"Of *course* the bridesmaid gowns had to be pink!" Ino cheered, spinning around in the one she was wearing, holding the pretty skirts out for best effect, before she leaned in to whisper. "To be honest, Haruno-sensei couldn't pick a color her daughter doesn't look good in, and that doesn't leave many choices."
The crowd of assembled Academy girls all giggled along with her. Sensing this from across the room where she was assisting set a table, Sakura rolled her eyes. The Academy girls more resembled a feral dog pack than people, to her way of thinking. Show any sign of weakness, and they'd tear at you until there was only gory bits of bone left.
Befriending Naruto was just such a weakness, to their way of thinking.
It was all social mauling, but unless she did a complete turn-about soon (which wasn't going to happen - EVER!) her life as a citizen of Konoha was looking almost as bleak and lonely as Naruto's had been. The pack of feral girls was being nicer than usual today, in deference to their all being guests at her mother's wedding, but it would be back to sniping comments and barbed remarks as usual once this was over.
Sakura was currently fighting down her sympathy for Orochimaru, and those other ninja wanting to destroy this village. She was close to concluding they could have it!
Stopping, she visibly calmed herself. That way lay darkness. It wouldn't be what Naruto wanted. There lay the path of the Uchiha, may their blasted souls rot in Hell where they belonged. And Sakura would rather die herself than go anywhere near to the path they trod!
A surprising hand at her elbow dragged her out of the main view of the room and behind a planter, a surprisingly good watching point that she sensed an ANBU hastily vacating as they arrived.
"You don't have to, you know."
Sakura blinked, realizing the surprising figure was Naruto's girl-clone, wearing the same bridesmaid dress as the others.
The pigtailed girl in a pink bridesmaid gown flushed, and studied the floor, embarrassed. "I hear what they say, you know. And - and you don't have to do it! Your mother is really popular as a teacher. They'd all like you. If - if, only you didn't hang out with me."
An amused and tolerant smirk found its way on to Sakura's face. "You know, that's a little silly, seeing as how *you*," she poked the girl-clone's chest in the center, "are as 'in crowd' with the other girls as it gets."
It was true. The girl clone, who'd proclaimed her name Naruko Uza to the class before Sakura could stop her, or tell her how stupid or easy to guess a moniker that was, had a unique opportunity to express the friendly, cheerful disposition that had always been at the heart of the demon pariah, and had easily won the heart of every other girl at school. She was close to being as popular among the girls as Sasuke had been - although in a fundamentally different way. Everyone was her friend.
It was weird, to say the least. But at least no one had made a connection between her name and Naruto's - and Sakura really couldn't make up her mind to be grateful or depressed over that. Really.
On the one hand, it was amazingly convenient for her and Naruto. On the other, it showed the security of Konoha really wasn't worth much, yet, if they couldn't pick out so obvious a fake name, and thus the deception based on it.
While Sakura was thinking this, 'Naruko' had gotten one of those mischievious grins that always presaged some of the boy's greatest feats of genius, and before anything got explained, had grabbed Sakura's hand and dragged her off to the midst of those gossiping school girls. "Hey everyone!" Naruko announced to the crowd, after hauling Sakura along to their center. The pigtailed clone gave the somewhat shocked pinkette a vigorous hug. "Sakura just agreed to stop hanging around that awful Naruto boy! She's agreed to be my friend, instead!"
"Hurray!" All of the girls cheered, and Sakura got consumed by hugs and congratulations, accepted as the beloved, and now redeemed, daughter of one of their favorite teachers, instead of the companion of the demon brat. Even Ino got involved in the congratulations, as the distance she'd created between them over Sakura befriending Naruto disappeared.
The former Kage's mind was spinning with the force of Naruto's genius. This solved everything! Why hadn't she thought of it before? Naruto's clones got none of the punishing treatment Naruto himself did. So she could still be his friend and help him along by being close to them, without any of the negative consequences of being seen publicly with Naruto himself!
Reflecting on some of Sarutobi's mistakes, Sakura realized even a Kage could be blind to some fairly obvious things. Why, Naruto could even disguise himself as either clone she chose to hang out with since, really, they were all him anyway. Which one was the real him, and which were clones was entirely a matter of convenience and personal preference. So why had she gone to war with her friends and mother over being with the one they all hated when she could have the same thing being with ones they weren't aware were him?
This, the girl concluded, as her school friends accepted her again, was true genius. Sasuke once copied what others taught him well enough, but Naruto could pull out solutions no one else had - then make everyone wonder why they hadn't!
After the ceremony Rozu Haruno even found herself being given the best wedding present of all when her daughter came to her and proclaimed that she wouldn't hang around that awful demon boy anymore. A squirming Naruko Uza got a kiss out of the teacher when it got explained who was the savior of her little girl's social career.
Sakura tried her hardest not to bust a gut laughing. Really. She did.
Naruko blinked at the bouquet she'd just caught. "Hey, what am I supposed to do with this?"
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(Posted Thu, 19 May 2011 11:03)
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らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
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