WARNING(S): N/A

She was hiding behind the tree again.

A shy little thing, he often noticed that she tended to shrink away from the crowds of children during recess. He didn't blame her; all of the girls in class did nothing but gather together and giggle - and they all seemed to flock around him like mice to crumbs.

Six-year-old Sasuke had little time for things like girls and crushes; he preferred to spend his time practicing his skills. All of his teachers spoke of him highly, but they always tended to bring up Itachi, and if he wanted them to praise him the same way he had to become the greatest shinobi of his class.

His best friend didn't share the same goals. Naruto was clever and energetic, always playing around and carefree. All he wanted was to hang out with Shikamaru and Kiba and Choji, and despite looking up to Itachi the way his few friends tended to do, the only person he idolized was his dad.

Uncle Minato was great, but he wasn't Itachi-niisan.

Sasuke let out a quiet sigh, walking over to the makeshift target he'd made out of the old tree stump in the corner of the schoolyard. This was the only place he was able to practice his throwing without the teachers telling him to go somewhere else. He hoped the gaggle of girls wouldn't migrate over today - some peace and quiet would be nice.

"Cousin is coming over a lot more nowadays," he thought irritably, "and so is that girl Itachi likes."

Shisui was fun company, but he could sure be energetic.

He felt a presence nearby, but he didn't even have to look before he spotted a little head of mauve hair pop up in his peripheral.

He couldn't quite remember her name, but she was quiet and stayed out of the way, so he figured he wouldn't say anything.

Narrowing his eyes at the target, he readied his arm and in one swift movement, he let the shuriken fly.

It cut through the air cleanly, swiftly, and landed with a thunk in the bark of the stump. A bullseye, right in the crudely-cut circle in the center.

"Yesssss!" He fist-pumped the air with a hiss of victory, before grabbing his next shuriken and pausing to aim.

Another throw, this one slightly off-kilter from the last. He kissed his teeth in annoyance before shambling over to grab them both.

He felt her eyes on him again and let out a sigh before turning to the nearby tree. "Are you just gonna watch me the whole time?"

There was a pause, and then slowly, sheepishly, a pink-haired little girl peeked at him from behind.

"S- sorry," she shyly murmured, looking down so that her hair covered her eyes. "It's quiet here and... and I like watching you practice."

She was smaller than he first thought she was. The tree practically swallowed her behind its bark, and her hand was even smaller than his.

"Well..." he said, folding his arms, "... okay, I guess, but... just don't stare at me so hard. It makes me lose consten-- con-- const-- con-cen-tra-tion."

"Okay, I'm sorry." She nodded, clutching the bark tighter in her tiny fingers. "I'm Sakura."

"Uchiha Sasuke." Picking up the shuriken again, he turned to the stump.

With a smooth throw, he landed a perfect bullseye. When he turned to grin at her, her answering blush and shy smile made his heart lift in pride.

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A/N: Let me know what you thought!