Someone New | A SasuHina Story (completed)

chapter twenty | team bonding

Sakura had planned for her and her teammates to hang out today. As reluctant as they (mainly Sasuke) were, Sakura managed to get them all to agree. Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and for the first time in a while Sai, were gathering at the hokage tower. From there, they'd go to Sakura's and catch up for a bit.

It was almost noon. Sasuke and Sai stood outside the tower, waiting for their other two teammates to arrive. Sasuke wanted to ask Sakura why they couldn't just meet at her house, but he didn't really feel like striking a conversation with her.

Sai sat down under a nearby tree. He took out his brushes and started painting on a blank sheet of paper. Sasuke sat on a tree branch above him, silently watching as he painted.

It didn't take too long before Naruto and Sakura arrived. You could hear them blocks away from the tower. With Sakura's loud stomping and Naruto's whining, it was easy to decipher who was coming. Sai didn't look up. He simply rolled his paper up and put his brushes back in his pouch. Sasuke jumped down from the branch he was on and waited for the pair to get closer.

Sakura was pulling Naruto along by his ear, while the latter screeched in protest. They were charging towards the tower, stopping abruptly when faced with their other two teammates.

"Sorry we're late." Sakura said sheepishly. "Someone over here accidentally overslept." She continued, tugging harder on Naruto's ear.

"Let go of me!" Naruto exclaimed. Realistically, he could wiggle out of Sakura's clutches whenever he wanted to. He just didn't feel like it was necessary to go through all the trouble. He was still groggy, having recently woken up. Exerting his strength wasn't something he was up for at the moment.

"You went to pick him up?" Sai asked slyly. He knew that Sakura had a thing for Naruto, and vice versa. There was no real reason why Sakura should've went to pick him up. Everyone knew the meeting time beforehand. It wasn't guaranteed that Naruto was going to oversleep and she'd need to go over to wake him.

Sasuke also realized this, but kept it to himself. He wasn't interested in Sakura's intentions, nor did he care enough to point them out.

"I was just afraid he'd forget about today. I stopped over on the way here just to check in, but he was still asleep." Sakura claimed. She let go of Naruto, suddenly conscious of their spacing. "Let's go." She said, turning towards the direction of her house. The boys followed, Sai snorting to himself at Sakura's excuse.

The village was peaceful. The birds were chirping, the sun was out, and the streets were bustling.

Sasuke walked behind the group, a certain laze in his steps. He wasn't exactly thrilled to be going to the kunoichi's place. He yawned, his eyes becoming teary and strained. Though his compromised vision, as he fixed his eyes, his gaze fell upon a familiar figure. He paused.

Sasuke excused himself from his friends. He told them he'd only be gone a moment and they could go on without him if they wanted to. The three didn't move to leave, they wanted to see what managed to pique Sasuke's interest.

Sai, Naruto, and Sakura gaped at the sight in front of them. Sasuke had rushed over to Hinata, greeting her with a small smile. She had returned his smile with one of her own and brushed a piece of stray hair out of his face. It was an endearing site, to those who didn't know the two. However, to the three onlookers who were familiar with the couple, it was quite bizarre.

Sasuke talked with Hinata almost animatedly. His expression was still as stoic, but his eyebrows weren't furrowed like they usually were. He face was visibly more relaxed, not sporting its usual scowl. He motioned over to his teammates. Probably explaining why he was out in town this afternoon. Hinata glanced at them, waving in acknowledgment. They all waved back, not sure what expressions they were wearing.

Soon after, Sasuke left Hinata's side and returned to his awaiting comrades.

"My bad, we can go now." He said nonchalantly. He had already reverted to his usual self.

Sakura was relieved, he was still the same Sasuke as always. The walk to her house was relatively quiet. It wasn't until they'd gotten settled into Sakura's living room that anyone dare spoke. Sai laid out his painting from before, deciding to finish it on the coffee table.

Sakura brought out a couple snacks and set them on the other side of table, not wanting to disturb Sai.

She sat down in between Sasuke and Naruto on the couch. Naruto sat on the edge, trying to get as far away as possible from the Uchiha. Sakura sensed the tension and tried to lighten the mood.

"Who wants to play a card game?" She asked, getting up to get the cards from her room.

"When did you two get so close?" Naruto asked. Everyone froze. Sai stopped painting and Sakura stopped in her tracks, not even making it passed the kitchen.

"What are you talking about?" Sasuke asked, feigning ignorance. He knew this was going to happen.

"Don't play dumb Sasuke, I saw you two. You're not just some casual acquaintances." Naruto said, matter of factly.

He was right. They weren't just casual acquaintances. They were more than that. Sasuke felt they had a special bond. He also felt that he didn't have an obligation to tell Naruto anything. This was the man who broke the poor Hyuuga's heart. They were both his friends, but he held a deep empathy for his female companion. None of this was Naruto's business. What Sasuke does, nor what Hinata does.

"Why does it matter?" Sasuke asked. He knew Naruto was probably miss reading their relationship. The two were platonic. Sure, they'd gotten close fast, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with that. They were what the other needed.

"Nevermind, it doesn't." Naruto said, dropping the subject. Maybe he realized his place.

"How about I get you two a drink. Then we can play something, okay?" Sakura suggested, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She tip toed to the kitchen.

"I'd like a water please!" Sai called out from the living room. Sakura rolled her eyes, knowing he only did it to be obnoxious.

She brought out the four beverages and scurried to her room to get the playing cards.