A/N: The fiction grew in length quite a bit, s I got more confidant with the characters as a whole. To be expected I guess…but as a result of the chapters taking on longer word counts as time goes on (already up to chapter 12 and they're in the 800-1.2k rage) I figured I may not update every day…that being said, this is the last chapter under 500 words in length.

Face Forward
Chapter 10

"You were thinking it though, weren't you?"

It was such a blunt question that Sakura had to blink, giving the girl beside her a once over. Green eyes trailed over the young Hyuga, studying her form. Hinata was a really sweet girl, and she had terrible self-confidence as it was. Sakura didn't want to say anything to make it worse. She didn't want to be the one to blame for crushing their girl's spirit.

She couldn't hide the truth though. "Hmm, let's just say, I think we both have a long way to go."

"Is that a bad thing?" Hinata asked, but Sakura shook her head.

"No, I don't think so…" She pushed herself back up into a sitting position. "I think, we kind of had to expect it… Hinata, we were really advanced when it came to tests, but fighting…well, that's never been our strong suit. In your case, I think it's because you hold back. You don't take enough risks, or try new things…or, maybe if you do, I guess you just do it quietly...so that no one notices."

She took off her sandals and began to wade around in the cold stream…she liked to do that every now and then. Her toes curled against the smooth rocks, the small fish gathered around her legs, as if they were curious, and as she bent down to gather some of that cold water in her hands, she looked at its reflection of the moon, the light quaking in the wet mirror.

"I'm not like Ino, I don't have what it takes to just toss myself into things headfirst with all I've got. Whenever I try to, I just screw up." Catching another handful, she splashed it over her face. "Even you, Hinata, you know what you want, and you don't deny yourself of that."

"And you do?" Hinata asked, unsure, and just a little confused.

"I deny a lot of things…" Sakura said quietly, another splash of cold water soaking her form. "Team seven, we're good at that. We're not like Team eight, you guys are a strong team when you work together…separately, you all just need more confidence, that's all."

"I…" Hinata blushed and looked away. "You give me too much credit."

"Sometimes, I don't think I give you enough…" Sakura admitted. "Hell, I mean look at the two of us…what are we really afraid of? It's just a sparring match, right? So why now, all of a sudden does it freak me out? If it was Ino, I'd get into the ring in a heartbeat…"

"If it was Ino…" Hinata murmured, realizing that she didn't want to fight many people…and even Ino intimidated her. "I wouldn't want to fight her, either."

"With the way my fists are now, I could really hurt you." Sakura sighed as she stepped out of the water, hair dripping wet where she'd splashed her face a few times. Even her long pink bangs at her sides clung to her neck. "I don't want to hurt you, Hinata. If that comes across as me thinking of you as weak...then, that's my fault."