STARS
CHAPTER 5
"Hinata-sama," Neji called. Hinata, who was in her room packing for the training grounds, spun around to see her cousin in her doorway.
"Neji-niisan," she choked. A rare day indeed when Neji Hyuga willingly approached her door. Even when delivering a message he would follow through, cold and brisk, and be on his way as quickly as possible. There was never any kindness to be had from him: not from his words, his attitude, and certainly his eyes. Only her father ever retained a consistency of looking so unimpassioned.
"Hinata-sama, it has come to my attention that the Kazekage's son, Sabaku Gaara, has enrolled in your class." Her mouth parted in surprise.
"Y-Yes. He has."
"I know he's only in your class, but I feel that as your guardian I must give warnings when they are necessary."
"Warning?"
"Sabaku Gaara. Stay away from him."
Hinata blinked rapidly. "Wh—"
"You don't know how dangerous he is. There have been nin and civilians alike who have died by his hand. He feels no remorse for any creature, and he would kill again when given the chance. Do you understand?"
"But Father—"
"You were briefed on the outline, not the specifics."
Hinata didn't know why she was so surprised. Was it that hard to believe? Gaara, the one whose eyes thirsted for challenge, for blood? The sand nin whose empty shell of a personality gave rise to natural suspicion, and the one whose glare could cut through steel. Gaara, the one who had cornered her in the market with what might have been every intention to fight her . . . No. It wasn't hard to believe at all. Still . . .
"I will say it once more," Neji said in a firmer tone. "Stay away from him. Whether or not you decide to take my advice is your decision." He took one step from the door, but swiftly looked back. "One more thing. I advise you to get close to the Uchiha."
Now that was undoubtedly a surprise. How did he know about Sasuke? "But . . . but Neji-niisan, why—"
"Train well, Hinata-sama. Have a nice day. Also, make sure you come home earlier than you did yesterday. I don't want to have to report you to your father. And . . ." He closed his mouth abruptly, but when he walked away he left the words at the door. "Thank you for the lunch."
Ino's grandmother owned a flower shop in the market, which Hinata had to pass in order to get to the training grounds. Sakura was there. It seemed that even when working Ino and Sakura couldn't stay away from each other. Hinata was starting to think that their bickering was a form of friendship. "Why would he accept a flower from you, Billboard Brow?" she heard Ino say. "He doesn't even like you."
"Oh, because he likes you so much better?" Sakura snapped, bending down to examine a bundle of roses.
"Well, aside from the fact that he totally does, exactly how stupid is it to give a guy flowers for his birthday? For someone who's supposed to be smart, you sure are stupid. You should see what I'm getting Sasuke."
Hinata left them at that. Sasuke's birthday? "Wh-when?" she wondered aloud. Guilt pried into conscience. She had no idea, had not known or tried to know, but then was she expected to? How moronic. She didn't know Sasuke. Talking once or twice did not make them friends. Sakura was his teammate, so she had every right. He'd most likely spend his birthday with her and Naruto. Every girl in Konoha would be throwing presents into his window on the morning (maybe even on the eve) of the day, so one missing present from Hinata did not mean much.
It bothered her more than she realized, occupying her thoughts to an extent which almost caused her to bump into someone. She swerved at the last second, squeaking an apology. Then she saw who it was. Gaara was looking at her with those empty turquoise pools of his. Behind him stood his siblings, surprised, and for reasons she did not know, anxious. A look passed between them that she didn't like. It made her nervous.
Neji's warning rang in her ears.
"N-Now Gaara," said the older sister. She pushed at the air with her palms, a calming gesture. She stepped closer to him, as if treading a minefield. "I'm sure she didn't mean it. Look at her—she's just a girl. We'll be late if we don't—"
"Pay attention when you walk," he said to Hinata. His eyes narrowed a fraction. "Or you'll end up getting hurt." The siblings looked at each other again, this time in bewilderment. Hinata nodded and moved away to let them pass. The siblings gave her sterner looks than Gaara, scrutinizing. Hinata exhaled when they were out of earshot. It was the first time she'd run into him on public streets—in broad daylight. She wondered where they were going.
When her bag was out of the way she strapped her utility belt on. Before doing anything else, she stretched. It was an ideal day for mediation, ripe with the scent of honeysuckles and crushed grass, scarcely cloudy, and warm. She only allowed herself about an hour to let her senses have their fill of it. Her first session was with throwing stars. She always practiced with throwing stars. For someone with exceptional depth perception, her precision was off. That was a disgrace. Her first try only served as a testament to this; not a one hit the center. "Hey look, it's Hinata!"
Naruto was springing toward her from the opposite end of the hill waving enthusiastically. Her eyes boggled, cheeks inflamed. Was he everywhere?! And not just him, but Sasuke too. He made no effort to keep up with his teammate, though he did follow. He had to block the hair from his face to look at her. She squared her shoulders and bit her lip. He did not seem surprised to see her.
"Hinata-chan." Naruto was practically in her ear now. She jumped back a length. Her hands groped her cheeks in fear that her face was melting. It wasn't fair for him to just show up like this without warning!
"H-Hi, Naruto-kun," she said quietly, twisting away from him.
"What are you doin' here all by yourself? Does your team have practice here?" It was somewhat of a relief that Naruto was so utterly oblivious to the discomfort of others. Hinata always thanked Kami that he never asked about her stutter, or her spastic behavior whenever he was around.
"Hmph." Sasuke knocked shoulders with Naruto on his way to the target, and without a single word of apology.
"Hey Sasuke-bastard! Watch where you're going!" Hinata's hand slipped from her face and met height with her stomach, twiddling. She never liked it when Naruto was angry.
"Wh-what are you two doing here?"
"Ah, that's right!" Naruto snapped his fingers. "We're looking for Sakura-chan!"
Hinata felt a drop in the pit of her stomach.
"She was supposed to meet us here on the training grounds, but we can't find her. That's weird, you know, because Sakura-chan is never late."
The red in Hinata's face drained away, and she turned thoughtful. If she remembered correctly Sakura was at the flower shop looking for a present for Sasuke's birthday. That was over an hour ago, so if she wasn't with them right now it must mean she was still shopping for a gift. "Um, Naruto-kun, I-I think S-Sakura-san is-"
"Here." Sasuke pushed his arm between them, handing the throwing stars back to her. Hinata heard Neji's second warning blare in her ears as she reached her hand out to accept them. Th-thank you, Uchiha-san—" He drew his hand back before she could take the last one.
"Your form is off," he said. "Hold the star differently—like this." He moved beside her. Hinata edged away to give him room. "Move your arm back, and make sure to point with your elbow."
"Hey Sasuke!" Naruto cried. "We don't have time for this. Do you know how late we already are? If we don't find Sakura soon—" Sasuke thrust his eyes on him abruptly and darkly, flashing. "Shut up."
Naruto clamped his mouth shut, but only out of surprise. Hinata drew her eyebrows together, watching Naruto grit his teeth. Goodness, was this how they always interacted?
"Pay attention!" Sasuke snapped at her. She jumped a little, having forgotten that he was doing the demonstration for her. When he had her attention he threw his hand out and the stars flew. Each curved and spun, like saws, and rooted inside the little circle. None of them touched the thin border.
"Oh that was very good, Uchiha-san!" He looked at her. The corner of his mouth twitched, as if to frown, but he only nodded and stepped aside for her. She filled her place again, but with a bit of caution. He went to retrieve the stars, plucking them out one by one with brisk jerks of his arm. He came back to her in slow strides.
"Sasuke," he said softly. He offered them to her. "Call me Sasuke."
"Oh, well . . ." she mumbled.
"Oh what?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, nothing!" She took the stars hastily. Her arm formed an angle, just as she'd seen Sasuke do, elbow pointed, feet braced apart. Naruto watched with his arms crossed, lip jutting slightly to the side in that comical little way of his. Goodness, was he pouting?
"No, no, like this." Sasuke positioned her fingers between the star points correctly, alarmingly intimate with his touch. She blushed terribly, but did not resist. If she'd been paying better attention she'd have gotten it right the first time. 'His hand is so cold,' she found herself thinking beneath the embarrassment. "Okay, now do it like I showed you." He drew his hand away with unnecessary slowness, keen eyes steeled to hers. She positioned her arm again.
Three of the stars landed exactly where Sasuke's had been, and the others not too far away.
"Excellent," Sasuke said with a light kick to his voice. "Let's try it again." He began reaching for his own utility belt, but didn't manage to get far.
"Sasuke-kun!" Everyone turned to see Sakura bounding toward them, bubblegum hair swishing behind her. Her eyes were only for Sasuke. She bounded to meet him with her hands clasped, grassy eyes sparkling. Naruto lit up when she arrived.
"Sakura-chan!" His whisker cheeks twitched happily. "Where were you?" The impatience he had expelled at Sasuke was nowhere to be found now.
"We were looking for you," Sasuke said. His voice was a little taut. "You're late."
"I'm so sorry, Sasuke-kun!" She blushed all over. "I told you I had something really important to take care of. Anyways, Sensei is waiting for us at the other target site. We should definitely get going." Naruto threw his fists up in the air, chin pointed to the sky.
"Finally!" He immediately broke off into a run, grinning wide. He didn't even turn his head to wave goodbye, but he did shout, "I'll see you later, Hinata-chan!"
Sakura, noticing Hinata for the first time, unconsciously grabbed Sasuke's arm and scowled. "You too, Sasuke-sun." She pulled at his arm. "We need to go before we get in trouble."
"He hasn't been waiting that long; a few more minutes isn't going to kill him. I'll get there when I get there. Besides, he's always the one who's always late."
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura whined. He snatched his arm back, glaring.
"Hurry and go," he snapped. "You are so annoying." Sakura flinched back, curling her hands tightly into themselves. Pain burst in her eyes like firecrackers. Her bottom lip dropped, then closed. She stood there, hands shaking in midair, until she gathered enough sense to turn her back. "I-I'll just wait for you then, okay Sasuke?"
He brushed the hair from his face, sighing with relief as she disappeared over the hill. Hinata observed him silently, hands overlapped at her abdomen. He started forward too, once Sakura was out of sight. Hinata was certain he'd forgotten her, but she heard him say quite clearly, "Next time." It sounded like a promise. She cocked her head to the side, frowning.
"Uchiha-sa—I mean, S-Sasuke-san?"
"Yeah?"
"W-when is your birthday . . . exactly?" He looked at her from over his shoulder, mouth partly open. He recovered quickly, eyes moving toward the sky. "Tomorrow, I guess." His eyes dropped down again, fixed intently on her face. "I'd forgotten. How did—"
"That's terrible!" she exclaimed, and her hands flew to her mouth. She had not meant to shout. "I-I mean, your birthday is special. I-It's the day someone you love gave birth to you and brought you into this world—to us. How could you forget? I-It's a cause for celebration!" She blushed terribly with a turn of her head. In an effort to rectify her outburst she'd only ended up babbling, and if there was anything she'd observed about Sasuke thus far, it's that he had no tolerance for babblers. When he said nothing she was forced to look at him again, and stifled a gasp. He was smiling.
"Yes . . . if that's what you think." The amusement she detected was mortifying. She must have been every bit as relieved as Sasuke had been when Sakura left. Only Naruto had ever caused her a befuddlement of this level. Sasuke Uchiha was impossible to figure out after all.
She glanced at the target board where the throwing stars jutted from the wood. Sasuke's voice echoed through her, filling her head, her chest.
'Excellent.' It was worth a smile.
"A-A compliment," she giggled quietly. "S-someone actually complimented me!"
*AN*
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