It was that time of the year again.

Hinata had noticed how, as the second anniversary of the Uchiha downfall came closer and closer, Sasuke became more and more on edge. He didn't do anything particularly conspicuous, but his behavior as well as his attitude took a noticeable nosedive, showing darker moods and a tendency to snap when people came too close.

Hinata wasn't the only one that noticed. The girls, in particular, spoke about this openly, wondering what could be going on with the dark-haired boy, and giggling behind their hands about how, even though it was a bit scary, it was also attractive.

His aloofness fueled their attraction, his misery was charming. Hinata couldn't help but feel sad, and internally wondered if any of these girls even remembered that, two years ago, Iruka-sensei told them in this exact date that Sasuke had lost his family.

The day of the massacre came, and, as it happened last year, Sasuke was absent. Hinata wondered what she should do. Her relationship with him wasn't the same as last year, if she went to see him he wouldn't get mad. She also knew better now than to intrude in his district, so a repeat of last year was unlikely.

Internally, Hinata couldn't help but be surprised. Has it really been a year already? She could still remember quite vividly his fury, and the lonely weeks that followed her blunder when Sasuke wouldn't talk to her because he thought he had scared her. It felt all so far away, but at the same time, as if no time at all had passed.

"It's always lonely when Sasuke-kun doesn't come" Sakura sighed at her side. It was lunch time, and, again, they were eating together, though without Naruto.

Hinata had truly been meaning to ask her friend if it was alright if the whiskered boy joined them, but for some reason, she always backed away when the opportunity to do so arised. She wasn't sure why herself. She wanted to eat lunch with Naruto, and Sakura had promised her she would try to be nicer to him, but…

But the thought of the three of them, together, and Sakura suddenly realizing how great Naruto actually was, and Naruto getting closer to her… it did something to her heart, something that made her feel ashamed of herself.

And so she had not asked, but Naruto had also not insisted. It made her feel bad.

"What do you think happened to him this time? Maybe he's sick again?" Sakura continued, taking Hinata out of her thoughts. She bit her lip, wondering if she should say it or not.

"This… Sakura-chan, don't you know?" she asked. The pink-haired girl looked at her curiously. "Today… today is the anniversary of the death of his family. That's why he's not here."

Sakura gasped, a hand covering her mouth. By her expression, it was clear this was the first time she had ever heard of this.

"Oh, I didn't know! That's terrible!" she glanced down, worrying her lower lip with her teeth. "So that's why he's absent… I can't believe this…"

Hinata looked away, playing with her food. It's not like it was a secret, but for some reason she felt really uncomfortable telling Sakura this.

"It's a little strange though" Sakura kept talking. "How come I never knew this? It sounds like something the girls would be all over about… it's a good thing they don't know then, I guess."

"I-Iruka-sensei told the class when it happened… I don't know why no one seems to remember it though…"

"Mmm" Sakura hummed, also playing with her food now. They ate in silence after that, and when lunch was over they put away their stuff and walked back to the classroom.

It was on the way back that Sakura spoke again. "Do you know why I like Sasuke-kun, Hinata-chan?"

"Eh?" Hinata was taken aback by the question. She stopped walking and faced Sakura, who did the same. "N-No, I don't know…"

Sakura smiled, holding her hands behind her back and balancing herself on her toes. "You see… at first he caught my attention because he is very cute, right?" she waited for Hinata to give her approval, and she nodded, because, even if she wasn't in love with him, she could admit that Sasuke was a pretty cute kid. "But then, I saw how much he worked for things, how he gave it his all. At training, he was always the first to arrive and the last to leave, and sometimes he would even stay after classes to keep training!"

She turned around and made a gesture with her hand to keep walking. Hinata followed as she heard her talk. "And that was amazing, you know? It made me want to give it my all on my training too. To study even harder. He doesn't talk a lot, and sometimes he's a bit moody… but he's admirable, isn't he? I like that part of him, and how it makes me strive towards more. He is… amazing" she said the last word with a small, longing sigh. "And now that I know his family is... that is…" she bit her lip, unable to say it, before apparently giving up and continuing; "I can't help but admire him more. It must not be easy at all."

In that case, Naruto-kun is admirable too. He also has no family at all Hinata thought, almost unbidden. She opened her eyes wide, surprised at herself for this sudden thought. It wasn't good to compare the two, she knew that. Despite that, she didn't think she was wrong. True, Naruto wasn't as good or as talented as Sasuke or got his results, but he put in as much effort in everything he did. He didn't have a family either, something everyone knew about, but he never let that stop him. He was just as admirable as Sasuke.

She wanted to tell Sakura that.

But their small talk had taken a bit of time away from them, and they had to run to class if they didn't want to arrive late, so in the end, Hinata didn't say it.