Author's Note: Thank you Rose Tiger, morristofox, KurosunanoKazuo, Byzantea, dontfeellikesigningin and riia luvs anime for your reviews! Okay, just for the record, there will be no lemons in Konoha High. Sasuke may think, and possible say, some really perverted things, possibly explicitly describe a sexual situation, and most definitely come on himself while looking at Sakura at some point in the story, but there will be no actual sex. Oh, and as to the title, well, I'm feeling playful.
Chapter 5: Hinata's Milkshake
"He's so . . . cute!" Hinata simpered. Gingerly she reached out a hand to run a tentative finger over Gaara's forehead, tracing the kanji for love tattooed beneath his hairline. Gaara beamed at the compliment, making a small purring noise in his throat and closing his eyes blissfully when Hinata touched his forehead.
"He's like a puppy," Naruto laughed, a bit nervously, "and a little brother too. He goes to Suna. He was getting into fights at school 'cause he was having all these issues at home. Then he picked a fight with me."
"What happened?" asked Hinata, giving Naruto a look that was half worried, half curious and 100% adorable. Naruto swallowed. She really was the cutest.
"I just knocked a bit of sense into him," he told her, patting Gaara's head and earning another appreciative noise from the ginger who was looking back and forth between them as they talked like a child watching its parents. "I helped him patch things up with his family, what's left of it anyway, and now its like he's adopted me as a part of it. I'm 'niisan' now."
"You are my brother," Gaara protested, nosing at Naruto's retreating hand like a puppy that wanted to be petted. Naruto obliged him, resuming his toying with the ends of Gaara's red hair.
"What did Naruto-kun mean, 'what's left of your family'?" Hinata asked quietly, still tracing the tattoo tenderly.
Gaara turned his puppy-like attention to the pale eyed girl. "My mom died when I was born," he explained, "and my dad was a son of a bitch . . ."
"Gaara!" Naruto snapped.
"Not a great dad," Gaara corrected, rolling his eyes as he rested his head on the table so as to intensify the small pet-able thing effect, "It's just me and my siblings now, my birth brother and sister."
"They're always welcome at my place, though," Naruto continued, "which reminds me, weren't you and Kankuro going to pick Temari up from her martial arts class?"
"Oh yeah!" Gaara cried, jumping up and grabbing a sand-colored leather book bag. He gave Naruto one last brief hug and nodded politely to Hinata. "It was nice meeting you, Hinata-chan. See you later!"
"He seems like a nice kid," Hinata giggled, watching Gaara dart off to the parking lot where a black Hummer had just pulled up.
"He is," Naruto sighed, "but not everyone sees it, right away."
"You remind me of my niisan," Hinata murmured without thinking.
Naruto looked up at her, startled. "You have a brother?" he asked. He'd thought he knew everything about Hinata's family. Her dad was a big time business man, and very influential in the local government, thanks to their old, rich and powerful family. She had a younger sister, and an older cousin that lived with her and her dad, due to the fact that his own father had died when he was young. Naruto, however, didn't know anything about a brother.
Hinata blushed slightly, looking away. "No," she replied quietly, "I . . . I just . . ."
"What is it?" Naruto asked, tilting his head to the side. Hinata hesitated. "You know, Hinata-chan," he whispered, taking her hand, "you can tell me anything."
Hinata's look of apprehension faded to a radiant, if shy, smile. Naruto's breath caught in his throat. Dear gods was she beautiful.
"I . . . I call Neji, niisan," she explained, "He's technically my cousin, so father doesn't like it. Its just that he's always taken care of me, and . . . well . . ."
"Hinata-chan!" Naruto laughed, beaming. Hinata turned another four shades of red as Naruto smiled down at her, and she was sure if he didn't go on she would embarrass herself by being quite unable to speak.
Naruto bent his head until they were almost nose to nose, and Hinata fought the urge to faint. "You said, before, that Gaara was cute," Naruto told her softly, "well, so are you. You remind me of him, that way."
Hinata wasn't really sure how she managed to not faint.
Naruto might not have been the most perceptive person in the world, but he could tell by the way Hinata was shaking and sputtering that she needed some air. "You want a milkshake?" he asked, "After all, that is what I originally asked you here for, right?" He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, waiting for her response.
"Um, yeah," she murmured, still a little dazed from being called cute by the boy she'd had a borderline obsessive crush on for years. "Could I have vanilla?"
"Of course!" Naruto laughed, grinning again, "anything you want! I'll be right back!"
***
Itachi watched as Naruto scurried off to the milkshake stand, leaving the pale-eyed princess on her own. As much as he wanted to just punch the idiot's lights out right now, he decided to leave him for the time being. His Hinata liked the boy, so it was possible he might learn something. Already the blond had given him one idea.
Clutching a soda loosely in one hand he stuck the other in his pocket and sauntered past the table Naruto had just left. Hinata was sitting limply in her seat, trying to compose herself before Naruto got back. Itachi took a sip from his drink, carefully not looking at her as he walked past. Then, when he was just a few steps in front of her he pretended to stumble on a loose cobblestone, drink slipping from his hand and spilling across the pavement, and all over Hinata's shoes.
"Oh, sorry!" Itachi cried, pretending to be startled and horrified. Instead he watched carefully as the angel gave a small squeak at the cold liquid on her feet, then quickly bent down to pick up his now half-full cup.
"That's alright, it was an accident," she murmured in that high, breathy, angelic voice of hers. Itachi fell to his knees as though also to pick up the spilled soda.
It was all expertly timed. Hinata gingerly bent forward on her knees, her hand coming to caress the plastic drink container Itachi had held not moments ago, like a once-removed caress to his own hand. Immediately Itachi's hand shot forward, coming down on top of hers as though by accident. Itachi was careful to lean forward just enough so that their noses were inches apart, but not so close that they touched. As her head tilted up to look at him curiously when he did not remove his hand he could see his dark eyes reflected in her pale ones. She breathed into his face, filling his nose with a warm, sweet scent. He made a note as he detected the flavor of her dessert at lunch. His Hinata liked vanilla.
"I'm terribly sorry," he rasped in his deep voice, fighting the urge to move his head that last inch and connect their lips. While Sasuke might have had no self-control whatsoever, Itachi was more disciplined. Instead he schooled his features to look surprised and apologetic, causing the angel to grace him with a dazzling shy smile.
"It's okay. Like I said, it was an accident. I can be really clumsy sometimes." Hinata smiled at the boy that had hold of her hand. She wasn't sure if he'd meant to or not, but he had curled his fingers around hers so that he was now holding her hand rather tightly. He was a bit older than her, and in any other situation she might have been frightened, but he looked so humbled by his mistake that she wasn't intimidated. He was sweet, she decided, but he did need to let go of her hand.
"Thanks," replied Itachi, giving a sheepish smile, then glanced down at their joined hands. "Sorry!" he repeated, as though he'd only just noticed he had hold of her, and quickly pulled his hand away. "I just . . I'm not used to . . . this is kind of like . . . well . . ."
Itachi kept his shy smile in place, pretending to stutter and grasp for words. It was a bit embarrassing, but he had a feeling this was the kind of girl he'd get farther with by endearing himself to, rather than acting the sophisticated romantic. That was more Sasuke's approach, and in truth it didn't really work for him, at least beyond the realm of mindless fangirls. Itachi had little interest in one-night stands, and even if he was, Hinata was anything but a one-time thing. Acting sweet and cute had worked for Naruto. With any luck it would work just as well for him.
"Itachi Uchiha," he said abruptly, holding out his hand to help her up. She took it gratefully, and he pulled her to her feet, resisting the urge to pull a little too hard so she fell into his arms. As it was, like a sign from the fates, she tripped getting her feet under her, stumbling and having to grab his upper arm to steady herself for a brief moment. Itachi took half a second to feel blessed.
"Hinata Hyuuga," she replied, blushing cutely, once she'd found her footing, "nice to meet you."
"Hinata-chan!" came a voice behind her. She turned, smiling, to see Naruto hurrying toward them at a fair clip, clutching two milkshakes. He frowned, distressed, when he saw Itachi, coming to a stop just next to Hinata.
"I got your milkshake," he piped up, offering it to her. He looked disheartened. Hinata opened her mouth to speak, not wanting him to think he'd done something wrong, but Itachi beat her to it.
"Don't mind me!" he said quickly, holding up his hands and stepping back. "I just . . ." he gestured at his spilled drink, "I'm clumsy. And new in town, by the way. I'm Itachi."
"Naruto," the blond nodded, grinning again now the mood was a bit lighter, "you go to Konoha?"
"Just started today," Itachi replied, smiling back, "I heard this was the local hangout. The milkshakes here good?"
"Great!" Naruto replied, jerking his head at the stand, "you should try one."
"Good idea," Itachi replied, nodding and making his exit quickly but casually. He had decided not to make an enemy of Naruto just yet. He wasn't sure just how much he could learn from him, and anyway it was best not to provoke a fight in a public place, especially not where such precious virgin eyes might see. If he was going to fight for Hinata, and fight he would, if he had to, he didn't want her to bear witness. She was pure and innocent as the driven snow, and he didn't want to taint her with such things, as he knew that bicker undoubtedly would. He'd have to sabotage that relationship as soon as possible.
Author's Note: Itachi is much smoother and smarter than Sasuke, no? Anyway, raise your hand (or better yet REVIEW) if you want me to make an OC girl for Itachi to end up with, since he is so not going to score with Hinata-chan. Happy Thanksgiving, gobble gobble!