A fatal mistake

It had been two weeks since Hinata had moved to Naruto's apartment. She spent days on missions and seemed to have gotten over about Neji's actions. When she was not with Kurenai or her team, she practiced. She practiced with Sakura and she practiced with Tsunade, trying to learn to improve her gentle fist taijutsu learning superhuman strength techniques. It wasn't her great talent, but she managed.

Her father was aware of what had happened to his daughter, but had chosen to believe Neji's version, as she had predicted. Tsunade had 'talked' to Hiashi about suitable treatment of one's offspring, and then punched him after hearing his answer. Hiashi Hyuga had pointed out that it wasn't suitable for a hokage to give a black eye to a leader of a respectable old house. Tsunade obviously hadn't listened. For his own luck, Neji had managed to avoid conversation with the hokage.

Hinata felt she wasn't ready to move back home for awhile, not before she was physically strong enough to face Neji. Naruto had found himself to be verypleased seeing Hinata every day. He felt comfortable with her around, as if he had found a family.

Now he was walking towards Ichikaru ramen. The mission he was about to be sent had been transferred to begin later at the evening, and he was hungry. For his luck, he spotted Sakura there eating noodles with a dark-haired man.

"Hello, Sakura-chan", Naruto cheered, "I've been meaning to ask you something for a while now, but you've always been with Hinata and it… Well, Hello, Sai", he greeted after noticing with whom Sakura was eating with.

"Hello Naruto", Sai said with his best impish fake smile.

"Sakura-chan", you're not dating that idiot, are you?" Naruto asked.

"No", Sai said, "This is just a lunch date."

"It's twenty past four in the afternoon", Naruto said.

"So you do know how to read clock?" Sai asked.

"Sakura, you can't be serious with him. He's an idiot."

"But a good one night stand", Sakura blushed.

"Yeah", Sai said, smiling his completely emotionless fake smile, "I can make a good one night stand even without emotions." "

Yeah, right. You do know you look exactly like a guinea-pig when you are smiling like that don't you? In a very bad way. Like a totally emotionless, cruel and sadistic guinea-pig. That's a very scary outlook."

Sai smiled back to Naruto, like they would have been comparing their teeth.

"But I need to ask you something, Sakura", he said, turning back to her, "Would you think that it would be possible for Hinata to like me, even a little?"

Sakura nearly choked on her noodles.

"Naruto, you idiot!" She said, "She has been watching you like, since before you entered the academy."

"Well yeah, but I just though that she liked my coat or something…"

"That coat?" Sai asked, "Even thought she might feel attracted to other women, I don't think…"

"What?" Naruto interrupted.

"Well, Sakura said she likes you."

"Idiot!"

"Oh, please…" Sakura groaned, "Anyway, Where is Hinata?"

"Oh, she said Tsunade was goingto teach her something", Naruto said.

"Didn't she get her message?" Sakura asked, "Tsunade had some urgent operation this evening, a matter of life and death. Something that Shizune and the others couldn't handle with. She told me this morning that it would probably take all night."

"Well, in that case I'll buy some takeaway and go home to her", Naruto said, "Bye the way, Neji hasn't found out about her staying with me?"

"I suppose not, and I truly hope so", Sakura answered.

"I don't know what it is about this Neji that you have to avoid him", Sai said, "But he was heading to the hokage's office half an hour ago or something like that. He said he had been forced to come and talk with her."

The colour on Sakura's face escaped as she slammed her hand to her mouth. She and Naruto looked each others and hurried up.

"Pay my portion too, will you, Sai?" Sakura whispered, "We have to go to Tsunade's office right now." They hurried away leaving Sai sitting in his chair looking kind of dazzled.