Disclaimer: Standard.

Chapter 19
Destination: Ichiraku

It was 6 in the morning in mid-March. Outside the school was a large bus, students milling inside. By the time most students had found their seats, they drifted back off to sleep. However, there was only one person that had energy that early.

"Woohoo! I'm so excited! This trip will be awesome! I can't wait until the airport! I love flying," Naruto exclaimed as he literally hopped on the bus, and took a seat next to Sasuke, who was looking boredly out the window.

"Someone shut him up," spoke a very tried looking Ino, her head resting against the window. Her seatmate, Sakura, had her forehead planted on the seat in front of her, which unfortunately Naruto occupied, so it was moving slightly. She gave it a forceful kick.

On the other side of the aisle, Tenten and Hinata both had their heads on each other's shoulder, sound asleep. They were both not morning people. Shikamaru looked almost dead against his hand rest, while Choji munched on some crackers. Kiba looked like a zombie, while the one sitting next to him, a boy named Shino…well one couldn't tell what he was doing, with those dark sunglasses on. Neji looked awake, just tired, and Rock Lee was snoring loudly next to him.

That was just the bus ride to the airport. The trip specified that they were going to fly a chartered man-made island. Whoever owned this Ichiraku place really must have been rich. The airport was located right outside the town, and couldn't have been more then a 20-minute drive. Still, other then Naruto who was still full of energy, the bus was silent. Even the coaches and chaperones looked half-dead.

Actually getting off the bus took longer then getting on. No one seemed to thrilled to get up and stand in line for the boarding passes. There weren't a whole lot of people there, but by the time everyone moved through it was a good half an hour. Then they had to go through security, and sit at the gate for the plane to arrive. By that time, people started to drift again.

"Flight 547 to Ichiraku, now boarding all passengers," the rather mechanical sounding voice on the speaker rang throughout the gate. Kurenai went around to all the sleeping students, who seemed all very annoyed at this point.

It took a good while to pile into the rather small aircraft. They sat with the same people as on the bus. Sasuke had given Naruto the window seat this time around, so that he could look at the scenery below and not bother him as much. And even before the plane managed to hit the runway, half the people were out.

"How long is the flight?" the petal haired girl whispered to Neji, who now sat behind her and Ino. He still had that exhausted look upon his face, probably since even if he was a morning person, waking up at 4 was still a bit early.

"I don't know exactly. I think it was around an hour and a bit," he answered, nudging Lee in the ribs to stop his snoring.

With a sigh, she turned around, and looked past Ino who was sound asleep. The sky was cloudy, so she couldn't see anything underneath. This was her second time on an airplane, and truthfully there wasn't anything exquisite about it. She expected to see small cities, or nice landscapes below. However both times had been cloudy.

Sakura desperately wanted to sleep, but somehow the smell of jet fuel made her head feel weird. Sighing and seeing there was nothing more to do, she pulled out the week's itinerary. It was a booklet filled with rules and regulations, game times, the lot. Then in the other package she had in her carryon bag held a key to the room she and Ino would be sharing, with a map. She studied it, seeing how big this complex must have been. The girls' and boys' dorms were located right next to each other. Then walking down the path was the dining hall. There were several paths that branched off from there. There were two swimming pools, one outdoors as a recreational area, and the competition one that was indoors. Another route led to the courts, where they'd play basketball, volleyball, and such. The next path were the tennis courts, and the last one was the hockey arena.

Reading over the procedures for today, they were all supposed to go straight to the dorms, then come right down to the dining hall, for some kind of reception.

She put the paper back in her bag, and leaned back against her chair. What was on her mind now was the people who would be there today. What if those Sound students were there? Well then, she had to make sure not to walk alone about the complex. Then there were going to be Sand students there. She wondered if her friends would somehow be there. Here at Konoha, they'd all paid for the trip themselves. But money was tight for most people back there. So would they be there?

Who else was up? She looked around. Neji looked like he was resting his eyes, not sleeping, as his eyebrow twitched from time to time as Lee made loud snores. Kiba looked bored out of his skull, now fully awake and drumming his fingers on the armrest. Naruto's nose was pressed against the window, and Sasuke had a new volume of Hellsing open. Maybe she should try and get some sleep.

However, before she could fully close her eyes, the pilot's voice came on the speaker. It was the usual announcement saying to place the chairs upright, put all seatbelts on, as the plane would be landing shortly. The Hyuuga had been right; it was a fast flight.

"Hey, I just realized something," Sakura said to Ino as everyone walked along the narrow aisle once the plane had landed, "why is it that there's an outdoor pool functioning in March?"

"Because it's hot on the island," the blonde replied simply with a yawn.

"But it's only an hour south, so how would that work?"

"I dunno. It just does," and the two left it at that.

After getting their respected bags, they all piled onto a bus that had magically been there waiting for them. Talk about reliable service. It seemed like a movie, when they came to pick you up from the airport in an exquisite car. Only, that this was a coach bus. Close enough…

By now it was almost 11 o'clock, as the bus turned down off the small highway along the island. There in the distance, was indeed the destination, and man, was it ever big. The look on Sakura's face said a similar feeling. "Hey, isn't this place so cool, Sakura-chan?" piped up Naruto practically jumping in excitement.

"Um, sure I guess. But calm down a bit, Naruto. You're scaring the juniors!" she replied, glancing to the younger teens who looked like Naruto had grown a third arm or something. Sasuke and Ino couldn't help but chuckle at that.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want guys. But I'm getting off this bus first and I'm choosing the bed I want since I'll be there before you will," he grumbled as the bus pulled to a stop in front of two very large hotel-looking buildings. It must have been the dorms.

Getting off the bus, Sakura looked around. Other then the bus, the place looked totally deserted. Maybe they were early, or maybe everyone was inside already. Squinting her eyes, she could make out a building in the distance. That must have been the mess hall. Whoever had drawn that map had forgotten to mention it wasn't at all to scale!

"Hey girl, stop spacing. Your roommate already left without you," informed Tenten, as she dragged a duffel bag to the two large sliding glass doors.

"What?" the other said instantly snatching up hers. "She can't decide which bed unless I'm there!" Without another moment's hesitation, she was dashing towards the elevator and jammed her finger onto the button marked '3'.

"Eh? Why in the world do we have to wear our team jacket to a reception?" whined Sakura, who was digging through her suitcase for the dark green jacket. She didn't really think she'd need to use it, and placed it at the bottom.

"You're asking me?" her blonde roommate asked, brushing her hair, "I just read the notice on our door. Apparently all the teams have to."

"What a drag," the other sighed, finally pulling it out. It had the word 'Konoha' embroidered on the front and 'Tennis Team' on the back. She draped it over her shoulders. "Well, let's go."

The two closed the door, and each slipped their own key card into a pocket. Outside, they met Kiba and Shino (which, by the way, Sakura still had no idea who he really was…). Kiba wore his basketball jacket, while the other wore a hockey sweater.

"I forgot how big this place was," commented Kiba as the four of them walked down the path away from the residence. He went on about his freshman year, and how all the teams were either really good or really bad.

"It's huge!" Ino said, as they entered through the double doors to the hall. The floor was carpeted with intricate patterns. There was a type of cocktail bar (or something like it) along the side wall. In the center of the room hung a large crystal chandelier. "Not to mention fancy…"

There were already a number of people milling about. They all wore a team outfit of some sort. Kiba went to join a couple friends from his time, Shino following wordlessly. Ino excused herself to go and talk to Kaori, who was her friend on the swim team.

Sakura was left standing alone, then brightened when she saw the word 'Uchiha' on the back of a basketball jacket. "Hello, Sasuke-kun," she said running up to him. He nodded in response to her greeting. "This place looks…um, fun?" she said, trying to make conversation. He shrugged. Wow, someone was talkative today. She was about to make a second attempt, but gazed past her objective. "S-Sasuke-kun…" she trailed off, subconsciously moving closer to him.

He followed her gaze to the entranceway, where three people walked in. They wore blue uniforms. It was the three from the Sound who had tried to gang up on Sakura a month ago. She had reason to be frightened. The Sound trio looked over to them. Sasuke simply glared, and it sent them huffing the other way. "I don't think they want to fight again," he replied simply, finally noticing that Sakura had clamped herself to his arm. "What are you doing?"

"I was hiding, obviously," she retorted, letting go.

"I never knew you were such a coward," the Uchiha remarked smugly.

"You shut it," was her reply, then changed the subject slightly, "but you know, I never did thank you properly for last time."

"What?" he said rather confused. Sakura simply shook her head and smiled. "You're so weird…"

He was about to continue but a voice from behind him didn't allow him to do so. "Wow, I haven't seen you in awhile," a feminine voice piped up. She had blond hair and blue eyes, and for a second, reminded him slightly of Naruto. But she was far from that. Her hair managed to stay in four buns, and she wore a tennis jacket.

Sasuke didn't exactly know why she was talking to him, until he realized she wasn't talking to him, rather behind him. "Temari-chan!" the pink haired girl exclaimed and rushed up to hug her friend. "I can't believe you made it!"

"Ha! You'd think I'd pass up a chance to whip Pinky's ass in tennis, would you?"

"I guess not," she said with a small laugh, and proceeded to talk to another, "and Kankuro! Have you been well?"

"Yeah, pretty much," the male said, rubbing the back of his brown hair. That was really all the attention he received. The next instant, Sakura pushed him aside, her head going in all directions, as if looking for something else. "Over there," the brunette said, like he already knew what she was searching for.

If Sasuke hadn't been Sasuke, he might have fallen over in surprise. When he turned around, there was a redhead boy, a good half head shorter then he was. He had the kanji for 'love' written along the left side of his forehead. He had piercing green eyes, and was missing eyebrows. Somehow he had to wonder if he was some sort of delinquent. The freaky thing was, that he was staring. No, boring holes through the very existence of the Uchiha.

"Gaara nii-chan!" Sakura almost squealed as brushed the raven-haired boy to the side, without a second thought. She went up to the redhead and threw her arms around his neck. That didn't stop him from glaring. "I missed you all so, so, so much!"

Temari laughed, "Surely that's an exaggeration. Hey, Gaara, stop glaring at him. I'm sure Sakura-chan can pick fine friends by herself. You…are a friend, I'm assuming?" So apparently now Sasuke magically existed.

"Oh, God, sorry. I completely forgot. Guys, this is Uchiha Sasuke-kun. He's…" the pink haired girl trailed off and looked into the crowd again. "Oh crap. Please tell me that isn't Ken. That isn't Ken that's waving and coming towards us."

"Yes, unfortunately for you," Kankuro sighed, looking on as a boy with pale blue hair came bobbing up.

Sakura had managed to grab Sasuke's attention before anyone noticed. "I need a huge favor from you. Can you please play along?" and without any hint that they'd been talking, she broke out into a very forced smile. "Hi Ken! I didn't think I'd ever see you again." Her eyes said 'and I didn't want to ever see you again either'.

"Sakura-san! It's been far to long! How have you been?" he said eagerly, in a heavy Osaka-sounding accent. He reminded the Uchiha of Rock Lee, in a way. Not by looks. Just the aura he gave off.

"Uh, I can't complain I guess," she continued nervously. Looked at her three other friends for support, but they just looked on. "Well, as I was saying before, this is Uchiha Sasuke. He's my…my…boyfriend!"

Everyone else (including Sasuke) looked genuinely surprised. Gaara looked like he was on the warpath once again, and Temari whispered something to the other male. On the other hand, Ken looked like he was about to cry, or something close to it. "He…you…couple?" he said, unable to form full sentences.

Oh, she owed him big. "Yeah, that's right. She's my girl." He was about to add 'so now screw off', but he placed his hands firmly (not to mention possessively) upon her small shoulders. Someway or another, he could hear her grateful silent thanks.

"Oh…" he looked crestfallen, "well, I guess I'll se you around, Sakura-san!" He perked up and looked around the room. His gaze fell upon Tenten, who had found a group of friends she was talking to. Neji was somewhere close by, discreetly watching her. He frowned when Ken approached her and her friends.

"Um…we better look for some people," the blonde said, giving a knowing look to the other two. The brunette nodded, the other still glared.

"Oh, okay then," the other female said absent-mindedly. "Maybe after this reception thing or whatever it is, we can get together again. Talk properly this time."

"Sure thing," the other said, "come on, Gaara. Leave them be."

When the trio had walked away, Sasuke resumed his normal façade. He let go of the frail girl in front of him, and stuffed his hands into his jacket pockets. "That went horribly."

"No it didn't!" she protested, "it got that idiotic stalker freak Ken off my back, didn't it? I owe you. Thanks so much."

"You're sure as hell right you do." Then he decided to ask the question that had been irking him for awhile. "What was up with that redhead freak? He looked like he was going to whip out a gun and shoot me at any second."

"Gaara isn't a freak!" she said, somewhat offended, "he's just…a little protective of me, that's all. All of them actually. They're siblings. They all were always worried over me…"

"Whatever you say. Just remember, you owe me big." An announcement filled the hall, informing everyone that they could now sit in the mess hall for the 'opening ceremonies'.

About an hour later, some girls from Konoha, the usual four, plus two other tennis team members and Temari were all standing in a circle, talking about some things. Everyone else had gone back to the dorms for some unpacking or relaxation, well, mostly.

"Okay, I've checked the schedules for rounds of the security and such," the brunette with buns explained in a low voice, as if the walls had ears. "There isn't anyone on duty between midnight and 1 in the morning. How's about we take a midnight dip, huh?"

"Breaking rules after the first few hours?" the Sand student piped up with a type of smirk, "I think we can get along pretty well." Tenten returned the smug grin.

"I don't know if that's such a great idea," Hinata started nervously, staring at her feet, "what if they decide to change their plans or—"

"You worry too much," Kaori remarked with a wave of her hand. "It'll be fine."

"Well if Hinata doesn't want to do it, that's fine," Sakura sided with the Hyuuga.

"Okay, whatever girls. Whoever's in, be at the outdoor pool at midnight, alright?"

Back at the boys' dorms, Naruto came running in (with all that energy he had) and looked for everyone in the lobby. Sure enough, everyone who he'd been looking for was there, whether they be talking, reading a magazine, or just sitting.

"Hey, guys! I have big news! Huge news!" he said with a slight lick of his lips. "Guess who'll be at the swimming pools at midnight?"

AN: Yeah, I know it's short this time. But honestly, I wanted to get this chapter up before I left (which is like... tomorrow). I think you guys agree, instead of waiting for another 2 weeks. Not the best thing I've ever written, that much is for sure. And really, I'm not too fond of this whole story anymore (but I shall will myself to finish it, I'm not abandoning it!) so I'm going to end the Ichiraku thing in the next long chapter. Hah, blame it on the stupid little plot bunnies I have for my other fic, plus a new one I think I'll start over when I'm in Florida.

Okay then. As to why Sakura refers to Gaara as 'nii-chan'. No, he's not her brother, but sometimes they'll call people big brother as a term of endearment, or something. (Sort of like how Konohamaru refers to Naruto as 'Naruto nii-chan'.) But the Sand sibs weren't in this chapter as much as I'd originally hoped, but I'll make up for that next time. Was Sasuke OOC this chapter? -hits head on table- uh…yeah! Oh well. It's too far along in the story now to keep him clamed up. Like someone said... blame all the OOC-ness at time point to the character development. I think I'll put more pairings next chapter…

I think that was a pretty straightforward chapter again. Next chapter at…what…three weeks I guess? Yeah, sorry the updates are getting longer. I have final exams in a month, so things are getting hectic. I apologize in advance. Once again, reviewer responses through my LJ (such a hassle.) Anyway. Til next time.