SasuSaku Festival 2017

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Days - Past/ SasuSaku Rivals

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Title: Before You

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Summary: Sasuke has always been the most intelligent student of his class. That is, until she came by.

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His early days at the ninja academy could, indeed, be called perfect. He had the perfect seat, from where he could see the entire blackboard; the best teachers, who would proudly compliment his performances; and average classmates that wouldn't bother him with stupid things such as playing around or having fun somewhere after classes ended. Apart from that blonde idiot who kept challenging him, the Uchiha had nothing to complain about, regarding his daily routine at the academy.

Sasuke enjoyed his days there, where his skills and abilities were recognized by everyone and where he was, by far, the best among all the others. There, he was the greatest Uchiha, and even if he was sometimes compared to his older brother by some teachers, it was not like Itachi was actually there like he always was at home.

That was his place and his chance to prove his power. That was his class. Be it Ninjutsu, Taijutsu or Genjutsu, no one could beat him.

No one could beat Uchiha Sasuke.

That is, until she appeared.

It was a normal day when his eyes first captured the vibrant color of her short, pink hair. Her big, bright, green eyes were breathtaking, and thanks to that pout decorating her lips, he could barely pay any attention to the words she said during her self-introduction. Apparently, that girl— Sakura, as he later found out— came from a nearby village with her parents and would be now joining the ninja academy. She was a fragile, small girl, who seemed to be afraid of all the eyes that were set on her and of the future that started that day. She was clearly not going to make it to the end of the course, and for a moment, he even felt sorry for her.

Such a weak, defenseless girl… She could never be a ninja.

Or that was what he thought until she was finally put to test.

Her results on physical tests, as he had expected, weren't anything but ordinary. She showed off more in taijutsu abilities, demonstrating somewhat of a precise chakra control and fast reflexes, but nothing that could surpass him. Sakura was okay, he thought. And an okay girl certainly didn't deserve his Uchiha attention.

Oh, but when their written tests ended, he saw how much that 'okay' girl could really shine.

When Iruka finally gave back his corrected tests, Sasuke was certainly not prepared for the words that escaped his cheerful teacher's lips.

"Congratulations, Sasuke-kun. Your marks were the second best!"

His eyes widened, his heart skipped a beat, and suddenly, all the buzz caused by his classmates sharing their marks disappeared. He felt sick and frozen, as if he had seen a ghost entering his room in the middle of the night.

Second best. Second. What on earth was that supposed to mean!?

That couldn't be happening, he thought, looking down at the numbers circled on the front pages of his tests.

93, 95, 97. Those weren't perfect scores, but how could anyone have surpassed him when most of the students didn't even reach 85?

There had to be something wrong. Iruka probably made a mistake or someone— the one— had cheated and wasn't caught. His classmates aren't that smart. They've never been, and Sasuke refused to believe that one of them had suddenly turned into a genius. No, not those kids. Not the kids he grew up with and not the kids that—

And suddenly, as in an epiphany, realization took over his body and his eyes immediately turned to the one child in that class that had not grown up with them. The one kid he knew nothing about and the one kid that could, indeed, be somehow smart. Haruno Sakura, the stranger that came from who knows where, and who had so far proven to be just an okay girl.

It couldn't be her, right?

Yes, it could. And as soon as he saw all those children surrounding her with amazed expressions ruling their faces, Uchiha Sasuke knew for sure that it was.

For her seat was located just one row below his own, Sasuke could clearly see the numbers that decorated the front pages of her tests. All the three of them exposed a perfectly round 100, showing him that the stranger with pink hair was, definitely, a genius. She had aced all her tests, and even if everyone around her was amazed by her scores, Sakura was just there, humbly smiling as if what she had done was no big deal at all. As if she had not just stolen his spot.

Neither her cute looks nor her bubbly personality were enough to dissipate the immeasurable anger he felt towards her at that moment. Even if she was a kind girl and always tried to be nice to everyone, Sasuke couldn't help but hate her. Hate her for being smarter, hate her for humiliating him in front of the entire academy and hate her for probably working hard on her own. He didn't care if she had spent hours studying for the tests and he certainly couldn't care less if she had worked harder than he did in order to get those grades.

He simply hated her.

And from that day onwards, Uchiha Sasuke had vowed to make it his personal mission to get his revenge on that girl with pink hair.

But saying was a lot easier than actually doing.

Much to his dismay, the same thing repeated itself in the following written tests. She kept her perfect scores, not letting a single mistake destroy her records or her impeccable answers, and making sure to add all the information needed. It's true that he managed to get higher grades himself thanks to the amount of hours added to his studies, but they were still not enough neither to satisfy his needs nor to shut his brother's mouth. Lately, Itachi had been teasing him about the real reasons behind that sudden need to study, and more than ever, he was sure his brother had eyes inside the ninja academy. Apparently, he knew too much about the pinkette and their little rivalry, and needless to say, family dinners were filled with her name and teasing looks.

It was annoying.

Itachi was annoying and she was annoying, too.

And because of that— because of them, the Uchiha found himself staying at the academy after the classes ended so he could study with no annoying interruptions. He was holding a bunch of books in his small hands, as his feet dragged him towards his own classroom, where, he knew, would be a good place to acquire new knowledge. For most of the kids had already headed home, he figured that would be the one place where he could be all alone, without that pink haired annoyance that had been constantly present in his life.

He wanted to stay away from her.

But fate would allow no such thing.

As soon as he slid the wooden door open, his dark eyes widened at the scene in front of him. The room was quiet, and the light entering through the window created a peaceful veil that softly fell over her pink hair, making it shine in its purest way. Her head was lowered, her green eyes shut and a pile of books rested next to her sleeping form, as an evident indication that she had studied until her body collapsed. An almost inaudible sound escaped her lips, and for a moment, he actually thought she was cute.

Or maybe even more than just that.

At first, the Uchiha boy felt reluctant regarding what to do next. He didn't want to wake her up, but at the same time, he was also drawn to her in pure curiosity. As a child discovering the world for the first time, his eyes wanted to take a closer look at the girl who had been the cause of his sleepless nights and troubled dinners.

Before he could even think straight, his feet had already dragged him towards her. From such a short distance, he could clearly see the soft blush on her cheeks, and he could smell the floral scent that emanated from her. Her hair was beautiful under that natural, sun light, and there was a rebel, pink lock that had fallen over her face. Sakura was there, in front of him, and at that moment, he realized how fragile that girl really was. Were he an enemy, she wouldn't even see where her death came from. If he were cautious, he could even tuck that pink lock behind her ear and she wouldn't even realize his presence.

It would all be just a dream, he thought.

But a dream that ended up too soon.

Her green eyes opened just in time to see his fingers approaching her face. The deep, sleepy way her emeralds looked at him made him freeze in his position, and for a moment, Sasuke felt like he was the fragile ninja of the situation. Sakura didn't seem to be afraid or scared by his presence, leaving all the shock and confusion to him. She looked calm and peaceful, and for a moment, he could feel his heart skipping a beat.

What the hell was wrong with him?

" Sasuke…kun?" She said, her voice sleepy and low. " What are you doing here?"

"I-It's none of your business!" He said, crossing his arms over his chest, hugging his books and pouting like the child he was. He watched as she scratched her eyes in order to take the sleep away, and one, deep yawn left her lungs.

" I must have fallen asleep while studying…" She stretched her body like a kitty, lifting her arms, and right after that, her eyes landed on the books he was carrying. " I see that you're here for that, too."

" Yes. I'll have a perfect score on our next exam, you'll see!"

"…" A smile crossed her lips, as her cheeks grew redder in pure excitement. " I wish you good luck, then!"

The way she looked at him with those pure, emerald eyes, and the way she spoke so truthfully and innocently made his arrogant expression drop from his face. His body felt warmer, and even if he hated to admit it, Sakura had just given him a confidence boost he didn't know he needed.

Apparently, the pinkette didn't realize that his words were more of a war declaration than anything, and that was enough to leave him mad. He wanted to see her suffering and apprehensive after his threat, but instead, she was acting truly supportive and excited for him. She didn't feel bad or hurt at all, and he could not understand how she could look so happy after he had just said he would bring her down.

Sakura was supposed to have been angry at him. Annoyed, at least.

But instead, there she was, all sunshine and rainbows with that beautiful smile and those stunning eyes, supporting the boy who wanted to see her suffer.

He really hated her. And at that moment, he was ready to show her she had just made herself an enemy.

She had just found herself a rival.

"Hn, I don't need your words!"

Pouting again and trying to seem as angry as he could, Uchiha Sasuke turned around and headed to his own seat so he could start studying. Even if he had tried to make a dramatic exit, all his credit dissipated when he sat just behind her. She probably thought he was fool for making all that fuzz for nothing, but instead of taking his words seriously, Sakura chose to pay attention to how silly he actually looked when his cheeks were puffed.

Apparently, the girls were right. Uchiha Sasuke really is cute.

And she couldn't have chosen a better way to finally get to talk to him.

Ever since she had entered the academy, he had never really spoken to her. All the other kids had at least approached her to say hi, but the Uchiha was the only one who had actually kept quiet, choosing only to glare at her during classes. She thought about approaching him herself— and she even tried to do so— but she was always interrupted by one of the other girls or even Naruto challenging him for a fight.

Destiny certainly didn't want them to get to know each other. Still, she was decided not to give up.

And finally, after so long, her efforts were rewarded. She was all alone with him, and even if they were studying in the purest silence, it was already a progress, she thought. He seemed to be a nice kid, and maybe, since they were together, she could use that chance to invite him to go somewhere or just talk to him about silly things that had nothing to do with the academy.

She wanted to get to know him. And she was definitely not gonna waste her opportunity.

The studying went on for less than 30 minutes until the girl decided to start her approaching plan. With all the innocence of the world, Sakura took her math book and walked up to his seat's row, sitting right next to him. She watched as his eyes followed her, and she could also see his annoyed face when she leaned forward, breaking into his personal space. It was clear that he didn't like that at all, but at that moment, the pinkette couldn't care less. She opened her book in front of him, and with her small, chubby finger, she pointed out a random exercise.

" Oi, what do you-"

" Can you help me with this one?"

Her voice cut through him, leaving him at complete loss of words. He looked at her with those dark eyes of his, confused as to how he should really react to her proposal. " What?"

" I need help with this exercise. Come on, if you're as smart as you say you are, this shouldn't be much of a challenge for you, right?"

The words that came out of her mouth and the daring face she was making destroyed all his previous thoughts, and before he knew it, his pride was already forcing him to do as she told. He pouted once more while he read the exercise, feeling confident as soon as he realized it was not a hard one. He knew how to solve that, and as he explained her the different types of shrunken rotations, the Uchiha boy could feel, somehow, superior.

It felt like a victory. A small one, for sure, but a victory nonetheless. Still, even if he didn't want to admit, it also felt incredibly… fun?

" Oh! Now I get it! Thank you, Sasuke-kun!"

He couldn't quite explain the feeling that took over him as soon as he saw her smiling face thanking him, but he could feel himself growing lighter at that sensation. Soon after that, her proximity didn't feel threatening anymore, and instead, the way her arm was brushing against his own felt quite soothing and welcoming. Her floral scent felt really good, and before he knew it, he grew used to her presence.

The way she listened to his explanations and the way she laughed and joked about silly things made him feel comfortable around her, and whenever she looked at him with her beautiful eyes, the Uchiha found himself at complete loss of words.

They were just stunning, he would think.

And for the entire time they spent studying side by side, not even once he was indifferent to those eyes.

By the time they finished, the sun was already setting and they had solved a lot of exercises. They were both happy with how much they had actually studied, and after they parted ways after walking home together, both Sasuke and Sakura knew that whatever they had started during that afternoon, would not be easily broken.

Not even by the scores of some stupid test.

The tests that followed those studying afternoons soon arrived, and quickly ended for both of them. On that morning, all the students were gathered around the hallways where their marks were displayed, and in the middle of defeated faces, both the smart kids were excitedly looking for their names on the top of that list. His dark pearls were confident about his scores, and her emerald ones were on fire as she went up to find her name.

Anyone that saw those kids could easily tell how flared they were about the scores. It's true that the girl didn't care much about that at first, but since she realized how funny it felt to compete— and win— against the Uchiha, the Haruno girl took a liking for the thing. She liked the competition, and winning tasted special when he was her opponent.

Hauro Sakura had turned herself into a competitive girl, never once experimenting the bitter taste of defeat.

And on that day, the results were as sweet as ever.

Her name was proudly decorating the first place, and as soon as she saw that, she quickly turned to face her raven haired friend. Her fingers were making the victory sign, as a big smile decorated her face and her mouth let out that 'Shannaro' thing she had lately come up with. She watched as he pouted in pure anger and as he balled his fists, while watching his name under hers.

Uchiha Sasuke was definitely a terrible loser.

But he was a loser, nonetheless.

Yet, he was not giving up on his goals to defeat her. He could be a brat and complain like a child all the time they were studying together, but her rival was not a quitter, no.

" Yay! I won again!"

" No way! You cheated, Sakura!"

"As if! Admit it, I'm smarter than you!"

" Never! Hn, Next time I'm gonna get you! I'll be the first!"

Oh, and she loved that about him.

" I'll be waiting for you then, Sasuke-kun."

A/N: This was supposed to be a cute, little one. I'm not really good at writing about pre-genin, so I hope you guys have enjoyed it! Thanks for reading, and please, leave me a Review!