Chapter twenty five - Development
The two days after her realization of love had been just as normal as ever. Tenten wasn't sure what she was expecting but it hadn't been the over whelming sense of normality. It was almost nostalgic. She'd been at school for a little more than a month and she was already feeling nostalgic. Pitiful, really.
Another thing that she suspected was reminding her of the old days was the fact Sakura seemed to be back to 'hating' Sasuke. Again.
When the full details of their argument emerged Tenten was gobsmacked to say the least.
"SAKURA YOU IDIOT!" Tenten shouted, slapping her friend hard on the shoulder, an armful of textbooks cascading from the emerald eyed teenagers arms and onto the floor.
"It was his fault." Sakura said heatedly, dropping down so she could regather her books and slide them on to a nice and neat pile on her desk, scowling fiercely at Tenten as she rubbed her shoulder.
"Anou... S-sakura, I think that Sasuke-san truly did not mean to offend you."
If Tenten had said that Sakura probably would have wacked her one but it was NOT Tenten who said it and no one hits Hinata and not just because they were scared of Neji. Hinata was just too nice to inflict injury upon.
"Hinata," Sakura said through tightly clenched teeth, "I don't care if he didn't mean to. The fact of the matter is he did." Sakura threw herself into her chair and glared at the floor.
"No matter how you look at it, he really didn't do anything that deserves you to sulk at him to such a degree." Temari commented, sprawling out on Ino's bed and turning her head to observe the ongoing discussion. Sakura growled unintelligibly under her breath and then raised her voice so the others could hear.
"You're only saying that because you had a good time at the dance with pineapple head."
Temari's face flushed red and she spluttered wordlessly at the smug pink haired girl. Tenten chuckled, earning herself a death glare from the sandy haired blonde.
Tenten could sense her expert mediator skills were being needed. Smirking from ear to ear she stood up.
"I think --."
"—no one wants to no what you think panda-chii." Temari interrupted bluntly. Tenten threw her an insulted look.
"What are you on about, everyone wants to know what I think."
"No. No we do not." Ino said as she emerged from the bathroom, wrestling her hair into a neater ponytail, looking very peppy.
"Okay Ino, what's the deal? Ever since the dance you've been little miss optimist. Have you not been informed that I am the group optimist? Back off! You have your own position!" Tenten pointed and accusing finger at the blond.
"Oh, yeah?" Ino asked sceptically. "And what would that be?"
"*****."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"I can not believe that just came out of your mouth Tenten." Sakura laughed. Ino's face was flushed and Temari was rolling around on the bed in laughter.
"Oh, you got told piggy!" she gasped through her tears. Hinata was a bright red and looked dangerously close to fainting. Tenten rubbed the back of her neck grinning with a slightly shameful expression on her face.
"I didn't mean to say that." She admitted but Temari and Sakura were to far gone in laughter to be silenced. Ino glared at them but flopped down on Sakura's bed. That got her attention.
"Off pig breath!" she demanded, laughter ceasing immediately. Ino gave a sickly sweet smile and pretended to lean back, deliberately scrunching up Sakura's obsessively neat bed spread.
"Hey! Watch the merchandise! The doona was expensive!" Sakura shouted jumping up and forcibly removing Ino from where she was sitting.
"You're such an over reactor forehead." Ino grinned as Sakura set about straightening up her wrinkled bedspread. Sakura shot her a glare and muttered under her breath before resuming the compulsive straightening of her bed sheets.
"And in answer to you're statement, Tenten, I happened to meet somebody I like at the dance." Ino said smoothly, flipping her hair and sending Sakura a pointed look. "And we had a great time."
"O-Oh, who was i-it?" Hinata asked.
"His name is Sai."
"Never heard of him." Temari said bluntly.
"Neither have I." Tenten agreed. Ino rolled her eyes at them .
"That doesn't really mean much. Neither of you are ever up to date on the latest gossip." She smirked. "But when you meet him you'll be lucky if you don't fall for his charms too."
"What happened to what's-his-name you were dating?" Sakura asked, finally finishing the straightening off her bed. Ino shrugged.
"We broke up."
"More like you dumped him."
"Details, details." Ino said dismissively waving her hand. Tenten had to admit she felt sorry for the men Ino dated. She flew through boyfriends like they were toys. Akira-san on Monday, Chika-chan the following week, some gut with weirdly straight teeth the next… Date em' and dump em'. It amazed Tenten to no end.
"Any way forehead, had Sasuke called?"
Sakura winced then folded her arms. "No."
"… Have you even checked?" Temari asked, sweat dropping.
"……….. No." Sakura admitted. "I've had my phone turned off since the dance a few days ago." She tugged nervously with a strand of her pink hair and averted her gaze to the floor. "I was sort of mad."
"We gather." Tenten assured her.
"Anou, S-Sakura why d-don't you check if Sasuke-san has c-called?" Hinata suggested, fidgeting adorably.
"He hasn't." Sakura stated with solid conviction.
"Che, you can't know that if you don't check?" Ino snapped and glared at the pink haired girl until she sighed and reluctantly slid a desk draw open and retrieved her cell phone, turning it on and tapping her foot impatiently.
Silence.
"See." She said smugly save for the let down look in her eyes. "I told you he wouldn't c--."
VRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOO!
"Holy shit!" Sakura swore throwing her phone in the air in surprise as it vibrated loudly in her palm.
VRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
!
!
Sakura juggled comically she tried to retain a grip on her insistently vibrating phone.
Ino was the one to catch it, sending Sakura a disgusted look as she bent over and clutched her knees in an attempt to catch her breath. Clicking her tongue Ino flipped it open and promptly froze.
Tenten craned her neck to better see the small screen.
Sunday, 1st – Seventeen missed calls from caller id: Sasuke-baka
Monday, 2nd – Forty one missed calls from caller id: Sasuke-baka
Tuesday, 3rd – Eighty six missed calls from caller id: Sasuke-baka
As Tenten stared the screen it blinked out of existence before lighting up again.
Incoming call Wednesday 4:06pm, caller id: Sasuke-baka
Cultivate your hunger, before you idealize,
Motivate your hunger, to make the them all realize -
Sakura swore again and snatched the phone from Ino's hand but it was to late. The interfering blond had already hit answer.
"H-Hello?" Sakura panted out of breath, sending the blonde a dirty glare. Ino fluttered her eyelashes innocently while the rest of the rooms occupants strained to hear, Hinata being the furtherest away leaning forward.
"Sakura?" Even sitting three meters away Tenten could detect the anxious tone of Sasuke's voice. He sounded tired. Like he hadn't been getting much sleep.
"I'm hanging up."
"No! Hold on a second Sakura! I seriously need to talk to you!"
Sakura hesitated for a moment before slamming her phone shut. Everyone stared at her in disbelief. "You could have given the poor guy a chance. Talk about cut throat." Temari muttered.
Sakura glared at her. "Mind your own romantic life for a change!" She snapped, her mood rapidly becoming sulky.
"I will not." Temari said with a dignified raise of her head.
"Why don't we all go down to the café?" Hinata suggested, obviously trying to play peacekeeper.
"Good idea!" Tenten said, launching enthusiastically into the idea of getting out of the cramped confines of Sakura's room and into a place with more witnesses so Sakura was less likely to filter her rage through physical violence.
***
"Somebody's sitting our usual table!" Temari cried out as the entered the café and indeed saw somebody sitting at the bench usually found to be occupied by there group smushed and sandwiched in.
Tenten growled under her breath and stalked over to the table. She was in a good mood. She would not let somebody usurp her table like that.
"Hey, humanoid! Up! My table! Mine! I have steaked a rightful claim on that piece of wood on which you sit! You better – Suigetsu?!"
Tenten did a double take as she recognized the purple eyed teenager slurping up a glance of water through a straw, one eyebrow cocked as he studied her in amusement. "Yo." He greeted.
"You two know each other?" Ino asked in surprise. Temari looked from Suigetsu to Tenten and back again, Shrugged and sat down on the bench opposite him. "Works for me." She muttered.
After a brief hesitation Tenten sat down to. Sakura and Hinata followed uneasily.
"Ahhh… Sakura, Hinata Ino – this is Suigetsu. His in my math class." Tenten introduced awkwardly. She didn't know exactly how to relate herself to him. She shifted uncertainly. The last thing she wanted was to be sitting with her friends when she encountered him again. Lest any information about the Akatuski leak out.
Suigetsu grinned at her. "Good to see you're well." He said.
"You two, fishboy." She answered. Suigetsu smiled wider and Tenten recalled what Neji had told her about him.
"I don't know Suigetsu personally, but I know his reputation. And I know that he's the student of one of the Akatsuki members. Kisami, whom is actually Itachi's partner."
"Talked to Neji, recently?"
Tenten's head snapped up. "Of course. His my roommate." Suigetsu smirked and ran a hand through his hair pushing out of his face.
"Perhaps I should rephrase. Has Neji talked to you recently."
Tenten froze at the innuendo implied in that sentence. Has… Has Neji talked to me about what? Suigetsu can't mean that-that there's been some news about the Akatsuki, could he?
A risked look at his face confirmed, yes, he in fact probably did mean that.
Message delivered Suigetsu got up and stretched. "See you ladies. I've got somewhere to be." His eyes remained fixed on Tenten's still form. As he walked past Tenten heard him mutter and his breath.
"If I were you, I'd keep a close eye on Sasuke too."
Tenten whipped around to ask him what he meant but he was already out the door. Heart pounding hard she got up.
"…Tenten?"
Very slowly Tenten turned her head to face her friends. "You're acting sort of strange…" Ino observed.
"You look pale. Are you alright?" Temari asked.
"Fine." Tenten murmured. In truth, she suddenly felt very claustrophobic. "I'm leaving."
Her friends watched as she left the café.
"If that wasn't strange I don't know what is." Sakura murmured.