Ino waited with bated breath. After a few seconds of nothing happening, she found a brief sliver of courage and opened her eyes, shocked to see Sasuke standing next to her assailant, gripping her free wrist almost as tightly as Kaiya was holding Ino's shirt with the other. Kaiya's fist was clenched so tightly her knuckles paled; the struggle between her will and Sasuke's could be seen by the red splotches on her cheeks as she fought against his grasp, to no avail. Kaiya wasn't used to losing matches of will; she wasn't used to losing battles of strength, either. She gritted her teeth.

Finally, as stubborn as she was, she gave up, her hand going slack at the wrist, held tightly by Sasuke's firm grip. When he was certain she wasn't going to continue her assault when he let his guard down, he slowly released her, letting her arm fall at her side. Then he took hold of her other hand still clinging to Ino's collar, but his clutch was much gentler this time; he simply took hold of her, and she immediately let go, no fight left in her.

Sakura was brave enough to lift her head, just as astonished as Ino to see Sasuke return, and even more shocked to see Kaiya back down. Sasuke…

"You…rescued me, Sasuke?" Ino said, flattered, her cheeks turning a light shade of pink. Her heart fluttered; butterflies churned in her stomach. Inner Sakura howled with jealousy. "But why?"

Sasuke had his arm out, keeping Kaiya from advancing on the blonde should he relax. He frowned, not even bothering to look at her.

"Don't get the wrong idea," he said. With one arm outstretched between Ino and Kaiya, his free hand made its way to his pocket. He glanced at Kaiya out the corner of his eye, directly to his right, as his eyebrows furrowed. "Kaiya is already in enough trouble as it is. You should know better than to mention those people in front of her, especially when Iruka isn't around to protect you. Kaiya doesn't know how to restrain herself." He paused, letting the three girls digest his words, his gaze turning to the open door at the front of the classroom.

Kaiya frowned. The door had been closed a moment ago, just before Sasuke had come back and stopped her. He came back just to stop me? The clock in the front of the room mocked her, ticking incessantly; it echoed in the current silence of the room, reverberating off the ugly-colored walls. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Nobody moved for several seconds.

Finally, Kaiya shifted, turning to face Sasuke. She studied him meticulously with her piercing gaze, and he stared at her in the same manner. It appeared that they were communicating through their eyes, but for Ino and Sakura, it was almost impossible to tell for sure. It didn't make sense for them to do such a thing; they never talked to one another at the Academy, and one surely wouldn't call them friends, or even acquaintances. They were both loners, preferring to avoid people any chance they could.

At last, Kaiya yielded to Sasuke's cold glare, relaxing her shoulders and turning around.

"Tch." She shot a warning glance at the girls one more time, jumping down from the desks and onto the ground floor in one leap. Turning her back to them, she leaned against the bottom desk in the third section. She stared at the floor defiantly, crossing her arms, until the others got the message: Leave, before I change my mind.

Sakura and Ino said nothing more as they shuffled out of the room, giving Sasuke a longing look before sliding the door shut behind them in a rush to get far away from Kaiya. Sasuke made no attempt to return their desperate glances. Nor did he make any effort to exit the classroom.

Damn, Kaiya thought, irritated, Iruka-sensei sure does take his time, doesn't he? Or maybe he's writing extensive notes on my bad behavior. She almost laughed at the thought but quickly reminded herself she was angry at Sasuke for stopping her.

A pregnant silence passed between them. Sasuke now had both hands in his pockets casually, listening to Kaiya's accelerated heart rate that seemed to echo off the walls, a small grin appearing on his face. He stared down at her quietly for a minute; there was no sound other than the clock and Kaiya's frustrated, heavy breaths. When she seemed to calm down, just a little, he made his way down the stairs to stand beside her, about ten centimeters to her right at the same desk. In the almost awkward silence, he averted his gaze to the wall. He hardly looked directly at her these days, she noticed. Well, that was to be expected, after what happened to him.

"You should just mind your own business, you know." Sasuke's eyebrows creased as he turned to her in question, still avoiding direct eye contact. His lips pursed, but he didn't respond right away. "If someone brought up Itachi and what he did, you'd do the same thing. You know you would. The only difference is that none of our classmates know about what he did." She caught Sasuke's dark expression through her peripherals, praising herself in silence for her victory. The mention of his treacherous brother made his blood boil, his skin clammy, his tongue dry. His fists clenched inside his pockets; Kaiya could tell because of the shifting of the fabric.

She closed her eyes, waiting for him to blow up at her. She almost wanted him to, so she could have an excuse to punch him in lieu of not getting to do so to Ino. However, unlike her blonde classmate, Sasuke would be able to stop it, and he wouldn't think twice about returning the blow. Then again, that made her want to do it even more. She knew he was stronger than her, but that just fanned the flame of pride swelling within her stomach, beckoning upwards, trying to escape through her mouth and nostrils.

But he didn't move. Instead, he smirked grittily. "And you would've stopped me…right? Considering the trouble I would have been in if I started a fight in the classroom," he retorted, turning his head toward her expectantly. An annoyed tick appeared in the corner of Kaiya's forehead as she opened her eyes and faced him. She bit the inside of her cheek.

"Anyone ever tell you how annoying you are, Uchiha?"

"Hmph. I could ask you the same question, Kimura." A small ghost of a smile appeared on Kaiya's lips. It was rare for her to do so genuinely, but Sasuke Uchiha somehow knew how to make her grin. Even if he was infuriating.

Kaiya let out a deep sigh, uncrossing her arms and using them to support her weight on the desk as she leaned back further. "You'd better go," she said, after staying silent for a moment. "Iruka-sensei will be back any minute now. I assume he went straight to the Old Geezer himself this time, and I'm sure he's still in a foul mood. You might get scolded for staying behind to visit with a troubled student."

Sasuke grinned, straightening up without a word, and walked to the exit. He stopped just short of the door, removing a hand from his pocket to open it. Kaiya blinked, waiting.

"I really don't care whether you graduate or not, but if you're planning on being a ninja and facing enemies that can kill you, I have some advice." Kaiya's eyebrows furrowed; she couldn't wait to hear what advice he had for her. Know-it-all.

"You should learn how to control your emotions better, Kaiya," he scolded, neglecting to look back at her. Even so, she knew he was smiling as he spoke, to antagonize her. "All your emotions, especially your anger. It's easy to tell what bothers you, and everyone uses that to provoke you into a fight. If you stop reacting so quickly to your feelings, people wouldn't use them against you so often, and you wouldn't be seen as troubled."

Kaiya bit her lip so hard she broke the skin; she could taste the bitter, metallic tang of blood as she licked her lips. She sneered.

"So, you're saying I should just let people say what they want about my family?" she asked darkly. "They don't know what happened, so why should I let them talk about them so freely? It's none of their business either way. Just like it's none of yours. You of all people should…" Sasuke's shoulders tensed, and for a moment he thought about grabbing Kaiya by the collar, just like she did Ino. He paused and let a breath out his nostrils. No, that would make him a hypocrite. He didn't even notice his fist was clenched at first, but when he did realize it, he uncurled his fingers and rested them gently on the door handle, making no attempts to pull it aside.

"That's not what I'm saying," he corrected her firmly, choosing not to address her jab at him. He knew what she was trying to say. You of all people should understand. And he did. "Ino and Sakura and all the others who throw the past into your face…it's not right, but they're not the ones that hurt you. They didn't cause your pain. Your own flesh and blood did. They're to blame, Kaiya, not our classmates. You can't take your rage out on them. It won't bring you any reprieve."

Kaiya's hard expression softened slightly. She didn't want to admit he was right, but he didn't need her to say it for him to know he had backed her into a corner. "I'm telling you not to be so honest about yourself. You're an open book. It's not difficult to tell when you're angry, or sad, or scared. It's because you give everything away. It's all in your eyes. You can disguise your appearance, lie to yourself and others. But your eyes never lie. That's the difference between us, even though we've gone through similar things."

Kaiya blinked in question, her gaze turning to the chalkboard at the front of the classroom, where Iruka would no doubt make her write 'I am a bad student' about three hundred times, until her fingers numbed and her hand cramped. She rubbed her fingers together, as if she could feel the chalk between them already.

"My eyes?" she repeated, confused. "How are our eyes different?" Sasuke stared at the wooden structure in front of him, lost in thought for several seconds.

"Your eyes are clear and sharp, like a kunai." She blushed, glad he was turned away. He traced the doorframe absentmindedly as he talked, feeling his cheeks getting a little warm. He was happy he wasn't facing her now; he didn't want to know what she was thinking right now—and he didn't want to give away what he was thinking in return. "You don't show facial expressions much—except when you're angry—but those eyes of yours hold everything you're feeling and thinking all at once, and you have no idea how to hide it. For people who have been around you long enough, they know what makes you tick, because you give it away. And an experienced shinobi will be able to tell right away, no doubt."

"And yourself?"

"Me…all I feel is emptiness and a drive to right a wrong," he answered, letting out a sigh. "That's reflected in my eyes. You've said it before, remember? My eyes are empty and—"

"Sad," she recalled, her eyes lowering to Iruka's desk, not a paper out of place. Sasuke chuckled.

"Yeah. Anyway, the others wouldn't bother you so much if you didn't make such a big deal out of everything they say or do. They're only messing with you because they know you'll react," he told her truthfully. Kaiya frowned, her lip curling into a scowl.

"And what if I think you're wrong?" she asked. Sasuke shook his head, scoffing.

"Of course you'd say that; you're one of the most stubborn people I've ever met, aside from Naruto." Kaiya frowned at the comparison, clearly an insult, shaking her head incredulously. Sasuke looked back at her to catch her expression, smirking in triumph as he caught the annoyed glint in her dark pupils. "Heh. See? Easy." Kaiya blushed in embarrassment.

He paused, but before Kaiya could give him a mouthful of her own insults, he said, "I'll see you later, Kaiya. Try not to do anything stupid until then. I'd hate to see you not be able to graduate because of your troubled behavior." She shot up her middle finger as a response, his back already turned to her as he slid the door open, walking out without another word.

"Tch. Stupid Sasuke, always thinking he's better than everyone else."

She knew he was right, although she would never tell him that to his face. Keeping her emotions to herself was one thing she'd always struggled with, even as a child. She would cry too much, laugh too loudly, or fight anyone who made her angry without a second thought. She blurted out what was on her mind most of the time, and she didn't have a filter, no matter who she was talking to. It took her a while to break some of those habits, but traces of them remained, even after so many years of trying so hard to rid herself of them.

But really, what did he want her to do about it? And why did he care? She didn't give a damn if people knew what she thought. She couldn't help that her eyes showed her emotions.

About a minute later, almost ten minutes after the end of class, Iruka returned. Kaiya frowned, scoffing at his leisure, like he hadn't kept her waiting forever.

"Hmm. I'm surprised you're still here, Kaiya," he said, sliding the door shut behind him.

"You and me both," she muttered in response, studying her cuticles in boredom; they were dirty and scuffed from after-lunch shuriken practice. She hardly cared; she didn't micromanage her hygiene habits, especially if training was involved. "If I'd known you were going to take so long, Sensei, I'd already be home."

If Kaiya didn't fear being held back from taking the graduation exam, she would've said something more offensive. She mused the possibility that she could say anything she wanted and could still take the exam, since Iruka would want to be rid of her as soon as possible. Instead, she scratched her chin with her dirty fingernails, trying her best not to show how impatient she was.

Kaiya's face contorted into an odd expression, a mixture of many emotions—annoyance, anger, anxiety, and hunger. (Was hunger an emotion? It felt like that to her). Her eyebrow twitched as she tried to hold her face together. Iruka watched her in awkward silence, wondering what exactly was going on. He neglected to ask. A strange kid, he thought, letting out a resigned sigh. At least the Hokage had given him advice on how to handle her.

"In any case, let's have a little chat, shall we? With graduation coming up, I need to make some things clear." Kaiya's eyes narrowed, her face going slack. Here we go, she thought, sitting down on top of the desk, waiting to hear what Iruka had to say this time. Another lecture.