Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, despite wishing so badly. :(
---
♥ Chapter XXXI: Lost ♥
---
"It's all your damn fault, Hyuuga. If we don't get out of here alive, I'll haunt your family for the next 100 years."
"Gee, what a threat, Uchiha. I'm not even going to be there then."
"Fine. Then I'll strangle you and kill you again after we've died."
"You just try it out, Uchiha."
"Tch, afraid, Hyuuga?"
"As if, Uchiha."
"You are, Hyuuga."
"Not, Uchiha –"
"CAN YOU TWO JUST SHUT UP?"
"Ow!"
"Ouch! Tenten, what the hell is your problem?"
"Can't you all just be quiet? Shikamaru might find us a solution! He's the smartest one here anyway!"
"Er… Sakura… Tenten just knocked him out with her notebook. Hey, did anyone bring the chips from the living room?"
"WHAT?! TENTEN…."
"But he was in the way, Ino!"
"URUSAI NE! CAN'T YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP?!"
"Geez, Temari. No need to freak out. Aaaah! No! No! GET AWAY FROM ME! DON'T EVEN THINK OF TOUCHING ME WITH THAT NOTEBOOK!"
"Naruto-kun…"
---
So what really caused this? Well, the answer is easy.
Seven hours earlier…
Hinata had managed to safely bring home the rest of the gang somewhat successfully; a sulking Naruto, who still couldn't forgive the others for ruining his and Hinata's date; a happily chattering Ino clinging to the yawning Shikamaru's arm; a combat-ready Temari arguing with the stubborn-as-always Sasuke, accompanied by a sighing Sakura and the chips-eating Chouji, who had seen them in the shopping center and had received permission to tag along…
… just to find a least to say surprised Neji, Tenten right behind him.
"What're you doing here?" they all said in chorus.
"Well, I just brought home minna," Hinata smiled. "A sleepover?"
"Great." Neji groaned. "Tenten forgot her keys at school, so she has to spend the night here too."
"Really?" A mischievous glimmer came across Naruto's eyes for the first time since they left the shopping center. "Wasn't there any other purpose – OW!"
"If - you," Tenten breathed heavily, "ever – try – that – one – again – I'm – going – to – friggin' – kill – you…"
The others just sweatdropped.
---
After much arguing, notebook-hitting, discussing, sighing and sweatdropping, the gang came to a final conclusion.
Or maybe two.
Or three.
Or…
In other words, they had at least sided with each other, but they were still stubbornly disagreeing to the others' ideas.
"I think we should play a game of cards," Sakura suggested with a frown. "You know, like poker or something."
"Yeah, that's a lot of fun. Let's play strip poker!" Naruto grinned widely.
"No freakin' way I'm doing that." Temari glared at the others. "I think we should go eat first. I'm starving."
"Me too," Chouji whined. "I haven't eaten for the last ten minutes!"
"You could eat while you do something else, baka! Let's watch horror movies!" Neji exclaimed, and Sasuke, Ino and Tenten cheered in agreement.
"C'mon, Shika! It'll be fun!" Ino tried to persuade her boyfriend with a grin.
"I don't know." Shikamaru regarded her with a lazy glance. "You know, I'd rather go to sleep."
"Don't be so boring, dammit! C'mon, Hinata, you want to play poker, don't you?" Naruto tried with puppy eyes.
"I-I-I don't know, Naruto-kun…"
"If we can eat while we do either, I'd rather watch a horror movie," Temari remarked.
"Both are fine with me," Chouji grunted. "Just as long as we get food!"
"Majority always wins," Tenten said triumphantly. "Now, let's be scared!"
---
Sakura had a secret phobia.
Okay, so it wasn't exactly a real phobia. When she told aunt Cecilia about it, she'd only respond, "Nonsense, Sakura. You shouldn't misuse the word for such cowardly purposes."
But in Sakura's opinion, it really was a phobia. She practically panicked just by the thought of doing that.
Squirming in the sofa, she glanced at the others. Hinata looked like she was on the verge of tears, Tenten was grinning widely, Chouji only paid attention to the chips, and the rest had their eyes glued to the screen in fascination. Hinata and Tenten screamed while the others winced as a bloody, disgusting hand out of nowhere strangled the poor main character's friend.
Yes, Sakura was scared to death of watching horror movies.
"Sakura…," Sasuke's voice breathed in her ear, almost making her jump. "Can you pass the popcorn?" Relieved, she handed the bowl to him with shaking hands. He raised an eyebrow. "Nanda?"
She just shook her head. "Nothing."
He smirked. "Scared?"
"N-n-n-no!" she exclaimed, glaring at him with blazing cheeks.
Putting his arm around her, he leaned in to whisper in her ear: "It's fine. I'll protect you."
Not being able to hide a smile, Sakura could only show her gratefulness by reluctantly tearing her gaze away from her gorgeous boyfriend and concentrate on the less gorgeous scene on the TV screen.
---
Hinata had to stifle a shriek.
"Nanda? Nanda, Hinata?!" Sakura almost yelled, freaking out at her terrified expression. Hinata shook her head – along with her legs that felt like jelly. She was practically half-collapsing.
"It's just some cheese," she whispered, but her face was extremely pale, as she gazed into the full fridge.
"Geez, Hinata, you're still afraid of horror movies, aren't you?" Neji scratched his head with a grin. "C'mon, they're fun. Let's watch another one!"
"Oh, please." Ino groaned. "We've already watched The Ring, The Grudge, One Missed Call, Friday 13th, Gothika, Silent Hill, The Hills Have Eyes, Stay Alive… honestly, I've had enough of horror movies tonight."
"But we haven't watched all of them yet!" Sasuke protested. "There're more in the shelf."
"If we had to watch all the movies, Sasuke, then it'd take the entire night and more," Tenten remarked, whacking him on the head. "Neji and Hinata's families have two entire shelves with only horror movies. Do your parents really watch all of them, Neji?"
"Not really." Neji smirked. "They're too afraid."
"Don't you guys think it's scary?" Sakura shivered. "Horror movies are really gross."
"That's the point. It gives you an adrenaline rush," Temari gleefully pointed out.
"And makes you paranoid too," Shikamaru muttered.
"What, Nara, chickening out?" Sasuke put on his trademark smirk.
"Forget it, Uchiha. I'm only saying watching too many horror movies might wreck your psychical condition."
"Whatever. Itachi has watched at least fifty."
"Yeah, and how normal is he on a scale between 1 and 5?"
"Chouji, what do you think?" Naruto boringly asked him, who had spent the last few hours gobbling up chips.
"About what?" he responded between mouthfuls of sourcream and onion-flavored chips.
"About the horror movies."
"Oh. I didn't really watch 'em… the chips are really good, y'know. Neji, where did you buy them?"
"Don't know." Neji shrugged. "You can ask one of the maids later if you want. Hey, I've an idea. Let's go ghost-searching in the mansion!"
"Neji, that's farfetched. You've lived in this house for years, it's not likely you'll find a ghost," Tenten said, rolling her eyes.
"You never know." Neji sneered. "Maybe it has just waited for an opportunity to get out. Either way, neither of you are sleepy yet, right?"
They shook their heads right on cue.
"Well, there you go. Then let's go find some electric torches!"
"I doubt it'll make us sleepier, though," Shikamaru commented before following the rest of the gang.
---
Thus, the "ghost haunting" began. The gang separated into smaller groups; Sakura and Sasuke, Hinata and Temari, Neji and Naruto, Shikamaru and Chouji, Ino and Tenten.
It wasn't like Sakura disliked the whole thing. It was just… disturbing. You know, what with all the lights out and the servants being in the kitchen preparing a midnight snack for them and everything (also being told to stay out of the way and avoid any screams that might occur), and the large mansion and the torchlight that made you see shadows everywhere.
After all, she was alone with her boyfriend.
But the scenario wasn't exactly romantic… besides, Sasuke seemed merely interested of the entire thing. Of course, he didn't believe that there actually was a ghost in the house, but after all the horror movies, it was 'refreshing with some walk', he had pointed out.
No, Sakura didn't dislike it.
She just hated it in every way possible.
And Sasuke was just entirely silent, hardly aware of her discomfort thanks to the fact that he could hardly see her in the darkness, the torchlight merely lighting up the way in front of them and around them, not at her.
"Sasuke-kun…," she whispered into the darkness.
No response.
She searched with a slightly shaky hand the way in front of them with her torchlight, that palely lit up the deserted corridors. Total silence still.
"Oh my god… it's so creepy," Sakura stated, wanting to break the silence. What was with Sasuke? Why didn't he reply? "Sasuke-kun, where the hell are we anyway?"
"Panda… hiccup… san? Have you seen Neji?"
Sakura turned around, and only seeing pale skin beneath black hair that covered the face, and a figure dressed in white with a stinky breath, did the most natural thing one can do. "AAAAAAAAAAH! IT'S HER! IT'S THE GIRL FROM THE RING!"
---
"Did you hear that?" Ino clung even tighter to Tenten's arm.
"What?" Tenten wondered curiously.
"The scream!" Ino wailed. "Didn't you hear it? It sounded like Sakura's!"
"You're imagining things, Ino," Tenten sighed. "Geez, this was more boring than I thought."
"Boring?" Ino glared at her. "I'm friggin' scared!"
Tenten grinned. "Scaredy-cat."
"Shut up! Just because you're not afraid of anything. And besides, don't you realize the chance that I might be killed thanks to my mobile phone is much more bigger than yours, just because I've more people on my list?! And besides, I don't want to die just yet –"
Suddenly, a sharp melody coming from a mobile phone pierced through the calmness. Ino screamed, throwing her arms around Tenten's neck and almost suffocating her in the process.
"Pff – Ino, let – pff – go!"
Reluctantly releasing her panting friend from the deadly grip, she answered the phone with shaking hands. "Hello?"
"…." Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
"Is anyone there? Answer me!"
"……" Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
"Hello?!"
"…….." Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out.
"I'm going to end this conversation now, and when I get hold of the person who phoned me, I'm going to kill you! You get it? I'm going to –"
"… Sayounara," a hoarse voice whispered, interrupting her.
Beeep –
"Oh my god! What did he mean with that? Tenten, I told you they want us dead… Tenten? Tenten?!?!?! AAAAH!"
---
Kankorou grinned at his crimson-haired brother. "Well?"
"I think she got mad." Gaara raised an eyebrow as he put down the mobile phone. "But don't you think it's a bit too much? I mean, after all those horror movies… and Temari just phoned us and said they were going 'ghost-haunting', whatever that means."
"Aw, c'mon, don't be such a softie, Gaara. And since when did you get so soft anyway?"
Gaara rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever."
---
Meanwhile…
"Hinata, where's your little sister?" Temari suddenly asked as they entered a bedroom full with toys.
"Oh… she's probably in the living room playing PlayStation 2 now that we've gone from there. She was talking about finishing off Seymour in Final Fantasy X before," Hinata explained, but her eyes were scanning the room nervously.
"Ah." Temari then raised an eyebrow. "Hinata, are you scared?"
"Well… yes… kind of," Hinata laughed nervously. "I've never been too fond of horror movies. It has always been Neji-onii-san and Tenten who have forced me to watch such with them."
Temari sweatdropped, before looking about in the room boringly.
"This so silly," she muttered. "Why the hell did we go look for ghosts in here anyway? Not like there're any-"
Just then, her electric torch faintly lit up something in the room. "AAAAAAAAAAH!" Temari shrieked. "SOMEBODY'S BEEN KILLED! THERE'S A CORPSE! A CORPSE, I SAY!"
"Temari-chan… I think that's the life-sized Barbie doll Hanabi got for Christmas…," Hinata sweatdropped.
Temari stopped screaming in her current pose – her arms raised to 'protect' her face, and one leg in the air out of some unknown reason. "Oh…," she muttered.
---
"When are we supposed to gather in the kitchen?" Chouji wondered as he happily munched on some chips. Shikamaru sighed and looked at his mobile phone.
"In about ten minutes," he sighed, putting it back in his pocket. "Geez, this is so boring. I don't get why we did this to begin with."
"Walking gives you better appetite?" Chouji suggested as he finished off his current bag of chips. "Where's everyone, anyway?"
"I doubt that's why. I don't know."
Chouji suddenly stopped abruptly, even though his hands moved faster, eating chips in a frantic (more frantic than usual) speed. "Hey, do you hear that sound?"
"Nanda?" Shikamaru yawned.
"That sound. It goes, drip – drop – drip – drop… just like water!" He looked at Shikamaru panic-struck.
"It's just somebody who has forgotten to turn off the faucets probably, stupid," his friend answered. "C'mon, let's check it out and I'll prove it to you."
Walking towards the source of the water, they opened a door and searched the room with the torches, finding…
"AAAAAAAAAH!"
"AAAAAH!"
Chouji, who had, for once, stopped eating, and Shikamaru, who looked slightly shaken, stared into the shocked and frightened faces of Naruto and Neji.
"Oh. So it's you," Neji said with a forcedly calm voice. "Well… I didn't think otherwise. I was merely… surprised by your appearance."
"Yeah right, Neji," Naruto scoffed. "You were scared to death!"
"Tch. Dobe."
"Oi! Don't catch on Sasuke-teme's habits!"
Shikamaru could only sigh as he relaxed once again. How troublesome…
---
"So nobody found any ghost?"
Heads shaking in disappointment.
Neji heaved a sigh. "Okay. Anybody who's sleeping?"
"No," the others said at the same time.
"Well, I've one last idea. We could go ghost-haunting in the cellar."
Tenten stiffened. "The cellar? Are you crazy, Neji? It's a freaking maze! We could get lost!"
"Yeah." Neji grinned. "That's exactly what's interesting about it."
"Sure." Sasuke smirked. "Sounds like a challenge to me."
"If Sasuke-teme's up for it, then so am I," Naruto decided with his trademark smile. "I'm not gonna lose to anyone!"
"Whatever," Temari muttered. "Doesn't matter to me."
"Do we have to?" Sakura sighed.
"So, are we in?" Neji asked.
Bored shrugs in response.
"Great! Let's go!"
---
If there was one thing that could make the oh-so-not-girly Tenten to very girlishly freak out…
"OH MY GOD!" Tenten screamed. "OH MY FREAKING GOD!"
Sakura was clinging to Sasuke desperately, while Hinata was hiding behind Naruto. Temari and the guys only grimaced.
… it would be rats.
"RATS! GODDAMNED RATS!" Tenten shrieked as she wildly stomped her feet to prevent the rats from coming closer.
"Take it easy, Tenten, it's just rats. Just ignore them and we can pass – OW!" Neji glared at his girlfriend. "Do you have to do that all the time?"
Tenten, however, ignored his question. "NEJI! I WANT TO GET OUT OF HERE, OR I'M GOING TO KILL YOU WITH MY NOTEBOOK LATER!"
"Fine, fine…" He impatiently grabbed the doorknob. "Just skip the fun, then…"
Silence followed. A frantic sound of somebody trying to turn the doorknob and open the door echoed in the maze.
"… Neji-onii-san?" Hinata said nervously.
"Great," Neji mumbled. "We're stuck in here."
---
Unbeknownst to them, two identical men were in the living room, drunkenly looking through the pile of DVDs in front of the TV.
"What's this, Hiashi?" one of them hiccoughed curiously.
"I don't know. Maybe it's a romantic movie!" the other exclaimed randomly, doing a wiggly dance-step to express his enthusiasm, almost falling down to the floor.
"Yes! A romantic movie about foxes and pearly-eyed shy… what animal is shy?"
"A… a… panda!"
"BAKA! Pandas aren't shy! They pull their boyfriends' hair!"
"… Are we still talking about our children and their love lives?"
"I don't know."
"Either way, this one looks good." Hisashi peered happily at the picture of the girl on the front cover of Silent Hill. "Let's watch all of 'em! Gotta watch 'em all, Digimon!"
"It's Pokémon, you idiot!"
"… Whatever."
---
All hell was set loose the moment Neji uttered those words.
"SAY WHAT? STUCK? IN HERE? IN THIS GODDAMNED PLACE WITH RATS?" Tenten's eyes looked like they were going to bulge out of her eyeholes.
"Apparently." Sasuke yawned, already bored. "Is there no way out of here except that door, Hyuuga?"
"Well…" Neji scratched his head. "There's another one, or so I've been told. Right, Hinata?"
"I-I think so…," Hinata stammered as she grasped Naruto's arm, still hiding from the rats.
"Really?! Where?" Naruto demanded to know, eager to get out of the not-so-cozy cellar.
"No idea," Neji sighed. "You know, I've never been to this place before."
"AND YOU STILL LED US HERE?!" Sakura yelled. "WHY YOU…!"
"Shut up, Sakura. You're annoying me, and you're turning my ears deaf," Sasuke informed his girlfriend not-so-romantically.
Sakura, putting on a scowl, fell in silence, whereas Ino continued to glare at Neji. "Are we just going to go around and explore, then?"
"Well, that's up to you guys," Neji grinned. "Either, we go exploring… or we're settling down here."
Dead silence.
"AAAAAAAAH! I DON'T WANT TO SPEND MY LIFE HERE!" Tenten screamed as she gestured wildly at the rats. "NOT WITH THOSE MONSTERS!"
"Is there any chips down here?" Chouji worriedly asked.
"How troublesome," Shikamaru muttered.
"NO WAY! I'M NOT GETTING MARRIED IN THIS PLACE!" Ino shrieked. "DOES ANYBODY HAVE A CELL PHONE?!"
"Ino… don't you remember? We all left the cell phones in Neji's room after the ghost-haunting," Temari said, as pale as though she had seen a ghost. "There's no way we can get out of here unless somebody opens this cellar door, or we find the other way out."
"There's not much choice then, right?" Sakura bitterly murmured. "We can just go exploring."
---
"What the hell is that?"
Sakura stared, disgusted, at what was supposedly a chunk of bread… if that was bread anyway, the grey-green-yellow-purple jelly-vegetable-sponge-thing that lay on the ground before them.
Neji peered at the object as he tilted his head curiously. "… Well, I've no idea."
Grimacing, the aforementioned girl took a step away from the item.
"When did you last clean here, really?" Ino wanted to know as she stared at the walls accusingly, which were quite dusty.
"The servants were kind of frightened of this place, so they don't really go down here much… and when they do, they mostly just clean at the entrance, or the wine storage part of the cellar. But that's a dead end, so we can't go that way…" Neji scratched his head thoughtfully. "Hinata, do you remember where the exit is supposed to lead us?"
"Y-yeah… I think there're two – one that leads to the kitchen, and one that leads to the living room. Or that's what I've heard."
"Two exits? Much better than one. Let's go!" Neji said cheerfully, but was bonked in the head by his none-too-happy girlfriend, her notebook clutched in her hand as a weapon.
"You idiot!" she snarled. "What is there to be happy about? It's all your fault to begin with! Baka!"
"If you hadn't forgotten the keys," Neji countered with raised eyebrows, "then we, or at least you, wouldn't be here at all."
Tenten blushed in fury. "That's off-topic!"
Apparently Neji felt for challenging fate to a death duel, because he went on: "No, it isn't."
Tenten's eyes flashed dangerously. "Say that again, and I'll kill you…"
The others sweatdropped, as Neji decided to give in. Sasuke, who only watched for the mere sake of boredom, continued down the path, Sakura clinging to his arm.
"Sasuke-kun? How long have we been here?"
Sasuke grunted and glanced at his wristwatch. Then, he replied: "For three hours."
---
"Where's Hinata?" Hanabi calmly asked as she stepped into the kitchen, where the servants were chitchatting. The talk faded away at once at the entrance of small, yet so strangely intimidating girl.
"Hanabi-sama," one of the maids said hesitantly as she, along with the others, bowed. "I don't really know, but I think they went to the cellar."
"The cellar…?" Hanabi wrinkled her forehead. "Neji-onii-san is that stupid to do such a thing?"
One of the younger maids coughed to hide a laugh, but Hanabi's frown didn't disappear.
"It's already past four in the morning," she stated sharply. "Have you informed chichiwe-sama yet?" (A/N: I don't know if it's the correct romaji, but 'chichiwe' is a very formal way of saying 'father'. Itachi, for instance, called his father so in the anime version.)
"No, Hanabi-sama, Hyuuga-sama is with Hyuuga-sama in the living room," one of the butlers said. Hanabi groaned.
"Again? Don't tell me; they've drunk all the champagne and wine that we have in the house."
"There's actually more in the cellar, but…" The younger maid, who saw the other servants' glares, bowed her head. "Gomen nasai, Hanabi-sama."
Hanabi, on the other hand, didn't seem to notice the lack of the honorific suffix at all. "And my sister has, of course, followed Neji-onii-san and their friends into the cellar."
"Hai, Hanabi-sama."
"They're not aware that the lock is broken, no?"
"Iie, Hanabi-sama."
Hanabi raised an eyebrow in amusement. "Now this will be fun." With those words, she exited the kitchen. The servants immediately arose once more, and started chitchatting, this time about the young mistress.
---
Sakura felt her eyelids drop. They were so infinitely heavy…
They had been in this goddamned maze for hours. Even she didn't care about how long time had passed anymore; and everybody else was asleep. She was struggling to not fall asleep – the thought of rats still haunted her otherwise peaceful mind; they were back to the entrance again, where the wine was stored.
But even Tenten, the absolute rat-fearer, had fallen asleep. And then she was leaning on Sasuke's shoulder, too… such a comfortable position…
Suddenly, a door to the cellar opened. Sakura jerked awake immediately, listening tensely to the sound of the voices. It sounded as though they were drunk… she sniffed in the air and wrinkled her nose. It was a very startling scent of alcohol; they were indeed drunk.
In the light that poured in from the open door stood two figures identical to each other, with the same pearly eyes as Hinata and Neji, and with the same raven hair that reached to their waists; they were dressed in white robes, and smiled goofily as they waggled about unsteadily on the floor.
"More wine," the first hiccoughed. "Hisashi, is that wine?" He pointed at the pile of the sleeping youths. The other man, clearly named Hisashi, hiccoughed as well, but with annoyance.
"Of course not, Hiashi," he said with an unsteady voice. "They look like humans."
Silence. Then reality struck them.
"Humans?!" Hisashi sounded panicked. "Are they… are they dead?"
Sakura furrowed her eyebrows. Did she look dead to them?
"I think so." Hisashi's voice was a mere whisper, then the twin brothers' eyes met.
"AAAAAAAAH!" they screamed loudly, waking the sleeping teens up. "THERE ARE DEAD PEOPLE IN HERE! DEAD PEOPLE ALERT! AAAAAAH!"
"Shut up…," Sasuke groaned as he arose beside Sakura. "You're being noisy."
A servant burst through the door in panic. "Dead people?" he exclaimed with a squeaky, shaking voice, then saw the sleepy and annoyed 18-year-olds. "Oh. Neji-sama, Hinata-sama… you seem tired."
"Indeed we are," Neji yawned. "What's the time, er… what's your name again?"
"Shinji, Neji-sama!" the servant bowed hastily. "Um, it's 10 past eleven, Neji-sama."
"Ten past eleven?" Temari widened her eyes. "Oh boy. Weren't we supposed to pick Gaara and Kankorou up? We're going out shopping today!"
The boys moaned, as though tortured, but the girls only seemed to be cheerier.
"Shopping would do me some good," Ino sighed. "And a hot bath when I get home. But do we really have to go now? I need to sleep."
"Well, Gaara and Kankorou will be pissed if we don't," said Naruto darkly. The others made indescribable sounds of exhaustion.
---
"Were you guys up all night watching horror movies, or something?" Kankorou wondered with a raised eyebrow as he broke the sleepy silence in the limousine.
"Not exactly," Tenten muttered as dangerous anger flashed in her hazel eyes, "somebody got the brilliant idea that we should go ghost-haunting, and that somebody also suggested the cellar. We got locked into the cellar… which was full of rats."
Utada shivered. "Wasn't that gross?"
"Of course it was!" Sakura moaned. "To top it all off, we slept on the floor there, because we got so tired. Then we were woken up and had to fetch you guys."
"Oh," Ayame uttered pitifully. "A good day's shopping will help, right?"
"Yeah, absolutely," Hinata chimed in tiredly. "And we have to drive all around Paris. That is for sure."
The guys could only exchange glances and groan.
So, what did you guys think? Coming up next is the final filler! And then there's just one chapter left after that, and it's time for the sequel. :) Meanwhile, while you're waiting, please check out my latest fanfiction, Fear of the Light, which is also a SasuSaku fic. :D
Reviews Corner (800 reviews:D Thanks, minna!! And also... these are answers to the reviews from the two previous chapters.)
Merridaine: Thanks!
Paintupurple: I know! Neji's funny to write about. His reactions are kind of similar to Sasuke's, just that he's even funnier than Sasuke, because while Neji has gotten over his grudge in the anime/manga, Sasuke's still stuck. x.x;
Kawaii IceCream: Thanks XD But Tenten really does look like a panda, doesn't she? And about the weird parents thing… I've suddenly realized that in this fic, almost all parents are weird. Kind of weird xD (There was, originally, a chapter dedicated to Naruto's supposed parents, Yondy (whom I firmly believe is Naruto's father) and an OC that was supposed to be Naruto's mom. But I changed my mind last minute…)
Kawaii Kyuubi-chan: LAWL! XD Thanks for the review.
Silverdragon994: Eep! –is tackled- Hi, Silver:D And thanks! I want to write more about their (weird xD) childhood… T.T; I wonder if I can write about it in the sequel, though…
Frienz4ever: Thanks, I will :)
Pale Moonlit Nightsky: Mwaaah! My preview! ;.; -rescues it, but is huggled in the process- Eep! XD But thanks :D Lawl. The notebook is my favorite part of Tenten's character; it was only supposed to be a minor detail in the beginning of a chapter, but as the fic progressed, I started to use it more frequently, and eventually, it became Tenten's evil weapon XD (I guess this has something to do with my own strange fondness of hitting people on the head with something…)
Claud-kun: Thanks! Prison Break… oh my god, I need Prison Break! But my sis and her boyfriend took all the episodes away ;.; (Originally, they were theirs xD) Hahah, Neji dominating? I'd like to see that… (Tenten: -dangerous sparkle in her eyes with the notebook clutched in her fist- … As if…)
SaKuRaUcHiHa404: Thanks, I will :)
Cherry blossom petals: Done ;D
Crazy Gal42: Yeah, I know, it's so sad! T.T I didn't want him to die either; poor Kurenai. But I'm curious about the chapter 344; Sasuke's back on track:D Can you believe it?! After months of waiting, we finally get to see Sasuke in action after Team 7's dramatic reunion! I can't wait until it's scanlated on Naruto Manga Returns… and yay, the anime has gotten to Part II:) But it's a pity my computer isn't working right, though, because now I can't see the anime T.T;
Ruichi: Thanks:D And Sasuke, you shouldn't slap girls:( (Sasuke: Don't be so troublesome… she was the one who was bothering me…) That's still not nice! Sakura, punish him! (Sakura: -uses Tenten's ever-so-useful notebook and whacks Sasuke on the head-) (Sasuke: T.T) YAY! Justice:D
P-Prince: You don't know what to say as in a bad way, or a good way? o.x; I know this sequel doesn't really sound like this fic, but it's because I'm in a different mood and thus want a different style of writing. I'm hoping you guys will like it, though :)
Nashonfun: Thanks!
Frienz4ever: Shudders? Is it really that bad? But okay, I'll update soon and thanks for the review :D
Ur2tRoUbLeSoMe: Thank you:)
Kawaii IceCream: Hahah, thanks and I've now updated. Happy:D There's, however, one more filler left! And yeah… I hope I can keep that fic in control, with all those new characters. I'm just tired of neglecting some certain characters; Lee, Chouji and the Suna siblings (with the exception of Temari) are constantly left out of my stories, after having been briefly introduced. Besides, there're so many temporary OCs I've just used once or twice that I want to reintroduce! And Sakura's family, too. Remember in the beginning of this fic, how I kind of spoke about her parents? I just wanted it to play a bigger part in the fic (it was supposed to, but then I kind of forgot). Sorry, maybe I should stop ranting xD;
Paintupurple: Thanks:D But I bet you're good. You should at least give it a try, ne?
Everlasting memories: Yup. ;) But still with its share of humor and fluff. Or at least, that's what I've planned. Thanks for the review!
Silverdragon994: I'll try :D There'll be a lot more drama in the next story, as it involves more characters, a more complex plot and a more mature storyline (since they'll graduate from high school). There'll be lesser fluff, though, now that SasuSaku is official in the fic. But there's still some fluff… ;D And then there're other couples too… -smiles mysteriously-
Sapphire Serenity: Thanks, and nope, Itachi is still five years older ;) (I mentioned previously that Itachi and Shizuka, Sakura's sister, are engaged, but in the coming sequel, they'll have already graduated from college and be married.)
Sneak Preview of Chapter XIII: This Is Not My First Time
What'd be the date of your dreams? I, Haruno Sakura, have three requirements; one (of course), my most beloved boyfriend…
"UCHIHA SASUKE, WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU? I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR TWO HOURS!"
"… Sakura, you're annoying."
"Yeah, yeah, I know, but where are you?!"
"I…" Sakura waited impatiently for a sensible response. "… was picking tomatoes."
… a perfect shopping tour with my boyfriend complimenting everything I wear…
"Sasuke-kun, what do you think?!"
Two guys whistled and shouted flirty compliments to her in French. Sasuke fumed with wrath, even though Sakura didn't seem to care; he stared at the cocktail dress and muttered sourly: "Doesn't fit you."
Sakura looked disappointed. "Why?"
"Well, firstly, you're too flat-chested. Then you have too wide a forehead. And you're starting to get fat…"
Sakura walked out of the store, a dozen veins popping on her temple.
… and of course, some once-in-a-lifetime romantic moments to remember.
Sakura could only stare. "Wow…," she whispered breathlessly at the sight. Sasuke could only smirk.
"I knew you'd love it," he said. He stared up at the night sky. "… I love it, too."
Sakura then bowed down her head. Sasuke, noticing the strange silence, tilted his head so he could see her face. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"Did… did you show the same thing to Cindy?" she asked in a low voice.
He averted his gaze from her. "… Maybe I did." Sakura was downhearted by his reply. "But," he added, "you're not Cindy, are you?"
Well, I guess I got the last part. But after all, I'm Ms. Unlucky Haruno Sakura, so who knows what will happen to me next?
Don't miss the next and final filler of This Is Not My First Time (also the last second chapter), based on Tsuki-chan's real experience of her last night in Paris! (A trip recommended to all romance-loving couples that don't mind disturbing Asian tourists photographing and talking so it ruins everything, but can still cherish the moment and forget those irritating people.) And also, this filler contains the main reason why it's named This Is Not My First Time (a disturbing reason, that, in my case, unfortunately came true).