DISCLAIMER: I do not own the 'Naruto' or 'Naruto: Shippuden' series or characters.
TENTEN'S PARTY
Producing a box of tissues, I was bombarded by almost every boy in their attempts to get a tissue to stem the flow of blood dripping from their noses. Once all the blood had been wiped away we set off for Hinata's house, most of us chattering excitedly to our neighbours about the concept of a fun time to be had.
The sound of thudding music was heard about a street away from where we were heading. So loud that the surrounding houses were practically jumping off their foundations.
"Wow. I think my ears are bleeding." joked Kiba, stuffing his fingers in his ears and pretending to clear them, so he could hear again.
Both Tenten and Neji glared at him.
"Very funny. My sides are splitting it's so funny." retorted Tenten.
"Kiba kinda has a point, Tenten." Tenten and turned to look at me where I was standing in between Naruto and Sakura. Naruto, naturally, had his arm wrapped around my shoulders and Sakura had linked arms with me. Both were wincing from the noise.
"Why is the music up so loud? I'm surprised nobody has complained to Lady Tsunade about the noise pollution by now." I said, backing up Kiba's comment. Tenten realised that her retort had been uncalled for and that both Kiba and I were right. She screwed up her face in determination and charged forward ahead of us.
"I'm going ahead to turn the music down. Meet you there!" and disappeared around the corner ahead of us.
We followed at a leisurely pace and when we saw the Hyuuga mansion up ahead, we saw somebody slumped against the fence looking completely bored and probably wondering why he was here in the first place.
"Hey, it's Sai!" yelled Naruto, who started waving his hand and yelling out to the boy.
Hinata looked around Naruto and saw Sai, who was dressed in a tight pair of white skinny jeans, an odd looking black shirt with one long sleeve and one short sleeve and a white sleeveless hoodie.
Nice fashion statement... I thought telepathically to Sakura who nodded and giggled.
Sai looked up at his name and saw us coming towards him. I noticed that he looked most especially at Hinata, to my delight. Hinata, however, had blushed deeply and looked like she was about to faint – and she wasn't even looking at Naruto. Disengaging my arm from Sakura, I went over to Hinata and immediately grabbed her hand and led her over to Sai.
"Sai, this is Hinata." I said, beaming from ear to ear. Sai studied Hinata for a brief moment before cracking a small smile and extending a hand for Hinata to shake.
"Hi." Hinata takes Sai's hand and found that she really didn't want to let go. She smiled shyly at him as she responded with a shaky 'Hey." I looked over at Sakura and gave her the thumbs up. Sakura squealed excitedly, and loud enough that everybody started and looked at her incredulously. When we entered the Hyuuga mansion, the first thing we saw was Tenten standing at the entrance (the music had been turned down thankfully) looking a cross between amused and revolted.
"Tenten, what's wrong?" asked Neji, then looked at why Tenten was looking like that and cringed.
"Oh. That's what's wrong." he muttered.
Gaara and Kankuro, who had arrived a few minutes before we had, were sitting on a couch side-by-side with the polite but slightly scared expressions on their faces that we later confirmed to have been caused by Hinata's overly enthusiastic mother who was fawning over the two Sand shinobi. This was presumably because both boys were handsome.
"Can I offer you another mini pizza?" gushes Mrs. Hyuuga, beaming from ear to ear with a huge plate of assorted mini pizzas, now currently shoved under the nose of the desperately uncomfortable Gaara.
"No, thank you." the Kazekage muttered politely in a strangled voice. Mrs. Hyuuga retreated swiftly and placed the mini pizzas on the table.
"Oh! It's no trouble at all. I assure you!" she said, then trotted back towards the kitchen. Everybody had to struggle to contain themselves as a mortified Hinata flushed a deeper red than she had ever gone before, even when she had been blushing in front of an oblivious Naruto.
"Mother-" muttered Hinata. Neji was still looking annoyed at his Aunt's obvious flirting – made even more gross by the fact that both Gaara and Kankuro were both twice her junior.
"How embarrassing!" he exclaims. I nearly started laughing again when Kankuro spotted us coming in and practically fell over his own feet as he grovelled at my feet, clinging to them like a child who didn't wish to be parted by his mother when she had just dropped him off at daycare.
"Oh! Thank god! She's been driving us crazy!" Gaara came over to lean against the wall adjacent from us, looking peeved at Kankuro's behaviour and at where Naruto's arm was now hanging. I awkwardly patted Kankuro's head as I looked at both Naruto and Sakura who were staring at him dubiously, and Sakura tried to stifle a giggle with her hand.
"Kankuro, get up! You're making a fool of yourself!" said Temari, disengaging herself from Shikamaru's hand and coming over to her younger brother's side and hauling him to his feet.
Unfortunately, Kankuro hadn't had time to let go of my legs as his sister yanked him to his feet, so when he came shooting up to his feet, I got swept off mine. Kankuro fumbled as he tried to maintain a proper grip on me as I screamed in surprise and protest. Next thing everyone realised was that I was seated uncomfortably in Kankuro's arms with angry glares coming from both Naruto and Gaara.
"Kankuro! Put me down!" I screamed, fearing for my safety and I clung desperately to his neck. Kankuro did so immediately and Naruto caught me on impact.
"Sorry, Akima. Temari caught me off guard." he apologised, sincerely.
"It's alright." I replied. We looked around the room and saw that the Rec Room that was mostly occupied by Hinata and Neji, when they weren't studying, training, out on assigned missions or hanging with their friends, had been heavily decorated with everything but the kitchen sink. A karaoke machine had been installed in the room much to the boys' (except Naruto's and most of the girls') horror.
"You've gotta be kidding, Tenten." I gasped and backed away quickly, before thudding into Naruto. Tenten shook her head and grabbing me by the hand led me over to the couch Gaara and Kankuro had only just vacated and pushed me down into it. I was shortly accompanied by Sakura and Naruto.
"No, I'm not kidding. This is loads of fun!" Everybody took a seat somewhere and looked at Tenten apprehensively as she took up the role of emcee.
"Okay. Our first victim is going to be Temari!" she announced and pulled Temari onto the stage, thrusting the microphone into her hands. Temari looked like a deer-in-headlights but then, as she scanned the song selections grinned when she saw her favourite song was on there.
"I'm going to be singing: Sexy Naughty Bitchy by Tata Young." she exclaimed excitedly. Kankuro and Gaara exchanged glances and rolled their eyes.
"Typical." muttered Kankuro. Temari came over and smacked him over the back of the head, causing him to see stars before his eyes.
"I heard that idiot!" she snaps and Kankuro glares at Temari as he rubs the back of his head. Temari glances at all of the girls individually then cracks a cheeky grin as a plan forms in her head.
"I need ALL the girls up here with me please!" I felt my eyes widen as I felt the couch cushion beside me bounce and then saw Sakura stampeding forward with the other four kunoichi to stand next to Temari on the stage, as all the boys folded themselves into the foetal position to avoid getting stepped on. I folded my arms across my chest and slumped back into the couch, refusing to move.
"C'mon Akima. Naruto, give her a push!" insisted Temari.
I gave Naruto a 'try it and you're dead meat' glare that matched Sasuke's so well that Naruto shuddered in horror.
"Don't do that, Akima. You look like Sasuke when you do that." he complained. When everybody started chanting: AKIMA! AKIMA! AKIMA!
I sighed irritatedly and moved my legs off Naruto's lap and stood up to everyone's cheers and reluctantly joined the other girls as back up for Temari's song.
When the song ended, the girls had posed together like Charlie's Angels and all the boys got to their feet and started loudly wolf-whistling and cheering as the girls hopped down from the stage and went back to their seats.
Except for Temari, however, who made a beeline for Shikamaru and plowed him down where he was sitting and started kissing him until they were both breathless and he had gone red all the way up to his hairline. Tenten looked at them in mortification, while Gaara snarled and started cracking his knuckles, before he looked up and me and saw the stern expression on my face. He calmed down, but ended up glaring resentfully at Shikamaru for the rest of the night.
"Oookay! That was inappropriate!" said Ino, fixing up her fringe that had gone funny during her dancing on stage with Temari and the rest of us. Naruto had to restrain me in a bear hug to keep me from reaching over and bopping her over the head as Sakura pointedly reminded her of something.
"Like you wouldn't do the same thing with Kiba?" she asked, gesturing to her boyfriend, whom she was sitting casually on his lap.
Ino snapped shut her compact and looked at Kiba who smiled slightly at her and looked slightly worried as Ino suddenly smirked and snuggled into him.
"Alright! Yeah, I would!" she admitted, kissing Kiba's cheek tenderly. Tenten went onto the next 'unlucky' person.
"Sakura! It's your turn sweetie!" and passed it to a surprised Sakura who stepped up to the plate and smiled shyly at everyone.
"Uh? This song is dedicated to a special someone of mine..." she admitted, blushing a bit.
"Yeah. I think I know who." spat Ino, sarcastically. Sakura flipped Ino off just as her song started playing.
During the song, she encouraged the others who knew the lyrics to Pink's song to think back to when Sasuke was actually still here and the way he used to act around all of us.
And for the second time again, that same memory of the last time Sasuke was ever in Konoha before his big battle against Naruto at the waterfalls, popped into my head. I felt silent tears trickling down my face as Sakura started weeping while she was singing, traveling down her own private memory lane... When Sakura finished her song, she could practically hear the cogs clicking away in her friends' heads, except for obvious reasons, Naruto and I. Sasuke's voice suddenly popped into my head and I gave a start that I tried to pass off as a bout of hiccups.
What's going on?
I growled back at him.
Shit, Sasuke! You scared the crap out of me!
Then I calmed down because Sasuke was exactly the person I wanted to talk to at that moment.
We're doing Karaoke. It's Sakura's turn and you won't believe what she just sang...
I can't be bothered guessing. And I'm pretty sure I know who she'd be singing about.
I sighed in resignation. Of course, Sasuke wouldn't be curious about who Sakura would be singing about. Particularly if that person happened to have broken her heart and sent Naruto on a lifelong mission to bring back that person. Not to mention, that person has secret conversations with his cousin every now and then.
And you would've guessed correctly. But the song she sang to you is actually full of a lot of sorrow, longing and regret...
Sasuke was silent for a moment, registering exactly what I had just said to him. It was clear that he was curious about the song Sakura had just sung that represented her feelings for him that had been accumulated over the last two years.
Really? What's the song called?
I could seriously picture him frowning thoughtfully in my head.
'Who Knew?' by Pink. You know it?
. . . Yeah. I know it. Wow, didn't realise that she felt that way.
I chuckled to myself.
That song is pretty much what all three of us have been secretly thinking for the past two years, Sasuke...
It was so silent in my head that I could hear crickets chirping.
And I'm pretty sure that whatever Sakura's feeling from singing that song, that you feel the same way. You can't deny this...
Sasuke laughed bitterly at my assumption. Regardless or not if that fact happened to be true or not.
I could deny this, but it's obvious you'd see right through me. Or you would have seen some possible 'future' between Sakura and I to provide as evidence...
I scoffed.
I'm not that psychic. I can't ask for things like that. It's just not possible.
Sasuke chuckled again. But then stopped briefly.
What's wrong?
Sasuke snarled under his breath in annoyance.
Oh great! Kabuto's spying on me again. I've gotta go, Akima. See ya tonight.
See you.
I was imagining Sasuke providing pain for Kabuto that I admit, would've been exceptionally fun to watch, as I watched Tenten get up from where she was perched next to Neji and took the microphone from Sakura who had just finished singing an encore that had been demanded of her from the audience, during my conversation with Sasuke. Sakura was beaming from ear to ear and had a healthy rosy glow in her cheeks.
"Alright! Next victim. I think it should be a boy this time." she smiled deviously at all the boys who immediately slouched down as far as they could go to avoid Tenten picking them. Naruto wasn't fast enough as he ducked but pulled me with him, so I giggled in surprise when he tried to hide behind me.
"Naruto! C'mon up!" Naruto groaned and straightened up.
I sat up too and grinned at him, thinking that this would be the ultimate revenge for me by making him go up and sing, when he and the others made me get up and dance when it was Temari's turn. But unknown to me, my beaming grin was an inspiration to him
(Of course it would be. I'm even annoying myself at how predictable we are...)
and he picked me up so he could get off the couch and placed me back down again, turned and headed towards Tenten, taking the mike from her.
"Alright then!" Naruto exclaimed. "This is for all couples out there!" My beaming smile turned into a pained expression.
Oh no! What are you up to, Naruto?
Naruto started singing the western ballad: 'Making Memories of Us'by Keith Urban to his completely surprised audience who half expected him to start singing a song that was more suited towards his own personality. But they had obviously forgotten that he had just started out a relationship with me and all of them smiled and shook their heads as Naruto started to sing.
It wasn't until Naruto finished that song that I realised the extent of how my actions affected him the day we first became friends in that wood near Sasuke's house. It was clear that the moment I pronounced him 'a friend' that he and I were going to be inseparable, someway. Somehow.
I realised how much he truly loved me by the way he kept his eyes on me the entire song. He had said that this song was meant for all couples out there but I knew that it was just so obviously meant to be a song between him and I. It was the second time I had ever been told by another boy that wasn't my cousin, that he wanted to be mine.
Well, I have a song to sing back to him as well. But I'm going to be singing it in a slightly different way.
I watched Naruto hand back the microphone to an impressed Tenten who was looking at both Naruto and I with approval. Even Gaara, surprisingly, agreed with the song and didn't have an ugly scowl on his face like when Naruto and I first came in and Gaara saw Naruto's arm around my shoulders. I moved over slightly on the couch and Naruto sat down and I leant against my boyfriend's shoulder and felt him hug me around the waist and pressed me tightly to him.
"That was a great song choice, Naruto." I said, looking up at him.
Naruto didn't respond. He just smiled and laid his cheek on my head as he watched Tenten pick her next victim...