Sighing Sakura just pick at her lunch as Ino watched on as her best friend did this.

"Hey, Sakura are you okay? You seemed really down lately" the blond asked.

"Yeah I have, have not I?" the pink hair girl replied.

Just then there was loud cry that rang out though lunch area of the Academy

"HEY SAKURA-CHAN!" a loud voice cried causing the girl in question to blush mostly from embarrassment.

A sly look then appeared on Ino's face as she noticed the reason why Sakura was down all of sudden.

"How are you today, Sakura-chan?" Naruto said as he sat down next to the two girls with his lunch of instant ramen.

"Is that all you are going to eat, Naruto" Ino asked as she always seen him eating ramen though always wondered where he got the hot water for the ramen in this first place.

"Of course as ramen is the best after all!" Naruto cried out happily.

Sakura just nodded as she moved all closed to Ino.

"Ummm Naruto-san do not you belong in different grade then us. Should not your lunch period have ended already" Sakura spoke out.

"Does not really matter as I can eat whenever I want it not like it going to make a difference. The teacher really do not care about me one way or another" he told her.

"That not true!" Sakura said loudly though blushed profoundly as she realized everyone was looking at her.

This gain her another sly look from Ino who was continued eating her lunch.

After Naruto had left Ino nudged Sakura in her shoulder.

"Admit it you like Naruto do not you" Ino said

Naruto had been the first boy to show interest in Sakura that did not involve making fun of her forehead after all was the thought that ran through Ino's mind

"What!" Sakura yelled again and once again became red in the face from embarrassment of such a thing.

"I do not like Naruto-san, Ino-chan. There ummm….someone else I like" she said.

"There better be. Naruto-kun is my rival" a voice spoke out.

Turning around the two friends then notice for the first time that sitting there at the table behind them was Hinata Hyuga eating the lunch she had prepared for her back the Hyuga Compound this morning.

"How long have you been there" Ino asked curiously.

"The whole time" the Hyuga replied in her normal flat tone.

Having finished her lunch Hinata got up, threw the trash away, and walked out the lunch area. Though her next destination was clear she was clear as she was heading to wherever Naruto goes off until lunch time was over.

"That girl give me the creeps as I do not know how Tenten deal with her. I heard that Hyugas can be rather cold and not very emotional but that girl does not seem to have any and she weird on top of that" the Yamanaka stated.

"Maybe but she does seem give some emotional respond and actions when Naruto-san is involved" her best friend replied.

Things like this would continue onward as time began to pass by however Sakura getting tried of claiming to Ino that she had no feeling for Naruto yet was unable to come with another guys she liked at the time. Naruto constantly bother her and asking her did she wanted to go out with him. They were only six years old and he hear he was already asking her out on a date. Then there Hinata who just staring at her with that blank stare of hers and always telling her that Naruto was her rival.

Finally she had decided on a way to get all three of them off her back and fit in more at the same time. She would simply claim that she likes Sasuke Uchiha. Also she felt that if she fit in more then she would gain even more confidence and become even more outgoing then she had now compare to how she had been before meeting Ino. Thus allowing her reach another goal of hers, that being to prove that she was Ino's equal and not just her shadow.

Of course Ino being her best friend could read Sakura like book and knew exactly what she was planning so she decided to play along as well as if her goal was prove that they were equals, which she already thought they were since helping Sakura with her own problem managed to help her get over her own complex about her blond hair. Sure she did not show much but she had been slightly bother by the fact that her family alone was the only blonds (other then Naruto) in all of Konoha.

'It only be for a little while though until Sakura feel that she become my equal then we will just go back to be best friends and can laugh about this is and what not' Ino thought when start claiming she had crush on Sasuke to kind of spur Sakura on.

Little did she know that 'little while' would span the course of six years as the two girl would get so caught up in the idea of being in love that they eventually got the true purpose behind their reasons for liking Sasuke.

I would like to thank

Resurrection of the Forgotten and Ignisha for reviewing this story

Ignisha and Fan of Fanfics21 for reviewing Chapter 10

chaoticangel97, Otaku24, kyuu the fox, jacalman, darkangelflame, and Resurrection of the Forgotten for adding this to their Favorite Story List

kyunaru, darkangelflame, and aimiera for adding this to their Story Alert List