The Girl I Used to Know Chapter 8: Unveiling the Mystery, a naruto fanfic

I guess this is late but who cares

I guess this is late but who cares? It's summer! Also, I know it wouldn't help if I tell you that I had finished this chapter a week ago only to get deleted when my laptop was reformatted, so I won't tell. The point is here it is, and this is, by far, the most fun to write. : )

And since my aching tooth had now been put out of commission, c/o a scary dentist, the updates in this story will be faster. I am actually overjoyed that I was planning to start a new fic, or continue the others that I had put on hiatus, namely The Detour and Never Be Replaced. So… thanks to those who reviewed, alerted, favorite-d and all of the above-d this thing! ; ) Cookies are now for grabs to HushPurple17 (who is now a new friend of mine, and because of that you're up first), xxSharingan13xx (who fussed over Sasuke's debut so much that I feel loved), 71smoOthcriminal17 (who asked for fluff – and still not getting any. Alas! Time will surely come!), sakura4594 (for her monosyllabic interpretation of the past chapter), onyXcherry (who loves the plot just the way I do), too lazy 2 sign in (who managed to sign a review), erChEnsAkUrA (who understands everything – and for whom I dedicate this chapter to for her overflowing sympathy), Kawaii IceCream (who pointed out the huge difference between Sakura and Mizaki), fumiko-chan (whose excitement made my day), cutie2 (who found this thing cool, which I'm very thankful of), SasuSaku Forever and Ever (who loved Hinata and Sakura's friendship a lot), Merridaine (for her amazing feedback), frienz4ever (who loved the thought of Sasuke and Sakura working together), csimiamigirl73 (who inquired what the movie is all about but to her dismay, the author, yours truly, had postponed it to the next chapter), winxgirl21 (who wondered when will Sasuke find out everything, which is –spoiler alert!- SOON), i love hershey (for her heartwarming review), nickygirl (who wasn't a Hannah fan but still managed to love this story), asianangelgirl (who gave me love that this update was for you too), ForgiveButNeverForget (whom I must tell that this would be totally different from the Hannah-Jake thing), mesh (-: (who found this so awesome), NewFoundGlory-56 (who fused about the movie even I got excited about it), ichigo-frost-cake (whom I will tell to expect the unexpected), saBaku girL (who loved sasu-chan's debut the as much as I do), musicOFtheHEART2 (who loved every part of the story that I jumped for joy), kate89654p (who was my best bud, not 'cause I kept my updates secret to her. Hehe), Meet the Angel (who wished for Tenten and Naruto to become Sasu-fans too… well, people have preferences), mortal-ice89 (who wished for honesty), the world wide web (who was so happy that Tsunade had let Sakura go), scafold89 (who, too, wanted fluff), mystified mist (whom I know love for her reverence to the past chapter), xsnakeCHARMERx (whom I will castrate now for not updating MMBUS!), Helpless Being (for whom I got the inspiration to go on with this story), INDAY-the-popular (who favorite-d this), missingSakura15 (for the love she gave on my tooth), thenextIDOL (for being my first flamer), cheekygirl-78 (who wanted to read so much more of this story), mADLy-SpeAkinG (who wanted me to update sooner), Genius8954 (who adored Sakura and Hinata so much), PhatomSoul103 (who wanted me to keep updating – which I would do!), iNkLing.p (who thought Sakura was cool), xo M i M i (who longed for Sakura to being honest someday) and Anita Tseu (who reviewed on all of my stories!). Thanks y'all.

Everything just happened so fast.

One minute she was running in high heels, grinning like an idiot as she made her way to the party. She remembered the overwhelming feeling of happiness as she strutted on the hallway, meeting her friends, not as Akaya Mizaki but as Haruno Sakura – donned in simplicity and reflecting who she really was. She also wouldn't be able to forget Sasuke's usual yet moved expression upon spotting her, as if she was all that he had been waiting for. She still wasn't done gushing when a tap on the microphone shook her out of her trance with Sasuke cautiously making his way up the stage and the next thing she knew, a horde of press people invaded the stage that Naruto would have to drag her out of the room for their safety.

The fact that Uchiha Mikoto just announced his son's entry on the entertainment industry still hasn't sunk in and as she was trying so hard to put two on two together, she was pulled unceremoniously away from her friends in a rather harsh manner.

And even before she could protest, she was dragged to the nearest bathroom – which she swore she had been at earlier – with raven locks being tossed frantically at her. She frowned and pulled the wig off her face and saw Shizune's repentant face.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan, but Tsunade-sama wishes your presence at the party. Now" As Akaya Mizaki.

It was all what Shizune had blurted out the whole time Anko was retouching her make-up, and with a final brush of her fake, raven hair, she was pushed out of the bathroom, only to be tackled by the same mob of press people, asking deafening questions.

That was when her manager conveniently walked in, parted the mob for Mizaki to get enough air to breath, told the press in that tone of her voice that Mizaki and Sasuke will be both entertaining their queries at the function hall in relative peacefulness rather than being harassed by all of them in the most conspicuous places. That was when the commotion effectively died down as all of them made their way to the party venue, with the makeshift stage now removed and replaced with a long, white and elevated table, with Sasuke seated (tied?) and messing his raven spikes grumpily at the sight of the press.

If not with her manager's iron grip on her upper arm, Mizaki could've escaped through the seemingly tempting fire exit located at the far right corner of the hall. But as she made her way to the table, taking the smallest steps possible, she began to realize that she will be facing Sasuke for the second time now, only as an entirely different person. And if what she heard was right, god, she'll be doing a movie with him anytime soon.

Reality check: quite honestly, acting was not her forte. Sakura's most embarrassing moment dated back to an awkward portrayal of Juliet when she was six that she had managed to exterminate from her mind, only to be revived at the dawn of the repeat of said experience. The only thing that remained the same was the presence of Sasuke, since he played little Romeo at that time and that now, he'll become the new leading man of hers. Oh god. She could tell at this early that everything was, is a mistake. That's exactly the reason why she stuck on singing, because that's the only thing she could ever do.

"Tell me why I'm here again," she managed to raise to Tsunade discreetly, eying the table in dread.

Tsunade just smirked. "Mikoto-san never told me about this, but I guess you'll live."

"I can't act, and you know that," she countered, smiling nervously on the flashing cameras.

Tsunade waited for them to reach the table and Mizaki's chair before she answered, "Mi-za-ki-chan, you've been acting since the day you started going public."

Mizaki frowned at the underlying message of her manager's words, cursing herself for never telling the blonde lady that she never really liked anyone to know that she could actually sing, thinking it was weird and all; weird for her, for even Naruto would spit his beloved ramen on her face upon the mere inkling of it.

She was complied to retort sarcastically but when Sasuke shifted beside her as she sat, and because their chairs were just inches apart, there was an 'accidental' brushing of their elbows that caught the two teens' attention.

Sasuke's reaction was enough for Mizaki to conclude that having chemistry with this guy would be the most difficult thing of all. He glared at her in outmost venom that Mizaki would have to remind herself that it was her, not Naruto, on the receiving end.

"Mizaki-chan!" Mikoto suddenly greeted, tapping her shoulder. "I'm glad you made it; Tsunade told me you had an emergency but I guess you've worked it out, yeah?"

Mizaki opened her mouth but Mikoto just continued her litany, and it seems to the pop star that Sasuke's mother is doing it on purpose.

"I know this is urgent but don't worry, we've got everything into place. We even enrolled you both on acting workshops and even though the program starts tomorrow, we still took into consideration your school hours. My son here is also studying so feel really assured that your studies would always be our priority. Actually, we've decided to start the rehearsals next week so when the summer break comes, we can start filming."

If this is what the older Uchiha calls 'briefing' then Mizaki now knew where her manager got her well-manicured, one-minute-before-the-performance 'talk' – thatwhich actually doesn't make sense especially when flashes kept exploding and distracting her out.

"Mizaki-chan, I hope you take care of my youngest son. He's an amateur, compared to you."

But even before Mizaki could beg to disagree – for in reality, Sasuke might even be a better actor than her (and that's saying something) – a microphone was, again, tapped as a sign that all's been set.

The press people, for Mizaki, had so far been the scariest and seeing the look in their eyes, she shivered.

In a split second, the grilling commenced.

Title: The Girl I Used to Know
Chapter Title: Unveiling the Mystery

Naruto stood at the soles of his feet, trying to part the crowd in front of him to get a nice view. While he had been worried at the sudden proclamation of his best friend's entry to the show business, knowing that Sasuke was never the type to revere the lime light and attention, and that Sasuke was about to do a movie collaboration with Naruto's future wife and the possibility of Sasuke taking advantage of that, Naruto was no where thinking about them all as he squeezed his way through the press. Sasuke could eventually get over that fact, Naruto knows, and Mizaki would never allow the latter to happen, so there's no use on fusing over it.

Right now, it's about getting closer to the girl he loves – and of course, to take awesome pictures of the newly-formed love team.

"Tenten," he called out behind him. "Hurry up, will you?"

Tenten emerged harassed somewhere in his right, pushing her bangs aside. "Naruto, listen! I have something to tell you."

Naruto managed to take another step forward before he turned back to her. "I can't hear you! Just hurry up!"

"Geez, Naruto! Sakura's missing!"

Naruto pushed a photographer aside and pulled Kiba's digital camera that he borrowed for this reason alone. "We'll talk about that later! See, Mizaki-chan has arrived!"

Tenten sighed. "NARUTO, ARE YOU LISTENING? I SAID SAKURA'S MISSING! WE'LL BE DEAD IF SASUKE FINDS OUT, KUSO!" she screamed all her might, effectively smashing the eardrums of the reporters within one-foot radius. Naruto, too, felt the deafening impact and turned back.

"What the hell? Aren't you with her?"

Tenten pulled Naruto closer, gripping his arm. "I did! But she disappeared before we went back in!"

"Are you sure?"

Tenten nodded. "She was with me on our way in, but she somehow got separated."

A loud boom on the speakers was heard that effectively pulled the two out of their conversation and managed to turn their attention to the two people seated behind an elevated table, one looking obviously suicidal, the other looked nervous.

"Mizaki-chan!" Naruto cheered, eyes twinkling.

Tenten, on the other hand, rolled her eyes heavenward. "Naruto, we have to look for Sakura!"

Naruto turned to her incredulously. "Are you crazy? Mizaki-chan would be answering some of our questions in a minute, this is our chance!"

Feeling her temples, Tenten sighed again as she looked up to see her idol. It is true that she's a huge fan of Mizaki, and she'll kill anyone just to be here. But the fact that Sakura was missing, not even the possibility of what Sasuke might do to them at Sakura's vanishing, made her feel a bit worried. Despite of being torn and choosing her favorite star, who's about to divulge something that might give her and Naruto the upper hand over all other fans, she was looking back, squinting her eyes for any sign of pink hair. Accidental or not, Sakura's disappearance is starting to grate her nerves, and Tenten won't be stopping until she finds her.

"The conference shall now commence," an emcee exclaimed, and almost immediately, hands shot up in the air. He then pointed to the well-known reporter working under the Uchihas. "Kurenai-san."

The redhead immediately nodded, turning to Sasuke. "Uchiha Sasuke-san, is your collaboration with Mizaki-chan long been planned? If so, when did the idea occur?"

Mizaki gulped upon seeing Sasuke stare the poor reporter down and failing to answer.

"Actually, yes!" Mikoto answered, patting her son's head. "Kakashi-san, who will be Sasuke's manager, came up with the idea and seeing that Mizaki would be needing a leading man on her debut movie, the movie's producers chose him for an all new tandem that they hope the people would love."

Excited cheers erupted from the crowd, but both Mizaki and Sasuke turned to Mikoto in surprise.

"Kakashi?" Sasuke echoed. "Hatake Kakashi?"

Mikoto nodded. "Kakashi-san had been working on our company for quite sometime now."

"Kakashi-sensei?" Mizaki joined in, curious. She never realized she made the biggest mistake in her life – well, aside from the fact that she let things in her life go this way – as she continued eying the older Uchiha. When her mind caught up with her, her sapphire eyes fell to Sasuke's unreadable face.

"Mizaki-chan, I never knew you've met Kakashi before! I guess Tsunade had introduced him to you before, yes?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes and glared the pop star back. He wasn't deaf; she just called Kakashi 'sensei.'

At this, Sakura cursed her luck.

A huge uproar of questions started to explode as reporters tear each other up again for an opportunity to ask a question, and thankfully, Mizaki had an excuse to focus on the task at hand.

But thinking Sasuke would let this slip would be hopeless, and since they would be spending a lot of time together, he would have more chances to squeeze in an authentic answer of why she was being too much acquainted to someone like Kakashi.

"Mizaki-chan, with your new leading man, what happens to your fellow singer Hiroki Fujiwara, who is a rumored suitor of yours?"

If this had been her first time, she would've been infuriated to death with exaggerated gossips like that. The nameless reporter was right to point out Hiroki as a fellow pop singer, but he was merely speculating about the 'suitor' part. Mizaki guessed she was spotted hanging out with him in an exclusive party last night and automatically assumed things. She also knew that this would appear tomorrow on the papers but gets to be besieged by the newer, more exciting scoop of her movie collaboration with the heir of the Uchiha Group of Co.

Al least she gets to drop the topic of calling Kakashi 'sensei' for the meantime.

She let out a fake laugh and regarded the reporter. "Hiro-kun and I are good friends and I'm sure he'll be very happy about my new pursuit."

"What about the blind item on the tabloids? I'm sure it was you and the Australian hunk—"

"—and teen heartthrob Haruto—"

"OH, MY GOD! Tenten, did you heard that? I never knew! We have to let Kiba know! We'll post all of this tonight!" Naruto gushed, taking pictures madly.

Tenten was compelled to agree with the same enthusiasm but her attention seemed to have resided to their missing friend. She would have to deal with all her lost for not listening later; right now, she pulled her mobile phone and pushed the button that read 2 – Sakura's speed dial number. "C'mon, Sakura…" she prayed inwardly, biting her lip as she tried so hard to hear the operator connecting her call to her best friend's number. She ignored the male reporters who were taking advantage of the situation and focused on her self-imposed task.

Mizaki, on the other hand, was turning paper white at the despicable array of male celebrities linked with her name that she lost her count. She was about to espouse a violent reaction when the person beside her managed to catch her attention with that prideful smirk that was too aggravating to pass.

Sasuke actually looked fairly amused with the turn of events, which was a first for someone who thought things had never went his way.

She threw him a spiteful snarl before she almost, almost fell off her seat by a consequent booming (yet again) of the speakers (but this time in a shrill manner that sounded like a thousand nails scraping an old, dusty board) and a starling vibration on her right pocket. The sound was so deafening she felt the small hairs on her neck rise as the microphones yielded a strident sound one could only associate to an interception made by a cellular phone, her cellular phone. The crowd in front of them, too, felt their ears as the noise persisted before Mizaki, instinctively, pulled the vibrating phone on her pocket to the tabletop, before it fell on the other side due to her miscalculation.

It was only when her phone crashed into pieces that the resonance died down and everyone regained their composure.

Mizaki then spent the whole night apologizing for such accident of not being able to turn off her phone in the middle of a press release and hid her flushed face away from the flashing cameras as the interview was cut short before leaving.

Sasuke, uncharacteristically, was overjoyed all throughout because of the interruption and impediment of the interview as a whole that he even let it show on his face through a slight contortion on his lips before he, too, left.

Naruto, in contrast, was cursing the gods above as he was shoved out of the function hall with the rest of the press people rather violently when the conference ended and was too preoccupied with the small amount of pictures he had taken that he left right away.

Tenten, consequently, was left to wonder as she stood in front of the broken pieces of a cellular phone being put away as to how pop-star Akaya Mizaki got a hold of her best friend's phone, plus the fact that Sakura never showed up again.

"You could at least be thankful to Mizaki-chan for once being the most popular, most talked about person in the campus," Naruto pointed out as he dug into his favorite cup of ramen. "At least you were able to shy away from the limelight even for just a while."

"But the fan girls had always been there," Sakura piped in, arriving just in time and taking a seat beside Sasuke in their usual cafeteria table.

An evident growl of disapproval erupted from Sasuke's slouched form as that topic was lifted up again. He had been trying to evade anyone since the news broke out (curtsey of an unofficial announcement posted on an unofficial Mizaki website) but to no avail. The next day, aside from a few paparazzi that were kicked out by the principal due to illegal entry on their school grounds, every freaking student was coming to him just so they could hear the truth directly from him. If that wouldn't be so bothersome, his fan girls had doubled and had been more bigoted in their hunt for him. Honestly, Sasuke wished he never overtook Akaya Mizaki in the popularity list, and knowing that he'll be working with her soon, the fan girls' numbers would undoubtedly be increasing.

"Demo, Sakura-chan, you should've seen them now! They had flooded teme's locker twice the gifts they had given him last Valentine's!!"

Sakura's eyes widened. The amount of gifts Sasuke received last Valentine's could account for the whole city's garbage in a day. It helps to point out that Konoha was by far the largest and most populated city in their country. "Really?"

"Uh-huh," Naruto nodded as Tenten arrived with her own tray of food.

"I guess this had something to do with last night…?" Sakura asked before she wished she hadn't.

"You bet, Sakura-chan!"

At the mention of 'last night,' Tenten straightened, Sakura ducked her head due to her unexplained absence and the possible inquiries about her whereabouts and Sasuke immediately glared the blonde.

"Dobe, the nerve of you to go back home by yourself."

Sakura winced, knowing that her disappearance would soon be brought up. She was just so exhausted last night that she remembered everything Sakura left unexplained a minute before she decided to go to sleep. She thought of calling her friends but almost slapped herself when she realized that she forgot her phone in the party venue after she embarrassed herself. And judging by the tone of Sasuke's voice, she could tell how hard hers would get.

Naruto flushed. "Bu-bu-bu-but I had to go! Haven't you heard the news? Our website was the first to spill your movie collaboration with Mizaki-chan! We've even toppled all the biggest networks of the country – all because I chose to leave earlier than the rest. It was a matter of time, teme!"

Sakura took a delicate gulp.

"Besides, our webpage provided your complete profile even before everyone could speculate about your identity," Naruto explained. "If I hadn't left and posted your profile in time, who knows, you might've been rumored as a stripper for reasons only Kami knows. You owe your credibility to us."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "My credibility went down the drain because of that. And just so you know, my manager and the rest of Sharingan Records were tracking the people behind that unauthorized claim," he threatened, glaring the blonde down.

"I ain't scared."

"You should be," Sasuke warned. "Haven't I told you Kakashi is my manager? You haven't forgotten how he is back when we failed to submit our homework, have you?"

Tenten smirked. "I had detention with him, and it felt as scary as it might sound. And more."

Sakura turned towards a rather affected Naruto as he lost his appetite. Desperate to turn the tables, he blurted out the first thing that crossed his mind.

"But Sakura-chan went missing too, right, Sakura-chan?"

Sakura tried to look unaffected as she feigned interest to her nails.

"Where had you been last night anyway?" Naruto prodded, leaning towards her. "I tried calling you after I got to Kiba but you shut your phone off. What happened?"

Sasuke, feeling the way Sakura stiffened beside him, spared Tenten a knowing glance before he glared the blonde. "Dobe, shut it."

"I was talking to her," Naruto snapped back. He then turned back to Sakura who was seated across him. "Of course I was worried. The function hall was so packed she might've injured herself. Sakura-chan, at least tell them that it wasn't my fault that you got separated from us."

Tenten sighed before she snatched Naruto's empty ramen cup. "Naruto, can't you just do what you're told?"

Naruto appeared incredulous. "Since when did you start agreeing with anything teme had said?"

"Since today, okay?" Tenten replied before she smiled to Sakura, a smile that the rosette girl found so hard to discern. "I found Sakura last night outside the function hall. Apparently, she still had her sanity intact for not going through that forsaken function hall. And you, Naruto, haven't noticed her on your way out 'cause you were too distracted with those pictures that you've forgotten us entirely. Even Sasuke managed to give us a ride home despite the possibility that he could be ambushed by a ton of reporters by merely approaching the two of us by the entrance. Couldn't you be at least sorry that you left both of us with the rest of those scary reporters behind?"

Naruto hadn't appeared so repentant until now that he bowed his head in defeat. The mere sight of his dejected figure saddened Sakura that she had the urge to come by his side and reprimand Tenten and Sasuke for being too hard on him if not for the story Sakura was sure Tenten had only made up. With that, her gaze fell on Tenten, who, for some reason, was avoiding her gaze.

Confusion simmered inside her and turned to Sasuke for answers, but though he was already studying her a second ago, he craned his neck to the other side so she couldn't see his face.

"I'm sorry, okay?" Naruto finally said, looking sober. He spared Tenten beside him a glance before pouting. "I'm sorry I dragged you back the function hall. I'm sorry I didn't listen. I'm sorry I left." He then turned to Sasuke, but he failed to meet those onyx eyes. "Sorry for the article about you we posted." Sasuke raised his brow. "But I can't promise that it won't happen again." But before Sasuke could even counter, Naruto turned to Sakura, and this time, he made sure that he held her gaze in an apologetic manner. "Sakura-chan, I'm sorry for leaving you behind but rest assured, it would never happen again. That's my way of life."

But despite how noble that might sound, Sakura was scared that Naruto will take that out all too seriously because if he does, she won't be able to go anywhere soon.

"So what happened after that?" Tsunade eagerly asked, urging Sakura, who was seated on a couch adjacent to the principal's table, to go on.

Sakura bit her lip. "That's the point. Nothing happened apart from Naruto's apologies. Tenten never spoke a word until we got back to our classroom, and now she was acting as if what she said back in the cafeteria was nothing but the truth." She then paused before feeling her temples. "The same applies for Sasuke-kun," she added gingerly.

Tsunade, suddenly feeling weak, sat back on her chair and stared her talent intently. If what Sakura said was true, Tsunade would have to deal with not just the Hyuuga girl who accidentally found out what their secret was, but to Sakura's increasingly becoming suspicious friends as well. But she wouldn't' let this matter get out of control because something is at stake: not Mizaki's career but Sakura's life. She then called Shizune, whom she had asked to step out awhile ago after Sakura came in, and inquired about what happened last night.

"Are you sure no one had noticed that it was you who dragged Sakura from the crowd outside the party venue after Mikoto-san's revelation? Are you sure no one had seen you two walking to the comfort room before Mizaki emerged from that same room?"

Shizune nodded. "We made sure no one had seen us. Even Anko-san could attest to that."

Tsunade's grip on her arm rest tightened. "What about after the press release?"

"We took the fire exit and the employee's elevator to get to the basement, where we were fetched by Mizaki's Mobil."

Sakura watched as her manager frowned and appeared as if she was raking her brains out for more openings but failing to do so. She fisted her skirt on her lap before she called the two's attention.

"What is it, Sakura-chan?" Shizune asked.

Sakura inhaled before she dropped the bomb. "I'm afraid I lost my phone back in the hall. And it wasn't Mizaki's."

Sakura, despite Shizune's headings, dashed from the principal's office in sheer determination that she will personally handle THE problem to their classroom, where she found her friends, and a couple of other classmates cleaning the room. It had appeared that she forgot that it was Monday, which meant that they were scheduled to clean their classroom before leaving.

Naruto perked up at the sight of her and bounced to her direction, mop in hand. "Sakura-chan, where have you been?"

"Uh…" She took a glance around the room and saw Tenten pausing from wiping their blackboard and Sasuke straightening up as he washed the windows. "I was about to go back in after I went to the wash room before I spotted Hinata. We had a little chat until I remembered that we are the cleaners for the day. Sorry I forgot." She then vaguely noticed that everyone seemed to have been apologizing lately, including Naruto. But it seemed that her apology tops them all, though it hadn't anything to do with missing her cleaning responsibilities.

Naruto grinned. "With Hinata-chan? Well that's alright."

"Really now?" Sakura replied as she made her way to the garbage bin to deposit its contents on the school's dumping site – it's the least she could do since everyone seemed to have been doing or had already done their the cleaning work. Besides, no one wants to throw the trash so she was pretty sure that that was the only thing left for her to do.

Tenten cooed, finishing the last of the wipes in the board before sitting on the teacher's table. "Seriously, Sakura, you shouldn't bother. We're almost done; besides, Sasuke had 'volunteered' earlier to do that for you," she exclaimed, pointing towards the already empty trash can. From behind, Naruto broke into giggles. It then seemed to Sakura that the two were back on their true selves.

Sakura playfully reprimanded Tenten on her action before asking why it appears to her that they all had rushed their chores, knowing that her trip to Tsunade's office didn't took that long.

"Well, Sasuke said so," Tenten answered as if Sasuke wasn't on the same room as theirs. "He had soccer practice. He figured that ten minutes of being late is way better that a fifteen-minute one."

"But as I told him, he will still be late," Naruto interjected as he dumped the mop on the toolbox. "And knowing Neji…"

Sakura chuckled at the mention of Tenten's alleged 'ex' as the two fell into an argument. For some strange reason, Tenten hated the way Neji always gets into their conversation same as the way Naruto loved mentioning him. Whether Naruto just wanted to torment Tenten or not was beyond Sakura. Silently, she left the bickering two and made her way to Sasuke, who was about to finish wiping the windows.

"Hey."

Sasuke regarded her with a soft "hn."

She smiled inwardly as thoughts about feeling awkward with him last night as they sat in front of a sea of reporters vanished and was replaced by the familiar comfortable atmosphere she grew to love. Sasuke had noticed her lack of words and turned to her.

"Thanks," she mumbled.

"I was thinking you should do the same for me next week so I won't be late for practice."

Sakura's cheeks flushed before she punched him in the shoulder. "I knew it!" she claimed before arming her cutest pout.

"Are you two flirting or are you two flirting?" Naruto interrupted as he miraculously transported himself behind Sasuke. Tenten followed suit until Sasuke felt rather uncomfortable at their number and left to discard the rug he used. Naruto, on the other hand, chose to follow his best friend to tease him mercilessly, which left Tenten and Sakura both gazing out the window.

Sakura, whose mood had lifted up a minute ago, was left tensed as she gazed her friend at the corner of her eye. She knew Tenten since grade school, and moments like this, or anything that closely resembles to a feeling of uneasiness with each other – just like what Sakura is feeling right now – never occurred. She wished things would never change, but then she chose the life of a pop star in hiding. She also knew that Tenten feels the same and would also want to keep things the way they were, that is until she found out what Sakura was thinking she did last night.

Sakura then snapped out of her trance when she heard a tired sigh escape Tenten's lips. "You aren't going to tell me something?" she asked in a serious tone.

"About what?"

The brunette turned to her sluggishly before peering behind her bangs. "Sakura, what do you think?"

Uhm, thoughts?