AN: Woah, already chapter 5, this is going fast, but this is still old stuff from before I updated. So, hope you like it (starts with my sister)

Chapter 5: Party Time (well, for most people)

Tenten was never super-best friends with Sakura. In fact at first, when she first came in she felt kind of wrong being in Sakura's house first. I mean, Ino was her childhood friend and stuff and they didn't like.... SEEM right. But Sakura was actually okay and didn't take Tenten to be a person devout of personality just because she acted polite and predictable around people. Nobody thought she swore, either, did they? Fuck them, that's right.

And so, the girls sat, cozy in the VERY roomy Haruno family room - they have one of those traditional houses, see, where a lot of rooms are marked off by removable screens. Which have been removed. MMmm. They giggled and came up with a few other games. Truth or dare and all that. They probably found it pretty surprising that Tenten would suggest drinks. But, she did. There you go, girls, she thought triumphantly.... not the girl you thought you knew, am I? Well, she would have. She kept getting the image of Shikamaru with things up his nose. That she'd shoved there. That really, really, REALLY hurt. They were big. It was kind of distracting.

Little did she know she was just about as ordinary and boring as every other teenager that's ever come up with bringing drinks to a party to look cool. But, back to the story.

So, a little later and the door knocked again. Hinata. And then again. The girls, at the height of their giggly-omginess-let's-have-a-makeover-before-the-boys-come, opened the door to Temari. She was heavily-laden with luggage and staying with Sakura for the week, seeing as she didn't live anywhere nearby or anything. And Sakura's parents reckoned whatever these kids were like as ninjas it wouldn't be RIGHT for two boys staying at a girl's house, regardless. They were staying with other people. In fact, regardless of the gender of the child nobody really wanted the other two sand people staying at their houses. Because, well... LOOK at them.... so they were staying with someone where this wasn't going to be a problem. They stayed at Sasuke's.

That is, theoretically, anyway. Because Sasuke lived where the Uchiha's used to live. In fact there was more than just a room that was his. In fact, there was more than a floor, or even a house. In fact, there were SEVERAL houses that were Sasuke's. A whole street, even. And then some. Basically Sasuke could do what he liked with the place. He had to fight not to have any parties thrown in his residence, in fact... because people KNEW he didn't have family. I mean, sad and all but, there was a whole STREET. Come on. He would've loved to have Sakura's party at his house(s) any day of the week honestly, if only it wasn't for the ROOM...

He didn't want them to find HIS room...

his REAL room... he had fake ones set up around the place....

his REAL room was a shrine.

To Sasuke's one item of worship.

To his one true love.

Etc etc.

But he wasn't the romantic type, so it was really kind of dull. Really there was only just one photo. A small one. Passport-size.

But, you know, it's the THOUGHT that counts.

Sasuke was also not there when the sands arrived. He was busy wrapping his present as he walked. Or the ninja equivalent. Which involved a lot more rooftops. He landed on Kakashi once, but in his hurry could only retrieve his present for Sakura from his surprised teacher. He finished the wrapping haphazardly just in time to arrive.

He took a deep breath, and waited for his blood pressure to come down again - the semi-flying really takes the wind out of you - before knocking. He combed his fringe a little with his fingers and flicked it around a bit for the best effect. He checked his oddball tail-end of hair was still standing up. He made sure his proper-full-ninja-gear-with-facemask-and-all was put away deep in his overnight bag.

Sakura opened the door. She smiled and giggled her head off. Oh-my-gawd-he's-so-cute-in-the-night-light... she thought just as fast as all that, getting instantly flushed and all embarrassed. She forgot her face was still covered in facial stuff.

Sasuke stared.

Sasuke coughed.

Sasuke handed the present over.

Sasuke walked inside.

Sasuke saw the other girls, faces all caked in brown mud stuff. Sasuke stared. Sasuke coughed.

"....so I guess I'm early."

And then Naruto came in HIS OWN super-leaps and landed square on Sasuke. And his present flew into Sakura's hands. And both boys lay there kind of awkwardly, Naruto muttering something like "SFCHHNNHPBBYYY!!" through Sasuke's hair.

Little did they both forget that neither of them had put any cards or anything on and could identify whose present was whose... ...(...okay, whatever, you get it). ((switch))

To make matters, worse, Neji tripped over the lump that was Naruto and Sasuke and then broke down, still touchy from the event earlier that day. Just as everyone was getting untangled, Kiba barreled through the door, or what was left of it after Neji's hissy fit, and crashed into a pile with Sasuke and Naruto. Hinata peeped in quietly and Shino stood... well, however the guy stands...

The pile on the table grew as the crowd got bigger. Once they were almost all there, and the girls had finished doing whatever they were doing with the brown mud stuff and had washed it off, they settled outside and started eating. The doorbell rang as the last two guests were waiting at the door. Sakura bounced to the door (freshly re-attached) and opened it to see a moody red-headed insomniac with no eyebrows and his elder brother in the usual bear-like suit and purple war paint. Gaara had surprisingly gotten her a present, which she didn't expect to be all that normal, and same with Kankuro. She led them to the garden and showed them their seats, as she sat at the head.

Sakura was looking around and saw her secreter-than-Sasuke-crush someone around the other end of the table, next to a sand-nin. Tenten and Ino, who were sitting next to eachother next to the head of the table hurried off to the kitchen as Hinata cleared some space in front of Sakura. Tenten came in with the huge –made for 15 people, come on, use your imagination- -USE IT- cake, and lay it in front of Sakura, the candles flickering in the slight breeze.

AN: Unbelievable, only one switch! Anyway, this is nearing the end of the old stuff, so your reviews will soon be accounted for, hopefully!