Chapter 6: Fighting and Feelings
Sakura wanted to scream. She wanted to punch something or rather someone, she couldn't believe Kiba said that to her. She asked him a simple question and he goes and practically yells in her face. How dare he treat her that way!
'He better hope that we don't run into each other on this test. I swear if we do I'll make sure to take his scroll and give him a piece of my mind.'Sakura began thinking of all kinds of torture she would put Kiba through is she saw him on this test. Her arms were crossed as she walked to where Naruto and Sasuke were, her eyes glaring at anything that was in front of her.
"Hey Sakura, where'd ya go?" Naruto asked. He either couldn't tell that she was upset or just didn't care.
"Nowhere." She simply answered stopping in front of both of them. She just stared right pasted them and glared. 'I swear next time I see him, I'll hit him so hard he'll forget that he's even human! Cha!'
Both boys turned to look at each other before turning back to Sakura.
"Sakura, are you ok?" Naruto bravely asked her. He knew that when she was mad she hits and he didn't want to suffer any damage before they took a life threatening test.
"I'm fine. Come on; let's just get this over with." She grabbed both by their arms and dragged them over to the registration booth.
"You sure you're ok?" Sasuke asked her this time.
"I told you before that I'm fine. Just drop it already." She snapped. She didn't care if it was Sasuke that was talking to her, she was just so mad she was ready to hit the proctor if they came over.
Sasuke not expecting that kind of reaction did what she said and dropped it. He wouldn't admit it but he was worried about Sakura and why she was so upset. It wasn't like her to be this upset over something.
Meanwhile Naruto was trying hard not to burst out in laughter. After hearing Sakura saying how much she loved Sasuke and then snapping at him like that, he was wishing that he had, had his camera with him to record it. But even though he enjoyed Sakura snapping at Sasuke like that he was worried about her as well. He had never seen her this upset before and was worried about who or what caused it.
Getting out of her grip Naruto turned his head to speak to Sasuke, so only he would hear him. "What do you think Sakura is so mad at?" He asked, looking back at his female teammate to see if she heard him. So far it didn't look like she did.
"Who knows," Sasuke just shrugged, putting his hands in his pockets. "If something happened then she would've told us if she wanted us to know. Since she hasn't said anything then we should just drop it and concentrate on the exam." Sasuke replied. He too got out of Sakura's grip and was now walking behind her.
"Man you don't care about anything other then yourself, do you?" Naruto told him turning away. He didn't want to talk with him anymore, he almost forgot how annoying Sasuke could be.
"Idiot." Sasuke muttered mostly to himself but Naruto still heard him and was mad.
"Hey! What'd you call me!"
While those two were busy auguring Sakura was completely ignoring them. She was to busy thinking about what had just happened with her and Kiba.
'He's such a jerk. Just what the heck did I ever do to him to make him hate me so much? He's the one who stopped being friends with me. So he has no right to treat me like I'm some traitor or something.' Sakura thought. She was so mad at Kiba that she knew that if she didn't calm down soon then she would be in big trouble on the test. Not only her but also her teammates as well. Taking in a deep breath she calmed herself down and thought back to the conversation that she just had. 'I still don't understand why he was so mean to me. I only asked him a question about the past and he even said that he would tell me it too. Then again he said when he was ready to. Maybe he wasn't ready yet or maybe he wants to focus on the test now and then he'll tell me.'Sakura thought this and sighed. 'I hate to admit it but he's right. The only thing I should do is focus on the test rather then.'She told herself feeling better a little better now.
"Guys knock it off." Sakura turned around and smiled at her two teammates. "We don't want the other teams to see us fighting. They'll all think that we'll be easy targets and we don't need all these teams attacking us." She said turning back around and walked towards the registration booth.
Naruto and Sasuke just stood there and watched as Sakura began to walk away. They were extremely confused. One minute she was so pissed they thought she would kill them, and now she was suddenly calm.
"Hey Sasuke?" Naruto called.
"Yeah?" Sasuke called back.
"You got any idea what up with Sakura today?" He asked.
"Nope. Not a clue." Sasuke answered putting his hands in his pockets.
"Thought so." Naruto said. He and Sasuke walked ahead to catch up with Sakura. They were worried about her and wondered what could've made her go from angry too happy in just a few minutes.
/With Kiba/
After Sakura left him, he walked back to where his teammates were and was now sulking under a tree growling at himself. He kept replaying his pervious conversation with Sakura in his head and every time he did, it just made him want to bang his head against the tree. How could he be so stupid!
'Damn it! What is wrong with me? I yelled at her just because she was curious about me. I even told her in the past that I would tell her my reason, and then when the perfect opportunity comes I go and blow it.' Kiba let out a heavy sigh and continued to sulk. 'Now Sakura probably hates me for yelling at her.'He really did not like this situation.
"Um…Ki-Kiba, a-are you…uh…"
"Huh?" He looked up from his sulk to stare at Hinata, "What's up? You say something, Hinata?" Was it time for them to start the second part of the test already?
"Well…um…you see…" Hinata stuttered and began to twitch and play with her fingers. "Shino and I…we were wondering if-if something was wrong? You seem…well…very depressed." She told him.
Kiba now understood what was going on. His teammates were worried about him because of how he was acting. Happy that they cared, he gave a small smile. "You guys don't have to worry. I'm fine. I just messed something up that's all." He said calmly on the outside. But on the inside he was still depressed. 'Yeah, I messed up alright. I messed up probably one of my only chances to be alone with Sakura and tell her my feelings when she'snotthinking about Sasuke.'
"Just what did you mess up, Kiba?" Shino asked coming up to stand besides Hinata. "Does it have something to do with the Chunin exams?"
"No, it wasn't that." He put on a fake grin. "Look it doesn't matter, so let's just drop it." Kiba said standing up. He was about to walk away when Shino's next question stopped him in his tracks.
"By something else, do you mean that it has something to do with Sakura?" Kiba just stood there, frozen in his spot by Shino's words. How he figured out his feelings for Sakura, he'll never know. Feeling the muscles moving in his body again, Kiba turned back around to face his teammates. You couldn't see it but he had a faint blush on his cheeks.
"S-Sakura? Nah! No way? Why would anything I do have to do with Sakura?" He tried to convince them but it looked like they weren't buying it. Heck, he wouldn't haven't bought it. He sucked at lying when it came to his feelings for Sakura. He didn't like keeping them in, he wanted the whole village to know about his feelings for her, so it made it hard for him to lie about them.
"B-but Kiba weren't you and S-Sakura good friends back when we were at the academy?" Hinata asked. She clearly remembered seeing two playing together when they were kids.
"Yes they were. From what I remember they were very close friends, but Kiba stopped hanging around her once Sakura and Ino started their rivalry with each other over Sasuke." Shino fixed his sunglass, turning his head to face Hinata. "Doesn't it seem a little odd that Kiba just happened to stop being friends with Sakura after learning that she liked Sasuke?" Shino looked back at Kiba, who was no longer looking at them. He kept his gaze off to the side, watching the other teams. His gaze moved from team to team until he found Sakura again, holding hands with both Sasuke and Naruto. Watching that action made him give a low possessive growl.
Hinata took a minute to think before she gasped and looked at Kiba. "K-Kiba? Did you…are you still…"
Knowing that he couldn't hide it anymore he sighed in defeat and told them. "Yeah. I liked Sakura or rather I still like her. After I learned that she liked Sasuke it hurt too much to be around her so I stopped being friends with her." He finally moved his gaze back to his teammates when he saw that Sakura was no longer holding the hands of her two male teammates.
"So this thing that you messed up on today, I assume that it has something to do with Sakura?" Shino asked him. He knew that if Kiba's mind was somewhere else during the test then it wouldn't be a good thing for him or for their team.
"Yeah. We were talking and she asked me something and I yelled at her for it." He told them remembering what had just happened.
"Wh-what did s-she ask?" Hinata wondered.
Sighing again he told them. "She asked me why I stopped being friends with her and stuff. I didn't mean to yell but a part of me was worried that if I told her then her thoughts would be on that and instead of the test." Kiba looked down at the ground, even if his actions were to help Sakura, it only made her hate him.
"And the other part?" Shino urged Kiba to continue. He knew there was more the Inuzuka wanted and/or needed to say.
Kiba grunt but continued. "The other part was afraid to tell her because I knew that I would be rejected because she's in love with Sasuke." After listening to himself he realized that he was a jerk to Sakura and now she'll probably never speak to him again. After all she could hold a grudge, her and Ino were still fighting.
"I-I'm s-sorry about that K-Kiba." Hinata said trying to make him feel better.
He just gave a tired smile at his friends. "Thanks, but you don't need to say sorry Hinata. I yelled at her and I messed up that's all there is to it." Kiba said.
"Maybe not." Shino spoke up. "People's feelings and emotions change like the weather. It can be cold and fierce winter and then turn into a calm and peaceful summer."
Kiba had no idea what Shino just said. "Dude, I got no idea what you just said right now, but it somehow helped. Thanks. Both of you." He thanked both of his teammates. He still felt a little said but now he wasn't going to give up. The next time he saw Sakura he would apologize to her and hopefully try to explain everything to her.
The Chunin exams soon started and every team was ready. They were prepared for the worst and ready to fight. Team seven especially, they weren't going to lose, they planned to win this thing. But once the test started an enemy they never expected showed up and fought against the three genin. The enemy was Orochimaru and he made the test living hell for the three, knocking out Naruto, putting a cursed mark on Sasuke, and sending three assassins to finish the job. Naruto and Sasuke were still out of it so Sakura fought them off with everything she had. She even cut off her hair to save them, and when things looked bed Rock Lee and even Ino and her squad showed up to help out.
That's when things got weird, Sasuke woke up but he had an evil aura around him and he didn't seem like himself. To Sakura he seemed more like Orochimaru and that scared her. Sakura, who would always agree to loving Sasuke, was afraid of him at that very moment. She knew that she had to stop him and she did, she was afraid but she couldn't allow Sasuke to go on and act like that snake.
Things sort of clamed down after that, everyone went on their own way to get a scroll. Squad seven was no different; they waited for their wounds to heal and then went out to get the scroll that they needed. They almost didn't get it but with the help of Kabuto they got their scroll and finished the test. They entered the tower and went on to the third part of the exam.
"It is time everyone!" The Third Hokage, Sarutobi, announced to everyone in the room. They all gathered into rows of their teams. Just as he was about to open his mouth again the final team walked through the doors. "Glad to see that you could make it, Squad Seven." Everyone turned around to see Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke walk through the doors.
"Ah! Sasuke!" Ino called and waved at him. She was so happy that Sasuke was there.
"N-Naruto's here too." Hinata said to herself. She blushed looking at Naruto who was wearing his usual grin.
Squad seven took their place and waited to see what happened next. Once in place Sakura looked around to see that not only was Ino and her team here but Kiba's too. 'I'm glad they all made it.'She looked around some more and saw that the sound ninja team was there as well. 'I just wish that they weren't here.' Sakura mind was replaying everything that happened with the sound-nin and knew if she had to fight them again, she would be in a lot of trouble. She doubted she would be able t handle them a second time.
As Sakura was turning away from the sound ninjas, out of the corner of her eye she could've sworn she saw Kiba looking at her. And she was right. The minute Sakura walked through the door with her team; Kiba couldn't take his eyes off her.
'Yes! All right, Sakura made it! Not only that but she cut her hair too. I wonder why? It doesn't matter, she looks much better with it short.'Kiba couldn't help but grin when he saw Sakura' short pink locks, he loved her hair short. It just made her look a lot cuter and Kiba couldn't help but want to run his hands through her hair.
While he was watching Sakura he caught of whiff of her scent and frowned. 'What happened to her out there? Her scent is so weak, like she just went through hell and back. She, and even the rest of her team, all of them look ready to faint.' Kiba was worried about the next part of the exams. He could only hope it wouldn't be too much on Sakura, even from this distance he saw that she needed time to rest.
But even with that in mind, he still wanted to know what made her cut her hair? Was it because of Sasuke, or was there another reason? 'I'll ask her later, after I win this thing of course. Once I win this and become a Chunin, I'll take Sakura in my arms and tell everything. I'll show her that she can forget all about Sasuke and that I'm the perfect guy for her.' Kiba told himself. He was fired up and couldn't wait for the third part of the exam.
"I'm glad to see that you're all alright and here. I must admit that I'm surprised to see most of you but I'm still glad nonetheless." The third Hokage spoke up. He then began to explain about the Chunin exams and why they held them. After that the proctor Hayate Gekko stepped in and explained how the third exam worked. He told them about the preliminaries and things began to pick up there.
Sasuke was the first to fight and he won his fight, but passed out once it was over. Sakura and Ino were worried about Sasuke while Kiba could've cared less.
'Even when this guy loses he still gets Sakura's attention. When is she gonna see that he's nothing more then a stupid jerk who faints after a little fight like that?' He thought glaring down at Sasuke, who was being taken away by the medical team. 'He's just lucky that I didn't fight him. He would've done more then fainted after I was done with him.' Kiba thought evilly thinking of all attacks he would use on Sasuke. How he would beat him to a pulp with Sakura cheering for him the whole time.
"Arf arf." Akamaru started speaking to Kiba. He was telling him that something was different with Sasuke's chakra. Sniffing the air Kiba's eyes widened in shock.
"Yeah you're right. There is something different. Something darker." Kiba looked at Sasuke and then at Naruto and Sakura. "Just what happened during this test anyways?" He wondered out loud, both Hinata and Shino heard him.
"Something wrong, Kiba?" Shino asked. He kept his hands in his pockets, but Kiba could tell by his voice that he was tense about something.
"Yeah, did you guys pick up anything on Sasuke's chakra? The feeling it was giving off, it feels…dark." He asked looking back down at Sasuke who was leaving the room Kakashi by his side.
"Now that you mention it…" Hinata agreed looking down at Sasuke also. When she was watching him fight and when he used his chakra she felt fear. She felt dark energy in the room and she didn't understand why.
"Yes. My bugs were making a fuss over it but I can't tell why. I know that it has something to do with his chakra." Shino told them.
"J-just what d-do you think happened t-to him that made him this way?" Hinata asked them both. They both shook their heads, saying they had no clue what could have happened.
"Well whatever happened…" Out of the corner of his eye he looked at Naruto and then Sakura. "I just hope that nothing else does." He muttered loud enough for only himself and Akamaru could hear.
With that fight gone, the preliminaries continued on. Shino went on after Sasuke, one of the sand ninjas came after that and soon the fourth round came and it surprised almost everyone.
Sakura Haruno
Vs.
Ino Yamanaka
Everyone who knew the two girls couldn't believe their eyes. They didn't know whether to expect a good fight or a little slap fight. Sakura and Ino were wondering the same thing, what kind of a fight would they have? And more importantly, who would win? Both girls stepped in the ring and you could almost see that the tension in the air.
"Of all the girls Ino had to fight it would have to be Sakura, what a mess." Shikamaru sighed looking down at his teammate.
"I know, I hope Ino will be ok." Choji agreed with him. Both he and Shikamaru knew of their once strong friendship and they wondered what could happen in this fight.
Kiba was no different, he was wondering about the fight as well. He heard what Shikamaru and Choji said and he had to agree. Of all the people to fight against one another it would have to been them. 'This doesn't look good. Ino was always stronger then Sakura back at the academy, I'm sure Sakura has gotten stronger from training with Kakashi, but still…' Kiba looked down at Sakura and wanted so badly to run down there and help her. He knew that she had a strong spirit but still he felt protective her now because he had no idea what could happen. 'Can she even bring herself to fight Ino?' He looked at both girls, desperately wanting to trade places with Sakura so she wouldn't have to go through with this.
"Begin." Hayate gave the signal and both girls attacked. But it was nothing special they were either throwing each other's punches or throwing kunai that they could easily dodge. Things picked up a little soon after, Ino punched Sakura in the stomach, making her bend over because of the pain.
"There!" Ino went in to punch her but a flash back of a five year old Sakura smiling at her came into Ino's head. She gasped at the image and ended up slapping Sakura across the face instead of punching her. Everyone gasp at the hit and Ino looked down at her hand in shame.
Sakura couldn't believe what Ino just did. She had her. She could've punched her and then finished her off. Why did she stop? Why didn't she hit her? Sakura wanted to know but couldn't figure out why. Then seeing the look in Ino's eyes told her something and she had a flashback to when they were kids and had to make a flower arrangement.
Sakura straightened up, hands turning into fists as she got herself ready. "Alright, listen up Ino." Her voice was full, she wasn't hesitating anymore. "I'm not going to fight with you over Sasuke." She wouldn't fight this battle over him. This battle was to important for a reason like that.
"What did you say?" Ino asked, she was upset at Sakura for even saying that.
"I'm not the weak needy girl I use to be. You're not even on my radar and you're not Sasuke's type, Ino-pig!" She knew what she was doing, it may have sounded mean, like she was total snob but Sakura needed to get Ino mad so they could have a real fight.
Ino's eyes glared into hers. She was angry. "Sakura! You better watch your step. You have any idea who you're mouthing off too?" Ino wouldn't let her talk to her like that. "Don't press your luck with me, little billboard-brow!" She was ready for the fight now and that's what Sakura wanted.
Kiba was watching from the stands and was amazed by Sakura's scent. It was becoming full and powerful. She was standing up to Ino with such pride and strength that he felt like screaming.'Amazing. Sakura's getting stronger within the course of this match. She's fighting Ino like an Alpha.'He liked how this was going, how Sakura was behaving.
Sakura stared at her old best friend and remembered a day when Ino gave her, her dream. The day of the flower arrangement, Ino helped Sakura do more then just pick flowers. It helped her realize what her goal really was. Not to win over Sasuke, but to show Ino that she was strong.
'Ino, all along I've wanted to be like you, I've wanted to become a person that could be strong and fight as a true shinobi.' Sakura removed her leaf headband and wrapped it around her forehead.'But now it's time I surpassed you, it's time for me to be the best.' Sakura looked on at Ino, she would not lose.
Ino copied her action, putting her own headband around her forehead, "I understand, Sakura."
Both then got a serious look on their faces and attacked. But this time it was for real. They were fighting like real kunoichi. Everyone who knew the girls were amazed and impressed by how they were fighting now. The two aimed a punch for the others and hit head on, causing everyone to gasp at the power they were using. They all knew that the two kunoichis were serious now, but they still didn't know who would win this.
They continued their fighting, Sakura showing Ino and everyone just how good her chakra control was. She made three clones, all three running with burst of speed from her chakra until Sakura hit Ino with a chakra enhanced punch. "I'm not some crybaby anymore. You play with fire, and you're gonna get burned!" She called out; she would fight this battle with everything she had. "Let's see your best, Ino!"
"It's not like I need your invitation, you know." Ino wiped off the blood that spilled from her mouth after being hit. "I'll give you my best, but your not gonna like it." Ino stood up and the two girls went back to aim hits at the other.
'I won't lose!' Sakura thought as she dodged some of Ino's punched. 'I can't lose. I swore that I wouldn't. I'm a kunoichi and I will fight like one, not like some little flower girl.' Sakura just managed to doge a kick to her head as she remembered those words. 'Flower girl?Kiba said that to me once, the day of the flower arranging assignment.' Sakura's mind began to wonder as she thought back to that day.
/Flashback/
Class had just ended and their sensei was putting their flowers all around the room. Ino stayed behind to help because she wanted the flowers to get enough sunlight and water. So that left Sakura to walk home alone.
"Well if it isn't billboard brow." Ami and her friends walked up to Sakura. "Where's your little friend miss piggy? I want to tell her that just because she scared me with that fake poison flower doesn't mean that she's won." Ami placed her hands on her hips, trying to look tough.
"S-she's with our sensei." Sakura told her looking down at the ground. She was afraid of what Ami might do to her. Without Ino, she was sure that Ami would do something to her.
"So the little pig isn't around? Then there's no one to stop us from having fun, now is there billboard brow?" Ami smiled evil moving her hand to Sakura's head.
"Actually there is, so back off. Now!" Sakura turned around and smiled. Kiba was walking up towards them and he didn't look happy. "I thought I told you guys before to stop picking on Sakura!" He had his arms crossed, with Akamaru growling at the three bullies. His face held a frown towards the girls. "Leave her alone."
Ami gave a scowl at Kiba but backed away when she heard him and his dog growl at her, this time louder."Whatever." Ami just scoffed and walked away, her two friends following after her. She hated how Sakura was always being protected by either Kiba or Ino, treating her like a little princess. Ami swore that one day she would get revenge on Sakura for that.
Once gone Kiba turned around and smiled at Sakura. "You ok? Hope they didn't do anything to you before I got here." He uncrossed his arms and walked towards Sakura. Akamaru barked happily at Sakura, saying he was glad that she was ok.
"No. I'm fine. They were picking on me before but Ino took care of it. Oh, and thank you for helping me." She thanked him with a smile. She knew that she was lucky to have good friends like Kiba and Ino and she was grateful to them both for always being with her.
"No problem." Kiba told her. He was upset that they were picking on her before but was happy that she was ok now. "Want me to walk you home? You know just in case they decide to you know come back?"
"Sure." She agreed and they were off. They started talking about the day's events and that's when Sakura told him about the flower arrangement.
"Wow, I can't think of a more boring assignment then that. I mean what's so great about flowers anyway?" He asked looking up at the sky. It was such a clear day that it seemed almost perfect to Kiba.
"Well according to our sensei she says that they help out on mission like for poisons and medicine." Sakura explained to him remembering everything her sensei told her.
"Yeah, but what else?" Kiba asked now looking at Sakura. He didn't see what made flowers so special. They couldn't be used as a weapon, only if you grind them up, and that takes to long.
"Well...they're pretty." She answered the first thing that came to her mind. Kiba gave a little chuckle at that. "They look really nice put together, especially Ino's. Her bouquet was amazing and beautiful." She remembered how nice Ino's flowers looked together.
"Well I'm sure that yours looked nice too." Kiba told her. He was sure that hers looked great too. After all Sakura was named after a cherry blossom so she should be good with flowers. That and because she was very cute in Kiba's mind, so anything she made had to be perfect.
Sakura gave a sad shake of her head. "No. Mine wasn't anything special.. Actually I didn't know what to do so Ino helped me," Sakura remembered how plain her flowers looked. "Mine were nothing special." She looked down at the ground sadly.
Kiba looked at Sakura and saw that she was really up by this and he wanted to cheer her up. "Well maybe Ino's were so special because she grew up around flowers, so she has more knowledge about stuff like that. Guess you could say she's almost like a flower girl." He told her with a sheepish grin.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. Ino's a flower girl and I'm not." Sakura sighed. "I'm just a bud." She added, remembering what Ino had said to her before. Sakura was a bud that hadn't bloomed yet and Ino was a cosmos.
Kiba and Sakura finally arrived at her house, she was just about to go in when Kiba's voice stopped her. "Yeah, you're right. You're not a flower girl, you're a kunoichi," He told her. "Ino may have her own special talent but I know for sure that you have your own as well," He held a bright smile on his face. "I'm sure what you mean by a bud, but I do know that someday you'll grow up to be one the best ninjas this village has. So yeah, I guess you'll grow from a bud into a great female ninja!" He grinned hoping that he was cheering her up. There wasn't a doubt in his mind that Sakura would grow up to be a strong ninja. He would too and they would protect this village together.
Sakura couldn't believe what she was hearing. No one, not even Ino has ever told her anything like that. She could feel tears of happiness in her eyes but she quickly blinked them away. "Thank you, Kiba." She quickly kissed him on the cheek and went inside.
Kiba who couldn't move just stood there outsides Sakura's door, with a red face and a happy grin. Once he got his feet moving again, he ran all the way home with a smile that said something good happened to him. "Yes!" He shouted once home and inside his room. He got a kiss from Sakura and he felt like he was on cloud nine.
/End flashback/
'Yeah, that's right, I'm a kunoichi. Ino may have her own special talents but I have mine and I won't let her beat me.'Sakura was now fired up. Ducking away from Ino she jumped out of the way and then moved and punched her right in between the eyes sending her flying. 'I will not give up.'
"This isn't how this was supposed to go! How can you be evenly matched with me?" Ino couldn't understand it. How could Sakura have gotten this strong in such a short amount of time? She was supposed to be stronger then her. When did she change so much?
Up in the stands, the rest of leaf genin were wondering the same thing as Ino. When had Sakura gotten up to the leave as Ino? Kiba however wasn't thinking about that. 'Sakura really is amazing. She got so strong so fast, it's incredible. I've never seen her like this before. It's so…cool.'Kiba gave a happy sigh as he watched the fight. He liked this new Sakura. He liked it a lot.
"Kiba," Shino called his attention away from the fight for a moment. "You're drooling." He pointed to the drool that was coming out of Kiba's open mouth.
Quickly wiping away the drool, Kiba just gave a sheepish thanks to Shino and turned his attention back to the fight. He didn't want to miss anything of Sakura; he was enjoying watching her fight. This was giving him another reason why Sakura was the perfect girl for him. She was cute, smart, sweet, and knows how to kick butt in a fight and still look cool and innocent while doing it.
"Kiba," Shino spoke up again. "You're drooling again."
Sakura gave a quick laugh at Ino's shouts. "I guess you're right Ino, your obsession with your looks and your hair can't be surpassed. I've been training to hard to worry about that stuff." She said to her, she knew she was stepping into dangerous territory but she had to do it. She wanted, needed, Ino to fight her with everything she has.
Ino looked on at Sakura before she released a growl of frustration and pulled out a kunai. "You're gonna pay for that. I've had enough of you making fun of me." In slow motion, Ino took the kunai and cut her hair from its ponytail, leaving only a small fraction of how long it used to be. She threw it to the ground and made a hand sign for the Mind Transfer Jutsu. Sakura saw this and believed she dodge it but instead she walked into a trap Ino laid for her with her hair and chakra. With her tapped, Ino entered her body, trying to make her surrender this match.
Ino/Sakura raised her hand to the proctor. "Now I, Sakura Haruno, would like to say that I withdra…"
"No! Sakura don't!" Naruto cried out to his teammate, hoping his voice would reach her and help her win.
"Man, that kid is just so annoying." Ino/Sakura complained as Naruto continued to shout.
"You worked so hard to get here, Sakura! Don't disgrace yourself by losing to that lame Ino girl!" Naruto shouted out, leaning over the railing. He didn't want Sakura to lose this match. He could see that it was important to her and if she lost like this, it would crush her.
'Listen to him, Sakura. Break free of Ino's will. You can do it, I know you can,'Kiba wanted nothing more then to shout with Naruto but something was holding him back. He didn't know what, but he couldn't find his voice. 'Show Ino and everyone here just how strong you really are!'
Ino wanted to laugh. She couldn't believe what and idiot Naruto was. "Yell all you want but there's nothing you can do now." Ino muttered to herself. But just as the words left her mouth something inside her felt weird and her control on Sakura was beginning to slip.
'Naruto's so annoying!' Sakura's voice appeared. She was coming back.
Ino gasped as she heard this. "Sakura? This can't be happening?" She tried to regain control but she couldn't. No one had ever broken control of this jutsu! It wasn't possible to do so.
'Yeah, and he's right. I can't let Ino beat me.'Sakura fought for control over her body. She wasn't about to let Ino win, she would not give up!
"What's wrong? Are you withdrawing? Well are you or not?" Hayate asked, he wasn't sure if he should call the match off yet or not. This whole battle was confusing him.
"Argh! No, I won't be withdrawing! Not today or any other day!" Sakura was back in control and she made sure that it was staying that way. She fought Ino inside of her and pushed her out of her body.
"Yeah! Alright sakura!" Naruto shouted.
'Yes, she did it. She got Ino out of her.' Kiba couldn't help but smile as he sniffed the air and found that Sakura held only her own scent. Ino's scent was no longer mixed in with hers. He smiled at how strong she had gotten, they all knew about Ino's jutsu and knew that it was nearly impossible to escape from. He was glad that Sakura beat it.
Sakura was on her knees panting, trying to catch her breath and some of her strength back. 'Yes, I did it. I got Ino out of me. I really owe Naruto for calling out to me like that, and also…'With a quick glance, she saw Kiba looking down at her. 'I owe Kiba too. I don't know how, but I know he helped me too.'
Both girls stood up after the regained a little of their strength back. They were both totally drained and only had enough power in them for one last attack. So they went off, they each punch one another and sent them flying, knocking them both out.
"Since neither opponent is able to continue, by double knockout, no one gets through the fourth battle of the preliminary. This match is over." Hayate announced disappointing many who were enjoying this match.
Kakashi and Asuma both picked up their students and brought them back up to their teams. Shikamaru, Choji, Naruto, and Lee all gathered around Sakura and Ino. All trying to see if they were alright.
'Sakura.' Kiba made a move to go join in, he was worried about her and wanted to see for himself that she was ok, but Shino's hand on his shoulder stopped him.
"You shouldn't crowd around her. Let her rest and relax for a little while before you go to her." He told Kiba, it would be better for him to leave her alone for now and talk to her later. Besides, he knew there was a possibility that Sakura could still be mad at Kiba from before so it would be better to talk to her later.
Looking back one last time Kiba agreed and stayed where he was. He wanted to be with Sakura when she woke up but he would listen to Shino's words.
The next two matched came and went, with Temari beating Tenten and Shikamaru bating the sound-nin. Both Ino and Sakura had woken up by now, and Ino cheer on Shikamaru while Sakura thanked Naruto for helping her gets out of the jutsu.
'Yeah sure, Naruto gets a thank you and I get nothing.' Kiba glared at the grinning Naruto, happy that Sakura thanked him. Kiba growled at the attention he was receiving from Sakura. 'Annoying little…huh?' Before he could finish his thoughts Kiba saw Sakura looking at him and monition for him to step back and talk to her. He nodded and stepped away from his team and went near Sakura.
"So...what's up?" He didn't know what else to say. He thought for sure that she would still be mad at him. So why did she want to talk to him. 'Don't tell me that she's going to yell at me.' Kiba was now worried. He knew that he should have apologized by now but there wasn't any time, and he didn't want to distract her during her fight.
"Nothing, I just wanted to say sorry about getting mad before." She told him, placing her hands behind her back, smiling at Kiba.
"Wha…?" A look of shock and confusion appeared on Kiba's face. He didn't think that she would say that. "So you're not mad at me anymore?"
"Don't get your hopes up to much. I'm still a little annoyed that you yelled at me." She turned to give him one of her famous smile that always made his heart skip a beat. "I know that you had your reasons why you yelled at me." She still wasn't quite sure why he yelled but she knew that he had to have a reason and for now knowing that was good enough. For now. "Well that's all I wanted to say. Good luck when your fight comes."
Kiba was confused now. She forgave him? How could she forgive him after he yelled at her like that? He couldn't figure it out but was happy nonetheless, he couldn't help but to allow a happy grin spread out onto his face. Sakura was no longer mad at him and it seemed that they got a little closer in the process of all this.
"Kiba? Why do you look so happy?" Sakura saw the grin and couldn't help but smile herself. She had a feeling that he was grinning because he was glad that she wasn't mad at him.
Kiba, not wanting to look stupid, immediately stopped grinning and tried to come up with an excuse for the grin. He couldn't. "I wasn't grinning. Just what would I have to grin about anyways? Looks like you took one too many blows to the head Sakura, you're seeing things now." Kiba crossed his arms and turned his head away so she couldn't see the blush on his face.
Even though Sakura couldn't see the blush, she could tell that he was lying. "What is the 'wittle' puppy happy that I forgave him?" She had to laugh at how weird she sounded talking to Kiba like that. She felt like she was talking to a little puppy that was still upset and worried over being scolded.
Kiba turned his head back around to look at Sakura. "No! The 'wittle' puppy is not happy because of that." He tried to argue. A blush was still on his face. Even though it felt weird being called a puppy, he liked how things were going with Sakura. It felt natural to talk with her like this.
Sakura could only smile and laugh. "Oh, come on Kiba. I can tell that you're lying so fuss up. You were upset because I was angry at you right?" She giggled at the Inuzuka.
Kiba blushed ten shades darker and couldn't look at Sakura. What was he supposed to say now? This wasn't the time or the place where he wanted to confess his feelings to her, and he didn't even know if there would be another test after this one. So for now, Kiba juts lied. "Yeah, whatever you say Sakura. As if I would get happy over something like that. You're crazy." He turned his back on her and crossed his arms. "I seriously think you need to lie down. All those blows to the head must have messed with your brain." He added pointing at his head, hoping she didn't hate him to bad after this.
She couldn't believe it, again! She just apologized to him for getting anger and forgave him and he has the nerve to taunt her. He was making fun of her after she told that that she forgave him! "Kiba…you're such a jerk!" She yelled at him and walked back to her team.
At the word jerk, Kiba could feel his heart break. 'Great, now she hates me and thinks I'm a jerk. Urgh! I don't want her to hate me, I want to win her over and saw her that I love her. Damn it!'Sighing he walked back to his own team and watched the rest of
"It's time for the next match." Hayate announced, as the names appeared on the board.
Naruto Uzumaki
Vs.
Kiba Inuzuka
"Yes! It's here! Its here at last! The moment I've been waiting for! Finally I get a chance to show what I got!" Naruto was extremely excited to finally fight. He was ready to go all out and win this thing.
"Look at that, it's us against the kid. Hey Akamaru, I think you and I just won the lottery." Kiba was smirking. He was hoping for a tougher opponent but he figured that Naruto was good enough. He could at least show Sakura his speed and how fast he would knock Naruto out. 'I'll show her that I'm strong and can protect her better then Sasuke. Once I win this match I'll apologize and take things one-step at a time. I will win Sakura over!'With that thought he walked away and went down into the ring to get the match started.
"Good luck, Naruto. Do your best." Sakura knew that she was going to cheer for him through his match just like he did with her, but a part of her also wanted to cheer for Kiba. Even though she was still mad, a part of her wanted to cheer for him. Turning her head she saw Kiba walking down into the ring, Naruto following him from behind. 'You do your best too, Kiba.' With that thought she looked away and waited for the match to begin.