Someone New | A SasuHina Story (completed)

chapter twenty six | making amends

"What does he want with her?" Sasuke asked blatantly upset.

"Cool it Sasuke, he said he just wants to talk. It'll be fine." Shikamaru said, placing a hand on his friends shoulder.

"It's only Naruto, and I'm sure Hinata knows what she's doing." Gaara said in an attempt to calm Sasuke.

Sasuke relaxed a little and unclenched his fist. He'd been digging his fingernails deep into his palm, and he didn't realize how much he'd been hurting himself until he let go. His hand was bleeding a bit and Temari paled at the sight.

Kankuro chuckled. "You're so whipped, Uchiha." He said amused.

"Die." Sasuke said sharply. Kankuro broke into a fit and laughter and held onto Gaara for support.

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"Are you sure you're okay Sakura?" Ino asked, voice laced with concern.

"I'm fine Ino, you worry too much. Sasuke and Naruto fight all the time." Sakura said, trying to force a smile.

"You should be more honest. Just tell people how you feel outright." Kiba said scratching his head. "You probably don't know it, but you're also contributing to Naruto's sporadic outburst. If you just told him how you felt, he wouldn't be so on the fence about Hinata." He added.

Ino nodded. "I agree, you should just tell him. You've been on a few dates already, and you've known each other forever. Just get it over with and make it official." She said.

"It's not that simple." Sakura said.

"It is that simple." Kiba refuted. "You're scared right? And definitely a little guilty, but that shouldn't let that stop you." He shrugged. "You both just go around hopelessly hurting people. A match made in hell if I've ever seen one." He sighed.

Ino shoved him hard. "Shut up Kiba." She took Sakura's hand and held it tightly. "It's only once in a blue moon that Kiba ever has anything smart to say. You should take his words of wisdom, you'll probably never hear them again in your lifetime." She said.

Sakura giggled and looked at her two friends. "Thank you both, I appreciate you coming over here to cheer me up." She said.

"No problem." The two said in unison.

After that, Kiba excused himself to let Ino and Sakura talk about some other things. He saw Lee and Sai had sat down with Shino and Choji, and he wanted to join in on the fun.

"What did I miss?" Kiba asked after sitting down at the packed table.

"Nothing just-" Shino started, but was cut off by a loud chime made by the couple standing at the front of the room.

"Excuse me everyone!" Tenten said, projecting her voice from where she stood. The room feel silent in anticipation for her next words.

"Neji and I have invited you here today for an important announcement!" She continued. She moved closer to Neji, enough to where her back connected with his chest, and then she pulled out her ring. Neji put the ring on her finger, and they held it up for everyone to see.

"We're getting married!" Tenten said excitedly.

Loud claps and words of congratulations were heard from all across the room.

"I'm so excited I can't wait." Ino exclaimed.

"A wedding brimming with youth!" Gai shouted.

"I want to help with the planing!" Temari said.

The tension in the air was long gone, excitement and joy replacing it ten fold.

Everyone started chatting amongst themselves, wondering who was going to be picked as the groomsmen and bridesmaids.

Neji and Tenten joined the party and were bombarded with a huge crowd and a bunch of questions.

Naruto looked at the couple with shimmering eyes, and then turned back to the girl in front of her.

"They're finally getting married." He said in a low voice, a small smile playing on his face.

"Yeah, I'm really happy for them." Hinata said. She made eye contact with him and they stared at each other for a while.

"Listen Hinata.." Naruto started. "I'm really sorry for everything I've put you through. I was indecisive and confused and it wasn't fair to you. You don't have to accept my apology, but I just wanted you to know how I felt. I'm going to try to make it work with Sakura. Thank you for everything." He finished. He started to walk away but Hinata stopped him.

"Thank you for trying to straighten everything out. I forgive you." Hinata said. She smiled at Naruto and then walked away.

Naruto hung his head as he made his way to the table of boys.

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"Did he say anything weird to you?" Sasuke asked concerned. He looked Hinata over and decided she looked okay enough.

"No, he didn't say anything weird at all." Hinata told him, doing a little spin to prove her healthy condition. Sasuke breathed a sigh of relief.

"I was wondering why Neji and Tenten called us here. I thought for sure she was pregnant." Kankuro said jokingly.

"It's never too late for another announcement." Temari joked back.

"Actually it is." Shikamaru said yawning. "It's starting to get dark out." He added, rubbing away a stray tear from his eye.

People around the group were beginning to head out, further proving Shikamaru's point.

"I think it's about time we left too." He said, directing his statement to Temari. She nodded in agreement and went to say her goodbyes.

"Take care of my sister." Gaara said, fist bumping his friend.

"And use protection." Kankuro added.

"Oh please." Shikamaru said, waving them off. "I'll see you guys." He grinned.

"Let's go Hinata." Sasuke urged as he watched everyone file out of the restaurant.

"Okay!" Hinata agreed. She said goodbye to all her friends, and as she passed by Naruto and Sakura on the way out, she gave him a friendly wave.

Naruto returned the wave and Sasuke glared at the boy.

Sakura wanted to ask Naruto how he got back into Hinata's good graces, but she didn't know if it was her place.

"Can I walk you home, Sakura?" Naruto asked sheepishly.

The said girl nodded shyly and they exited the restaurant together.