Hi ya, Fred is back! Heeheehee, it's been like what, 2 and a half months? Ah I'm soo sorry! . I was really busy during the first month I was gone, I was getting ready for exams and presentations and other school related shit. I actually finished this chapter last month, but for some unspeakable reasons I couldn't upload it. Then school finally ended and I thought that I would have plenty of time to write but well..laziness kicked in. I was also busy watching and finishing a ton of anime (I caught up to One Piece, YAY! *giggles like an insane maniac* Law-kun...3 3), ah and also playing some video games. But anyways I'm soo sorry for the late update, but it's the longest chapter so far, so I'm hoping it'll please you guys.
Evej Hina: 'Itaiyo' just means 'Ouch' or 'Ow' heehee late reply, so sorry.
Please read and enjoy!
*Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to the great Kishimoto-sensei*
Italics – thoughts
Bold italics - sounds
"I didn't think they'd choose Suna over Kumo." Sakura sighed. She was sitting on the grass on the soccer field. Ino and Hinata sat beside her.
"What's so good about Kumo?" Ino asked.
"Oh right, you aren't in our class." Sakura gave out another tired sigh. "While I was searching over the net, I found this really nice hot spring resort in Kumo. I wanted to go there; the price is cheaper than the local hot springs here."
"And so…why don't you want to go to Suna? You're the one that chose the places." Ino asked again, a little annoyed at her friend.
Sakura tapped Hinata's leg, and then stretched out her body on the soft grass beneath them. "You explain."
"Sakura-chan said that in Suna there's this beach which is really surprising if you think about it. Suna is filled with sand, and a random body of water is just strange, don't you think? There's this legend about the place; if two people were to meet under the purple tree that's located in the middle of the beach waters, then they would be fated to be together forever. And it's true; many couples got together and live happily because of that beach. It's like a magical place that came right out of a fairy tale!" Hinata said excitedly.
Ino looked at her friend with sparkling eyes. "Wahh! How romantic." She squealed with hands clasped together beside her cheek. "And why doesn't this lucky piece of shit want to go there? I'd rather go to this place than some hot spring." Ino's eyes reverted into her usual green eyes, and squinted at her resting friend. She poked her finger into Sakura's fair cheeks lightly.
"She said the sun would burn her skin." Hinata stated.
"Heeehhh, burn her skin eh?" She gave a smile, but her actions told her that she was mad at her friend. She dug her finger more into Sakura's flesh, but not too hard as to harm her skin.
"Itai! And you're the one saying that?" Sakura glared.
Ino was known to be always worrying about her complexion and her appearance. She would always come home from shopping with some new cosmetics. "I'd go through just a day of the sun if it was to find my one true love!"
"Yeah yeah, just go back to practice. Your captain is calling for you." She pushed her friend lightly at the other cheer leaders that were practicing a few meters away from them.
Ino invited her friends to watch her practice after she heard from Subame that they were looking for her. School ended an hour ago, and the team was still practicing. Sakura wasn't interested in coming to watch Ino, but Hinata wanted to go. It would be lonely for Hinata, so Sakura just tagged along for the ride.
After Ino left, Sakura went back to her rest position and closed her eyes. It was quiet between the two, and Hinata for once wasn't worried over on what to say. The silent wind blew through the air. The only sound that was made was from the happy cheers coming from the cheer squad and the rustling of the leaves. The sun was setting
A gentle smile was placed on Hinata's lips. In her head, she silently composed a letter to her deceased mother. I'm happy that I came to this school, mother. I've met such nice people here, and the days I spend here are much more exciting than at home. I can speak better now, and I'm positive that after two more years, I would speak without hesitations and fainting won't be a problem anymore. Father would then accept me, but…there's still the second objective. She blushed a little. I haven't found him yet.
"Hinata-chan," Sakura began.
Hinata was snapped out of her thoughts, and turned her attention to Sakura.
"Be careful when we go to Suna. Most of the guys voted to go there 'cause of the swim suits. And, I haven't told anyone this yet, but all the second years will be going. After I handed in our trip form to the student council and told them about Suna, all the other class presidents all of a sudden wanted to go there. This means that there would be a lot of guys." She warned.
"Alright, thanks for telling me." Hinata thanked. She gulped, imagining all the stares she would get, and the constant pestering to go to the purple tree. She mentally reminded herself to bring a sweater to cover herself with.
"HINATA-CHAN!" Ino yelled across the field. She waved her hand signaling Hinata to come over.
She hesitantly looked from Ino to Sakura. "Ano.."
"I'll be sleeping here." Sakura said waving her off, "Go ahead and talk to Piggy, I'll be fine."
"Wanna try some cheerleading?" Ino asked as Hinata walked to their group.
She vigorously shook her head from side to side, and waved her hands in front of her chest. "No-no! I'm not flexible; I can't do cartwheels or flips. I'm alright with just watching. Thanks for the offer though."
"Eh? Are you sure? We can teach you the simple basic moves. It doesn't require much. C'mon, it's fun!" Ino pushed her friend into the group of girls. They also said encouraging and persuading words to the Hyuga. Her protests were ignored or turned down. She was like a poor little lamb, forced to do what they wanted her to do.
"Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?" Naruto excitedly said. "Perhaps, you were waiting for me? Eheeheehee." He giggled by himself.
He, Sasuke, and Kiba were walking back to the dorms until pink hair caught Naruto's attention.
Sakura was sleeping underneath one of the many trees that trailed the pathway. One eye opened, then the other. "Sasuke-kun, Naruto, and Kiba, what are you guys doing here?" She yawned. Her green eyes looked up at the three men standing above her.
After the second encounter with Kiba, Sakura ended up hurting him once more for an apology to Hinata and herself. He was cocky at first, saying that he didn't know what they were talking about. But after a few awful hits from Sakura, he got onto his knees and apologized. They were fairly on good terms now, well better than they were before.
"Sasuke and I were called down to the office. Baa-chan wanted us to see her. On our way out we stumbled upon Kiba, now we're just heading back home." Naruto answered.
She nodded her head, probably guessing why Tsunade wanted to see them. "Anyways, Kiba can you tell your class president that-"
Naruto turned away from his friends as his attention went to somewhere else. Farther down the field, he saw about fifteen girls cheering. Among the group, he noticed Sakura's friend, Ino. He wasn't close to her, but could tell that she was a nice person. His eyes darted to the raven-haired girl in front of Ino. She was trying her best to copy the moves Ino and some of the girls were showing her. She would scrunch her nose and a little pout would form when she found a move troubling to do. He gave a soft chuckle, finding it amusing. A gust of wind came flying by, making her skirt float upwards. He caught a glimpse of her lavender underwear before she quickly held back down the back of her skirt.
He used his arm to cover up the tint of red that appeared on his cheeks. He turned back around to see a pissed Sakura glaring at him.
"You saw that didn't you?"
"Eh?! Wha-what are you talking about Sa-Sakura-chan?" He stuttered out. Fear overwhelmed him as he saw the incoming punch to his gut. He could see Sasuke and Kiba snickering just before his soul was sent out of his body.
The sound made the cheerleading team stop what they were doing and look towards Sakura's direction. All they saw was a hesitantly laughing Sakura, and two boys poking their fingers into the cheeks of a fainted man.
Ino's team captain ended the practice five minutes after.
"Is he…okay?" Ino questionably asked.
Hinata stood beside Sakura and was stared at the boy confused. Did he perhaps…see it? Her face grew tomato red. She cupped her cheeks and turned away.
"He's fine. Don't worry about him." Sakura said, waving off the unconscious boy beneath her feet. "Anyways, shall we get-"
"NARUTO-KUN!" Came a loud voice. A blur of green flew by. "One thousand years of death!" The boy clapped his hands together and inserted his index and middle fingers into Naruto's bottom. "Wake up!"
"ITAII!" Naruto awoke from his unconscious state to meet a painful feeling from his butt. He grabbed his ass and tried to sooth the pain by rubbing his hands against them. "Geez, third time I've been hurt today. What the fuck was that for, Lee?!"
A taller boy stood before them with a pout. "I'm sorry, you were asleep and I just wanted to wake you up." He wore the same male uniform except with a green vest on instead. His hair was a typical Asian bowl-cut. His bangs were cut just above his rather bushy eyebrows.
"Well you didn't need to do that! And I wasn't asleep." He looked at Rock Lee with a glare. "You needed something?" He tried his best to get up, wincing from the aching feeling in his rear end.
Lee's pout turned into smile, but faded away once he thought about what he was going to say. "I forgot."
Naruto did a face plant but recovered quickly. "Are you serious, Bushy brows?"
He nodded his head. He turned away from the annoyed blond and focused on the beautiful female in front of him. His smile broadened, making his pearly whites shine. He gave a wink and a thumbs up at the only pinkette there. "Sakura-chan, my, you look splendid today as well." He blew a kiss her way, which she hastily dodged.
"L-lee-senpai…."Her eye twitched while she tried to smile. "It's nice to see you again."
Hinata looked curiously at Lee. "Who's he?" She whispered in Ino's ear.
"Ah, Rock Lee, our senpai. On the first day of school, out of nowhere Lee confessed his love for her. She straight forwardly rejected him. Before you came, he would pester Sakura whenever he saw her, but he went off somewhere and we haven't seen him till now." Ino whispered back. "I think he went off to train under a waterfall. That's what I heard."
"Sh-shall we get going now?" Sakura turned to her friends while trying to get away from Lee. He was trying to stand next to Sakura by creeping closer to her.
"Ah, s-sure." Hinata replied. Her eyes dodged the glance of the blond boy.
"Bye bye, Sakura-chan!" Lee yelled.
Sakura sighed. "Bye Lee-senpai."
"Wait Sakura." This time it was Sasuke.
He walked over to the leaving group of girls. His hand delicately touched her long pink hair. She tensed up. Her cheeks turned a faint pink but he didn't notice. Instead, his attention was towards the white chewed up gum in her hair. It was tangled quite excessively in her hair. There were some green strands mixed in, most likely being grass.
"EHHHH?! NANI?! MY HAIR!" She screamed. "Ino, do you know if you can fix this?" She wailed.
Kiba and Naruto were dying out of laughter and Lee was trying his best to hold it in.
"SHUT UP YOU IDIOTS!" She yelled. Her face was red with embarrassment and tears were forming in the corners of her eyes.
They stopped and looked at her for a few seconds, then continued their fit of laughter.
"Lemme see." Ino indicated for Sasuke to move away using the back of her hand. He went back to his group of friends. His serious face fell as he suddenly started snickering behind her back.
"Umm…hate to say it but…I don't think I could help." Ino helplessly said.
"So, I've got no choice but to cut it?" She sniffled.
Ino nodded. "Afraid so."
Hinata sat on the cover of the toilet, watching Ino snipping away Sakura's pink hair. She watched as the pieces of hair fell to the ground of their washroom floor.
"Why did this have to happen to me?" Sakura complained. She sat on a stool in front of the huge mirror while the blonde female hovered over her head. Her hands hid her eyes from the reflection in the mirror. She didn't want to see the beautiful long hair that she cherished, gone.
"Well that's what you get for sleeping on the ground."
"Shud'up Ino." She was in no mood to argue. Getting her hair cut was like a tragedy. "It took me so long to grow it this long, and it's such a stupid reason to cut it."
"It's okay Sakura-chan. Having short hair isn't that bad." Hinata consoled. "I used to have really short hair." And it was true. Up till Hinata was thirteen, her raven hair was cut in a Hime style; short at the back but long in the front.
"But still." She removed her hands away from her face, but kept her eyes shut.
"Why do you care so much about your hair, Sakura? It's just a haircut. It can always grow back." Ino tried to comfort her.
Sakura said nothing.
"Why so quiet? Is there an actual reason…." She stopped mid-sentence once she saw the slight pink blush on Sakura's cheeks. "Is it 'cause of Sasuke-kun?"
The blush darkened. She slightly nodded.
"U-Uchiha-san?" Hinata said, shocked.
Ino sighed. "This girl here has a crush on Sasuke-kun."
"I see."
"When we were younger, you see, he was quite popular with the girls in the neighborhood. I heard a rumor going around that he liked girls with long hair. And so that's why I grew out my hair." Sakura told them.
Ino burst out in laughter and Hinata tried to hide hers in.
Sakura grew redder. "Oh shush, love can make you do anything."
"Hai hai." Ino said after laughing to her hearts content.
"C-Can you do me a favor, Hinata-chan? My uniform has grass stains and my other pair is in the washer. Do you mind grabbing my uniform and putting it in with it?" She asked to turn the attention away from her love life.
"Yeah, sure, I don't mind at all." Hinata exited the washroom and into their room.
"Thank you so much, Hinata-chan. It's on my bed. Ayame-san should be there to help." Sakura yelled from her spot.
She pushed the curtain aside and went into Sakura's half. Over the month the room had gotten messier; clean clothes were thrown on the floor, books were scattered, and her desk was filled with papers. It was cluttered, but not to the point of not seeing the floor (like it was when Hinata first came).
She found Sakura's wrinkled uniform on the corner of her bed. She placed it into the empty laundry basket, then went back into her room. Searching through her gym bag, she found the clothes that she needed. Jeez, Gai-sensei had to make us crawl on the ground. I guess it's best if I wash my jersey with her dirty clothes. She tossed her gym uniform into the same basket and carried it out the door. The Hyuga hummed a light tune while she headed to the laundry room. Turning around the corner, she noticed her landlord scolding some of the younger students. She decided not to bother her and instead do it herself.
Once she got to the machine, she noticed that there were two machines; a dryer and a washer. She loaded the few pieces of garments into the washer with the uniform that was already in there. She adding in the detergent and hesitantly clicked the ON button of the machine. I just hope I did that right.
Picking up the basket, Hinata headed out of the laundry room and back to hers.
Thunk!
Something small and shiny fell out of the basket once she placed it on the ground of Sakura's room. She picked it up and inspected it. The small object was the red-stoned ring she found two days ago, the red ring she was supposed to give to Sakura. Ah! Right, I forgot. Looking at it closely, Hinata noticed there was something engraved onto the rim of the silver band. "My dearest?" Hinata read. She cocked her head to the side, wondering why something like that would be on it.
"Hinata-chan? Are you back yet?" Ino called from behind the curtain.
"H-hai!" She answered, startled. She clasped the ring in her palm and went to where her friends were. "Sa-Sakura-chan, your hair…."
"Wa-what about it? Does it look weird?" Sakura stood at the bathroom door. Her eyes were still shut.
"No, not at all, it suits you. Open your eyes and look."
Her friend hesitantly opened one eye. "Really?"
Ino stood behind Sakura. "Of course it does because I cut it, so be thankful!" She grabbed Sakura by the shoulders, and whirled her around to face the mirror. "See?"
Sakura's green eyes widened at her reflection. The once long pink hair she had was cut just above her slender shoulders. "Wah! It actually looks pretty nice, and it feels lighter than before." She played with her hair a little more; twisting it around her finger and flipping some strands.
"So, do you like it?" Ino asked with confidence etched in her voice. Hinata stood beside the blonde and grinned along.
Sakura nodded her head. "I didn't expect it to turn out this good. Thanks Ino!" She beamed.
Ino grinned back. "It's all in a day's work."
"Ano.." Hinata started. She was unsure if she should interrupt the happy mood that was engulfing the air or not. "Sakura-chan, is this yours?" She opened her palm to reveal the small ring.
The smile on her face broadened. "My ring! You found it, thanks. I've been looking for it." Sakura took it out of Hinata's palm. She placed it on her small pinky and gazed at it. "Thank you Hinata-chan, I wouldn't know what to do if I couldn't find it. This means so much to me." She clasped Hinata's hands into hers and shook them vigorously.
Hinata just chuckled. Wah, I did something that made a friend happy. This is the first time.
Ino looked curiously at her giddy friend. Placing one hand on her right hip, she asked," What's so special about the ring? It's old and all battered up." She raised a brow up, waiting for her friend to answer. Over the years of growing up with Sakura, she had noticed that where ever they went, the childish ring would tag along. Not once had Ino seen Sakura without it. She hadn't thought anything of it until now.
The smile on the pinkette's face quickly dropped. Her green eyes darted away from Ino's and Hinata's, as a slight shade of red rose to her cheeks. "I-it's no-nothing." She half mumbled.
"Nothing, you say? Then what was that about it meaning so much to you? Explain Haruno." Ino drawed closer to the now panicked Sakura.
"That was..um...just a-a figure of speech? Yes-yes, a figure of speech! Wouldn't you...um say something like that if someone found something of yours?" She fumbled out. It was obviously a lie just by looking at her face. She avoided eye contact and played with her fingers.
Sakura has been keeping secrets from me. First, the being 'childhood friends' thing with two of the most well-known people in the school, and now this ring? Aren't we best friends? Best friends are supposed to share stuff together. "Lying will get you nowhere Miss. Haruno. Spill the beans," The blonde gave a smile that held an evil intent behind it. "or else I'll tell everyone about the pitiful reason behind your haircut."
"Ok-Ok! I will." She raised her hands up in surrender. When Ino says that she will do something, she WILL do it. "Let's just get out of this room first."
Sakura walked out of the small washroom with Ino and Hinata trailing behind. She sighed once she sat down on the soft-cushioned chair that belonged to Hinata. She glared at the content blonde before she began her tale. "It's kinda embarrassing."
"We don't mind, do we, Hinata-chan?" Ino glanced down at the girl beside her.
She shook her head.
"You see? Now tell." It was more of an order than a suggestion.
Sakura fidgeted. Damn you, Ino. You'll pay for this later. "Well, it was before I met Ino, that I got this ring. So, that was when I was about five or six. I was born here in Konoha, but I had to move to a faraway town, and that's where I met Ino." She told Hinata more than to the female that waited for the rest of the story. "Anyways, before I left, I received this ring from a boy. It was during the summer, I remember I played with him whenever I visited the hospital. He was a sick child, frail and unable to go outside. We would play with the small toys he had in his hospital room or read stories together. When I learned that I was moving, I didn't want to tell him. I hid it from him, but he found out from that blabbermouth Naruto. On the last day I saw him, he gave me this ring. He purposed to me. He said that we'd meet again someday because the red string of faith will always tie us together." She blushed a crimson red. "Not knowing what that meant…I um…agreed. And that's the end of my tale."
"Cute." Was all that Hinata said with a gleam in her eyes.
"Whoa Sakura, love at such a young age. So, that means you have a fiancé that you have to look for, eh?"
Sakura nodded, bashfully. "But, you see, the problem is…I don't remember his name, or how he looks like."
Hinata and Ino both fell over from their friend's confession. "Baka! How can you forget that?!" Ino bonked Sakura's head lightly.
"I'm sorry, I was a kid back then. That's why I have this ring with me; it's the only clue I have. If he spots me wearing this, I may find him." Sakura rebutted.
"Yeah, like in a thousand years. There are over a million people living in Konoha, I don't think they're gonna stop and look at every woman's hands for a tiny ring." Ino argued back.
"I think I know that, Ino. He's the same age as us, if I remember correctly. He could be in the same school as us. He did say that his brother went to this school before, so he might end up here too."
Hinata quietly sat while watching her friends bicker. What if he's home schooled? She thought, but not dared to say. She didn't want to end up in their tiny argument. Or what if he moved, or what if he already- No, no, Hinata don't think like that! She mentally gave herself a slap. An imaginary light bulb dinged open as she thought about something. Wait, I know what we can do.
"Ano, why don't we try to find him then?" The shy girl suggested. "We can look through the student files of all the males in our year and see if you can recognize his face. That may help you recall how he looks like."
Sakura and Ino looked at Hinata with a blank face. A second passed by before Ino grasped Hinata's hands. "That's a BRILLIANT idea!"
"It is, but in case you haven't noticed, our school is filled with men." The pinkette said.
Hinata thought a little more. She bit her lower lip and brought her finger near her chin. "Then, last year's yearbook?"
"Oh yeah, the yearbook. He might be in there. Alright, I'll ask the librarian tomorrow." She gave a bright smile towards her friends. "Thanks guys."
"Hey, Sakura, so you won't give up on looking for him?" Ino questioned.
"Hell no! It's been eleven years and I haven't. And I'm not gonna stop until I find him. Who do you think I am, Ino? Haruno Sakura doesn't just give up on things." She nudged Ino by the shoulder and gave a thumbs up.
Ino smiled back. "Yep, I know. And what are you going to tell him once you find him?"
"I'm going to cancel our engagement. I'm going to reject him if he still wants to marry me cause I've got Sasuke-kun." Sakura stated proudly.
Ino laughed. "I see. Just let him off nicely now, don't let the poor lad be hurt so badly after a sudden reunion."
Hinata looked at the happy moment exchanged between Ino and Sakura. I've met such great friends, mother.
I hope you enjoyed it! Please fav/follow/review this story.
To those of you who reviewed, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Reviews always make me feel super happy inside. I always squeal and get all giddy after reading what you have to say. Did you know that reviews keep the author going? To all the readers who write fanfic, you would get what I mean. It's nice to know what readers think of our stories and it's reassuring to know that there are people out there that enjoy our work. Reviews make the author all happy inside. Just a few small words of encouragement does a lot even though it may seem small.
All your thoughts inspire me to write faster than I would usually. And once again, I specially thank everyone who reviewed so far. Continuing writing this story is all thanks to you guys, and those who also fav/followed too.
I think I'll be adding fanfic recommendations at the end of each chapter now. It's for if you have nothing to read and you're bored. You can send me PM about some recommendations if you want, however there can be no character bashing in it. Character bashing is a no-no. It can be from any anime series and any couple ^.^. Anything in Bold and Underlined is what I've read (haha most of the stories i read are either NaLu (FT) or NaruHina fics). If it's just Bold then it's something that someone else has recommended.
Okay so first recommendation is Adherence by ToxiNeena, rated M.
Kay so enough of my blabbering, thanks for reading! Until next time guys.
~Fred
OHH IMPORTANT INFO: I won't be able to do the 2/3 chapters a month thing like a said I would. Sorry again!
