Survival of the Fittest

Note: *shudder*...only another month or so until skewl starts. I'm such a pessimist...hehe

~*~

"Hello...Hinata?" he muttered tilting his head slightly to get a better look at her. She wore a tight sparkly blue tank top with a white jacket over it and black leather pants. (thought it was time they each got a new outfit) Her eyes were shining with happiness, however underneath it was a thin layer of fear.

Naruto frowned slightly. Why was Hinata nervous? Is she in trouble? His eyes darted cautiously around speculating the shadows for anything suspicious. When he found nothing he turned towards Hinata.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his mouth twitching with concern, as he beckoned her to sit down next to him. Naruto watched her cautiously, trying to decipher what was bothering her.

"I...Naruto-kun," she whispered softly, her eyes fixed on the tips of her shoe. She was speaking so softly that Naruto leaned forward slightly so he could hear her. So close that she could feel his warm breath on her neck.

"What?" he said gently, as if trying not to scare her. She was like a little bunny, so innocent and gentle. So...fragile...or so he thought. Naruto ran his fingers though his hair impatiently, while Hinata tried to find her voice.

"I want to know something," she said softly, as she hugged her legs against herself tightly. "I want you to tell me the truth, the whole truth," she whispered shakily.

Naruto raised his hand and tested the breeze. Nothing, the wind wasn't blowing in their direction. So why was she shivering? "Alright," he replied cautiously. The tension and seriousness that fused through the air was starting to get to him. He had no idea why, but he felt excited...and scared?

"Do you care about me?" she said evenly, staring deeply into his eyes.

Naruto's jaw dropped slightly in surprise. Was that all? She was nervous over that little thing? He bit his lips to keep from laughing. "Oh course I do Hinata, we're friends," he replied, however to no avail he burst into laughter.

"I mean...more then a friend..." Hinata blurt out, before clasping her hands over her mouth, her pale eyes were wide with shock and fear. She stood rooted to the ground, unable to move. She was scared, scared that Naruto would refuse her...would break her heart.

His mouth snapped shut at those words, as the laughter died from his throat. Naruto stared at her in confusion before open his mouth to speak, however no sound came out. (wow...Naruto's actually speechless)

Hinata lowered her head in defeat as tears welled up in her eyes. He doesn't care about me...not in that way. He isn't even answering...he's probably going to reject me. I was so stupid to think that it would actually work...dreams are dreams...and they'd never come true.

She stood up slowly, refusing to look him in the eye. Hinata felt cold, as if icy storm had hit her head on...and attacked her must vulnerable spot...her heart.

She wanted to hide, to crawl under a rock. To never see him...no...to never have to face reality. To face the embarrassment...and pain of his rejection.

"It's alright Naruto, I understand," she whispered quietly, before she turned on heel and flew down the grassy path. Tears streamed down her face.

"Hinata," he whispered, trying to get her attention. However his voice refused to work...she was just too far away.

Naruto sighed before collapsing back down upon the ground. He hated it when he made someone cry, especially when that person was Hinata.

He smiled slightly, as he remembered when they first met. They were only kids at the academy, even after all these years he could still remember the blush on her face. So it was true...love at first sight.

Naruto grumbled sadly, as he picked up a cup of Ramen before tossing it away. For the first time in his life, he wasn't hungry...Ramen just wasn't going to cut it anymore.

Sure there were times when a few cups of Ramen would bring him back to his feet and a smile to his face. But now...he need something else...no...someone else...

He sat there staring at the sky, pondering the one question that plague his mind. The only thing that mattered...

"Do I love her?"

~*~

Sakura was sitting on a stone wall, her long legs dangling off. She was stared brightly around. It was beautiful from here, the view was perfect. One could see the entire village from up here.

She sighed, as the same problem flashed across her mind. What if Naruto refused Hinata? What if? She wouldn't ever recover...she's too delicate...like a flower.

Hinata was a sweet girl once you get used to her, especially when she showed some spine. "She would have made a great match for Naruto...since she's the only girl that'd probably ever fall for him," she thought shaking her head pathetically.

She tossed her head over her shoulders, her hair cascaded around her...almost like a waterfall. Sakura turned around sharply. If she didn't know any better, she would have swore she just saw Sasuke. Sasuke carrying a few bags of groceries with a pissed off expression.

Sakura rubbed her eyes in disbelief, as she tried to clear her vision. Before her stood Sasuke...no not a vision...actually carrying groceries. "Hey Sasuke!" she greeted cheerfully, trying her best to keep a straight face.

When he turned around to face her, his mouth dropped in horror. Almost instantly, he tripped over a someone's shoes causing the bags of food to come tumbling down upon him.

Sakura jumped off the wall, and landed gracefully on the ground. "Are you all right?" she asked, looking worried. After all, it had been her fault.

Sasuke nodded, trying to hide the red tint that appeared on his cheeks. "Yea, I'm fine," he muttered after getting his voice. "So what were you doing here?" he asked casually.

She sighed lightly, as she helped him pick of the groceries. "I was thinking...you know...about things," she said hesitantly. "What were you doing here?" she asked curiously. Normally a women was the one that bought and served the food. It was weird picturing Sasuke with one of those chef hats on.

Sasuke grumbled, as he cursed softly under his breath. He looked up and met Sakura's emerald eyes. "Well, we've all got to eat sometime," he stated. "I was hungry...and there wasn't any food left in the fridge...probably thanks to the baka," he finished.

"I've never depended on anybody for anything, so I thought, why start now," he shrugged as he turned away from her. Sasuke gave her a swift nod of thanks before turning away from her.

Hesitantly he turned back, "Do you want to have dinner with me tonight?" he said casually trying to sound like it wasn't a big deal. After seeing Sakura's puzzled glaze, he added. "I thought you'd want some company tonight (not that way!) since you were nervous about what we should do about Kin."

"Trust me, whatever I cook is edible," he said, noticing her reluctance. He sighed when she made no reply and began to walk away.

A small hand suddenly grabbed his shoulder with amazing strength. "I'd love to," replied Sakura flashing him a genuine smile. She had seem the childlike innocence that lay dormant under all that hate and anger. She wanted to bring out the true him, someone that hadn't been tampered with by cruelty and evil. Especially at such a young age.

A hint of a smile flashed across Sasuke's face before disappeared almost instantly. "Great, I'll see you at six," he replied as be looked deep into her eyes.

Sakura watched him walk away, her veins were singing with excitement and anticipation. But...she had no idea why she had accepted his offer. She didn't love him...did she?

~*~

Note: Please Review! Me luve reviews! What do you think will happen at the dinner date...or is it a date?

*Oh yea...more characters will come when they go on the ship*