Chapter Sixteen
By cocoa-latte
Disclaimer: I don't own it.
Sakura looked at her luggage bitterly. She really hadn't meant to buy so much stuff on the trip. It wasn't like she was a shopaholic or anything. She rarely bought so many clothes. There was just a thing with shopping in the last two weeks that gave her some sense of relief.
She had almost used up all of her money that she had brought with her and it was quite a lot, she had to admit. She sighed. There was no going back now. She would just have to carry it all back home.
Sakura could already see her mom working in her garden, and her father through the kitchen window, cooking up another one of his infamous dishes.
Her mom looked up briefly from her work and her face slipped into a look of pure joy. "Sakura-chan!" her mom cried.
Sakura put down her belongings and gave her mother a hug.
"We missed you during the last few days. How was your trip?"
Sakura paused. Well, six of her friends/acquaintances were going out with each other and seemed truly in love. She however, had gotten herself a date with someone extremely pathetic and Sasuke, well, he was just how he always was.
Then again, Sasuke was being an ass for all these years, he never really acknowledged her anyway.
"It was okay," she answered shortly.
A woman with pink tresses put down her brush and looked into the mirror. She had just finished unpacking all her belongings and she had already put her dirty clothes into the beige clothing hamper.
"Sakura-chan!" Sakura strained her ears to hear dad's jolly voice.
"Ino's here to see you."
Sakura blinked. Now? She had just gotten home an hour ago! "Um, alright. I'll be down in a sec."
She rushed down and greeted her childhood friend at her front door. "Hi," she said with a warm smile, "Did something happen?"
"I need to talk to you," Ino blurted out, "Can you tell your parents that we'll be going out for a while?"
"I just got home though," Sakura said desperately, "And I wanted to spend some time with my parents."
Ino just looked at her sharply. "Look, it's about Naruto and Hinata and it's kind of important."
Her eyes widened slightly. "Okay," Sakura said. She raised her voice and called, "I'm going to go out with Ino for a while. I'm sorry, but it's kind of important. I'll be home for dinner."
She stuffed her keys into her pocket after making sure she securely locked the door.
"Alright, what happened?"
Ino took a deep breath. "Well, apparently, Hiashi's not exactly pleased with their relationship. There's not really a surprise there, Hiashi being Hiashi, of course."
Sakura bit her lip, not saying anything.
"Hinata's really upset about it and Hiashi keep harassing her, telling her that she's always been this way. He's telling her that she's weak and how Hanabi's always better then her. Actually, at the moment, he's probably still "discussing" it with her."
Hinata blinked back tears as she stood up straight, paying attention to her father's strict voice.
"I still don't get it, Hinata. You have everything set out right in front of you and all you do is just mess it up. Look at your sister, Hanabi, for an example. You don't see her running off with someone like him. You're supposed to be the older one and you're the heir to this family. Doesn't this mean anything to you?" He practically spat at her.
She stifled back a sob.
Her mother stood behind Hiashi, her hands clasped tightly. Her lips were pursed in a very thin line and her eyes were wide with fear.
"The next thing we need is to set an arranged marriage for you. I don't want to force you on someone you don't love. I want to you to be able to actually love someone. Couldn't you at least find a suitable—"
She could feel the tears running down her face. 'Say it!' a voice in her head demanded.
She screamed back 'no,' in her head.
No matter, she only had two choices: now or never…
'Now, or forever hold you peace,' the voice taunted in her head.
It was now.
She took a deep shaky breath. "Do you even care what I think?" her voice was slightly wavering. "Do you really think I believe that you want me to be happy and for me to find a man I love?" her voice was growing stronger. "To be only to find a man that you think is suitable?" her voice was starting to get harsh. "This isn't about me. This is about what people will think of you and the clan. You don't even care if I'm happy. The only thing you really want is for me to marry some rich nobleman and bear children."
Her face was basked in fear. Warm, wet tears were trembling down her face. Beneath all of the fear was a glimpse of pride. She didn't even stutter saying it. Sure her voice was shaky – in the beginning, but it had turned out okay in the end.
She made her point, loud and clear.
She took a few heaving breaths, not daring to look him in the face. Instead, her eyes were fixed on his hand. 'Please, don't hit me.'
"I didn't bring you into this world for nothing," Hiashi said, his voice cold.
Hinata bit her lip, very aware that her hands were shaking. She watched as one of her tears dripped onto the wood floor.
"I could disown you any second. Hanabi will always be more able of running this family then you probably will ever be."
He was hinting it heavily. She knew that this day would come. He was always favouring Hanabi over her. He was always pushing down her self-esteem, as low as it was. He was the one who made her this way. The only reason he continued to train her was because she was the first child. This was the way it was meant to be. Hanabi would be in charge and not her.
Heck, she never even wanted to be in charge of the clan. It wasn't like she asked for it, anyway.
"I'll leave then," Hinata said quietly, her eyes downcast. She heard her okaa-san gasp. She turned his back from her father, not wanting to see his expression.
After another profound and unsteady breath, she walked back to her room, preparing to pack up a few of her important belongings before leaving – as quickly as possible.
She had already talked to Naruto about this. If she left, she would go live with him.
They would get by financially and they would eventually get married – when they were ready. Her mother had put a rather large amount of money in her personal bank account that Hiashi never knew about. She'd be fine and he couldn't do anything about it. It wasn't like he was going to set a hunt to kill her.
Her eyes swept the room. She picked up a framed picture of her genin team, some random clothes from her closet, she stuffed a few more personal belongings into a bag, and picked up her unpacked suitcase that was laid on the floor. Good thing that she hadn't decide to empty out her luggage yet.
There was one more thing she needed to do. Hinata opened her desk drawer and took out a fresh blank piece of paper. She reached out for a pen and bent over to write a quick note.
Dear Neji,
It's me, Hinata. As you probably have already suspected, I'm moving out. I'm going to live with Naruto and please don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I'd like to thank you for everything over the years. You really helped me be the person I am today and I'm really thankful for having you behind me every step of the way. Even though you never agreed with my all decisions, you still supported me. If you ever need me, you know where to find me.
Love, Hinata.
PS. Could you tell Hanabi that I'm sorry, and that I'm not mad at her? Thank you.
Hinata paused and waited as the ink dried. She blew over the sheet of paper until she was sure. She folded the parchment in half crisply and held onto the paper tightly.
Hinata left her house key on the table, ensuring that she would not be coming back as a household member, but only as a guest.
Most people would have thought that she had at least one really close employer friend in the Hyuuga household. People thought wrong. She didn't. She wasn't stupid; she knew what they said behind her back.
'Lies.' Hinata gripped the paper even tighter.
She picked up her things with a quiet grunt and took a last look at her room before striding out the door. She walked down the hallway and slipped the letter under Neji's closed door. He was probably out training, or with Tenten.
She continued on her way, slightly suspicious that the house was so quiet. She suspected that all of the maids have cleared the way for her, probably fearing that she would snap at them, like she did with Hiashi.
She stepped outside and welcomed the late afternoon's breeze. She wished that she hadn't brought so many things. All her belongings were starting to get awfully heavy. She continued on her way, wheezing slightly. She was already somewhat out of breath.
She continued walking on the sidewalk, ignoring some of the villagers' questioning stare.
She frowned as a tall shadow overcastted her own.
"Hinata-sam—"
"Neji-san," she cut him off, "there's no need to call me Hinata-sama anymore." She guessed that he must have just finished training.
Neji stayed stoic. "Did you leave?"
She calmed down a little. "Yeah," she said.
He gave her a small grin, which was so uncharacteristic of him. For a moment, Hinata almost thought that it wasn't Neji, and was some crazed impostor.
"About time," he said quietly.
"What?" she questioned, not believing that she heard correctly.
"Well," Neji started, "It's not like you were going to stay there your entire life. You didn't even want to be in charge of the clan, so what's the use of pretending that you wanted to? At least this way, life will be easier for you. I'm not saying that your father is a bad person; he just doesn't understand how things are like. You have to remember that he had an arranged marriage. He probably never really fell in love and doesn't know what it's like."
Hinata stayed silent.
"Look, things will be okay. Hiashi might be pissed now, but he'll get over it." Neji looked at her heavy luggage. "Do you need help with your things?" he asked, his face was passive.
Hinata looked up. "O-oh no, I don't want to trouble you. It's not that heavy, really! I'm probably holding you up. You should get going now…" she trailed off.
Neji nodded curtly and gave her a stern look. "Be careful."
After seeing him back in his usual stance – cold and calm, she found it hard to believe that she actually saw him grin just a few moments ago.
"Thanks," she said gratefully before going on her way.
She reached Naruto's apartment half an hour later. She knocked hesitantly.
Naruto opened the door. He looked up at her in surprise. He glanced down at her luggage and his face then broke into happiness. He leaned forward and gave her a big hug.
"You're free!" he muffled into Hinata's hair.
He broke apart from her and noticed her red and swollen eyes. He swallowed hard. "Do you want to come in? I'll make you a cup of tea."
"Thank you," Hinata said with a small smile.
Naruto helped bring Hinata's belongings into the house, placing them beside a pile of dirty laundry, before busying himself with tealeaves and boiling water.
"Sorry, I had to put your things beside the dirty clothing, but it's the only really empty space," said Naruto bitterly.
"It's okay," she answered.
He took the two mugs of steaming tea, and cleared some space on his battered wooden coffee table. Hinata was already sitting on the sofa.
"Don't mind the mess, I didn't have time to really clean up."
Hinata accepted his tea politely. "It's okay, don't worry about it."
Maybe it was too early to ask what happened, but he did anyways. "What did Hiashi say?"
Hinata took a deep intake of air. "I'm not sure if I want to talk about it right—"
Naruto cut her off. "Oh no, it's okay then. Take your time, it's okay." Naruto blurted out.
He drained his tea quickly. "My futon can fit two people, but I just have to get another blanket right now."
Hinata nodded and picked up Naruto and her own empty teacup. She walked over to the sink and took out a nearly empty bottle of dish detergent. She filled the sink up with scalding soapy water and washed Naruto's dishes.
Naruto came back, holding a pillow. "You don't have to wash my dishes. It's alright, I can wash them myself."
Hinata frowned. "I will be living here, so I suppose I have to have my own share of house chores, right?"
Naruto couldn't help but grin. "Nah, I can be your personal slave," he said jokingly.
She gave him a weak smile. She didn't know why she was so upset. She already knew that her father would not approve of Naruto. She knew that, but why was she still in shock of everything?
Naruto broke through her reverie. "Hinata?" he asked.
"Oh, yah. It's okay. I'll wash the dishes. Thanks for offering though." Hinata paused before asking. "Did you eat dinner yet?"
"Um, no, not yet. We can have ramen if you want. If not, we can always go out to eat."
"I-it's okay, I'll cook dinner today. Will the grocery store on the corner still be open?"
"It's usually open until seven, so yeah, it probably will be."
Hinata gave him yet another weak smile. "I'll be back in fifteen minutes then."
"See you," Naruto called.
"See you," Hinata echoed.
Hinata returned shortly after, her hands full of fresh vegetables, fish, and meat.
"Do you need help?"
"No, I'm okay. You probably aren't too much of a cook, are you?" she asked, referring to his troubles of making a variety of food, other than instant ramen.
The tall blonde man blinked. "Well, technically no. Can I watch though? That way, maybe I'll get a sense of making food. One day, I'll repay you with a great big feast. You won't regret it."
"Alright." Hinata gave him a smile.
"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed. "You're stuttering less often now!"
"N-no, don't say that!" her voice was unsteady.
"Sorry, I guess saying that kind of tinkers the stuttering in your mind, or something like that."
Hinata stayed silent as she began to chop up some cucumbers and onions.
She blinked hard as tears stung her eyes. Stupid onions. Onions had never made her eyes tear up.
There was always a first time for everything. She wiped away the tears furiously on the sleeve of her hand. She closed her eyes for a few seconds before opening them again, but no avail. The tears kept flowing.
"Are you okay?" asked a gentle voice, full of concern.
"Yah, it's just the onions that are making me cry."
Naruto made a face. "That happened to me before. I don't really cut vegetables that often anymore though. Ramen is usually good enough for me. Why don't you wash up, and I'll finish chopping for you? I think that chopping up vegetables is the only thing I can do decently."
"Thanks," Hinata said quietly.
She grabbed a tissue and wiped her eyes. She washed her hands before measuring the rice for that night's dinner.
She began to wash the rice thoroughly, watching the watery-milky substance that emitted from the short grains of rice. She waited until the water ran clear and she began to cook on the rice on the stovetop.
"You should really get a rice cooker," Hinata commented nonchalantly, trying to forget that evening's current events.
Naruto shrugged. "I was thinking of getting one for a while, since everyone who came over would always complain, but I opted not to, since I don't cook rice that often.
"I'll get one for you."
Naruto broke into a grin. "It's for us!" he exclaimed. "Finally, we can say us, now that we're living together. Thank you though."
Hinata smiled lightly. "Welcome and yah, we can finally say us."
A loud echoing ring of the doorbell rung in Naruto and Hinata's ears; "I'll get that," Naruto said abruptly. He put down the knife, and shook that last pieces of chopped veggies off his hands.
"'Kay," Hinata said.
Naruto walked over to his rather bland front door. He opened a small crack and peeped out the door, only to be answered by a fury of questions.
"Whoa, hold on there," said the surprised shinobi.
Ino made a huffing noise, before talking. "This is actually important. "Have you heard about Hinata? Her dad's furious at her, and the only thing that you're doing is spending a nice day at home." She gave him a glare.
"Wrong," Naruto scoffed.
Sakura, who was at Ino's side sighed. "Well, what are you doing then?"
"I have good news to tell you—"
"You never even answered my question. Stop changing the subject." Ino's voice was sharp.
Their tempers were waning. Naruto glanced back and forth at the two impatient women that stood before him. For two people who used to have petty fights over a certain raven-haired man, they were sure similar in many ways.
"Hinata's living here right now;" Naruto crossed his arms and looked at the two knowingly.
The two kunoichi's expressions were just as he predicted. Shocked, gobsmacked, and both scarily similar.
"She moved out?" Ino asked, stunned.
"Yup!" Naruto exclaimed proudly.
Sakura sighed and crossed her arms. "You must be rubbing off on her then."
Naruto didn't say anything about her last comment. "Why don't you come in? She might be happier with company. I know it must be a big difference for her, growing up in a huge mansion and now living in a crappy apartment, such as this one. It's not even exactly clean."
"At least it's cozy…" Sakura trailed off.
Naruto looked at her blankly. "This is not what I would call cozy."
"Come on, it's not horrible. You have a roof over you head. Be grateful," said Ino pointedly.
"You sound like Iruka."
Ino made a face at Naruto before coming in. She shut the door behind her. "Well, Hinata's an awesome cook, so at least you won't be stuck eating ramen all the time."
Sakura laughed in the background.
"There's absolutely nothing wrong with eating ramen and for your information, I help her cook too!"
Sakura grinned. "Cutting the vegetables?"
Naruto looked confused. "How do you know? Are you stalking me or something?"
"I don't have that much time on my hands to stalk you. Don't worry, it was just a good guess."
"A lucky guess," Naruto mumbled under his breath. "Do you want something to eat or drink something? 'Cause if you want a snack, you're going to have to wait a while, since we're still cooking."
"Um, no, it's okay," Sakura said mildly
He turned his attention to Ino.
"Same, she said absently, "Can we talk to Hinata? If you don't mind, that is."
"'Course."
They followed Naruto to the kitchen. Hinata was busying herself, wrapping the vinegar-marinated rice, with meat, and the vegetables that Naruto was cutting before the two arrived. She folded it up in a crisp sheet of seaweed.
She looked up. "Oh, hi Sakura, Ino," she said with a smile.
"Hi," they both chorused back.
"Are you okay?" Ino asked with concern.
Hinata began to cut the sushi into pieces. "Of course! I-I've actually been meaning to leave for a while. Since Hanabi's always the one who beats me in everything I do. I don't blame her of course…" she trailed off.
Sakura looked at her pale friend sincerely. "We're always here if you need us."
"Thanks," she said with a smile, "But really, I'll be fine."
Sure Hinata was shaken up by the recent proceedings that had taken place in her life, but now she was so free. She could do as she pleased without someone at her back, constantly. She could rid of her old life and live a new one happily, with Naruto.
There was pregnant pause. "Would you like to stay for dinner? I've made enough for all four of us."
"Oh, no. I'm fine, really. It's your first day here and we can't bother you when you're settling in and all."
"I insist though," Hinata said, "I really did make enough. I know that you're thinking that Naruto has a big appetite, but I've made enough for him too."
"We really couldn't do that," Ino began, "Thank you for offering. Now, we don't want to be in the way of your dinnertime, so we'll come by tomorrow to help you settle in, if you want."
"Thanks! T-that would be great!"
"Alright, we'll see you tomorrow then!"
Naruto, Hinata, Ino, and Sakura bid their goodbyes, before parting.
Sakura and Ino walked on the cobblestone sidewalk, heading their way home. They walked the same route home, like they always had done when they were younger.
"So," Sakura said conversationally, "Did you tell you mom about you and Shikamaru-san?"
Ino walked a bit further before answering. "No, not yet. I plan to though. Actually, I'll probably tell her tonight. I don't enjoy keeping secrets that much. I know, even though my mom and I don't get along that well. She'll find out sooner or later. She probably will be happy that I'm marrying a genius, or something like that. "
"Well, that's good," Sakura said with a laugh, "At least they won't be revolting against you two."
"Hm," Ino mused. "So, what's going on between you and Sasuke?"
"What?" Sakura bursted out, "I haven't even talked to him since forever. How many times do I have to tell you? I don't like him!"
'How long does it take to penetrated through that thick skulls of hers, anyway?"
Ino had a definite evil grin on her face. "Oh, but does he have any feelings for you?"
She wouldn't ask what Ino was talking about. She would will herself out of curiosity. "Stop talking nonsense. We've been through this about a million times already. He doesn't care about me, nor do I care about him."
'What does she mean though? Does he really—No, of course not! This is Sasuke that we're talking about! Not some other guy. Why can't she just leave me alone though? Is she mocking me or something?'
Ino didn't say anything. She changed the subject. "It's nice being back in Konoha, isn't it?"
'Damn it, she changed the subject.' Sakura blew a strand of hair out of her face. "Yeah, it's great to be back. I missed being able to breath in fresh warm air."
"I know what you mean. The air was so hard to breath during the trip. It's like sticking your head in the freezer and taking a deep breath of air."
Sakura nodded, agreeing to Ino. Sakura was at her doorstep now. "I'll come drop by the flower shop tomorrow, if you would like. Then, we can go visit and Hinata and Naruto to see how they're coming alone."
"Yup," Ino said merrily, "I'll see you tomorrow. Bye! Oh, and maybe we can have lunch tomorrow with a few people."
"Sounds good, I don't have any missions or anything coming up for a while."
"Maybe they're afraid that we have jetlag or something."
"I don't really have jetlag, so it's okay. How about you?"
"It's not that bad for me, so it's fine."
"Yah, so I'll see you tomorrow."
Sakura fished out her keys and unlocked the door.
"Sakura, are you home?" her mother called.
Sakura took off her shoes and placed it neatly on the floor. "Yah, I'm sorry that I took so long."
"It's okay, it's dinnertime, by the way."
She sat down beside the low table and looked at the large heap of rice was on her bowl and noticed that her plate was already filled with all types of meat, vegetables, and other foods, along with a steaming bowl of soup.
"Wow, dinner looks really good!" Sakura exclaimed. "Did it take forever for you two to make?"
"No, it wasn't too bad. Well, it did take longer than usual, but it is your first day back, and what's better then to celebrate your home coming by having a feast?"
"Nothing, I suppose," she said with a smile.
"Itadakimasu," her family chorused happily.
They ate in a comfortable silence for the first few minutes, before her mom placed down her chopsticks. "So, would you like to tell us what you did on your trip?"
"Well, we arrived at the ski resort and it's unbelievable cold there. I've never seen so much snow in one spot. We went skiing regularly; we had ramen constantly, so in the end, we kept going out to eat, since no one really likes ramen that much. We had a snowball war, we attended a dance, and a skunk sprayed Naruto and Hinata. I know a skunk in places where it snows is bizarre. I heard that it gets really sunny in the summer, in the resort, and the snow melts, so people go there and play golf."
Her parents stopped chewing, and listened intensely.
She continued, "So maybe there isn't always snow there. Eventually, we got sick of the snow and Kiba also broke a window there. There weren't really enough washrooms there for all of us, but we managed. That's basically it." She took a deep breath to renew her oxygen source.
She took another deep breath. "Oh, and Naruto and Hinata finally got together, along with Ino and Shikamaru—"
"That's great!" her father said enthusiastically. "I wonder what Hiashi will say…"
"As well as Neji and Tenten."
She watched as her parents eyed each other dreamily. "Quite a lot of people!" Her mom nudged her father. "Seems like we just met yesterday!"
His father merely just smiled back, with the same dreamy smile on his face.
Sakura eyed her parents, mortified. This really wasn't a great time for them to be thinking of all this.
Sakura's thoughts wandered back to her and Ino's conversation earlier that day; 'Still, I wonder what Ino meant…'
To be honest, she had never seen her parents so lovesick. In fact, they hardly ever showed their affections for each other publicly, including in front of Sakura.
She quickly looked back down at her food and ate a top speed. There must have been something that activated the love section of their brains or something.
Thankfully, she finished quickly enough. She put her dishes in the sink and hurried off to her room. She needed time to think about a few things.
In the back of her head, Inner Sakura was still complaining. 'Come on!' Inner Sakura began, 'Go up to Sasuke and confront him about it. If not, go find Ino!'
It was rather unlikely that that would happen.
'Great,' she thought with a stubborn expression on her face, 'I don't even have the guts to go confront my best friend, or Sasuke about this dilemma.'
She shut her bedroom door firmly. It was pleasantly nice to be able to relax in her bedroom without having to worry about a roommate barge in any second.
She took in the sense of calmness in her own room. She had convinced her parents to paint her once pink walls to a more sophisticated shade of green. Now, seeing the solid green on her walls of her bedroom calmed her immensely. She had long ago rid her room with childhood objects, such as the small pink piggy bank that she used to adore, or the bright flowered print on her bed sheets.
"Sakura-chan," her mom called in a singsong voice, "Your father and I will be going out for a nice stroll in the park. We'll be back shortly!"
The slender pink-haired woman flinched at her mother's words. She should have warned the world to stay inside. Someone might catch her parents kissing, or something else that would scar one's mind, not only for her sake, but for everyone's.
"Alright, have a good time," she forced herself to say.
Shortly, she could hear the small "click" from the door.
What was it with the phrase "Love's in the air?" She undeniably hated it. She could sense it and it made her feel queasy.
She stared out her window for a long while, watching her parent's promenade down the cobblestone sidewalk in ease, hand in hand.
She had never seen them act this way. Ever. Was it her, or was everyone around her rather suddenly amorous?
She closed her eyes and breathed in the sweet scent of fresh air that billowed into the room from her open window.
Sakura sat between Tenten and Naruto in a rather squishy table booth at the restaurant. True to her words, she met Ino at the flower shop and they went to visit Naruto and Hinata, seeing how they were settling in together. They tagged along for lunch and they met Tenten on the way, inviting her to come as well.
"Where's Neji, Tenten-chan?" Hinata asked timidly.
"Home," Tenten said shortly.
"Oh, I see…"
"It's so unfair!" Tenten slammed her fists down at the table. "Neji's and my mom are completely insane. How could I not have noticed it before?"
Sakura's eyes widened at her sudden outburst. She said carefully, "What is it?"
Tenten curled her finger around her long brown mane. "They think that we're going to get married. Already. I'm not complaining about marriage, because I'd love to be married to Neji, more than anything! But don't you think that it's a little too soon? We're only eighteen, for Christ's sake!"
Ino nodded sympathetically.
"I mean, eighteen's not too young for marriage, but I think that us getting married would be going to fast, don't you think? We only just got together!"
Naruto put down his tea. "Well, it depends, really. If you really love each--
"—We do," Tenten said, cutting in.
"We know you do," Ino said gently, reassuring her. She sent Naruto a glare.
"The thing is that, they're already planning for the wedding." Tenten abruptly turned around to face Ino. "So, what did your parents say? I'm sure that they're saner then to plan your wedding for you." She was speaking all very fast.
Ino's face fell, not wanting to edge Tenten on more. "Well, they didn't exactly say much."
"See?" Tenten started exasperatedly. "Why can't I have a mother like yours? What do I get? A mom who's plotting with my now-husband-to-be's mother. For our wedding!"
"Well, weddings are really pretty. The bride gets to wear a nice traditional wedding dress, well most of the time they do, and everyone's in tuxes or their best clothes…" Naruto broke off as he caught the look on Tenten's face.
"I don't even want to think about wearing "nice traditional" dresses right now. Actually, I'm not sure if I even I want to wear one of those! That's not the point though, the point is that I don't want a marriage right now!"
"Just object to them and see what they say," Sakura reasoned with her.
Tenten sighed and pushed her bangs out of her eyes. "We've tried." She paused. "A few times, actually," she added. "They're just so excited about this and we don't really want to let them down, or anything like that. Well, it wouldn't matter that much if it were just my mom, but its Neji's mom too! I want to be on good terms with both of them, so at least I won't have to end up with a bitter mother-in-law, or something like that."
She took a deep breath.
"Well, at least Neji's mom is better than Hiashi. About Hiashi, are you settling in okay?" she asked with concern.
Hinata took a deep breath. "I-I think I am, now."
Naruto gave her a warm smile. His pearly white teeth were gleaming.
They didn't say anything for a while, still pondering on the recent events that have taken place.
Tenten gave a sigh. "I have to hurry on home to see what else my mom has planned for us. I hope she doesn't do anything to extravagant. I never really wanted a big wedding anyway. I don't even like wearing formal dresses. Bye and hopefully the next time you see me, I won't be trying out my wedding gown."
"Oh, alright! I'll see you soon then," Sakura said pleasantly, trying to ignore Tenten's sarcasm.
After taking care of the bill, they continued on to their separate ways. Sakura raked her fingers down her long mane, detangling her hair. She mind was well should go home. It wasn't like she had any missions or anything coming up. She reached the fork in the road and paused.
'I should really go training, or at least work out,' the thought ran through her mind. So, instead of taking the common road home, she turned right, walking down the familiar path to her usual training area.
She looked around the wide clearing and reminisced that this once was Sasuke's training area as well. Of course he didn't come around here anymore. She supposed that he abandoned the clearing after finding out that Sakura knew it as well. She was still lovesick over him in those days. She was only thirteen after all.
She propped up her belongings on a large tree trunk, watching the leaves' constantly moving shadows on the ground. She took a deep breath and dropped herself to the ground. She would start with push-ups first.
'Forty-seven, forty-eight, forty-nine.' She took another wheezing breath before her body collapsed back on the ground. Had she really gotten so out-of-shape during the last two weeks? She knew that she wouldn't be physically as strong after her absence from training; but to not be able to do half of the training she could before the break was awful. After all, she had worked so far to achieve as far as she did. Only to see it crumble in a short amount of time was disturbing.
She forced herself back on her feet. She short and rapid breaths slowly turned back to normal. 'Next, let's see how my charka control is.'
She gathered some charka to her feet. She looked up at one of the tall trees. True, this was one of the techniques that Kakashi had taught them in their genin days and it was a little outdated. It beyond doubt did help her though.
She walked up the tree with ease.
She stood there for a few moments, enjoying nature, and remembering old memories.
"Sakura?" A deep male voice called.
She closed her eyes and took an intake of air. Of all times, why now?
She jumped back down and landed on the ground easily. "Sasuke," she acknowledged. She mind as well greet him, now that he saw her.
'What was Ino saying about Sasuke and I again? Something on the lines of "does he have feelings for you"? What's that suppose to mean? He clearly doesn't care about me anymore than an old team mate!' Sakura could feel her heart beat faster as she neared Sasuke.
Sasuke stood there calmly, twirling a kunai in his left hand. "Are you training?"
A forced small frown came upon her face. She prayed she wasn't blushing. She concluded that she probably wasn't. She would not go back on the past. "Oh no, I just finished. How about you?"
He placed the kunai back into his weapon pouch. "I was about to. I haven't been to this training area in a long while, so I decided to come along."
"You were about to?" Sakura furrowed her eyebrows. "Why not anymore?"
'Calm down,' she thought, 'It's not like he came here to see me.'
Sasuke stayed silent for a while. "I know that you're not done training, so it wouldn't be fair if I just came along to take up your training space."
'He's awfully talkative today,' Sakura noted in her head.
Sasuke looked back down at his feet awkwardly. He kept his face stoic. He didn't want to show any emotions. This wasn't going the way he wanted. Not that he wanted something to happen between them.
Firstly, he was pretty sure that he felt nothing for her. Secondly, He wasn't blind. If he liked her, he would have already gone out with her. If he hadn't by now, he was positive that there was nothing between them. Thirdly, even if he liked her, she would never take him back.
'I don't like her,' he forced himself to think. He knew that Sakura wasn't ugly. She was living proof that she wasn't. But more and more often, he found himself looking at her. Watching out for her. He actually waited for her, after her date, making sure the other guy didn't try to make any moves on her.
Sakura broke his reverie. "Well, I suppose I could keep on training. Hey, you know what? Do you want to spar?"
'I don't know why I just said that.'
She loved him more than anything. Maybe it was just a childhood crush, but now, it was just a memory. It was the hardest thing for her to do, but she got over him. Or so she thought.
But now; now she wasn't sure how she felt.
A hint of smile turned up on the corners of Sasuke's lips. It disappeared quickly. The Uchiha wasn't a man who had openings. "Sure," he answered, his voice in the usual monotone state.
Was that a hint of a smile that she saw on his face? Or was it just her imagination? Sakura assumed it was the latter. Good, he had agreed. There was nothing more to it. 'Alright, act normal now.'
This was still slightly awkward. "Okay," Sakura began, "Rules. First of all, let's make this taijutsu and genjitsu only, alright? Ninjutsu isn't really an option."
She paused and waited for Sasuke to agree. He nodded.
"You can use your Sharingan and going easy against each other is not an option. I'm not as weak as you last saw me fight. I won't be that great either, since I haven't trained at all in the last two weeks." She stressed the word "easy".
He crossed his arms. "It's okay, I haven't been training much either."
"No one trained. Well, not regularly, at least."
He couldn't help but notice how green her eyes were. He loved that shade of green. If he would ever admit it, it'd be one of his favourite colours.
"Is there something on my face?" she asked.
He had been staring. Sasuke composed himself. "No," he answered as calmly as he could. "So, how about a time-limit of twenty-minutes?" he suggested, trying to stray off the former topic.
"Sounds good, we probably wouldn't be able to last longer than that in our current state," she sighed, "Well, I can't speak for you, but for me, that's the case."
He nodded. His face was serious again. "Let's start."
A/N: I'm sorry that this chapter took me quite a while to write. Well, it's twice as long as the last chapter. (in numbers words, that is.) I had finals, so I was busy studying for that, and it pretty much ate up my free time. Thanks to everyone for reading and a huge thanks to those who reviewed! Thanks to my beta: evil-mittens!
Note: I know that Hinata is seventeen in this story. It's of course not legal to leave the house before you're eighteen, because she's still underage. She really needed to leave, so I hope that clears things up!
Thanks to:
Mint- First of all, thank you so much! You really made me realize that the whole Sasuke and Sakura pairing wasn't going to work how I was writing it. I'm horrible at planning things out. I always start writing before I have a well defined plot. It never works out either. I'm sorry that it has been a disappointment and that this chapter didn't have much interaction between the two of them, until the end. I really needed to put in the problems with the other pairings. The next few chapters will be a lot more Sakura and Sasuke-centred. Again, thanks so much! Your review really helped.
AnimEvivErz- Thanks for the huge review! (and always reading!) Ulgh, don't remind me about finals! Okay, I know school is over by now, but finals were still horrible. I hope you did okay on yours! Yah, I'm glad that they're back in Konoha too. How much can I spend time writing about snow? Five hours of sleep? That is horrible. I think I would die with only five hours of sleep. Not shrivel up and die, but… yah! It's a figure of a speech! Blah, I'm not making sense anymore.
GirlWaterShaman, RedLotusNin and IceHunterNin, Warprince2000, Nixxie1430, Danny171984, Chocobaby, Lamikhara, My-ripped-paper-heart- Thanks for the review! I promise I'll get on with the Sasu/Saku scenes!
Kagome1015- Thanks for the review! Actually, I'm not sure how many chapters are left. I have to make sure that I don't rush the Sasu/Saku moment. That wouldn't be very good.
Harukakanata- Thanks for the review! No, it's not you. There is something wrong with Neji's mom. I made her strange in this story. She'll be playing a bigger part later on, so you'll find out. (I think. I still have to figure that part out.) I'm not sure if you'll see this, but I'm sad that you won't be writing fanfiction anymore! I really love your stories! I'll miss you!
Dragon Man 180- Yes, Hinata does leave! Thanks for the suggestions!
SasuSakuforeva-iloveSasuke- Yah, their mothers knew it all along! There will be more sasu/saku moments in the next few chapters, I promise. Thanks for reading!
JAi0rOku- Sorry it took me so long to update! Even though they're back in Konoha, there will be more chapters to come, don't worry. (I know I said in the last chapter "Only a few chapters left", but now, I'm not sure. I don't want to rush it. Thanks for reviewing!
Ayane Selznick- Thanks for the review! I love Someone Screaming. I can't wait until the alternative ending. Five more reviews! I really should go and write five anonymous reviews. Alright, I already said that I wouldn't, 'cause that's cheating.
Desting852- Yes, they will get married! Can you hear the wedding bells? Actually, I only hear myself typing on the keyboard… Anyway, thanks for reviewing!
Blacksamuri- Thanks for the review! Don't think that way! Just remember, write for yourself and not others. People may not always like what others write; don't worry, there's nothing wrong with that. It's like a fact, there will always people who don't like certain things, so don't let that get you down. )
Sephynarutocloud- Hm, I'm not sure if there will be a sequel yet. There's still more chapters to come, so don't worry. Thanks for the review!
Twilight- Thanks so much! I fixed a few things that you mentioned. In chapter fourteen (not that you probably will go back and see the changes C) I added a section where you find out why Shikamaru has the diary and how he got a hold of it. Also, in the last chapter, I changed a bit of the interaction between Neji and his mom. Um, I think they add the "-sama" suffix after someone they have respect for. I think. XD Don't kill me if that's not completely correct because I'm not too familiar with Japanese.