You should probably listen to the song to get an idea of what it sounds like when Hinata and Gaara sing. Enjoy the long update my lovelies.
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Sasuke made a mental note to be slightly nicer to Sakura and Ino when he walked into the auditorium where the competition was to be held. It was clean, decorated nicely and there were posters hanging around.

Ino and Sakura along with the other members of the council had gone and made posters for the teams and the competition to raise the interest and it had worked. Today was Monday, and the competition would start in an hour. Already, everyone was waiting for the auditorium to be open for them.

Prinicpal Tsunade had privately called Neji and Sasuke to her office to congratulate and praise them on such a good job on it. Both of them had looked away, sheepishly because none of them had contributed much. It had mostly been the other members.

Sasuke was managing the sound tracks to entertain the audience as fillers and Neji was doing the part of the comparer. Sasuke had taken a glance at the paper to see the competitors. There were six teams in the team category and 5 people in the single category.

The teams were:

1. Sumire and Daichi (Music room 1)

2. Tayuya and Kimimaro (Music room 3)

3. Itsuki and Kaede (Music room 2)

4. Karin and Kasumi (Music room 1)

5. Hinata and Gaara (Music room 3)

6. Akira and Jen (Music room 2)

Sasuke sucked in a breath. If Karin was singing, the end of the world was here. What was she going to sing? The banshee song? Regardless, he skimmed over the single competitors who he had no idea were.

He left the list on the podium for Neji to manage and went backstage. Shikamaru was already setting up the apparatus. He was Sasuke's helper for the task and also a member of the council.

"Hey." He said as he spotted Sasuke. Sasuke 'Hn-ed'.

"This is so troublesome." Shikamaru grumbled as he plugged another cord.

"Would you prefer staying at home?" Sasuke asked him, rolling his eyes as to why he even came to school if this was what he had in mind.

"I would but my mother wouldn't." Sasuke remembered. She was the really loud one at one of the dinners he had attended. He wouldn't want to mess with her either.

"Just set the things up. I can handle it." Sasuke instructed. Shikamaru nodded. Sasuke started drinking water from the nearby bottle.

"What happened with you and Hinata?" Sasuke almost chocked on his water. Shikamaru; that lazy genius. Of course he noticed.

"What would happen with us? We're the same as always." Sasuke tried.

"Of course you are." Shikamaru said in a sarcastic voice "You talked before and now it's just awkward between you."

"Do you always notice things like this?" Sasuke asked him in disbelief.

"Sometimes. Whatever it is, you better sort it out before she returns you that necklace." Shikamaru said before bowing to get another cord.

Sasuke did choke on his water this time. "How did-"

"I saw her taking it off before entering the school the day of the match. She had just come from the Uchiha Compounds. With you. A man can put two and two together." He said not proudly, just plugging the cords in.

"Have you told anyone else?"

"That you're betrothed with her, possibly since your childhood? No. it was none of my business."

"You should pay attention in class more. You're a genius." Sasuke informed him before going over to the table.

"Too troublesome." He said before walking back to let Sasuke take over "We still have a quarter of an hour left. I'm going to sleep. Wake me up later."

Sasuke nodded, thinking how Shikamaru was not someone you wanted to get on the bad side of.
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"We're going to do this." Hinata muttered to herself.

"Of course we are." Some said from behind her and she jumped while letting out a gasp. Gaara stood behind her, amusement in his eyes with a soft smile on his face.

"Gaara!" she pouted "You scared me."

"You're easy to scare. You are always lost in one thought or another. And it is even cute." He said, leaning against the wall.

Did he just-? Hinata smiled. He was opening up to her since that day at his home. The practice had been long forgotten and she had just held him after his thank you. He had liked that; the comfort.

"I am not always lost in a thought." Hinata argued with a playful smile. He rolled his eyes. "Just stop being so nervous. We'll be good." He told her.

"You're right." She said and looked into his jade eyes, which calmed her down.

"There's only 20 minutes till the competition begins, let's go backstage." He said, taking her hand in his own large one.

She followed him with a large smile. The students passing by gave them strange looks because 'Gaara' was holding someone's hand. A few of them even bumped into a wall or another student because they were not looking.

Gaara and Hinata did not care. They just walked to the auditorium and walked backstage, ignoring the looks from everyone.

"Hinata." Neji's voice reached Hinata's ears and she looked his way. He was standing at the podium. She walked towards him.

"Neji." She said. Neji spotted Gaara holding Hinata's hand and his smile vanished. His brotherly senses went on high alert and his eye twitched. "Where are you two going? Shouldn't you be backstage, doing something related to singing and not holding anyone's hand."

Hinata noticed Neji's eyebrow twitching. "Calm down Neji. We were going there." She said in her soft voice.

"I still it's not healthy to hold hands. What if you get a contagious disease?" Neji said, eyebrow still twitching.

"I am not sick." Gaara said, looking at Neji in a confused manner and then at Hinata "Are you?"

"Of course not." Hinata told him and glared at Neji glared back. She let go of Gaara's hand to relieve him. "We'll see you later Neji." He nodded and they walked backstage.

"Hinata! Where have you been?" Ino ran towards her but stopped as she saw the 'couple'. "Weren't you dating Naruto? Oh...so you broke up. Not that it's bad. In fact, I like this one better. At least he's quiet. Naruto was too loud."

"They didn't break up Ino." Sakura said, rolling her eyes.

"Hey guys." She said, slightly embarrassed. Gaara nodded to them.

"How do you like the décor?" Sakura asked, happily. Hinata nodded. "You guys did a great job."

"Tell me about it. It took us hours." Ino said, flipping her ponytail back. Sakura nodded. "It did take a while."

"Ino, Sakura!" someone called and they both ran off in the direction of the voice mumbling a later to Hinata and Gaara.

They walked off until they came face to face with Sasuke and a sleeping Shikamaru. Sasuke was just sitting there and he stiffened when he saw them.

What were they doin-oh right, they were participating.

"Hyuga, Sabaku, why are you guys here? The singers are on the other side." He informed them, not wanting to look at them.

Gaara nodded and started to walk off when Hinata stopped. "You go, I'll catch up." Gaara nodded and left.

"Sasuke, please tell your mother that my mom asked her to call." Hinata told him from her place.

"Tell her yourself." He said. "I don't have her number." Hinata said.

"Not my problem." He said, turning away. Hinata was angry now. She walked up to the table and then said.

"Stop being such an asshole."

"This is who I am. Deal with it." He said, rolling his eyes.

Hinata then stalked off, but not before saying "Screw you Sasuke, I've had enough of you." Sasuke was dumbfounded for a moment before he smirked.

Somehow, an angry Hinata looked appealing to him. He shook his head at the fucked up thought. He was seriously going crazy. And just before the competition too. Too bad he could not see Hinata sing if he went crazy now.
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Hinata fumed, as Kankuro would say, Gaara noticed. Whatever had occurred with Sasuke had not been a pleasant experience if he was correct. Not that he had much experience with girls but living with Temari did help slightly.

"Is everything alright?" he asked.

He even surprised himself with the way he had opened up to her since that day. He did not scowl. He made small talk and even enjoyed himself. Maybe that's what having genuine friends did to you. You felt...normal.

"Yes." She said, still furrowing her brows.

Gaara contemplated his options. Either he was very, very, very poor at reading emotions or she was lying.

"You're lying." He said, looking at her face, which was angry but then she sighed and looked slightly deflated.

"Yeah. Sasuke's just being a jerk again." She said, turning to him with her beautiful pearl eyes. Wait...did he just-?

"I always assumed you two got along well." And it was true. Even before he started talking to Hinata, he was in the same basketball team as Sasuke so he occasionally made small talk and Sasuke usually made more of a conversation with either Naruto or Hinata.

"We did. But..."

"The events of the party changed that fact?" Gaara guessed. Yeah, he was at the party albeit he was on the sidelines.

Hinata looked at him, contemplating weather she could tell him or not. She took another sigh before starting to talk.

"He was one of the first people I sorta made friends with at school and I even started to like him as a friend but...there are some complications and then there was the whole Karin thing and he was just being a jerk and now we're not talking to each other but I can't seem to dislike him either."

Gaara listened patiently. He waited for her to continue. "I mean, do I just pretend he does not exist or something?"

"If there is a problem, you could talk to him." Gaara suggested hesitantly because he sucked at advice and he had never faced a scenario in which he had to give some.

"I don't even know. Things are so weird."

Gaara stayed quiet. It was then that they heard the speaker turn on and Neji's voice ring out. "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the First event of the year held by our student council, the singing competition!"

There were cheers even thought Neji's voice was strictly business like. "There will be two parts for the event, the single and double category. The single singers will go first."

"I would like to introduce our judges for today's event. The first judge is Ms. Kurunei Yuhhi, music teacher for classroom 3 and award winner for being a talented pianist on the national level."

"The second judge for today is our Principal, Tsunade Senju and the third is Ms. Shizune." There was more applause.

"Our fourth and last judge for today will be Hatake sensei."

Hinata and Gaara moved to the backstage, where the stage was visible. The other participants were also there. Hinata felt someone's gaze on her back and turned to see Karin staring at her angrily. Hinata turned away, deciding Karin was not even worth it.

"We're going to hear out our single singers first. Please welcome on stage...."

Neji's voice rang out and Hinata felt herself looking forward to the competition while Gaara leaned slightly on the wall next to her, unconsciously gazing at her.
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This had to be the shittiest competition he had ever been to, including the stupid ramen eating contest Naruto had petitioned to be organized and had been held. The single contestants were all sore losers and Sasuke felt his ears bleed by the time the last one got off the stage.

He looked at the judges, who looked battered and ready to pass out. All except Kakashi who was not even paying attention the whole time, instead just choosing to read his perverted book instead.

Sasuke sighed for the millionth time and looked at Shikamaru wistfully who had slept through that hell. Neji signaled for him (Sasuke smirked when Neji stumbled over his own feet) to play the filler music. The students sighed in relief when the first segment of the competition was declared over.

"Who let them sing?" Sakura came towards Neji and Sasuke as they regrouped. Ino shrugged faintly. "I hate whoever it was."

"Hey, some of them were good." Neji said feebly. The three glared at him and he looked away. "Okay they did suck a little."

"I swear if the groups are bad too, then let's just tapdance, give the audience something worth their time and let them go." Ino suggested and for once in his life, Sasuke agreed.

"No! The groups are good." Sakura insisted, having heard some of them play.

"Whatever Sakura, the audience is totally fed up." Said Ino, glaring at the boys as if it was their fault. Sasuke raised his eyebrow.

"Why don't you make an appearance. Half of the people funded and came here because of Neji and you. The girls are staying because Neji's there. If you go to the stage or something, they might like to stay." Sakura said, using her intelligence.

"What am I supposed to do? Dance?" Sasuke sighed.

"I wish." Ino said wistfully. Sasuke pretended like he had not heard her. Neji did the same.

"Sasuke, just come sit next to my chair and look interested. This way, you can watch the bands and this won't be a complete failure." Neji told him.

"There was a reason I chose backstage." Sasuke reminded.

"Sasuke please." Sakura said, backing Neji up. Sasuke nodded before sighing. Sakura and Ino grinned and made their way to wake Shikamaru up. Sasuke walked to the podium on the side with Neji. The girls from the audience perked up to see them both coming.

Sasuke glared at Neji when he nudged Sasuke in the ribs to tell him to wave. Sasuke rolled his eyes before raising his arm at the audience. The girls swooned while boys grinned at Sasuke's obvious discomfort (Naruto and Kiba were in the front row).

Neji smirked before going over to the podium as the music stopped. Sasuke paid no attention as he informed the crowd of the next segment. The pairs. He called someone from homeroom 1 before coming over to sit in the chair next to Sasuke.

They both said nothing, just looking at the pair sing. They weren't that bad actually. They sang some song, earning a round of applause. Neji grinned at the audience who now looked fresh before calling Tayuya and Kimimaro on stage.

They came on stage with poker faces and seemed very awkward standing next to each other until they started singing. It was obvious they loved music as all traces of awkwardness vanished as they started singing.

Sasuke actually listened to their song. Tayuya had a good voice, he had already known that, but combined with Kimimaro and his lyrics, they both totally rocked the stage.

Kimimaro started with his lines after the music.

"I was born in the arms of an imaginary friend

Free to roam, made home out of everywhere I've been...."

Sasuke enjoyed the lyrics for once and saw everyone else do the same. He almost smirked at the way the audience's vibe had changed from bored and fed up to fresh and interested. Inwardly, he congratulated Kurunei for having at least two decent singers in her class.

Everyone clapped with enthusiasm as Kimimaro and Tayuya held hands and bowed to the audience after their song was finished. The left the stage with a smiling face. Then there was someone else on the stage that Sasuke did not recognize.

He did not pay attention again while everyone else listened to the song. The next pair also did not get Sasuke's attention. As much as Sasuke expected his ears to bleed during the fourth pair (Kasumi and Karin) they were alright, not too good though.

It was the fifth pair that got Sasuke perked up. Hinata and Gaara came to stage. Gaara with his usual monotone with Hinata looked absolutely confident and blank. Sasuke smirked. He could recognize it as a façade. She was jittery and nervous deep down, this was just the Hyuga training showing.

He saw Gaara's hand brush hers and his eyebrow twitched while Hinata looked more assured. He looked at the audience to see Naruto's reaction, who was just yelling and cheering them on.

The music started playing softly and Sasuke actually felt himself relax despite it being against his wishes. At least the tune was decent.

Gaara brought the microphone up and started. His voice was rich and deep and Sasuke realized he had never seen Gaara sing.

"Through the wire, through the wire through the wire, I'm watching her dance

Dress is catching the light

In her eyes there's no lies, no lies

There's no question, she's not in a disguise..."

He looked over to the audience and swept a gaze across the judges who seemed dumbfounded by Gaara's voice. Who knew that the awkward and quiet basketball player could actually sing? The girls suddenly had a new light in their eyes.

Sasuke was even more shocked to hear Hinata's voice join the song after Gaara.

"With no way out and a long way down

Everybody needs someone around

And I can't hold you too close now

Through the wire, through the wire."

And then they both started singing together shocking everybody with how beautiful they sounded.

"What a feeling to be right here, besides you now

Holding you in my arms

When the air ran out and we both started running wild

The sky fell down

But you've got stars in your eyes

And I've got something missing tonight

What a feeling to be a king besides you somehow

I wish I could be there now."

Sasuke got over the initial shock of their voice but he could not get over how emotional the song made him feel. They were both doing an awesome job of showing their emotions. Sasuke could feel the pain in the song as he listened and that was saying something.

Gaara started again.

"Through the wire, through the wire, through the wire

I'm watching you like this, imagining you're mine

It's too late, it's too late, am I too late?

Tell me now, am I running out of time?"

Then it was Hinata singing again.

"With no way out and a long way down

Everybody needs someone around

And I can't hold you too close now

Through the wire, through the wire."

The chorus was with the both of them singing, the crowd either singing along, in tears or just dumbfounded. The judges were just staring too.

"What a feeling to be right here, besides you now

Holding you in my arms

When the air ran out and we both started running wild

The sky fell down

But you've got stars in your eyes

And I've got something missing tonight

What a feeling to be a king besides you somehow

I wish I could be there now."

Sasuke just listened to the song without thinking about anything else. Somehow, he could relate to the pain of being along despite being surrounded by people all his life. And now, as he watched Hinata look at Gaara with such happiness and comfort as he looked at her with adoration in his eyes, he felt left out.

They were singing the chorus for the last time now, and Sasuke almost wished the song would last longer.

"I wish I could be there now."

Gaara finished and everyone just started clapping as they stood up, some blinded by tears and the emotions they had just felt.

Hinata and Gaara looked proud and also surprised that they had actually gotten a standing ovation. The judges stood up and clapped too, along with the other contestants. Hinata beamed and looked at Gaara who was already looking at her.

Sasuke understood now. He quietly smiled a sad smile and turned away. For the first time, he was happy for someone else. He was glad he stayed sane long enough to hear her sing after all.
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Hinata and Gaara sat side by side in the side rows with everyone else telling them how perfect their song had been. Hinata was surprised to see something other than mere courtesy for Gaara in Sakura's eyes. It was....understanding? And respect. Definitely respect.

"Sabaku-san, that was amazing." She had breathed out, somehow missing Hinata entirely. Gaara looked at her, a little surprised. He did not expect Haruno Sakura to come to him like that.

He nodded as thanks and walked off to sit while Hinata noticed Sakura follow him to his seat with her gaze before she suddenly noticed Hinata. "Hinata...I don't know what to say. You guys were....so amazing."

Hinata had thanked her now she was sitting there. She saw Sasuke on the stage, saying something to Neji who smirked as the last performance ended. It received some feeble applause. The filler music began playing again.

"Sabaku-san.....why didn't you ever sing?" Sakura asked him, still awed.

"I didn't find the right partner." Gaara said, his eyes softening as he took Hinata in, who was looking at the stage towards her cousin and Uchiha.

"You have an amazing voice." Sakura said and smiled genuinely. Gaara nodded again. She looked nice with her smile.

"Little bro, quite a shock you gave us there." Temari said coming towards him with Kankuro. "Tell me about it." Kankuro said.

The judges smiled as they finished compiling their results and handed the final scores over to Neji. He smiled at them and walked back to the podium with the result sheets.

"Everyone." He called their attention and all talking ceased immediately. Hinata had these butterflies in her stomach now and she looked at Neji with nervous anticipation. Neji first announced the winners for the single category.

"The results for the double category are here as well. The third position in the competition has been scored by Sumire and Daichi." There was applause.

"Second place, Kimimaro and Tayuya from classroom 3!" Neji announced with a smirk.

There were cheers along with applause and then Neji started the last announcement. "The first position has been secured by..."

Hinata crossed her fingers. "....Hinata and Gaara from classroom 3."

Everyone cheered and started clapping while Hinata just froze from happiness. It was Gaara who gently took her to the stage and led her. While everyone cheered (Hinata could make out Naruto's 'HINATA CHAN! YOU DID IT'), Hinata just stared.

"We did it." Gaara whispered in her ear.

That snapped her out of her trance as she grinned happily. "We did it!" she jumped and then clung to Gaara, hugging him tightly.

He was stiff before he hugged her back. Everyone cheered even more while some people just froze. Hinata saw Naruto look at her happily before her gaze went to Neji who leaned against the wall with his face in a smug look.

She was about to look away when she saw someone in the shadow of the curtains. That someone was looking at her and Gaara. Someone with red eyes, patterned like a flower.

The fact that there was a small smile in the onlookers face, only made her more confused as she hurriedly looked away.
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Author notes: The song Kimimaro and Tayuya sang is "Half of my heart" by John Mayer. He is an amazing singer and I absolutely love his songs, especially this one.

The other song is "What a feeling" by 1D from their last album "Made in The AM." This song is heartbreakingly amazing. It absolutely pierces through your heart. I suggest listening to it.

Long chapter. I hope you guys like it. This basically concludes the Gaara Arc. The GaaHina friendship and scenes were fun to write but sadly, this is not a GaaHina story.

SasuHina moments were not so much but don't distress, this is all about them. It is better to drag out the development between them as it should appear realistic instead of just happening.

Tell me what you think and comment. It means a lot. The next chapter will begin the Main NaruHina arc and then the new experiences for our heroes. Until next time. Love you guys.
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