Hello! I hope that everyone is doing well! Thank you for all of the reviews so far! It's really encouraging. I have more chapters planned out now and have been feeling really inspired lately.
The smell of fresh floral arrangements permeated throughout the room. Circular tables draped in white cloths surrounded the perimeter of the freshly polished white dance floor at the center of the room. A collection of roses, lavender, eucalyptus and tinted red boxwood were placed as a center piece of each circular table. The Hyuga Ball was hosted twice throughout the year. Many stockholders from Hyuga Corp were present and various close friends also attended.
The trio of siblings took in the sight as they entered the room. The most intricate chandeliers hung above their heads, illuminating the room with such soft lighting. Unsure if this ball was geared towards networking or if it was just an old money display of wealth and power the entered farther into the room. Despite the purpose of the ball still remaining a mystery to them, they were looking forward to what the night had in store. Each sibling had something to look forward to.
Kankuro was simply thrilled at how many events were hosted in such a short time of them living in Konoha. Gaara had been looking forward to finally meeting Shino, who more than likely would be the leading scientist for his alternative energy research group. Temari also happened to look forward to meeting with an individual here too, her newfound friend.
Across the room stood another trio.
As if a spotlight were casting down upon them Shikamaru observed the Suna natives enter the room. Gaara was dressed characteristically conservative. A modest black tuxedo with a white undershirt. His look was completed by a black bowtie positioned perfectly around his neck. His older brother wore a dark purple tuxedo. At first glance the suit appeared to be black but upon further inspection it could be confirmed as a deep purple. Instead of a bowtie though he opted for a black tie.
Witnessing her in a champagne ball gown with golden accents embroidered at the bust of the dress practically robbed the oxygen out of his lungs. To him she looked like a goddess that rose out of the desert. He couldn't help but keep his eyes on her as she sauntered across the room, the hem of her dress dragging around her with each step. Her brothers followed suit as if they were her personal body guards.
She peered around the room initially searching for him. Her pursuit of a dark brown pineapple came to halt when she noticed Sasuke. Instinctively she whipped her head around to see if she saw any other familiar Uchiha faces.
'Itachi didn't mention what he was doing tonight.' Thinking more now she added to herself,'He would have mentioned something if it pertained to work. Hell, is this even considered work?'
"Geez Sis, you're giving me whiplash just lookin' at ya'. What gives?" Kankuro questioned beside her.
"Just seeing where everyone is," referring to the people that the siblings knew.
Gaara's voice interrupted her overall scan of the room now, "I see Naruto just up ahead."
With the oldest following their younger brother, they proceeded to the group that they were familiar with.
"I'm delighted you guys were able to come," Hinata's voice softly greeted them, matching the equally gentle smile that she displayed to them.
Kankuro couldn't help but let out a cheery smile. "Trust, where there is a party I will definitely be there. I can't speak for these two," he motioned his head towards his siblings in a teasing manner before breaking away from their sides to speak to Kiba.
"Thank you for inviting us Hinata. Everything looks stunning," Temari graciously thanked the hostess.
Precisely as Naruto began introducing Shino to Gaara that was when Temari noticed Shikamaru.
There he stood wearing a black tuxedo, unlike her brothers though he opted for a muted forest green tie. His hair was uncharacteristically tied in a way that positioned his hair in a low pony tail instead of the one that sat on the top of his head. Temari took him in, all of him.
Feeling parched now after the sight of him Temari refocused her mission on getting a drink.
Now seeing Temari walk away from him, he furrowed his eyebrows at the sight. 'Well she didn't necessarily walk away from me, but the group.' He tried to remain optimistic about the situation.
Temari utilized this time to briskly walk around the room to be sure there was no sight of Fugaku or Itachi. Feeling that she thoroughly covered the area she finally took a tulip glass filled with rosé. Without much tact she gulped down the first glass her fingertips came in contact with. Placing the emptied glass down she replenished her hand with seizing a newly filled glass. Noting the change of music now her attention was currently directed to the ballroom floor at the center of the room. Temari was familiar with classical Konoha music but never felt comfortable enough to try any of the formal dances that went along with it.
Taking a bite of a chocolate covered strawberry that was also displayed near the assortment of champagne, rosé and wine, her eyes fixated on the couples that she knew.
TenTen and Neji were paired together, not to Temari's surprise since she felt that anyone could see the sparks between the two of them. Regardless of her brothers and her being newcomers, they could all tell. Hinata seemed comfortable dancing along with Naruto. The typically timid girl didn't seem so shy. Instead, she graced the floor exuding the elegance of a young Hyuga Heiress. Sasuke and Sakura joined hand in hand caused Temari to choke a bit on the current strawberry she was snacking on. Washing it down with the remaining bit of rosé she had, she collected herself.
'It must be a cold day in Hell. I would never imagine Sasuke settling…'
She then detected the quiet presence that joined her side now.
"Would you care to dance?"
Peering up at him now she informs Shikamaru, "I've never done this type of dance before."
"I will guide you," he states with a quickness. "As troublesome as that is…" he added towards the end.
Taken aback at his eagerness she laughed to herself.
"Alright, but don't be upset when I step all over you."
With her consent now he gestured his hand for her to grasp it. Escorting her out to the ballroom floor he felt like the luckiest guy in the room. Better yet, the whole world.
With his other hand he delicately placed it on her lower back, gently supporting her other hand at a comfortable level to their side. With his head held high he began to step forward, then to the side and would pivot her around.
In contrast her head was lowered, focusing on their feet making sure she was not stepping on him. He continued to lead her with every step, spin and dip. Pleasantly surprised with herself and slowly picking up the general gist of the dance she allowed herself to pull her gaze upwards now. The warmth of their bodies intensified as they finally locked eyes. Happiness was prevalent though his eyes. She noticed how charismatic he was in this moment.
Through his perspective he couldn't help but smile seeing her sincerely happy, enjoying herself. Unfortunately, for him, the song phased into the next one now. Her laughter commanded even more of his attention now.
"Not too bad for a Suna Native, am I right?" Temari couldn't help but boast beaming with pride.
With a lazy grin he couldn't help but refute, "Totally, it had nothing to do with the Konoha native leading you the whole time, am I right?" He leaned in closer to her amused by her cockiness.
His close proximity wafted an intoxicating smell of his cologne towards her. Amplifying her flustering. This overwhelming feeling prompted her to advert her eyes, by doing so she caught a glimpse of Sasuke now looking at the two of them.
"Right, let's not get ahead of ourselves." Establishing space between the two of them now she continued, "Gosh I'm burning up. I wouldn't have guessed that dance would be so tiresome! I'm going to get some fresh air." Scooting back further now he related her body from his grip.
Temari now walked away towards one of the balcony's connected to the ballroom. With fresh air finally hitting her, she felt the extra warmth in her cheeks dissipate. She released an audible sigh in attempt to calm down even quicker.
"Geez you really did get tired." Shikamaru's voice boomed behind her causing her to jump reflexively.
"Don't get the wrong idea, just needed a quick smoke." Leaning up against one of the massive columns on the balcony, he lights his cigarette with his ankles crossed. Exhaling a trail of smoke into the cool air around them, he couldn't help but stare at her. His eyes held much merriment behind them.
Shifting her body towards him fully now she questions, "What idea did YOU think I had?" She huffed out, crossing her arms. Even more amused by her stance, or perhaps how it accentuated her bust he continued to taunt her.
"That a Konoha native was so enamored by a certain Suna native, he couldn't resist following her outside."
Collecting herself now she played into his game. "And what if your assumption was right?" She inquired while approaching him slowly.
His eyes locked solely on her, half lidded, as he took a long drag of his cigarette. "It wouldn't be the first time I was right, I can tell you that."
Now a mere few inches away from him, she gazed upwards into his eyes.
"What is it that you like to tell me so much?" She posed the question before answering it herself, quoting him, "'Don't flatter yourself.'" Starting to reverse her steps she backed away.
Before she could get further than an arms length away he used his idle hand to grab one side of her hips before pulling her back to her original stance. Before she could register it, his lips were pressed against hers. A mixture of tobacco and whiskey collided with chocolate, strawberries and rosé. She was tense at first, naturally caught off guard but warmed up to his embrace. Leaning in now against him, she deepened the kiss. Despite the initial collision being abrupt, it morphed into a sensual and passionate exchange between their lips.
Temari placed wrapped her arms around his neck, melting into him. Despite her body craving more of him, mentally she scolded herself. This caused her to be pulled back into reality, her true reality.
With a rude awakening Shikamaru's finger was confronted with a burning sensation.
Wincing at this he pulled away to discover the cause of this. Seeing him hastily dropping his burnt out cigarette Temari couldn't help but laugh.
"Distracted much?"
With a sloppy grin her responded, "It couldn't be helped."
Now letting go of him, she stepped back to give a comfortable space between them once more.
The double doors leading out to the balcony caused the pair to direct their attention there. Hinata rushed out followed by a frantic Sasuke.
Shikamaru couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at this sight.
"What are you doing out here Temari?" Sasuke queried.
While glancing between Hinata and Sasuke Temari rebutted, "I could ask you the same."
At a stalemate Hinata interjected quietly, "I'm sorry if I startled you guys."
Temari and Shikamaru assured the hostess they were just about to head in anyways. Parting ways, they headed inside. Excusing herself, Temari navigated her way to her youngest brother and what she would presume to be Shino.
Shikamaru on the other hand fended off Ino's poor attempts to get him to dance with her. Constantly declaring her that he was extremely tired he encouraged her to dance with Choji instead.
Later that same night while Sasuke was traveling back home he decided to give his older brother a call. Sitting in the back of an SUV, he waited for Itachi to answer his video call.
Eventually Itachi sitting in his home office popped up on Sasuke's cellphone screen. He noticed his brother must have answered the call through his laptop since his hands were free to continue scrolling and clicking the mouse that was placed on the desk.
"I have a question, a hypothetical one." Sasuke started off to capture his brother's attention.
This unfortunately barely received a simple, "Hn?" In response as Itachi now was typing.
Selecting his words carefully he continued, "What would you do if Temari was in love with another guy, but the other guy clearly was in love with another girl?"
It could have been Temari's name that caused Itachi's fingers to freeze, or it could have been the possibility of her being in love with someone else. Visibly disturbed by the scenario he then asks, "What do you mean by that? Was Temari at the Hyuga gala tonight?"
Releasing a sharp sigh Sasuke answered, "She was, but that wasn't the point. What if— and this is hypothetical— What if Temari was in love with someone else but the person she was in love with undoubtedly harboured feelings for another girl?"
Itachi faced the built in camera on his laptop now. "What was she doing there?"
"I'd assume networking with Gaara. TenTen introduced Gaara to Shino Aburame to hopefully assist him with his research." He was officially becoming annoyed with his older brother not focusing on the topic at hand.
With a slight sharpness to his tone Sasuke states, "If you wanted a comprehensive report on Temari then you would have been there."
Itachi reminds his younger brother politely, "I'm still transitioning into the position of CEO. Speaking of which, did you apologize to the Hyuga's for father and I not being able to attend?"
Visibly irritated Sasuke couldn't help but roll his eyes at the question. 'You'd think my own brother would have more faith in my ability to complete such a basic task.'
His tone was flat now, "Obviously."
"But what would you do in that situation? If it applied to you?" Sasuke asks for the third time now.
Itachi paused, looking upwards deep in thought before responding plainly, "It simply wouldn't happen."
Sasuke even more annoyed reiterates the question but adds, "Without Father and Rasa pressuring you two."
"Good night little brother," Itachi says while leaning in to close his laptop shut.
"I'm not sure why you're so confident. You didn't see how she was dancing with Nara tonight."
"What did you say?"
Slowing down his words now he repeats, "I'm not sure why you're so confident. You didn't see how she was dancing with Nara tonight."
Sasuke stared at his phone to see any changes to Itachi's neutral expression. This alarmed him but only slightly. Typically he wouldn't think twice about it considering he is used to his brother putting on a front for other.
"But the question was sincerely hypothetical. If you didn't realize it by now then you're really dense. I was talking about Hinata."
Hearing this caused Itachi's expression to soften. He then questions, "What does she see in Naruto? Even I can tell how Naruto pines overs Sakura."
Itachi's sympathetic eyes were locked onto his younger brother now, he suggests, "You should confess how you feel for her."
Unable to control the heat coming to his cheeks Sasuke refuses that as a solution.
"I get that the fear of disturbing a lifelong friendship is holding you back from doing so. But at some point you should consider your own happiness too, little brother." With a smile he subsequently adds, "I only would want the best for you. You deserve it. Furthermore, Hinata will come around to realize that you have her best interest at heart."
"I'll consider it," Sasuke manages to mutter. Feeling relieved he received advice from his brother he wraps up the call.
"Thank you. I'll allow you to finish up whatever CEO's in the making do."
Itachi grins at this and wishes his brother have a good night.
With his laptop now closed, he stares at the two monitors on his desk. Bringing his attention to the corner of the computer screen, he searches for today's date.
June 1st.
Making up his mind he picks up his cellphone before calling his father directly. With a few rings, Fugaku, finally answers.
"Son?"
"I was thinking about moving the announcement up sooner."
I hope that you enjoyed this brief chapter. Added a bit of love triangle between Sasuke x Hinata x Naruto. Or I suppose it could be considered a rectangle since another person will be involved. The next chapter will be drama filled so get your popcorn out for that one!