Sasuke still smirked from the silly encounter he had with the Hyuuga. It had been a while since he was able to laugh out loud like that. He was tempted to talk to her more, maybe even do a little sparing, but it seemed the universe was preventing him from doing so. Each time he tried reaching for the girl, a wave of fangirls crowded up to him, making it difficult for him to walk. No matter how many times he screamed and threatened them to go away, it seemed to have done the opposite effect instead. They blushed, they squealed, some even fainted, nevertheless, to his annoyance, the girls only came closer to him. Hinata however, appeared to actually be avoiding him! Ever since their little talk back in the classroom, she was now the last to arrive and the first to leave. Even if he gets close to her, she turns the other corner and he quickly loses sight of her. A quick and nimble thing she was.

He couldn't emphasize it enough. That Hinata Hyuuga was a strange one. This was the first time he was willing to show any type of interest in any way and he was indirectly being shut down! Well, he had to train for the upcoming genin exams anyway. No point in wasting time.

It was during one evening a few weeks later when he caught her training in one of the public training grounds after he finished his. She stood a strange stance and he saw veins that bulged near her eyes and cheeks. If he used the sharingan to watch, maybe he could get some valuable information regarding the byakugan.

'Well this should be interesting,' he thought as he leaned on the fence post.

Interesting it was, but watching someone do the same thing for 30 minutes by now could bore anyone out. She was standing in front of one of those upright, wooden logs and was consistently hitting the front with her palms. The gruesome slap that was heard along each hit indicated just how much strength she was inputting in each strike. Oh how deceiving looks can be. Though he saw her as a timid girl, she was a strong one. Maybe he could change her routine up a bit. Sasuke smirked at the thought. He might as well, it wasn't like he had anything to do at home. He just had to hope she wasn't going to run this time.

He brought out a kunai and swiftly threw it towards the Hyuuga. Hinata quickly noticed the threat from behind and jumped out of the way. She spun around to see who the offender was and gasped when she met the eyes of the sharingan user. "U-Uchiha-san?!"

Sasuke smirked at her reaction. "Thought I would stop by to help you out."

"Wha- But- Huh?!" She was barely able to form words from the shock. As quickly as she could she hid behind the log post in an attempt to give herself a bit of comfort.

"You can't hide from me this time." With expertise, Sasuke performed a multitude of hand signs and blew out a large stream of fire, the log post now long gone by being burnt to a crisp. Behind the ashes, he expected to see a shivering Hyuuga trying anything to hide herself from his gaze. Instead, he was met with no trace of her at all. Crap, did he burn her too?

"I-I apologize… if I did something wrong…"

'What?!'

Sasuke whipped his head around so fast it almost hurt. There Hinata was, behind him and visibly trembling from his exasperated stare. He then jumped to land a kick but it was just as quickly blocked by her arm. He was right, this was going to be interesting.

—

Hinata must have realized they were only sparring so as soon as she blocked a few of his kicks and punches she attempted to strike him herself. Of course, hers were easily blocked and was answered back with hits that unfortunately came in contact. The last blow to her stomach made her lay on the ground and whither in pain.

"Not bad Hyuuga." Sasuke genuinely commented as he looked down at her tired complexion. He had to admit, her speed caught him off guard at first but he was soon able to figure out her fighting pattern with the help of his kekkai genkai. 'She hesitates,' he noted. Sure, she was quick on her feet and reactions, but he notices she slightly falters before she strikes. In between hits he made sure to comment on what she was lacking. And… her stamina is not that great either. Only five minutes had passed and she was already panting from exhaustion. A real battle may take only a mere minute to finish but fighting many opponents at once may be a different matter. You can never be too sure how long a battle may take. Sasuke made sure to prepare himself for that. Ever since that day, he trained himself in speed, stamina, and skill that he had already surpassed the average genin level. He took pride in his strength, but he knew it wasn't enough. Not yet. He clenched his fist so hard his nails penetrated the skin of his palm and began to bleed. 'I need to get stronger.'

Sasuke was brought out of his thoughts when he noticed the Hyuuga struggling to say something. "T-thank you… Uchiha-san," she said in between large breaths. "But… why?"

"No real reason why," he sheepishly answered back. "Just think of this as a lesson or something so I can repay back the onigiri you gave. Got it?" Though it seemed he was even in a bigger debt to her than he was before. Because of her he was able to pick up a few techniques here and there he could probably use later on.

"O-oh… ok…" Even in pain, she forced herself to get back up on her feet and bowed. Proper mannerisms were drilled into her mind and body and a situation such as this should not be an excuse for her to stop. "Thank you… I-I'll be leaving now."

Just as she turned she squeaked by the sudden grasp on her shoulder. "Oh I'm not done yet Hyuuga."

"Huh?"

"It's been a while since I've seen you. You avoiding me?"

With her eyes already so big, it seemed impossible for them to look even bigger. That soon changed when she widened her eyes in shock by his accusation and quickly shook her head in denial. "N-no! I would never!" Habitually, she fiddled with her fingers as she does when she feels nervous.

"Then what?"

"I-it's just that- it's just that I'm training for the genin exams.. That's all…"

"Good." He awkwardly patted her shoulder with amusement, satisfied with her answer. Honestly, he didn't even understand why he felt so caught up on that. It wasn't everyday a girl would try to avoid him, so curiosity really got the best of him. "Compared to those losers, you'll do fine." He turned to leave but this time it was Hinata's turn to stop him.

"W-Wait!" She grabbed his bleeding hand and swiftly slid in a small container of salve. "For y-your hand…"

Sasuke mindlessly stood still with an absent stare towards the salve he was just given. It seemed that Hinata Hyuuga had surprised him once more. Unfortunately, Hinata mistook his quietness as anger and quickly took a few steps back. "B-Bye Uchiha-san!" She ran off, not wanting to deal with his fury. Though Sasuke felt completely different. Satisfied, content, even a bit joyous. It wasn't exactly because of the gift itself per say, looking at how it failed to heal his self induced wound but successfully easing the pain. It was her initiative and act of giving it solely for the sake of him and not for selfish desires- unlike the fangirls who constantly give with the fantasy that if he were to accept it he was also accepting their love. He made sure to tuck the container in his pocket. He will have to do a bit more observing before making any rash decisions about her. Anyway, it seemed he was once again in debt to her and of course he had to pay her back.

Though she was long gone he murmured a goodbye. "See you, Hyuuga."

His curiosity was slowly turning into interest.

a/n: bruh people having a passion on hating anime characters, literal pixels on a screen, is so funny to me omg. LOL 0.4 GPA activities fr bruh. they really need to find some hobbies or some sht i was looking at twitter and damn i didn't know how toxic the naruto fandom is. people saying this story is cute rn but wait until later HA. maybe. im just in a happy mood rn, i got into one of the top unis in canada. ok bye lol. oh yeah thanks for the reviews love u guys