No Regrets this Time Around

by AProcrastinatingWriter

For the other four men, time-travel was a golden opportunity to do good things and save people from evil. But for Sasuke, it was even more than that: it was a second chance at life, and at love. Main: SasuSaku, NaruHina, NejiTen, ShikaTema. Crack:GaaIno. UPDATE 09/02/14: This story has been canceled. I will not even be looking at the reviews for it. Thank you. I'm sorry.

3. Chapter 3

Hey, a quick question...do you spell it 'lightbulb' or 'light bulb'? From what I understand, both are acceptable, but I'm curious.

Hello! Chapter three here with AProcrastinatingWriter of No Time this Regrets Around!

...wait. Let me try that again.

Hello! AProcrastinatingWriter here with chapter three of No Regrets this Time Around! WARNING: More out-of-character moments, though hopefully only with Naruto and the other person who has come back by this point. Maybe with other people too, though.

Phew. That could have been messy. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter you are about to read. This is the chapter where the romance starts. A little too spontaneously for the suspicions of some very eagle-eyed Chunin...no, not that one. You'll see which one when you read. Anyway, to the chapter! I think I'm gonna make more than one fangirl scream in delight somewhere around the middle of it...

EDITED-IN WARNING: I just realized that there's a massive plothole in this chapter. Thankfully, I've always been good at explaining those away, heh. At any rate: if you spot the plothole, awesome, I'll have it fixed in the next chapter. If you don't spot the plothole, awesome, I'll have it fixed in the next chapter. With that said, I think it's safe to read now.

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CHAPTER THREE

WHAT IS GOING ON IN THAT MIND OF HIS?

-OR-

HOW TO TELL WHETHER YOUR FRIENDS HAVE BEEN TIME TRAVELING, OR ARE JUST INSANE

---

Of all the places he could wake up, Sasuke would not have thought the Leaf Village's hospital would have been in even the top hundred of them. And yet here he was. And apparently they'd done a pretty good job stitching him up, because his body wasn't in agony anymore. In fact, he barely hurt at all. There was only one real problem with this whole situation.

The hospital had been one of the first buildings to go in the attack on the Village.

So logic indicated that Sasuke was either in a genjutsu or that he had been out cold for months. Neither of these options particularly appealed to him, but no other explanation seemed possible. Sasuke slowly sat up in his bed, blinking the sun out from his eyes as best as he could. Once his coal orbs were used to the bright light, Sasuke looked out the window. Everything looked normal, which in and of itself was abnormal.

He shook his head. Trying to clear out the cobwebs. He lay back down. He grimaced. Nothing seemed right to the Uchiha for some reason. Like his body was using its five senses differently than normal. Especially touch; everything he touched felt different than it did yesterday...or, at least, what had been yesterday in his form of perception.

A knocking was heard at the room's door. "Sasuke? Are you awake yet?"

Sasuke sat up in his bed again. -Sakura,- he thought. He was uncertain of how to face her, even if she said she'd forgiven him. But nothing good ever came from putting things off. "Yeah. Come in."

The door opened inwards, and Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Sakura's arm's weren't burnt, and she was wearing a different outfit. "Hey, there," Sakura said as Sasuke thought more about the scene in front of him. She seemed skinnier...maybe a little shorter? He couldn't tell...what was that she was carrying? As if reading his mind, Sakura shifted the bag she was carrying, putting one arm into it and drawing out a red object. "Look! I brought you some apples!"

Sasuke's eyes widened in realization and horror as lightning struck him from his brainstorm.

0-0-0-0

"...what?" asked Shikamaru finally.

"I said we're gonna throw a party for Sasuke!" responded Naruto, who had gathered his closest friends (or at least, those who would be his closest friends in the future) in an abondoned wwarehouse he had paid a lot of the mission money for. Silence from aforementioned closest friends met him as a response. He groaned. "Come on, you guys..."

"No," said Neji. It had occurred to Naruto that some of his friends might have been sent back in time as well, but they didn't seem to give off any hints towards that being the case. "I have training to do." And with these words, he turned and headed towards the exit of the warehouse. Others followed, murmuring in their own way.

Naruto sighed again. Then, he started, as Ino was suddenly next to him, grinning like the schoolgirl with a crush she was. "I can help you, Naruto!" Her eyes became starry, and one could almost swear there were hearts forming behind her. "I'll make this the best party ever! Sasuke is sure to love it!" And she sighed, lost in daydreams of romancing and dancing and prancing and glancing.

-Well, that's one,- thought Naruto.

"Umm..." came a small, still voice from behind him.

-And that's two,- thought Naruto, grinning. He turned to the girl behind him. "Yeah?" he asked, keeping up the oblivious act. "What is it, Hinata?"

"I-I think it's really sweet of you," she mumbled, playing with her fingers. "T-that is, to have a p-party for your f-f-friend." She blushed and slowly brought her eyes up to meet Naruto's. "I'll h-help you however I c-can." She brought her eyes down again. "But I don't think I can do much..." she said under her breath.

"Thanks a lot, Hinata!" Naruto said, placing his hand on her shoulder and inwardly laughing at her delighted blush. -I'll need to get her to stop being so shy all over again, won't I?- he thought, still grinning. -And I'll also need to get used to her having short hair...not that it looks bad or anything, just...different.- He pretended not to have heard the last, quietest part of her already quiet speech. "You're sure to be a big help! You know, 'cause you're so good at planning and stuff."

"R-really?" asked Hinata softly.

Once again, Naruto pretended not to have heard her, instead facing away, getting an angry face, and stepping forward, slowly, just as Neji reached the door. "Come on, Neji," whispered Lee. "It is for a good cause. Would it be so wrong if we were to stay for just an hour or two?"

"We have training to do," said Neji, as he opened the metal panel in front of him. "And besi-"

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" said a voice in front of him. Neji jumped, which was in itself surprising, though everyone else was too busy jumping as well to notice. "YOU'RE STAYING AND THAT'S FINAL!"

"What on...Earth?" Neji breathed. Admittedly, he hadn't been using his Byakugan, but still...how did Naruto get in front of him instead of behind him, and outside as well, when this was the only exit? And so quickly! He remembered his training again as his face became neutral and his tone heavy. "Why do you care so much?" he asked the blonde standing before him.

Naruto grinned, uncrossing his arms and holding his fist into the air. "Well, for one thing," and he held up the pointer finger, "Sasuke's my friend. He's all our friends. So we need to do things for him, right?"

"To be honest, I never really liked the guy," said Shikamaru.

Chōji nodded his agreement, swallowing another chewed-up handful of chips. "He always seemed kind of stuck-up to me."

"That's an understatement," said Kiba. Akamaru barked, and it didn't take a dog-whisperer like Kiba to know he was saying he agreed as well.

Naruto held out his middle finger as well. The peace sign. "And for a second thing," he said, expression and voice put on as if no one had said the things they had just said. "This is a mission from Grandma Tsunade, so you can't not do it!"

"Huh?" asked everyone in the departing crowd, eyebrows raised. Neji was the only one who continued. "You honestly expect us to believe that Lady Hokage gave us all a mission to have a party?"

"Yes, I do!" -Actually, no, I don't...-

Neji scowled. "Ridiculous," he said. "Now stand aside, Naruto. I do not wish to move you by force."

"Yeah, yeah, as if you could," Naruto responded, pushing Neji over with one hand as he walked back into the room. Everyone was suitably surprised at this. "Alright, everybody!" Naruto shouted enthusiastically, though that adverb really goes without saying. "Let's get to work! Got a lot of decorations to set up, food to lay out, gotta hang the disco ball-"

"A disco ball?" asked Tenten, incredulous. "Are you crazy?"

"Like a fox!" said Naruto. -Years from now, when they find out, they're going to look back on this moment and laugh at how clever that was. Wait and see.-

"Did you say food?" asked Chōji, stepping forward with a watering mouth.

"Enough for you and everybody else!" said Naruto, thumb up. Once again, everyone was startled. That was a lot of food.

"ALLLLLLRIIIIIIGHT!" shouted Chōji in response, steam pouring from his nostrils. "I'M IN!"

"Well, looks like I'm stuck," said Shikamaru, tilting his head. He seemed bored. Obviously. "Both of my teammates are helping, so I guess I've got to too." He scrunched his nose up as he said his next words, turning back and walking further into the warehouse. "What a drag."

Rock Lee smiled his blinding smile. "I will help as well!"

"Lee..." growled Neji from the floor. "Don't encourage him."

Lee frowned. "But...such enthusiasm!" Now a determined look. "I must do my part as well!"

Tenten sighed. "There's no getting around it, Neji. We're staying."

Neji scoffed. "Fine," he said bitterly, standing up. "Are you happy, Naruto?" Naruto nodded.

Kiba grinned. "You know, I may not like Sasuke that much, but I love a good party!"

Akamaru barked again. "Arf!"

"But it won't be much of a party unless we get some more people here..." Kiba said, looking thoughtful.

Naruto looked thoughtful too. "I thought so too, but I didn't know who else to ask..."

"Well, just leave that to me!" Kiba chuckled. "I know everybody, and everybody loves me! Especially the ladies," and he let off a 'restrained' wolf howl.

"Alright!" said Naruto. "Kiba, you are the man!"

"I suppose I'll get started decorating, then," said Shino in an absolutely mirthless voice. "You know, Naruto your enthusiasm for this party..." He smiled slightly behind his collar but did not change his voice. "It's rather infectious. Even I'm getting excited." He turned and began walking towards the boxes which he assumed contained the decorations from the various multi-color things that were poking out of the box.

Everyone blinked after him, slightly scared. Except Neji, who did not react. "...okay. Weird," said Naruto, taking charge of the situation. "Alright, Hinata and Ino will be in charge of where to put the decorations-"

"Alright!" fist-pumped Ino, who had not spoken up for a while, being nervous about whether this little shindig was happening or not. Hinata smiled slightly. "Don't worry about a thing, Naruto! This is going to be the best party ever!" She sighed. "And it's all for my Sasuke...when he sees how well I've put up the decorations, he'll be sure to fall head over heels for me!"

"Ino," said Sasuke in her fantasies. "These decorations are absolutely beautiful...almost as beautiful as you are."

"Oh, Sasuke..." responded Ino happily.

"I can't stand that forehead of Sakura's any longer," he continued. "Please, Ino...won't you be my ninja bride?"

Ino giggled happily at this whilst blushing, and not in the fantasy either. Everyone else sweatdropped. "...right," said Naruto, hoping there wouldn't be any more interruptions. "Kiba will find more guests for the party," and here Kiba smiled and chuckled again, though this did not interrupt Naruto. "Tenten can be DJ-"

Now the interruption. "Wait, what?" asked Tenten, stepping back. "I'm not a-"

"Trust me," said Naruto, interrupting in return. "You've got a talent for it." He smiled that trustworthy smile. "Believe me, I can tell!"

Tenten blinked. Neji scowled again. "Preposterous." He shook his head. "All of this is just preposterous."

"And the rest of you can decorate!" Naruto finished. "Welp, I'm going to go get Sasuke and get him to come to the party! See ya!"

"Wait a second!" Ino stopped him with her voice after two steps. "Why do you get the easy job?"

Naruto turned. "Getting Sasuke here is 'easy'?" he asked.

"He has a point," said Shikamaru, putting up some more lights. He and Shino were the only ones currently decorating. And Hinata was directing them. It was a very strange day. "I know I wouldn't want to be in his shoes right now." -Naruto's or Sasuke's...-

"Right, exactly, got it," said Naruto, having looked at the clock and seen what time it was. "Gotta go, see you later!"

The others stared at him for a few seconds as he ran out the door and into the street before bounding onto a nearby rooftop. "Is it just me, or did he seem different to you guys too?" asked Tenten.

"Seemed the same to me," said Kiba, walking out the door as well while everyone else began working on their respective jobs. "Loud and obnoxious as usual."

Tenten paused for a second before going over to a table and picking up a book Naruto had left behind. Looked like it'd be useful. "I guess you're right," she mumbled to Kiba, though she knew he couldn't hear her. "Still, what was up with him asking me to play the music for this party? I don't know how to use musical genjutsu..."

Hinata, meanwhile, had had her duties absorbed by Ino, who was doing more than enough ordering of where decorations should go for both of them. Hinata stared after Naruto the longest of anyone. -No,- she thought. -There really was...there was something different about Naruto...the way he carried himself...the way he acted...- She looked puzzled, but not worried, as the change, though incredibly evident to her, seemed more 'drastic' than it did 'bad'. -What happened to him on his last mission?- she wondered.

0-0-0-0

She was referring to his mission in the Land of Tea, where he had been assigned to protect a man running in a great race of some importance. Little did she know, though, that Naruto had been through a lot more than that mission in the past 'week'. And that 'lot more' was exactly why Naruto was, rare enough considering who he was, nervous.

He knew what Sasuke would want. A sparring match. A sparring match that both knew from the very beginning and refused to admit to themselves or each other was a lot more than a sparring match. And Naruto knew he couldn't accept that match. But what to say to Sasuke? How to make him understand that friends were waiting for him? That he should stay in the village? That they could help him become strong themselves?

-No more time to think,- Naruto thought, landing before the hospital. He looked up, and saw his best friend, sitting with his back turned to the window. -It's time to face the music.- The man in a boy's body wiped his eyes, finding himself crying slightly for some reason. "Please, Sasuke," he mumbled. "Listen to your friends this time...please." He chuckled. "Wonder how you'll react when I tell you I don't want to spar with you?"

0-0-0-0

Judging by how he'd reacted to Sakura so far, Sasuke would probably faint before Naruto got a chance to mention any sparring to him. Let's step back in time, just a minute or two, and not ten years this time around, shall we? This way, we can see firsthand for ourselves how Sasuke and Sakura interacted.

Sakura walked over to Sasuke's bed, bag of apples in her arms. "Let's see..." she murmured as Sasuke's mouth attempted to close itself. "Where did I put that peeler?" She looked around some more. "Oh, there it is!" she exclaimed. "Duh. Left it right on the desk in front of me..." and she sat down, setting the bag of apples on the floor.

As Sakura began peeling and cutting the apples, humming a happy tune to herself, Sasuke inched back, terror in his eyes. -There's no way!- He thought to himself. -Was...was all of it a dream? Or have I really gone back to when I was...- He looked down at his hands. -Sakura...I tried to kill her, and here she is...just peeling apples for me like nothing happened!- he looked back over to her, slowly, painfully.

She looked up, eyes closed, not seeing the panic on Sasuke's face. "Here you go!" she said, holding up a toothpick with a piece of apple on it. "Open wide!"

Sasuke blinked, snapping back to logic and reason and conscience, realizing he needed to sort things out later and deal with the current situation right now. -She's still in love with me,- he thought urgently. -She shouldn't be. I've done too many horrible things to too many innocent people...including her.- He stared at the apple impassively, though inside he was anything but impassive. Sakura eventually opened her eyes and saw this. Sasuke gently, without any affection, reached out. -I have to stop her.- "I can feed myself, you know," he said out loud, grabbing the toothpick from her hand. Cold as usual. Except for the imperceptible nervous gulp that occurred.

Sakura looked downcast as Sasuke ate the piece of apple, then reached past her for another one. (It was hard for him to not smile; with his renewed taste buds, the apple was delicious and sweeter than he was used to. Still, he kept up the act.) She could tell he was doing this on purpose, though she couldn't guess why. He bumped her as he brought the apple back to him. Nothing in his actions was mean or cruel in and of themselves, but it was obvious he wanted her to leave, or was simply not paying attention to her at all. She wasn't sure which would be worse. "Right," she said, giggling and attempting to smile. "Stupid of me. Anyway, enjoy them," she said, standing up. She turned and began walking for the door. "See you later."

-Good. It's working,- Sasuke thought, swallowing the last bite. -She needs to move on. I'm not good for her.- He sighed. "Just have to keep acting like I always did," he muttered under his breath.

"Hey there! Sakura! Sasuke!" came a voice from the window.

Sakura turned in a snap, surprise blanketing her face like new-fallen snow. Sasuke rocked backwards, forgetting he was sitting up in an extremely small bed. "GAH!" he shouted, falling off of it.

Worry was like sunshine, melting away the surprise on Sakura's face. "Sasuke!" she shouted, running over to him and kneeling down. "Are you alright?" she asked, fangirling again and forgetting all about how Sasuke was treating her before. As per usual. "Naruto, you big jerk!" she shouted up at the window. "You almost killed Sasuke!"

-You're going to get her hurt, Naruto,- thought Sasuke, sighing. Out loud: "What are you doing here?"

"Outside Sasuke's window, no less!" shouted the pink-haired girl, getting angrier by the second.

In the split second between when Sakura yelled and Naruto answered, Sasuke had several more thoughts rapidly run through his head. -That's right,- he thought, obtaining more data for analyzation. -Naruto was supposed to come in with Sakura, wasn't he...yet here he is at my window. What else has changed this time around?-

Naruto frowned. "Well, if I'd come in through the door, the nurses would have seen me."

"THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO, YOU MORON!" shouted Sakura, shaking her fist with one arm and subconsciously drawing Sasuke closer to her body with the other.

-Hey,- thought Sasuke, forgetting all his continuity-based concerns for the moment and actually smiling a little as his head was pressed into Sakura's chest and stomach. -This isn't too bad...- He blinked, suddenly blushing. Then he scrunched up his face. -Gah. Puberty. Again.-

"Yeah, if you're a normal visitor they are," said Naruto. He grinned. "But what if you're trying to sneak someone out?"

"Sneak someone..." Sakura began, confused.

"...out?" finished Sasuke, the same, as he reluctantly pulled himself away from Sakura, though she still held on to him at half-an-arm's length.

"Everyone's having a party for Sasuke!" Naruto said. "Just to celebrate the fact he's still alive after two kind of bad experiences in a row."

"S-seriously?" asked Sasuke, stuttering for what he believed was the first time in his life.

"Seriously?" asked Sakura at the same time, mischievous streak shining through. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Naruto grinned some more. "Come on!" he said. "Hurry! Before someone walks by!"

"Got it!" said Sakura, standing and making Sasuke stand too. She suddenly frowned. "Wait a second," she thought, as Sasuke looked back and forth between the two, trying to figure out exactly what was going on. "What are you standing on?"

"A giant frog," said Naruto.

Sakura frowned, eyes indicating annoyance. "Hardy, har, har..." she said, walking towards the window. She kneeled on top of the bed, leaning forward. Naruto moved to the side to let her through. "What are you real-AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

0-0-0-0

"Hey guys!" shouted Naruto, arriving at the warehouse with a creeped-out Sakura behind him. Sasuke was there too, looking around at all the decorations. Streamers, balloons, table with several types of tablecloths, various lights everywhere, and a disco ball. Talk about sloppy, random, and thrown together! It was actually kind of touching. "I've brought the guest of honor!"

Naruto opened his eyes wide in pain, covering his ears. Sakura and Sasuke did much the same thing. As did the rest of the Konoha Eleven...well, except Ino, who was joining in with the cause of the ear-covering. They were covering their ears because of the several girls around Sasuke's age who were screaming his name. And other things. Very high-pitched. They flooded towards him, pushing Naruto to the side. "What are you-" began Sasuke before being engulfed.

Naruto, stumbling, stepped backwards into Kiba. "Hey, watch it!" Kiba said, almost spilling his punch.

"Well, I'm so sorry I got pushed over!" said Naruto sarcastically as he turned. "And what about you? Bringing all these fangirls to Sasuke's party!"

"You said to get guests, I got guests," said Kiba, shrugging.

Akamaru poked his head out from within the coat. "Bark!" the little puppy said, panting.

Naruto frowned. Then he gasped. "You did this on purpose, didn't you!"

"Maybe..." smirked Kiba.

Naruto turned. -This isn't good...we're trying to get Sasuke to stay in the village, not want to leave it even more!- He bit his thumb hard, trying to put his anger aside so he could think. -What can I do to get everyone away from him except for his friends...-

"GET AWAY FROM HIM, YA TRAMPS!" came a familiar voice. Instantly, every single one of the screeching girls backed off, revealing a slightly dazed Sasuke on the ground and a very angry Sakura looking more bestial than Kiba could hope to look on his best day. She was obviously not carrying an iron club, but several people would later claim she was.

-That'll work...kind of.-

While Naruto was thinking that, the only one who didn't back off was Ino, who came roaring through the crowd just as ferally, the same people as before later claiming she had a large flail in her hands. "WHO YOU CALLING A TRAMP, BILLBOARD-BROW?" she shouted.

"OH, THAT OLD INSULT?" shouted Sakura right back as everyone, even those who weren't part of the 'Sasuke Uchiha Admiration Club', backed up several steps. Sasuke himself took the opportunity that was given him and stood up off the ground. Surprisingly, none of his clothes had been ripped off. "TRY AND THINK UP SOMETHING NEW FOR ONCE IN YOUR LIFE, HUH, YOU VENEMOUS HARPY?

Naruto watched in astonishment at what happened next, while everyone else was too busy listening to "OH, I HAVE A BUNCH OF INSULTS, BUBBLE-GUM BRAIN, JUST NOT ONES I CAN SAY IN PUBLIC!" to notice. As the two girls continued to shake the walls of the warehouse they were standing in, Sasuke simply blinked once, then smiled. And then, after closing his eyes and shaking his head, he appeared to chuckle. He opened his eyes again, slowly, and stood there for a couple moments, smile never leaving his face.

Then he began walking to Naruto. Everyone noticed except the cherry blossom and the boar, but none of the girls in 'love' with him wished to approach him until the two most dangerous of them were certain not to turn their wrath on them. Sasuke continued walking, and everyone was staring now, including Sakura and Ino, who had finally noticed the object they were fighting over had left. "Arf?" questioned Akamaru, tilting his head to the side as Kiba movedaway slightly, not directly in Sasuke's way but feeling uncomfortable being this close to their conversation.

"W-what is it, Sasuke?" Naruto asked quietly, fearful of the answer. Last time he had asked that question, Sasuke had tried to kill him.

Sasuke was not smiling anymore. He looked down just a degree, so that his eyes met Naruto's. "I assume you had everything to do with this?"

Naruto grinned, chuckling as he crossed his arms proudly. "Who else?" He shrugged. "I get that you're not much for parties and all, but this is the best way I could think of to let you know..." he stopped for a second, slowly moving his arms into neutral position as his face, just as slowly, became serious. "...to let you know that...we care about you..." and he moved his left hand back up, still just as slowly as before, and gently placed it on Sasuke's shoulder again as he smiled, a sad, small smile. "...Sasuke," he finished, a bit breathily.

"...why would you care about me that much?" Sasuke asked after a few startled seconds. Truth be told, he actually had a pretty good idea of exactly what had happened, the movements in this new world becoming clearer and clearer before his Sharingan eyes. However, he needed to know for sure...and besides, he needed time to evaluate why Kiba was looking at Naruto like the orange-clad ninja had suddenly claimed the sky was made of badgers and lemonade.

"Because you're my friend, Sasuke," Naruto said, trying not to grit his teeth as he brought up his other hand, now turning both his gentle grips into strong ones, one hand on each of Sasuke's shoulders. "And you've...you've seemed so down lately..." Naruto smiled as best he could while Sasuke, unnoticed to him and everyone else, looked around the room. "Well...downer than usual, I mean."

Everyone was staring at Naruto with looks ranging from mild curiosity (Shikamaru, Lee, an unseen Kakashi who had been assigned invisible chaperone duty and was finding it a lot more fun than he thought) to if-looks-could-kill-these-definitely-would stares of shock, despair, and anger. -Why?- thought Sasuke, trying to substitute the number that, in this equation, would make 'x' true. -What exactly is wrong with Naruto's actions in this situation?-

Chōji had a small ham-and-cheese cracker sandwich stuck at the halfway point between the table of refreshments and his mouth. It had been there quite a while, and the poor chubby Genin just looked more and more confused and scared with every second passing. Naruto continued. "I just want to make you feel better, Sasuke...I know things have been tough for you...don't ask me how, but I know." He leaned in slightly, as Shino slowly lowered his sunglasses, checking to make sure he could see what was going on correctly. "You've got friends, you know. Good friends...the best friends." Tenten dropped the 'Making Music with Genjutsu' book and stood from her seat. "We can help you with whatever you need."

-Oh. Oh! OH!- thought Sasuke, eyes widening slightly. He thought for a very, very short time. -Okay, gotta let them know Naruto isn't really...wait a second.- He smirked slightly, then chuckled darkly.

"S-Sasuke?" Naruto breathed, stepping back a step and bringing his arms halfway down. -No...not again...- thought Naruto.

-This should be fun,- thought Sasuke. -And after all, I didn't really get to be a teenager the first time around, did I?- He looked at Naruto, and half-lidded his eyes. "I get it now...Naruto," he said in a voice quite different from the one he usually used. He suddenly reached out, grabbing Naruto's hands in his own. -And teenagers pull pranks, right?-

"Sasuke!" shouted Naruto, looking scared as his best friend slowly pulled their hands towards his chest, Sasuke's hands cupping Naruto's together just above the center of it. "Wh-wh-what are you-"

"I should have known all along , shouldn't I?" Sasuke asked, leaning in a little bit. Naruto took a step back, but could do no more as Sasuke was tightly holding onto his hands. Half of Kiba's facial muscles were scrunched up, and the other half were relaxed, creating quite the comical effect upon his face whilst he dropped his cup., punch spilling everywhere. "I mean, it was so obvious!" Sasuke leaned in closer. Naruto leaned back, grimacing. "Naruto..." Sasuke whispered as smoothly as possible, considering he was in hysterics on the inside.

-WHAT THE MUSHROOM STALK IS GOING ON HERE?- thought Shikamaru, actually very much aware of what was going on here as his mouth slowly dropped open in disgust and horror. Neji turned on his Byakugan, rubbed his eyes, turned it off, blinked his eyes, and then turned it on again. He still couldn't make sense of the picture he was seeing. Hinata, surprisingly enough, did not faint, but that was only because she was actually so shocked she had come full circle and was no longer being shocked by what she saw in front of her. She could only stare, mouth slightly open as she was slightly confused.

Chōji, still holding his hors d'œuvre, moved his hand back and tapped it lightly against some random Genin's chest. "Dude! Are you seeing this?"

"I think so," said the teenager. "This is too weird."

"Now, wait, Sasuke," Naruto panicked, trying to backtrack and simultaneously trying to free his hands from Sasuke's oblivious grip. "This isn't what it seems like!"

"There's no need to be frightened, Naruto," said Sasuke, bringing his partner ever closer to his body. Naruto finally freed himself, and Sasuke batted his eyes at his best friend. Then, he stepped forward several times, as Naruto was backing off rapidly.

"Well, would you look at the time!" Naruto shouted loudly. "I think I should really be going! Good to see you again, have fun with your party, yadda yadda..."

He turned to leave, but Sasuke's arm was there in front of him. Naruto turned back to see Sasuke leaning over him with a...smile on his face and a look in his eyes Naruto was very very scared of. He slid down the wall, a weird smile that wasn't really a smile on his own face as he did so. "You know," said Sasuke, in a whisper that could be heard, loud and clear, by everyone in the room, for no one was making a single noise, "I have to say...I don't think it looks that good on me, but..." And he licked his lips, quickly. "I've always liked orange. And you pull it off very nicely."

"Now, Sasuke, wait a second...buddy!" responded Naruto, sweating bullets. He was also blushing, but not for the reasons one might think he would blush in this situation. If that one was a yaoi fangirl, that is. As in: he wasn't turned on, just embarrassed.

Sasuke was also blushing, but he managed to make that embarrassed blush look like a love drunk one. "You know," he said as he brushed Naruto's cheek with his other hand, "Scientists have proven that the color orange is a..." and here his voice took on a much different tone. "Sexual stimulant ."

"Oh...my...gosh..." mumbled Ino, greatly disappointed with today's findings and slowly putting up her palm to her mouth. "This cannot be happening..." -Sasuke was supposed to fall in love with ME today!- Sakura, meanwhile, had never felt both overjoyed and disgusted at the same time before. It was a new and very unpleasant situation to feel such. Especially over Sasuke.

Rock Lee's voice suddenly burst from the crowd. "Go, Sasuke!" he shouted, sincerely happy for his friends. "Embrace the power of youth while you are young!" Kakashi, meanwhile, was frozen stiff. And he'd seen a lot of scary things in his life.

Most of the fangirls, just like Sakura, were an odd mix of grossed out and turned on as Sasuke leaned in ever closer, and Naruto slid down some more, trembling. Trembling with fear, though few people in the room realized it. "What do you say we ditch this place and go back to mine?" asked Sasuke, giving his most charming, flirtatious smile to Naruto.

"WHAAAT?" Naruto shouted. This sentiment was echoed by almost everyone else in the room.

"Whoo-hoo! Go for it! While the iron is hot!" shouted Lee, one of the few not screaming 'WHAAAT?' Shikamaru was one of the other ones, bu that was just because he had simply recovered quicker than everyone else...well, mostly. He still found it a little weird, but was otherwise fine. Still...this whole thing had come pretty much out of nowhere...

"It's okay," laughed Sasuke. "Don't worry. I'll be gentle. And don't worry that other people know, either. You don't need to worry about what they think about you," and here his smile became a little more eager as his eyebrows slanted downwards. "And if you want, I can give you a little something to wet your appetite..." And with this murmuring, Sasuke slowly leaned down, lips slightly puckered.

Sakura (along with several other girls and a couple of the guys in the room) grabbed her nose, trying to stop the gush of blood spraying from her nostrils. Hinata, surprisingly enough, still did not faint, and instead simply tilted her head slightly to the side, as if to say 'I don't understand what's going on'. Ino stole Hinata's act, waggling around off balance a bit, entire face red, before fainting. Akamaru's eyes had been covered by Kiba, who looked on the verge of throwing up. And everyone else simply made several vocalizations expressing the fact that they were very very astonished by this course of events.

"N-now wait, Sasuke!" Naruto tried to shout, though the words came out a high-pitched screech as Sasuke's lips came within an inch of touching his own. "SASUKE!" he finally yelled, though he yelled like a girl.

Sasuke suddenly reared back, chortling like a madman. "You...you..." he began, then went right back to laughing, pointing at the victim who had suffered the most in his little prank. Everyone was staring again, unsure whether Sasuke laughing was something to be more or less startled about than Sasuke attempting to kiss Naruto. "You should have seen the look on your face!" and Sasuke dropped to his knees, laughing so hard he thought he would burst. He pounded his fist on the ground as he kept right on laughing.

"What...that was a..." murmured Naruto. He suddenly looked extremely angry, vein popping from his forehead. "THAT WAS A PRANK?" he shouted, raising his fist threateningly.

"What's the matter?" laughed out Sasuke. "Disappointed?" And the laughs came back louder and stronger than ever.

In fact, they were joined by a second set of laughing. "That was excellent, Sasuke!" shouted Rock Lee. "I am most impressed with your pranking skills!" He began to laugh again. "You truly do make an excellent actor! Ha ha!"

Other people began laughing, reluctantly at first but stronger and with more people joining in as Naruto got angrier and angrier at the boy who was spazzing out on his back over the prank he'd just pulled. Kiba was one of the first and one of the most genuine as he walked over. "Okay, I take it back," he chuckled, "Dude, you're awesome!" And the chuckles became giggles, and then laughter again.

Sasuke stood up, now back in control of his body, though he clutched at his sides as he kept laughing. "That was so choice!" he said, pointing at Naruto, who was reaching out his arms towards Sasuke's neck and wringing his hands. Kiba and Lee kept up the genuine laughing, slowly joined in by many of the awkwardly forced laughers in the crowd. Whose laughing was also becoming genuine, as stated before.

"You got that right!" gasped out Kiba.

Sakura's eye twitched, hands covering mouth and nose, as Ino got up. She blinked twice, then looked to her pink-haired rival. "So, wait...Sasuke was just acting?" In response, Sakura rushed off to the girls' restroom, a little bit of her shameful blood leaking from between her fingers. Ino raised an eyebrow. "Okay...weird..."

Kakashi, still unseen, chuckled once, then picked up his book again. -Good thing,- thought Kakashi. -Not that there's anything wrong with that...but I don't think I could handle having two students of mine be in a relationship as is. Having two male students of mine in a relationship...I'd have no idea what I was supposed to do!.-

Hinata breathed a sigh of relief as most people, including even Sasuke himself, finally wound themselves down, and the fangirls went into 'sulk' mode, for they felt personally betrayed by Sasuke's little joke. "A prank," said Hinata. "That's all it was...a prank."

"Yeah," said Shikamaru thoughtfully, keeping his eyes dead-fixed on Sasuke. "Just a prank." -And the fact it was a prank from Sasuke Uchiha,- Shikamaru added to himself, -Worries me. A lot.- As Naruto moved from angry to worried to confused to back again, and so in cycles moved, Sasuke stood up once again, with a few last giggles. -And now he's giggling,- thought Shikamaru, -After a major laughing fit. The kind that sends you to the floor. If that's not out of character for Sasuke, I don't know what is.-

"Alright, then!" said Sasuke with one last laugh somewhere around the 'th' sound, turning to the majority of the people gathered there. "Thank you all very much for your thoughtfulness. I'm feeling much better now." He turned back, smirking. "Naruto helped with that." Naruto fumed as almost everybody else laughed a little bit again. Sasuke smiled, a chilling sight to those who knew him best and a delicious sight for those who wished to be with him. "But you know, I'll really be happy if we can..." the smile turned into a grin, "Get this party started!" he shouted, throwing up his arms to the delight of the crowd.

"That's my cue," breathed Tenten, her hands flashing through the proper signs. "Hope I can do this..."

To everyone's surprise (especially Tenten's), music started pumping, loudly, as the disco ball began spinning, casting bright colors across the dark warehouse. Naruto's anger turned to gladness as the synthesized beats began sounding off from nowhere in particular, filling everybody in the room with a sense of rhythm. "Alright! I love this song!" the hyperactive ninja said.

"I hate this song," the brooding ninja's nature said as it shone through the cheeriness.

Everybody dance now!

0-0-0-0

Everybody danced then. Even Sasuke, who hated the song. And dancing in general. "May I have this dance?" he asked yet another young lady, shouting slightly in order to be heard over the pounding music. The girl giggled as she took his hand, egged on by the other girls in her peer group. Sasuke, smile perhaps a little bit faked, led her to the center of the dance floor.

"It's his sixteenth dance with a specific girl," said Neji, Chief and Only Member of the 'Leaning Against the Wall Brooding' Club that had formed along the day's (which had soon turned into night, enhancing the disco ball's effect) passage. "Along with an unusual number of dances with the populous in general." He had counted on Shikamaru and Sasuke to be members as well, but Shikamaru, oddly enough, was actually putting some effort into enjoying himself. And Sasuke was dancing. "Why is he pandering to them so? He has stated numerous times in the past that he hates fangirls." He looked over to Naruto, who was passing by. "Naruto!"

Naruto jumped, nearly spilling his paper plate of food. "Yeah, what is it?" he asked, turning around.

Neji's eyes narrowed. "Doesn't Sasuke's behavior seem a little...off too you?"

Naruto grinned. "What's the matter? Getting lonely?"

"I"m not in the mood for your mocking ways tonight, Naruto!" shouted Neji, picking up Naruto roughly by the collar. "Now answer the question!"

"Easy, Neji, calm down," said a feminine voice coming up to them. They looked, and saw Tenten, coordinating the remixing of the current song, what the next song to come up would be, and the ebb and flow of the melody within the next song, all with hand signals. "Sorry, Naruto," she said to, well, Naruto. "Neji gets cranky when he doesn't get in his training."

"I'm not cranky," said Neji, dropping Naruto with a suddenness that made him land on his buttocks. He still hadn't spilled his food, amazingly enough. "What I am is furious. I didn't want to be a part of any of this."

"If Shikamaru can stop thinking about sleep and join in the dancing, so can you," responded Tenten. "Only with training instead of sleep." She looked to Naruto again. "By the way, thanks for the job as DJ! I've really got a talent for this!" and she 'slid' one of her hand signs, causing the imaginary record to scratch a few times. Then she grinned.

Naruto was about to respond, but Neji wasn't finished sulking. "I don't think it's really appropriate for shinobi to be having a party when they could be preparing for the possibility of battle."

"One day couldn't hurt, Neji," said Tenten, as Naruto looked back and forth between the two. "Besides, you heard Naruto. Lady Tsunade ordered it."

"I suppose that must actually be the truth, considering no one has come looking for us yet, and we've spent basically the whole day here," admitted Neji. He closed his eyes, frowning. "But all that means to me is that our Hokage is an imbecile."

The record skipped in the wrong place. No one noticed, or at least not badly enough to stop dancing. Tenten turned on her apparent future husband. "Neji Hyuuga!" she scolded. "How could you even say that?"

"It's obviously the truth," he said, as Naruto sighed. "What kind of village leader orders their troops to have a party?"

"The kind that's concerned about one of their 'troops', that's the kind!" said Tenten. "I admit I wasn't fully behind this at first, but now I can see that Sasuke really needs our help." She looked over to where he was dancing. The girl he was dancing with was getting a little too close for his comfort. "I mean, he's trying so hard to be happy it's obvious he must be hurting inside!"

"Then that is his problem, and he has to deal with it," said Neji. "It is not our responsibility to make people feel better every time they start feeling a little depressed."

"Okay," spoke up Naruto. "I'm beginning to feel like a third wheel, here, so I'm gonna leave." He turned away. "Geez, don't know what you see in that guy," he said in a normal voice that was sure not to be heard over the din of the music.

Except that he said it right as the music stopped.

Naruto finally spilled his food as he turned, embarrassment sketched all over his face. Which was nothing compared to the sketched, penciled, colored, and shaded embarrassment all over Neji and Tenten's. "W-what?" said Tenten, the next song not starting up. "Wh-where did you..." she suddenly turned to their audience, who were slightly bemused by the proceedings in front of them. "Um...okay, everybody!" She formed her hands into the Boar sign. "Next song! Ha ha ha...ha..." The next song started over her nervous laughter, a slow one that just screamed "Grab your date." Neji subtly stepped away from Tenten, and she definitely noticed. -Thanks a ton, Naruto,- she said silently, face communicating what she did not say aloud. Naruto scratched the back of his head, smiling sheepishly as he slowly shuffled off.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was gently turning down several admirers of his who each wanted a chance to tango (or waltz, or salsa, or even lambada) with what they were sure was their true love. "How about me, Sasuke?" asked one girl.

"Or me?" asked another.

"N-no, that's quite..." sweatdropped Sasuke, holding the smile on his face through sheer force of will. "...that's okay. I really don't like slow-dancing..."

"With little kids, right?" asked a sultry voice behind him. Sasuke turned. Ino was there, using a voice that twelve and thirteen year-old girls should not use. And posing with her hip jutted out. "Then how about a real woman?"

Sasuke blinked. Ino wobbled, obviously off-balance in her 'sexy' pose. -Sure. Have you seen one?- Sasuke thought, smirking in his head. "No thank you," he said out loud. "If you'll all excuse me," he said, beginning to stride away, "I'll just be sitting out until another fast so-" He was interrupted (due to his not watching where he was going because he was talking to several disappointed girls behind him) by his running into somebody. "Oof!"

"Ah!" said another female as they both fell down to the ground. The other girls begrudged her her luck. "Oww..."

"Sorry," apologized Sasuke, standing up. He offered his hand. "Here."

"Thank you," said the girl, taking it. She stood up, and their faces were revealed to one another. "Oh! Sasuke!" she exclaimed happily.

-Sakura,- thought Sasuke embarrassedly and with wide eyes and tightly frowning mouth. He looked scared, not that Sakura noticed.

She was too busy looking down at her hand, which was still connected to Sasuke's. She looked up shyly. "Well, um..." she looked back to her hand, then to Sasuke again, a small smile that held big feelings of excitement in it on her face. Her eyes pleaded with Sasuke to ask her to dance, though her mind refused to ask him herself.

Sasuke saw her eyes, and he blushed. "Please excuse me! I have to go to the bathroom!" he shouted. Not said, shouted. Far too loudly. And he let go of her hand and sprinted off, stumbling slightly when he turned for the bathroom door.

If Sakura had taken his actions at face value, she would have felt rejected. But it was Kakashi-sensei's lesson, right? 'Look underneath the underneath'. And so, seeing the way the emotionally difficult Sasuke ran from her, as if he were terrified of death or some equally disliked horror, where he gently rejected those he genuinely wasn't interested in dancing with, Sakura gently blushed herself and put her hand to her lips. She did this because she was amazed at the developments in Sasuke's heart that had been revealed to her that night. -Sasuke,- she thought, bringing her hand back and smiling with joy.

The other girls watching were confused, not knowing very much about Sasuke besides that he was 'deep' and 'such a hottie'. Ino, knowing Sasuke very well, looked absolutely devastated.

0-0-0-0

Sasuke leaned over the sink, splashing cold water onto his face. After a few rounds of this, he turned the handle controlling the cold-water-valve, stopping the stream of water flowing from the faucet. -Best not to hesitate, huh, Sasuke?- he thought sarcastically. He breathed in great gulps of air in time with the beat of the fast-paced music still playing in his head, fighting off the panic that rose within his chest. -What is wrong with me?- he thought. He looked up at himself in the mirror, then jumped back, a small scream escaping his lips. Orochimaru was staring back at him, as if the snake was his own reflection. -No...not again!- He shook his head, eyes shut, then looked back at the mirror. His reflection was back to normal.

Sasuke grabbed at his curse mark, which he knew had come back, even though it was not hurting. He slowly drew his fingernails across it, wishing that the mark would be scraped off along with the top layer of skin. He knew it wouldn't, though. It wasn't that easy. Things were never that easy.

He squeezed his eyes shut, putting his hands on his ears. -Be quiet,- he thought to the beat within his head and to the screaming vocalist. The music, as if in direct opposition to him, became louder and a bit closer to omnipresent. Sasuke clutched at his ears as if the sound were coming from outside his head and not inside it. Then, coming to his senses, he put his fingers into the special sign. "Release!" he said aloud. The music stopped, though he knew with the next song it would come right back, so he had a limited amount of time to gather his thoughts.

The door creaked on its hinges, and Sasuke turned. Naruto leaned against the door frame, holding open the door itself with his foot. "So," he said, bringing his foot down and accidentally timing his footsteps so he'd arrive next to Sasuke when it shut. He transferred his leaning to the wall next to the sink as Sasuke looked back towards his reflection, leaning over the porcelain container once more. "So."

Sasuke looked up at Naruto, annoyed. "So what?"

Naruto grinned, looking right back. "So how was your trip back?"

Sasuke smiled, but only a little. "Rather uneventful. Can't remember a thing about it. Yours?"

"Same," said Naruto.

Sasuke smiled some more. "I suppose that's how you convinced Tsunade to let you throw the party? You told her?"

"Yep," said Naruto. "And we should probably tell her you've come back, too. After the party is over, of course."

"Of course," chuckled Sasuke, shaking his head. "You haven't changed at all, have you, Naruto?"

"A little," Naruto responded. "You'll see."

Sasuke looked at him for a few seconds. Then, methodically, he turned back to the mirror, analyzing his features. Naruto, sensing his friend's inner struggle, was silent for once in his life. "I don't want to turn into him again," Sasuke finally spoke up.

"I was telling the truth earlier, Sasuke," said Naruto. "We care about you..." And he smiled. "Even if some of us don't remember that we do."

Sasuke chuckled, without any hint of laughter in it. "Huh. If some people remembered, they wouldn't care," he said, accurately enough. "Or worse, they'd hate me." he licked his lips, breath beginning to come heavy again. "I wouldn't blame them one bit."

Naruto was silent for a bit. "Neither would I," said Naruto, placing a friendly hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "But I know I still care about you." He smiled a little bit. "And you know Sakura does, too."

Sasuke knew what Naruto was getting at. "Not like that. She didn't care like that anymore." He sighed. "She only does now because she doesn't remember." He stood up before Naruto could respond. "Even if it hurts both of us, she has to move on. So I'm going to make her."

"Well, that's mean," said Naruto.

"So is trying to kill her," said Sasuke bluntly. Naruto sighed. He thought for a few minutes. "Are we done talking?" asked Sasuke as the music came back on in his head.

"No, we're not done," said Naruto. Then, slower, as if something in his mind was cranking a gear that hadn't been cranked before. "You're...not done. It's not the end. You have..." He snapped his fingers a couple times. "You just have to do better this time, that's all. This is a good thing you've gotten." He smiled. "A second chance. Maybe that's all anyone needs?"

Sasuke scoffed. "I doubt it," and he turned.

Naruto let out a small noise of surprise. He grabbed Sasuke by the shoulder. "Oh no?" he brought Sasuke back to the mirror without turning him around. "Well, look at this, and then I'll stop bugging you."

"...fine," agreed Sasuke. "What is it?" Naruto pulled down Sasuke's shirt slightly at his back left shoulder. Sasuke looked back and gasped.

"That's right," said Naruto. "A second chance." The seal around the curse mark had changed. A second circle was around and touching the three points at the end of the triangle-like designs around the first circle. The same design also appeared again, very much smaller, at the center of the mark itself. "I mean, hey, I didn't pass the academy first time around, right?"

Sasuke thought about what Naruto said and showed him. "...I still don't know."

"And that's just fine," said Naruto in response, purposefully shoving Sasuke off to the side as he pulled his shirt back up. "Just don't be stupid."

"Coming from you, that's a grim warning indeed," responded Sasuke, pushing back.

"Oh, one more thing," said Naruto, after laughing.

"And here I thought you were actually going to stop bugging me," Sasuke responded.

"I am!" said Naruto, a bit whiny. "I just wanted to let you know you're acting kind of funny."

"I'm trying to be more human," said Sasuke.

"That doesn't mean you need to change who you are," said Naruto.

Sasuke sighed. "In case you haven't noticed, I really don't have much of a personality besides being evil," he said, truthfully again.

Naruto thought. "Well, then be evil, but be good."

"...Naruto. What are you on?"

"What I'm saying is," clarified Naruto, "You seem good at snarking at things."

"...go on," said Sasuke, beginning to get what Naruto meant.

"Sarcasm, bitterness, cynicism, brooding, mean-spirited..." listed off Naruto. "Yeah, that all sounds like you. Plenty bad, but not evil."

Sasuke thought a bit more. Then, he smiled. "Sounds good to me," he said.

"And horrible to everyone else," said Naruto, smiling back. "Come on. Let's get back to your party, future-boy."

Naruto left first, then Sasuke, who was met with uproarious applause and cheering by girls who wanted to dance more.

0-0-0-0

The night was finally winding down, close to midnight. Even Neji had danced a little, under the pretense of "moving my body without stop in order to build stamina." Tenten had suggested it. Lee had joined him, fake-flirting and bumping and attempting to jokingly grind. Neji had left the dance floor quite rapidly after that. In fact, that was what caused the party to start winding down; nothing could top that.

It was also probably because everyone was satisfied with their night. There was enough food to satisfy Chōji, enough music and dancing to satisfy Ino, and enough distance between boys and girls at all times to satisfy Kakashi's watchful eye. So, everyone left satisfied.

...then again, perhaps not everyone was satisfied. For instance, though Ino was satisfied with the party itself, she did not seem happy at all as she stood to the side, last song of the night playing, another slow dance. Sakura noticed her standing in that way. "Ino?" she asked, stepping through the crowd of people (with a moderate amount of trouble) to her friend. "Is something the matter?"

Ino looked through her for a few seconds. "Uh," she said, blinking rapidly. "Y-yeah. No. I'm good," said Ino, perfectly naturally. Unfortunately her weird behavior just before saying this gave her away.

"Ino," said Sakura sternly, "Tell me the truth."

Ino turned away for a second. Then, she gave off a "Heh." She looked back, with sad eyes and a smiling mouth. "I guess...I'm just sad I lost to you, Sakura," she whispered, tears beginning to form.

"Oh," said Sakura, looking downcast. "Well, don't be too upset. You've still got way more than a chance, you know!" She raised her arm, pointing at Ino and placing the other one on her hip. "The battle isn't over yet! But trust me, when it does end, Sasuke will be mine!"

Ino laughed as the tears began falling. Such a strange combination of happiness and sadness. "Sakura...you're so selfish."

"Wh-what?" asked Sakura, surprised, but not angry. After all, if Ino was angry with her, that meant she wasn't sad. Probably, anyway.

"And yet," she continued, "When you see someone hurting, you'll do anything to stop the hurt." She smiled. "Even hurt yourself."

Sakura's mouth hung open. She snapped out of it quickly, smiling. "Well, I don't know about that," she said.

Ino laughed again. "You're such a paradox...billboard-brow," she said without much enthusiasm. "So weird." And she stopped laughing now, lookingsorrowful.

"Ino..." Sakura began.

"Hey, don't worry about it!" Ino said, tears stopping as if by command. "You're just lucky you got a guy to fall for you at all." She looked as haughty as possible. "With my looks, I could get any guy I want!"

Sakura giggled. "I don't doubt it," she said. "Ino, you're such a paradox!"

Ino sighed. "Yeah," she said. She looked Sakura in the eyes. "Thanks for understanding."

They hugged, no longer rivals. Nothing left to be rivals over.

"Okay, everybody!" Naruto suddenly shouted, almost instantly after the last song ended. Everyone's attention switched over to him. "We've got a heck of a finale lined up for you guys! But first..." and here he indicated Tenten. "Let's give it up for our DJ!" Everyone cheered and applauded as Tenten bowed, beaming like a lightbulb. Which meant, proportionately, brighter than a lightbulb. Speaking of lightbulbs, Naruto held up a plug and an adapter, both attached to cords. "Alright, you ready?" he shouted rhetorically. He got an answer anyway, a very loud affirmative. He plugged the cord into the adapter.

Well, he tried, but they wouldn't fit together. "As per usual, Naruto messes things up," mumbled Sasuke. Chōji, very near him, laughed quietly.

"Huh?" Naruto asked. He tried again. "Well, that's weird..." he mumbled. He looked at the plug and its mate quizzically. Then he looked quizzical some more, this time in the direction of the people near him, turning his head this way and that. "Ah, Hinata!" he said, now smiling. "Could you help me?"

"Um...I don't k-know if I'm r-really the most qualified..." Hinata mumbled.

Naruto frowned. -You know, I don't think she's danced very much at all tonight,- he thought to himself. -Always too shy to get in a crowd of people.- "Huh? Wuzzat?" he asked, cupping his hand to his ear. Technically, he could hear her just fine, but he also really wanted her to speak up. She remained silent, blushing and moving back into the group of people a little, for protection. -Looks like she'd prefer to face the crowd than face her crush,- mentally sighed Naruto. "Just get up here!" he said, actually not raising his voice very much at all.

Apparently, it was enough. "R-right!" said Hinata, blushing some more. She ran up to Naruto, who held out the two objects to her. She looked them over a little bit. "N-naruto...you're holding this wire upside d-down..."

"Huh?" Naruto asked. "You can do that?"

Hinata nodded, her index fingers rubbing against one another as she spoke. "Y-yes...see?" she broke from the finger-rubbing to point out the proof of the problem. "One of the prongs is b-bigger than the other."

"Ohh..." said Naruto, 'understanding'. "Gosh, Hinata, you're so smart," he said, as several people in the audience laughed at his stupidity. He continued as Hinata blushed, both nervous being in front of a crowd and delighted Naruto had complimented her. "Alright then! For real this time! Are you ready for the finale?" And, to the cheering of the audience, he plugged the two wires together, for real this time.

Behind him, several lights lit up in seemingly random order. Due to the sudden increase in brightness, no one could tell what picture or message the dots formed until a few seconds after the light show was over. Once they could see, almost everyone gasped.

Will You Please

Go out with Me

Sakura?

"N-Naruto!" Sakura said, both blushing and angry.

"Looks like I might really have a chance after all," mumbled Ino, trying to make light of the situation and knowing she was failing as she did so.

"That idiot," said Neji. "This is just the highlight of a long night of stupidity."

"Poor Naruto," sighed Tenten. "Can't get it through his thick skull she isn't into him."

"...is he joking?" Sasuke asked, sincerely hoping he was.

"I don't think so," replied Chōji. "This can't end well."

"Curiouser and curiouser," said Kakashi, who had put down his book considering the amount of drama on the dance floor for him to appreciate.

"And the party comes to a grinding halt," said Kiba. Akamaru barked his agreement.

"I understand your sentiments, Naruto," said Lee, a bit loudly. "But think: is this really for the best?"

"Advice after the mistake," quoted Shino, "Is like medicine at the dead man's funeral."

Shikamaru was silent. Watching. Waiting. Calculating. As per usual when the chips were down.

Hinata looked at Naruto. "I...it's very nice, Naruto," she said, trying to smile. Anyone should be able to tell that she was hurt, though. Anyone except Naruto, king of obliviousness.

The King of Obliviousness turned to her, looking angry. "GAH!" he said, throwing his arms up in the air. "This is all wrong!" He turned to the audience now, looking back and forth across them. "Who put up these lights?" he shouted. Nobody took credit or blame. Naruto sighed deeply, facepalming. "They put up the wrong message, whoever it was..." He grumbled. Then, he shouted: "Sorry, Sakura! Wrong girl! Hope you can forgive me!"

"Oh, no need to be sorry!" shouted Sakura right back. Then she mumbled, trying to smile. "I'll live through the pain somehow..." she said sarcastically. Ino giggled.

Hinata, up on stage, blinked. "The wrong girl?" she asked.

Naruto turned back to her. "Yeah," he said. "It was supposed to be for someone way prettier than Sakura is..."

"HEY!" came Sakura's voice from the audience, the rest of which laughed. "YOU WANNA COME HERE AND SAY THAT TO MY FACE?"

Naruto ignored her, while Hinata wrestled momentarily with her curiosity. "W-well, then..." she asked nervously. "W-who is this o-other girl?"

"Let's see..." mumbled Naruto, looking around the room, hand over eyes. "Well," and he turned back to Hinata, scratching his chin with his hand. Suddenly, with a smile the girls...well, girl...couldn't help but love, he grabbed Hinata's own chin gently and leaned over to her.

A 'peck' can be a unit of measurement or a kiss. This particular peck that Naruto gave to Hinata was a kiss, and by long and by far, it meant a ton.

"Naruto?" gasped Hinata as he turned a bright red.

"I think you can figure it out," whispered Naruto as the audience began cheering, applauding, gasping, murmuring, etc., one section of it at a time.

Hinata felt like she was on fire, and she looked it too. Bright, bright, bright, bright, bright, bright red. Really bright red. She stood rigid, mouth open wide in ecstatic surprise. Her eyes were wide and her pupils were dilated, and she could almost swear that her heart was teleporting around her chest it was beating so strong. "N-Naruto..." she finally gasped out for the second time as the cheering died down, everyone now anxious for the next part of the question: the answer.

"Well, how about that," said Tenten to Neji in the few seconds in which they waited for Hinata's response. "Your little cousin got herself a boyfriend."

"...she is too young," said Neji. "I believe Lord Hiashi would agree."

Tenten frowned. "You really are a buzzkill, you know that?"

During the same few seconds, others talked as well. Among them: "Well, who saw that coming?" asked Sakura. She giggled. "Naruto...you always know exactly what to say when it's really important. I think I can forgive you for saying Hinata is prettier than me."

Ino sighed, though it was silent in nature. -Super,- she thought, bitter as unripe grapes topped with spinach and chocolate baking powder. -Everyone's in love tonight except for me.- Ino had a tendency to exaggerate when she was upset.

-Well, well, well- thought Kakashi. -Our little Naruto is growing up.- And he smiled.

Naruto spoke up again. "I kind of need an answer here, Hinata," he said gently.

"YES!" the girl instantly shouted with the largest smile in the world on her face, leaping towards him and wrapping both her arms around his neck, lifting up her legs into a mid-air kneeling position, and burying her face in his chest. He was sent off balance, to many cheers and catcalls.

"Huh," said Naruto's shadow clone, walking out from behind the lights with a pillow, which he was looking at. "Here I was, thinking she'd faint." He disappeared from existence as the audience laughed, Hinata far too blissed out to notice any of it. The real Naruto continued his sentence. "Silly me," he said, grinning as he hugged the normally-shy (though this situation was not normal) Hyuuga back.

Sasuke chose this time to speak up. "Yeah," he shouted, "Because romances that start out as stalking work out so well." Everyone laughed more than they had all night (though not all day) as Hinata suddenly stopped hugging Naruto, bliss broken at the sudden realization she was in public. After hitting the ground, she slowly shuffled a few feet away from the ramen-lover in embarrassment. Naruto, blushing as well, scratched his cheek, looking sheepish, as the crowd applauded the couple to show that, even if they thought what he said was funny, they didn't agree with Sasuke's sarcasm. Heck, Sasuke didn't even agree with Sasuke's sarcasm. The only one not clapping, not because he disapproved but because he was too busy exercising his mind to do any type of exercise otherwise, even something as small as clapping, was Shikamaru.

-It doesn't make sense.- the shadow-nin thought. -Naruto's suddenly stopped being in head-over-heels puppy-dog love with Sakura, and he's being seriously romantic with Hinata?- A narrowing of the eyes. -And Sasuke? Morbid, loner, ultimate-party-killer Sasuke gets a party thrown for him, by Naruto, who wouldn't do that for Sasuke, or say those kinds of things to him. And not only doesn't Sasuke discourage it, he happily participates!- He shook his head. -And pulling a prank, and smiling and laughing, and dancing with his obsessed fangirls, too. No way. Not Sasuke. Not Naruto, either. People don't change. Not like that. Not overnight.-

Shikamaru creased his brow, moving his hands to their usual position as people began mingling with each other for one last bit of social interaction before leaving. Hinata, blushing, looked to be standing with Naruto again, and they were discussing something. She was blushing, it looked like. They were probably deciding on where and when to go for their first date. Shikamaru creased his brow further. -Think...think...- He grunted, giving up. -No good. This late at night, I don't get ideas. All I'm getting is a headache.- He sighed, letting the tension ease from his body. -Best to do my usual thing and sleep on it,- Shikamaru thought to himself. -I'm sure it'll all come to me in the morning.-

0-0-0-0

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGHHHH!"

A faraway, unknown location. A Sannin was screaming in pain.

"GAAAAH!" he shouted again. "Where are those accursed Sound Four with my new body?" he screamed to the ceiling, as if any deity would bother giving a snake like him an answer.

"We may actually have news on that front, my lord," said Kabuto, entering the even-darker-than-the-rest-of-the-base chamber. "Your contact scroll is glowing."

Orochimaru growled. "Well, then, open it!" he commanded.

"Right away, Lord Orochimaru," said Kabuto, doing so. He lay the scroll upon the floor in front of Orochimaru's throne.

An image, life-sized, of Sakon and Ukon (though the latter was asleep) slowly crackled, with much static, into being from the scroll. "Lord Orochimaru," he said, bowing slightly. However, he stayed bowed, likely because he didn't want to look his master in the eye. "Sasuke Uchiha is..." he gulped. "It does not appear he will be coming back willingly, my lord."

"WHAT?" screamed Orochimaru, not out of anger but astonishment. Sakon flinched anyway. "How can this be?"

"We checked on where Sasuke was," said Sakon, "But when we got there, he and several other Genin around his age were gathered in a warehouse, dancing, with food and, er, a disco ball." He cringed. "One would assume they used genjutsu to make music as well...in short, it would appear they were having a party." He cringed further. "We believe Sasuke was participating willingly..." And here he snapped up, looking at Orochimaru once again. "He seemed like a totally different person than the one you described,Lord Orochimaru!"

Orochimaru's black hair covered his white face, for he was looking downwards. Hard to see the expression on that face. Kabuto stepped forward. "Understood. Return back to base as quickly as possible. Your mission has been abor-"

"No," whispered Orochimaru, a sharp whisper that cut through Kabuto's words. The two others (or one other, depending on how you look at it) in the room looked at the one they served, fearful of what he might say next and curious at the same time. "You will go back and retrieve Sasuke Uchiha. Immediately."

"But my lord," began Sakon. He paused, then chose his next words very carefully. "We were specifically commanded by you not to take him by force. You said that to take over his body-"

"I KNOW!" shouted Orochimaru. "What I don't know is WHY," he growled out his next words. "I want to know why Sasuke has not come to me of his own free will!" His features somehow became even more demonic than usual as he continued. "What has changed sine he and I last saw each other? What has changed so drastically that he is like a 'totally different person'?" He grinned an evil grin. "I will find out, and then...when his usefulness in my quest for knowledge is over..." He took a deep breath in, and one out. In, and out. Obviously, he was in a lot of pain and struggling to control himself. The grin never left his face, though, a mask worn to make sure those around him knew he was insurmountable, even by this excruciation. "I'm going to kill him."

Sakon waited for a second to make sure his master had nothing left to say. "As you command, Lord Orochimaru, so we shall do." And with this, he disappeared.

Orochimaru breathed in and out a few more times. Kabuto slowly leaned over and rolled up the scroll again, then placed it in his kunai holster. "I'll go prepare your new body, Lord Orochimaru." Orochimaru grunted his reluctant approval. Kabuto left the scene.

Once Kabuto was surely gone, the most evil ninja most people had ever heard of sighed deeply, slumping in his chair. "I hate losing..." he sulked.

---

Whether it's the biggest laugh of the day or the biggest laugh of the night, Sasuke is the one that causes it. Who would have thunk?

And who would have thunk Hinata wouldn't have fainted if Naruto confessed his love to her? Well, the filler arcs, for one thing. Check out the 'Paper Bomb Trap' arc, or whatever its official name is. Anime fans will know what I'm talking about.

Just one more thing (that I can think of) before you can leave.

OMAKE #2

This deleted scene got left out by accident, and I couldn't figure out a way to put it back in and still have the narrative flow like I wanted it to. Then I realized: "Hey! Make it an omake!" So, here it is, for your enjoyment: Omake #2!

0-0-0-0

"Ah!" said Naruto, tossing his empty plate away. "That was great!" He patted his full stomach. "Good thing I got to the spicy nachos before Chōji did!" He giggled to himself as the next song came on. Slow, and with specifically romantic lyrics that were occasionally slightly risqué. A three-for-one deal!

"Hey, Naruto!" said a girl's voice.

"Huh?" he said in surprise, as he recognized the voice. "Oh, hey, Sakura! What's up?"

She smiled, holding out her hand. "I was just wondering if you wanted to dance?"

Naruto blinked at her outstretched hand. -She's not really interested...just trying to do me a favor.- He smiled. -Probably for the best.- "Thanks but no thanks, Sakura."

Sakura blinked. "What do you mean? Are you feeling alright?"

"Oh yeah," said Naruto. "It's just, well..." he blushed slightly. "There's this other girl, you see..." he giggled. "And, well, you know..."

Sakura blinked, then smiled, bringing her hand back down. "Oh, that's alright," she said.

"Heh. Glad you understa-"

"Except you're not the real Naruto!" Sakura suddenly shouted, whipping a kunai out of her holster and sticking it up against Naruto's throat.

"Sakura?" he gasped as the pink-haired girl got behind him, to better pin him forward against the sharp edge of her weapon.

"The real Naruto is way gone for me," Sakura said, "And besides that, he's nowhere near subtle. If there was another girl in his life, I'd know about it long before he did."

"Wait! Sakura!" Naruto squealed. "You've got it all wrong!"

0-0-0-0

My, Naruto does seem to get himself in a lot of sticky romantic situations in this chapter, doesn't he? Should we call him lucky, or unlucky? What do you think?

Heh. Either way, thanks for reading. May God bless you in everything you do!