.

But instead of doing it out of sadness or to prevent himself from being beaten all over his body, he simply savored how relaxing the moment was and how for once, he could go in slow motion instead of how he had accustomed life to be; quick and unforgiving. Each moment could be his last and he needed to achieve his dream. He needed it. But now he could forget about his dream and his fast paced life; he could actually enjoy the silence around him and envelop himself in it instead of always having to make noise and bring attention to himself.

"What are you doing?" demanded a voice as its owner's shadow consumed Naruto's body.

"I'm sitting here, do you have a problem with that?" growled Naruto, irate at having his peaceful silence, which he never got these days, interrupted.

"Yes, as a matter of fact I do. You are supposed to come with me to eat tonight, yet you're just sitting here as if you have nothing better to do," complained the person as she put her hands on her hips and grinned. "So, are you coming or not?"

Naruto was shocked to say the least. He immediately stood up and was about to say something when Tenten put a finger to his lips.

"I don't care what's sealed in you, Uzumaki Naruto. I liked you before I knew, and I still like you now that I know," interjected Tenten.

"That's nice to know, but I wasn't going to ask anything even remotely like that," confessed Naruto, somehow with a straight face.

"I was going to ask you if we could go out for ramen instead."

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Ten chapters are done…I can't believe it. Anyways, now that you've been somewhat acquainted with the new Team 7, what do you think? Who do you want to know more about? Who would you like to see more of in the future?

And remember…review!