A/n: I know it's been a really loooong time since I last updated, guys! I'm really sorry about that. I've not been getting any inspirations to write these few months. And finally, I'm getting a little of my muse back- I should capture this opportunity to update! :D

Previous chapter (because it's been a really long while since I last updated):

Sakura clamped her hand over Ino and Tenten's mouth and hissed, "Shut up, guys! This is the second time everyone's staring at us- they must think we are a bunch of lunatics!" Hinata giggled nervously behind the livid Sakura. "U-uh… S-sakura-chan, the j-jerk you mentioned is coming o-over?" Sakura froze at this and ducked her head beneath the table. "Really, Hina-chan?" "H-hai…"

Shit man!Sakura cursed inwardly.This was not good, not good, not g-

"Hn. What are you doing, Sa-ku-ra?"

Ocho:

Of best friends and happiness

Sakura gulped in embarrassment before lifting her head from under the table. Flustered, she immediately gave Sasuke the best glare she could manage, before snapping, "W-what, I can't pick something up from the floor now?" She cursed inwardly at her little stammer. Sasuke smirked. "Hn. Doesn't seem like it, Sakura." She huffed furiously, trying to ignore her friends' curious looks.

Naruto's face, on the other hand, had lit up in happiness and surprise when his eyes landed on Hinata. "Hinata-channnn! I didn't expect to see you here!" Hinata looked at him in shock and gasped, "N-naruto-kun!" "You guys know each other?" Sakura asked in surprise. Hinata nodded meekly; Naruto, on the other hand, was nodding his head vigorously. Sakura, Tenten and Ino shared a look of surprise but did not prod further or comment about it. It must have been at that time, when Tenten and Hinata came over to Konoha University for the Conjoined Student Council meeting... Sakura thought.

After that, awkward silence ensued between both parties. It was a rather comical moment, Ino observed. Naruto was grinning at Hinata, a light blush dusting his cheeks. Hinata, in turn, was flashing him tiny smiles, her face heated up throughout their whole "interaction". Ino smirked inwardly. Time for some matchmaking! She thought. Sakura, on the other hand, was glaring at Sasuke, looking like she was trying to look angry at him although the blush on her face gave away the fact that she was more embarrassed at being caught in the act of hiding from him than actually furious with him. Sasuke was smirking triumphantly at her, his eyes gleaming with a light that seemed to mock Sakura that yes, he had caught her "red-handed" and that it was useless for her to try to deny that she was hiding from him, instead of 'picking something up from the floor'. Tenten was just staring at the wooden table, awkwardly shuffling about in her seat, not wanting to make the tension between both parties even worse than it already was.

Ino turned to look at the only adult present at their little meeting. He was an odd man, she deemed. He wore a black face mask, covering one of his eyes with what seemed to be an eye patch. His exposed eye was glued to an orange book he held on one of his hands, and behind the book, he looked like he was smirking to himself… Ino wished that she had a camera then. It was such a Kodak moment!

Time seemed to snap all of them back to reality. At the same time, Hinata looked away from Naruto, blushing heavily and looking down at her hands, and Naruto followed suit, pouting as he turned away from her direction. Tenten looked at Ino with a questioning look, raising her eyebrows at her. Ino then realized that she probably had on a really freaky smile on her face and promptly waved it off, mouthing a "nothing" to Tenten. Sakura turned away from Sasuke's cocky expression, glaring at the floor whilst Sasuke continued to stare at her intently. Kakashi stayed as before, seeming to be frozen in time. Apparently, Naruto was the one who broke the ice by the loud grumble that sounded from his stomach. Sakura and Ino frowned at him disapprovingly, Sasuke smacking him on the head and muttering a barely audible sentence that sounded like "Stupid dobe". Naruto cried out and clutched his head while glaring at Sasuke and said "What was that for, teme!" Sasuke just glared at him, not replying his outburst. It was then Kakashi came back to live. "Now now, you two, it's not nice to quarrel like six-year-old brats in front of a group of pretty ladies, isn't it?" Kakashi ended his chiding with what seemed to be a tiny smile and both Naruto and Sasuke glared vehemently at him.

"I suppose we have to go now. Right, girls?" Ino intervened to prevent them from having to sit through another episode of awkward drama. All of the girls nodded eagerly and got up to leave. "Wha- so fast?" Naruto exclaimed. "You guys just came!" "And how would you know that?" Sakura replied, with her eyebrows raised. Naruto sulked, having nothing to say. Sasuke kept quiet throughout the whole exchange and continued to watch Sakura intensely. Sakura, feeling increasingly uneasy under his scrutiny, felt as if he was looking through her, at her soul. Feeling really irked out, she bit out, "Let's go!" With that, she stalked out of the restaurant hastily. Her friends followed suit after paying the bill, and Tenten questioned Sakura on what was wrong.

Sakura shook her head and mumbled that everything was fine. After returning Ino the money which she owed for the earlier lunch bill, the four of them decided to let that day's episode rest by going around shopping.

"Say, I've been wondering since just now, what made you come over here so suddenly, teme? Was it cause' you wanted to see Sakura-chan?" Naruto snickered, waggling his eyebrows at Sasuke suggestively. Sasuke glared daggers at him in return, before snorting and replying Naruto with a smack on the head. "Dream on, dobe." Kakashi smiled in amusement behind his mask. Interesting...

"Thanks so much for going out with me guys! I thoroughly enjoyed it!" Sakura exclaimed happily. "N-no problem, Sakura-chan…" Hinata replied, giving Sakura a shy smile. Sakura grinned in return and gave the other girl a tight hug. "Yeah, today was awesome!" Tenten agreed heartily. Ino nodded and stated, "We should go out more often! It was quite some time ago that the four of us managed to have a free slot to hang out!" All of them agreed. Being involved in the Student Council of Konoha University and Toromo University, Sakura, Hinata and Tenten often meet each other during both school's Conjoined Student Council Meetings. Ino, however, was not involved in the Council, and thus rarely saw Sakura. "Well, I need to go now guys! See you next time!" Tenten waved at Sakura and Ino as Hinata turned to follow her. "Y-yeah. I'll see y-you two soon. Bye!"

When the two of them were nowhere to be seen, Ino nudged Sakura playfully and said, "So, Sakura… What's up with you and the drop-dead gorgeous boyfriend of yours?" "E-eh? He's not my boyfriend, Ino!" Ino snickered in disbelief. "Really!" Sakura exclaimed indignantly. "Didn't he, you know, chase after you? How did he do it?" Ino had a curious and sly look on her face. Sakura sighed. "It's complicated, Pig…"

"Do tell; I've got allll day." Ino drawled.

"He wants me to be his girlfriend just to give his parents the false impression that he's got himself a girlfriend- for some company purposes. And we're supposed to break up when it's almost the time for our "marriage". Kinda weird right? It's supposed to be a plan to convince his parents that he isn't ready to be involved in relationships yet..." Sakura trailed off. "Oh, Forehead…" Ino wound her arms around her best friend, trying to comfort her. "Why did you agree to do it then? It's not like you were under a life-death circumstance… And why you? I'm sure with that looks of his, he's got plenty to choose from." "I guess I wanted to help him. It's always my dream to help others in need, remember? Kaa-san would be proud of me, won't she, Ino? As for why he chose me, I'm not sure. He said that it was because I am not an obsessed fangirl of his or something. So it would also help him in a way that he can chase off his fangirls.." Ino had nothing to say and just looked at her with a sad expression.

Sakura huffed and said, "Well, it has just only become official. We'll see how things go. I'm sure everything's gonna be fine!" Ino shook her head slightly before muttering, "Sakura, your happiness counts too. I'm sure your mother would have wanted you to help others, but not at the expense of your own happiness."

Sakura looked at Ino in silent defeat. The silence between the two friends was deafening. The words exchanged hung heavily in the air, leaving Sakura feeling suffocated. What could I have done?

A/n: Finally… Poor Sakura, she's in a dilemma. We'll see how Sasuke plays it out. Hehe.

I'm hoping to update sooner, but it's not so easy- my muse comes and goes so quickly, it's hard to catch it. :P Please leave behind a review; it would be greatly appreciated!