How Things Change:
Chapter X~ The Change
One Year Later, Hinata Age 12
.
.
.
Hinata rubbed her temples in frustration.
'Those girls are getting on my last nerve!' Hinata thought in irritation, as she stared at Sakura loathingly.
Again, just as every other day, she and Ino were arguing, over the exact same thing as every other day. It was really getting tiring.
"Hinata-san," Shino stated, as he pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose with his middle finger.
If Hinata didn't know any better, she may have thought it was his subtle way of flipping her off. However, she knew better. Shino was just not the type of person to do such an unnecessary action, it just wasn't logical—after all, it was just a finger.
"Yes, S-Shino-kun?" she responded meekly.
"It'll be better if you just ignore them, chances are they won't stop until Iruka-sensei comes in," he responded with.
"I know," Hinata let out a long sigh, "I j-just don't u-understand how they can act l-like that o-over a boy. T-they are training t-to be Kunoichi, t-they should t-take it more seriously!"
Shino nodded, "I agree."
A comfortable silence fell upon them. That is, until Kiba showed up.
"SHINO! HINATAAAA!" Kiba yelled as he jumped into the seat next to Shino, "What's up, guys?"
Shino merely pointed a finger toward the obnoxious duo inconspicuously.
"Yeah, they never know how to give it up, do they? Sasuke doesn't even like either of them!"
Hinata couldn't help but to agree internally. On the outside, however, she remained quiet.
Kiba turned to look at her, and raised an eyebrow, "Come on Hinata, you can say something if you want! You know me and Shino have you back."
He grinned, and Hinata couldn't help it when her lips turned upwards into something that resembled a smile.
"See!" he laughed, "But you aren't one to talk! I see how you look at Naruto when no one is watching!"
Hinata's face turned scarlet, "I d-don't k-know what you a-a-are talking about!"
Kiba just grinned at her, and Shino decided it was time to intervene, "How is Tamaki-san doing? Are her cats doing well?"
"ARGH, fine Shino, I get it. I won't say anything more!" he stuck his tongue out, and dropped the subject.
Hinata nodded toward Shino, and she mumbled so only he could hear, "Thank you."
He merely nodded his head; he was the only one who seemed to understand her. Hinata hated having Naruto brought up. She didn't know what to think of him, but every time she did, she couldn't help but get a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. It made her feel rather confused. It wasn't a bad feeling, but neither was it a comfortable feeling.
It was going on three years since Hinata began her mission, and—she would never mention to anyone was actually starting to get used to the Academy. At first, she had dreaded the idea of Kiba being forced next to her and Shino. However, she soon became accustomed to the loud Inuzuka, and couldn't help but come to respect him just a smidge. He was loud, and cocky, but he never said anything badly of Shino, which she actually liked. She wouldn't admit it, but Shino had become her only friend at the academy, and she hated how the people in their class treated him, which is why she tolerated Kiba.
Kiba was loud, obnoxious, yes, but he wasn't mean for no reason. He had a level of loyalty Hinata didn't see very often, a loyalty that spread to her and Shino when he began to sit next to them. He called them his "pack", whatever that meant. Hinata assumed it was an Inuzuka thing.
Most people found Shino's unique set of skills to be disgusting—especially Sakura, which was another reason Hinata disliked the girl—and Hinata found herself hating it. She understood the feeling of not being able to control something that was out of her hands. It wasn't his fault he was an Aburame and got forced into harboring a colony of bugs inside of himself, but no one else seem to think of it that way. People treated him as if he were a vile thing that shouldn't be around, just as the villagers tended to treat her.
Turning her head toward the bug boy, she said, "How is y-your new colony c-coming along, Shino-kun?"
He responded almost immediately—he was rather fond of his bugs, "Great. They just started to sprout wings. They should be ready to start using in spars soon."
"T-that's great," she said, genuinely happy for him.
He had been trying to upgrade his colony for a while now, and only just began to succeed in his endeavors. Hinata was happy his sleepless nights were finally paying off. Most wouldn't notice it, but nothing passed Hinata's Byakugan. She was the only one who ever noticed Shino falling asleep in his chair. Hell, she started debating on wearing a pair of his sunglasses so she could do the same, but quickly brushed the thought away as it would look suspicious. And, seeing as she was pretty much a spy in class, suspicious wasn't something she wanted to look.
"How are your Taijutsu remedial classes going?" Shino asked in a monotone voice; it was the closest he got to being genuinely curious.
Hinata sighed, feeling a bit guilty lying to Shino; she excelled in Taijutsu, really. Hiashi made sure of it.
"Fine. I-I'm still not t-that great, b-but hopefully I will manage to p-pass—"
Before Hinata could continue, a loud screech filled the room, "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO SASUKE –KUN, NARUTO!"
Hinata turned her attention back to the banshee that was Sakura, and was surprised to see Naruto kissing Sasuke.
'What in the…how did that happen?' she wondered in curiosity.
Faster than light, the two jumped apart and spit as if it were the most disgusting thing to have ever happened to them.
Naruto turned toward Sakura, "You pushed me into him! Ugh! Now I have Sasuke germs! Gross!"
Hinata couldn't help but find his actions amusing; for what reason, she wasn't sure.
Before anything more could happen, Iruka stepped in the class, and Sakura took that as her cue to get in her seat. She learned a while ago not to mess with her teacher.
Hinata's attention turned almost immediately to Iruka. Over the years, she had come to respect the scarred Chūnin. At first she wasn't sure what to think of him, but soon she came to realize there was nothing suspicious about him. He seemed kind of distant of her at first, but he never let that affect his ability to teach. However, when his blue haired assistant came in, Hinata couldn't help but to narrow her eyes.
"Man, I dunno about you guys, but Mizuki-sensei gives me the creeps," Kiba said with a shudder, "Akamaru hates him."
Akamaru was his dog whom he only got a few weeks prior, as a gift from his mom. He finally had ninken just as every other Inuzuka had, and he was more than happy with his puppy.
Shino nodded in agreement.
'I'm not the only one who finds something suspicious about him, then,' Hinata thought in surprise as this was the first time Kiba had ever mentioned it, 'I was right to suspect him, I will have to let Hokage-sama know. If there is something fishy going on here, he is definitely involved.'
Before she could dwell on the thought for too long, Iruka began his day's lessons.
She would have to worry about Mizuki later.
.
.
.
Sakura wanted nothing more but to get home couldn't help but feel as if someone were watching her. It unnerved her
"INO-PIG! WAIT UP!" she yelled to the girl ahead of her.
Ino turned to her, and crossed her arms, "What do you want, you little twerp?"
Normally Sakura would have started an argument, but as of the moment, she was not in the mood.
"Do you feel as if someone is watching you?" she asked with a slight quiver in her voice.
"Well now that you mention it," Ino began, "Nah, I'm just messin'. Why would anyone be watching your billboard brow?"
Sakura frowned, "I'm serious, Ino!"
"Me too, Forehead!"
Sakura shook her head and turned around, "Forget I mentioned it, PIG!"
Before she could make it more than a few feet away, a chill ran down her spine. She wasn't the only one who felt it.
"I lied, okay?!" Ino yelled, as she rushed to her side. "How about we walk home together. It's in the same direction, anyway."
Sakura nodded, and the two began their trip. Before they could make it far, though, a feeling of dread washed over them.
"I think we should run, Ino!"
Ino nodded, and the two Kunoichi-in-training began their dash toward their respected homes. Before they made it far, Sakura only just managed to evade a Kunai, that zipped passed her; a small sting down her cheek let her know it had grazed her.
Falling forward, she caught herself with the palms of her hand, injuring them slightly.
"Ino?" she called out, as she got to her feet. "INO!"
However, Ino never responded. Looking around, she only just noticed she was now alone.
"Come out, Ino, this isn't funny!" she hollered to the empty park she was walking through; Ino was nowhere to be found. "Get out here now, Pig!"
No one answered. A cold shiver ran down Sakura's spine, as she made her way through the eerily quiet park; what happened to the sound of birds that once filled the park? And where did the sunlight go? Before she took more than three steps, a loud squeak filled the air. Tears began to build in the corner of her eyes as she hurried along. Before she started to dash, she noticed a lone swing blowing in the wind, causing the noise she heard earlier.
'You are just being paranoid, Sakura. Get it through your head! Ino is probably doing it!'
No matter how stupid her inner self was trying to make her feel, the fear that someone was watching her never went away, and neither did her fear for Ino. She couldn't help but shake away the feeling that Ino was not actually doing this to her. They may hate one another, but this was going too far, even for them.
"INO! COME OUT! PLEASE!" tears streamed down her face, and she began to sprint away from the swing set.
Another moment passed, and the feeling she was being watched suddenly disappeared. Normally this would have calmed her down, but she couldn't shake the feeling away.
"AHAHAHAHAHA!" a laughed pierced the quiet, and a shadow began to appear out of her peripheral vision.
Deciding she would rather fight whoever was out there, rather than stand there in fear, Sakura pulled out her sharpest kunai and jumped into the standard academy Taijutsu stance.
Her eyes widened at who she saw.
"Sasuke-kun?" she whispered, "Did you hear that too?"
A sadistic grin appeared on his face, as he pulled a struggling Ino from the shadows.
"It's so good for you to have joined us, Sakura-chan," the way he said her name, sent another wave of shivers down her back.
This was not the Sasuke she thought she knew.
"Who are you!" she yelled, "Let go of Ino!"
Ino's tears were streaming down her face, as he held a kunai to her throat. A small droplet of blood rolling down her neck, made her fear for her safety. He was really going to hurt her!
"Isn't this what you always wanted, Sakura? Ino to leave us in peace? All I have to do is shove this into her jugular, and we can be together with nothing to get in our way!"
Sakura shook her head; she would never wish death upon her friend. Tears streamed down her face.
"NO!" she shouted, "Why would I want that! You are crazy! Ino is my friend!"
Was the death of his clan finally getting to him? Ever since the massacre occurred, she had noticed Sasuke getting more and more distant, even from Naruto. Had he finally lost it? Was it too much for him to handle?
"Come now, Sakura, don't be like that," he laughed once more, and pressed the kunai deeper, causing a whimper to escaped Ino's lips. "She is no friend of yours, you make it obvious in class every day!"
"INO!" Sakura yelled, as she rushed forward not caring for her own safety; all she cared about was Ino.
Before she made it, however, the kunai slit open Ino's throat; the blood poured out of the wound and Sasuke let her body drop to the floor.
"NO!" she fell forward and caught Ino. "NO! THIS CAN"T BE HAPPENING! INO!"
Sasuke merely laughed, and took a step forward, "Why aren't you happy?"
Sakura's eyes held a look of hatred she never thought she could possess toward the dark haired Uchiha, and her mind became resolved; she would avenge Ino!
"AHHH!" she shouted as she rushed forward, her kunai in hand, and caught Sasuke by surprise.
Over and over and over, she stabbed him; repeatedly she wanted to make her pay. But no matter what she did, Ino wasn't ever coming back!
How could she have been so stupid? If she had taken her training seriously, Ino would be alive! She could have saved her! She could—
Almost as quickly as it began, it ended.
The once eerie quiet disappeared, and the sound of nature filled her ears once more. Most surprising, however, was the fact that both Ino's and Sasuke's bodies disappeared as if they never were there to begin with.
What was going on?
Ino, running from the trees, grabbed Sakura and pulled her close; sobbing into her chest.
"I thought you died, Sakura! Sasuke, he was crazy—" her wails kept her from continuing.
And that's when Sakura realized none of it ever happened. Had she fallen so behind in her studies, she couldn't even notice a simple Genjutsu, of all things. That was her best subject! Looking back now, it was so easy to recognize. She just missed it.
Trying to console Ino, a masked person close to them in height walked out from the shadows. They were completely dressed in black; not even their eyes were visible.
"Take this as a lesson," the ominous voice whispered. "No boy is worth losing a friend over. Not ever."
Before Sakura could respond, the person disappeared faster than they had appeared.
Tears fell down her face, as she began to sob.
She would never make that mistake again. It was only now she could see that Ino meant more to her than Sasuke ever would.
And she would get strong enough to protect her—with her life, if she had too.
.
.
.
Hinata smiled softly at herself as she approached her home. The lights were off, meaning Kakashi wasn't home. At least he wouldn't question where she was, as he normally would.
A part of her felt guilty for doing what she had done, but she pushed the thought into the back of her mind. Finally, they would start to get serious with their training. It was better they learn this way, then the hard way.
"I saw what you did," Kakashi said to her, startling her; he appeared from behind, and she never even noticed his presence.
She had a long way to go before she was ta his level, it seemed.
Hinata decided it would be best to deny it, and innocently responded, "What do you mean, Kakashi-niisan?"
Kakashi felt a smile tug at his lips under his mask, "Nothing…nothing. Forget I said anything."
Hinata nodded, as she headed inside the doors; she was obviously happy that he had decided not to keep it going.
Before following her in, a thought flashed through his mind.
"You might not notice it, but you are changing, Hinata," Kakashi whispered with that same smile, as he followed behind her, happy for his little sister. "Perhaps now, you will let others in."
Friends weren't ever something she wanted, but Kakashi had already seen the friendship she started to develop with Shino and Kiba in class; some days he had nothing else better to do than to spy on her just to see how it was going.
"Maybe now you can finally start to heal."
.
.
.
The next day in class, Iruka was more than surprised to see Ino and Sakura sitting next to one another, leaving the seat they normally tried to fight over next to Sasuke, empty. They neither once even looked in Sasuke's direction, nor even spoke a sentence about or to him.
Their smiles and giggles lead him to smile, as did their eagerness to learn in his class. He wasn't sure what lead to the drastic change in their attitudes, but whatever happened, he was not going to complain. Something happened that changed them for the better, and that's all that mattered.
They were acting as they did before they let their crushes get in the way with their training.
Over the next year, they both rose in rank in their classes, pushing and pushing one another to succeed. Not once did they fight over Sasuke; those days had long since ended. They were finally reaching their true potential.
He smiled, and let out a sigh of content. He no longer felt the need to hold them back from graduated as he had been debating about for a while.
Turning his eyes to a smiling Hinata, who was conversing with Shino and Kiba, he met her glance and swore he saw her wink. Shaking the thought away, he turned from her; it must have been the lighting.
Pushing the thought away, he turned to his students, a proud smile adorned his face, "Alright class, your final exam is in a week, let's get to work! Soon you all will enter the world of ninja. It will be up to your generation now to protect Konoha! Let's make sure you all pass!"
A cheer filled the room.
This was his most promising class yet, he could feel it.
Konoha was going to be left in good hands, no doubt about it.
End.
.
.
.
A/N- My goodness, I cannot believe I got another chapter up already. I think the shorter chapter idea was a great idea, don't you? Anyways, it was filler-ish, but oh well. I had something liked this planned long before I ever even started writing this fic. I always hated that Sakura and Ino cared about Sasuke so much, losing sight of their friendship and I really wanted to get them back together.
I might even make SakuIno a thing in this fic, but haven't decided yet, just because of the Naruto epilogue with Sarada and all. But who knows, I may say fuck it and do it anyway. Maybe I will make Karin be her mom, like Kishi trolled (if I even have her appear at some point far in the future). LOL.
I haven't edited this yet, and will probably do it at a later time. If I don't, eh, I don't really care so much. It's fanfiction, not a dick—no reason to take it so hard.
Next chapter is their final exam and graduation, so stay tuned.
Until next time!