Chapter 7
Sakura Haruno
Naruto followed the principal out of the detention room. The boy’s eyes were shadowed by his brow, and he refused to look back at her and Sasuke.
After that, it was silent. They went back to their seats and waited for the teacher to return. When he did, Kakashi didn’t pay much mind to Naruto’s absence. He just went back to his book.
She didn’t talk for the rest of detention. Getting caught by the principal guaranteed that she wasn’t risking anything again.
I’m probably going to have to come back here, she thought, exhausted by the thought of doing detention again. It wasn’t bad, but she would rather be doing anything else right now.
Sasuke didn’t try talking either. It seems that he also was feeling the same way.
4:50 came and Kakashi rose from his desk.
“Ok, you can go,” he said in monotone. Then he just walked out of the room, not saying another word to the students.
Sasuke was the first to get up. He pulled out his phone and started texting away. She wanted to say something to him before he left, possibly getting his number, but he already disappeared by the time Sakura could think of something to say.
After Sasuke left, she pulled out her phone to call her parents. When she tried turning it on, she remembered that she drained the battery while in ISS.
It wouldn’t matter where I sat, I still wouldn’t be able to use my phone, she reflected. But now, I’m going to have to find a phone somewhere and call my parents.
Her parents didn’t know that she had detention. After punching Ino, a teacher with a bowl cut and the bushiest eyebrows she had ever seen took her to the school office and told her to call them. They didn’t answer the phone, so he gave her a detention slip and told Sakura to bring the slip back signed. In her head, she laughed. How stupid can he have been to actually believe I’d bring back the slip signed?
In hindsight, she was the stupid one. Taking the bus home, her parents wouldn’t come to pick her up unless asked. And, now, her only option of communicating with them was gone.
She walked out of the detention room and was blinded for a second. The room was dimly lit but the hallway was bright, with the afternoon sun coming in through the windows to make it even brighter. Noise from the gym bled into the hallway, though now it wasn’t as loud as when she first walked into detention. However, she was surprised that there were still people at school on the first day.
Sakura stopped to drink water from a fountain nearby. It was a long day, and it was about to get longer, so she needed to stay hydrated. As she was drinking, the gym door slammed opened. Out from the gym, a figure in an all-white jumpsuit emerged. He stood tall and confident, with his every step seeming almost calculated. In his left hand, he carried a white helmet, with the front covered in a grey metal that was dotted in tiny holes. In his right hand, he gripped a long, needle-like sword that was grey and shined in the light. As he walked, his long, black hair danced on rhythm to the steps, and his white eyes stared ahead, leading the way.
Sakura realized that man was none other than Neji himself.
If this day had gone any other way, she would’ve had his number and later, they would’ve been texting each other and perhaps, a little more later, they would’ve been dating.
But the day isn’t over, she slyly thought.
Neji strode across the hallway, towards the water fountain she was drinking at. He was drenched in sweat, but the closer he came, she couldn’t smell anything musty coming from him. In fact, the closer he came, the stronger the smell of cologne. Was the man so perfect that he did not smell when he was working out?
She was still drinking from the fountain when Neji came behind her. The moment he came, she moved away.
It seemed almost robotic how he drank from the fountain. His entire body moved like it had just been giving a formula; he moved down 120 degrees, his arms moved forward a few centimeters, and his thumbs pushed gently on the lever wit a force of .9 Newtons. After he was done drinking, he arose from the fountain and his long hair moved beautifully backwards and then lightly landed on his shoulders.
What should I say? This entire time, all she did was watch him drink water. Though Neji seemed he hadn’t noticed, she couldn’t stand there without saying anything. She had made an entire plan for this interaction but now, the plan was thrown out the window. Her hair was messy now due to her sleeping on the floor. She wasn’t even sure if her makeup still looked good.
Talk, something inside of her yelled. Do it, now!
Now! It became louder. Neji was turning to walk away.
This is your only chance!
Now! Do IT!
NOW!
“H-Hey,” she squeaked.
Neji turned around. She was closer to him now and noticed his skin. It had no acne and zero blemishes. He was sweaty, but his sweat only served to make his face shine bright in the light.
“Yes,” he said.
DON’T SCREW UP “You’re Neji, right?”
“Yes, I am. Do you need something,” he asked. His white eyes looked in her direction, but they did not look at Sakura. They stared right through her.
“Oh, that’s cool, my name is Sakura Haruno,” she said, smiling. The girl held out her hand to shake his.
Neji started to look irritated. “I cannot shake your hand, their occupied at the moment.”
“Oh right,” she scratched her head. “Sorry, just force of habit. So…You’re into fencing, huh?”
“Child,” he said, like they were not the same age. “I am a busy man, so I do not have time for this frivolous talk.”
“Oh right, you have to go back to…fencing and stuff,” she said awkwardly. Sakura noticed that she had started fiddling her thumbs together.
“Yes, fencing and stuff, so if you could excuse me,” he rotated and marched off. The gym door slammed and the knight in shining armor was gone. The damsel, distressed, continued her search for a phone.
Goddamn it, there goes my chances at sitting at the pond. She sighed, defeated.
Sakura plodded to the front office only for it to be completely empty. The office was closed, and more importantly, locked.
“This has just been the best day, hasn’t it,” she angrily murmured as she walked out the front doors. “I am just having the best day of my entire fucking life.”
She thought about going back to the gym and asking someone for a phone, but after shuddering at the interaction between her and Neji, she marched forward, walking out of the school through the glass doors and into the school yard.
She sat down on the pond wall and stared at the water. Her anger boiled within her. Everything that could’ve gone wrong went wrong today. And now, she didn’t have a ride to go home. All she could do was stare at the fish in the pond in envy. They’ve had a better day than me. I wonder if fish have crushes and if they’re as dumb as I am at talking to them.
Sakura looked away from the pond. She didn’t want to start wishing she was a fish, that would be weird. She looked around, trying to think about what she was going to do about her situation.
Maybe I could try to catch Mr. Kakashi in the parking lot and use his phone.
The speed at which he walked out talked her out of doing that. She wasn’t catching him; the man was already at home at this point, reading that book of his.
What’s the worst that can happen if you go back to the gym?
Her anger rose again. She took her mind off that suggestion.
Are the classrooms locked? Classes usually have a phone in there.
Nooo, the janitor has probably locked the classrooms.
It was like a light bulb appeared over her head.
The JANITOR! He has to be here still. I can use his pho-
Anko’s voice rang in her head. Sakura recalled what she said. “Hey, I’m going to escort you to the detention room now, make sure to not forget anything in here cause I’m going to leave and I’m the only person besides the weird janitor…”
Was the janitor really that weird? Anko was adamant about Sakura taking all her stuff out of the ISS room. The lady even asked her again before she locked the door, making sure that that none of Sakura’s belongings were in the room when they left.
How else are you getting home? That’s your only option.
But she still felt hesitant. With the way today was going, this screamed bad decision. But, with no answer on how else she was getting home, Sakura rose from the pond walls and started walking towards the front doors.
That’s when she saw them.
In the reflection of the glass on the front door, she could see a group of guys and a girl gathered by the school driveway. She turned to get a better look and smiled.
It was Sasuke. He hadn’t left yet.
Now’s your chance, the voice said again. But she was unconfident. When she last listened to the voice, she was made a fool. Only an insane person does the same thing twice expecting a different result.
But, would you rather speak to a possibly creepy janitor?
It was only possibly. That didn’t mean guaranteed. The man could be misunderstood.
What if instead of offering his phone, he offers you a ride home?
She sprinted towards Sasuke.
When Sakura arrived at the group, she was breathing heavily. Running across the entire school yard was not a good decision, though good decisions seemed few and far between today.
“Sas…” she stopped to catch her breath. “Sasuke.”
The boy turned away from his group of friends and to her. Sakura was slouched slightly, with one hand on her hips while the other on a concrete pillar that stood between the road and the sidewalk, and yet they were same height.
“Yeah,” he answered, confused. His friends looked at her then Sasuke with interested eyes.
They probably think I’m going to ask for his number, she thought, giving no mind to it.
They probably think I’m going to ask for his number, she thought again, realizing that she was asking Sasuke to use his phone.
She then thought about arriving at the janitor’s house instead of her own when she accepted the offer to receive a ride home.
“Can I use your phone,” she asked, her breath having caught up to her. Sakura tried to not pay attention his friends whispering and giggling at her while exchanging winks.
“Yeah, you can, here,” he said, his voice trying to stay composed. He seemed to look kind of awkward as he pulled his phone out from his pocket.
Does he find me cute, she thought fondly. She took the phone from his hand and started dialing her mom’s number. Was he talking about me to his friends? It made her feel warm inside, knowing at least her makeup didn’t go completely to waste.
She pressed call and waited. She listened to the dial tones and the giggles that came from behind her as she waited.
“Stop it, Suigetsu,” Sakura heard Sasuke say, in a hushed tone.
Her mom didn’t answer the phone. She sighed. Of course, she thought. She then dialed her dad.
“Hey, did your parents answer the phone,” the one with the straight, white hair asked. When she got a better look, she noticed that it had a blue tint to it.
“Not yet, I’m calling my dad. My mom didn’t answer,” she called back.
Come on, pick up. I don’t want to be stuck here, she hoped as the dial tones rang.
“Your call has been forwarded to an automatic voicemail system-”
Sakura groaned and hung up the phone.
“Did they pick up,” the straight-haired boy asked again.
“No,” Sakura admitted. Defeated, she handed the phone back to Sasuke.
“What happened to your phone,” the straight-haired boy asked concerningly, stepping out from the group and towards her.
“It ran out of battery while I was in ISS,” she replied.
“ISS?” said the only girl of the group. Her voice was deep and smooth, sounding almost grown compared to the other kids. The girl had dark-red spiky hair that came down to one side of her head while the other side had been cut short. She wore round, black glasses and through them revealed red eyes and long lashes.
“Yeah, ISS…” Sakura responded, quietly.
The straight-haired boy gasped. “You’re the girl that got in a fight with someone today,”
“Yep…That’s me,” she said, forcing a smile.
“That’s hot,” the red-haired girl said.
“But your parents didn’t answer the phone,” Suigetsu said. “Maybe you want to try calling them again?”
“Nooo, I think I’m just going to wait for them here, you guys can go,” Sakura responded.
The straight-haired boy looked shocked. “What, all alone? Where do you live?”
She contemplated whether to tell him or not, but he looked so genuinely concerned that it convinced her to tell.
“I live by Kawarmachi mall, near the highway.”
“Damn, that’s far,” the kid said. He looked down and rubbed his chin in contemplation. “Ok, bit of a stretch, but what about you ask your parents to pick you up from where we’re going.”
Sakura looked at them blankly. “Where are you going…” she hesitantly asked.
“My house,” Sasuke interjected.
“But we usually walk there,” the redhead said, voice smooth as butter. “If we walked straight there without stopping, it would take thirty minutes. But we usually don’t walk straight there.”
“This group is of the mindset that it isn’t about the destination, but about the journey,” said the guy with spiky, orange hair. The man stood out from the group because of how massive he was. At least taller than six feet, he had muscles that were wider than Sakura’s head; his hands looked as if they could rip off her face with one swing. But his face did not reflect his body, having a sort of soft, warm quality to it. The way those dark brown eyes looked at her, it seemed like he wasn’t really here, but somewhere off in his own world, lost in thought.
“The…journey?” she asked, confused.
“He’s just trying to sound deep. We usually grab food or go to the arcade; just wherever the day takes us,” answered the white-haired kid.
It’s better than a ride home with the creepy janitor, she thought. But what’re they planning on doing? The weather’s nice, but do I really want to walk at least 30 minutes through the city just to not be alone for maybe an hour or two?
Suddenly, the front door swung open, and kids in white uniforms started to fill the school yard. They were all laughing, giggling, arguing, and some had burst through the doors sprinting, trying to chase each other. Without their helmets, their sweaty faces gleamed in the sunlight, and their white uniforms reflected the sunlight, making the school yard brighter and harder to see who all were in that group. Regardless, Sakura saw him. He was right in the front, leading the charge. Her knight in shining armor.
I can’t be here! “Yeah, for sure. I’m down. Let’s go. Which way are we heading,” she blurted. “That way?” She pointed away from the white knights heading their way.
“No, that way,” Sasuke said, pointing in the opposite direction she pointed at.
Behind me? That’s fine. “Ok, let’s go!” Sakura enthusiastically turned around and marched in that direction. The rest of the group hesitantly followed.
Soon, they were out of the school, and into the main town of Asamachi. The school was in the heart of the main city, but the city itself wasn’t very big. It didn’t have the high skyscrapers or sprawling crowds of people like the ones in The Capital. Instead, it had medium sized buildings that were all housing local markets and small crowds of people that roamed on the wide sidewalks. The traffic in the city was busier than normal, with many cars filling the narrow streets, but that was only because it was rush hour. Usually, the streets were empty, with only the occasional shuttle or bike rider on it. Though it was rush hour, the city was quiet as it always was. There wasn’t the honking that covered the air like in the capital, instead, there was only the hum of the car engines and the sound of Asamachi’s citizens.
“Hey,” Sasuke said, walking next to her. “You should text your parents that your phone’s dead and to call this one instead.” Sakura grabbed the phone and did exactly what he said.
“So, Sasuke. You gonna introduce us to your girlfriend?” the redhead said, smiling.
“Damn it, Karin. How many times do I have to tell you, she isn’t my girlfriend,” he scowled.
“But we do need an introduction if she’s going to be with the squad for a day,” the straight-haired boy chimed in.
“The..squad?” Sakura looked at him confused.
“It’s a gang, Suigetsu,” the buff man said, his face smothered in his open notebook. “It sounds cooler if it’s a gang.”
“I still think team is better,” said Karin.
The straight-haired kid stopped walking. He furrowed his brow and pointed at Karin angrily. “Woman, I have never heard a more wrong answer.”
“Team of what,” Sakura blurted. This was becoming too much for her.
“Right! We haven’t introduced ourselves yet. Ahem,” the straight-haired kid nudged at Sasuke. “Sasuke, wanna introduce us?”
The emo boy sighed. “Ok, the one with the hair that looks like it was cut with children’s scissors is Suigetsu. The big man who looks at his notebook all day but is too dumb to know how to write is Jugo. And, the girl who tries to act older than her age but is actually the youngest is Karin.”
They all looked at him in anger. “Hey, bum,” Suigetsu gravely said. “I’ll show you hair cut with children’s scissors on that untrimmed head of yours.”
Sasuke continued, unbothered. “And guys, this is Sakura. I met her in detention. Sakura, welcome to the Taka…” he looked at them hesitantly, trying to think about his next words. “…Group.”
“It’s Squad!”
“Gang!”
Karin didn’t give a response. “It’s nice to meet you, Sakura,” she cooed.
Sakura was starting to feel unsettled by her. Why is her voice so deep? She’s a freshman, right?
“Nice to meet you…too,” she responded, awkwardly.
“Don’t be weirded out by Karin,” Suigetsu said, playfully. “She acts like a seductress but is still a virgin like the rest.”
“Not true!” The woman squeaked in a high voice. That must’ve been her natural voice. “I’ve had sex… in 7th grade!”
“I wonder with who,” he playfully pondered.
“His name was Jimmy,” she whined.
“I’ve never heard of him before.”
“H-He goes to a different school…” murmured Karin.
“Last time I checked, Sarutobi High was the only high school in this town and there isn’t a guy named Jimmy who goes here.”
“…He moved before high school…”
“Where,” Suigetsu asked.
Karin didn’t answer. The white-haired boy looked at Sakura and winked. “Told ya’.”
They continued their walk through the city, the group arguing with each other the entire time. It seemed when one argument died down, out of nowhere, another topic introduced itself. It went from team names to whether a homework assignment was due to just general roasts. Every member argued with each other, with Karin starting an argument with Jugo, then Suigetsu arguing with Jugo, then both arguing with Karin.
All argued with each other except Sasuke. He stayed quiet, leading the group through the city and never looking back, only straight ahead. Sakura walked next to him, not knowing how to interact with the other members of the gang. She attempted to talk with him, but his responses were always short and did not give her a lot to work with. Thus, they both walked in silence.
Soon, after thirty minutes of walking, they stopped in front of a convenience store and walked inside. The store was modest size, by far not the biggest the city had to offer. It was filled with snacks, drinks, and in certain sections, books and magazines, over the counter medicine, and cigarettes. Inside, there was only an old man sweeping the floor next to the counter. His body looked strong, with every sweep giving no hint at weakness. In fact, the only indicator of his age was his face. He had few wrinkles on his face and around his warm, green eyes. His head was balding, with only few wisps of hair that managed to stay behind on the top of his head, while the rest laid on the side and back, colored in silver.
“Mr. Uchiha,” the old man said, smiling as he swept. “I hear Sarutobi High has started school again. How was your first day?”
“It was fine,” the boy said as his friends ran through the shop collecting snacks, drinks, and magazines. “Nothing happened really.”
“Oooh, but things will happen soon. Today is a big day. Your first day of high school. You’re on your way to becoming an adult,” said the old man. “I remember my first day of high school, oh so long ago. Good times. Remember to cherish these days, child. One day, you’ll grow up and wonder where all the time went.” He gave a hearty laugh then turned to Sakura. “I don’t recognize you. Are you a new friend of his?”
“You could say that,” she said. “I’m Sakura Haruno.”
“Goro Miyazaki,” he shook her hand firmly. “How do you guys know each other?”
“We both had detention today,” she said, immediately regretting it.
Goro sighed. “On the first day, Sasuke? You can’t start the year off like this.”
“Old man, I don’t need you to tell me what I can or can’t do,” the boy snapped.
“Yes yes, of course,” Goro wearily responded. He moved to the back of the store and into the closet to put away his broom. “You hear the news about your uncle,” he hollered from the back.
“What of him,” Sasuke responded, seemingly bothered by this.
The man came out with a bucket filled with soapy water and a mop. “He’s just announced his reelection campaign.” He dropped the bucket on the floor and started mopping. “Your uncle really won’t give up his throne. If he wins this one, he’ll be president for THREE terms, not mentioning finishing Minato’s term.”
“Will you be voting for him,” Sakura asked.
Goro laughed. “I never do, child. But he’ll win regardless, like always. The man’s a genius at that. And as long as he keeps winning, Sasuke will keep buying shit from my store, keeping me in business,” he gave a cheeky smile. “So, I guess I should start voting for him, huh?”
She looked at Sasuke, expecting him to say something to defend his uncle, but the boy seemed to agree with the old man. She even almost caught a smile on his face.
The rest of the group came to the front of the store with their hands filled with snacks, drinks, and, in Jugo’s case, magazines. Goro smiled at the children. “Need a bag for those?”
“Preferably,” Suigetsu answered. The old man put the mop in the bucket, went behind the counter, and came back with plastic bags for the kids. The gang put their goodies into their bags and walked out of the store.
“That’ll be 50 ryo, Mr. Uchiha.”
“Send the bill to my uncle,” Sasuke responded as he walked out the door.
“As I always do,” he said, smiling. “Have a good evening, Sasuke. Today is the start of something new, remember that. And, it was nice meeting you, Sakura.”
“Nice meeting you too,” she said, following Sasuke out.
They exited the store and entered the city again. The traffic had died down a lot, and the sidewalks that had small crowds of people were empty, with only the occasional couple walking on it. The sun was setting, and its orange evening glow was now covering the city. A lot of time has passed, Sakura thought. Why hadn’t her parents called her back yet? She was starting to worry something may have happened to them.
“Sakura,” the big man said. “Have some.” Jugo handed her a bag of potato chips from the store. She happily obliged. She ate the chips while trying to take her mind off her parents.
They continued their walk through the city for another twenty minutes until they reached an empty park that sat between two buildings in a neighborhood. At this point, they were reaching the edge of the city. The buildings were starting to become more spread out from each other, and the markets were diminishing, being replaced by apartments and townhouses.
The park they went to was essentially a glorified parking lot. The entire floor was cement that was covered in cracks because of the couple cherry blossom trees that were placed almost randomly throughout the park were pushing up the concrete with their roots. In the middle stood a small playground with pair of black, metal swings. To the left of the playground was a singular basketball goal post that was surrounded by faded white lines on the floor. In front of the playground was a one of the couple table benches that were in the lot. The gang sat down at the table and ate their food while chatting.
“Sakura,” Suigetsu said, after a while. His voice was muffled by the brownie in his mouth. He swallowed it, then washed it down with lemonade. “What do you think of us so far?”
She was finishing the bottle of fruit punch that he gave her after she realized that the chips Jugo gave were hotter than expected. “You guys are cool,” she said after swallowing the last drop of juice.
“What about Sasuke,” Karin slyly asked, while staring at him. This time, Sasuke didn’t give a response. His mind was away from the conversation and at the swings he was staring at.
“He’s…cool,” she responded coolly. She quickly glanced at him and then to the group and whispered, “is he okay?”
“Sasuke? He’s fine,” Suigetsu answered. “As long as we’ve known him, he doesn’t tend to interact a lot.”
Karin chimed in. “He’s just in his own world most of the time. Sure, he’ll speak when spoken too; he knows how to socialize. It’s just, he prefers staying quiet.”
“If he’s so quiet, how did you guys meet,” Sakura asked.
“Same way you met him,” Karin answered. “You happen to be stuck together in a bad situation, next thing you know, you’re hanging out with him.”
“He is an enigma. A man who hates the idea of socialization and yet, attracts members of his community to him like moths to a light,” Jugo said. He had finished his food and was reading a magazine that was filled with comic strips and illustrations of the feminine counterparts of popular superheroes.
He really is an enigma, she thought as she stared at Sasuke. Whatever that means.
They sat in the park for a while until the sky began to turn purple, chatting away, as Sasuke still kept his mind immersed in another world away. She was starting to really connect with the group when the sound of music burst into the park, interrupting their chatter. It had a bright, catchy tune that looped every five seconds until Sasuke pulled out his phone from his pocket.
“It’s for you,” he said.
She answered the phone. It was her mom.
“Sakura, honey, are you okay? I’m so sorry for not answering the phone, your father and I were at this dinner party that was hosted by my friend, Castro. You know Castro? My boss? You know the guy, he’s from Kiri, anyways, we went to this absolutely wonderful party, and during our time there, our phones were on silent, but we assumed that you went home with the bus so we didn’t pay much mind to it-“
They eventually settled on Sakura getting picked up from Sasuke’s house. Her parents were on the way to the house, so the group threw away their trash and rushed home. After twenty minutes of running, they made it to the Uchiha house, right when her parents were pulling into the driveway.
“It was nice meeting you, Sakura,” Suigetsu said, giving her a hug.
“Yeah, it was nice meeting you guys,” she responded. She turned to walk to the car but then stopped midway and turned back to the group.
Smiling, she said, “we should do this more often.”
Sakura got into the car and headed home. As she looked out the window and at the now dark purple sky, she thought about the day that just past and hanging out with the Taka Gang. How she got into a fight with Ino (which she probably was going to have to apologize for later), in-school suspension and meeting Anko, and detention.
The big day, she thought. My first day of high school. So far, it seems to be going pretty well. I wonder what this year has to offer.
She smiled in anticipation.