#ino would change styles like every month

[naturenaruto]

i feel like shino would wear these....

[animeomegas]

Omega!Naruto getting married

Anon: Omg omg bro I just saw the amazing and wonderful art of naruto in a white dress and it just got me thinking. Could you do naruto and his alpha getting married pllleeeaaassssee🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺I also wanna show you the picture soo badd he's so beautifullllllll

(Omg tag me in this 🥺I want to see!!! Naruto is so so beautiful you’re absolutely right and I love him and this was so far down my writing list but I just really wanted to write it anyway. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. <3)

I wrote for a Western wedding because I have no idea how Japanese weddings work (although I’m taking a degree in Japanese rip)

Warnings: Alcohol mention.

This boy will never admit it, but he always dreamt of getting married when he was a child.

When he was really young, he asked the Sandaime why people get married and the Hokage told him that marriage is what two people did when they loved each other more than anyone else.

Naruto always wanted someone to love him and so he clung to this in a similar (but less extreme) way, to how he clung to his dream of becoming Hokage. 

He always imagined his future self as the most badass ninja/Hokage with  a beautiful mate/spouse and some little prankster pups who would love him and who he would love unconditionally in return. 

And so when his alpha finally proposes to him.

This man goes a bit crazy.

As soon as the shock wears off, you suddenly get bombarded with him shouting about a thousand different things he wants at the wedding, and what food there should be, and “Do you think they sell orange wedding cakes?”.

He wants an insanely big and extravagant wedding.

It’s probably best to just humour him.

Proposal:

You were already mated to Naruto when you proposed.

Naruto lowkey believes in soulmates and when you had been courting for about a year he knew you were his. 

His very next heat came around, and boom, you were mated. 

You proposed about a year and a half after that, spurred on by Naruto’s less than subtle hints about it.

Naruto loved being around his friends and he also loved positive attention, so the idea for your proposal came naturally. 

You threw a get together for him and his closest friends. Good food, plenty of drinks and board games.

Naruto was laughing and smiling all night. He teamed up with you for the games, sitting on your lap the entire time. 

He used this vantage point to demand congratulatory and commiserative  kisses everytime something happened in the game. You could feel him smiling into the kiss each time.

The plan was working perfectly so far. 

As the evening began to wind down, you stood up, immediately garnering the attention of everyone in the room.

You cleared your throat awkwardly as all the eyes in the room settled on you. Sakura gave you a thumbs up behind Naruto’s shoulder.

‘You got this!’ She mouthed, eyes twinkling with excitement. With her encouragement in mind, you took one final deep breath before beginning.

“Sorry to interrupt you all, but there’s one more thing I have to do before everyone goes home.” You started, successfully avoiding any unfortunate stutters or out of control nervous scents.

Naruto furrowed his brows at you, confused. You only smiled, silently telling him to wait. 

“I have an... announcement of sorts to make.” 

“Then get on with it.” Drawled Shikamaru, smirking at you from the corner. You glared at him for teasing you, but he was too busy dodging a ‘shut up’ punch from Sakura to notice.

“As you all know, I’ve had the honour of being mated for Naruto for almost two years now,” You focused your gaze onto your mate, watching him perk up at the mention of his name. “and I have been madly in love for every minute of it.” You paused thoughtfully. “Even the minute when he drank out of date milk and threw up all over my bed.” 

Naruto went red as his friends giggled at him. He let out an embarrassed whine as you joined in the laughter. 

“You didn’t have to tell them that!” He groaned, voice muffled from the cushion he had temporarily buried his face in. 

“What I’m trying to say, is that when I met Naruto my life changed forever, for the better. I can no longer fathom a life where I could live without him.”

You turned to address Naruto directly. He was watching you closely. Maybe he was starting to guess where this was going.

“When I wake up next to you, when we invent terrible ramen flavours together, when I bandage you after training because you tried to show off and hurt yourself,” You laughed breathily. “Those are the moments when I am the happiest. The common denominator is you, Naruto, my beloved mate.”

No one else in the room mattered now apart from you and Naruto. You took one final breath to steel yourself, before dropping on one knee. Naruto gasped, his hands coming up to cover his mouth. 

“Which is why I want to be with you for the rest of our lives.” You pulled the ring box out of your pocket, opening it to reveal a simple golden band. 

“Will you marry me, Naruto?”

Naruto nodded furiously, his bottom lip wobbling as his eyes filled up with tears.

“YES! YES! YES! A thousand times yes!!” 

Naruto threw himself into your arms as his friends applauded and whooped in the background. You caught him with a happy laugh, leaning to kiss him. Naruto reciprocated enthusiastically, earning a few wolf whistles from his friends.

Naruto’s scent was that of pure sugar and you revelled in it, certain that your own was the same. Eventually you pulled away from the kiss, wiping a tear from Naruto’s eye, cradling his face gently in your hands.

“A toast,” Chouji’s voice called out, interrupting your thoughts. “To the newly engaged couple!” 

All your friends cheered, raising their glasses in a toast to your engagement. 

“May their love last forever!”

You laughed gleefully. Forever indeed.

Planning:

Naruto has a lot of ideas and a lot of passion, but not so much in the planning skills department. 

I hate to say it, but Naruto is a little bit of a Bridezilla type. A cute one though, so that’s better?

He really really wants a lot of random specific stuff that he dreamt about as a child, but he’s not good at organising it so you get a lot of:

“Alphaaaaa, can you book [insert incredibly specific wedding thing]?”

“Alpha, alpha, alpha, can you find a [insert incredibly specific wedding thing] for me, please???”

Here is a list of some, not all, of the things Naruto wants for his wedding. Bolded are ‘no compromises allowed’.

A traditional, white wedding dress (He knows he can wear whatever he wants, but his life has only ever been atypical and he just really wants a traditional white male omega wedding dress.)

An orange wedding cake (Naruto wants an orange wedding cake, but he can be persuaded to settle for orange detailing instead of the solid orange monstrosity he originally wants.)

A ramen course ( he wants one of the courses to be ramen of course! The idea of a really expensive, fancy ramen course just makes him melt with excitement. Nobody is surprised when they see ramen on the menu.)

A big wedding (He will invite the whole village if you allow him to. Ultimately though, as long as there’s room for every friend he’s ever had, he’s happy.)

Double barrelling your surnames (He really wants to take your name. Now that you’re married and mated, you’re a team for life and he wants that reflected in your names, but he also spent most of his life without family, and his name is one of the only connections he has to his mother. As such, he would never be able to lose it completely.)

A stag do/bachelor party (He just thinks it would be fun to get together with his other omega friends. He wants to hang out with his friends and wedding party for a night without anyone being away on missions for once.)

A honeymoon in Konoha (Naruto doesn’t want to travel for his honeymoon. Konoha is his home and his favourite place to be, so he wants to be there. If you desperately want to travel, you could probably organise a half-and-half style honeymoon. Half in Konoha, half wherever you want.)

Two empty chairs for his parents during the service (He has lost so many people, he could never leave empty chairs for them all. He keeps everyone he’s lost in his mind on his wedding day, but his parents are the ones he misses the most on his special day. When he looks at the empty chairs, he likes to think that they would be proud watching him get married.

The Wedding:

Naruto is fully bouncing off the walls.

He’s so excited. And nervous. But excited.

He gets ready and when he gazes at himself in the mirror, he feels amazing. As a child, he always thought he would cover his whiskers with make up, thinking they were on of the reasons people treated him differently. But now, as he stares at his reflection, he wears his whisker marks proudly.

Everyone pitched in to make the wedding perfect. Ino with the flowers, Chouji with the food, etc.

The wedding was kind of a bizarre mix. Some parts were strictly traditional and other parts were... orange. 

Naruto had plenty of fireworks set up to go off in the evening, and this ended up being one of his favourite parts of the day.

Naruto asked Iruka to walk him down the aisle about a month befpre the wedding. Iruka 100% cried when that happened. And then Naruto cried because Iruka was crying, it was an adorable mess. 

You got married outside. The sun was so bright, and the weather was warm but with a slight breeze. 

Naruto and Iruka wait just out of everyone’s view. When they send the signal, everybody stands.

You watched in awe as your mate turned the corner, grasping tightly at Iruka sensei’s arm.

He was stunning.

The sunlight reflected off his blond hair like light off of water, his white dress adding to the blinding effect. Naruto had refused to tell you what he would be wearing today, but this was more beautiful than you could have ever imagined. 

As he reached the end of the aisle, your mate gave up on being graceful, running the last few steps and throwing himself into your embrace. You caught him easily, twirling him around. Laughter rang through the hall.

“You look stunning.” You whispered in his ear, gently stroking up and down his arms.

“So do you.” He grinned in return.

The ceremony flew by. You had tried your hardest to listen, but you couldn’t stop staring at your mate instead. His eyes were always one of your favourite of his physical features, but they had looked especially magical today. 

Before you knew it, it was time for your first dance.

You hadn’t planned anything and you certainly didn’t take any lessons, so it was just you and him, in each others’ arms, swaying together to the music. 

Naruto felt warm in your arms as you swayed. You took a moment to nuzzle your face into his scent glands, pressing a firm kiss to his mating mark while you were there. Naruto hummed in delight, holding onto you even tighter.

“My omega. My mate. My husband.” You breathed into his ear, knowing how much he loved his new title.

Naruto shivered and purred in response. “I love the sound of that, you know.”

“I’m aware.” You laughed, using the distraction to twirl him. Naruto completed his twirl before trying to twirl you as well. 

Other couples soon began to join you on the dance floor, but you and Naruto only had eyes for each other. 

“I love you, more than anything else in this world Naruto, never forget that.”

“I love you, too. Forever, I promise.”

“Do you love me more than ramen?”

“What? Can’t you just be happy with second place?”

“Narutoooo.”

“Fine... Joint first.”

“I hate you.”

Naruto barked out a laugh at the look on your face.

“No, you don’t.”

[chaoticproductivity]

Love in 3 A.U. - Beginning

[3/6]

My girl's a Dere A Tsun-TsunDere Just saying "hi" gets me a punch in the face And if I should compliment her, she starts to chase

Kakashi, always a concerned and helpful sensei, had the best ideas that could lead to the worst situations.

With the jounin level exam approaching and, except by Chouji, all the others were still chuunin, which never prevented the administration from giving them missions ranked way above their levels – that happened to all ninjas, they weren't special, for reasons of availability and poor personnel management – ​​however pay and status were not directly proportional to the dangerousness of the mission, these aspects being directly proportional with the rank of the ninja. 

And they couldn't be chuunin forever.

Six months ago, Kakashi's and the other sensei's idea of ​​bringing the chuunin together under their command for team training had seemed quite promising, as they all had diverse styles and some really needed help.

(Looking at Tenten's clumsy training, hurting herself more than attacking her adversary; at Ino, closing her eyes with each blow; Shikamaru, more concerned with watching the ants than fighting, and Kiba, barely able to get close to Akamaru without crying, Sasuke had his doubts if everyone there would survive the exam.)

Three months ago they had developed a good group dynamic: Hinata had the fortitude to keep the perverts in line, Menma used his patience to help those who were struggling, Sakura had the leadership spirit to cheer everyone up, Chouji kept the seriousness so that the training regimen was followed to a T, Sasuke just tried not to get into Tenten's range or in Lee's way when he decided to run upside down, taking every chance he had to flash a smile to his special girl.

Two months ago Menma and Sakura still weren't a couple, Hinata still hadn't been heartbroken, Sasuke still hadn't confessed.

A month ago all that had happened, but things continued without major problems with their weekly training.

A week ago Tsunade had become too sick to attend the Hokage's most important diplomatic mission: the annual visit to the villages and towns at the frontier of the Land of Fire, the region where the battles took place, the most affected by the last war, unpostponable event, therefore Tsunade summoned Sakura to make the visiting tour in her stead, since she was the daughter of the village hero who had also fought bravely in the border war. If the Hokage was unavailable, Sakura was the only possible choice. And they even took Chouji as an escort.

There went the balance of the training collective.

In the doubles draw for that session, Hinata had gotten Lee as her training partner to work on taijutsu and Menma had ended up with Kiba to continue training cooperation between master and beast – maybe if Inuzuka didn't keep rubbing in the face of his dog, who had been with him since he was a puppy, his preference for cats, Akamaru would not feel unwanted and be more docile to his owner. Sasuke was Team Akamaru on that bet. The Uchiha was in charge of Shikamaru, who wasn't a bad partner when he managed to stay focused, so they were working on Nara's attention. Neji and Shino were strong candidates to pass the exam. Neji, despite his tendencies to use the Byakugan to spy on girls getting changed, was a master of his clan's techniques, and Shino was able to make use of the insects, although he refused to let them land on him, which meant sending them all to attack his opponent. Rustic, but it worked, and served to improve the protection of Neji's blind spot.

That left Ino and Tenten. The problem with the first was that Tenten tended to hesitate to attack and would freeze instead of defend. Ino didn't like the fighting aspect altogether, she preferred forensic and intelligence work. She was very good at detection and rescue missions when it didn't involve hitting people, her strongest skill being negotiation. Tenten had the potential, but she was anxious and hasty, summoning more or less weapons than she'd planned, causing her to lose the rhythm of the attack. The training between the two always ended up with someone injured and not necessarily themselves.

"Kunai!"

Everyone who heard Tenten's warning, ducked. The blade whizzed past Shikamaru, nicking a few strands from the top of his ponytail, its trajectory following the path of Akamaru's flank as its target until Menma, reflexively, reached out and intercepted it. Blood began to flow and drip onto the floor even before the others could understand what had happened.

"Menma! Sorry, sorry, sorry!" Tenten shrieked, running to him.

"Oh, it's alright, Tenten-chan." The Uzumaki grunted as he opened his left hand to inspect the injury across his palm and the small cuts on the first phalanx of all fingers. He wiped the blade on his pants and handed it back to Tenten by the handle. The kunoichi took it back with no further apology needed. Everyone had seen or experienced that same situation in training or on missions with Mitarashi to worry too much about a cut in a non-vital area. "I'm just going to bandage it."

Tenten nodded before returning to Ino's side. Menma signaled to Kiba that he would go take care of the cuts. The little commotion distracted Shikamaru, who ran to Akamaru to pet the dog, talking to him in that ridiculous voice that humans insisted on using to communicate with babies and animals and baby animals, making sure the dog was okay and not scared of being an unwitting target, to which Akamaru responded with a lick from chin to forehead.

Shrugging after losing his partner to the dog, Sasuke approached Menma, sitting at one of the picnic tables around the training ground where they had left the first aid kit. It was the first time they needed to actually use it, because Sakura was in charge of healing all the wounds immediately as part of her own training, so it didn't have a love of supplies. Peering inside, the Uchiha saw that his friend was using the one and only bandage roll, and that apart from the gauze pack Menma had opened to stanch and clean the blood, there was only one more. It was a rather outdated first aid kit for a group of ninjas who were about to become jounin. Either they were too confident in their abilities and believed they would never get hurt, or they were too dependent on the presence of chakra-healing medical ninjas in the field.

Sasuke turned as he heard the familiar footsteps approaching. In the distance he saw Rock Lee's inert body under a tree and knew he must have seen the blood flowing from Menma's wound and passed out, Sasuke himself had already been through that with the boy. Menma looked up when Hinata got close enough, but the Uchiha realized he didn't want to do that. The Hyuuga's presence now made him uncomfortable, especially when Sakura wasn't present.

Uchiha Sasuke's blood boiled and he could feel the Sharingan wanting to make an appearance. Menma didn't need to reciprocate Hinata's feelings, didn't need to do anything, really, besides the bare minimum of politeness. Even when his girlfriend wasn't around, especially to the person that had feelings for you that you never outright rejected.

"Hinata-chan~"

"Quiet, Bakasuke."

Menma lowered his head again, concentrating on removing the blood-soaked gauze and putting on a clean one. Hyuuga Hinata's look of determination remained unshaken upon the blonde shinobi's obvious disinterest. The corner of Sasuke's mouth lifted with a small smile. There was the woman he loved, staying true to her heart and her feelings, taking from her pocket a small pot of ointment and a thin tube closed with a stopper and containing a white powder, she held both of them on her open palm as an offering. Menma didn't even look up.

"Anti-coagulant powder and antibacterial ointment with lidocaine for pain." She explained. "Hanabi makes them."

"Hinata-chan~, how kind you are~!"

"I'm not talking to you." Hinata didn't take her eyes off the motionless figure of Menma, the gauze reddening again. "May I?"

Menma didn't respond, didn't look up, didn't make a move to accept what Hinata was offering.

A cold hot feeling settled in Sasuke's stomach watching the scene unfold. His best friend had never openly rejected the Hyuuga, nor had he ever encouraged her, and accepting a medicine from a Leaf fellow looking after your well-being and physical integrity was not encouragement, even knowing that this fellow had romantic feelings for you, it was a matter of survival in the field.

"Menma..." The Uchiha's voice came out low, hoarse, menacing. It did the job of making the blonde look up to his best friend. Cerulean found onyx, but not pearlescent.

"Tsk." Hinata clicked her tongue, her patience exhausted in that meaningless interaction. "Take care of the cut or have an infection and die, see if I care."

She approached Sasuke, took his hand and placed the items in his palm. Hinata's fingertips were icy cold and the urge to hold her hand in his returned full force as the milky eyes met darkness, glowing with something Sasuke interpreted as some mix of annoyance and gratitude.

"Hinata, I li-…" Uchiha blurted out before he could control himself, the words driven by his feelings, his super-sincere personality, the proximity, how easy it was for him to say that over and over and over again.

"Not now, Bakasuke!" She growled, knowing by now how he intended to end that sentence, and stepped on his foot to make him stop before marching back to where she had left Lee to try to wake him up and get back to practice.

"Ouch!" The shinobi hobbled over to the table where Menma was still sitting with his head down, the perfect depiction of an asshole that knew had acted like an asshole, but that was trying to justify his assholish actions to himself.

"Sasuke..."

"Shut up." With Hinata far enough away, his anger returned. Sasuke swung a leg to sit on the bench across from his best friend, slapped him on the head, and pulled the injured hand towards him, ripping the gauze at once, unconcerned with the pain the other might be feeling. Let Menma suffer a little, he deserved it. "If you open your mouth to try to justify how you just acted with Hinata, I'll break your fingers."

[daraanna]

Festival

When Sakura told him about the festival organized by Hokage to celebrate Konoha’s friendship with Kirikagure, he hadn't expected something like this. The whole thing was like a strange combination of a concert with a party and a barbecue. It was supposed to be made in the style that festivals are organized of the northern region of Water Country. He tried to escape, but as soon as they got there, his wife was kidnapped by Ino to the dance floor. In addition, his daughter was dragged by her friend to the buffet. Sasuke sat down on the bench and watched the rest from a safe distance. Yamanaka and Sakura really enjoyed themselves. Hinata and Naruto were dancing not far from them, although in the case of an idiot, dancing is too much to say. Temari and Shikadai looked much more representative than Hokage and his wife, even though Nara had an expression that clearly showed how troublesome the whole event was to him. Just like his son, who together with Inojin played some card game on one of the distant benches similar to the one on which he was sitting now. Choji was at the buffet until his wife forced him to dance. There were also three girls on the dance floor whom he knew as his daughter's friends. They danced in a small circle with Lee’s son and two boys he did not know. Boruto, who had apparently inherited his dancing skills from his mother was very popular among young kunoichi and civilian girls that came for the party. Sarada broke his deliberations as she sat down beside him with salad to eat.

-Chocho decided to teach Mitsuki how to dance ...

He looked at her, but the girl was busy separating the tomato slices from the rest of her food.

"And you don't want to join them?" He asked.

"Not really..." she replied shifting her plastic plate to him.

“Hn” he replied eating the tomatoes left by her. The head of the Uchiha family definitely understood that you might not like this type of activities. Besides, sitting next to her, he could keep an eye on the teenagers who were checking out his daughter.

They sat like that for a long time. Sarada kept staring at the dance floor while he gave a murderous glare to any boy, who wanted to approach their bench. Until Sakura came back to them. Involuntarily, all his attention shifted to her.

“Who's going to dance me?“ She asked, stretching her hands to both Uchihas, causing them a slight consternation ”I know that you want this~”

"Tch," he grunted, there was no way he could be acting like a fool in front of so many people. Fortunately, this time his wife amazing gift of persuasion lead his daughter on the dance floor. The young kunoichi seemed a little nervous at beginning, but soon she relaxed and danced to the cheerful music with her mother. He smiled gently seeing his two loved ones having a great time. However, he grimaced as soon as he saw the young Uzumaki asking his daughter to next dance. His parental instinct told him to intervene just as the music slowed down. Boruto may have been his trusted student, which did not mean that he would allow him to pick up his little peanut. However, before he managed to reach the middle of the dance floor, someone put his arm around his neck and pulled him against her body. Confused, he looked at his wife, whose face was so close to his.

“Sasuke-kun let's dance” she said in a sweet tone. He knew he was trapped. He was rarely able to deny her anything, but now he was on the mission to protect their child.

“Sakura ... I have to ...”

“Oh Anata, let them have some fun” it did not comfort him at all.

"They are 13 years old!" He gasped in disgust as he watched the idiot's son embrace Sarada around her waist.

"Exactly and I'm sure they won't do anything stupid," she said, grabbing his face, "Sasuke, look at me ..."

He looked at her green eyes, a soft smile, her hair was gathered in a loose bun. She looked lovely, as always.

“Hn.”

Sakura smiled wider and rested her head on his shoulder, and he embraced her with his only hand.

"Just relax and listen to the music" she whispered soothingly. He slowly began to relax, focusing on this moment he was spending with his wife, completely forgetting about the world around them.

.................................................. .............

She felt so awkward. Unfortunately, most of her interactions with Boruto lately have been terribly awkward. She wasn't sure when it started, they had been friends for as long as she could remember, but since when she began to be so aware of their every touch. Since when sight of his blue eyes made her heart beat like mad. Since when did he take over hers thoughts? At first she had no idea what was happening to her, but over time her mind found a terrifying explanation ... She was in love with her teammate. What’s worse, she thought that he noticed this, because he has recently acting really strange towards her. She couldn't let her stupid hormones destroy their  the most important friendship. Even though Boruto was annoying he was her best friend, she couldn't lose him.

“Thanks for the help. I thought they won’t leave me alone!” Hers thoughts were interrupted by his voice. He was right in front of her, his hands holding her waist, while she had no idea what to do with her hands on his shoulders.

"That's what teammates are for, right?" She smiled nervously. Her eyes fell on the group of girls glaring enviously in their direction. As the son of the Hokage, Boruto has always attracted attention. With his character, he made new friends easily, and being handsome, he also made his own fan club in the village. Civilian girls and students of the last grades of the academy, to the genins and younger chunins of their village. Sarada never paid much attention to her appearance. Her clothes needed to be comfortable and neat. She didn't think she was pretty or ugly. She thought she was average, but now she felt insecure. All these girls were really pretty, and she ... she wondered if he find her pretty... Tch... annoying ...

“Is everything okay? “she realized that she had been staring at his shirt for several seconds, and how stiff her whole body was “ I know that the music is a little bit boring, but maybe you want share with me another dance ?” he added, smiling in the same way he always did when he was cheering her up. She couldn't help but smile back.

"Are you sure your fans will allow it?" She teased. The boy just rolled his eyes.

"I should have asked you at the beginning, they are too aggressive ..." he said and she blushed. Even if it's stupid, his words made her happy. When the band started to play something faster, she relaxed a bit. To her surprise, Boruto was very good at dancing and she was able to predict his movements as good as when they fought together. She quickly forgot about her worries. They danced and fooled around. She didn't notice when one song turned into two and then three ... When the melody slowed down again, she wasn't sure how much they danced together. He hugged her waist, but this time they were even closer together. They were both out of breath, as after hard trending. Feeling more confident, she embraced his neck. Looking at him like that, she felt week. He looked so handsome in the suit. In addition, the pink shirt highlighted his blue eyes. Her attention finally caught his lips. She began to wonder what it would be like to kiss him. Their faces were centimetres apart, it would not be difficult to... Suddenly she felt strongly embarrassed by her own thoughts. To avoid doing something stupid (and to hide the flush on her face), she leaned her head against his shoulder, lightly tucking her face against his neck. They swayed slightly to the sounds of a quiet ballad, and although her heart was pounding, she felt wonderful. His presence always gave her a sense of security, he smelled of a combination of the scent of the sea with some cologne probably borrowed from his dad, and his body gave her a pleasant feeling of warmth that she could stay that way forever. However, before the song ended, the boy suddenly moved away from her. She looked at him confused, and he smiled and scratched his head nervously.

“ Aren't you thirsty? I saw a Bubble Tea booth here ... let's go ... “before she could answer, he grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the stalls behind the stage. She wasn't sure what to think about it.

.................................................

The situation was bad. He was sweaty and nervous and felt like he was about to pass out. That's not good way to impress a girl that you maybe have a crush on..

"Are you okay?", She asked when they reached the booth.

"Sure, of course, why are you asking?", He blurted out a little too quickly.

"Um ... You're still holding my hand" he get even more nervous, for two months now, he had been trying to invite her for date... like date date. The problem is that despite how intelligent, person she is. Sarada remained absolutely unaware of his attempts to flirt. The little fan club following him everywhere didn't help. The problem was also that the Uchiha did not seem to notice that she herself was attracting the attention of more and more men. It started after the chunin exam, when his classmates started to have a crush on her. At first it seemed silly to him, after all, it's not that she has changed somehow. However, he quickly began to be disturbed by the boys who were courting her. He felt some strange need to protect her from them. Only after a few months he did realize that he was jealous ...

“Do you want me to stop?” The girl was silent for a long time, and he thought that he would pass out.

"No ... it's okay ..." She replied without looking at him.

"So what for you?", He asked, looking at the blackboard with flavours.

“Black tea with kumquat and passion fruit boba.”

Hearing this, he ordered two drinks, mango and tapioca for himself. He then ignored Sarada's pout as he paid for both of them and the teasing smile the guy sent them. Even after they got their drinks, his friend didn't let go of his hand. It gave him courage.

“Let’s look for a place where we can clearly see the fireworks?”

“Hn. Something far from this crowd ...” she replied finishing her tea and throwing the cup into the trash can on the path leading into Senju Park. He couldn't take his eyes off her. She was wearing a summer dress with spaghetti straps with a pleated skirt that ended just above her knee. It was red with a navy blue belt emphasizing her waist. She looked cute and beautiful, red was definitely her colour. However, as darkness fell, the temperature dropped sharply, and he was able to notice that her arms began to tremble. He took off his jacket and covered her shoulders with it.

“Well, who would have thought that you are a such gentleman ...” she teased.

"As always, of course," he replied, adoring her.

"You're sure you won't be cold," she asked, changing her tone to concerned. She always cared about others. It was one of things that make him love her. He still felt a little lost in his feelings, but he had to tell her before someone else do this before him.

"Sarada ..." he began, but suddenly they heard a loud sound. His friend, frightened, made a very not-ninja-like movement, bumping into him. Instinctively, he grabbed her by the waist and searched for the source of the noise to see colourful lights in the sky. They both burst out laughing, when they saw that they were scared of the fireworks. The colours began to light up the sky creating fantastic patterns. He looked back at her. She looked at the sky with a smile, colours shone in her black irises, giving her an almost mystic appearance. Their eyes met, and for the second time this evening he felt like a force was drawing him to her. Sarada, to his surprise, also moved closer. He wasn't sure which of them closed the gap between them. Their first kiss was soft, short, and rather clumsy, but it was also the greatest feeling of his life. When he opened his eyes, he saw her biting her lip with a slight flush on her face. He wanted to say something but heard someone's loud grunt. He felt himself freeze as he noticed purple-red eyes staring at him ...

.....................................

It was supposed to be a quiet dance party and it was like that until her husband and Naruto decided to compete in which of them is the best dancer. Unfortunately, despite their great efforts, none of them proved to be really gifted. All the competition only took their time and energy. They were supposed to go home after the fireworks, but Sarada was nowhere to be found and when they finally find them, they accidentally turned out to witness their daughter's first kiss. While Sakura herself found it cute, her husband didn't take it so easily. However, before he did something stupid, his daughter stood between him and Boruto, also with an active sharingan. It make Sasuke freeze. All he said was they were coming home.

Sarada answered him only with a short "Tch" but after saying goodbye to Uzumaki, she returned home with them. Unfortunately, she now had two pouted Uchihas in the house. Sarada immediately ran to her room, while her husband stayed downstairs in the kitchen complaining about protecting some innocent peanuts? She couldn't help but sigh. Tomorrow she would have to talk to them seriously.

................................

I’m not sure is it more Borusara fic or overprotective Papasuke fic, also I'm not sure if I broke the rules, I hope I didn’t^^’ Okay in the end I edited it, I just felt too guilty XD

Also I’m so happy to see so much Borusara content! This week is a true celebration of our favorite ship!

@borusaraweek2021

[cyhyr]

Summer of Whump Day 15: Sleep Deprived

Fandom: Naruto

Rating: G

Pairing: Hatake Kakashi & Umino Iruka; Umino Iruka & Uzumaki Naruto

WC: ~3320

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Notes: AU backstory for the purposes of I Wanted To.

A/N: This is just. I don't even know guys. I started writing and then it got bigger and bigger and I couldn't stop. It's just. A Lot.

~

Kakashi has not been able to take care of his sensei’s child the way he should, the way the boy admittedly deserves; and yes, absolutely, he takes that fault personally but also doesn’t do anything about it because really… what can he provide for this child besides instability? He’s hardly in the village anymore, though Sandaime has hinted that, if Kakashi asked, he could be assigned missions closer to home. Instead, Kakashi does what he can without bothering Naruto or letting the boy realize that he even exists. He ensures the bills are paid up in six-month increments, and has the utility companies know to charge to his personal account anything he misses due to being out on mission. He provides non-perishable groceries, placed in the pantry late at night every month or so: oats, rice, dried or tinned meats, beans and legumes. He’ll bring a small selection of vegetables with him at the same time, (no more than three or four items, so they don’t rot before Naruto feels obligated to eat them) usually pilfered from Gai’s garden so he knows they’re not poisoned.

And whenever he’s in the village, he makes a stop at Naruto’s apartment at least once to check in on the wards wrapped into the walls and window frames.

This is how he learns about Umino Iruka and the interest he’s taken in the village jinchūriki.

~

The wards when he gets to Minato’s son’s apartment this time are different. Odd. Not… well, actually, they might be stronger; Kakashi glances at the walls with the sharingan and finds himself mildly impressed. Whoever placed these wards knew about the ones Kakashi put up, and modified their own to augment and strengthen Kakashi’s.

Kakashi says modified because he’s seen these styles of wards before, but never used like this. The key in the front door jingles a bit, like the person unlocking the door knows Kakashi’s in here and is giving him time to leave. Kakashi takes the out for what it is and slips out the window, closing it quietly behind him. He stays plastered against the wall beside the window for a moment, however, wanting to get a glimpse of who’s taking care of his sensei’s kid in Kakashi’s stead.

The door opens and Naruto—gods, how old is he, seven? Eight?—barrels by the figure in the doorway with a grin and shoots straight for the pantry.

“Naruto-kun, take your sandals off first. I mopped for you just earlier this week, I’m not doing it again so soon.”

One arm balancing a paper bag of fresh groceries, a leather school bag over the same shoulder; hitai-ate and vest both neat, but his sleeves and pants legs are scuffed; and his fingers carry the faint dusting of chalk that hours of holding ingrains and a quick wash won’t wipe away. A teacher.

“Iruka-sensei, I can mop later; I’m hungry now!”

“I won’t ask you twice.” The man—this Iruka-sensei—walks barefoot through the apartment and sets the grocery bag down on the kitchen table. Naruto hangs his head and goes back to the door, and once he’s out of the room, Iruka looks at the window Kakashi is peeking in, scowling initially. The scowl lessens when he sees the Konoha ANBU mask, and he nods, but makes a slight shoo gesture.

“What’re we making tonight, sensei?” Naruto bounds back into the room, barefoot as his sensei.

“I’m thinking of teaching you breakfast for dinner,” Iruka says. “Miso soup, tamagoyaki, steamed salmon; how’s that sound?”

“Sounds great!”

“And if we make enough, you’ll have enough for the morning, too,” Iruka ruffles Naruto’s hair. “Go grab out the rice and we’ll get started, okay?”

Kakashi leaves. Iruka-sensei seems to have only good intentions.

~

Iruka is a new teacher, one that (if the very quiet rumors are to be believed) didn’t initially want to be the jinchūriki’s homeroom teacher. Something changed his mind, clearly, and now he’s spending every moment outside of class with the kid.

Every. Moment.

Kakashi notices the third time he’s in the village after meeting Iruka—notices how tired the man seems. He follows the teacher from just before dawn when he wakes up and heads out to Naruto’s apartment and fixes him breakfast. Kakashi watches Iruka herd Naruto around the apartment, brushing teeth, getting changed, gods Naruto where’s your homework I told you to put it right back in your bag last night after I helped you with it. Then they’re out the door and one of them locks the deadbolt while the other activates the wards (Iruka always double-checks the wards if Naruto does them) and they walk to the Academy together.

Iruka spends the day in the Academy staunchly refusing to play favorites. If Kakashi didn’t know that the man had made Naruto eat breakfast while searching for a clean shirt for the child to wear, he’d swear Naruto was Iruka’s least favorite student—based solely on the amount of yelling.

But the two of them have lunch together, talk and hang out during recess unless Iruka shoos him away to play, and then they walk together to either Iruka’s or Naruto’s apartment after school. Sometimes they’ll go out for ramen, or to one of the training grounds to work on a technique they started in class which Naruto needs more time to fully grasp. Iruka is a patient teacher, especially one-on-one, and even though Minato-sensei’s son doesn’t perform well on the tests in school he learns the techniques after class and gains the appropriate muscle memory.

Which is admittedly much more important than the grades Naruto earns. Iruka won’t say as much, but it’s obvious that he agrees when his teaching style puts emphasis on practicals rather than paper tests. Kakashi approves.

After a day of minding twenty-five ankle-biters, an afternoon of extra training for the village jinchūriki, and an evening of making sure Naruto is fed and happy and his homework is completed to the best of his ability, Iruka then helps Naruto get ready for bed. Against the kid’s token protests, they’ll read a story together (Kakashi suspects Iruka does this because Naruto’s reading skills are lacking, but he could also very well just be doing it because he enjoys it—the man’s motives are enigma to him) and Iruka will tuck Naruto in. He stays at the apartment until he knows Naruto is asleep, tidying up here and there or even just leaning in the bedroom doorway watching the jinchūriki’s chest rise and fall.

Only when Naruto’s asleep will Iruka leave, activating the wards and locking up after himself.

It took only two times of Kakashi watching these kinds of days go by before he realized that Iruka knew he had been watched all day. As he passes the tree outside of Naruto’s building, the only one that reaches high enough to afford a glance into his apartment, Iruka looks right up into the limbs where Kakashi is crouched, waves, and continues back to his own home.

(He had been underestimating Umino Iruka’s awareness. He’s intrigued.)

(But anyway.)

Once he’s home, Iruka rushes through grading and lesson plans and adjustments. He makes lunch for himself and Naruto for tomorrow. Cleans, if he remembers; showers, if he has any energy left. Then, Umino-sensei crashes hard around one or two in the morning.

All to start over again at five-thirty the next morning.

It can’t be sustainable. Kakashi is morbidly interested in how long Iruka planned to keep up this kind of schedule.

~

It starts out with checking out during lunch. Kakashi is lounging in the trees on the Academy grounds, pretending to read but listening intently to Naruto ramble on about some new topping Ichiraku is introducing on Friday and please Iruka-sensei can we go? Then the soft click of dropped chopsticks against a bento box made Kakashi look down to the pair sitting at the base of his tree.

“Iruka-sensei? Are you—?”

“Oh, I’m. I’m alright.” Iruka laughs it off, fumbling for his chopsticks. “I was just thinking too hard there.”

“You shouldn’t do that!”

“Hu—?”

“You tell me not to think too hard all the time,” Naruto pouts. “That I’ll hurt myself.”

Iruka’s laugh crinkles his eyes and he tips his head back. “Gods, Naruto, I’m sorry—no, not—um. Listen, forget it, okay? Ramen, on Friday, right?”

“YES!”

And it was forgotten. Except, Iruka is unconsciously rubbing his fingers together beside his hip and Kakashi can see it. Something happened to force the drop—likely, he lost feeling in his hand briefly.

~

Kakashi’s out of the village as it gets worse, but he hears all about it from Shikaku and Inoichi when he gets back. They’re in the hallway outside the Hokage’s office, talking in low tones like they were discussing an attack on the village.

“What could cause such a serious mood shift?”

“Genjutsu; one of the other teachers sabotaging him; another student practicing poorly.”

“Iruka-sensei?” Kakashi asks.

Both men look at him as he approaches. He’s still in his ANBU armor, but the mask is in his locker. It’s an open secret he’s in ANBU; only his codename is high-clearance.

Shikaku nods. “Shikamaru’s complaining about the man’s temper being shorter than usual.”

“My Ino confirmed this behavior shift. We’re understandably worried, if someone if trying to use an Academy teacher to attack the kids—”

Kakashi shakes his head. “It’s not that.”

“And you would know?” Shikaku prompts.

“He’s taking care of Naruto,” Kakashi shrugs. “It’s probably catching up with him, finally.”

“What is?” Inoichi looks honestly confused.

Kakashi tilts his head and then realizes. “Ah. That’s right. You’re both married. You have a way to share the responsibilities.”

Sakumo hadn’t ever been irate with him, but Kakashi can remember him being tired. He lifts his hand and walks away. “I’ll see if I can’t have a talk with Iruka-sensei,” he says, as though he speaks with the man on a regular basis instead of just waving back from his shadowed space in the tree at night when Iruka leaves Naruto.

~

He doesn’t get a chance to talk to Iruka for weeks. When he gets back, it finally comes to a head.

Kakashi is perched outside Iruka’s apartment where he and Naruto are preparing their dinner. Naruto, still talking a mile a minute, hardly notices that Iruka is dazed at the counter, his hands going through the motions of peeling carrots and separating pieces of broccoli without being fully cognizant. He’s much paler than the last time Kakashi peeked in on them—all except for the bags under his eyes; those couldn’t get much darker if they were black.

He flinches forward as Iruka drifts to the side. Naruto catches his teacher before Kakashi can take a step, and the clang of a knife hitting the floor is more than a little startling. Together, they stick Iruka’s hand under running water from the tap, and then Naruto disappears further into the apartment and returns a few seconds later with a first aid kit.

“What was that about, Iruka-sensei?”

Iruka takes a bit to answer. “I haven’t been sleeping well,” he says. “I’m a bit tired, that’s all. Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize,” Naruto says. He finishes caring for his sensei and then says, “How about I go get some take-out, and then we can clean up and you can go to bed?”

Iruka smiles tiredly. “We can bring the take-out to your place, okay? I’ll clean up when I come back home.”

“But—”

“It’s okay, Naruto,” Iruka puts his unbandaged hand in Naruto’s hair. “I’d rather make sure you’re fed and well-rested for school tomorrow. That’s what's important.”

“You’re important, too, sensei,” Naruto says.

Kakashi can’t help but agree.

“Let’s go get some ramen, and we can argue about this later.”

Kakashi flashes away to Ichiraku to put in their order and pay. It’s the least he can do, right?

Later that night, Iruka leaves Naruto’s apartment and like always, lifts his head to wave up at Kakashi in the tree. Only, his eyes roll back with the movement of lifting his head and his knees collapse under him and Kakashi makes it just in time to keep the sensei’s head from hitting the ground. He catches Iruka with one hand under his back and the other cupped behind his head and eases him down against his raised knee.

As soon as Iruka is horizontal, his eyes flutter back open. “Oh, ANBU-san,” he mutters. He’s dazed and foggy, but tries to stand up on his own anyway.

“Sensei, are you well?” Kakashi asks, knowing the answer but needing Iruka to admit it.

Iruka waves him away. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Just a little tired.”

It’s more than that if you’re slipping into micro-sleep, Kakashi thinks, but lets the man stubbornly stand up. He’s still holding his hands out, ready to catch him again, when after five paces Iruka tips sideways and falls again. Kakashi keeps him upright this time, arms tight around his waist and back.

Iruka stays under for a few seconds this time, and when he wakes he leans more heavily into Kakashi’s armor and groans. “What’s happening?” he murmurs.

Normally, he would stay and look after Naruto all night, but this seems more important. “Umino-sensei, I’m going to see you to the hospital now,” he says.

“But… Naruto?”

Because of course Iruka figured out that Kakashi—his ANBU persona at least—stays close to Naruto at all times. “Together, our wards are top-notch, sensei,” Kakashi says. “He’ll be okay for a night.” He slips Iruka onto his back, pulling his arms over his shoulders. Iruka’s light breath huffs past his ear as he says, “Hold on.” Then, they’re gone.

~

Iruka wakes up much later, Naruto tipped against his hospital bed, snoring. He feels so much better after however many hours of sleep he’s gotten. He wonders briefly why he’s here, and where the ANBU that brought him here is. If Naruto is here, that ANBU is likely closeby. Iruka lets out a jaw-cracking yawn and settles back down on the pillow to sleep some more.

When he wakes up the second time, it’s because he has to pee so bad oh gods. It’s night time and Naruto is gone—Iruka tries not to feel disappointed. His legs shake under him when he tries to stand to get to the restroom; whatever’s wrong with him, it’s making him weak as a newborn but he will not embarrass himself by not making it to the toilet. He pushes chakra through his legs, and, finally, blissfully, makes it.

He gets a good look at himself in the mirror as he’s washing his hands. His eyes are puffy and red, but he has some color back in his skin. His hair could use a wash and some heavy conditioning—he hadn’t had time for that in awhile. All in all, it’s not bad; but he’s still wondering why he’s here.

Iruka leaves the restroom and is halfway across the room to his bed when his chakra flares unexpectedly. He stumbles, collapses, and feels his eyes blur and begin to roll back.

Before his head can hit the tile, he’s caught and cushioned by Naruto’s ANBU. The ANBU gently picks him up, one arm under his knees and the other around his back, and it’s like Iruka weighs nothing as the ANBU stands and carries him back to bed.

“Thank-you, ANBU-san,” Iruka says, flushed. “I promise I’m not usually so weak.”

The ANBU fusses with the blanket and covers Iruka back up. He (Iruka assumes they’re a he, the voice and height lead him to believe it but he’s been wrong before) seems frustrated, in the way that ANBU show frustration: by being busy, and then by being absolutely still. He’ll make sure the water pitcher is full, and then stand silently by the window for a few seconds. Pace the width of the room from window to door and back, and then stand at the end of the bed.

“What’s going on, ANBU-san? Is Naruto—?”

“Uzumaki-kun is safe, healthy, and well-cared for,” the ANBU says, cutting him off. “You are a godsend to this village, if only to care for the uncared for.”

Iruka glowers. “Someone had to do it. He’s seven years old and living alone and has lived alone his entire life. I couldn’t—”

“I’m aware,” the ANBU holds up a hand to stop his rant. “Believe me, if I could have done more, I would have. But an ANBU is no role model, especially not me. I’m glad he’s had you. That said.” The ANBU somehow matched Iruka’s glower through the mask; he was suddenly glad for all the time spent in Sandaime’s office around the ANBU that he can pick up on these micro-aggressions for what they are.

Iruka folds his arms and waits for the ANBU to continue.

After a heavy sigh, the ANBU says, “Sleep deprivation.”

“I—what?”

“What you’re here for. You’ve been running yourself into the ground, sensei. You slept for twenty-two hours, and you’re still not fully recovered. The medics say it could take up to a week of proper sleep for you to feel normal again.”

Iruka flushes and ducks his head. “I… But, that doesn’t…”

“How much sleep have you been getting? Three, Four hours a night? And then you’re exhausting yourself all day looking after pre-genin and then Naruto.” The ANBU folds his arms. “This isn’t sustainable.”

“I know that. I just.” Iruka groans. “I don’t have time for—” He scrubs both hands across his eyes. Now that he’s actually gotten some sleep he’s really tired. “No one else takes care of him, not the way he needs it; he’s just a kid! It bothers me enough that he lives by himself—”

“Your immune system was compromised when you arrived, sensei.” The ANBU snapped, quieting Iruka’s tirade. “Who’s going to take care of Naruto the way he deserves if you’re stuck on your back with a perfectly, normally treatable form of the flu? What will happen to him if you critically injure yourself due to a micro-sleep at an inopportune time and find yourself off-roster for weeks? What then, sensei?”

The silence is heavy. Iruka picks at a stray thread in the blanket on his lap.

“I don’t know,” he answers, his voice small. “I didn’t… I wasn’t thinking that far ahead, I guess.”

The ANBU nods. “At least you’re aware now.”

There’s a long, awkward pause as Iruka wonders what else there is to say.

“You have a spare room in your apartment, yes?” the ANBU breaks the silence.

Iruka nods, slowly, not sure where this is going.

“Maybe…” the ANBU continues slowly, “maybe changes in Naruto’s living arrangements can be made. If Naruto were living with you, could you agree to a better sleep schedule—one with which you can better take care of yourself and Naruto?”

Iruka could kiss this man.

“Yes! Yes, please, I’ll—yes! I’ll take him, even if it means I have to lose him as a student, I’d take him as a foster.”

The ANBU chuckles. “I’ll speak with the Hokage. If he says no, well… There’s nothing saying that Naruto himself can’t choose where he lives, is there?” Then his micro-aggression is back, leaning over the foot of the bed with his arms wide. “My only stipulation is that you take better care of yourself. A sick guardian can’t very well keep up with any child, let alone a jinchūriki.”

Iruka nods. “Deal.” He covers a yawn with his palm and asks, “Can this taking care of myself clause start now, with me asking you to leave so I can go back to sleep?”

“I’m not leaving,” the ANBU says, standing back up straight. “If you’re to be the guardian of our jinchūriki, you’ll need to get used to the ANBU guard, sensei. But please, get some sleep.” He chuckles lightly, “I think I’ve caught you enough in the last thirty-six hours, don’t you?”

[space-------kid]

Hello! Congrats on reaching 100+ followers—you definitely deserve it and more! If slots are still avail, can I request Genya x Reader where he actually lives and five years after Muzan’s defeat, Genya realizes that all of his friends are married (Kanao and Tanjiro, Zenitsu and Nezuko, Aoi and Inosuke) and he’s like “maybe I should propose...?) but he has no idea how so he asks for help from Ino, Tan and Zen, who offer to go look for rings with him while the girls hang out. Thank you so much!

Thank you so much, anon - you’re too kind and sweet! 😄💕💕💕

This request is so cute, please have all my uwu 💕💕💕 Also, I’m sorry for taking quite a while with this one (and to @beanrolls, too, who requested for Kimetsu Academy Genya [have all my uwu, too!]), there have been matters that needed my urgent attention that left me unable to write for days! 😭 But I’m back now, and sure that I’ll be able to post beanrolls’ request tomorrow😄

This one is set mostly in Genya’s point of view. [I’m listening to Train’s “Marry Me” right now... Now I’m wondering how modern AU Genya might propose to his s/o  😭💕💕💕)

*Hanami is “flower viewing”. The comparison between pearls and a woman’s tears of sadness is a thing where I’m from, and old people advise the younger ones not to wear any pearls during their wedding nor for men to give women engagement rings with pearls. They believe that the pearls would signify a married life full of sadness for the woman who’s about to be wed.

༻��﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

𝓯𝓻𝓸𝓶 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 (𝓻𝓪𝓲𝓷𝔂) 𝓭𝓪𝔂 𝓯𝓸𝓻𝔀𝓪𝓻𝓭 𝒮𝒽𝒾𝓃𝒶𝓏𝓊𝑔𝒶𝓌𝒶 𝒢𝑒𝓃𝓎𝒶 𝓍 𝑅𝑒𝒶𝒹𝑒𝓇

༻﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡﹡༺

              The world is now without evil demons.

               Exactly five years have now passed after Kibutsuji Muzan’s downfall. Five years of absolute peace, now being experienced by the children Ubiyashiki Kagaya has left behind, those who have been blessed by the gods to spend the rest of their lives earning the fruits of the sacrifice of the entirety of the Demon Slayer Corps.

               There are times that he still thinks that someone else deserves to be in his position. To be able to live, laugh, love, and be loved by the people he holds dear in his heart. But the thought now comes very few and far in between as the peaceful days roll by, the further encouragement of his older brother and friends giving Genya the strength to take another step into living the life they convince him he deserves.

               And maybe… maybe he does deserve to experience all the good things life hands to him now. Like the rest of his fellow Demon Slayers, he’s willingly sacrificed his own safety to ensure another’s, offering blood, sweat, and tears to rid the world as much demons as he can while striving hard to stand side by side with his once-unreachable brother. And while Sanemi has been blessed with the Mark of the Demon Slayers, the gods must have smiled at the Shinazugawa brothers for the curse of death does not claim the older between the two.

               Genya is sure that Tanjiro will be blessedly spared as well from the Mark’s curse, now living a happy life in Mount Kumotori – his home – with Kanao and their son.

               The Breath of the Sun user has been the first to marry in their group of friends two years ago. The proposal itself is simple yet sincere, so very Tanjiro that Kanao has been quick to blurt out a very happy “yes!” The wedding has been grand and lively, and Zenitsu – in all seriousness and golden eyes shining with worried tears – all but gets down on one knee during the celebration and proposes to a surprised and blushing Nezuko.

               Not one to be left behind by his friends, Inosuke has demanded for Aoi’s hand in marriage after witnessing Tanjiro’s joyful wedding and Zenitsu’s bold proposal.

               Now, his friends are all happily married with the love of their lives. And Genya would be a fool if he doesn’t admit that he’s a little – alright, maybe not so little – jealous that he’s the only one who hasn’t tied the knot yet.

               And so he sits in the middle of Sanemi’s training dojo, Himejima-san’s juzu beads clutched in one hand as he contemplates on the relationship he has with [Name]. He remembers, clear as day, how they met on one of his missions and how they saved each other’s lives back then. How she has befriended him despite his intimidating appearance, his inability to use Breaths, and how he achieves demonic transformation by eating demons. Not once has [Name] looked down on him, and Genya knows then and there – in their first meeting – that she is the one for him.

               Koi no yokan. The premonition of love; the feeling upon first meeting someone that you will inevitably fall in love with them.

               He remembers how [Name] admitted her growing feelings for him months after, when she came to visit him at the Butterfly Estate after facing off with Upper Moon Four in the Swordsmith’s Village. How she ran to him, crying, and embraced him as if it’s the last thing she’ll ever do. He remembers how happy and relieved she looked while cupping his cheeks in her small hands and – seemingly forgetting herself and the company they have – placed a tender kiss on his forehead before confessing her feelings for him. Genya is still sure that he has glimpsed Heaven that day, especially when [Name]’s face flushed red from embarrassment at her behaviour. And despite Tanjiro and the three girls of the Butterfly Estate’s presence in the infirmary, the demon-devouring Slayer is quick to tell her that he’s always loved, her, too.

               His worst nightmare came into focus during the final battle in the Dimensional Infinity Fortress. Upper Moon One was unbelievably strong, even using a Breath Style with more than fifteen forms during the fight. The Mist Pillar Tokito Muichiro fell during the fight, valiantly sacrificing himself to ensure their victory. And Genya was more than willing to go down fighting, too, if it meant taking down the second strongest demon in existence to his grave. Just as when Upper Moon One’s desperate, dying attack reaches Genya, he was knocked to the side while the splatter of crimson blood entered his field of vision.

               [Name] has told him firmly that she’s willing to sacrifice more than her left leg just so Genya can see the light of day again with his older brother.

               If it weren’t for her, he wouldn’t be basking freely under the sun with the people he loves.

               Uneven footsteps soon pull Genya out of his musings. The dojo’s double doors open to reveal [Name], clad in a purple kimono and leaning on her walking stick. Her [colour] eyes brighten upon seeing Genya, and he gets up to meet her halfway, wrapping her in a fierce, loving hug.

               “I love you, [Name],” he tells her softly, pressing his lips to her hair. Genya relishes the sound of her laughter and the way she looks up at him, the loving expression on her face mirroring his.

               “And I love you more than you can ever dream of, Genya,” [Name] replies sincerely, leaning on him as he leads her out of the dojo. “What’s gotten into you, though? I hope it’s nothing I should be worried about.”

              His heart leaps with joy for her concern, although there is nothing to actually worry about. They sit side by side on the engawa, overlooking the garden Sanemi has gifted Genya with. The younger Shinazugawa brother still cannot help his face from turning red when [Name] presses herself against him and weaves her fingers with his.

              “N-Nothing to worry about. I just want to tell you…”

              [Name] rewards him with a kiss on his fingers and a content sigh.

              “And now we have the rest of our lives to tell each other,” she chirps happily at him, a bright smile on her face. “Now, don’t get tired of hearing it from me every day, alright?”

              Maybe he should…?

              Genya returns her smile with a shy grin of his own, unashamed of how red his face must have been. The question dances on the tip of his tongue, the needful urge to ask for her hand in marriage growing stronger and fiercer with each passing day he spends with her.

              He’s the only one unmarried yet in his circle of friends. And Genya knows that he can change it by asking [Name] right now, but he refrains himself from doing so. He wants the proposal to be memorable, to be worthy of the woman who has countlessly and selflessly saved his life over and over. He doesn’t want to ruin her experience of being proposed to by just blurting the question out like a mindless, insensitive fool, without even a care for how much memorable it would be for her.

              Genya is not one for extravagance, but at least he wants [Name] to remember his wedding proposal for the rest of their lives, something she can tell their future kids with a lovesick blush on her face. But if he’s being honest with himself, he actually has no idea how to properly propose!

              The flapping of a Kasugaigarasu’s wings reach the couple’s ears and, soon enough, a familiar crow perches itself on Genya’s outstretched arm.

              “Message! Message from Kamado Tanjiro! Message from Kamado Tanjiro!!!”

              A surge of inspiration strikes Genya. It won’t hurt asking his friends for help now, would it?

--

               “Ah, so you’re planning to propose to [Name]!” Tanjiro exclaims, expression that of pure delight at the information. “I’m very happy for you, Genya!”

               Sitting beside Genya, Zenitsu claps the former on the back with a congratulatory grin. “Good for you, Genya. You’ll have zero regrets once you’re married – spending forever with the woman you love the most is pure heaven, I’m telling you!”

               Inosuke, on the other hand, shoots Genya an unimpressed look. The years may have tamed the Breath of the Beast user’s boorishness, but his competitiveness is another story.

               “Kentaro, Monitsu, and I have been married to our wives for three years already,” the boar head-toting male comments, taunting grin appearing on his face as he rudely points a finger at the unmarried man among the group, “and you haven’t even proposed yet? Hah! You really are a shrimp!”

               Tossing maturity aside, Genya and Inosuke begin attempting to throttle each other and throw childish insults at one another. It brings back memories during the Pillar Training from five years ago, and the ‘fight’ immediately ends with Tanjiro restraining an indignant Inosuke by sitting in seiza on the latter’s back.

               “I haven’t proposed yet because I don’t know how, you stupid boar!” Genya gripes, plopping gracelessly beside a surprised Zenitsu.

               “Just demand for her hand in marriage like I did with my Aoi, dumbass Ginto!” Inosuke yells, struggling under Tanjiro’s restraint.

               Genya rushes forward and slaps a large hand on Inosuke’s mouth, looking frantically between the shoji door and the porch. “Keep it down, Inosuke! What if [Name] hears you? Don’t blow things up!”

               Tanjiro, still restraining their friend, tilts his head to the side in contemplation. “Yes, please keep it down, Inosuke. And I understand why Genya hasn’t proposed yet.” The Breath of the Sun user then shoots Genya a sympathetic smile. “You want it to be memorable, right, Genya? In that case, let us help you!”

               Inosuke stops squirming and, after sharing a knowing grin with Zenitsu, nods at Genya as a show of support.

               Feeling extremely grateful for his friends’ considerateness and willing aid, Genya gets down in dogeza. “T-Thank you, Tanjiro, Zenitsu, Inosuke! You have no idea how much this means to me!”

--

               Everything goes smoothly as planned.

               During his friends’ next visit in the Wind Pillar’s estate, Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke – who have been forthcoming with Genya’s desire to ask for [Name]’s hand in marriage with their other halves – bring their wives with them as planned. While the four males go out in search for the perfect engagement ring (Zenitsu suggested a Western proposal like he did with Nezuko, to which Genya agreed eagerly), Kanao, Nezuko, and Aoi will provide a distraction for [Name]. Even Sanemi pitches in with his offer of help, volunteering as the last resort of a distraction should [Name] begin showing any amount of suspicion about their friends’ unannounced visit.

               The three women are quick to whisk [Name] away from Genya’s arms, chattering brightly about things only they can understand, and Sanemi immediately shoos the four men away once the girls are out of sight.

               “[Name] will be quick to suspect that something might be amiss,” the former Wind Pillar warns the younger men before they leave, eyes shining with pride for his former tsuguko’s perceptiveness. “You better hurry up, you hear me?”

               “We will, Sanemi-san, don’t worry!” Tanjiro replies, bowing and taking their leave.

               Things, however, quickly turn south once they reach the town.

               While merchants from far and wide have been plentiful, the four friends find it difficult to spot even a single jeweller in town. Panic and doubt fills Genya almost immediately, but Tanjiro’s optimism helps drive the negativity away. Zenitsu suggest looking at the next, nearest town, and the four march on with renewed purpose and hope.

               The next town seems to be promising, and Genya’s spirits lift at the sight of a jeweller’s store. He is quick to drag his friends in the shop, but his excited smile quickly vanishes from his face at the sheer amount of rings – in all sizes and variations – behind the glass displays before him.

               “H-How am I supposed to pick one…?” he mutters, face pale at the prospect of choosing a ring that might not even fit [Name] – let alone one that she would love.

               The shop keeper – a foreigner – looks appraisingly at Genya from head to toe before nodding to himself.

               “For proposal?” asks the old man in broken Japanese, briefly glancing over at Tanjiro, Zenitsu, and Inosuke. “Them, too? Propose to girl?”

               Quickly catching on the foreigner’s inquiry, Genya shakes his head and tries to use words that the former will understand. “Only me, sir,” he says nervously, wringing his hands when his lavender eyes sweep back to the assortment of rings in display. “How much for a ring?”

               The old man tuts at him, grey eyes narrowing as he gestures at the rings. “Price depends on ring. These, not for marriage.” He directs Genya to another display, where silver and gold bands set with precious stones are being held. “Propose with these. Pick one.”

               Genya suddenly feels numb at the prospect of choosing among the rings. Each of them is beautiful in their own right – some displaying exquisitely cut diamonds, vivid sapphires, crimson rubies, and viridian emeralds. When he hesitantly points at the one with a single pearl, the old man appraises him once more and shakes his head vehemently.

               “What’s wrong with the pearl, though, old man?” Inosuke pipes from behind Genya. “It’s pretty enough!”

               “Pretty, yes!” The old man agrees then points at Genya. “No fit him, however!”

               Zenitsu frowns at the old shop keeper. “He’s not the one being proposed to, you know!”

               Ever the pacifist, Tanjiro sniffs the air a little then beams at the old man. “I think he doesn’t mean Genya. Let’s hear what grandpa has to say first, shall we?”

               The old man, chuffed with Tanjiro’s reasoning (and being called grandpa, it seems), elaborates while gesturing for Genya to show his hands. Genya complies, confused.

               “This lad, tall and big,” the old foreigner explains while studying the calloused palms under his gaze. “He looks… hmm… what word… ah! Protector! Protective of his woman, yes. Does not make her cry, I think. He does not want to, he looks like. Big hands, huh? Protecting hands, I see. Pearl,” he then points at the ring, “symbol of tears in my country. Tears of sad woman. You make her cry sad tears?”

               “No!” Genya replies loudly, indignantly. Then, in a more reserved tone, “Never. I don’t want to make [Name] cry sad tears.”

               The old man nods in satisfaction then veers the mohawked male’s focus away from the pearl. “I remove that today. Now pick another.”

               Amazed at the explanation and the new bit of information they learned, the four former Demon Slayers shift their focus to the other rings and begin discussing amongst themselves.

               “I still don’t know what to pick,” Genya laments, his gaze bouncing between his friends and the old man. This is much harder than picking the ore for his very first nichirin blade!

               “Genya, I know it’s a hard decision to make,” Tanjiro tells him kindly, “but think of [Name] while looking at the rings. I’m sure your love for her will guide you to the right ring!”

               “Red hair, right,” the old man chimes in, nodding at a beaming Tanjiro. “Don’t worry, erase worry. Let love guide you, then choose.”

               “I dunno about these rings,” Inosuke claims and gives Genya’s shoulder a supportive pat. “But Jangoro and old man are right! I pick Aoi because I love her. I’m sure you’ll pick the right ring!”

               “Aoi is not a ring, though,” Zenitsu mumbles under his breath. “But you can do it, Genya! Take your time!”

               Overwhelmed by the support of his friends and a stranger’s kind and patient guidance, Genya’s determined gaze sweeps over the rings, lavender eyes widening at the sight of one that particularly stands out amongst the rest.

--

               With the chosen ring now within the safety of a small velvet box and tucked in his hakama’s pocket, Genya and the gang moves forward to the second and most important part of the plan: the proposal itself.

               While Zenitsu suggests a grand declaration of love and marriage as supported by a pumped up Inosuke, Tanjiro agrees with Genya’s plan of making the proposal simple yet utterly heartfelt. With the Hanami coming ever closer, the younger Shinazugawa brother plans to ask for [Name]’s hand in marriage under the blooming sakura trees and the bright rays of spring sunlight.

               “How did it go?” Kanao asks quietly about their search for the previously elusive engagement ring. Aoi and Nezuko are helping [Name] gather some flowers from the garden under Sanemi’s guidance, distracting her enough for Kanao to slip past and welcome the four men when they arrive.

               Tanjiro hugs his wife and receives the kiss she gives him with a blush on his face, then displays a smile of success for Kanao to see.

               “We had to move to the nearest town to search for a ring, but Genya did it!” Tanjiro whispers excitedly. “The ring perfectly fits [Name]… I’m sure you’ll agree when you see it, Kanao!”

               The adopted sister of the Kocho siblings smiles proudly at her husband. “I can’t wait for the day Genya proposes. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy spending the rest of his life married to [Name], like I am with you.”

               Needless to say, Tanjiro is reduced to a blushing mess at his wife’s sincere remark. And like Kanao, he cannot wait for the day [Name] says yes to Genya.

--

               The first day of the Hanami finally comes, bringing with it the first of spring’s sudden torrential rains.

               Genya’s plan comes crashing to the ground as he watches the pouring rain despondently. He grips the velvet box containing the ring in one hand, wondering if he’s not meant for giving [Name] the wedding proposal she so deserves.

               He feels Sanemi’s hand on his shoulder, ducking his head forlornly when the older between the two huffs at the rain.

               “Is this it for you, then?” Sanemi asks him, an uncharacteristic look of disbelief on his scarred face. “You’re letting this rain derail you on your journey to happiness?”

               “[Name] loves hanami, though, nii-chan,” Genya laments, shoulders slumping as he pockets the box.

               The former Wind Pillar grins and ruffles his younger brother’s hair. “You really are one hopeless little brother,” he says in jest, grin turning into a soft smile when Genya looks at him in mock hurt. “[Name] loves you, and I’m sure she wouldn’t mind how you propose to her.”

               “Really?”

               “Tch. I know so, idiot. Now scram and give me a sister-in-law already.”

               Genya is already barrelling out of the room, shouting “yes!” at the top of his lungs before Sanemi can react. The younger Shinazugawa storms down the hallways, doing a double take when he spots [Name] sitting on the engawa by the garden and watching the rain.

               For someone who is about to ask for his beloved’s hand in marriage, Genya feels oddly calm as he shortens the distance between the two of them. He sits beside [Name] and stares at her, quietly taking in the softness of her features when she tilts her head up to smile at him.

               Oh, gods. He really is utterly, unabashedly, deeply, and head over heels in love with her. And the tender look in her eyes when looks at him assures him that she absolutely feels the same.

               He retrieves the box from his pocket, opening it to reveal a slender silver band topped with [favourite gemstone] cut like dainty petals. Genya gently wipes the tears of joyful understanding and profound love on her face with his free hand. The question in his mouth becomes a promise of forever when he speaks.

               “I hope you’ll let me make you the happiest woman alive, [Name]. Please take me as your husband.”

               Genya gratefully and lovingly receives her kiss when she replies, “I’ll have no one else, Genya. Only you.”

               (Much to Genya’s delight, [Name] indeed tells their twin sons – with a furious blush on her face – how his wedding proposal to her went three years later. And, fairly enough for his flustered wife, he sports the same shade of red on his face when their boys begin to tease him about it.)

 .

.

.

.

[sakura-blossom28]

Modern Day Romance

Chapter 1

So I gave up on my other Gaara x Sakura fanfiction lol but it just made me sad to write.  So I’m writing this one and hopefully, it’ll be a little bit more upbeat since I myself and doing better.  I put a lot of myself into this, but I also want to make the best situations for the characters and hope I’ll be in a good relationship one day too!  Just trying to speak into the universe through writing and getting my feelings out there as well cause it has been rough the last few months.  Thought I was doing better but life always has other plans! 

Obviously, this is a modern au, but no COVID in this world cause I don’t want it! lol please let me know what you think!  Also planning on the next chapter to be Gaara’s perspective to change up my writing style!  

I do not own Naruto!  

...

No.  No.  Too short.  Too far away.  Swipe, swipe, swipe.

Sakura laid in her bed looking at the eligible bleachers that were in a 20 mile radius.  The internet had turned into her only means of dating in the last few years.  Having finished her master’s in nursing while working on top of that with her mentor, she finally was ready for a serious relationship.  It was harder than she initially thought.  

With the start of summer right around the corner, Sakura was finally ready to get back out there.  She got out of a very serious one-sided relationship back in the winter, right as she was finishing school, that left her devastated beyond repair, or so she thought, but she pushed through and devoted herself to finishing with top marks.  It took a lot of time to get over her ex, but it was worth it.  All those endless nights of crying over her textbooks allowed her to do some real digging and showed her that the person she loved with her whole heart was in fact, not good enough for her.  

It was strange getting over someone you thought you loved. For Sakura, it was easy getting over him but the hard part was that she lost her friends in the process.  They had chosen him over her, and it was finally obvious.  That’s what was killing Sakura at the moment.  

Earlier that day was Sakura’s day off in what felt like forever.  She was so excited to finally be able to spend time with her friends that she woke up early to be able to make plans with them.  Sakura text Hinata and TenTen first because she knew Naruto wouldn’t answer and she never really was that close to Neji. She had a beach day in mind, she was so pale compared to everyone else she saw because she was always at work or in trying to get some studying in.  

It didn’t take too long to get an answer from Hinata, but unfortunately, both girls were busy that day and wouldn’t be able to see her.  Bummed by the news Sakura crawled back into bed not sure what she would do now.  The beach wasn’t worth driving all the way there to pay for just herself.  She decided to lay in bed for a little while longer hoping that she could think of something fun to do by herself.

When Sakura awoke she lazily was scrolling through her social media accounts and saw something that made her heart drop into her stomach.  There on Hinata’s story was her and everyone else already at the beach.  Everyone was smiling and having a good time from what it seemed.  Sakura even noticed a new girl with red hair and glasses that she had never seen before.  Then next to the girl was him.  

Sakura made sure after the breakup that she muted everything on social media to help her heal.  She also made a strict rule to never look at any of his profiles because it would just upset her more.  Their relationship was over and there was no going back.  She was getting better.  The sight of his name liking things on Naruto’s page didn’t upset her so much anymore, which was a big sign of progress to Sakura.  In all honesty, Sakura felt okay seeing his face and seeing this new girl that he was clearly with.  She was more upset with her friends. Sure they had been there for her when they first broke up, but this wasn’t the first time that Sakura knew they were all hanging out and didn’t attempt to invite her.

They chose him.  Time to let them go, the voice in her mind said.  

This old habit had come back to her within the last year.  A sign to Sakura about how unhappy she was with Sasuke because that voice always tried to warn her about the red flags, but Sakura was too stubborn to listen.  Now it seemed that voice was the only person she talked to anymore.  

Why are they doing this?  I thought we all could have gotten along once in a while.  Didn’t he say I should still be friends with them?

Clearly, they don’t think the same way.  You knew your friendship with them had an expiration date.  They’re hurting you.  We don’t let people do that anymore remember? 

Sakura weeded through a lot of unhappy thoughts to get where she was today. She made a lot of promises to herself to be stronger than she used to be. Somehow she lost a sense of herself along the way and she would never sacrifice that again no matter who it was, friend or partner.  

She closed the app and went to text her best friend Ino.  They were so close and could tell each other everything, but Ino moved away to the city a few years ago and was living life to the fullest in Sakura’s eyes.  She had only met Sasuke once and Sakura didn’t reach out when they broke up anyway.  Ino just seemed so busy to Sakura that she didn’t want to bother her.  She could really use a friend right now.  

It seemed like every person she thought of was in a relationship besides herself. Why was dating so hard for her?  Everyone else was clearly doing something she wasn’t.  She never even had a relationship that lasted longer than 6 months.  She couldn’t even go out and meet someone at a bar because now she had no friends to go out with, not that Hinata and TenTen would have gone with her anyway.  All their comforting words came back to her when she first got dumped, was it all a lie?

Sakura was the type of person to say something and mean it.  If she said she’d help then she would even if it was months down the line, she would always keep her word.  Hinata and TenTen promised they would still be friends and hang out, but that only happened once.  A few messages now and again, but Sakura definitely felt a weird shift with Hinata one day.  It had been months after the breakup and Sakura was having a bad day and tried to talk to her about it, but at the mention of Sasuke and how upset he used to make Sakura because he ignored her all the time, Hinata clammed up and almost refused to believe Sasuke would have done something like that.  From that day on, Sakura never brought him up again.  

Jumping out of bed, Sakura was already tired of feeling bad for herself.  Anger always helped her move forward.  If they couldn’t be fair and hang out with both of them, then fine, she would find new friends!  No one was ever going to waste her time again!  She got herself ready for a day devoted to things that made her happy.

X

The men in her area left a lot to be desired.  For some reason, the only guys who seemed to like her were incredibly short.  Her not being that tall herself it shouldn’t have bugged her, but with past dates with guys that were short always turned out horrible for her, so she stayed clear.  Any decent guy that she found always seemed to be just too far away or even out of state which irritated her to no end.

The following weeks were a challenge for Sakura.  Matching with a few different guys was exciting, but none seemed too interested in her enough to ask her out and they just ended up ghosting her.  Some were a bit more forward in just coming out and saying they were looking for a casual fling.  At least these guys had the decency to be outright in what they wanted.  Sakura respectfully declined each offer.  

Finally, after talking to a nice guy named Zaku, things seemed to be looking up for Sakura.  They talked for about two weeks before he finally asked her out. The date was pleasant enough, but Sakura just didn’t feel that spark that she craved. Maybe it’ll get better, she thought, but alas Sakura had no such luck.  

A week passed after the date and Zaku made no effort in saying he wanted to see her again.  It frustrated Sakura to no end.  Here she was giving all the effort once and to have nothing reciprocated.  Sure there was no spark, but she thought it was a good change of pace after being totally obsessive over Sasuke. She thought maybe the guy would like her more, but this is exhausting.  They ended things amicably, but Sakura felt a bit hurt when he didn’t really give a reaction when she said they should see other people.  

Since then no one had really caught her attention.  Sure she was matching with guys, but once again they would stop talking to her after a few days.  Sakura was about to give up all hope and just accept that love wasn’t meant for her when a guy named Gaara popped up on her scene.  Now he typically wasn’t her type, but there was something about him that made her want to look at him more.

He was 5’10”, red hair, and had green eyes that were a very close shade to hers.  He seemed to be the polar opposite to her.  He mostly wore dark clothing but in a very tasteful way.  He definitely had his own style and fashion sense which was really refreshing.  Gaara wasn’t smiling in most of his pictures, but the last picture of his profile must have been taken by one of his friends at a party because he was laughing with a guy with big eyebrows who had a funny look on his face.  He looked so handsome and attractive to Sakura in that picture that she instantly liked it.  

She quickly realized what she had done and checked over her own profile to make sure nothing was too embarrassing on there.  She tried to think of some cute answers to put on there and some pictures of her over the years.  Nothing was that recent because all the pictures from the last year had been deleted. Looking over the pictures she seemed normal enough, but she was worried that Gaara would think she’s too preppy for him to like her.  The only thing that stood out to her was her music taste.  She did like a few rock bands, so hopefully that would intrigue him.  

Sakura hadn’t felt this much attraction for someone in a long time.  She looked over his profile and tried to memorize everything.  She didn’t even care if he was out of state.  Thankfully he was about a 20 minute drive away from where she lived.  The only issue she found with him was that he smoked, but maybe he would be considerate and not smoke around her.  One picture was him sitting by a window reading a book as he was surrounded by many potted cacti.  Sakura could just picture the rest of the room and imagine the two of them spending time together just relaxing.  

Don’t do that to yourself.  He didn’t even like you back yet, don’t go imagining things, the voice said.

Sighing, Sakura knew the voice was right.  She always got herself into a mess thinking about things before they happened.  She knew this bad habit caused a lot of problems for herself when she was in a relationship with someone.  She built up this imaginary person in her mind and got upset when they didn’t act that way in real life.  On the other hand, it did help her to see that the guys she was dating weren’t a right fit for her because she was imagining the bare minimum of a decent relationship.  

She was about to turn off her phone and do something else with her time, but she got a new notification.  Gaara has matched with you!  See what he said.

With her body moving faster than her mind, she opened the message.   

Ch 2 

[britishassistant]

But I Like One Piece (6)

It has to come to a head at some point.

She knows something bad’s going to happen when the teacher tells them they’re going be fighting one another in pairs in the center of a taped-off square. Winners either force their opponents out of the square or put them in a position where a killing blow could be struck.

Their classmates stand around the edge to watch and cheer.

Chopper’s Rumble Balls. This couldn’t scream “blood sport” any harder if they were in a cage arena and betting on the matches.

Though she thinks she does spot some money changing hands...

First up is Shikamaru vs Chouji. Shikamaru promptly declares it a drag and flings himself out of the square at Chouji’s first blow. Chouji looks worried right up until Shika rolls onto his side for a nap. Then he just looks exasperated.

Then Chouji’s set against Hinata. They’re both too hesitant to really hit each other, but eventually Hinata manages to get him to step out of the square through speed and disorientation.

Hinata versus Kiba. Kiba versus Ino. Ino versus Fuuka. Ino versus Shino. Shino versus Sasuke. Sasuke versus Sakura. Sasuke versus Mori, Ami, Yosuke, an endless number of civilian kids he effortlessly beats in one or two blows, using moves that don’t look like the Academy kata they’ve learned.

Sasuke versus Naruto.

She shoots him a thumbs up and a grin as he goes into the ring. He beams back, returning the gesture before focusing.

The pair of them make the silly-looking “Seal of Confrontation”.

Naruto takes up the opening position for Strong Fist style.

Sasuke, with his hands in his pockets, snorts dismissively.

“Begin!” The teacher yells.

Uchiha fakes a punch like the one that dropped Mori, before going for the sweeping kick that knocked Ami and Junko on their backs.

Naruto doesn’t balk at the feint and neatly hops over the sweep (Gai-sensei’s training makes you good at dodging), jabbing a quick palm strike into Uchiha’s chest.

Sasuke stumbles. He’s frowning.

So’s the teacher.

This isn’t the way they expected this to go.

She grins, fiercely proud. Good.

Uchiha’s style is fast. The teacher is right that it’s technically flawless, leg perfectly straight with every kick, stance perfectly solid for every punch. He’s clearly been trained in this from a young age.

But he’s skinnier than he used to be, and his lunchboxes are pathetic. It’s simple, easy-prep foods, under or overcooked rice and ragged tomato slices, which aren’t bad, but shouldn’t be the only foods he’s eating if he wants to have strength and energy.

Naruto’s still got some kinks in his form he’s got to work on with Gai-sensei, overbalancing here, not defending there. But he can take his opponent’s blows, and his own land with all the force of a freight train, mixing up Strong Fist, Academy style, and what looks like street brawling.

Naruto’s also been eating well-balanced diet for as long as he’s known her, which may not count for much in the long term, but it’s counting here.

Because, as much of a prodigy as Sasuke is, it’s slowly becoming apparent that he’s on even ground in this fight, and may even be losing.

“Come on, Naruto!” She yells, as he manages to kick Uchiha’s ankle out from under him and—

FWEEEEEEET!!

Kiba and Akamaru yelp as the teacher keeps blowing a whistle until he’s red in the face, yanking Naruto away from his opponent by his collar.

“I said we would be sparring WITH ACADEMY KATAS, Uzumaki!” He roars. “If you can’t keep to SIMPLE INSTRUCTION, you’ll be spending the rest of the MONTH in DETENTION, do you hear me?!”

Naruto’s looking stunned and frightened, like he’s not sure what he did to merit this reaction. “B-but—”

The teacher drops Naruto with a dismissive, “Disqualified. Match default to Uchiha Sasuke.”

“But that’s not fair!” She howls. Chouji’s holding her hand tight, probably so she doesn’t do something stupid like try to break this hypocritical farce of an educator’s kneecaps.

Kiba points at Uchiha. “He’s been using non-academy techniques since his match with Bug-boy! How come you haven’t pulled him, huh?”

The teacher sniffs. “Sasuke is advanced in taijutsu and can be trusted not to seriously damage his opponents. Uzumaki is too violent and out of control to be trusted—only once he masters the Academy Three will he have the discipline to avoid reckless stunts like this. And if you’re done shrieking, Ketsugi, get your behind in the ring.”

Her ears burn hot. She wants to hurt somebody. She wants to hurt them badly, for even being witness to Naruto’s ill-treatment. It’s not a nice feeling, hot and roiling in her belly like bile.

Don’t act out aggression violently. That’ll just give the masks ammunition and they’ll hurt you. Remember what Okaa-sama said. If calming down is impossible, escape the situation.

“Sorry.” She can’t stop herself from snapping. “I’m not disciplined enough to avoid breaking your sheltered little prodigy.”

She stomps over to Naruto and helps him up. His palm is trembling in hers as she leads him away, ignoring the Uchiha’s insulted look and the teacher’s yells.

They’ve both had enough of the academy for today.

Bread is excellent for venting anger.

She’s probably overworking the dough, but better that than doing something she’ll regret later. Like kicking the stupid teacher as hard as she can between his stupid legs.

Naruto’s despondently fiddling with Habu-san’s leaves.

“I wouldn’t have hurt him.” He murmurs. “I’ve done it with you an’ Lee an’ you two haven’t been hurt, right?”

“No, we weren’t. But you would’ve beat him. Pass me a bit?” She washes the rosemary off, muttering darkly as she pats them dry. “He didn’t want you to win and make his little teacher’s pet look bad.”

Naruto’s brow furrows as she folds the rosemary into the dough, placing it in a bowl and covering it with plastic wrap and leaving it aside for the first prove, setting the timer for an hour.

“You’re really mad, aren’t you? You’re not even doing the singy thing.”

She stops in the midst of washing her hands. “Singy thing?”

Naruto shrugs. “Yeah, when you cook normally, you do this thing. Like you’re singin’ but there’s no words an’ the sounds are all weird. Like this.”

Then, in quiet, heavily accented English he croons, «An’all the roads we have to walk are WINDing, an’all the lights that lead us there’re BLINDing, THERE are many THINGS that I Would LIKE to SAY to YOU—»

She covers his mouth with a wet hand, because if she has to hear Naruto sing any more of that song she’s gonna either crack up or melt into a little puddle of shame on the floor. “Yes, I get the idea, thank you Naruto.”

Then she shrieks because he’s licked her hand and seizes his shirt so he can’t escape as she wipes off the saliva off on his cheek, before he grabs her other arm and rubs his face on it.

They end up wrestling until the timer shrills that it’s time to take the bread out and knead it again.

She has to rewash and dry her hands before she can touch the dough.

“D’you wanna talk to Gai-sensei about it? He could always go and kick the teacher’s a—butt until he lets you use Strong Fist.”

He shrugs, gaping at how the dough has doubled in size. “I’unno. Maybe I’ll ask him to drill me on the Three?

She blinks, eyebrows raised.

Naruto shoots her a cheeky grin. “He did say I could do whatever I wanted once I mastered it.”

She snorts gleefully. “Do it. See if you can beat everybody using just that.”

There’s a comfortable silence as she kneads, then stretches the dough to see if it has the proper consistency, before folding in more rosemary and putting it back in the bowl for the second prove.

“He felt really light. When I was fighting him.” Naruto says slowly. “I think he could...y’know...”

He wraps his hand around his wrist, where his thumb and pointer finger can no longer touch.

She hums. “You think I should feed him.”

Naruto nods rapidly, giving her his damn puppy-eyes again.

Technically, Uchiha’s got food in abundance. She sees it when they run by the worn down compound on Gai-sensei’s laps in the morning, bags of rice and fruit and vegetable baskets and freezers waiting outside the complex for its sole occupant to collect them.

The problem is that he obviously has no idea what to do with all of it.

And despite said lack of expertise, he still refuses all of his fangirls’ offers of lunchboxes made with their feelings and lives off of rice and tomatoes. It’s probably a pride thing. Sanji would—

Wait. Pride.

She removes the dough from the second prove, scores its top and sprinkles some salt over it, covering the baking tray with foil and sliding it into the hot oven. “I have an idea to feed him.”

Naruto cheers, leaning forward eagerly.

“We’re going to have to eat the ‘fire curry’ tomorrow.”

Naruto slumps down, exuding betrayal from every pore.

She makes four servings of chicken tikka masala.

Three for their plan, and one for Lee.

She’s not going to make one of his favorite foods and then not have a portion ready for him. That’d just be cruel.

He’s horrified when Naruto recounts what happened in the spar, puffing up in indignation when he hears of the stolen victory and baseless favor bestowed on his opponent.

She’s never seen Gai-sensei look so stony-faced as when he hears what the teacher said about Naruto being violent and lacking discipline.

He does his usual tears of joy when Naruto asks about drilling in the Academy Three, yelling for all and sundry to hear about, “the BLOSSOMING of your YOUTHFUL WILL OF FIRE!!”

But they’re close enough to see it’s more playacting than his usual dramatics, his expression subtly determined and scheming as he makes them run through Academy kata.

Otou-sama makes them both promise to come to him or Gai-sensei if the teacher tries anything like this again, drumming his fingers on the hilt of the bokken he always carries.

This is despite the on-again off-again debate he’s been having with Okaa-sama since last night over whether Hokage-sama and the Village Council will take it poorly if he attempts to intercede on Naruto’s behalf.

At least they both agree to trust Gai-sensei to act for them if they can’t intervene, even if they both end up blushing that deep beetroot shade and staring off into the distance at the mention of him.

The teacher glares at them when they walk into class.

She glares right back, and it’s only because Naruto’s holding her hand that she doesn’t immediately flip him off again.

Surprisingly the teacher doesn't make any mentions of punishments for their skiving yesterday, though he looks like he wants to.

The Uchiha is also glaring at them, but in a slightly more considering fashion.

They need to play this carefully—too little, and he may not even approach them, and Hinata might end up with a competitor for her stalking. Too much and he’ll wise up to what they’re doing, which will probably make him deliberately avoid them because he feels slighted.

So she leans over to Naruto and whispers, “His hair looks like a duck’s butt.”

Naruto snorts a little too loudly, glancing over and away not-quite-quickly enough not to be obvious, snickering as he takes his seat for class.

She mentally fist pumps as the Uchiha catches the looks and laughter but not the words that caused them, bristling like a wet cat.

Ino sends her a calculating look, and she smiles innocently back before focusing on the lesson.

At lunchtime, Naruto waits until after they’ve carefully reheated the curry and are on their way back to the classroom to begin complaining loudly about how it’s too spicy, and she and Lee are secretly robots for being able to eat it.

She falls into the swing of the argument, projecting her voice so anybody could easily hear her say that this isn’t even the spiciest curry she can make (it isn’t), and that Naruto doesn’t really have anything to complain about with the huge serving of sour cream she brought along for him, dulling it down for his delicate tastebuds.

They’ve no sooner re-entered the classroom than the Uchiha stands, striding over to them.

“Fight me.” He says to Naruto.

Naruto blinks, the picture of bemused innocence. “Now? But it’s lunch.”

She rolls her eyes dismissively. “Leave it Naruto. He’s just a sore loser who’ll run to the teacher when you win again. Let’s eat.”

He steps in front of her, blocking her path. “I am not.” He grits out, brows furrowed. “I could’ve won yesterday, if not for the interference.”

Oooh, someone’s bitter.

She pretends she’s Sanji looking down on Zoro, channels that disdain into every aspect of her posture. “What? You and your basic white rice lunches? Please.”

“Yeah, everyone knew I was gonna win yesterday.” Naruto boasts, cocky façade not quite hiding the slyness in his eyes. “You’re just lucky Mizuki-sensei likes you too much to let you lose.”

“I bet he couldn’t even stomach my curry.” She says, faux-conspiratorially.

Naruto shoots her an affronted look. “Only robots can eat your curry.” He says. “Even I can’t handle it.”

“Sasuke-kun could do it!” Ino improvises, flouncing over uninvited. “He can do anything better than you can, Naruto, isn’t that right Sasuke-kun?” She flutters her eyelashes at him.

She holds her breath. This wasn’t part of the plan. If this tips him off...

Uchiha Sasuke eyes Ino, then turns away from her with a dismissive huff. “Whatever. I bet it isn’t even that spicy.”

“Care to prove it?” She challenges sweetly.

“Gladly.” He growls back, ignorant of the discreet thumbs up Naruto flashes Ino.

Turns out Uchiha actually can handle spice a little more than Naruto can.

That’s not saying much to be honest.

His face has turned a healthy pink as he eats, despite the face that she gave him the portion with rice.

He’s refused all of Naruto’s offers to share the sour cream so far, intent on finishing it as is.

He’s also picky, pushing the red peppers and onions to one side as he eats.

Maybe she should feel bad for pointing that out and telling him it sounds like he’s trying to say he can’t do it when he grudgingly admits that he doesn’t like them, but she’s on a mission here.

He’s not going to get his vitamins by leaving anything behind on his plate.

Plus this way when they plot their next avenue of attack, she can tailor the meals a little more so he doesn’t fuss as much.

Eventually he finishes his meal.

He then seizes Sakura’s juice box and chugs it without so much as a by your leave. Not that the girl seems to mind, given how she promptly swoons and collapses into Hinata’s lap.

Ino pouts, despite sitting in the coveted next-to-Sasuke-kun spot.

“There.” He says, panting like he’s run a marathon. “I did it. Fight me.”

“Okay.” She replies. “But if I win, I get to look in your kitchen.”

He squints, a look of offense crossing his face that’s so comical she has to fight not to laugh. “Not you. Naruto.”

“Okay.” Naruto says. “But it’s gotta be on Monday after school—it’s Ichiraku’s night tonight and ‘m seein’ Jiji this weekend. Also if I win, Mayu gets to look at stuff in your kitchen.”

Uchiha Sasuke shoots him a look of profound betrayal. “...Fine.” He eventually concedes. “When I win, Ketsugi’s not allowed to force me to eat her cooking again.”

The poor boy, she muses to herself, as she and Naruto shake on it with him.

He could’ve stood a chance if he hadn’t stipulated that.

[grimmjowkurosakidrake]

Prayers

Sumary: Naruto and Sasuke don’t know, that Kunoichi pray for death before falling into the hands of the enemy.

Rated: T (for discussions of possible rape) Not explicit. (No one gets raped but they talk about the possibility).

Characters: Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki

Relationships:  Sakura Haruno/Sasuke Uchiha,  Sakura Haruno & Sasuke Uchiha & Naruto Uzumaki

For the Sasusaku month day 15: Prayers

“Hey, Sakura-Chan,” Inquires Naruto one day after practice. “What is Kunoichi culture?”

“Where did you learn about that?” Asks Sakura mystified by her teammate’s randomness even when she knows she shouldn’t. After all, Naruto has a knack for surprising everyone.

“I hear stuff. You know?” he comments holding the back of his head in both palms in a nonchalant gesture. “TenTen-San was talking about it with Neji and Lee...” He finally confesses “So why don’t you talk with us about it?” he’s not accusing her of anything but Naruto still looks pointedly at Sasuke as if wanting for his support.

Sasuke only grunts but he glares at her, waiting for her to give up and share this piece of information apparently only she is privy to hold in their team.

“Shall we go to Sasuke-kun’s house then?” She smiles uncertain.

Sasuke’s bare apartment is their sanctuary, their safe heaven for when they desire to be alone and safe, away from prying eyes. His house is always empty, not like Sakura’s that more often than not, has one or two of her parents waiting to strike up a conversation.

His apartment is also clean; a characteristic Naruto can never brag about when it comes to his own living space.

Sasuke offers them tea and biscuits like his parents always did when they were still alive and had guests over the compound. 

Naruto throws himself on his couch and demands ramen, Sakura herself sits on the settee style pastel pink chair he once bought in a thrift sale just for her, after a series of arguments about who sits by who at movie nights in his old couch. 

The chair crashes horribly with the minimalist’s colours of his apartment and he knows he would’ve never buy something like that if it wasn’t for her.

But Sakura’s dainty form looks pretty in it. Sakura looks cute in the chair, when she sits with her back straight against it, when she rests her hands in the arms of the chair and smiles content and comfortable.

“Do you want me to make the tea?” She asks.

“No.” He denies curtly to the both of them.

He ends up serving them plum tea, even when he hates it, and salted cookies just because Sakura and Naruto ate all of the sweet biscuits the last time they came over.

“Did you know Kunoichi pray before every mission?” She starts.

“Why? Are you all really religious?” Asks Naruto confused “Are you part of a cult, Sakura-Chan?”

“We pray for death if we fail” She clarifies. “Because for the Kunoichi, there’s a possibility worse than death or torture if we get captured.” Explains Sakura sadly.

“All Shinobi expect death if we fail” Recites Sasuke, “So we don’t disclose the secrets of our village to the enemy.”

“But I don’t have any secrets in my body, Sasuke-kun.” She sips her cup of tea, talking with a cold tone of voice. “So which secrets do you think that I would want to hide so much I pray for death?” Sasuke doesn’t have an answer and Sakura assumes his silence as ignorance “There’s a danger for us women, that men are not subjected to, or at least not as much as us.”

“I don’t understand, Sakura-chan” complains Naruto squinting his eyes in confusion.

“Rape, Naruto. I’m talking about rape.” She states bluntly. Her voice hoarse, her eyes steeled and fixed on both of her teammates. “Kunoichi pray to die before being raped if we fall in the enemy’s hands. There are somethings we fear that Shinobis simply don’t even think about, sometimes. So we form our bonds as sisters and live by the rituals that comfort us.”

Both Sasuke and Naruto can’t speak after that. They don’t even know what to say, they teach them about death, about pain and about lost in the academy. But they never taught them about rape.

Maybe they should have.

“Did you know we’re forced to lose our virginity at fifteen? Some girls like Ino and Hinata-chan are safe from that because they’re the ladies of their clan. But civil Kunoichi are not as lucky.” She sighs. “We keep tight information of good men who will treat us well before the elders decide for us, we take care of each other afterwards and we maintain the love of our bodies as sacred beyond the horrors of Ninja culture. Kunoichi culture is a safe net in a world that sees our bodies as weapons and tools and I didn’t talk with you about it because you shouldn’t have to open your eyes more and see an uglier world than you already have.”

Naruto stares at the floor and tightens his fists so hard, Sakura is sure he’s bleeding. He’s not even holding the fat, ugly tears running down his face. “When I become Hokage,” he sobs soundly “When I become Hokage, I’ll change things around Sakura-chan! I promise you that.” He cries openly.

Even if by then it would be too late for her, Sakura falls off her chair in order to run at his side in the couch, she whimpers, moved by his conviction and holds Naruto’s hand “I know you will, Naruto. I trust you.”

Sasuke who hasn’t said anything until then, suddenly raises his voice “I will assimilate you into the Uchiha clan.” He states. “I have the right as clan head.”

“But…” She stutters in confusion “I don’t understand Sasuke-kun.”

“It’s freedom, Sakura. My clan is dead.” The reality is harsh but just for this time, convenient “You won’t even have to marry me because as the only woman in my clan, you would automatically be named as lady Uchiha, and you would be safe.”

“But that is your family name, Sasuke-kun. Your legacy.” She breaks out crying, thankful but saddened.

“You are my family now” he admits, not only to her but to himself “and I won’t leave you alone to be hurt in any way. Not if I can help it.”  

Naruto has the immediate answer of hugging both of his teammates against Sasuke’s protests and encouraged by Sakura’s open cries of happiness and anguish. 

“But don’t think about hogging Sakura-chan! You, bastard!” He exclaims. “I will be marrying her someday, you’ll see!”

Sakura hits him on the head and Sasuke elbows him in the ribs. 

The three of them fall tired on the couch but they remain there, holding each other close.

[pain-somnia]

ssm19 day 17

SasuSaku Month 2k19 Day 17: Ink and Paper Rating: K+ Disclaimer Day’s Notes: It’s short and I wasn’t going to write for this day but I woke up at like 2am and felt inspired so I banged this out right now before I need to start my work shift. Enjoy!

Snail Mail

It started with a school project.

In fifth grade, Sasuke’s teacher had asked them all to pick a random envelope from a box. Inside the envelope was a letter from another fifth grade student from somewhere else in the country. Sasuke didn’t care which student he got as long as they made the project easy.

Sasuke had read his envelope and had been relieved that the handwriting was neat and legible. It was much neater than what he expected from most fifth grade students but he was grateful. It would have sucked to have gotten a letter from someone that had writing as bad as Inuzuka Kiba.

The penmanship was neat and decidedly girly and it matched the name━Haruno Sakura━of the girl that introduced herself in the letter. Because her letter was sent first she did the basic introduction and explained what she liked to do and asked him to tell her the same things about him.

Sasuke wrote a short letter back, as simple as possible, and handed the envelope with his letter to his teacher to send to Sakura.

The following week he received another envelope, a little bulkier than the first one. Sasuke opened it up and inside was not only a letter but a paper flower, flattened a bit to fit inside the envelope. Sasuke wrote her back, sticking a flattened paper crane inside his envelope.

The project was supposed to last until winter break but most of the students had started to slow down on receiving and sending letters after the sports festival. Not Sakura though. Sasuke got a letter every week and he responded back almost as soon as he got the letter.

Sakura sent him a bookmark made with a pressed cosmos flower the week after he had told her he liked to read. Sasuke sent back a postcard from a temple he had visited in Kyoto with his family when she told him she had only ever been to China to visit relatives but other than that had never left Osaka.

When it was reaching the end of the project, Sakura had written her home address in her letter, asking if they could continue being penpals. That New Year Sasuke sent his first greeting card to someone outside of his family.

Sakura and her parents express delivered him and his family a crate of crabs and Sasuke had to explain to his parents who it was that he knew that lived in Osaka.

They continued sending letters back and forth, even after Sasuke entered middle school and his parents bought him his own cell phone. It was when he was a third year middle school student that he finally got curious and included his phone number in a letter to Sakura.

“Hello?” A soft, feminine voice rang clear through the speaker but Sasuke almost didn’t hear it over the beating of his heart thudding in his ears. Even with years of written correspondence, Sasuke was worried that the phone call would never come or that Sakura would see the request of a phone call and get scared off.

“Hey,” he had answered back and after that Sakura exploded into a steady stream of chatter. She was much more talkative than he was but it was pleasant just to hear her talk.

For the longest time there had been a silent agreement that they wouldn’t send pictures of themselves. For middle school he had only explained that he would be wearing a gakuran and Sakura told him the colors of her serafuku. When high school started up Sasuke received a LINE message from Sakura. Well, it was from her address but it was sent by a Yamanaka Ino. The message read “Isn’t she cute?” followed by a photo of who Yamanaka insisted was Sakura wearing her high school uniform for an all girl’s school that Sakura told him before that she was attending.

The western style uniform suited her and she was cute but Sasuke didn’t respond to the message that her friend had sent him using her phone. Instead he sent a picture of himself wearing his own high school uniform.

Ino-chan says to tell you that she approves, was the message he got back after school. He could only assume that she had met up with her friend that was going to a co-ed school and shared the photo.

They continued with LINE messages and phone calls but never stopped their handwritten letters, or packages as they were more likely to be because Sakura insisted on sending small gifts whenever she could. Sasuke returned the favor as well, always sending her things that could only be found in shops in Tokyo.

“Why don’t you ever change the girly charm?” Kiba asked when he caught him messaging during one of their breaks before the teachers rotated. Kiba flicked the bell and polymer cherry blossom cell phone charm attached to Sasuke’s phone. Normally Sasuke wouldn’t go buy accessories for himself but Sakura had sent him the charm as a return gift for the charm he bought for her when he and his friends had visited Disneyland.

Eight years of letters, barely four years of phone calls, and now Sasuke was on the shinkansen to Osaka to take the exam for his first university of choice. His father wasn’t happy with his decision to go to a school so far from home but his mom advocated for him and reminded his father that he had an uncle that owned a senbei shop in Osaka.

“Hey. I’m at the station,” Sasuke spoke into his phone, looking around for someone with rose gold hair.

“I think I see you,” Sakura replied back. “Turn to your left.”

Sasuke did as he was told and smiled softly at the petite girl bundled up in a thick winter coat waving ecstatically.

“Holy crap, you’re tall!” Was the first thing Sakura said to him in person and even though he knew she spoke in a Kansai dialect, the Osaka-ben was still something he had to get used to. “Are you hungry? It’s lunchtime, we should go get something to eat.”

“A bit.”

“Wait. You need to head to your uncle’s place, right?”

“He thinks I’m arriving this evening.” Sasuke’s ears warmed up as Sakura laughed into her hands. “We, uh, have time.”

“That excited to hang out with me, huh?” Sakura teased him, grabbing onto his free hand. “You’re lucky Ino-chan doesn’t know you’re here, Sasuke-kun.”

“Excited to keep me to yourself, huh?” Sasuke returned the tease, watching as the apples of her cheeks bloomed pink. Sakura interlocked their fingers and squeezed his hand.

“I waited eight years. No one can blame me if I don’t tell anyone my boyfriend finally came to visit.”

“I would have come sooner but if I told my mom why I wanted money to come to Osaka she would have come along as well.” Sasuke could imagine all of the ways his mother would embarrass him when she met Sakura.

“Well, I’m glad you’re here now. Even though you’re so freakin’ tall.” Sakura nudged him with her shoulder, playfully. “Ready for the exam tomorrow?”

Sasuke nodded and let himself be led out of the station and into the city. Sakura started listing all of the shops they had to visit and Sasuke was sure that he was going to end up gaining a few pounds after he moved in the Spring.

Even if his waistline suffered a bit, the warm hand in his own was better than ink and paper.

[vesperlionheart]

Pompeii Chapter 51

Sakura felt numb as she pulled herself up the front porch stairs and through the large arching doors. They opened on their own, welcoming her home, and she was grateful for the enchantment. Once across the threshold a seed of strength took root in her chest and Sakura breathed deep. It wasn’t an old home, but when she inhaled there was history and character in the air, scenting every breath.

Her watch read the time as half past ten at night, but it felt so much later.

Sakura felt something at her back and turned around so the wall hooks didn’t have to stretch as far to pick her coat off her shoulders.

Last she had been back, Tsunade had been working on the enchantment, but since the mayoral races had begun, she hadn’t had much time left to spare. It was a demanding gig, campaigning as Minato’s replacement. Several others citizens of Pompeii had surged to make bids of their own, and it was a whole week before the serious candidates were sifted out of the bulk of hopefuls.

“Is that Sakura?”

Sakura looked up and smiled. “As if you didn’t know the second my car crossed town limits.”

“Hey, you never know, I might get distracted one of these days and miss it,” Ashura chuckled.

He shuffled into the room in an oversized fluffy robe from deep in her closets that made her want to laugh. Instead she reached for the edges and curled her fingers into the plush softness. Ashura easily drew her in, resting one wrist over the other behind her back.

“Welcome home,” he whispered.

“What...smells so good?” she asked, feeling her eyes drift shut once more. It had been a struggle to stay awake. “Potatoes?”

Ashura pouted, but turned around to draw her under his arm and guide her into the kitchen where the aroma drifted. Indra stood in front of the oven, cutting into a steaming golden yellow breakfast casserole made from fresh eggs, hash browns, and an assortment of other delectable breakfast meats.  

“Oh Indra,” Sakura moaned, eyes watering as her empty stomach did flips. She was so tired, but she knew she couldn’t go to sleep until she had some food.

“You’ve been neglecting yourself. Here, come eat,” Indra said, already cutting out a portion for her and placing it on one of the china dishes. Ashura led her into a chair at the kitchen table and then left to fetch a glass of water.

“It takes so long to get home to begin with,” Sakura complained, sounding younger and more childish. Yamato would often tease her about how she seemed to regress in age whenever she was hungry and sleepy. “I didn’t want to stop for food. I just wanted to get home.”

Yamato and Sai took turns with Ashura and Indra watching over her when she got home from work. She worked hard long shifts and came home spent and in dire need of pampering. It became something the whole house quickly picked up on and soon shifts were sorted out to the housemates all for the sake of keeping Sakura well fed and rested.

“We are always eager to have you back under this roof, but you worry us with how you neglect your own body. A few minutes more doesn’t change much in the grand scheme of things. Here now, eat,” Indra said. He held the fork out to her and Sakura took it, stabbing at the breakfast casserole that warmed her belly like all good comfort food should.

Sakura finished over half the plate before she remembered to breath. She took Ashura glass and drank deeply before picking up her fork again. That’s when she noticed the cute blue and white pattern of the dishes.

“Are these new?” she asked.

“Said picked them out from a local thrift shop. He’s been quite handy about decorating this place up. Do you like the plate?” Ashura asked. He had come back to sit across from her at the table in his fluffy robe.

Indra reached down and pinched some of the robe’s fabric between his fingers. “Why are you wearing this again?”

“Let go, Sakura said I could.”

Ashura batted his brother’s hand away with a solid smack that Sakura chose to ignore. The two quarreled enough for her to know when it was appropriate to stay out of it and let them have their space.  

“I like the plates,” Sakura finally answered. “They remind me of...I think it was a tea set I had as a child. It’s a pretty color though. I’ll have to compliment him on his choices when I see him in the morning.”

A yawn broke off the rest of what she wanted to say and Sakura nearly dropped her head onto the table for how tired she suddenly felt. Her belly was warm and full, her plate pretty and empty, but why did she feel so wrong?

Ashura was beside her in an instant, tugging off his robe to lay over her. It was warm too, and big enough that it felt like a blanket.

“You’re going to make me fall asleep at this table,” she chuckled into the wood grains.

“You do a fine enough job of that all on your own. The hours of your work establishment are just too unreasonable. Why can’t you quit?” Indra asked. “We have the money for it.”

“We have so much money. If you don’t believe us we can go get more. There’s tons of it buried in Pompeii that only we know how to get to. You’d never have to work another day in your life,” Ashura added. He sounded worried

“It’s not about the money anymore,” Sakura said, feeling another yawn budding at the base of her jaws. “I-I just want to work. I need to work.”

“You work too hard,” Indra said, voice turning hard in the beginning stages of anger. “Look at the state you come home in every four days. You’re a beautiful mess someone has to clean up or else you'd be left in a puddle on the doorstep.”  

Sakura turned her head over and smiled up at the older brother. Seeing the look on her face his cheeks turned red and his ears twitched.

“You think I’m a beau-ti-ful mess?” she asked, teasing out the sounds in the word beautiful. Her own cheeks flushed pink.

“You’re a minx,” he grumbled, placing a wide palm over the lower half his face and spreading his fingers over the other half. A single eye poked through to watch her. Indra didn’t handle embarrassment as well as his brother.

“My brother has a point though, and yes, Sakura, you’re always beautiful. But back to the main point here, you’re running yourself ragged,” Ashura interrupted. “Can’t you go back to being Pompeii’s doctor? They need one.”

“No way. They can get by just fine without a doctor. They chose to forgo my services for months during the whole Kaguya fiasco. They can manage.”

“I’d be inclined to agree,” Ashura sighed, “but we miss you too much. You’re gone so much. Can’t you find something else to do that’s closer? We want to see you every night, not every four nights.”

Sakura felt a little guilty, but not guilty enough to change her mind. “I’m not ready to work in this town again,” she whispered. “Not yet.”

Ashura opened his mouth, but it was Indra that tugged him back. “She’s entitled to that,” Indra said before his younger brother could get any of his words out. “If she changes her mind, the clinic will finish its repairs in a number of weeks. If Sakura never changes her mind that’s fine too. It’s her choice. You agree with me, it’s more than they deserve after how they treated her.”

Sakura shut her eyes and felt the warmth from her dinner fade. She was cold on the inside again. It was too easy to remember how friends turned away and avoided her eyes. Parents who she thought she got along with lashed out more viciously than their children. And what was worse was the apologies that came, because she couldn’t bring herself to be okay with most of them. She didn’t want to forgive anyone. They wanted to burn her at the stake at one point. How does a person come back from that and ask to be your friend?

“Sakura? Are you still awake?”

Sakura lifted her head and felt the tears filly slip with the help of gravity. “I’m too tired to be asleep,” she mumbled.

“Then here,” Indra said, reaching for her. He picked her up, pinning her robe around her and folding her close to his chest.

Ashura moved around his brother to push in the kitchen chair and open doors when Indra got to Sakura’s bed room.

The walls were painted a dusky blue that blended up into a black ceiling dotted with stars and swirling celestial figures in Sai’s unique style. The bed was left in the center of the room, big and wide enough for her to roll around in and spread out in her sleep...or entertain the warmth of another if she ever wished for it. The gauzy curtain embroidered with stars and flowers was a gift from Ino that Ashura had to pull back to allow Indra better access to the mattress.

“I need to brush my teeth,” Sakura moaned, weakly flapping her free hand.

“Here, and don’t make it a habit,” Indra said, producing a shard of enchanted floride. Sakura took it from his fingers and felt the tingle in her mouth as the spell cleaned her teeth.

“And don’t forget,” Ashura sighed, “you need to be dressed for bed.”

Ashura slipped a metal ring onto her pinky and moved away. Sakura recognized the gift as one of his from when they all first moved it. There was a spirit in the ring that dressed her in any elaborate dress or suit she desired, no matter how elegant or extravagant. It was a glorious gift, but Sakura ended up only using it to change into silk pajamas without getting out of bed.

“You guys are life savers,” Sakura murmured dreamily.

“ Literally ,” Indra affirmed, tone serious once more.

Sakura just chuckled. “Thank you. Niiiiight….”

Indra turned to head out and leave her be, but Ashura moved forward and leaned over her mattress until he could reach her face with his lips. He kissed the side of her jaw and rubbed his nose into her loose hair before pulling back. Sakura hummed in appreciation, still not quite asleep.

Indra’s expression was a cross between horrified and outraged.

Ashura just shrugged and whispered, “What? She doesn’t mind.”

“You-you cad.”

Ashura rolled his eyes. “You’re just jealous.”

Indra left the room fuming while Ashura was more content than a cat with his cream.  

In the morning Sakura woke half across the bed, wrapped in layers of a silk night dress. Her hair was a mess on her pillow, but that wasn’t anything she couldn’t fix on her own.

If Kin saw her looking so out of place she’d have a fit and then insist Sakura take a seat while she fixed her hair. Kin was always meticulous about things like hair, and Sakura had only asked about it once.

“My hair was the only nice thing I had for myself at one point in my life.”

It was the morning of her first of four days off before she would have to go back and work another four days at the clinic, which was an odd set up, but it was fine for now. She was doing well and got along well with everyone there, but she didn’t want to admit out loud of how of place she felt. Even in Pompeii with all its monsters, she had clicked right away.

She was uneasy among humanity, as funny as it was.

Sakura climbed out of bed and winced at the open window with all its sunlight. It didn’t look like morning anymore. No doubt she had slept in again.

Typical.

She almost left for the bathroom when a note on her nightstand caught her eye.

‘Sai and Yamato will be home early, so wake up before 4, okay?’

There was no signature, but she recognized Kin’s handwriting and knew out of all the other housemates that Kin was the only one who gave her so much unfiltered grief. Zaku and Dosu kept a respectful distance, but not one that made her think they still doubted her. In comparison, they kept everyone else at a much greater distance and rarely came out into the communal spaces.

Sakura took her shower, washed her hair extra nice, braided it back, and brushed her teeth to get rid of the taste of day old magic. By the time she was dressed and roaming the hallways it was even later in the day and she realized that most of her housemates were at work since it was a weekday.

She stopped at the threshold to the old tinted glass greenhouse.

There was at least one person she could still greet that was available.

Inside the temperature went from early March’s chill to a balmy warm that made her want to unfold and lay out on the ground to soak up all the light there was. It was nice and warm, but in addition to all that, a plethora of different plants grew lush and fill under Zetsu’s careful guidance.

“You’re back again.”

Sakura turned to see the half shrouded figure crouching in front of a row of flowers that rotated on a wheel. He didn’t look at her, but didn’t flinch away from her when she approached. Some days when she came in to greet him he was more skittish, forgetting their friendship and regressing to his former self.

“I’m back again,” Sakura echoed. “I always come back.”

“You did not come back yesterday morning, or the morning before that, or the morning before that. One more morning before all of those you were here, but you did not bid me goodbye.” Zetsu spoke without making eye contact.

“I’ve told you about that, haven’t I? I had work. I needed to go to my job.”

“You left!” Zetsu blurted, grabbing the edges of the planter and bracing against it. “I-you were gone and you were not here. You went too far away.”

The boundary of Pompeii, she crossed over it each time she left.  

“Were you frightened by my leaving?” she asked, softly.

Zetus finally glanced her way and a new light came into his golden eyes, and it was like he was seeing her for the first time. He straightened his back and faced his flowers again. “No, I was not frightened. Don’t assume such things,” he answered in a newer voice. It was a mix of old and unknown.

“I missed you and this place,” Sakura admitted easily, holding nothing back. “You make it so pleasant in here. Will you show me what you’ve been working on?”

Zetsu paused before glancing up at her. He nodded stiffly than stood to gesture to a newer corner of the garden. He showed her his favorites and the new plants as well as the old. He updated her on what would be ripe soon and what would take more time to bloom.

Spring was coming soon.  

“Will you be here tomorrow?” he asked her when she noticed the time.

“I’ll be here,” she promised.

Zetsu nodded and turned back to his plants. “Very well.”

Sakura watched him a moment more, holding the side of her face, fingers curled around the shell of her ear. Kaguya had left more than just Sakura broken and scarred. There were still plenty of wounds left in the wake of her death.

In the house Kin was eating the food Indra baked. The table had banana bread, scones, and spice muffins. When he saw her coming in from outside Indra shot her a frustrated look.

“All my beautiful breakfast pastries, and you don’t get out of bed until two?”  

“I’ve been awake longer than that. I was with Zetsu,” Sakura huffed, reaching for a muffin. She bit into it and moaned aloud at the texture. “And it is never a bad time for your beautiful breakfast pastries, Indra.”

“Look at that, Sakura, his head just grew two sizes. Maybe you should pop it,” Kin teased, waving her own muffin around in the air.

“You’re insufferable,” Indra grumbled.

“That’s not what your mom said last night.”

“Vulgar child.”

“Someone has to be.”

Indra made a gesture with the flat of his hand running across his throat and Kain pantomimed the action of shooting him in the brains.

It was enough to make Sakura sigh. “And here I thought everyone in the house got along.”

Kin barked a laugh. “Not by a long shot.”

“You wouldn’t know anything about that, though,” Indra muttered.

Sakura just laughed and sat down at the table with a new plate and started to load it up with things to try and snack on. While she ate Kin cleaned her hands and went after Sakura’s hair, combing it back and braiding it down the back. It was almost enough to make Sakura fall asleep again.

Sakura opened her eyes and saw Ashura sitting across from her at the table, smiling fondly at her. His smile only grew when she meet his gaze.

“I’m not falling asleep,” she said.

“Could have fooled me.”

“Tell me how your days were while I was gone,” Sakura said, then she listened as each friend shared something new she could respond to.

The sound of the front door opening and closing made her stand, her smile stretching. She knew their footsteps by heart. There was no way she wouldn’t recognize them.

Kin was already leaning against the far wall with her arms crossed, watching the hallway. Ashura stayed in his seat and Indra watched from in front of the oven where a new set of biscuits were baking for dinner.

Sakura left them all behind, turning sharply from one room into the other, until Sai was there, crashing into her. Yamato came up behind them and swallowed both Sai and Sakura in his arms, nearly lifting her off her feet.

“It’s only been four days,” Kin sighed. “Do they have to do that every time she comes home?”

“Yes!” Yamato shouted. “Until she stays home, you better get used to it!”

There was plenty of chuckles and jokes after that, followed by dinner, and then movies. Sai refused to part from her side, and Yamato kept his eyes on her even when she left the room. When she came out of the bathroom he stood at the end of the hallway, checking his phone and waiting for her.

“You’re getting worse,” she teased.

“And you’re getting further away.”

“I’m not. It’s been like this for a while now.”

Yamato rolled his shoulders in a half hearted shrug. “It wasn’t any easier in the beginning, and it’s not getting any easier. You’ve seen Sai.”

“You’re both off tomorrow and Sunday. We’ll hang out. It’ll be okay. I promise to spend more time with you,” Sakura said.

“It’s not just that.”

Yamato sighed, taking her under his arm and leading her back into the living room. In place of a movie, the local news was on. The news anchor was talking about the local mayoral election. A banner at the bottom scrolled in red and white letters.

“And in  other news, a group known as Akatsuki has been officially recognized as a legitimate organization dedicated to keeping local authorities in check. We asked local candidates their opinions on the Akatsuki but received only comments from Itama Senju, the younger brother of Tobirama and Hashirama Senju who some say is just another example of the old powers trying to hang on.”

The image on the television screen cut to a younger boy with bi-colored hair looking younger than either of his brothers. He wore a suit, but all Sakura could see was a boy playing dress up.

Itama addressed the microphone in his face. “I’d welcome any help the citizens might put forth on their own. Grassroots groups are a sign of an active community, and that’s what Pompeii is.” He smiled brilliant and then a new reporter pushed through.

“Senju, Itama Senju, what about the experiments left over?”

Itama’s smile twitched.

“Of course they’re an issue we need to address. The people of Pompeii come first, and their safety is my top priority.”

A new reporter pushed in and redirected the flow of conversation back to the Akatsuki members, and what Itama thought of them personally. Sakura thought Itama’s answers sounded like the came from a cereal box they were so stiff. He was a puppet, and she knew exactly who was pulling the strings.

“Experiments?” Sakura echoed. “What are they talking about?”

“Us.”

Sakura turned in her seat to see Zaku and Dosu standing in the doorway, glaring at the television screen. Kin was a shadow not much further back, watching as well. Dosu touched the curse mark on his neck and winced.

“They’re talking about Orochimaru’s failed experiments...us. Itama wants us rounded up and deported,” Dosu explained.

“What else is new?” Zaku hissed. “No one’s ever welcomed us, not really. Not anywhere except here. Pompeii isn’t much different.”

“They-they can’t do that,” Sakura said, feeling the stone of dread deep in her belly. “That’s cruel and inhumane. They wouldn’t do something like that!”

“They can do whatever they want with us. To them, we’re no better than garbage.” Kin said, sounding faded in comparison to earlier in the day. Her voice was a ghost of its former self. “And besides, none of them are human, and neither are we. What does that matter?”  

[sexyshakespeare]

Sasuke comes home - Part 6: Now you know

I woke up and jumped into the shower. I had asked Sakura out to dinner tonight. I scrubbed like mad at my body, determined to smell nice and be spotless for our date. I had my entire day planned out. I would go buy her some flowers, and then go visit Naruto. He should be at home today, I had checked at the Hokage’s office.  Why would I jinx it and talk to Naruto hours before? I don’t know. He was a married man, he must have done something right, or so I figured.  I went over to Naruto and Hinata’s home that day around late afternoon. Nobody was answering the door. I had knocked at least 3 times now. Did he really forget? Maybe they went out- it is a Saturday.. I was about to leave when the door began to unlock from the inside. Naruto opened the door with sweatpants and t-shirt on.  “OH- Sasuke! Come in- come in-”, he ushered me in, looking a little out of sorts. I looked at him suspiciously. He kept looking inside the house, and muttering, yabee yabee. “Did you forget I was coming?”, I asked him, annoyed. He looked seriously vexed now. “No! No just- just give me a few- I’ll be back-”  Then suddenly we heard a loud voice saying, Do you really want your clones to enjoy this and not you..? 

Naruto cringed and held up a hand to stop me from saying anything. But I was already there- “..You know I had a feeling you’d do this but I didn’t think Hinata would be into it-”, I whispered at him. He looked like he would turn into the flaming Kuraama right this instant. I kept chuckling at him. 

Two of your clones are beat by the waaay... , Hinata’s voice sounded yet again.

This time I cringed. Naruto was about to yell at her to stop talking, so I pushed him towards the stairs and showed myself to the door. 

“I’m sorry- this is really bad timing Sasuke- come back later?”, he said to me quietly, half way up the stairs. I shook my head at him. There was no way I could come back here and look Hinata in the eye without losing my sanity. I mean, I’d give it at least 6 months. I’d have to face her some day. 

I walked out into the streets, and nto the Yamanaka flower shop. A blushing Ino was at the cashier and Sai was standing there talking to her. They hadn’t noticed me come in. I looked around the store to give them time to wrap up. Still giggling. Did he just kiss her? Don’t stare..  I frowned at the far wall, wondering just what I could do. This seemed to be an afternoon to remember. “Sasuke-kun! Your bouquet is ready so you don’t have to just hang around being creepy-”, Ino shouted. 

Creepy?? I turned around to see her holding a bundle of flowers out to me. I took them from her, confused. Before I could ask her anything, she began talking. “Sakura told me you asked her out to dinner tonight so I figured you’d be here to give her flowers- these are perfect for what you’re going for- she’ll love them!”  I blinked at her, and then at Sai. He beamed at me. That look always threw me off. He was always fucking beaming at everyone. He could be swearing at me but also beaming while he did it. “What do you mean- what I’m going for.. what am I going for..?”, I asked her suspiciously.  “Well this is your first date right? No-wait, your second date- but the first time you cooked for her as a friend, this time you want to tell her she’s more than a friend and take things to the next level so you have to go with something bold like these, and also something sweet and gentle because of your feelings for Sakura like these. And of course! You have to have sober tones because that’s just your style Sasuke kun! Two types of flowers, not too big, with the perfect complementing greens to go with- don’t forget to look her in the eye when you give these to her-”  She pushed them in my hands impatiently. I looked at her, feeling thoroughly violated. How in fuck’s name would she know any of these things?? She scarily replied to my thoughts, “It’s a girl’s intuition sweetie- now run along! I’m not taking money for this- I’ll be satisfied when you and Sakura get married and have a little princess of your own-”  My jaw dropped at her as a means of protest, but then it shut again in gratitude. I didn’t know the first thing about taking it to the next level. She had technically done me a solid. I awkwardly thanked her and walked out of the shop. I had a dinner reservation at the new Sushi restaurant at 7 pm. I had just enough time to dress and turn up there. She had said she’d meet me at the restaurant rather than have me show up at her apartment.  I put on a shirt and pants and adjusted my hair a few times. I looked very plain. The flowers helped. I knew Sakura would look gorgeous in comparison. I felt bad that I couldn’t for her.  I made it to the restaurant at 6:45 pm and asked them for a vase for our table. I put the flowers in and waited patiently. At exactly 7 pm, Sakura walked in looking flustered. “Hey- I’m sorry- I didn’t have time to dress up- I really didn’t want to be late.. I was held up at work- some stuff Tsunade sama needed- I didn’t think it would take this long!”  I stood up and held the flowers between us. That made her stop. She looked at me silently, her pink hair in a pony tail, wearing a red blouse tucked into a black skirt. I gently offered her the flowers and said, “I sincerely don’t know what you’re talking about..”, while my eyes hovered over every inch of her.  She blushed and took the flowers from me, smelling them deeply. “Did Ino help you?”, she ventured. She did everything- Ino should be on this date with you.

“A little-”, I smiled, and we took out seats. 

Sakura kept putting stray strands of her hair behind her ear and smiling at me from time to time. We took bites of our food and talked about our day. She complained about Haida-kun which was just music to my ears. Before long, we were laughing again, about Naruto mostly. I told her that I pretty much walked in on the two of them in the thick of doing it earlier.  She burst out laughing. “OH MY GOD! How did that happen?” I started to tell her, and then I paraphrased my way out of it. “What were you doing at their place anyway?”, she asked.  I really didn’t want to answer that question. I tried to pretend that I didn’t hear her, and ate silently, before counting to 5 and changing the subject. “Sasuke-kun? What were you doing at Naruto’s place..”, she maintained.  I didn’t make eye contact with her. “Nothing- I wanted to ask him for some advice-” She narrowed her eyes at me. “NO-not that kind of advice- just, general stuff-” She leaned over the table slightly to peer at me more. Unfortunately, this had a different effect.  I kept looking from her neckline, to her eyes, to my food in quick succession. My eyes were struggling to stay away from her breasts. “What advice? I’d love to hear this..”, she said slyly. Sakura could be sly. That was a first.  “Well he didn’t have the time to give me any anyway! So there’s no point in discussing that-”, I returned the look and leaned over the table a little myself.  That flustered her. Our faces were closer now. She smelled amazing. I smiled at her slowly. “You’re so beautiful- I can’t believe I’m on a date with you..”  Her mouth opened in shock. Her smile trickled in like water. “I- never.. thought you felt that- that I’m.. attractive..”, she looked at me and said.  I couldn’t believe I had just said that out loud. But I hadn’t taken it back or fumbled to make it sound more logical. I had let it linger. My eyes rested on her lips, then her nose, and then her eyes again. “I’m sorry I never said..” 

We finished our dessert and headed out. The air between us was a little heavy. I reached for her hand and clasped it in mine gently. We stopped walking when I did that. I honestly couldn’t do more than one of these things at a time it seems.  I turned to her, we were in the middle of the deserted street. In the light of the dim street lamp I said, “I’m sorry I never said any of this to you. You’ve always been so smart and capable, and strong and beautiful. I just-”. I faltered and looked at my feet. 

Her fingers intertwined with mine. That gave me courage. Looking into her eyes again, my heart beating too fast, “I just felt like you could have anybody you wanted, but you were after me- cause of something stupid probably- just kiddy things. It didn’t make sense. I’m not anyone deserving of you Sakura-”  Sakura looked at me sadness filling her face. Her fingers clasped against mine tightly. I continued, “I’m not good with girls, I’m not thoughtful or romantic or anything- I don’t know what I’m doing here- I just- I’m so lost right now-”  “BAKA-”  My head snapped up. She was really squeezing my fingers now, it was beginning to hurt. “Sakura..”  “NO- Baka- You’re just such an idiot- I don’t care about any of those things- are you going to tell me you did all of this just to tell me you’re not deserving of me?? Are you?? BECAUSE I SWEAR Sasuke-kun I will-”  I put my lips against hers and pulled her closer to me with my arm. I kissed her without holding back. My hand pressed her waist against me. She kissed me back, her arms circling round my neck, trying to tip toe. I ran my palm along the curve of her waist, making her give out little moans as I kissed her harder.  She gave up on the tip toeing and brought her hands to my chest and neck, pulling at my shirt collar. Every time Sakura kissed my lips, my cock got a little harder. Her body was pressed against me, not letting me think. It felt like an eternity of pure bliss, before I pulled away. We both looked at each other, panting slightly.  She looked around suddenly, horrified that we were making out in the middle of the street. I really hoped she wouldn’t look at my crotch. I took a deep breath and said, “I deserve you.” She looked at me, wide eyed. I held her hand with mine and said again, “I know I do- and more importantly.. I want you. I’m not letting go of you-” 

Sakura smiled at me, tears welling up in her eyes. She squeezed my hand a little too tightly again. “Baka- why did you have to wait so long to say that-”  I smiled, and then laughed and then kissed her over and over and over. She kept laughing as I did, imploring me to wait till we’re inside.  I kissed her head and hugged her tight. She put her arms round my waist and we just stood like that under the street lamp for a while.  She started to giggle. I love that giggle. “What’s so funny?”, I asked. She looked up at me and pursed her lips. “You’re really hard aren’t you?”  .. .. .. ..

[needdl]

Nejiten Month Day One: Gender Bend

As usual, I can’t seem to write under 2000 words, not even for an event that has a prompt for every single day. which is part of the reason this is so late. anyway. This will be uploaded to fanfiction.net and AO3 within the next few days.

NOTE: This story is rated M for non-graphic sexual situations and some language.

Tenten was twelve years old and so, so glad that she managed to land on one of the few genin teams that had two girls.

Nejiko Hyuga wasn’t friendly, exactly, or even very nice, but she was a girl, so it meant that Tenten would have someone else to lean on and commiserate with while Gai and Lee ran around each other in circles, ignoring the two of them in favor of their newfound bond.

When it became clear in the next few weeks that the favoritism of Lee was going to be permanent, Tenten had expected Nejiko to speak up in her demanding Hyuga way- because Konoha practically worshipped the Hyuga Clan, and its members acted that way too- but instead she had watched Nejiko swallow her words and keep her silence.

So Tenten had bellowed at Gai-sensei and Lee that the two kunoichi were going to the edge of the field for target practice, and they spent several quiet hours letting their kunai and shuriken thump into the targets. 

Nejiko eventually broke the silence. “I have several techniques with my kekkei genkai that I’d like to practice. Will you spar with me?”

Tenten shrugged and glanced at Gai and Lee- not ignoring the kunoichi, exactly, because the team trained together all the time, it was just that the two got tunnel vision sometimes- and replied to her teammate, “Sure.”

And so they went.

 Being a kunoichi was hard enough with two of them on the team. Tenten didn’t even want to contemplate what it would have been like if it had just been her.

Tenten was fourteen years old, and had a giant, embarrassing crush on Temari no Sabaku. 

She was the kunoichi who had brutally defeated her in the chunin exams, who would have killed her if she had been given the chance, who had betrayed the village- but now she was a diplomat, the villages were allies, and Temari was just. So. Hot.

Ugh. Tenten wrenched her eyes away from the sight of Temari’s crossed legs, sleek and tan in their protective mesh. What kind of kunoichi let herself get so addled by a lust-based crush? A pathetic one.

“Tenten.” Based on the impatience in Nejiko’s voice, she had been trying to get Tenten’s attention for a while now. Tenten crinkled her nose guiltily. “Sorry, what?”

The two of them were close now, after the disastrous chunin exams when so much of Nejiko’s family life had been laid bare. The daughter of the unfavored son, condemned to bound servitude as she watched her cousin be bent and broken into the role of heir, Hinata’s own sister- “the spare”- ready for the moment she faltered.

Nejiko’s conflicted emotions over Hinata made perfect sense to Tenten- because she was forced to subjugation despite her talent even as her cousin was forced to lead despite her incompetence of mind, body, and spirit. Hinata lacked the strong Hyuga fighting techniques, she did not have the seemingly necessary cruelty of the Clan Head, and she had no desire whatsoever to be the heiress.

So Nejiko both understood and envied her cousin, and those conflicting emotions boiled over in a match that ended with Hinata in the hospital and Nejiko in a seething, desperate rage. 

(“Fight back!”

“I- I can’t-”

“YOU ARE THE HEIRESS. YOU ARE THE REASON FOR MY SUBJUGATION.” (Nejiko’s voice had cracked.) “PROVE TO ME THAT YOU DESERVE IT! FIGHT BACK!”

Nejiko came into Tenten’s hospital room not to visit, but to have a place where she could let all of her tears- complicated, angry tears- run dry in privacy.)

And then Naruto had stumbled onto the scene, loud and brash and golden-haired (and golden-hearted), and Tenten had learned things about Nejiko that made her ache for her teammate.

But she kept it to herself, because Nejiko never wanted pity. But it seemed like she wanted friendship, now.

Also, she was pissed at Tenten for ignoring her. “Stop staring at her.”

Tenten felt hot and itchy. “I’m not staring at anyone.”

“Liar.” Nejiko’s flat voice and blunt words made Tenten grit her teeth. “You are staring at the Suna kunoichi who defeated you in the chunin exams. For some reason that lies in anger, I assume, because you would not be so stupid as to develop feelings for someone who betrayed our village.”

Tenten sputtered, completely thrown off. Nejiko narrowed her eyes at her and waited. 

Finally, she blurted, “Well, you have feelings for Naruto!”

“Only sometimes,” Nejiko responded, surprisingly honest. “Most of the time he’s too stupid.”

Tenten forgot her anger and grinned. “You think everyone’s stupid, though, so you may as well crush on someone who really is stupid.”

“Shut up.” Nejiko gave her a look- it was one of the ways she smiled now, because she still  tried to hide it a little bit but let parts of it show, where her lips would purse and her eyes would do all the smiling for her. “We have training. Let’s go.”

She set off down the road, hair flowing behind her, and not for the first time Tenten was struck by how differently Nejiko was from her cousin Hinata, even just physically- she was the tallest girl Tenten knew by far, with lean muscle and narrow shoulders.

Maybe once she was done with her lusty crush on Temari, she’d get one on Nejiko.

The thought made her grin spread even wider and a chuckle simmer in her throat, but she swallowed it down when Nejiko snapped her fingers at her impatiently, not even bothering to turn around. Crush alleviated, she ran past her teammate and towards the training field, tugging on Nejiko’s silky hair as she went by.

Nejiko let out a small gasp- of indignance, presumably- and gave chase.

Having a friend who was also a girl was nice. When Tenten unexpectedly got her period on a mission, Nejiko had extra tampons. She also let Tenten do up her hair in elaborate styles for festivals, because it was a hobby that Tenten enjoyed but rarely got to practice. They went to the hotsprings together once a month and got lunch together on their days off. They were best friends, probably.

Tenten was sixteen and the blood sang in her veins.

They had just finished a day of team training and Tenten had staggered away from a spar with Gai with a black eye and and sore muscles, but they’d also had a great time practicing nunchucks together. Nejiko was planning on escorting Hinata to the hotsprings and they’d asked Tenten if she’d like to come along, then somewhere along the way Sakura and Ino were invited. It promised to be a fun time, and Tenten set off for her apartment to get changed and grab her bag before she met up with the Hyuga cousins.

She paused long enough to scrub some of the residual sweat and dirt off her face, then, adrenaline still buzzing from her day of sparring, ran to the Hyuga compound.

Hinata and Nejiko were just outside the gates and beginning a slow walk towards the springs. Tenten jumped down from the rooftop and landed next to them, splattering Nejiko with the water droplets that had been caught in her hair. “Hey!”

Hinata greeted her quietly in return, while Nejiko flicked water off her face and back onto Tenten with an irate frown. Tenten grinned guiltily. 

“Sorry, did I get you?”

“Yes.” Nejiko made a face. “Why are you so wet, anyway?”

“Washed my face before coming over.”

“Why?”

Tenten squinted at her. “Is that a trick question?”

Hinata shifted on her feet awkwardly, and Nejiko glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. “Whatever. Let’s go.” She marched out, arms folded over her chest and plainly expecting them to follow.

In the changing room, after Nejiko had stalked out of the room with Sakura and Ino, Tenten quietly asked Hinata, “Did something happen at the Compound? She was in a good mood after practice…”

Hinata stilled, then slowly resumed putting her bag away. “She was called away to talk to Father and the others. I am unsure of what transpired, only that it was brief and she seemed upset for a few minutes before becoming… angry.”

“Oh.” Tenten watched the end of her teammate’s hair flick around the corner. “I’ll talk to her later, maybe, and hopefully the hotsprings will have eased some of the tension.” Hinata nodded.

They walked into the spring, chatting about easier subjects- like the advantages of senbon over shuriken, but the superiority of kunai over both (which was a stance Tenten would not budge on, no matter what, ever.)

Sakura and Ino were both slowly melting into the water, looking pleased, but Nejiko sat stiffly in the water, staring straight ahead. Tenten sat the way she usually did in the water, elbows propped on the sides of the spring as she stretched out her back. 

“Ahh, that feels nice.”

Ino cracked open her eyes to look at her. “Always such an old man, Tenten-senpai.”

She ignored her, and they all sat quietly for the next few minutes. The only sounds were from the water rippling softly against the walls, the steam in the air, and their breathing. 

Tenten cracked open her eyes from where she had closed them in time to catch Nejiko giving her a half smile and turn away again, her shoulders finally relaxing. Tenten smiled at her profile before closing her eyes again and sinking even deeper into the water.

A few minutes later, Nejiko said, “Tenten.”

She blinked up at her sleepily. “Hm?”

“You’re humming.”

“No I’m not.”

“You are,” Sakura chimed in. Hinata nodded in agreement, and Ino said, “Sounded nice, though.” 

Tenten flushed a little. “Uh, thanks.” Nejiko was smirking at her, and Tenten stuck her tongue out at her in response. 

Hinata, Sakura, and Ino departed together half an hour later to do some shopping before Sakura’s shift at the hospital, and Tenten and Nejiko settled into the water again after saying goodbye. Tenten faced forward and watched her teammate through half-closed eyes, wondering when the best time would be to bring up her earlier anger.

She should have known better than to try to watch a Hyuga discreetly. 

“What is it, Tenten?” Nejiko hadn’t even opened her eyes. 

Tenten twitched a little. “When we left training today, you were in a pretty good mood. Hinata told me you had to talk to some Elders, and then you were pissed. What’d they do?”

As she had been talking, Nejiko’s shoulders had slowly stiffened again, until she was ramrod straight and staring ahead once more. “Nothing.”

Tenten rolled her eyes. “Nejiko, come on.” She stood up and crossed so she was next to her teammate- who had blushed and averted her eyes at the sight of Tenten’s naked torso. (It was flattering, maybe, because Tenten still didn’t know if Nejiko liked girls too, but it was definitely a cute reaction.) She grabbed Nejiko’s arm so she’d meet her eyes again. “Tell me. Please.”

Nejiko seemingly couldn’t look at Tenten, staring at some spot next to her face. “It is the same as usual. I am a Branch upstart and must settle into my place. Every achievement I make reflects poorly on the strength of the heir. This time it was brought on by my recent promotion to jonin.”

Tenten grimaced. “That sucks.” 

Nejiko nodded, her gaze falling to the waterline. She seemingly had nothing else to say. 

Tenten released her grip on her arm and sat back again before realizing that she’d inadvertently flashed Nejiko again. She didn’t really care, personally, but Nejiko went full crimson and slammed her eyes shut. 

Tenten chuckled low in her throat. “You have breasts too, Nejiko.” So saying, she reached out and poked the upper part of Nejiko’s chest, at the very top of what could be considered breast and not collarbone. Nejiko startled like a cat, and Tenten laughed outright (and tried to ignore the pink of areola that could be seen rising from the water, and the pretty flush working its way down Nejiko’s neck and tops of her breasts.)

She grinned at her teammate, saying “Wow, and I thought only retired ANBU were that jumpy-” when Nejiko suddenly set her mouth in a determined line, staring at Tenten with a blazing expression. Tenten blinked. “Uh, what-”

She was cut off as Nejiko jerked forward, and pale, soft lips pressed against her own.

"Perhaps, if I had been a man, my burdens would not be so heavy," Nejiko mused to Tenten once. "I would have that advantage, at least." 

Tenten lifted her head up from where it was pressed against her hip, Nejiko’s long fingers carding through her hair. “And then things would be all that worse for Hinata.”

“That’s true.” Nejiko ran her fingertips over Tenten’s mouth, her cheeks, her eyelids. “And I would not have you.”

“Yes you would.” 

“You do not like men that way.”

“Yes, I do. I just like women more usually, is all.” She peered up at Nejiko through her lashes. “And I like you no matter what.”

“Mm.” Nejiko smiled tenderly and resumed the steady motion of her hand through Tenten’s hair. She rested her head back down at her lover’s side. 

Tenten was twenty and in love.

The single, slight advantage they had over the Hyuga Clan and its antiquated views and traditions was that it never even occurred to them that when the Hyuga prodigy went to spend the night at her female teammates house, it was because they were fucking all night long.

Two women? Having sex? No indeed, just gals being pals. Tenten thought to herself giddily as Nejiko flipped them around so Tenten was beneath her, then grabbed her hands and raised them above her head. The position stretched out her torso and pushed her breasts against Nejiko’s ribs, and she smirked as the Hyuga paused to take in the sight of her. 

Under that pale gaze, she narrowed her eyes and smiled, preening like a smug cat. 

Nejiko responded by covering her mouth in a harsh kiss and dipping her hand into those lacy red panties that matched the lacy red bra that Tenten had been wearing under her little black dress, both of which were now somewhere on the floor along with Nejiko’s beautiful kimono.

So yes, Tenten told Lee later, date night had gone very well, but she would spare him the details.

But there was still a residual somberness to Nejiko that hadn’t been there before the war, before Hiashi was killed and the clan forced Hanabi and Hinata to fight for the position of Clan Head. Hinata would never truly regain the use of her right arm- Hanabi was always more forceful and dutiful than her sister- but the sudden and abrupt heart attack of one of the Elders had halted proceedings, and Hinata and Hanabi were doing such a smooth job jointly running the clan that the Hyuga Council had just let the matter go for now.

(It had been the most hilarious coincidence of timing that Tenten had ever seen, when Hinata and Hanabi were preparing to clash again and the Elder let out a little “hurk!” and keeled over. There were definitely some branch members who had walked away with a little spring in their step.)

By Tenten’s own diagnosis, the cure for Nejiko’s PTSD and somberness was lots of kissing, cuddling, and sex with her girlfriend. Also the Hokage-mandated group therapy sessions.

Nejiko was mostly just living with Tenten at this point. They split rent and utilities and groceries, most of her clothes were in the larger dresser they’d just purchased together, she slept almost nightly in the larger bed they’d just purchased together, she’d moved all of her personal knicknacks into the apartment, and- most intimately of all- Nejiko’s tea set, the one left to her by her parents, was used every morning by the Hyuga to start their day together.

Tenten was just waiting for Nejiko to officially state her desire to live together. Whenever she was ready.

One night Nejiko was dropping by the Hyuga compound to meet with Hinata, Hanabi, and a few choice Elders, so Tenten was alone for the night. She dropped by the hospital to chat with Sakura over her break, then at the medic’s request brought Ino a container of something labelled “Biohazard” (and Ino had looked manically pleased to receive it, then squinted at Tenten and hissed, “No questions!” Tenten had just held her hands up innocently and backed away.)

She found herself in a bar, chatting lightly with Shikamaru and Temari as they stumbled their way through flirting with each other. It was fun to watch- like a spectator sport, where both teams were working towards the same goal and also tripping and flailing and getting flustered every time they made eye contact but determinedly trying to get the other team into their pants.

Shikamaru was briefly called away to chat with another person from Shizune’s office staff- he wasn’t officially an advisor, but he was in every other way- and Temari turned to Tenten. “So, how are things with Nejiko-san?”

Tenten grinned, always delighted to talk about her girl. “Pretty good! Huuuuuuuuuge sex increase after the war, because we’re both fuckin’ traumatized and want physical comfort!”

There was a long, drawn out silence.

Tenten wrinkled her nose. “Hm. I’m more drunk than I thought.”

Temari did not do a good job stifling her laugh. “No- um, you seem- uh, really coherent. Full- full sentences and everything.”

Tenten mock-toasted her. “I’m not too drunk to discern a terrible lie, though.”

“And use such fancy vocabulary.” Temari clinked her glass against Tenten’s with that fierce grin that used to make Tenten go weak in the knees. The thought made her blurt out, “You know, I used to have such a crush on you.”

Temari set her cocktail down with a jerk. “You- you did?”

“Yuh-huh.” Tenten nodded sagely. “After you kicked my ass at the chunin exams. I was so pissed and you were so hot and I was going through puberty and just so horny all the time and everything boiled over and if you so much as looked at me I melted.”

“O-Oh.” Temari blinked at her, mouth opening and closing as she searched for words. “Well, thanks?” Tenten threw back her head and laughed, the absurdity of the conversation finally catching up to her. 

After her giggles had petered out- Temari had buried her own laughter in her arms, propped on the bar in front of them, so at least they both looked ridiculous- Tenten opened her eyes, head still tilted back, and found the softly smiling eyes of Nejiko staring down at her. 

She lit up. “Hey!” Nejiko leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Hello.” She turned to Temari and gave her a much less loving smile, but no less warm. “Good evening, Temari-san.” Temari stifled her last giggles in her hand, weakly waving in greeting at Nejiko. 

Tenten watched, enthralled, as Nejiko turned back to her. “Would you like to stay any longer, or should we head home?” Her mouth was so fascinating when she talked, lips pressing together and separating, tongue tapping against teeth, words forming and falling from the back of her throat.

“I love you,” Tenten mumbled. That lovely mouth parted in shock, then a soft, wonderstruck smile curled the lips upwards. 

“I love you too.”

“Noice,” Tenten blurted. She was so pleased she fell off her barstool.

[thegizka]

Say Cheese (fic)

The InoShikaCho Formation is a rising band currently on tour following the success of their first album. With some free time before their performance in Konoha, Ino meets her best friend Sakura for lunch to catch up on the wild twists their lives have taken.

Inspired by Ino Week 2019 Day 7: AU.

Note: I do not own any of these characters.

Read it on Ao3.

-----

Ino finished pinning the intricate braided twist of her hair before smoothing her long fringe.  Donning a floppy, wide-brimmed hat, she did an outfit check in her mirror.  High-waisted lavender capris hugged her hips, and a few inches of well-toned stomach peaked out beneath the scalloped hem of her loose white crop top.  Chunky white sandals, a stack of thin bangles, and large ombre sunglasses completed the look.  It was chic and anonymous without betraying her personal style.  She was ready to go.

She sent a quick text to Asuma to let him know she was heading out before stepping into the midmorning sunshine.  Pulling the motel room door closed, she descended from the second floor walk, noticing as she passed that Shikamaru’s curtains were still drawn despite the morning stretching into lunchtime.  She had invited him and Chouji to join her, but they wanted to spend their day sleeping and playing video games before tonight’s show.

She walked across the gated motel courtyard and let herself out at the front gate.  She could call for a car, but the weather was nice and she was familiar enough with the city to feel comfortable walking.  Her only possible concern was paparazzi and fans swarming her on the sidewalk, but it was still a novel enough experience to be a minimal risk.

There were a lot of people wandering between the shops, taking advantage of the warm late-spring Friday.  There were mothers coraling children on errands, businessmen discussing sales plans en route to lunch meetings, and young couples out on dates.  There were also crowds of college kids escaping their studies to enjoy the beauty of the day.

Ino contemplated swinging by the Konoha University campus, but she found that other young adults were most likely to recognize her, and she wanted to preserve the time to herself.  When she had convinced Shikamaru and Chouji to form a band four and a half years ago, she could only dream of signing a contract, producing an album, and going on a national tour.  But somehow here they were, halfway through a tour playing venues that were nearly ten times bigger than the bars and music clubs where they had started and working on music for their second full-length album.  It was a wild ride, and there were still a lot of elements of the industry she was learning to adapt to.  Life on the road under the ever-increasing public eye was new territory, and she knew it would only get more complicated as their success and popularity grew.

For now, though, she could navigate this city with nearly the same anonymity and lack of care as she had the last time she’d come here.  It felt like a lifetime ago.  She and her best friend Sakura had been touring the university, which was renowned for its medical program.  At the time, Ino had been entertaining the idea of becoming a neurosurgeon since the band was still working on gaining traction in the music scene.  If Shippuden Studios hadn’t offered them a contract a few short months later, she would have joined Sakura in pursuing her medical degree.  It was amazing how quickly the trajectory of her life had changed.

She had quite liked the university and city back then.  Built on the shores of a beautiful, large lake, Konoha was always buzzing with vacationers and students, a hub of activity and modernity.  She liked the balance of relaxing beaches and glowing nightlife.  It could have been a place for her to flourish.  She supposed it might still be, in a way.  Tonight’s concert at Hokage Pier would be their biggest show yet and a potential test of whether they could handle even greater popularity and success.  But she had hours before she had to take the stage, and she was looking forward to catching up with her bestie.

She was meeting Sakura at Cafe Konan, a lovely upscale bistro built above the beach with a patio overlooking the water.  They had eaten there two years ago after their tour, excitedly discussing the state of the art medical equipment and decorated professors they’d get to work with if they went to school here.  Ino arrived early and procured a table in the corner of the patio with a great view.  The beach was already peppered with people spreading out blankets or wading.  A few sailboats drifted further out on the water.  Seagulls darted above the surf looking for food.  If she had time, perhaps she’d join everyone for a stroll on the beach.

Ino spent the rest of the wait enjoying the fresh air and snapping pictures.  Some days she’d take over a hundred, staying up late to sift through them and select the best ones to feature on her Instagram.  She’d always had a good eye for composition and framing, and it had been a natural step to expand her personal account while spearheading the band’s.  As stardom put increasing demands on her time, they’d hired a publicity and marketing manager, Kurenai Yuuhi, to help keep their fans updated and satisfied.

“Still attached to that phone I see,” a pleasant voice called, interrupting her study of filters and lighting.

“Still attached to that big forehead of yours,” Ino retorted, but she was grinning broadly.  Jumping up from her seat, she embraced her best friend tightly.

“It feels like I haven’t seen you in forever!” Sakura exclaimed, returning the embrace.  “How have you been?  You look good.”

“So do you,” she observed, pulling back.  As much as she made fun of her best friend for her large forehead, she really had grown into it.  She stood before her as a mature young woman, sure of herself and free of adolescent insecurities.  A form-fitting red shirt and white shorts flattered her figure and long legs.  Ino was happy to see her so comfortable with herself.

“You’re growing your hair out again,” she observed as they took their seats.  “It looks good.”

“Thanks.  It’s a little easier to tie back now for labs and surgery.”

“And what does Sasuke think of it?” she asked, a teasing lilt to her voice.  Sakura just rolled her eyes.

“We haven’t been together for more than five minutes and you already want to talk about boys?  You haven’t even told me how the tour’s going!  Boys can wait until after we order.”

“Fine, but I expect lots of juicy details.”

They worked through the obligatory topics of conversation as they ordered their food and waited for its arrival.  Sakura groaned about the stress of school and the medical field, and Ino complained about the obligations of being a working musician.  The venting, however, was more ritualistic than sincere, as both were excited about the opportunities before them and content with where they were.

“Will you have time to visit home before your internship with Dr. Tsunade starts this summer?”

“I’ll have about a week, but I might need that time to find an apartment.”

“You’re moving here permanently?” Ino asked, a bit surprised.  Her friend shrugged.

“I still have a few years of school, and if I continue to get jobs and internships with my connections here, it’s not really worth carting my stuff back and forth for just a week here and there.  Plus you’re on tour most of the time now, and Naruto’s always traveling for his international diplomacy degree.  There’s not much to anchor me there anymore.”

“But there’s more here,” Ino probed, reading between the spoken words.  “Like Sasuke?”

“You are relentless!” Sakura grumbled with a smile.

“Only because you’ve been dating the hot pre-law student we met while touring here two years ago for a whole six months, and I just found out about it last week!  I’m entitled to more information as your best friend.”

“I know,” Sakura sighed.  It’s just hard to talk about.”

“What do you mean?  Is he super weird?  He doesn’t mistreat you or anything, right?”

“No!  Not at all!  He’s wonderful, just a bit...complicated.”  She swirled the water in her glass, smiling softly.  Ino could see a blush brushing her cheeks.  She’d never seen her best friend like this.  They had always been bold about their crushes, at least around each other, but this was different.  It was the delicate and deep feeling of mature attraction, maybe even love.  Ino was a bit jealous.  But she was also really happy for her.

“Sooo, how did you guys meet?  And I don’t mean being in the same tour group as prospective students.”

Sakura rolled her eyes, then began her story as they began tucking into their food which had just arrived.

“I used to see him all the time in the library, and I was pretty sure I recognized him from that tour, but he was always super focused on his work so I never approached him or anything.  But it was like every time I went to the library to study and get work done, he’d be there with that freakishly intense focus.  It turned into a game I’d play with myself--‘where’s the cute guy going to be this time’?”  She chuckled at the memory.

“Is he a nerd then?”  Ino asked.  “I figured only nerds like you would voluntarily spend that much time studying.”

“Ha ha,” Sakura laughed drily.  “And no, he’s not a nerd, he’s pre-law, and he helps at his family’s firm part-time so he’s always busy working on something.”

“Ah, so he’s a rich boy.”

“His family has money, yes, but I wouldn’t say they’re rich.  He had to take out student loans, same as me.”

“Have you met his family yet?”

“Hold on a second Miss Nosey.  Do you want me to finish my story or not?”

“Fine!  I’ll hold all questions until the end,” she smirked, spearing a scallop nestled amongst her linguine noodles.  “Carry on.”

“I didn’t actually talk to him until right before winter break last year.  Tenten, Hinata, and I went to this party that Tenten’s friend Lee was hosting, and Sasuke was there.  I guess he and Tenten’s boyfriend Neji had a few classes together and became friends so we ended up hanging out a bit at the party and chatting a little.”

“And he was immediately smitten and declared his love the next day.”

“Not even close!” Sakura laughed.  “We didn’t even exchange numbers!  And for a while I thought he hated me.”

“What?!”

“I know!”  She continued giggling.  “I totally didn’t know how to read him!  Sasuke exudes this effortless cool, but he’s actually hopeless with social cues half of the time.”

“So why did you think he hated you?”

“Because I’d never get the response I was expecting when I tried to be friendly!  Our interactions would be great when we were hanging out in a group, but if I was talking to him one-on-one, he’d seem distant.  He even stopped going to the library to work, or he’d leave shortly after I’d show up, which made it obvious that I was some sort of problem or annoyance to him.”

“Oh my gosh Sakura!  And you’re dating this jerk?!”  Ino leaned across the table.  “Why didn’t I know about any of this?  That’s awful!”

“It’s fine, Ino.  It really wasn’t that bad.  My feelings were hurt, but I still didn’t know him all that well, and I had plenty of school work to keep me busy.”

She studied her best friend’s face, reading the echoes of embarrassment and pain as she recounted this part of the story.  She knew Sakura.  If she was smitten with a guy, she went all in.  She was too honest with her feelings to hold back.  Ino felt ashamed that she hadn’t known her best friend was struggling.

“I’m sorry,” she said.  “I didn’t know you were going through all of that, and I wasn’t there for you.”

“Ino, it’s okay,” Sakura promised, reaching across the table to squeeze her hand.  “I had my friends here, and Naruto visited a lot.  It really wasn’t that bad.  You already had enough on your plate with your album blowing up the charts and Asuma booking so many interviews and performances for the band.  You didn’t need my drama on top of that.”

“But I could’ve handled it!  I’m your best friend.  I always have time for you.”

The promise tasted like a lie even though she willed it to be true.  The band’s success had swallowed so much of her time and energy.  Nearly every moment she was awake was spent working on music or travelling to some venue or curating social media posts.  She hadn’t seen anyone outside of the band and crew in months.  Realizing her new circumstances might make her inaccessible to loved ones in need was a painful reality check.

“I know,” Sakura assured her, trusting in the promise even if it wasn’t practical.  “But this really wasn’t a big deal.  I figured I just needed a bit of distance, and I was going to have all summer for that.  I stayed on campus to help Dr. Shizune with some research, and it was kind of nice having the school and city to myself for a while.  I didn’t have to worry about running into Sasuke at the library or while out shopping, until I did run into him on the beach one day.”

“I hope you didn’t literally run into him.”

Sakura laughed.  “Of course not!  I was looking for a spot to sit and read and suddenly there he was.  Apparently his family doesn’t live too far from here, so he and his brother come her to swim sometimes.  I don’t think I would’ve noticed him, but he recognized me and decided to say hi.”

“Wait, the guy who was ignoring and avoiding you approached you to say hi?” Ino asked, flipping disinterestedly through the dessert menu.

“I know, it totally caught me off guard!  But he was really nice, even though it was a bit awkward.  And his brother Itachi was really nice, too.  So we chatted for a bit, and we texted each other once in a while after that.  When he was visiting town, we’d try and hang out a little, and then we hung out more once the school year started up again, and now we’re officially dating.”

“Hold on, one minute he’s giving you the cold shoulder and now you’re dating?  Seems like a dramatic change,” Ino said doubtfully, handing her credit card to their waiter before her best friend could protest about not splitting the bill.

“He wasn’t giving me the cold shoulder.”

“That’s what it sounded like to me.”

“I told you, it’s complicated,” Sakura sighed.  “Sasuke is very driven.  If he has a goal, he does absolutely everything he can to achieve it.  It’s just how his brain is wired.  So when I came around and was being super friendly and seemed to always show up where he was trying to get work done, he deemed me a distraction and tried to distance himself so he could focus on school and stuff.”

“He decided friends were a distraction?  Seems awfully utilitarian.”

“Not friends.”  Sakura shook her head, a blush forming on her cheeks.  “Just me.”

“Oh my gosh, he was smitten!”  Ino slapped the table in excitement.  “This is some Mr. Darcy-level denial!  Damn Sakura, you go girl!”

“Ino stop!” she protested, cheeks growing bright red.  Despite the embarrassment, she was smiling happily.

“So what changed his mind?”

Sakura shrugged.  “I’m not sure exactly.  I think part of it was just the timing.  We happened to run into each other during the summer when he didn’t have to focus as much on school or work or impressing his father.  Plus I think Itachi liked me, and Sasuke puts a lot of value in his brother’s opinion.”

“And now that school’s back in session?  I assume you’re not a distraction since you’ve been dating this whole time.”

“I guess not.”  She shrugged again, but Ino could see the blush returning.

“Sakura,” she probed as they wove through the other tables to the front door.  “You’re keeping something back.  Come on, you can’t hide anything from me.”

“I asked him about it when he asked me to be his girlfriend officially, and he told me that everything else was the distraction and...now I am his new goal.”

“Oh my gosh!” Ino squealed.  “That’s so cheesy but so romantic!”

“I know!”  Sakura hid her embarrassment behind her hands, ears almost as pink as her hair.  “He has no flirting ability whatsoever.”

“Good thing you don’t mind cheesy one-liners,” Ino laughed, pulling her best friend into a hug on the sidewalk.  “I’m really happy for you.”

“Thanks.”  She felt the joy radiating off of her, seeping into her own body and dispelling the simmering jealousy with love.

“So, do I get to meet him today?  You’d better be bringing him to the show.”

“No, unfortunately,” Sakura sighed, pulling out of the embrace.  “He has to help his family this weekend.”

“Bummer,” she pouted.  “You have to promise I’ll get to meet him before you two get engaged.”

“Okay,” Sakura laughed.  “Do you have much time before the show?  There’s a great ice cream stand on the beach.  We could grab some dessert.”

“Yeah, I should have time,” she confirmed.  “Just let me update Asuma.  He likes to know where we are in case anything happens.”

“Makes sense.”  Her best friend linked their arms and leaned over her shoulder as she sent the text to her manager.  If it was anyone else, Ino would consider it nosy.  Instead she opened her camera in selfie mode so they could snap a pic together making silly faces.

“Come on,” Sakura chuckled, pulling her along with their linked elbows.  “You listened to me jabber all through lunch.  It’s your turn!  What’s new with you, besides conquering the world as a chart-topping musician and fashion icon?”

She shrugged.  “Not much.”

“Come on,” Sakura sighed,”you’ve been on the road for months and have nothing interesting to report?”

“Not really.  It’s a lot of the same stuff every day--arrive at the next show’s city, maybe do an interview, practice with the band, write music, do the show, and then hit the road.  It doesn’t leave much time for anything interesting.”

“But you get to travel all over the place and meet other musicians and famous people!”

“The famous people part rarely happens.  We’re not at the level of fame to be recognizable.  Like I’m not getting swarmed right now by fans so it’s not a big deal if we land a few late night interviews.  People will forget who we are as soon as we leave the set.  Which is fine, because my life still has a semblance of normalcy.  I can go to the grocery store or have lunch with my best friend without worrying about paparazzi.  I’m just so busy that I rarely get to do such things.”

“It sounds complicated,” Sakura observed, studying her friend’s face.

“It’s just the way things are.”  Ino smiled to reassure her.

“How are Shikamaru and Chouji handling it?”

“They’re pretty much the same.  Lazy, of course, but I think part of that is intentional.  It’s part of their public personas.  I don’t get it, but it seems to work for the fans.  There’s always a crowd of girls screaming hysterically for them at every show.”

Sakura chuckled as they stopped at an ice cream stand, pulling her friend into the line.

“And what about you?  Are there swarms of boys begging to see you every night?”

“There’s always a few, and sometimes some girls, too.”

“Really?”

“Mhm.”

“Look at you playing to both sides,” Sakura snickered.

“Hey, I can’t help it if I’m just so hot that everyone wants a piece of me.”

“Whoa there tiger, we’d better get you some ice cream to cool you down.  What do you want?”

This time Sakura snuck her money to the cashier before Ino could.  She protested a little but Sakura was already handing her the ice cream, and she had to stop arguing to eat it before it melted.

They wandered onto the sand, enjoying the sweet treat and beautiful weather.  The sun danced on the lake, fracturing its reflection into diamonds while boats bobbed and seagulls wheeled through the air.  The sound of waves whispering on the sand and happy voices murmured in the air.  It really was a lovely day.

“Y’know, I think Sasuke’s a bad influence,” she mused.  “‘We’d better get you some ice cream to cool you down’?  Terrible.”

Sakura laughed, loud and carefree.

“It was wasn’t it?” she chuckled.  “But really, between Sasuke and Naruto, can you blame me?  They’re both hopeless at flirting.”

“And somehow they’ve both got girlfriends now.  Isn’t life strange.”

“Maybe all girls secretly like cheesy pickup lines,” Sakura mused around a mouthful of ice cream.

“Or maybe we take pity on guys for being brave enough to use one.”

“Do your fans every give you silly pickup lines?”

“Nah.  I can usually tell which ones want to flirt and which ones are simply fans.  I find it’s best to avoid the former.”

“Would you ever consider dating a fan?”

“Nooo,” she groaned.  “I mean, whoever I date would have to like our music, but I think it’s a little creepy for a person to pursue someone just because they really like what he or she does for a living.  The band is just a small part of who I am, y’know?”

“But what if he’s genuinely a nice guy?”

“I can’t,” Ino declared firmly.  “If I open up that possibility, I’d have to consider every fan begging me for a date, and I can’t do that.  I need a boundary between my personal life and my professional one, for myself and whoever I might end up with.”

“It’s going to be hard to find someone with how much success the band’s having,” Sakura murmured gently.  Ino could feel a hint of pity in her words.  She didn’t want to be pitied.

“It’s just a little more complicated,” she said brightly, brushing her fringe back into place with her fingers.  “But I’ll figure it out.”

“You will,” her best friend agreed with the total confidence of someone with complete faith in making her dreams a reality.

“I suppose it’s good we haven’t really made it big yet,” Ino used.  “If I do meet someone, he’s not likely to be obsessed with me already.”

“True,” Sakura agreed.  “And you won’t have to worry about gossip magazines or paparazzi scaring him away.”

“Hopefully not, though those photographers can be pretty sneaky.  Take, for example, the camera that’s been trialing us since our ice cream stop.”

Sakura’s eyes widened a little in surprise.  “What?”

“Mhm,” she hummed, crunching the last bite of ice cream cone.

“Where?”

“Sakura, don’t look for him!  Either you’ll scare him off before I can yell at him, or he’ll take the acknowledgment as permission to set up a mini photo shoot right now.  Just act normal.”

“I totally didn’t notice anyone,” Sakura whispered, trying to resist her curiosity to look around.

“Shikamaru has the best paparazzi radar, but I’m getting pretty good at spotting them,” she replied with just a smidgen of self-pride.

“So if we’re not supposed to look at them, what do we do?  Try and shake them off?”

“If I’m doing something super boring I just ignore them until they go away.  Knowing my coffee order usually isn’t tantalizing enough for their magazines to sell.  But sometimes I do confront them and put the fear of Asuma into them.”

Sakura laughed at the thought of her friend’s laid-back manager being enough of a threat to scare anyone.

“Which will it be this time?”

“Come here.”  Ino led the way to a pile of rocks wedged into the sand.  The bank at this end of the beach started rising, eventually turning into a cliff.  Several college kids were diving off the rock with shrieks of joy.  There were fewer people at this end of the shore, which decreased the likelihood of her cover being blown when she confronted the paparazzi.

“Just relax.  We’re going to lure him in,” she instructed, leaning back on her hands.  She tried focusing on the warmth of the sun and ignoring the adrenaline building in anticipation of the confrontation, but she couldn’t keep a smirk from her lips.  She rarely dealt with paparazzi on her own as usually her bandmates and Asuma were with her, but Kurenai regularly met with all of them to go over how to proceed.  The guy following her today looked young, probably an enthusiastic new journalism graduate who couldn’t land a job at a reputable news company.  She almost felt bad for the chewing out she was preparing for him.

“That’s a cute shirt,” Sakura observed as she finished off her ice cream.

“Thanks.  It was a birthday gift from my mom.”

“She actually bought you a crop top?  Willingly?”

“Apparently she has no issue with them now that I’m an independent adult.  Plus they’re a trademark of my personal style.  I think she’s admitted defeat in her efforts to keep me away from them.”

“Excuse me.”

Ino was surprised by the polite voice.  She hadn’t noticed anyone approach, which was impressive considering she was on alert waiting for the photographer to come nearer.

“You!” she gasped, realizing it was, in fact, the very guy she had been waiting to ambush.  Seeing him up close, he really was young.  Maybe he was just an intern.

“Would you mind if I take your picture?”

“What?”  She couldn’t believe the presumptuousness of this guy!  His polite smile didn’t waver.  Was he really acting like he hadn’t been stalking them, sneakily snapping pictures for the past several minutes?

“Yes I do mind!” she cried, rallying through her surprise to stalk as intimidatingly as she could across the sand to him.  “I know you’ve already been taking pictures of us.  You think I’m unfamiliar with dealing with paparazzi?  I know exactly what you’re doing!”

“Ino-” Sakura began, but she wasn’t going to let her friend’s politeness stop her now that she’d started.  She really wanted to see that guy’s unwavering smile crumble.

“No, I may be familiar with jerks snapping pictures of me everywhere I go, but you definitely didn’t sign up for this!  And we have an exclusive agreement with the Hidden Leaf Times for all media coverage, so unless you produce proof that you’re working with them, which I doubt since this is such a shady way of getting content, you need to hand over all of those pictures you’ve taken and leave.”

“I’m afraid I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

It was unbelievable.  That smile didn’t move.  Did he think this was funny?  Did he enjoy being this rude?

“Oh really?  How about I get my publicity manager on the phone so she can explain in detail all of the legal violations we’re going to smack on you.”

“Hang on-” Sakura tried again, but Ino ignored her.

“And then I’ll call our connection at the Times so they can come after you.  What right do you have to invade a person’s privacy by following them to sneak pictures and then pretend you’re innocent and ask for permission after the fact?”

“Ino!”  Sakura grabbed the phone from her hand.  “He’s not paparazzi!”

“What do you mean?” she snapped.

“He’s just a photography student from the university!  Hinata’s had a few classes with him.”

Ino blinked at her friend for a moment, registering the laughter in her green eyes.

“It’s true,” the boy agreed.  He still had that grin plastered on his face, but his eyebrows had edged up to indicate bemused confusion.  “I really have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Ino, this is Sai,” Sakura introduced.  “Sai, this is my friend Ino.  She’s the lead singer and guitarist of The InoShikaCho Formation.  They’re performing tonight at Hokage Pier.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he smiled.  Ino wasn’t quite ready to make friends, though.

“If you’re not paparazzi, then why were you following us taking pictures?”

“I was practicing,” he claimed innocently.  “My teachers are always telling us to take any opportunity we can to improve our skills.”

“Shouldn’t you ask for permission before you take pictures of someone, even if it’s just practice?”

“I’ve heard it can be better to ask for forgiveness after the fact than for initial permission.”

She didn’t understand this guy.  No matter what questions she threw at him, his smile never wavered.  It was annoying.  But the more she looked at it and studied his face, the more she believed him.

“But why follow us?  Surely it’d be better to practice with a variety of subjects.”

“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve seen all day.”

“Wha...Huh?” Ino stammered.  Sai blinked at her, smiling innocently.  Was he being genuine?  Sakura snickered behind her.

“What the heck!” she cried, feeling flustered.  The prick of heat in her cheeks told her she was blushing.  “You can’t just say that to someone you just met!”

“But I’ve been told that honesty is the best policy.”

She could only blink at him, dumbfounded, blush growing deeper.  How was she supposed to respond to this?  Was he just being smooth, or did he genuinely think she was beautiful?  She couldn’t tell what he was thinking behind that charming smile.

“Say cheese,” he instructed, quickly bringing his camera up to snap a picture of her bewildered face.

“H-hey!” she stammered.  “I never gave you permission!”

“Sorry, but if I always waited for permission, I’d miss too many perfect shots.”

She didn’t know why his words made her feel warm all over, but they did.  Before she could gather her wits and come up with a reply, Sakura handed her back her phone.

“Shikamaru’s calling you.”

“Yeah?” she answered, eyes still glancing at Sai.

“It’s nearly time for rehearsal.  Where are you?”

“At the beach with Sakura.  Sorry, I must’ve lost track of time.”

“Do you need us to send a car to pick you up?”

“No, I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.”

“Okay, see you soon.”

“I have to get going,” she told Sakura, slipping her phone back into her purse.  “I’ll see you later tonight.”

“I’ll be there,” her best friend promised, giving her a big hug.

“And you,” she said, rounding on Sai.  “You can keep those pictures as long as you don’t post them on social media.  And you have to give me a copy of all of them.”

“Works for me.  Can I get your phone number or email then?”

Ino fought against another blush.

“Just give them to Sakura.  She’ll get them to me.  I have to go.”

“It was a pleasure to meet you, beautiful,” he smiled.

“Yeah,” she mumbled, turning and hurrying away before she lost her composure in another flustered blush.

-----

A few weeks later, Ino lay sprawled in her bunk on the tour bus scrolling through a folder of pictures.  She had been surprised to see Sai again at the concert that evening.  It turned out he was interning at the Hidden Leaf Times for the summer and was one of the photographers they sent to cover the band’s time in Konoha.  They hadn’t interacted much, but Ino had been hyper-aware of his presence throughout their interview with the paper and the concert.

True to his word, he had passed on all of the pictures he’d taken both at the beach and Hokage Pier to Sakura, who in turn emailed them to Ino.  She had to admit, he had a good eye.  She found herself scrolling through the pictures a lot, not because she loved how she looked in them (though they were all pretty flattering), but because they were just that good.  She thought she had a good sense of composition, framing, and lighting, but Sai seemed to have some deeper knowledge that elevated his work to art.

She’d used a few of the shots for social media posts, careful to credit him.  She’d learned from Sakura that he didn’t have social media, but he did have a small photography website, so she linked to it at the bottom of each image.  Sometimes when she was bored she’d check his website to see if he’d posted any new pictures.  It was her way of keeping tabs on what he was doing without being obvious and bugging Sakura to tell her about him.

It was weird.  She didn’t know him at all, and the fact that he’d followed her along the beach still gave her paparazzi vibes, but she couldn’t get him out of her head.

She opened a new window in her browser and logged in to her email.  She found a draft that she’d started nearly a week ago and read through it.

Dear Sai,

Thank you for the photographs of our performance.  The band was impressed by their quality!  I hope you don’t mind, but we’ve used a few for our social media posts.  We were sure to credit you and link to your website.  We probably should have asked permission first, but since you’re fond of taking opportunities as they come and asking forgiveness later, I figured you’d be okay with this.  If I was mistaken, let us know so we can take down the pictures.

I don’t know if you are aware, but our band is nearly finished recording our second album, and it’s time to start considering the design elements that will go into it.  We don’t yet have a photographer for the booklet and album art.  We were all so impressed with your work at the concert, we’d like to offer you the opportunity.  I know you’ll be returning to school this fall, but once our tour’s over, our time will be more flexible, and I’m sure an agreeable arrangement could be made.  Are you interested?  Let me know.

All the best,

Ino Yamanaka

She reread the text a few more times, even though she nearly had it memorized.  Technically the band hadn’t decided to ask Sai to be their photographer, but the few times she’d mentioned it, everyone else had been open to the possibility.  She was confident she’d be able to get them to agree if Sai said yes.

She debated a few moments on whether to add her phone number, chewing her lip.  That was the biggest reason she hadn’t already sent the email.  She’d denied him her contact information at the beach; why should she give it to him now?  But now they were discussing business arrangements.  It’d be a little rude to withhold it...right?

With the sense that she was doing something risky, she quickly typed her number beneath her name and hit send, trying not to squeal.  She was being so silly!  All she’d done was extend a business invitation to another professional (even though he was technically still in school and may or may not have a photography license), yet she felt giddy like a little girl.

She closed her laptop and rolled out of her bunk, stretching a little.  Maybe she’d go play Mario Kart with her bandmates to distract herself.  Turning towards the common room, her phone pinged to alert her of a new notification.

Her heart jumped when she saw it was a new email.  Sai had already replied!  Why had he done so so quickly?  Was he mad they’d used his pictures?  With some trepidation, she opened the message.

Dear Ino,

I’m glad you liked the photographs.  I do think they’re some of my best so far, though half of the quality comes from the subject being photographed.  You and the band made my work far easier, and the results wouldn’t have been as good without you.

I’d be happy to work with you on the photographs for your next album.  Perhaps we could meet to discuss your ideas.  I know you’ll be in Suna next Thursday.  Shall we meet for lunch?  I’ll call you to work out the details.

Kind regards,

Sai

Ino bit her thumb to keep back the happy squeals that were trying to climb up her throat for some reason.  He’d included his own phone number, which she saved to her contacts.  Then she reread his message, paying special attention to his postscript.

P. S. I hope you come prepared with your beautiful smile.  I’ll bring my camera with me.

It was a strange note to include, but it made her cheeks warm.  Maybe he was flirting with her.  She shook her head, trying to brush off the thought.  No, they were simply going to discuss business, even if it was going to be over lunch and he was specifically calling her to arrange it.  She could tell him to call Kurenai or Asuma instead, but she was capable of arranging a meeting on behalf of the band by herself.  And if she happened to schedule it when only she was available, surely they’d trust her to represent them all.

She brushed her long hair over her shoulder and turned up the volume slightly on her phone before turning again toward the common room, grinning and excited for whatever was coming next.

[nmnostalgiadrabbles]

Parallels - KakaSaku

sort of? do with this what you will

maybe kakashi's a little ooc but? I struggled writing him this time I don't know :/

(post war but I still haven't actually finished naruto so don't expect canon continuity; this is a sasuke-free zone)

Sakura had been personally requested (and Tsunade had actually agreed) to stay with a newborn in the intensive care unit; she hadn’t given it another thought – of course she’d stay. She couldn’t have predicted that if she had instead gone with the second squad dispatched with Ino’s that she could have saved Ino’s life. Or at least she could have tried, and she wouldn’t have had to hear about it from Choji.

(Choji had never been the emotionally well-put together one – that was Shikamaru. But not this time. Only at the reminder that their sensei had asked him to help care for and protect his child did Shikamaru finally stop sleeping by her grave and eat something for the first time in three days.)

Sakura was another story.

(Sakura and Shikamaru weren’t particularly close – they’d never had a reason to be, really. But now, at the foot of her stone they held each other so there was no distance between them. Neither of them said it was because they were trying to feel what connected them – her – but they both knew it.)

After Shikamaru left, Naruto came to be with her. He probably would have stayed until they’d both starved, but after another two days, Kakashi came. He’d been a neglectful sensei too much of his career, and even though his students were all adults now, he was still needed, and so he came.

She wouldn’t say no to him when he asked her to please come with him; she didn’t want him to think she was being childish. But how could she think something like that – think only of herself at a time like this? She cursed herself for being more concerned with embarrassment than her best friend. Still, she took his hand after he offered it.

In the days, weeks, months that followed, she transitioned slowly from mostly hospital work to more and more field work – missions. It was then that he saw in her the same hurry to die that he’d once been in.

Once again, Naruto tried his best to be there for her, and he certainly was a positive influence, but Kakashi could see that she was still slipping.

She stopped cooking for herself and ate only instant ramen – like another of his students had when he was just a genin – when she did remember to eat. It was almost unreal to him, to watch her neglect herself like that. She’d never in all their years, even when Sasuke first left to find Orochimaru, forgotten basic self-care. She’d stopped blow-drying and styling her hair long ago, but this was on another level. He had to step in; it was his duty to step in; he wanted to step in.

He spoke with Tsunade and they agreed he’d replace one of the members of the team she’d be leaving with the following morning. That had been the easy part. The other involved Kakashi trying his hand at homemade protein balls.

To be fair, he explained their first night while making camp. I don’t normally cook this kind of thing.

“Really,” she continued the conversation. That was good. She hadn’t spoken more than a few words outside of mission specifics since they’d left just before dawn. But still, he could tell it was just small talk. She wasn’t invested (though, it wasn’t like it was the most invigorating topic in the world); did she know of his concerns? Was she trying to convince him she didn’t need them? Or was she so far retreated into herself that this was the most she could offer? Perhaps this was taking all the effort in the world.

In their time as one half of team seven, she’d never concealed her emotions in front of him; neither could remember how many times she’d cried in his presence. Despite that it broke a shinobi rule, she was comfortable and safe with him, both emotionally and physically; she never doubted that if Naruto or Sasuke couldn’t protect her, he would. He’d made that promise to them in the land of Waves so long ago.

What had Ino thought in the moments before her death? Did she think that someone was coming? Someone with unmatchable strength and legendary medical abilities and pink hair? God if she kept thinking like that Kakashi would never leave her alone. What were they talking about? Oh, she was chewing what rivaled her own as the most awful tasting protein ball in history.

“I may not be one to talk, but your powder ratio is off. That’s why they’re chalky.”

“That’s why,” he nodded, accepting, and threw another bundle of twigs on the campfire. They spoke quietly; their other teammate was sleeping on the other side of it.

The next morning they’d only just set out when they encountered the enemy. Since the war, and even before it to a degree, Sakura had always been smart when fighting. She didn’t waste energy on showy moves like Naruto or Sasuke (or himself), but now, she masked the brutality with efficiency. As a medic, she knew precisely where to strike for a single blow to be fatal, and she’d aim just there. Kakashi found that he – and the other member – were hardly needed, at least as far as manpower was concerned. That’s how it seemed at first.

As the hours and days went on, they crept farther and farther into enemy territory, and the number of opponents per person increased accordingly. Sakura did not slow down. Her attacks became less hyper-focused; they’d still kill the opponent, but it wouldn’t be immediate. It might take a few minutes, during which they could signal others or even execute a counter of sorts. Sakura had to know this, and she had to notice that her other two teammates were spending more and more of their time finishing the job. They were falling behind.

“Sakura!”

She looked back at him, and he almost wished she hadn’t. He swallowed and willed his body to move faster.

He caught up with her three miles down the forest path. His nose could tell that it was mostly the enemies’ blood, but the visual was still stocking. It smeared her skin pink and stained every bit of her uniform. He didn’t know exactly how many missions she’d been on since Ino’s death, but he wondered how many times they’d ended like this; how many times she’d felt the crippling, unrelenting loneliness.

“Kakashi,” she breathed, standing over the last opponent’s corpse. “Stop worrying about me. Can’t you see I’m perfectly capable of carrying out my missions?”

Kakashi gave their surroundings a final once over and then stepped into the small clearing where she stood. God, he’d thought the very same thing when Gai voiced his concerns for him back then.

“Sakura, it was never a question of that.”

She shook her head and went on, but still didn’t face him. “I’ve lost a little weight,”

A little? But he didn’t say that.

“You know I’ve studied the mind nearly as much as the body. It’s common when people grieve. Can’t I without everyone breathing down my neck?”

“I know you’re grieving, and you’re right, it is common –”

“Don’t patronize me,”

“But hurting yourself won’t bring her back.”

Sakura whipped around, angry hot tears brimming in her eyes. He should have known what to say to ease her pain but –

“Sakura.” By now, he had stepped closer and taken her by the shoulders. She looked up at him with gritted teeth. “I know – I know that you don’t want to hear it and I know that everything hurts. It still hurts for me, too.”

“If I – I had just been there instead of in that God-damned hospital – if I had just trained her better she could have healed herself –” She dropped to her knees and took fistfuls of dirt and squeezed.

“Nothing has changed! I’m still worthless when it matters most! What good is any of it if I still let this happen!”

It was tragic just how much she was mirroring his younger self. For the second time he wished he could shoulder this burden. He stooped to her eye level and held her face.

“Sakura,” Suddenly the mask covering his was constricting and ridiculous because it was interfering with their conversation, their connection – and he pulled it down without hesitation and continued, “You don’t have to internalize it all; you don’t have to face this alone. That isn’t strength. Letting people in – letting Naruto in,” and then, slightly softer, but not purposefully, “Letting me in – that takes strength.”

She broke his gaze. “I don’t care about that. I just want to be left alone.” She sounded so defeated. She must have felt even worse.

“I wanted that too, but, at the risk of embodying Gai, I can’t let you. For both our sakes I won’t.”

First and foremost he was saying it all for her own good, but secondly, and he acknowledged it was selfish, for himself, because he couldn’t lose another person he cared about.

“Kakashi, how did you do it?” Her cheeks were as tear-stained as he’d ever seen them.

It was so out of character for him – but so was talking this much about something emotion-related – but he kissed her forehead and said, “With time.”

  Back at the village, they wordlessly began living together. It had been several months since her death, but Sakura was still floundering. Kakashi didn’t expect anything else; he’d had years to deal with the loss of his friends and mentors, and she’d only had a few months. He would not rush her.

Instead, he cooked for her, and then eventually, she started coming in to give him tips and suggestions and then she was flipping the pancakes and dicing the tomatoes with him. One afternoon Naruto popped by and the three ate together, and Sakura felt alive for the first time in a long, long while. But by the end of the meal, she’d thought of Shikamaru and Choji.

The next day she – she went out to the fields past the training grounds where they’d learned to pick flowers that complimented each other before they were genin. The Yamanaka flower shop was open, but not for her, not yet. If ever. She gathered two bouquets’ worth.

She stopped by Shikamaru’s first, and found that Choji was with him. They were laying atop the roof staring at the clouds.

“Shikamaru, Choji,” she said quietly and sat with her legs hanging over the roof’s edge and the bouquets on either side.

“Is it okay for me to be here?” she asked. What she meant was do I bring the pain back? Or rather, do I worsen it?

Choji answered. “Of course, Sakura, why wouldn’t it?”

She smiled, mostly for politeness’ sake.

“I’m sorry I haven’t been around,”

Shikamaru lit a cigarette and stood to lean over the metal railing. “You’ve been on a lot of missions, lately. There’s no need to apologize.” The last line he said a bit differently, and she realized he wasn’t talking about her absence from the village or their presences.

“Thank you.”

[silverfootstepswrites]

Butterfly [17]

summary Time’s a strange fellow...

“You’re kidding,” Ino said into her ear.

Sakura’s phone sat propped up in a neon blue cradle. The bunny ears stuck up behind it. With the bluetooth earbud stuck in her right ear, she didn’t have to worry about cords getting tangled up with her arms when she moved around. She couldn’t count the number of times she had ripped her earbuds out as she worked out. Wireless earbuds were on at the top of her list of favorite presents she had ever received. 

Sakura lifted her head to see Ino frowning at her from the screen. She looked back down at the ground, staring between her fisted hands. All her weight bearing down on her forearms, she swiveled her hips from side to side. Her core tightening and straining with the effort. 

“I’m not,” Sakura replied. Letting out a sigh, she collapsed onto her mat to catch her breath. 

“Didn’t you say you come from the boonies? What is there even to do out there?” Ino demanded. 

Sakura rose to her knees. She adjusted the phone cradle to angle the camera toward her face. 

Ino sat at her kitchen table, a bowl of cereal in front of her. The orange tail of her cat waved around behind her as it strutted around the counters. 

“Hi, Maron-chan!” Sakura called. The cat meowed at the sound of its name. 

Ino crunched through another mouthful of cereal. 

“You know, sometimes I think you like my cat better than you like me,” Ino grumbled.

“Oh yeah. Definitely,” Sakura replied without hesitation. Ino gave her a flat look.

“You should come visit me, Ino-chan. Take a break from the city,” Sakura then suggested. She looked away to take a sip of her water. Ino’s spoon clicked against the side of the bowl. More crunching as she chewed.

“Dream on, country bumpkin. Tokyo or bust,” answered Ino. And then she spat as her long hair got caught in her mouth. Sakura snickered at her. She got back in a plank position, ignoring the burning in her core muscles. There was a thump that made her raise her head again. Ino had her foot up on the table now. She had bright purple strips overlapping together. They covered the sole of her foot before the ran up to cover most of her ankles. 

“By the way, thanks for introducing me to this stuff. I actually don’t feel like dying now,” Ino said through a mouthful of cereal. 

“Right? It really helped with my knee a lot last year,” Sakura agreed. She had been skeptical about the odd-looking tape at first. But she had used it to support her ankles, her calves, even her shoulders. When Ino had mentioned how much her feet ached, Sakura hadn’t hesitated to share her secret. Sakura preferred using beige so that it was invisible under her tights. But she wasn’t surprised that Ino would choose the flashiest color available. 

Letting out a deep breath, she dipped her hips from side to side. Back and forth. Feeling her stomach muscles flexing and straining. Ino’s spoon clinked against the bowl a few more times. And then her chair scraped across the floor. The water ran as she washed her bowl and spoon, leaving them to dry in the dishwasher. When Ino returned, Sakura was back on the floor, huffing. 

As Sakura lifted herself up, her arms and shoulders flexed. Ino let out a whistle.

“Look who’s still ja-a-aaaacked. Even though you’re retiiiiired,” Ino sang. Sakura laughed. 

“Gotta stay in shape,” Sakura said. 

“To fight off those haters. Ooh, girl, look at those Ronda Rousey arms,” Ino gushed, fanning herself like a Southern belle. Sakura could only laugh harder. 

“Anyway, the Tokyo Ballet School’s been reaching out to us for guest teachers. Maybe I’ll put my name in,” Ino suddenly told her, examining her nails. 

“Cool,” Sakura answered.

“But I’m not visiting you in the boonies. You come up to Tokyo,” Ino stipulated.

“Less cool,” amended Sakura.

She glanced down at her watch. Sighing, she slapped her hands against her thighs once. 

“Alright, I gotta go, Ino-chan," Sakura announced. She picked her phone up with one hand and the bunny-shaped cradle with the other. 

"Yeah," Ino sighed, "Guess I should start getting ready for tomorrow. Let's talk soon."

"Good night, Ino-chan."

"Have a good day, Sakura."

Sakura ended the call. She turned off her earbud and pocketed it. It took her a minute to pack everything into her bag. After a last swig from her water bottle, she hoisted her gear onto her shoulder. She pushed the door open with her hip, out into the morning air. It was already warm, promising another hot day.

Konoha had never had its own gym. Or a ballet studio. Growing up, she had biked to the town over to train. But that was one of the inevitable things about growing up in a small town like Konoha. In nice weather, the bike rides had been a pleasant extra workout. And in the winter, there was always someone willing to give her a lift. 

Sakura didn't remember what had happened to her old bike. Maybe they'd sold it or given it to a neighbor's kid. Whatever the case, it was gone. So one of the first things Sakura had done after moving back to Konoha was buy a new bike. It was mint green with a little basket in the front. She tossed her water bottle and keys into it whenever she rode around. 

She could have easily driven. There was nothing wrong with the car she had inherited from her parents. But it seemed like a waste to drag it out of the driveway. And with the mostly unpaved roads in town, it was actually easier to navigate with a bike than a car.

By the time she got to the rink, it was only 9 am, and she was already sweating. Minato greeted her from behind the counter, still in his pajamas. The rink wouldn't open for another hour, but he was looking through the receipts from the last week. 

Although Sakura hogged the rink most evenings, apparently the place was still attracting customers. Part of it, she knew, had to do with the knowledge that she skated here. That alone attracted some curious folk. It was also because in the mornings and early afternoons, Minato taught a beginner's skate class. Business really picked up in the summer when kids (and their parents) would do anything to stay out of the heat. 

She spent an easy hour on the ice, partly to cool off and partly to run through Haku's routine a few more times. The changes they had made would ensure him a higher technical score. But artistry had always been Haku's weak point. She made a few adjustments to some parts of the step sequence. Moved some of the elements around. She kept note of it in her phone, typing between tries.

And at the end of the hour, she sent all her changes to Haku in a big text. Then, she headed home to shower. She biked past Naruto on his jog and rang her bell at him a few times. He waved in return.

Wet hair wrapped in a towel, Sakura stood in her room. Hands on her hips. Staring into the depths of her closet. 

Her closet had always been divided into two sections: athletic wear and anything else. As the years went on, and she started to gain popularity, companies had taken notice of her too. It started off with little accessories. Socks. A hat. But then she started receiving bigger boxes. Shirt and pants. Full tracksuits. Backpacks and sneakers. 

When he was a teen, Haku had been roughly the same size as her. She had given him a lot of the extras. Ripped jeans and flannel shirts were some of his favorites. Beanies, too. He always dressed in layers, which he claimed made him look bigger. Which, she supposed, made sense given how slight he was. Even as an adult.

During her career, she had either been on the ice or traveling to be on the ice. Unfortunately, this meant that as a grown woman, Sakura owned joggers in every color and print imaginable. She had long and short leggings. The kind with mesh and the kind with patterns. Not to even begin to mention the moisture-wicking shirts. She had them in every brand and every style. Long-sleeved, sleeveless, cropped. She also had enough fancy sports bras to not have to do laundry for months. 

Pushed to the left side of her closet were her work clothes. She had a few blouses, skirts, and slacks that she rotated. 

There should have been, she thought, something in-between. Because it seemed that women in Japan favored airy blouses and cardigans. Cute skirts in pastels seemed to be an added bonus. 

"Well," Sakura said out loud. Like that would do anything. 

In the end, she headed out in sneakers and a t-shirt. And since it was hot, she wore shorts, too. Just in case anyone recognized her, she completed the look with a snapback and rose-colored sunglasses. With her bright hair tucked into the hat, she thought, it wouldn't be as easy to recognize her. 

The address Itachi had messaged her was in a town further up the coast. It  took about half an hour by car. And by the time she parked, it felt like the sun was trying to punish the earth. She fanned herself with one hand as she reread his message. It led her to a narrow building with ivy climbing up the drainpipe. Three stone steps led up to the glass door. A wooden sign hung on the glass that read: Art.

When Sakura pulled the door, a bell tinkled. A blast of cold air baptized her as she stepped inside. 

The interior of the gallery was as narrow as she had expected. But in exchange, it was tall. Sunlight streamed in from the skylights. There was a small table by the entrance. A guestbook sat opened along with a stack of business cards and a glass box with a slot cut into the top. 

"Welcome. Admission is 300 yen," a woman greeted her. 

Sakura dug in her pocket to find change. She dropped it into the glass box and stepped into the gallery. From the signs and pamphlets, Sakura gathered that this was an exhibition for a local artist. Her theme seemed to be paintings of nature. Not a particularly unique concept, but beautiful nonetheless. 

Sakura spotted Itachi towards the back of the gallery. He was wearing glasses. His arms folded across his chest. He tilted his head to one side as he observed a large canvas. 

"I still don't know what you meant by doing you a favor," Sakura said as she settled in next to him. 

Itachi glanced at her, a faint smile on his lips. The frames of his glasses were speckled brown and black in a tortoise shell pattern. 

"Sorry to disrupt your Saturday," he apologized. Sakura shrugged. 

"I wasn't dragged here against my will. No need to be sorry," she answered. He didn't say anything else.  

Sakura leaned in to read the plaque. It read "The Ocean" in kanji. There was no description. No fancy history of when or how it had been created. Just the name under the unframed canvas. 

She had never been one for museums. But she had seen on TV how people were supposed to react. So she looked over the painting, nodding a little. Like she was thinking big, important thoughts. When really she wondered how long it would take to paint something like this.

Itachi pushed something into her hands. She started. Looked down at the tablet she was now holding. Sakura opened the case. The screen woke, glowing softly. Itachi pushed an icon, nudging windows around until he had two apps running at once. 

"You'll need this to do my favor," he told her. 

Sakura looked from him to the huge painting. And then down at the tablet held in her arms. The software he had opened up on the left had some kind of color picker. On the right was a simple document for her to write notes. 

"These are called hex codes. When you see the right color in the picker, write down the code," Itachi instructed her. He leaned over to show her how to drag the selector across the screen. The combination of letters and numbers changed as he moved.

"For example, what color would you say my shirt is?" inquired Itachi. 

Sakura's gaze flickered to his outfit. A thin t-shirt and jeans. 

"It's grey," she replied. And then she looked down at the screen. She pulled the marker to the left. And then up a bit. 

"Sort of... there," she muttered to herself. The box on the top left of the screen displayed a string of numbers and letters. The hex code for that shade of grey.

"Great. So now try it with this," Itachi prompted, gesturing to the painting in front of them. "What color is the ocean to you?"

Sakura blinked a few times. Her eyes roving over the canvas. She stared at the rainbow gradient on the tablet screen. And then she sighed.

“…Are you sure?” Sakura hedged. She ran her finger along the color picker. Cycling through pinks that bled into purple, then blue, then green. 

“I told you. I’m not much of an artist,” she said. 

 “I’m sure,” Itachi replied. Smiling, for some reason when their eyes met. He lifted his gaze back to the painting on the wall. Waves crashing against a cliff, water foaming white when it sprayed against the rocks. 

“What color is the ocean to you?” Itachi asked her again.

"So... you want the color of ....say... the water?" she asked, glancing at Itachi again. He nodded, thumb still on his chin as he watched her. 

Her eyes flickered to the painting. She squinted at the brush strokes that formed the waves. Her pointer finger swiped the colors into the bluish-green range. And then she moved her finger around until the settled on something like a light teal. Her lower lip stuck out. She wrote down the hex code on the right side of the screen, under the word ‘ocean’. But then she adjusted the colors, edging more toward green. She picked about four more shades, jotting those down too.

“Sorry. It’s just… there’s a bunch of colors in the water. Is this too much?” Sakura asked, still writing down the strings of letters and numbers. And when she looked at Itachi again he almost looked like he might cry.

“No. It’s perfect,” he answered.

He didn't speak as she moved on to the grass covering the top of the cliffs.   Next was the sky. Almost gold in some parts, white in others. She found the ochre of the stones in the water. The pastel yellow of the sand on the beach. 

They spent the better part of an hour that way. They cycled through a few paintings in the exhibition. Sakura finding the right colors and recording the hex codes. 

After she recorded the colors of a particularly lush painting, a forest scene with tall trees, Sakura stole a glance at Itachi. 

“One more?” she asked, pointing at a scene comprised of lilacs and pinks. 

To her surprise, Itachi took the tablet from her. He scrolled through the lists she had made. And then he closed the cover of the case. 

“Do you like seafood?” Itachi queried.

“Huh?”

The restaurant Itachi took her to was beyond obscure. If he hadn’t led her straight to the door, she would have missed it a million times over. It was located in a white building, a small purple sign hanging above the door displayed its name. There was little else around besides some apartments and a supermarket down the road. 

It was a tiny place with a handful of tables and chairs. It was spartan but clean. The laminated menus only had a few options. But Sakura barely glanced them over because Itachi had convinced her with two words at the art gallery:

Hyuga Don

It was one of the specialties of this area. A bowl of rice piled high with slices of fresh tuna. Such a simple idea. But that taste lived in a special corner of Sakura’s heart. Out of all the delicious foods she had eaten on her travels, none could ever replace the taste of Hyuga Don. 

Itachi leaned back in his seat, elbow resting on the back of the chair beside him. He removed his glasses, tucking them in the front of his shirt. He rubbed the marks they’d left on the bridge of his nose. 

“I stumbled on this place when I moved to Konoha. It’s amazing,” Itachi informed her. 

The owner of the place was an old woman. She took their orders and served them tea poured over ice. As they waited for the food, Sakura snapped a shot of the glasses, condensation slipping down the sides. She fiddled with the saturation and highlights for a while. 

“So do you do this a lot? Go to exhibits and ask people to write down the colors in the paintings?” asked Sakura, looking up from her phone. She set it facedown on the table. 

“Yes to the first part. Not the second,” he replied. And before she could ask him to elaborate, the food arrived.

Sakura grudgingly admitted that this was a darn good donburi. 

“Well, not bad... for an outsider’s pick, anyway,” she then added. “There’s an incredible place in Tsukumi. Remind me to send you the address.” 

They split the bill right down the middle. And then, as they got up, Itachi smiled at her. 

“Thank you. For your help,” Itachi uttered. 

“Yeah. Of course,” she replied. Still unsure as to how, exactly, she had been helpful at all. 

June bled into July. And it was clear that this heat wasn’t going to go away anytime soon. Sometimes, when Sakura needed a break, she snuck into the air conditioned science room to gab with Orochimaru. And he always had cookies or rice crackers to split with her as they chatted between his classes. Sometimes she helped him sort beakers and glass slides as they spoke. 

“The Asian Open Trophy is in Hong Kong this year. I’m thinking of flying out to go watch,” Orochimaru confessed. 

“That’s during summer vacation, Sensei. Why not?” answered Sakura. And then she added, “Why not take your grandson? Does Mitsuki-kun like ice skating?” 

Orochimaru shook his head. “He mostly likes video games.”

“Heathen,” she grumbled, making Orochimaru chuckle. 

As the hot days trickled on, Sakura pulled the old, inflatable pool out of storage. With Naruto’s help, they managed to blow it up and filled it with water from the garden hose before Kushina texted him to come home for dinner. Sakura dunked her feet into it as the sun went down. Cicadas chirping in an endless chorus around her. 

She let out a long sigh. Closed her eyes as she let the muggy air blow over her. 

In the distance, she could hear children’s voices. The crack of a baseball hitting a bat as they squeezed in one last game before going home for the night. 

And then, a deep woof interrupted the peace. 

“Oiiii! You home, Haruno?” a man shouted. 

Sakura ignored him. 

“HARUNO!” he yelled even louder. The dog howled along with him. 

Scowling, Sakura turned onto her side. And just as she considered throwing something over the fence at him, she heard the man let out a muffled “oof”. 

“Shut up, Inuzuka. You’re so irritating,” she heard Shikamaru scold. 

“You kicked me!” Kiba gasped. And she could hear them tussling. 

Sakura watched as a plastic bag came flying over her fence. Followed by Kiba’s body. His huge white dog followed. It bounded across the yard, heading straight for Sakura. 

“Akamaru! No!” Shikamaru called.

But it was too late. The dog came crashing into the inflatable pool. Dousing Sakura as a wave engulfed her. It soaked her to the bone before she could move out of the way. 

Sakura rose onto her elbows, spitting water. She dragged her hand across her face, pulling her hair aside. And when she wiped her eyes, she found Kiba sitting cross-legged in the grass. A sheepish grin on his face. Akamaru sat panting in the pool, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth. Shikamaru leaned over the fence, grimacing. 

Sakura opened her mouth to say something. Akamaru chose that precise moment to give himself a vigorous shake. Sending more water flying out at her. The tag on his color jingled merrily with the movement.

“Uh.... hey, Haruno,” Kiba said.

“....Hey, Inuzuka,” she replied in a flat voice. 

Like a normal human being, Shikamaru went around to walk through the front door of the house. He smacked Kiba in the back of the head as Sakura wrung her hair and clothes out. And when Kiba glared, Shikamaru hit him several more times with the plastic bag in his hand. 

“Nara, could you get me a towel?” Sakura requested, keeping her voice perfectly level. 

She waited for Shikamaru to walk back into the house. He returned a few moments later with a pink towel from the bathroom. She wiped her face and arms down before she draped it over her hair. 

Sakura got to her feet. And without another word, she went into her house to change. 

“Nara, I’m scared,” she heard Kiba whisper.

“She’s going to end your life,” replied Shikamaru in a solemn voice. 

When she emerged several minutes later, Sakura returned to the backyard. Akamaru was out of the pool now. And when he spotted her scowl, he let out a whine. He lowered his head onto his paws, staring up at her with big, shining eyes. Kiba put his hand in his pocket, still giving that awkward smile.

“Heyyy, you. Feeling better?” he asked her. 

Sakura strode up to him. She shoved him in the chest with her foot and watched him topple backward. Ass-first. Into the pool. 

“Okay. We’re even,” declared Sakura, smirking. She turned to Shikamaru. 

“Drinks?” she suggested. Shikamaru shrugged one shoulder. 

“Inuzuka, you in?” asked Shikamaru. They both looked over at him. Akamaru was licking his face. Kiba pushed Akamaru away, blinking water out of his eyes. 

“Yeah. Sure,” he replied, grinning.