FORMALITIES

CHAPTER 3

Hinata fidgeted in her seat. She tried to stare at something, anything, to take her focus off the Uchiha sitting to her right, and Sabaku Gaara sitting to her left. She'd actually been looking forward to forgetting he was here, but he'd chosen to seat himself right next to her. Sasuke was the only one besides herself who hadn't changed seats to the other end of the class.

There was something about him, something retained, something receded, that felt wrong. Sasuke was calmer than ever, save for a bead of sweat making its way down the side of his neck. She studied him carefully with her peripherals, struggling to see a sign that he was feeling the same thing she was. Danger. As usual he kept his hands folded over his mouth, elbows perched on the desk with his chin ever suspended. He kept his posture well. Very well. And she did notice him glance her way a few times. What she saw there was something she'd never seen from him before. Concern.

Yesterday had passed without incident. Gaara was sure his siblings were more than relieved that the transition from Suna to Konohana had gone so smoothly. Baki's only request now was that not cause trouble in class. Easy enough, for now.

He scanned the students below. He had preferred to sit someplace without people, though he was certain he couldn't sit anywhere without drawing looks. It was the natural instinct of human beings to distance himself from things like him. The two students who hadn't distanced themselves surprised him. Brave souls, he thought in amusement.

Unlike the two of them, who were obviously analyzing him, he didn't bother concealing his curiosity. One was a boy. He had the hair of a raven, with skin as pale as limestone and a blue shirt with what must have been the Uchiha crest on the back. Uchiha . . . he knew of them. A few members of the Uchiha police force had come to Suna at some points during his childhood. They'd been on business sent by the Hokage, and the only reason he knew about it was because his father was the Kazekage.

There were significantly less number Uchiha now. Less meaning only two, as far as he was aware. The rest of them had been murdered, and by one of their own kind. It was a fantastically amusing story to him. What with the tragedies in his own life (if he bothered to consider them tragedies anymore) it couldn't possibly be anything else. And here he was sitting two chairs away from the lone survivor. What a treat. How nice to know he wasn't the only celebrity around. Though Gaara's smirk did not make its way onto his face, it was definitely present.

If the Uchiha had taken anything from his god forsaken life, Gaara hoped it was strength.

This other one, though . . . this female—what was she? Despite being so quiet, she was one of the first people he'd noticed yesterday when introduced to the class. Her eyes were unlike anything he'd ever seen before, seemingly made of pure mist. Her skin, her jacket, her eyes, she was in every respect as pale as a ghost, except for her hair of course, which was radically out of sync with the rest of her appearance. A Hyuga. The clan she hailed from was every bit as powerful and infamous as the Uchiahas, rich with skilled warriors and tactical geniuses . . .

No wonder these two did not flee like the others. He liked that.

His older siblings were attending class with the older Hyuga here. Neji, if Gaara remembered correctly. His sensei had debriefed him on the Hyuga family far from arriving in Konohana. What he didn't know was how many were attending the academy, because there was certainly only one Uchiha. The Hyuga female next to him did not look strong. He ached to test her out, and unconsciously made plans to do so sometime in the future. Preferably when Baki's monitoring became a little more . . . lax. If she was anywhere near as weak as she looked, it was not out of the realm of possibility that she might die. Yes, it would alarm Baki. Yes, it would alarm his siblings. Yes, it would enrage the Hyugas. So yes, indeed it would cause an uproar, but he liked uproars. They were prime environments for killing.

Class didn't end soon enough for Hinata. All day she had tried to ignore the tension flying in shockwaves between Gaara and Sasuke. An impossible task since they were both sitting directly next to her. The fact that they were acutely aware of each other and never said a single word . . . that was a little weird. Hinata wondered if it was some kind of male thing, but then again she did not speak to them either.

When the bell rang she jumped. What a relief. 'Maybe I'll sit at the front of the classroom tomorrow' she thought anxiously. Maybe even next to Naruto.

Sasuke rose to his feet also, but with a sluggish grace that did not imply any sort of fear, like Hinata's. Still, he managed to keep in sync with her movements. She bent down to grab her bag, but Gaara called for their attention. "Hey," he said. Low, rough, not at all threatening. Just hey. Hinata's heart leapt into her mouth. He definitely had Sasuke's attention, for it was only at Sasuke that he looked. "Uchiha." Gaara stood from his chair slowly, arms crossed. Sasuke responded with the same tepid enthusiasm.

"Yeah?"

"There is an upcoming tournament being held at the academy in a number of weeks, yes?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

Hinata was relieved to see that the conversation did not involve her at all, but as she moved to leave something caught the back of her jacket.

"Will you be competing?" Gaara asked Sasuke.

"I am."

Gaara closed his eyes thoughtfully. Then, horrifically, his eyes fell to Hinata. She was more surprised than scared, though she was definitely that too. "And you, Hyuga?"

Before she could respond Sasuke stepped in front of her. Well, what he actually did was pull her behind him by the jacket. "No she isn't," he answered for her. "Only the other Hyuga will be competing. The two of us should be enough."

Enough for what? Dread rose like volcanic smoke inside Hinata. She studied Gaara carefully. "Is that so?" he replied quietly. The thoughtfulness was still there, but then there was also an unmistakable spark of excitement. Hinata couldn't say how she detected this, since he gave absolutely no outward reaction, but it was there. Suddenly she felt scared for her niisan. "Train well, then," was his final parting.

He climbed the steps to the exit, gracefully taking his leave. It was then Hinata noticed that the whole class was watching them. Her cheeks flushed. Lingering in the classroom was unbearable, but she also didn't want to leave too soon and run into Gaara. The other students apparently had the same idea, because they didn't leave any sooner than she did. Sasuke, naturally being the bravest one, was the first to take his leave, and he did not spare her a single glance on his way past her.

"U-um, Uchiaha-san, wait." It was a torment to willingly appeal for his attention. He turned around so swiftly.

"Yes?"

"U-um, what you said about the tournament . . ."

"What about it?"

"You were mistaken. I will be competing." Sasuke narrowed his eyes at her. He turned so that his chest was facing her.

"What?"

Hinata cringed. "Y-yes. As you probably already know, I am heir t-to the Hyuga clan, and so . . . it's mandatory for me, you see."

He opened his mouth in what she thought would be protest, but then he seemed to pull back a little and all he said was, "I see." Then, after a second's deliberation on his part, he added, "In that case, train as hard as you can. Otherwise you might get killed." He took his leave without another word.

Hinata's heart sank. She doubted someone would actually kill her, seeing as it was only preliminary tournament, and a first of several, but then again it wasn't exactly impossible.

"Hinata!" Naruto fairly shouted. She jumped around to see him waving at her from the other end of the room. He bounded toward her with feverish excitement. The fight-or-flight instinct in her seized her viciously, as it only ever did with this boy. She almost ran—no, sprinted—away, but she didn't. There was enough sense in her to realize how that would have looked. So she stayed where she was, paralyzed. "Y-yes Naruto-kun?"

"I didn't know you were entering the competition!"

And why wouldn't she? "Y-yes . . . I suppose I am." She strove desperately for confidence, or at the very least to keep from stuttering. In her endeavor to look everywhere but at him, she didn't even realize that her fingers were twiddling.

"I will be too. Isn't that great? I'll actually be competing in a real tournament as a real ninja! This so rocks!" He was so enthusiastic that his heels bounced, and as per usual with any burst of excitement of his, threw a punch into midair. Hinata couldn't help smiling. His happiness was infectious, and she fed from it hungrily. She knew how hard he worked to become a ninja, and entering into the exams would be the biggest step he'd taken in his career so far. It almost made the prospect of competing bearable.

Almost.

"Well, I-I'll be going, Naruto-kun," she said shyly. "I'll see you around." Now she did run from the classroom. She faintly heard him shout a good-bye and found herself smiling foolishly, bag clasped tightly to her chest. She was even giggling. 'He talked to me! He actually came up and talked to me of his own will.' The fact that he'd wanted to share his excitement with her sent her soaring.

Kami, she was so happy. She did not want to go home. The longer she took, the longer she could retain this amazing feeling. Her happiness was a balloon strapped to her wrist, and she knew that the second she stepped onto the Hyuga grounds that fragile string would clip and the balloon would go sailing away. Besides, who on earth would be in a rush to go to a home where no one wanted you home?

The street lights buzzed to life during her walk. People stopped showing up in the markets. Stars were peeking their way through the thin sheet of clouds fanning across the dark skies, and even with her pinpoint vision she could just barely make out the training grounds which yawned behind village. A prickle made her stroke the back of her neck. She thought it was a bug at first, but the prickle turned into a spasm of little electric shocks that made the hair stand on end. She stopped. Was someone following her?

It was definitely time to get home. Now. Dirt kicked up along her heels as she broke into strides. Of course she ignored it, and continued to ignore it when even more dirt started nipping at her ankles. "Are you in a rush to go home, Hyuga?" Now that was impossible to ignore. She skidded to a stop, gasping. Someone was leaning against one of the street lights. The shape of the gourd on his back would have left no room for speculation, even in pitch darkness. What was Gaara doing here? "U-um . . ." She took a step back.

Gaara did not move, but he stared. He was good at that. "You seem scared." His voice was so quiet and rough, flatly calm. Deceptively calm. "Is something the matter?" he asked, coming away from the light. What proper speech, Hinata noted, for someone so terrifying. Then again, it was a subtle terror. The fear he inspired wasn't one he had to flaunt, and this was blaringly more evident now, rather than when she had been in the classroom . . . with people. "Tell me, Hyuga." He cupped his palm upward. A small whisk of dirt sprang up around Hinata's ankles, but it didn't just nip—it snapped. She looked down. No, not dirt. Sand. "Do you . . . fight?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business, Gaara of the Desert." Sasuke appeared from behind Hinata, startling her terribly. He caught her shoulder absently when she flinched sideways. His eyes did not leave Gaara's.

"Good evening, Uchiha." Gaara retrieved his hand and crossed his arms.

"Evening," Sasuke returned. "The tournament isn't for a while. There's no reason to start eliminating that completion so early. Where's the fun in that?" He smirked devilishly. Hinata hugged her bag.

Gaara snorted quietly. "Indeed. Well in that case, do not disappoint me. I expect my prey to put up a decent fight before I end their life." A whirring column of sand sprang up around him, leaving Hinata breathless. When the column disappeared, so did Gaara, and suddenly it was just her and Sasuke standing alone in the market. He scoffed at the dispersing sheet of sand, turning his nose up.

"Don't wander out by yourself like this again," he said directly to her. "At least not while he's here."

She nodded stiffly.

"Let's go. I'll walk you home."

*AN*

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