Disclaimers: Forget this! ::kicks::
Chapter 9: Reflection
"Sakura hasn't come back yet." Naruto stared out at the dark blue sea littered with moonlight. "You think something happened? She didn't bring her wig or her contacts. Do you think she might have been spotted by InoShikaCho?" A few days had passed since their last meeting with the dream team, but you could never be too cautious. Besides, those three tended to pop up out of nowhere.
"Don't worry about her. She's probably fine." Sasuke reclined nonchalantly against the bed's headboard, going over Sakura's acceptance letter and schedule. Naruto sighed miserably and collapsed on the opposite bed.
Naruto's groans pierced Sasuke's deep planning like an ice pick. A vein pulsated in his forehead.
"Naruto, open a window. It's hot in here and I'm trying to think."
"Why the hell should I?!" But he did it anyway; the action took his mind off all the horrible things that could be happening to Sakura.
Naruto opened the window and let the cool breeze clear his mind when the soft sound of music reached his ears from above.
"Eh?" The sweet sound of vocals sailed high into the night sky.
"I'll be back in a minute."
Sasuke smiled as Naruto dashed out the door.
Their cheap room lay on the top of the hotel, so it didn't take long for Naruto to reach the stairs leading to the roof. He yanked hard on the door and it slowly moved outward.
A blast of the tropical breeze tussled Naruto like heat from flames as he stepped out onto the roof. A pale figure in a flowing, knee-high, white, summer dress stood like a Corinthian column, a star against the brilliant indigo sky.
Her short hair danced in the wind like her song danced in the air. Her dress flailed like the wings of a dove. The intense moonlight glazed her bare shoulders and softened her features like a flower covered in pollen.
Naruto stepped closer.
"Sakura?"
The girl craned her head over her shoulder and yelped.
"N-naruto! Wh-where you listening?" In the moonlight, Naruto could see her face redden. It had been a while since he'd seen her without her platinum wig. The cheap, black dye had faded; her original pink, now long enough to swipe between her shoulders, bloomed forth like flowers in spring. The hair tickled her lips as she blushed at Naruto.
"Uwahhhhh, Sakura-chan, I never knew you could sing so well." Naruto approached her, his casual yellow shirt billowing along with her light dress.
"You think so?" She rubbed the back of her head. "I've been practicing really hard."
"Sakura-chan, you said that we were only this to get Akari-san. You said you didn't care about winning."
"Yeah, well things change." She turned her back on him and stared out at the sea. "I'm... not going to lose to Ino."
Ooooh... Naruto thought with a sudden understanding.
"Well, if you want to beat Ino, you're going to have to do better than that."
Sakura turned back to him, alarmed.
"But you just said I could sing well."
"Yeah, but you're missing something."
"?"
Naruto step up beside her and looked out over the waterfront city.
"Sakura-chan, you focus too much on how you sound and what you're saying, but none of that really matters. You should sing how you feel. Grasp a strong emotion and run with it. Don't sing with your voice, sing with your heart."
Sakura blinked at him for a moment like he was incomprehensible.
"When did the village idiot learn such incredible things about singing?"
Naruto grinned.
"I don't know a damn about singing; that's just the way I look at everything."
-
Sakura and Naruto reentered the room, laughing.
"Welcome back you two." Sasuke said from his new seat on the windowsill.
"Windowsill..." Naruto thought. "You were listening in on us?!"
Sasuke smiled.
"Sakura, what's it with you and Ino? Do you pick fights with her on purpose?"
Sakura sat on the bed closest to her.
"Well, I told you how I met her before my interview, right? When I talked to her, she seemed so lonely. When we were at each other's throats, we were closer, in essence; I thought I could cheer her up." Sakura sighed. "Besides, Ino's happiest when she's yelling at someone."
"How thoughtful of you." Sasuke sneered sarcastically.
Sakura threw him a dirty look.
"You know, there are five stories between the ground and that window. You want me to show you the quickest way down?"
Sasuke scratched his head.
"Actually, Sakura, there was something else I wanted to ask you about."
"?"
"This 'After-Party'," Sasuke pointed to the bottom of the schedule, "it says it's only for contestants and special guests. Does that mean we're not invited?"
"Yeah, there were some sabotage issues a couple years back, so no outsiders." Sakura rubbed her shoulder. "It's too bad though."
"Are you kidding? It's perfect."
"Eh?"
Sasuke hopped off the sill.
"If Naruto and I can't go, I'm guessing the neither will Choji and Shikamaru. This will be our moment of action."
"Hold on a second," Sakura held up her palm. "You want me to kidnap Akari alone!? From a room filled with kunoichi?! With Ino watching her every move?!"
"You underestimate yourself, Sakura. It's a party. How well do you think Ino will be watching?"
Sakura pouted.
"Don't worry," Sasuke chuckled, "I have a plan to get me and Naruto in. We won't let you do it alone."
"Eh?"
"I also have an idea about how to successfully capture Akari."
Sakura stood up and pulled on Sasuke's cheek.
"Well, aren't we a bushel of ideas today?" She sneered and let go. "So what's this plan?"
"Sakura, do you still remember how to make that sleeping powder?"
"Of course."
"All we need is that and a stick of gum."
-
A week later, all the pieces began to set in place.
"Ok people, listen up!" the dance instructor bellowed across the makeshift stage in the MegaDome. "This is our last rehearsal before tonight, so I want to see everyone's best!"
The fifty selected girls stood like statues, all except one.
"Haruko! Please pay attention!" The instructor reprimanded.
"H-hai!" Sakura jumped into line after a quick glance over her shoulder.
Good luck, Naruto.
-
Naruto sighed miserably, stuck a piece of gum in his mouth and pushed long yellow pigtails out of his face.
I have forty-five minutes...
He took a deep breath and burst through the MegaDome's main doors.
"Aiya!" he squealed. "I'm so late!"
"Eh?" The receptionist looked up.
"WAHHH! Rehearsal has already started without me." Naruto jumped around frantically. "Quickly! Buzz me in!"
The receptionist pushed a button on her desk. A double door to the left buzzed and opened outward.
"Thank you!" Naruto dashed through the doors.
"W-wait!" The receptionist called, "You forgot to sign in!"
"No time!" Naruto called over his shoulder as his disappeared down the expansive halls.
He grinned.
Infiltration complete.
Naruto ran quickly through the hall, before ducking into a janitor's closet. He fumbled around for the light, knocking several miscellaneous objects around before finding it. In the cramped, dim light, Naruto rolled up the sleeve of Sakura's white mesh shirt and looked at the roughly scribbled map on his wrist.
So far, so good...
Detangling himself from a mop, Naruto peeked around the door and looked down the hall. No one. He gingerly stepped out of the closest, pulling on his shorts.
How the hell can Sakura wear these? They're so freakin' tight! Damn that Sasuke! He gets to sit and watch Sakura's rehearsal while I'm doing the dirty work. This was his stupid plan!
Still cursing Sasuke, Naruto shook a pail from his foot and shut the closet door behind him. He raced down the hall, looking at his wrist and slid to a halt before a door engraved with a large star and the words "Dressing Room."
Delicately, he pulled the door open and crept inside.
The dimly lit room expanded outward, stuffed full of lighted mirrors and dresses. Naruto heard music to his right, the rehearsal and crept away from it. His target came into view. Naruto gnawed on his gum and slowly approached the back door. According to Sakura, this was the emergency exit, where performers could enter and leave unnoticed. It usually remained locked, but Naruto was about to fix that.
With the utter most care, Naruto pulled the door. He pulled the gum from his mouth and wedged it firmly into the auto-lock.
"Excuse me, Miss, but what are you doing?"
Naruto froze. The sound of footsteps drew closer.
Crap!
Naruto spun around and looked straight into the eyes of a burly man wearing a "Security" t-shirt.
"Heh... heh..." Beads of sweat trickled down the curve of his cheek. Quickly, he held up a finger. "Ah! Here's my contact!"
The security guard stopped.
"Oh man, I've looked everywhere for this!" Naruto dashed to one of the mirrors and pulled down on his bottom eye lid.
"Do you need any help, Miss?" The security guard asked.
"Ah... no, I'm fine. I'll head back up to the stage when I get this thing back in. No need to worry about me!"
Naruto watched the security guard back disappear through the doorway, before collapsing to the floor.
Whew... I'm lucky people still fall for that one.
He sat there panting and reflecting for a moment before getting back to his feet. Quickly, he opened the emergency exit, slid outside, checked to make sure it opened, and disappeared into the afternoon.
-
"Waaaaah! What a long rehearsal!" Ino stretched in the chair before her mirror. "I'm so pumped up for tonight!"
"You did really well, Ino-san." Akari smiled.
"Thank you, Akari-san." Ino leaned to her left. "Didja hear that Haruko-chan?" She sneered.
"Ah, Ino-chan." Sakura scoffed as she sat down at the mirror next her rival, "There's a big difference between doing well and doing good."
A vien throbbed in Ino's temple.
"You think you're so smart."
"I don't have to think it." Sakura retaliated.
"Geez, don't you two ever stop fighting?" A girl said as she passed them on her way to the emergency exit. She stuck her nose in the air. "It's so immature."
Ino stuck out her tongue at the girl's back.
"So many people are leaving already?" Sakura asked as she watched the steady stream of contestants left through the back.
"Well, yeah." Another girl sneered, "You two would be leaving too, if you weren't fighting all the time."
Ino looked over at Akari, who was ready to go, but remained politely seated.
"You don't have to wait for me, Akari-san." Ino smiled as she pulled clips from her hair.
"Oh, I don't mind, Ino-san."
"Don't worry; Shikamaru and Choji are waiting outside. I'll meet you guys at that ramen place."
"O-ok." Akari waved as she followed the others outside.
Sakura scrubbed frantically at her face with a wash cloth, peeling her makeup away. Ino began the same process as the last of the other contestants disappeared.
"I'll see you later tonight." Ino glared she stood up.
"Try not to cry when I beat you." Sakura brushed off her vanity.
Ino walked confidently toward the exit. She yanked the door open and, as she turned back to Sakura to strike back, her hand fell directly over the gum in the auto-lock.
"!!"
Sakura jumped to her feet. She dashed toward door and lodged herself in the frame, forcing a confused Ino into the doors other wall and away from the gum.
"What the hell was that for?!" Ino barked as her shoulder wriggled against Sakura's.
"Nothing! Just shut up. Stupid Ino!"
"Get out of my way!" Ino pushed against Sakura, who pushed back, but to no avail.
"Move!" Ino snapped.
"You move. It's because of your big butt that we're stuck!" Sakura shot back.
The two flailed about in the doorway.
"Ow, watch your elbow!"
"You watch your own elbow, Ino!"
"Shut up and move over!"
"I can't!"
With the squeezing and the shoving, the two inched forward through the doorway. They flew out of it, bouncing off the single step below, and rolling into a heap on the ground.
Sakura moaned and rubbed her head. Ino rotated to her knees on the pavement.
"Nice going, Sakura!"
A breeze blew through the silence.
CRAAAAP! Sakura's mind freaked. She felt her head again to make sure her wig was still on.
"I-I'm sorry." Ino whispered.
Sakura looked over her shoulder. Ino's hunched figure hobbled to a standing position.
"I have to go." Her voice cracked and she started to move away.
"Ino!" Sakura jumped up and grabbed her friend's wrist. The black cloth of Ino's back shook.
"You're so much like her," Ino muttered.
"Ino..." Sakura whispered.
Ino turned on her heel and lunged, sobbing uncontrollably into Sakura's chest.
"That idiot!" Ino yelled, ribbons of water flooding from her squinted eyes. "Why did she have to die!? Why?!"
"I hate her!" Ino slammed her fist into Sakura's shoulder. "That large-foreheaded..." Ino heaved. The two sunk to the ground, where Sakura put her arm around her distraught friend.
"She didn't have to go. She didn't have to die!" Ino wailed. "Why?! I don't understand." Sakura rubbed Ino's head, soothingly.
"It should have been me." Ino continued. "I should have gone. Why didn't I? I'm such an idiot."
"Of course not." Sakura mumbled. Beneath like skin where Ino buried her forehead, Sakura's heart ached. Hadn't she known that her friends would be hurt? She had, but it was different, sitting there, with Ino coming undone in her arms. She bit her lip and silently she wished to take it all back. She wanted to throw off her wig and say "Ino, it's me! Great joke, huh?", but she just sat there, holding Ino, as the sun drifted off into the bleak horizon.
Author's Notes: Yeah yeah, enough with the sad, sob story. It's getting a bit old, even for me. There won't be any of that stuff in the next couple arcs, I promise. If you have any questions, don't be scared to ask! :)
Next Chapter! The pageant final! The after-party! an unforseen mistake?