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(3.4)

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"/Why did I even assume that he was single all this time?"/

Sakura was astonished. She knew that the mall would have Cinemas. It was a given that there would be a game arcade. She had assumed that that would be the place where Sasuke would bring her to vent out her stress.

What she was not expecting however, was for there to be an indoor amusement park inside Rinnegan.

Sakura gaped with amazement as her eyes feasted on the indoor roller coaster. She looked around and saw a carousel and a bumper car rink. There was also a play area for kids, complete with an inflatable slide and a ball pool.

"Wow." was all she could say.

Sasuke deposited their belongings to the baggage counter and the orange haired male - who clearly loves piercings - stationed there smiled at him. "I haven't seen you around here in a while. And I see you're on a date."

['Date?!']

"Oh no.", said Sakura. "This isn't-"

"She's just a friend.", Sasuke stated

"Okay then." the man smiled.

…

After a brief moment of awkward silence, Sasuke figured he needed to introduce them to each other. "Sakura, Yahiko. Yahiko, Sakura."

"Hi."

"Hello Sakura. Nice to meet you."

"Can you do me a favour and not mention this to Naruto.", Sasuke told the man.

"Why? What about Naruto?", Sakura wondered. Then she turned to Yahiko. "And Yahiko-san, you know him too?"

"Yeah. Sasuke and Naruto often hung out here ever since they were kids. It's kind of a best friend thing, I guess. But they haven't come here together in a while.", he explained. Then Yahiko pointed at Sasuke. "He's probably worried Naruto's gonna get upset at him for bringing someone else here with him."

"Hn." Sasuke nodded. "Something like that."

Yahiko chuckled. "I don't know what you're so worried about. Naruto comes here often with his other friends. I don't think he'd really mind you if come here with a girl."

"Still… can you just keep this between the three of us.", Sasuke requested.

"All right." Yahiko nodded at him then smiled at Sakura. "Anyway, enjoy!"

Sakura smiled at him as she excused herself to follow Sasuke all the way to the back. There, she discovered the paintball arena.

"Paintball?" Sakura raised an eyebrow at Sasuke. "What would you have done if I chose to wear a dress?"

"I would've gotten a good laugh out of seeing your reaction." he smirked.

.

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The staff took custody of their phones and gave them a white jumpsuit to put on over their clothes and some safety gears.

Sasuke offered his handkerchief for Sakura to tie her hair with. After she was done tying her hair, Sasuke help put on her goggles.

The staff then gave each of them a sack filled with balloons.

"Where not using the guns?", she wondered.

"Hn. Since you have no experience with paintball and I don't want you complaining about how I beat you only because I got the upper hand. This way, you can enjoy it more."

"Hmp." Sakura pouted. "I was actually looking forward to playing paintball for the first time and I wouldn't have minded a little handicap. Now I'm disappointed. Throwing..." Sakura looked into her sack. "Paint balloons is boring."

"Boring?" Sasuke took out one of his balloons and popped it gently but firmly, by smacking it on Sakura's head.

Sakura gasped. She was surprised at the blue liquid that was now running down the sides of her face.

"Oh no you didn't?!" she glared at him. The more she wiped it off the more it stained her skin.

Sasuke made a run for it. He went inside the arena and started looking for a place to hide.

Sakura trailed after him as she was too eager to exact revenge.

Thus, began their match.

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As soon as she came up to a corner, Sasuke threw some balloons at her and her white jumpsuit turned into an accidental painting of the sky.

She made a move to return fire but barely stained Sasuke's sleeve with red paint because he quickly retreated to his next hiding place.

Sakura chased after him with a continuous barrage of balloons. Out of the four she threw at him, only one made contact with his left ankle.

When she saw Sasuke armed himself with his arsenal in both hands, she quickly backtracked to the nearest artificial wall.

She started strategizing and moving along the covers before launching another attack.

After a series of exchanging fire between the two, Sakura realized that she only had a few balloons left. Sasuke, who was smart enough to use his balloons only when he was sure he would actually hit her, was at an advantage.

She knew she was not going to win against him so she decided on a suicide maneuver. If she was going down, she'd take him with her. She held as much balloons as she could to her chest and made a move to ram him, catching Sasuke off guard.

Sakura threw herself towards him, popping all the balloons she held in between them.

Sasuke fell backwards with Sakura on top of him. Both of their chests - up to the edges if their chin - were stained with red paint.

Sasuke grunted and Sakura snorted before giving out a victorious laugh.

Sasuke smirked. "Still bored?"

Sakura shook her head slowly while keeping the jovial smile on her face. She forgot to mind the fact that she was straddling his waist and holding herself up by planting her hands on his chest.

Sakura pulled out her last balloon and smacked it on Sasuke's forehead before flopping down unceremoniously beside him - a new wave of laughter overwhelming her as she lay.

Sasuke took off his goggles that were now impairing his vision due to the red paint that stained it. He lifted himself to turn to his side and ended up hovering over Sakura as he was trying to accomplish his usual task of checking if she was genuinely smiling.

He couldn't stop himself from removing Sakura's goggles and the loosened handkerchief, freeing her hair in the process.

"That's the second one I cost you.", she noted.

Sasuke had to brush aside some strands of hair away to get a clearer view of her blue-stained face.

Sakura's laughter turned to giggles as she tried to suppress it. She placed a hand over her mouth.

"You're doing it again." Sasuke moved her hand away. "If you're happy then show it."

"Why are you always checking if my smile is forced or not?", she shot back. She pressed her lips together as if it would stop it from curving upwards and when it didn't work she bit her lower lip - a sight Sasuke had the chance to have a good look at.

Sakura's goofy expression eventually softens as she was now equally observing Sasuke's face. "So, what's the verdict?"

...

Sasuke pushed himself off of her. "Real enough."

He was on his knees when he held his hand to her.

Sakura took his hand and let him help her up.

The two of them stood up at the same time still holding each other hands.

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Sakura was grinning widely - her hair and face still stained with cracked red and blue paint - as she recklessly drove the car towards the other ones.

Sasuke who was equally a mess, watched from outside the bumper car rink, as she mercilessly crashed into the cart of younger drivers.

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After the fairly exhilarating but fun nonetheless ride of the roller coaster, both Sakura and Sasuke tried their best to fix their hair that was sculptured into its messy and flown away state thanks to the drying paint.

Sakura was brushing her hair back into order with her fingers to look less like she was just assaulted.

Sasuke was smoothening out the poultry animal that his hair had morphed into.

They glance at one another and ended up laughing at each other's expense.

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Sakura had just gotten out of the woman's restroom. Her hair was still wet and she was trying to wipe it dry with the t-shirt she had on earlier.

She found Sasuke standing outside the men's comfort room. His hair was also still damp from washing off the paint. He had changed into a dark blue t-shirt. He was rummaging through the contents of his backpack then pulled out a small bottle of cologne.

He maneuvered to uncap the small bottle and sprayed some cologne along his shoulders and over to his nape - all the while holding their bags.

Sakura smiled to herself at the sight of that. She folded her damp t-shirt and walked towards him.

Sasuke had returned the cap on the bottle and stuffed his cologne back inside his bag by the time Sakura was beside him.

He started putting on his backpack and handed the paper bag to Sakura.

She took the paper bag and pulled out her phone from inside it before putting her folded shirt in its place.

Sasuke waited for her to finish putting on the lanyard before asking; "Ready to go?"

"Yeah.", she told him as she was adjusting her collar.

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.

The two of them walked slowly as they moved away from the establishment.

"Are you sure you don't want to eat first before going home?"

"No. I'm okay. I'm sure my father save some dinner for me. My mother will be furious if it ended up going to waste."

"They… seemed like… fun people."

"My parents?! I- I guess."

"Aren't you fond of them?"

"Honestly, no." Sakura sighed. "I love my parents. I really do. But I just... hate them as well. They're good people. They're good parents as far as good parenting goes. I should be happy and contented and proud of them but... I know what I know. And I feel what I feel... And every time I assess myself, I just can't deny the part of me that hates them. I just can't help it."

Sasuke looked at her. "Domestic… violence?", he reluctantly asked.

"No! It's not like that at all! They're not- … It's me! … It's just… me being… the bad daughter that I am."

Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows and she felt compelled to explain.

Sakura walked ahead of Sasuke. She did not want him to see the face she's making as she spoke.

"My dad was forced to an early retirement because he had a fight with his superiors. And when he lost his job as a security officer he just stayed jobless. He was fine and contented with the money my mom brings in with the bath house. Talk about irresponsible.

As for my mom, the concept of a daughter for her is a mini version of herself. Anything I said or did or wanted for myself that did not agree with the image she wanted of her daughter upsets her. She wishes for me to become more like Ino minus the wanting to be a doctor part.

When I was little, I did everything I could to make her proud of me. But she would often compare me to Ino."

Sakura quickly turned on her heel to face Sasuke.

"Don't get me wrong! I love Ino - She's my best friend. Even though she can be a bit... Well you know how we girls are. Anyway, back when we were still kids, every girl wanted to be her. It's no surprise; my mom wanted me to be like her too. But, come on, I'm me."

Sakura turned away again and hopped on to the concrete barrier. She raised her hands to balance herself and walked on from there.

"I think the real reason why I decided that I would become a doctor was because that was the only thing about Ino that she didn't like. I think I had just meant to spite her."

Sasuke fell behind.

"Then I met Sasori. He was the first person who ever praised me. He was the only one who really appreciated what I did. Since then, he was the only one I cared enough to please. He is as you said; 'what makes me want to live this life'. To me, he's like the prince who's going to take me away from my… /unhappy /home. … But… even if I hadn't met him, I know that I will eventually walk away from my parents come the right time.", she continued.

Sakura reached the end and leaped off of the concrete barricade.

"I know I'm not the only one who disappoints their love ones. I know I'm not the only daughter who gets scolded by her mother. My family's circumstance is a lot better compared to others. There are so many more unfortunate teenagers out there with bigger problems. I know my parents love me. But, I'm a horrible person with a weak mind and a selfish heart after all.

I've just seen so much of that disappointed look. I've heard so much cruel words. Every single one of them burned in my head. Now, even when my mother is actually smiling at me, all I can see is her angry face. Even when she's telling me kind and loving words, all I can hear are the hurtful ones she had told me time and time again.

I'm at this point in my life where I'm convince that if I want to hold on to the love I feel for her... the little respect I have left for her, I'd have to go as far away from her as possible. … I think I can love her more when I can't hear her voice. And she'll love me more when she can't see me disappoint her any further than I already have. Maybe then I can finally be a good daughter."

Sakura turned to Sasuke with a smile.

"You said I wasn't doing everything for Sasori, you were right. I… was doing it all… /for me/. I… was looking for a reason to leave home. So when Ino, Sasori and I made a promise to go to Tokyo after High school, I found my way out.

You were also right when you said I was guilty. I knew I was doing it for selfish reasons but I just want to be happy, even if it means leaving my family. … But it's also true that as much as possible, I don't want to move out of the house feeling this way about my parents. About myself. I don't want to leave my home with the thought of never wanting to come back.

I really do want them to acknowledge my efforts. I really do want them to be proud of me. And I really do want them to give me their consent. Both in achieving my dream and in dating the guy I like."

Sakura blushed. She realized Sasuke had been staring at her all this time. "So-sorry! I just kept talking.", said Sakura as she looked away.

"So, what's the plan? What are you going to do now?", asked Sasuke.

"I still don't know. I'm not sure how to make a compromise. I know they're only worried about me but..."

"You want to be with… him?"

It was a question but he said it like he already knew that it was a fact.

Sakura nodded. "Do you think I'm being unreasonable?"

Sasuke placed his hands inside his pocket. "For being romantically motivated? It's not my place to judge. I'm also only driven by my emotion. I'm in the same boat myself remember?

I'm well aware that even if I accomplish my goal, it won't bring him back. It won't turn back time for us. … I completely understand why everyone thinks it will only be a waste of time. Not to mention all this trouble I'm going through right now as a result of my decision. Still..."

"I'm sorry.", Sakura murmured. "I'm sorry I'm one of those people asking you to come home. And I did it all for my sake too."

Sasuke shook his head. "You have a point though."

Sakura slowed down so she and Sasuke walked side by side again.

"It's not like the distance between me and my brother could get any further away.", he continued "Even if I miss my chance now, maybe I'll get another chance someday. At least that's what I've been thinking, these past few days."

"Eh~? So you're considering it? It's not like you have to decide right now. We still have this summer right? I'm not backing out on that deal. And you still have time to decide-"

Sakura noticed that Sasuke was arching an eyebrow at her. He had a smirk on his face though.

"Oh no. I'm doing it again aren't I?" she moved to cover her mouth as if to shut it.

"You don't really have the time to be looking out for me. Finals start on Monday. Hurry up and get whatever it is you're doing over with and come back to school. If you really want to beat Hyuuga, don't neglect your own studies."

Sakura smiled. "Hai! Thank you Sasuke-kun. For your time. For the friendship. For the book-" Then realization hit her. "Oh my go- That book isn't cheap! And you've spent quite a lot tonight. I even asked you to let me try the other rides. … Are you gonna be okay? I didn't have you spend all your allowance on me, did I? ... I'm sorry. I was just having so much fun and I-"

"If you had fun, then its money well spent. Don't worry about it. I got a discount remember."

"But still, to spend so much on me."

"It's not the first time I spent money to take a girl out-", he said way too carelessly.

Sasuke was suddenly both curious and anxious of Sakura's reaction while Sakura wanted to confirm what she had just heard him say.

They both glanced at each other and immediately looked away.

"I-" Sasuke suddenly found the back of his head itchy.

"Oh. No explanation needed." Sakura almost pronounced all the vowels in the "o" sound.

"Uh-" The ground was suddenly more interesting than anything else for Sasuke.

"Er. Just because you know about my... hehe 'love life' " Sakura's voice was pitchy. "...doesn't mean I have to know about yours~" she continued in that tone. "Ehehehe."

"R-Right."

"Uh-huh! … Sorry. I don't have many m-male friends so… I don't really know how to react to this sort of c-conversation.

"Aa."

" I-I guess boys can talk about this stuff easily huh?"

"Aa."

It was suddenly awkward. The two resumed their walk along the road in silence.

…

['What's with this situation?!']

…

/"...And I see you're on a date."/

/"She's just a friend."/

…

['Come to think of it.

Sakura remembered Yahiko, Nagato and Konan.

...None of them seemed to be surprised that Sasuke suddenly showed up with a girl.']

…

/"Miss~"/

/"Oh. Sakura."/

/"Very well. Miss Sakura. This is Konan. She will assist you."/

/"This way Miss Sakura."/

/"She's just a friend."/

/"Okay then."/

/"Anyway, enjoy!"/

…

['And none of them bothered to ask what our relationship was.']

Sakura glanced at Sasuke who kept his eyes on the road.

['Why did I even assume that he was single all this time?']

…

/"He's Uchiha Sasuke. I bet girls outside the school still fawn over him."/

…

['I wonder how many girls had he taken out on real dates before. And is there someone among them he's seeing seriously. Is there some girl who's special to him right now.']

…

/"...your uncle's worried about you. She's worried about you..."/

/"Can you do me a favour and not mention this to Naruto."/

/"Can you keep this between the three of us."/

…

Sakura felt a sharp pain in her chest.

...

A black mid-size luxury car drives off the road to stop just beside them.

Sakura halts a second after Sasuke who seemed to recognize the car.

The man in the driver's seat rolled down his window revealing two person inside the car. They were twins. The driver was pale and he wore a white suit while his brother was darkly tanned and wearing a black suit. The both of them bowed to Sasuke.

Sakura noticed Sasuke's mood change. The same mood Sasuke would take every time Naruto or Kakashi or sometimes even Karin, was around. He was stoic.

"Good evening Sasuke-san.", greeted the driver. "Your uncle would like to have a word with you."

They were intimidating but they seemed to show great respect for Sasuke.

"We'd be more than willing to drive her home as well.", said the other man as he glanced at Sakura.

Sakura wasn't expecting it when Sasuke nodded to them and had his hand on the small of her back. He led her towards the car.

Both man quickly opened their door and got out. The pale man was about to open the door for the backseat for Sakura when Sasuke politely gestured him to back off.

Sasuke opened the door for Sakura himself and motioned for her to get in.

"It's okay.", he assured her.

Sakura nodded and got in the car.

After Sakura was seated inside, Sasuke closed the door and went around the car.

He allowed the other man to open the door for him before joining Sakura inside the car.

The tanned man closed the door for him and adjusted his suit before getting back on his own seat.

The other man did the same. After both of them had closed their doors, he drove off.

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The car stopped on the corner of the block where Sakura's house was.

The man in white met Sasuke's eyes in the mirror, awaiting his confirmation.

When Sasuke nodded, he made a move to get out of the car and open the door for Sakura. He patiently waited outside, holding the door for her.

"Thank you again for... everything-tonight, Sasuke-kun. I'll see you later."

"Aa."

"Thanks for driving me home.", Sakura told the driver as she got out of the car. She then backed away a bit.

The man in white closed the door of the backseat and went back to his seat in front. He then closed his door and Sakura couldn't see the inside of the car anymore.

The engine started and soon the car was driving off.

Sakura held her phone and started to type a message as she walked towards the bath house.

I hope everything's really okay. Call me when you get hom_

Sakura thought for a moment. Then she deleted the text and took off the lanyard. She dropped her phone inside the paper bag.

She turned left at the corner of the bath house and made her way to the small pathway leading to her residence.

"Nice outfit."

Sakura looked ahead and was surprised to see Ino who was equally surprised to see her.

"Ino? Why are you here?"

"Your mom called me. She said you haven't returned since you left to go after the boy who brought your homework. I came over after dinner and learned that you were not home yet. That was about an hour ago. You haven't been answering my calls or replying to any of my messages. I was just about to go home."

"I'm sorry, I couldn't answer your calls and I'm sorry I couldn't reply to your messages.", Sakura told the blonde girl wearing an orange t-shirt and black sweat pants. "I wasn't holding onto my phone a while ago. I thought I'd call you back as soon as I get home."

Ino moved closer towards Sakura and took a whiff. "You smell like air freshener and men's cologne... And why is your hair damp?" Ino's face suddenly went red and then white with shock and realization. "Oh my go- You didn't!"

"Didn't what?", Sakura wondered.

Ino grabbed Sakura's forearm. "Y-Y-You came from that place!"

"That place?"

"You went to a love hotel with Uchiha Sasuke?!", she screeched.

"No!" Sakura covered Ino's mouth with her free hand. "What?! No! We were at the mall! And then some men, who I think works for his uncle, drove me home by car! Hence the strong scent of male cologne."

"Zhuh Mmwl-" Ino pulled Sakura's hand away. "The mall? Then... why is your hair-?"

"I had to wash the dried paint out of it."

"Paint?! What were you doing? What happened at the mall?"

"Sasuke took me to experience paintball. Well, we only ended up throwing paint balloons... He said it would help me vent out my stress and I think it worked."

"Paintball? In a mall?... HWUAH?! He brought you to /Rinnegan/?! Then that outfit?"

"I wasn't comfortable with what I was wearing so he... offered. We only talked about shoes... actually... but the woman insisted I changed into these. Probably didn't want me to offend or desecrate their product by pairing it with track shorts. Or maybe she was just trying to sell an outfit... but Sasuke-kun paid for it anyway."

Ino was gaping.

"Ino?"

She closed her mouth and started doing some sort of mental math. "So, ugh… Uchiha Sasuke took you to the mall owned by his family, … bought you clothes and … had his uncle's men drive you home?" Everything seemed too much for Ino to handle. "Are you two… dating?!"

"No! We- Ino, Sasuke-kun has a girlfriend!", Sakura declared. She walked passed Ino and quickly made her way towards the gate.

"He has a girlfriend?" Ino turned and followed her. "He told you that?"

"Not directlty. But he hinted and it was sort of obvious.", said Sakura maintaining her phase.

"How obvious?" Ino walked faster to catch up to her then matched her phase as soon as she was by her side.

"I felt guilty for having him pay for... the clothes and everything else and he sort of slipped and told me it's not the first time he took a girl out! He also asked one of the staff in the mall, who also knew Naruto, not to tell him that he brought me there and I think, it's because, and I remember, Naruto once mention this, he knows a girl that might be someone who is important to Sasuke!... Whooh! Shanaroo!" Sakura exhaled hard. She tired herself out with that long answer.

Ino took everything in. "So you're not dating? Sasuke is not making a move on you?" Ino followed behind Sakura as she walked through the gate.

"Making a move on me?!" Sakura gave her a sarcastic chuckle. "Sasuke-kun is in fact, cheering me on. He practically ships me with Sasori!"

"He does?" Ino slowed down.

"No. That was an exaggeration." Sakura admitted. "But he really does cheer me on. He even gave me tips so I can spend more time with Sasori."

"Really?"

"Yes!" Sakura stopped in front of her door. She glanced at Ino. "Why is this concerning you so much Ino? Do you still... like Sasuke-kun?"

"No! That's not it!", Ino retorted. "It's just that... Okay. I'm gonna be completely honest with you."

"Why? Have you been- What have you been not honest about all this time?"

"Sasori has been contacting me."

"What? /Why/?!" Sakura dropped the paper bag and turned to face Ino.

"He"s been… asking about /you/. He's been wondering why you seemed to have- well, changed. He thinks something is different about you."

Sakura backed away from the door, reaching for her hair.

"And I agree. I see the change. You are different.", Ino added.

"Why would he- Why didn't he talk to me about it personally?!"

"I asked him that too!"

Sakura sat down on the landing of the porch.

Ino joined her. "And he said, that every time he calls you, it's like there are things you're suddenly expecting to hear from him. Like you're not even happy just to hear his voice. He was afraid to ask you if you were just lonely or upset with him because... he wouldn't know what to do or how to comfort you if you were. He's so far away after all."

"Oh no. What have I been done? What have I been doing?"

"I'm sorry if I assumed that it had something to do with Sasuke... but now I know that there's nothing going on between the two of you."

"Ino." Sakura turned to face her.

"I was just worried that's all. I care about you and Sasori. I didn't know what I would do if you had fallen in love with Sasuke! I mean... I'd want to cheer you on as your best friend, but how will I do that knowing you'd end up hurting Sasori."

Sakura lowered her head in guilt.

"Forehead." Ino held Sakura's hands. "I'm right here. If you're starting to feel lonely, you can talk to me. You know that.", she comforted her.

Sakura smiled back at her. "Yeah I know that Ino-pig! I'm glad you're my best friend."

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