Enjoy!
Kiba had met up with Kiko, as promised, at eight in the evening. The dance wasn't officially starting until ten, but people had been filtering in and out all day long. Kiba and Kiko spent the couple of hours in between chatting about this and that, who he had trained with, what his techniques were like, how he had decided to become a shinobi. Kiko was enthralled by every word, wide-eyed and innocent. Kiba hadn't felt so confident in years; that kind of bare admiration was new to him. It must have been how Naruto felt all the time.
Kiba was still dressed casual, but his date had arrived wearing a sequined, dark blue gown. A far cry from the plain red work-shirt he had met her in. Though their garments were on two different levels, it didn't seem to matter much. Some of the people there were dressed up, some weren't; the night was to be whatever the attendees sought to make of it. Whether formal or not, meaningful or not, the atmosphere was electric. Vibrant laughter and pockets of activity had formed outside the gate: old friends and comrades from the war catching up for the first time in over three years, old married couples celebrating the peace together, young lovers awkwardly trying to impress one another.
As an experienced ninja, Kiba felt separate from that. He had nothing to prove, as his 'date' already thought he was an incredible hero. Well, nothing to prove except: "You talked about your dad before, right?" He asked low. Kiko was standing close while they funneled into the dance proper, but she stopped short of looping her arm around his. "What sort of guy is he?"
Kiko smiled, her lips plain and uncolored. She started up with instant admiration, a true love for her parent: "He's a great man. Rich, powerful, judgemental..." She veered quickly into an attempt to make Kiba nervous, but took it back a moment after. "But don't worry, he loves war heroes."
Kiba gulped, and he looked over his shoulder with a strike of paranoia. Rich? Powerful? He only hoped he wasn't already being watched and judged. He stiffened his neck and stood up straighter. "If I knew he was rich I might've dressed better," he admitted, tugging at the loose cloth of his black outer jacket.
"No, no, don't worry about that. He doesn't judge people on the outside." She reached a finger over to poke the side of Kiba's red-painted cheek. "He judges them for the inside; you're pure on the inside, aren't you?"
Kiba closed one eye and scrunched half of his face. "Y-yeah...sure, I'm pure as they come."
"Relax, I'm only kidding." She hurried up, taking the lead and weaving through the crowd. She passed by the gate, and for a second she paused, stopped flat as both feet fell to a neutral position. "Did...did it just get colder?" She looked around with furrowed brow, clutching her shoulders with her hands.
Kiba felt it, too. Not a physical cold, but something that sucked the warmth out of his spirit. Somebody evil; some foul presence not wanted. His eyes moved left, across the wooden fencing that closed off the borders of the dance. Sasuke Uchiha stood unimpressively, arms folded and shoulder leaned casually against a nearby building. "That guy...I'll bet it's him."
Kiko peered where Kiba did, and when she noticed Sasuke she shivered. "O-oh...let's not stare, he might notice us."
Kiba scoffed. "Yeah, well...what if he does?" He murmured derisively, but nonetheless started past the gate and put himself none-too-slowly on the other side of the wall from Sasuke.
Recognition swept into Kiko's voice. "Oh...actually, I think I remember him from earlier. He was the one with that girl." She watched Kiba, waiting for a bad reaction. She didn't know much, but she knew it was a sore spot. "Forget it, I know it's not what you wanna talk about."
"Talk about whatever, it doesn't bother me," Kiba lied to her face, but he looked confident while he did it. The girl was easy to impress, and probably easy to fool; he didn't feel like he was being judged, so he took that chance to pretend he was the righteous hero she believed he was. She didn't hang on what he said for very long before she shrugged and kept on moving.
"Well, if you don't mind...tell me some more of your shinobi heroics! I wanna have some things to tell my father about when he shows up, so it at least seems like you and me are good friends." Maybe she knew something about deception after all. Either way, Kiba was more than willing to exaggerate a few of his feats...
Sasuke noticed Kiba walking in, and he also heard the girl mention his cold demeanor. Had he been so chilling to the spirit? Probably, but he blamed it on nerves igniting old habits. He took a deep breath to calm himself, trying to 'warm' his aura, as difficult as that was. His posture looked casual, but the stiff kind of casual that was completely forced. Hinata was supposed to have been there by now, but Sasuke was glad for the extra minutes to calm himself. This time was different. This was when something special was 'supposed' to happen between them. Was that how it worked? Did the environment dictate whether or not they came together? Did it require a celebration for him to tell her what he felt inside? As he mulled it over, it all seemed so arbitrary, but that was why he trusted Ino's word instead of his own instinct. He would've called a dance a waste of time and returned to training, but Ino convinced him otherwise.
He expected at any moment that the heavens would part and a single beam of light would descend to highlight Hinata on her approach. The scents of perfume and the sounds of clopping high-heeled shoes were plentiful, but he was confident that he would recognize her unique presence long before he set his eyes on her. Sweat formed on his brow and he thanked Ino for slipping a kerchief into his back pocket, wiping it off as quickly and subtly as he could. It was a pleasant night, cooled somewhat from the day's heat, but he had cause to sweat regardless.
The heavens didn't part in the literal sense, but a mental chorus of angels seems to hum in Sasuke's ear when he caught the notes of Hinata's murmur in the distance. Like a hushed, refined piano melody of softly-keyed high notes. Hanabi was more like a trumpet, so the two were an odd duet, but they were trading words back and forth. Exactly what, Sasuke couldn't make out over the masking of the crowd, but Hinata sounded...nervous?
He swallowed his own nerves and reminded himself that he was the last of the Uchiha—a noble, if flawed, Clan of the Leaf. He had every right to be her date for the dance, and she had chosen him just as he had chosen her. His rational mind knew that there was nothing to fear, no reason to worry about being near her. And yet, his heart was speedy and his heels started to tap in the grass. The same thing, the exact feelings, happened to him when he was waiting for her at noon. The festival was essentially winding down, changing from a fair into a more subdued, softer-toned gathering. The crowd hadn't shrunk by much, but a large portion of the village had been carved out to serve as the dance area. It wasn't a single, unbroken plaza—even Konoha didn't have that much unused space to spare—but rather a sequence of courtyards and wide paths that were divided occasionally by apartments and restaurants.
The whole setup seemed home-spun, and it was. Despite the involvement of the Five Great Nations, the dance was a labor of love and a low-budget affair. The expenses boiled down to compensating the property owners for the inconvenience, and of course paying for the snack buffet and the accompanying open bar.
Before Sasuke could privately question the wisdom of an open bar in the middle of thousands of once-enemies, Hinata drew close enough to notice him before he noticed her. Just in time for the moon to come into full view as the clouds were whisked away, Hinata quietly broke from the crowd to reveal her chosen dress to Sasuke.
Minutes before that, Hinata was trying to talk her way out of showing up at all. "Maybe it isn't a good idea," she whispered, her fingers fidgeting nervously.
"Nope, you already promised me..." Hanabi circled around to stand in front of Hinata and stand firm, bandaged hands on her own hips. "Follow your heart. The little voice in your head is in charge tonight, not the big one. The big one's thinking too much."
"It was a bad idea, he's going to see me and he's going to remember..." Hinata started to fiddle with the indigo sash that draped over her shoulders, touching the slick silk to soothe herself.
"Nope, too late, you're committing to it. If he cries, you'll just comfort him. Got it?" Hanabi pointed her finger up. The stars were appearing in the sky, with the moon slowly following. Full and confident, no less beautiful despite its involvement in the near-end of the world. If the moon could make dreams come true in a genjutsu, perhaps it could do the same for the real world that night. "You're walking up to him, whether you do it on your own or I have to drag you."
Younger, but maybe wiser, and definitely more confident, Hanabi's sturdiness (or stubbornness) was what Hinata had been missing all her life. Maybe it's why she missed her chance with Naruto, and maybe...maybe she was destined to do so, destined to instead come across Sasuke in her lowest moment. The moment during which she had last worn that silken dress, all aglow with silver ornaments in the moonlight. The tear-stains around the knees had since been intricately washed away, but the rest of it was the same—she hadn't noticed how much her body had changed over the months until she wore it again. Adjustments were hastily made before she left the changing room, a safety-pin here and a knot there to allow the gown to hug her body the way it should, to accommodate for places where softness had melted into firmness. Just another result of Sasuke's tireless training. Her form hadn't changed drastically, but enough to realize that she hadn't been taking her exercises seriously enough since the war ended.
She wasn't pushed by Hanabi's hand. No, she found the confidence to walk on her own. Knowing Sasuke, he was going to be someplace off to the side, avoiding attention, just like in the afternoon. Essentially, she found him in the same place—to the left, in the grass off the path, leaning in a dark corner. In the black of night, lamps overhead contrasted the pale, rising glow of the moon, and it cast a gleam onto Hinata just as she came into his focus. She felt his eyes turning; he knew her before he saw her, and she was able to watch with nervous awe as his idle curiosity transformed into recognition...painful recognition.
He certainly remembered the dress. She had been wearing it at Naruto's and Sakura's wedding, crying into the cloth until the voice of none other than Sasuke Uchiha had broken her free of her isolated sorrows. They came together that night because of mutual misery, the result of two lovers who weren't destined to be theirs. The odds seemed long; astronomical. They hadn't spoken, ever shared a meal, and barely even locked eyes in the years they spent living parallel lives. One chasing Naruto as a romantic interest, the other wishing to fight, surpass, and—shamefully—kill him.
Hinata stood in place for a moment and allowed herself to be judged. She felt Sasuke's eyes on her, roaming down her tightly-hugged hips and chest. Not vulgar, not provocative, but rather accentuating the underlying beauty of her feminine form. Regardless of the fine cloth, she felt naked in front of him, as if she were finally showing all of herself to him, submitting her feelings in unspoken form and waiting for him to reject her with nothing more than his gaze.
Reject her he did not. Sasuke gazed, and gazed, and gazed all the more. With each moment his nervous breath slowed to calm. The dress did remind him of a painful night, of a moment where all felt lost. In his pitiful state, he had contemplated attacking his oldest, truest friend—all for the sake of a lost love that he had lost entirely on his own. Was it ever love? No, he knew it wasn't. Sakura was a partner, a pre-packaged mate with whom he could continue the Uchiha Clan. That was how he had been thinking; she was a missed opportunity, not a true love. Not like the girl now standing before him. He pushed thoughts of Sakura out of his mind, perhaps for the final time, and devoted all his senses to Hinata.
She was truly stunning to behold. He noticed her shoulders trembling despite the sash that covered them, and her smiling lips quivered with the fear of rejection, of failure, of making mistakes. He wanted to reach out and cup her cheek, to tenderly kiss her violet-painted lips, to tell her that he was hers. Her worries had no place between them. He remembered the sound of her crying, her pure sorrow. He had felt it, too, but she had felt it more deeply. He realized, in retroactive fashion, that she had lost more than he had on that night. She hadn't only lost a partner, but she had lost her purpose. She had confessed it to him over the time they had known each other; Naruto was her reason for being. Even now, with the looming tournament, she aimed to impress him—now, though, not for attention, but to prove that she no longer needed him as a foundation. She had discovered her own strength, and although Sasuke had helped her do so, it was not his to claim. She was going to win everything she desired, everything she deserved...and in that silent moment of mutual recognition, Sasuke realized with no more lingering doubt that he himself was something that she truly desired. He had devised his own downfall all along—he had given her the tools, the confidence, the self-drive to realize the truth.
"Hey," Sasuke said quietly, missing all the romantic signals flying through his mind. He was going to sweep her off her feet, tell her that she was a precious treasure, and say the words he had been incapable of saying. But all that escaped was 'hey.' Far from the first time that she had shattered his intended course, and likely not nearly the last, either.
"Hi," Hinata responded with the softest whisper. Her throat was moist and loose; she could've spoken aloud of all the things she had been thinking. Of how Sasuke had pulled her up from despair, taught her to value herself again, and given her a new purpose for living. Not those words, though—not the three. She wouldn't dare be the first to say them. No matter how confident she was, she couldn't. Hanabi had coached her already; get a confession, make him say it. Don't be the first to speak. Let him come crawling. All those notions, though, flew out of her ear and escaped into the soil.
The man in front of her was Sasuke. A dangerous name, one she used to fear, to dread, to hear with venom. Now, though, the word, the name, two syllables long, meant something deep in her heart and soul. It wasn't just the letters to spell it, but it was the realization of her comfort. The rock, the reason, the man who gave her smile back to her. And though she didn't know it, not really, she had given his back to him.
Sasuke moved to confess right away: "Hinata, I..." He approached her, a hand rising up in front of him, palm facing her. She stepped close to him, her pale palm meeting his glove and fingers clasping impulsively. It felt comfortable for both of them; familiar. The fates had aligned to bring them to that moment, fingers clasped to the knuckles of one another's hands. "I need to tell you, Hinata." He clenched his jaw to brace himself. She stood in suspended silence, nodding slowly, giving him permission to continue. He exhaled. "I...don't really know how to dance with a partner."
According to Hanabi, who was now mysteriously absent, Hinata should have felt disappointed that Sasuke's confession amounted to so little. But he was Sasuke, and she was Hinata, so she smiled and laughed airily with a bright pink blush: "It doesn't matter if we dance, but...I want you next to me." She didn't shy away from herself, didn't loose herself from Sasuke's hand to take it back or lessen the impact. She said what she meant to say, and her milky eyes locked to Sasuke's black ones to prove that she hadn't mistakenly let it slip.
Sasuke had run out of defense mechanisms. There was nowhere else for him to be, nothing else for him to tend to. He had already gotten his clothes, already eaten, already been approached and recognized by a handful of people. His presence wasn't an anomaly; he was there, he was known, and he was welcomed by the people who mattered most. Importantly, the person who mattered most. His hand clenched hers tight, and he nodded his head with the somber weight of his acceptance. Any other time, any other assurance, felt less meaningful. Even the kiss they had first shared, bathed in the same moonlight that shone upon them now, was impulsive. He had seen her hurt, saved her life, acted on instinct...this, though, was a culmination. She was happy, warm, safely surrounded by friends and loved ones whom she could count on, and of all those people and all those things she held dear, Sasuke was the one whose eyes she looked into. He was the one whose hand she held. He was the one who heard those words, 'I want you next to me.' He was, also, the only one who had the right to respond: "Hinata, I'll be wherever you need me to be."
She soaked in the meaningfulness. Where she needs him to be. Not wants, but needs. She felt eyes on her back, probably Hanabi's, maybe others, but the tingle in her spine was not the feeling of being watched. It was the feeling of mutual magnetism. She would follow him anywhere; she had almost left the village for him some time ago. Impulsive; stupid; something she would have regretted, had she done it at the time...but now, after so much time spent with him, whether real or imagined, she would do it without regret. Because wherever he was, she felt that she needed to be there as well. Not for his sake, not to protect him or others, but because she needed him wholeheartedly. "Then let's be together tonight."
Sasuke nodded, keeping one of her hands in his. He leaned in to deliver a delicate kiss to her forehead, gentle to avoid smudging any makeup she had been furnished with, and he whispered feather-like to her ear just after. "Just us, no more interference." He was probably talking about Hanabi, but for all her persistence and meddling, she had disappeared quite admirably.
"I did tell Hanabi, earlier, that...I wanted some time with you, alone." Hinata whispered back, letting her cheek lean aside, brushing her skin against his. She didn't need much makeup, ultimately, so the thin layer did little to interfere with the soft brushing of skin on skin, and none rubbed away. "I guess not alone, since there's a big crowd, but...I don't think she'll bother us much tonight."
Sasuke nodded. Hopefully, Ino would show the same restraint. As helpful as the blonde had been in the hours leading up to the moment, her presence would do little more than make things complicated. "Time alone, but with all our friends and family to see it?"
Hinata smiled playfully and kissed Sasuke's cheek with a subtle affection. "I'm not afraid of being seen with you anymore, Sasuke. I care about their feelings, but I won't let them stop me anymore. Let them come and judge me, or you, but I've already made up my mind."
Sasuke kept his eyes closed, cheek to cheek with Hinata, sharing whispers back and forth in their dark and secluded corner. In view, but out of the way. "I hope you never regret it," he said with a tease, but there was stinging truth. He was overjoyed to hear that she had decided to brush off the criticisms of her loved ones on his behalf, but it was something that could cost her dearly. He couldn't, in that long-awaited moment of their 'debut,' find motive or will to talk her out of it. He wanted more than anything to be in the open with her. Not just next to her, but with her.
"I won't regret it," she answered with hushed surety. "Let's go inside and show them." She knew the risk; she knew that Kiba was in there, that her father would be in there, that Naruto and Sakura were going to be centerpieces of every dance; the recently-married hero couple. She cherished them all as friends and family, and despite all the weight and challenge of their presences, Hinata was determined to keep her promise. Listen to her heart, ignore her doubts, and hope for Sasuke to confess under the fireworks.
Sasuke nodded, feeling much the same way, but with nothing to lose. He hadn't felt the same fear of judgement; he was already judged. His fears were all on her behalf. He knew that she would stand up for him no matter what, and that was what made him the most nervous as he took her through the open gate and into the lamp-lit plazas that made up the dance area. He was holding her hand when he entered with her, and though they were both nervous about what the night would bring, they were each in their own way fully confident that it would end with their being closer together than ever before.
Whispers quickly spread through the dance. Nobody would speak too loudly, but in the plain light and with the benefit of a slower paced evening, more people had recognized Sasuke for who he was. They had also recognized Hinata. Rumors came to be open fact, as Sasuke and Hinata were seen as 'a couple' for the first time in the open, without hiding away or breaking up at first question.
Naruto and Sakura heard it shortly, and the two shared glances of different intensities. Sakura had known for quite some time, and although she had tried to convince Naruto, he had been skeptical. She laid her arm over his shoulder, leaning up and nudging him down so that she could gloat. "I told ya so, didn't I?"
Naruto's bright yellow head of hair swayed slightly in the wind as he hummed. "I guess you were right the whole time," he admitted. He had been too focused on Hinata during their four-way dinner, not enough on Sasuke. Probably because he had his own long-standing issues to tackle with the princess. Sometimes his cheek still burned where she had slapped him, but it was a good burn. A burn of closure, not regret.
Sakura, too, had finally squashed her own regrets. Sasuke was her long-time, one-sided love, but it wasn't meant to be. Despite a few embarrassing, fleeting moments of wanderlust, she had given up on Sasuke just about as soon as she saw her wedding photos. The group shot, especially, tipped her off. "Admit it, I'm great at this stuff," Sakura sing-songed into her husband's ear. "I called it almost right away, didn't I?" She kissed his cheek, the gloating sort of kiss that was almost a bite. "It was the smiles. They both looked like they were happier than they'd ever been, don't you think?"
"It was weird to see Sasuke smiling, no doubt. Hinata always seemed pretty happy, though..." He then pursed his lips, recovering from a potentially-volatile statement. Not because it would cause jealousy, but because it made him seem thick-headed. Instead of letting Sakura step in, he corrected himself. "But that's probably because she was always happy to see me, huh?" Naruto slipped his arm around Sakura's waist. Speaking of photos, there was a small handful of cameramen roaming around to document the dance. It was as much a publicity stunt as anything else, and Kakashi had encouraged Naruto and Sakura to be especially affectionate for the eventual commemorative photo albums that would be produced. For morale, he had said. Times were tough, no matter how happy the people could pretend to be during a time of festivity. A long-lasting reminder of a happy time, the biggest cross-nation event since the war itself, would be an invaluable stone in the foundations of finally moving past the devastation.
"We should wish them well," Sakura suggested, then smiled with white teeth for a camera that passed by. Photography was nothing 'new,' but it seemed as if cameras had been getting more advanced since the days of their graduation photos. Technology had developed rather quickly, almost frighteningly so, but it was a time of great cooperation, so huge leaps were to be expected.
"I'm wishing everybody well," Naruto groaned quietly, and as he spoke he was greeted by a passing couple. "Hey, have a good time tonight!" he called to them, one of the few pre-set variations he had been firing off all night. Quietly again: "It's exhausting to be popular," he sighed, slumping dramatically against Sakura's shoulder.
She pushed him firmly, standing him right-side up. "I know, I know, we've been at it all week, but it's almost over. Tonight's the last night of the festival, and tomorrow's a full day off before the tournament begins." She leaned up, cupped her hand around her mouth, and whispered to his ear. "And since we've got tomorrow off, we can stay up extra late tonight..." She nipped his ear out-of-view, then winked when she pulled back to put on a 'public' face again.
Naruto grinned with a look that might've rivaled Jiraiya's, not missing the implication, but adding his own twist: "And we can sleep in as late as we want tomorrow morning!" He exclaimed, to Sakura's chagrin. She reached up and gave him a pat on the shoulder, nodding her head with a soft blush. He was the man she married, no doubt about it.
Kakashi, too, had found his way to the dance—in true form, not a clone or a body double to be seen. His guards were present, some of them on the roof, some of them taking part in the dance itself. Soft music was already playing, but the dance floors hadn't yet been lit with the designated glow that would indicate their purpose. As it was, it started more like a meet-and-greet between visitors from far and wide. Aside from food and drink, the distractions were minimal. The festival itself was intended to bring investments and opportunities in from far and wide, but more than that, it brought people to the sort of gathering that would strengthen friendship rather than mere business relations. Now that the fun and games had come to an end, it was time to cash it out with an intimate gathering. The dance was the slowest, most tightly-populated event on the schedule, a strategic element in the overall plan—a time for new and old friends and lovers to come together and reflect on life. Of joy, sorrow, pain, pleasure; all the aspects of it.
Kakashi was presently experiencing the pleasurable pain of Mei Terumi's advances. Rather, her clumsy willingness to throw herself at nearly every attractive man in sight. Kakashi sometimes wondered how so many people had determined him to be attractive despite his insistence on wearing his mask, but the rumors had been spreading for years. At some point, they had become accepted fact, even if few had seen his face. The Mizukage herself might have been the single greatest argument against having an open bar, because the heated blush on her upper cheeks and the wine glass in her right hand were responsible for the way her bust was leaning against Kakashi's left arm.
"You should be dancing, Lord Hokage; why are you hiding in the corner~?" Mei slurred a bit, arm slinking around Kakashi's bicep.
The dancing hadn't begun in earnest, but there were a few trying to get it started by busting some moves on one of the checkered floor-pads laid out for the occasion. One of them, of course, being the Raikage's outgoing brother, Killer Bee. Perhaps he owed it to the energies of the Eight-Tails, or maybe he had bottomless enthusiasm to begin with, but even after a day of giving free concerts and enthusiastically signing autographs, Bee hadn't shown the first sign of slowing down.
Kakashi used him as an out. "The others are dancing without you, Lady Mizukage. You should join them, and maybe I'll catch up later."
A green-sleeved arm wrapped over both of Mei's shoulders, mercifully tugging the blue-dressed Mizukage off of Kakashi's arm, helpfully allowing some circulation to return to it. Tsunade, the retired Fifth Hokage, was never one to miss an open bar, either. She guided Mei away from Kakashi, laughing and drinking sake. "He's not much fun anyway," Tsunade smartly said, as a way of gifting Kakashi with some peace and quiet. "You're better off with the lively ones!" Husky-voiced and full of confidence, it was hard to tell that Tsunade's body had nearly lost its ability to fight. The long-term cost of her self-healing techniques had essentially forced her to retire, though she was far from 'useless' even so.
Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief, returning to surveying the populace. Sai had, predictably, taken leave of his post in order to show up at the dance. He was already paired up with Ino, and the way they were bound together at the hip lent deep credibility to Shizune's earlier musing. Some of his guards needed the time off, indeed.
Sasuke recognized very few faces altogether, but he memorized each of the new ones. Despite the revelry, he was keenly aware of the attacks that had continued behind the scenes. His hand clutched Hinata's protectively, and he kept a soft smile on the surface of his face. Nothing would happen that night; nine-tenths of the military might of the entire world had gathered in that segmented rectangle: Between Sasuke, Naruto, and so many of the present, former, and future Kage, no attack would last long. That last, lingering worry was pushed aside like the others, and Sasuke convinced himself once and for all to enjoy the night for better or worse.
Hinata had already convinced herself of that; she wasn't worried, nor was she dreaming up consequences for actions she hadn't yet taken. She was surrounded by the hand in hers, the warmth on her right arm when she leaned against Sasuke's new limb. It felt like his; it was his. Nothing like the cold, metallic hand that his eye could create. This one was warm with blood flow, soft with skin, and firm with muscle. Even through the bandages and the layer of fine sleeve-cloth, she could feel it.
"So...what do we do now?" Sasuke asked her through the side of his mouth. People were gawking, both quietly and openly, at the show of affection shared between them. A photograph had already been taken; at that point, it became too late to deny anything. Their hands were clasped together too tightly to be anything else.
Hinata, ever optimistic, maintained her smile and closed her eyes. She leaned her head against his shoulder, gently, barely a gram of weight. Just enough to drape her shimmering hair down the side of his arm. "We don't have to do anything," she said, peace in her voice. "We can just sit together until they serve the cake."
Sasuke laughed through his nose. "Ah, right, the cake. That's what brought us here. It's time to pay my debt."
"And the fireworks," Hinata reminded him. "We're here until midnight, at least." She looked up and over. One of the reasons the location had been chosen was for the fireworks show; the rockets were going to be launched over the Hokage monument, and from the dance area, the mountain loomed high and imposing. It would make for an impressive sight, especially with the half-built skeletons of skyscrapers showing in the backdrop. A mark of rebuilding; a way of patting the visitors on the shoulder and saying 'this world didn't end, it's only getting stronger.'
"If we'll be here that long, I owe you at least one dance after all." Sasuke rolled his thumb against the back of Hinata's hand.
She melted into him for a moment. "Oh, I'd love it if we danced," she cooed. She had gone too long without a dance, but she hadn't felt the spirit of it. Tonight, she was weightless; she could jump to the moon if she liked. "One song would even be enough."
"Once I work up the courage," Sasuke murmured. "With all the cameras around, I have to be careful."
"Don't be careful, just be nice." Hinata brought her other hand up to Sasuke's shoulder to squeeze, turning herself against him. Partially to comfort him, and partially for herself. He was right about the cameras, but more than that, there were eyes abound. She wasn't ashamed to be seen with Sasuke, but her natural shyness hadn't been totally eradicated either. She trembled slightly, but Sasuke made her calm again.
"I can be nice if you remind me," Sasuke said through a self-knowing smirk. "Just don't leave me alone with anybody."
"You mean with my father, don't you?" Hinata picked up on his hint. "I promise I won't. I'll address him when he comes."
"Until then, should we have some punch?" Sasuke gestured to a table with a massive punch bowl. Pink juice, laden at the bottom by strawberries.
"I'd love some," Hinata agreed, accompanying Sasuke to the table. She took up a complementary glass from atop the broad white surface, and she scooped a ladle full of punch into it before handing it to Sasuke. She did the same for herself, and they took a sip at the same time, watching each other with fascination.
"She served the punch," Ino observed nosily, nudging Sai in the ribs with her elbow to command his attention. "Sasuke should have been the one to serve it! What's he doing over there?"
"These rules of yours are complicated," Sai responded, gently rubbing his tenderized ribs with the palm of his hand. "Would it not be better for Sasuke if Hinata were the one trying to impress him?"
Ino tightened her lips and shook her head, arms folding under her chest while she leaned backward against Sai, allowing him to support her with his arms and sturdy posture. "No, no, he has to make the moves. That's how it works."
Sai blinked, his washed white face unreadable and flat. "I didn't make the moves, did I?"
A grumble from Ino passed from her to him, vibrating in his chest. "That's different. You didn't know your head from your foot when it came to romance. I'm teaching you along the way, so you have an excuse. Sasuke should know better."
"Hinata seems happy, doesn't she?" Sai watched—he and Ino were a healthy distance away. Sasuke surely knew they were watching, but Hinata may not have noticed. It was fine if Sasuke knew; he had enlisted Ino's help to begin with. "Does he need any help?"
"Of course he needs help!" Ino asserted, settling her back further against Sai's strong chest. For having such a thin build, he was remarkably firm. "Sasuke doesn't even know how to dance."
"Neither did-"
"I know you didn't, that's why I taught you!" Ino cut Sai off mid-sentence, then after a moment she turned her head back and looked up, smiling vulnerably. "I'm glad you made it," she whispered under her breath, honestly and truly appreciative.
"I-I would never miss it," Sai responded as if he were being graded for accuracy. If I had missed it, she might have killed me. Even without the threat of death, though, her ruby-red lips and their genuine smile were incentive enough to keep him close by.
Ino was the one who stood on her toes to press her mouth to Sai's for a quick kiss; he hadn't much developed an instinct for personal affection like that, yet, but she was teaching him. Eventually, she reasoned, he'd know to do it on his own. It wouldn't hurt to take the lead until then...
Hanabi hadn't disappeared, but she was keeping herself scarce for her sister's sake. And her own sake—she wasn't confident enough to face Sasuke after what happened. She already feared what he had figured out under the tree. It worked well enough that Hinata had asked for privacy, so Hanabi could just pretend that was what it was. A baked-in excuse for avoiding Sasuke until the tournament was over. By then, she wouldn't have to deceive anybody. She only needed to win...that's all she needed.
She sipped punch from a different table, having snuck in and around the outer wall to a place out of sight from the couple. The urban layout worked to her advantage; all she had to do was lurk, while occasionally checking in with her Byakugan to ensure that Hinata hadn't blown it. So far, so good. She and Sasuke were chatting each other up by the punch bowl on the opposite edge of the plaza. Hanabi figured they were having a pretty good time, based on their faces, but it wasn't really going to push Sasuke over the edge.
She was also more concerned about her father than Hinata was. There was no telling how he would react to seeing one of his daughters with Sasuke; even if she were the 'lesser' daughter, it would still reflect on the clan as a whole. As it was, the Hyuuga Clan was in purely good standing, with nary a black mark to its name since the Hinata kidnapping incident well over a decade ago—and even then, the black mark was purely there to appease the Cloud at a sensitive time. The Leaf knew the truth of it. So for a clan like the Hyuuga to have its reputation blended with the Uchiha would be like dragging them through the mud behind a horse.
Hiashi had, just that morning, emphasized the importance of obedience; of loyalty to the clan. Hinata had it easy, maybe; she was two steps away from being disowned as it was. Hanabi had more to lose if it came to light that she had been keeping the secret about Sasuke from her father all that time. She would play dumb; that'd be the ticket. I'm as shocked as you are, father. How, sister? How could you betray the good name of our clan for such vile companionship? She winced. It felt dirty even to think it. Besides, was she a good enough liar to fool her father? She thought so, but she also knew she was wrong. Part of growing up was learning to recognize one's own arrogant mistakes; she was figuring that part out a lot faster than she wanted to.
"Hey, do you normally drink that much?" Kiko asked Kiba while he downed his third cup of sake.
"Nah, but it's a special occasion." Kiba shrugged. He hadn't gotten to the point of slurring or staggering, but the suddenly-cool night air was perfect for the warmth he was starting to feel from the alcohol's effects. "I can slow down if it bothers you," he said with a guilty chuckle. "I sorta forgot about your dad."
Kiko shook her head. "It's fine, my father drinks sometimes, too. I just don't think I've got the arm strength to carry you out of here if you overdo it." She joked. "Oh, I've been meaning to ask about your dog."
"Akamaru? What about him?" Kiba set down his cup on a nearby table. He and Kiko were standing next to it to half-reserve it, just in case the crowd suddenly surged and they might have been left standing.
"Where is he?" She asked, glancing around. "You didn't bring him with you when we met up."
"A crowded place like this isn't really good for him. He's trained, but he ain't small. I took him home for the night." Kiba didn't think much of it; though he and his ninja hound had a reputation of being inseparable, there were occasions where the grown pup was better off at home.
Kiko frowned slightly. "That's too bad, I wanted to pet him."
"We can visit him later, if the dance slows down a bunch. Or uh, maybe even tomorrow?" He took a quick drink from his cup. He hadn't planned on anything more than a night out, but maybe it was worth trying for a second day.
Kiko's eyes turned to the floor. Either she was blushing, or she was trying not to offend by making eye contact. "I...I might like that very much, to see you tomorrow too."
"Y-yeah, but we should get through tonight first. When's your dad gonna be here?" Kiba was still looking around, and though he had claimed he had forgotten, the inevitable introduction to the sweet young woman's father was actually what had driven him to drink in the first place. He needed to settle his nerves. Things were happening quickly. Was it normal to 'meet the parents' on the first date? No, but it wasn't really a normal date, either. As bad luck would have it, Kiba didn't have any reinforcements to lean on, either. Shino didn't care much for dancing, and Kurenai was at home putting Mirai to bed. There was no telling if she would even make it to the dance at all. That only left Hinata, and...his blood boiled hotter just picturing it. Sasuke, that bastard...
The sudden sound of breaking glass shook Kiba out of his enraged trance. He looked around to see where it had come from, then felt that his hand was wet with a small splash of sake. He fluttered his eyes a few times to clear his sight and realized that his own hand had crushed the glass. He shook his hand off to the side a few slow, dramatic cycles, and took three deep breaths.
Kiko was quick with a napkin, "Kiba, are you alright? How did that happen?" She touched his wrist to hold him still, then started brushing the glass and sake off his skin. "You're lucky you didn't get cut..."
Kiba exhaled a deep sigh and relaxed his jaw. "Nothing, I guess I just don't know my own strength sometimes." He looked to the sky and wondered if he would be better off just going home and forgetting the whole thing. No, he couldn't...he had made a promise to himself.
Speakers mounted up on the corners of the buildings dotting the dance floor had gradually begun to play mid-tempo, upbeat music. Lights of different hues: green, red, blue, brown, and yellow, had begun to light the patterned square mats on the ground. The 'dance' had begun, and the attendees took their cue to start piling onto the separate platforms, some alone, some with a partner.
"Looks like it's starting," Sasuke observed from beside the punch bowl. "Let's wait until the chaos has died down before we go up."
Hinata nodded. That was fine with her. "I'm not ready yet, either." Her eyes moved to the clock; it was around ten fifteen. Things had barely gotten started. There was plenty of time for things to go right.
And plenty of time for things to go wrong.
Hey folks, sorry again about the long update cycle. I didn't intend to take so long, but right after Halloween a lot of holiday-related family business started popping up, and it's only recently settled down. The bad news is that it didn't settle down until classes started up again, so I've got that on my plate now as well. That said, the next chapter won't take an eternity. I don't want to promise a release date, but it's gonna be sooner than usual (I hope), since I've already got a lot of it mapped out. I've been working on this one and the next one kind of back-to-back, so a lot of the brainstorming and whatnot has already been done for the follow-up.
That one's gonna be a pretty big deal, so prepare yourself.
Until next time, please leave a review, and feel free to ask any questions or make any comments! If you ask a question, though, I ask that you have a registered account so that I can send a PM with the answer. Until next time!
