Chapter 11: Jealousy
Hinata couldn't help but wince and cover her eyes. Why, she asked herself again, why did she agree to come watch Kiba's match against Suna High?
"Is this too much for you Hinata?" Shino asked a little worried. Somehow Kiba was fighting more recklessly than he usually did. Something must have angered him, Shino thought.
"No, it's a-alright Shino-kun. I c-can handle it." Hinata replied feeling a little ashamed that she was not fully watching her friend's battle. Bracing herself, Hinata opened her eyes and focused on Kiba's fight. A few seconds later, Hinata breathed a sigh of relief when the main referee called the end of the second round.
Rounds of applause and congratulatory yells greeted Kiba when the main referee raised his fist as a declaration of his victory.
Hinata smiled while clutching her heart. I'm so glad you won. Clapping politely alongside Shino, Hinata giggled when she spotted Ino and Sakura slowly making their way up the bleachers to their seats.
"Y-you g-guys are late," Hinata commented scooting to make some space for her friends.
"Sorry sorry, but Ino was taking way too long blow drying her hair." Sakura complained glaring at Ino's blonde head.
"Well I'm sorry I'm single and there happen to be a lot of hot guys that go to these matches." Ino retorted flicking her long golden hair for emphasis and waving at a cute guy that happened to pass by.
"Well because of you we missed Kiba's fight." Sakura scolded her, honestly disappointed. She was a big fan of the team and had occasionally trained with them. Sparring was something that she liked to do and watching others spar always gave her good pointers.
"Yes it was a fight," Shino commented. Sakura groaned then begrudgingly asked Shino for the details. Hinata smiled at Shino and Sakura's conversation. She wasn't much of a fighter however she was capable of appreciating the art of fighting. Neji himself was in the team back in his high school days. However Kiba's style of fighting just didn't suit the indigo-haired woman.
"Ne, Hinata-chan," Ino began. "So this friend of yours, is he on the team?" Hinata blushed and poked her fingers together.
"Aa-n-o," I can't tell her, Kiba doesn't even know yet that they have date together! Hinata thought. Shifting her eyes, Hinata tried to figure out a way out of the question. She wasn't a very good liar and she knew Ino would easily figure it out if she said anything.
"Well?" Ino asked again trying to catch Hinata's wandering gaze.
"Ah -look! The n-next match is a-about t-to begin!" Hinata exclaimed pointing at the ring. Ino frowned and was about to reply when she realized that Naruto had entered the ring and was proclaiming something towards his opponent.
"GO NARUTO! KICK HIS ASS!!!" Sakura yelled jumping up and down. Ino and Hinata both blushed when Sakura's loud voice attracted the opposing fans' angry glares.
"Umm, Sakura… you should shut up now before we get jumped," Ino pleaded pulling at Sakura's shirt. Sakura obediently complied sitting down at the edge of her seat. Craning her neck, she frowned. She couldn't see her boyfriend very well and she didn't want to miss any detail of his fight.
"Hey guys, let's move seats. I can't see anything." Sakura declared quickly standing up and skipping down the bleachers. Reluctantly, Ino, Shino and Hinata followed. When the four finally found seats up to Sakura's standards, they were directly behind their team's chairs.
"An-no, we're r-really c-close," Hinata whispered shifting slightly in her seat.
"No this is perfect," Ino remarked. "We can see the entire fight and that guy is pretty hot!"
"Gee, I knew that's the only reason you guys came." Kiba replied turning around in his seat and waving at Hinata, Sakura and Shino while sticking his tongue out at an angry Ino.
"I'm glad you here Hinata. Did you see my fight?" Kiba asked making himself comfortable sitting sideways on his chair in order to be able to talk to them and keep an eye on Naruto's fight.
"Y-yes, I'm h-happy t-that y-you won." Hinata replied smiling.
"However, you didn't have to be so reckless." Shino reprimanded. "You had Hinata covering her eyes at your brutality."
"What? I'm sorry I got carried away Hinata, but that guy was a cocky bastard. He deserved all that shit I threw at him." Kiba defended crossing his arms.
"It-t's okay," Hinata replied trying to sooth Kiba's growing temper at being scolded.
"You're such a kid," Ino interjected with a roll of her eyes. "All he had to do was say something about your hideous tattoos and you get all riled up."
"What about my fang tattoos you plastic woman?!" Kiba yelled standing up on his seat.
"Kiba. Sit down." Sasuke interjected only sparing Kiba a quick glare before returning to watch Naruto's spar. Although he was occupied with Naruto's fight, once he heard Kiba mention Hinata's name, he couldn't help but eavesdrop on their conversation. Kiba glared at Ino before taking his seat. If he misbehaved Sasuke might make him run 5 miles on Monday and he was really starting to hate running.
Crossing his arms, he sent a last wave to Hinata and Shino then began to focus on the match in front of him.
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After two long agonizing rounds and a third tie-breaker, Naruto was declared the winner. His fight had brought the two teams into a tie 2 – 2. Everyone in the gym held their breath. It was the final fight of the day; the captains' fight. After cheering loudly and wildly for Naruto for 10 minutes, the Konoha fans were suddenly focused on Sasuke who was calmly putting on his gear.
Clutching her hands together, Hinata watched Sasuke with a worried heart. He seemed to be radiating death waves and everyone was feeding off of it. This fight is going to be a big one, Hinata realized. No one dared say anything when the main referee summoned the two captains into the ring. Tearing her gaze away from Sasuke, Hinata's sight found his opponent who just made his way into the ring.
With an audible gasp, Hinata realized who the captain of Suna High was.
Gaara had entered the ring and was calmly waiting for Sasuke who took his sweet time.
"You okay Hinata-chan?" Sakura asked in a whisper not wanting to break the silence. Slowly nodding, Hinata's eyes grew wide when Gaara's eyes seemed to have found hers. His piercing green eyes bore into hers and suddenly there was just the two of them.
Separated only by a few feet, Gaara crossed his arms and cocked his head to side seemingly asking her what she was doing there. Suddenly aware of her inactive vocal chords, Hinata only blushed and chewed on her bottom lip. Searching for a reply, she only blushed harder when Gaara smirked.
Then the roar of the gymnasium filled her ears when Sasuke had finally entered the ring and the fans were in a state of frenzy. Screams from both sides cried for their respective fighters. And when the referee brought his hand down between the two, pandemonium ensued.
Sasuke began the fight with a solid round house kick to Gaara's stomach which he promptly blocked with his arm. Spinning with speed unimaginable, Sasuke used the momentum to kick again only higher aiming for Gaara's head. Gaara ducked quickly and sent a fist towards Sasuke's gut giving him no choice but to catch it with his open palm. Wrapping his legs onto Gaara's outstretched arm, Sasuke pitched his weight forward into a roll and submissive hold on Gaara.
Unable to counter, Gaara followed Sasuke onto the ground where he used his flexibility to send a kick towards Sasuke face making him drop Gaara's arm. Quickly flipping onto a defensive stance, both men slowly circled each other waiting for the opportune moment to strike.
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Now this was a fight, Hinata unconsciously thought. Both men were quick, using light jabs and kicks to test each other's defenses. Unlike Kiba's relentless attacks forward, both men were side stepping, checking, faking and quickly attacking then retracting. The fight had her on the edge of her seat. Although she was hoping that Sasuke win, she was also praying that Gaara would not lose badly. Torn between which to root for, she kept quiet whenever one would score a point and earn them cheers from their own fans.
Round one ended with Sasuke taking the win. He had tricked Gaara into an opening which he then countered and scored a two-pointer with an ax kick to his head. The hit made Hinata gasp. Gaara's head had pitched forward almost hitting the floor before he saved himself a direct hit with a roll.
However, round two proved harder than before. Gaara seemed to have entered a crazed state. When before he seemed controlled and collected, he was now smiling wildly and taking bolder moves. His new attitude had taken Sasuke by surprise and had pushed him to the edge of the ring. If he didn't move now, he would be cornered. Making a bold move, Sasuke met Gaara's kick with one of his own and using his momentum, twisted his body and kicked with a back kick which Gaara cross blocked with both arms. Using this as a foot hold, Sasuke jumped up and over Gaara and rolled onto the open space of the ring.
The audience went wild. Screams from the girls and hurrahs from the guys bombarded Hinata as she replayed in her mind Sasuke flying. He seemed so graceful… so ethereal… her heart had stopped beating. Bringing her fingers to her lips, Hinata suddenly realized why so many women had fallen head over heels for the Uchiha prodigy. He was beautiful.
Then with a great 540 jumping spin kick, Sasuke took Gaara by surprise and scored a point just before the main referee threw the red stick signaling the end of the round. The gym erupted in cheers louder than when Kiba or Naruto won their matches. Fans flooded the floor and crowded the ring with their chants of "Sasuke".
Sasuke let the crowd overwhelm him with their pats and hugs. He was so exhausted he didn't care that girls were literally glomping him. Gaara was such a strong opponent, he thought. Each punch had sapped away his strength. However, in the end he was stronger. He had won. Smiling to himself, Sasuke searched the crowd for the one whose hug he wanted the most.
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Hinata smiled at Sasuke's victory. He was amazing. However despite how much she wanted to follow the crowd and congratulate him, there was someone she had to see first. On the opposing side of the gym, Suna High's fighters had gathered in solemn defeat around their captain who was sitting on the bleachers. Taking a deep breath, Hinata made her way towards the other side.
Standing just outside their circle, Hinata hesitantly tapped the shoulder of the one Naruto had beaten. When he turned to her, she blushed and whispered,
"C-can I s-s-ee G-g-gaara?" The man smiled before letting her into the circle. Taking a small step forward, Hinata found herself in the presence of her savior.
"H-hi," She mumbled crossing her hands behind her back and blushing. Gaara stared at the blushing girl before him. Slowly standing up, he motioned for her to follow him.
Walking into the cool air outside the gym, Gaara turned to the opal-eyed girl he had saved just a few days ago.
"I take it you attend Konoha?" he asked facing the gate of the school. She mumbled a yes while fidgeting with her fingers. Raising a brow at her small ministrations, Gaara couldn't help but feel a little better.
Losing to Konoha wasn't part of the plan. They had won last time, but that was clearly because their captain was on a 3-month long leave. However, having this girl stand next to him and not mock his defeat was… nice. Running his hands through his hair, he turned to her.
"How's your leg?"
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Sasuke frowned. Hinata was nowhere to be seen. After searching the crowd for a good 10 minutes, he finally decided to ask someone. Seeing as she came with Ino, he decided asking her would be wise. He found her with Kiba, Naruto, Sakura and Shino all deciding where to celebrate the victory over Suna High.
"I want Ichiraku ramen." Naruto declared stomping his foot on the ground in a childish pout.
"Not all of us want noodles stupid," Ino replied determined to go to Chipotle. "I want Chipotle."
Sasuke rolled his eyes at the immature teenagers. When they realized his presence, they suddenly bombarded him with suggestions.
"Ichiraku!"
"Chipotle!"
"Burger King!"
"Hinata's house."
"What?!" Naruto, Sakura, Kiba and Ino cried in unison staring incredulously at Shino while Sasuke merely raised his eyebrows.
"If we all order to go and bring it to Hinata's house, we can all have what we want." He reasoned. After a few moments of silence, everyone agreed with Shino's brilliant planning. Deciding it should be a big celebration; Sakura called Shikamaru and Chouji and invited them also.
"Alright! Everyone order whatever you want and meet up at Hinata's house in 30 minutes!" Naruto declared pumping his fists in the air.
"Wait," Sasuke interjected. Once he had everyone's attention, he continued. "Where's Hinata?"
"Ah! She's outside." Ino replied pointing to the door. "Wanna tell her about our plans? Great! We'll see you at her house in 30 minutes bye!" Ino continued pushing Sasuke towards the door not even letting him reply.
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As soon as he stepped foot outside the gym, Sasuke felt something akin to jealousy boil inside of him. There, chatting like old friends, were Gaara and Hinata blissfully unaware of him. Frowning, he made himself known with a cough.
Turning to the noise, Hinata smiled when she saw Sasuke.
"Uchiha-san! Congratulations." Making her way to him, she wrapped her arms around him smiling along the way. With a protective arm draped around her small frame, Sasuke glared at the red-haired male.
"Gaara,"
"Uchiha,"
Gaara eyed the arm around Hinata's shoulders. Crossing his arms, he nodded towards the victor. When Hinata released her hold on the Uchiha, Gaara noted that Sasuke quickly dropped his arm. Arching his nonexistent brow, he turned to the blushing Hinata.
"I should take my leave," nodding towards the Uchiha again, he uncrossed his arms and opened his arms inviting Hinata for a hug.
Unaware of the silent challenge gliding through the air around her, Hinata all but skipped into the arms of her demigod and gasped in surprise at the strength of Gaara's hug. While Hinata melted into Gaara's arms, she didn't notice the death glares sparking between the two men. With one last squeeze, Gaara released her and whispered something into her ear making the pale girl blush and Sasuke frown in discomfort and anger. Then with one last wave, Gaara made his way back into the gym and to his waiting team.
Sasuke glared at the door where Gaara disappeared to silently hoping that looks could kill. He was so absorbed in his death wishes he didn't notice Hinata calling to him until she grabbed his arm.
"Uchiha-san?" she asked a little reluctant because of the murder in his eyes. Swallowing the quiver in her voice, she breathed a sigh of relief when Sasuke's eyes returned to their stoic normal state.
"Everyone wants to eat at your house." He stated pushing his hands into his pockets noting that Hinata hadn't let go of his arm.
"Ah, b-b-but my h-house isn't c-clean!" she exclaimed gasping in surprise and worry.
"They already decided and will be making their way there in 30 minutes." He replied smiling at her little dilemma.
"30 m-minutes?" chewing on her lip, Hinata began to devise a plan to make her house presentable in 30 minutes.
Sasuke smirked. Grabbing her hand, he led her to his car and promptly drove her to her house ready to help her clean what was already a clean house to begin with.
TBC
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A/N: So sorry for the longest update to date! Ehh I suck don't I? This chapter was hard to right and I'm terribly sorry for the OOCness. -- I tried my best… but somehow my writing skills have been horrible [I can't write fight scenes for the life of me. But there you go enjoy! Reviews please!
