The New Definition of Me

Chapter the Twenty-first

A Party of Seven

We returned to find Sasuke and Pein-sama, who were both playing some lottery-resembling game. They weren't in a very good mood though, as they had both suffered heavy losses in their wallets, but that was their own punishment for gambling.

Sasuke was mumbling under his breath about 'rigged games' when Pein-sama spoke.

"Well, it's getting late; I need to go home, I'm sure that my mom doesn't want me out too late."

That surprised me. I guess that I'd never really thought that Pein-sama had parents, let alone caring ones, but I guess that most people had parents. I mentally shrugged away the shock and said goodbye to Pein-sama while waving, wondering how he got here if he wasn't heading towards the parking lot. And for some reason, wondering how Pein-sama got to this festival jogged my memory backwards to my mother saying last night that she would staying with Hatake-sensei the next night (tonight) and that she had invited some of my friends to a sleep-over at our house so that I wouldn't get lonely.

This made me ponder first, how my mother knew who my friends were, and second, who my mother had invited. My mother tended to think that I was friends with friends of friends when I really didn't know them all that well, but it made parties more interesting, so who was I to complain? And even though I didn't know everyone all that well, my mother usually created perfect guest lists somehow and always had enough food and such; it was one of the things that I liked best about her.

So while Itachi drove us back to my home, I wondered who my mother had invited, and hoped that she had invited Itachi. He had been acting a little strange at the festival, but who wouldn't after such a strange booth that we went to? I had to admit to myself that what happened with the strawberries was enjoyable on all levels, and that if I had an option, I still would have gone to the booth if just to eat the strawberries again. I was gaining an Itachi complex.

Within a few minutes of what seemed like a talk with myself, we were back at my squat, fake-looking, picture-house. My house resembled one of the glossy cover pages of a new homes magazine, which reminded me of the Uchiha residence. That thought made me feel like my house was uncomfortably small for the two Uchiha, and I became self-conscious of my home.

So when we walked inside, I made sure to seat the two Uchiha brothers in the largest room in the house— the sitting room, which had our television set and a large, comfortable couch— and hurried upstairs to my room to change out of the stiff kimono. I changed into a pair of loose, black pants and a lime green t-shirt that said "Kiss me, I'm foreign" on it. I also quickly brushed through my hair to get out all of the knots that had accumulated in it and shortly after, brushed my teeth (although that made me sad because my mouth was washed of Itachi's essence).

And, being ready for the sleep-over that would take place not to long from that time, I wasn't thinking that Itachi and Sasuke would also be getting ready for said sleep-over, seeing as I wasn't sure that they were going in the first place.

This lack of foresight brought me into an awkward situation. I haven't the slightest idea what it is about me, but I seem to somehow cause myself to be in too many situations in which I am with males who are lacking clothing. Although Itachi was already fully dressed in casual clothing, the same could not be said of Sasuke when I walked into the sitting room.

What could be said of Sasuke was that he looked just as good without a shirt on as his brother did, although he definitely looked strange in his baby blue boxers. But I should be glad that he was even wearing bowers at all, because the situation would have been infinitely more awkward if he wasn't.

"Oops, sorry, I should have known that you were changing, I'll come back in a few minutes," I said.

"No, just stay, this will only take a moment," Sasuke insisted as he hurriedly slipped on his shirt and shorts.

"What was it that you wanted, Sakura?" Itachi asked me, wondering why I had come down here in the first place.

"Oh, I was just coming down here because of the party that my mother organized for tonight. I figured that there would be something I needed to arrange for it, but I can tell that everything is settled now, so I have a question for you; when does the party start?" I asked as the doorbell rang.

"Now," Sasuke added in helpfully.

The three of us walked over to the front door of the house, pausing as I unlatched the door and then pulled it open to see a spiky-haired blond (who I remembered was Naruto), Neji, Tenten, and Hinata, all of whom carried with them a sleeping bag, a pillow, and a backpack full of what I presumed were their overnight supplies.

"The party starts now that I'm here, Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed, attacking me with a hold that I would guess he would call a hug.

"Wh-where should we put our things?" Hinata asked, and I led her along with the others towards a designated spot on the floor for their things.

"A-and Sakura-san, I… I have a present for you to thank you for inviting me to this party," Hinata said quietly and kindly, holding out a brightly wrapped package with a silver bow on it. She smiled as I carefully slid open the wrapping paper, and my grin soon matched hers. Hinata was certainly the best.

A/N: I know that it has been forever (again), and for that, I apologize. I have no excuse but to say that I am not sure that I can continue this story much longer because 1. I honestly forgot about it for a while, and 2. I don't have many more ideas for it or much time at the moment. So, the ending of this strange tale may come crashing down hurriedly soon, just to warn you all, but I thank you for your devoted support and apologize earnestly for not updating in such a long time.