Playing Matchmaker

DISCLAIMER: I'll own Naruto as soon as Heaven bursts into flames and admits flying pigs.

Note: Sakura knows who is participating.

Sakura was not happy. Tsunade's intentions were good and all, but it was wrong of her to try to force a boyfriend on her like this.

Don't worry, we'll get her back Inner Sakura said with an evil smirk as she imagined ways to get revenge.

That's all well and good, but we have bigger problems to worry about right now. Sakura thought as everyone's favorite hyperactive ninja began to approach her.

Well, it's better to be kissed by him than by Neji! Inner said as she noticed said pale-eyed kid approaching from the other side.

Well, you have a point, but... Sakura moved to her right and towards a knot of girls that was forming in the corner, effectively avoiding both Naruto and Neji. ...It's better to avoid both. No sooner had she escaped them than she noticed that Kiba was coming toward her from her left.

Eeew, you don't want to get kissed by him! Have you seen the size of his teeth? Inner complained. Sakura began walking faster as she tried to avoid him. As she looked over her shoulder to see if she had lost him, she bumped into something... or rather, someone. Sakura rubbed her backside as she looked up to see who she had bumped into, only to see Kankuro looking down at her with a large and... rather creepy grin on his face.

"Need a hand?" He said, offering her one.

"Uh... No thanks, I'm fine", she said as she got up and moved away from him.

"SAKURA!" Someone shouted from across the room. Sakura looked towards where the shout had come from only to see a flash of... green.

Okay, avoid Lee at all costs. Do you have any idea what it would be like to take him out anywhere? Isn't it such a youthful night? You're looking very youthful tonight. I'm sorry for being annoying, I'll go punish myself by doing five hundred laps around the village, and if I can't, I'll do five thousand jump ropes, and if I can't do that...

Just shut up already! I get the point! Sakura inwardly screamed. She took her Inner's advice, though, and moved away, towards the door that led to the garden. She sat down on one of the benches near a fountain.

"Hello, Sakura." Sakura turned, expecting to see another one of her would-be suitors, but only saw Ino.

"Oh, Ino, it's you." Sakura said.

"Duh, who else would it be?" Ino said. "Hey, I have something to ask you."

"Yeah, what's that?" Sakura asked.

"Well... If you wouldn't mind... would you do me a favor?" Ino said.

"That depends on what it is." Sakura said, now a little suspicious.

"Well... do you think that maybe... you could let Shikamaru win?" Ino asked, giving Sakura her infamous puppy-dog eyes.

"WHAT?" Sakura practically yelled.

"Well, you see ,we were all betting on who would get to kiss you first, and I betted on Shikamaru... so... If you let him win, I would split the winnings with you!" Ino explained/bargained.

"Ugh, I can't believe you! To think you would stoop so low as bribery... It's bad even for you, Ino-pig!" Sakura said as she stomped off in a rage.

"Sorry...?" Ino said, sweatdropping.

With Neji and Naruto...

"So, do you like Sakura or what?" Naruto asked.

"It's not that I like her all that much, it's just that I don't like Lee." Neji replied.

"Ohh, I see. You are not a very good teammate." Naruto said.

"No, I'm not, am I?" Neji said smugly.

With Kiba and Akamaru...

"Well, that didn't work out so well." Kiba said as Sakura hurried away.

I told you it wouldn't work, didn't I, fool? We should just quit now and save any future embarrassment.

"You're right. We should keep trying! I knew you would think so, buddy!" Kiba said. Akamaru sweatdropped.

With Kankuro...

"Why'd she run away?" Kankuro asked no one in particular.

"Maybe it's because you play with dolls." Matsuri, who happened to be standing nearby, said. She naturally knew about Kankuro's abilities. I mean, she was Gaara's student.

"Yeah. Hey... wait a second!" Kankuro said. Matsuri began giggling and went off to another end of the room. "Where are you going?"

"I have to do something. See ya later!" She said as she hurried off.

"Now what could be so important? Oh well, it's not like I care. I have more important things to worry about." Kankuro said as he started to formulate a plan.

With the Women and Gai...

"Ino, where were you?" Tenten asked as her blonde friend approached.

"Oh, nothing really. I was just taking a walk is all." Ino said, laughing as she rubbed the back of her head, looking very much like the liar she was.

"Right... Well, Lady Hokage says that all betters need to stay here, so as to make sure that there's no interference or cheating or anything like that." Tenten said.

"Oh, right, that makes perfect sense!" Ino said, sweatdropping. "Hey, has our little group gotten bigger?" Ino nervously replied.

"Yeah, more people came to place bets. It's nothing big or anything. I mean, one girl bet on some random guy named Ashitaka." Tenten said.

"Uh..." Ino stammered.

"Yeah, none of us know him, either." Tenten said. "You wouldn't believe who some of these people bet on..."

HehHeh... I know it's not the best chapter in the world, but I need some ideas. If you have any ideas for how the boys might try to kiss Sakura, could you PM them to me? (And while you're there, you could maybe check out my profile?) Keep in mind that none of them will be able to actually result in a kiss. Don't worry, she will get kissed eventually, it's just that I don't want it to happen until later. I know how it begins and how it ends, I just need ideas for the stuff in between. Oh, remember how I said something about a new story in the last chapter? Okay, two things: 1) I think that I am going to publish it, it's just that it'll be called "Sakura No Hiou", not "Hiou No Sakura". I mistranslated. And 2) I'm going to write another story that is, like, a prequel to it. I don't know yet what it'll be called, but I'm not going to publish it until after I finish this one. It's, like, the main pairing in both of those stories is the same as this one, so if I published them now, you would all stop reading this because you would know how it ends. Make sense?

P.S. 527 hits, 9 reviews, 5 faves, 9 alerts