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softnaruto · 4 years

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Hello!! Omg I love love loved ur Shisui ask!! It was amazing!! Could I request one of Shisui relationship headcanons (and a lil bit of nsfw only if ur comfortable I don't mind b up to you)🐙

Shisui Relationship Headcanons (SFW + NSFW)

author: hello hello! guess who is back?! I am so sorry for the late response! I loved this ask though, please ask for more headcanons! Hope you like it!

pairings: Shisui x reader

words: 1579

genre: fluff + nsfw

warnings: sexual interactions and mentions of sexual desire! (as always, nsfw below the cut!)

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SFW

Being in a relationship with Shisui is simple.

Life is great, the relationship is amazing, and everything is under control.

Except in the moments where he freaks out.

He freaks out if: you’re just too cute.

“How do you expect me to just NOT kiss you when you look so wonderful?”

He freaks out if: you are grumpy. He says it makes you cute.

He freaks out if: you do anything for him. I mean, anything. If you folded his laundry, he’d probably cry of appreciation. This man is a PRAISER.

Let me explain! Shisui is a shinobi and is considered to have the most powerful genjustu in the Uchiha. He is strong, swift, powerful, and almost seems to be so perfect, right? Until something unexpected happens.

He comes home and sees you asleep on the couch, wrapped in a blanket while wearing his shirt? ABSOLUTELY FREAKS OUT. He drops everything at the front entrance and runs over to your shared bedroom, quickly trying to find his camera.

What can he say? You’re just TOO cute to not take a picture of.

I mean he just can’t keep himself together and it takes an entire army to stop him from leaning over and holding you against his chest. He takes a photograph of you sleeping but forgets to take off the flash. The flash is almost as powerful as his genjustu and this loud noise echoes throughout your small living room.

You wake up to him over you covered in dirt and mud from his mission, holding up a camera. His hair is messily stuck to his forehead, and his face immediately freezes as you stare at the dirty man in front of you.

A small gasp escapes you and that causes him to… soflty apologize and say it was him?

Haha, no.

“I AM SO SORRY I DID NOT THINK YOU’D WAKE UP BABE.”

Shisui is definitely the best boyfriend. He is supportive, friendly, and most importantly, cares so much for you.

He is a pacifist, and his ideologies seep into his relationships as well. He dislikes fights and if there’s ever any arguments or disagreements, he’s one to sit down with you and explain his point of view. He apologizes if he needs to but doesn’t pressure you to apologize either.

He goes on missions quite often and he knows he’s gone a lot of the time, so he tries to make up for it when he’s at home. He makes you breakfast in bed, takes you out for cute dates—his favorites are those cute picnics where you were cute flowy checkered patterned clothes. (He just loves cottagecore? Shisui would just live in a cottage and grow vegetables with you for the rest of his life if he could.)

In your picnic dates, though, he buys food from small vendors and disguises it as his food (he even bought tupperware just so you would believe him.) You never tell him that you know where the food comes from.

He loves movie nights! Especially rom-coms. It’s something about the way he wants to kiss you when the characters finally kiss at the end of the movie. He feels inspired and wants to suddenly escape with you out of the country.

AU: He is a k-drama man and tries to dress up like Park Seo Joon often.

Every time he comes home from a mission, he brings you a bouquet of flowers. Doesn’t matter the time—if it’s three in the morning, cool, he’ll just pick the flowers off the forest floor on his way home. You just know he’s home in the morning when you spot the flowers on your bedside table.

He LOVES styling your hair. Sometimes when he can’t sleep and you choose to stay up with him, he’ll softly run your hands through your hair and try to braid it. If you have short hair, he loves doing those cute little ponytails at the top of your head.

If you’re also a shinobi, he packs you his favorite t-shirts in your bag before you can notice it, so that when you open your bag, the first thing you see is him.

He likes holding your hands. If you’re eating, one of his hands is touching yours. His fingers play with yours often. If he’s deep in thought, his hands are on yours, just nudging and caressing your palm. If you’re cuddling, you bet his hands are intertwined in yours.

He LOVES sleeping in. If you have to work and try and leave early in the morning, he’ll try to pull you back into bed. Don’t let him. Once he has you in his chest, he’ll never let you go. Never.

Loves good morning and good night kisses! Oh my god! They make his heart flutter so much and they make him blush. Especially if you say, “Good morning baby.” right after.

Shisui isn’t much of a jealous person, quite honestly. He knows you’re good looking and such a catch, he reminds you every day, and so when another person admires you from afar, he AGREES. However, he hates it whenever others flirt with you in front of him as if he weren’t there.

It’s quite obvious that you are dating—he’s always holding your hand and just overall being somewhat PDAish, so it’s quite ridiculous that others wouldn’t know. If someone were to just flirt and ask you out in front of him as if he didn’t matter, Shisui isn’t one to just sit back.

“I think you’re talking to the wrong person.” A flash of the Uchiha’s kenkegenkai, and well, they’re running for the hills. Shisui still smiles though, he’s such a polite man.

NSFW

ADDING ON to the jealous! Shisui thought… he’ll never admit it but being overprotective and jealous kind of turns him on. Just the thought of having to protect you (even though he knows you are so capable of protecting yourself AND him,) is enough to make him create a fantasy. He fantasizes that one day you’ll confront him about his jealousy at home after an encounter and exchange he’d have to admit his jealous and well… show it.

Your first time with Shisui was really gentle. He was romantic and even placed rose petals all over the bedroom with candles—you know, that one beautiful cheesy idea? Yeah.

He really didn’t want you to feel uncomfortable and could have waited until the end of time; he really isn’t one to pressure anyone into doing anything they didn’t want.

After your first few times Shisui would become more open with… spontaneous ideas and actions. It was all just one position; one sweet and gentle position until you would suggest something a bit riskier. He would blush at the thought, but would try it out because, oh well, what if he likes it?

Although he’ll never admit it himself, he’s a bit kinky.

Shisui isn’t as experienced as most would say, though. He’s a man of establishing a relationship before being completely intimate with them, and that takes time.

Some would say too much time. Kakashi.

Shisui LOVES LOVES LOVES lingerie. He will buy you any type of lingerie. Lace is his favorite, though. Wear anything with lace and he’ll struggle to not remove it with one move.

The first time you wore lingerie he absolutely lost it. He was all over you in less than a second, and the gentle Shisui you knew had changed. He did apologize for ripping the lingerie and actually bought you another one to make up for it. It didn’t last that long, though.

I would say that Shisui’s sex drive is average, but when he’s feeling a bit frustrated, he can be spontaneous. If he wasn’t so busy all the time he would invest more into it, but since he doesn’t spend too much time at home, he tries to take advantage of the time he has.

PRAISE KINK.

Shisui loves to praise you. Anything you do, he praises you. You moan his name? He’s all over you.

“You are such a good girl/boy.”

“Who said you could be so cute, huh?”

He actually created a playlist for the both of you to listen to whilst being intimate, but the minute you heard OSTs from the Titanic, you had to stop it.

“But babe… Titanic IS romantic.” Yeah, sure Shisui lol.

He gets turned on by you in his shirt. It looks bigger on you and when the hem barely covers your thighs, his mind drifts off into space. He just wants to know… he needs to know what’s underneath his shirt.

He loves having you dom him. Shisui is often expected to be a leader and to take control of a mission, but when he’s at home he prefers for you to take control of him.

Especially if he gets to hold onto your waist while you’re riding him.

When things get rough, they get rough. It does take a while for Shisui to come around to rough sex because he’s afraid of hurting you, but when you were successful for the first time, it’s all he ever thinks about. He does enjoy soft vanilla sex, but the rough sex that has you screaming his name makes him feel some type of way.

Overall, what can I say? Shisui is a picky man. He likes what he wants but is respectful and open-minded enough to try whatever you like… as long as it’s safe and you’re not hurt.

Also, please, please wear more lace! The more lace, the better!

#naruto #naruto scenarios #naruto imagines #shisui #shisui x reader #shisui uchiha #anime #anime scenarios #anime headcanons #anime x reader

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starshine583 · 5 years

Text

A Fitting Situation

(How did I know this was gonna turn into something longer than a snippet? Well, here’s part 4 since you guys asked again. Enjoy!)

Summer Escapades (This was part 3)

The tiny bell above the door jingled as they entered the bakery. Marinette already had a million different designs she wanted to try on Damian. He had so much potential!

“Where are we?” Damian asked, taking in the small shop.

“I wanted to stop by my house real quick.”

He scrunched up his nose, confused. “You live in a bakery?”

Marinette giggled. She was used to those kinds of responses by now.

Before she could explain further, her mother called out to them from the kitchen. “Marinette? Is that you?”

“Yeah, it’s me. I came by to grab something.” She called back, starting to make her way to the stairs.

Sabine and Tom immediately walked out to greet her with bright smiles and a tray of freshly baked goods.

“I thought you were at the banquet with your friends? What happened to…” Her mother gradually trailed off, eyes trained on Damian.

The boy visibly stiffened when Tom turned to him as well, utter shock written all over the couple’s faces.

“Is that..?”

“Damian Wayne.” Marinette nodded, coming back to his side with a nervous smile. They wouldn’t be too weird about this visit, right? Or about her trying to bring a boy to her room? Sure, it was just to try on clothes, but you never knew when it came to her parents.

Tom’s tray slipped from his fingers, creating a loud *CRASH* and sending cookies everywhere. He didn’t move to pick them up, continuing to stare at Damian with a slack-jaw.

Marinette buried her face in her hands and groaned. Why were they being so quiet? This was so embarrassing.

As if on queue, Sabine sprang back to life, rushing over with a wide grin.

“Forgive my manners, it’s so nice to meet you! I’ve heard so much about your family. We really are grateful for what you’ve done for us.” She beamed, pulling him into a hug.

The flash of panic on Damian’s face towards the abrupt hug made Marinette snort. She almost felt bad for him.

Almost.

It was when Tom came over that she moved aside. That man had no mercy when it came to his bear hugs.

Damian found this out soon enough when Tom picked up both him and Sabine.

“Welcome to our home! Come by whenever you like.” He stated heartily.

Damian forced a small smile, though it looked more like a distorted glare. “Uh, thanks.”

The coos and hugs continued without much sign of stopping for about ten minutes straight. Marinette finally had the compassion to intervene when he looked about ready to murder someone or pass out from how hard Tom was squeezing him.

“Alright, alright, he’s had enough. Besides, we’re kind of in a hurry.” She said, almost having to rip Damian from their hands.

Sabine and Tom reluctantly let him go, but that didn’t stop either from asking more questions.

“Where are you headed?”

“Did he ask you for something?”

“How did you two meet anyway?”

Marinette let out a nervous laugh, ushering Damian up the stairs as quickly as possible. Looks like she’d need to make a plan to escape the bakery too.

“Sorry about them. They can be a little.. Overwhelming.” She apologized once they were out of hearing range.

Damian nodded in agreement, glancing back towards the entryway of the bakery. “Yeah.. but they remind me of some people I know. In a way.”

Marinette raised her eyebrows in surprise. Other people as over-the-top as her parents? Now that was a shock.

She led him up the second flight of stairs, through the trapdoor to her bedroom. It was a bit messy with some loose projects scattered here and there, but she should be able to find him some clothes easily.

“So this is your room?” Damian asked, taking it upon himself to look around.

Marinette offered him a shy smile and tucked some of her hair behind her ears. “Yep! This is mine.”

He didn’t respond, instead continuing around the room. He inspected the pictures on her walls, ran his hand over some of her designs, and even held a few of her hand made plush dolls.

“I know it’s weird to say because we just met, but this room is very.. You.”

Marinette chuckled and glanced at him from her desk where she was fishing for her things to get started on the outfit. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

She then pulled out a long, white tape measure and some pins. Without a word, she strolled over to Damian and wrapped the tape measure around his waist, pulling it tight to get the exact measurements.

Damian flinched, raising his arms and looking down at her with an incredulous expression. “What are you doing?”

“Measurements.” Was the only answer she gave, swiftly taking the tape measure back and looking him over.

“You look like a black and red kinda guy.” She said, snapping her fingers. Or maybe green? Either way, she would try anything she had.

Marinette walked over to the closet and dug around in there for a bit before throwing out a few different types of clothing. By the time she was done picking things out, she had a small pile for him to try on.

“Hurry up and put these on. I wanna see them all.” Marinette instructed, all too eagerly handing him the outfits.

A frown tugged at the corner of his lips, but he didn’t argue, wandering over to the bathroom to change.

The first outfit was a black t-shirt with a long-sleeved, button up T-shirt on top of it and jeans. Marinette didn’t feel like it worked well, though, so she had him try on the next one. A red hoodie with a black leather jacket and ripped up, black jeans. Close, but not quite. The third outfit was another black T-shirt with a red hoodie and grey jeans.

Yes! She thought excitedly, jotting the idea down. Of course, it was still summer. So that would probably be hot..

He went ahead and tried on the last outfit. A half sleeved, blood red shirt that turned black around the shoulders and sleeves, accompanied with a pair of dark grey jeans.

Marinette squealed, hopping up to circle him for a better look. “It’s perfect! What do you think?”

Damian glanced down at his outfit thoughtfully.

“I like it.” He said with a small smile that put Marinette’s excitement through the roof. “And you made these yourself?”

She nodded, trying not to burst. Damian Wayne liked her outfits!

He looked genuinely impressed and picked up the other clothes she’d given him. “Do you mind if I take this too?”

“Absolutely!” Marinette grinned. She wasn’t sure if he would actually wear them after today, but he didn’t seem like the type to do things for the sake of courtesy.

Damian neatly folded the last outfit and set it on top of his suit. “I’ll have someone come and take them to the hotel we’re staying at.”

Marinette smirked. Exactly something a rich person would say.

After she made some finishing touches on the outfit, Damian and Marinette left the bakery to start the walk to the amusement park. It was farther now because of the route they took, but Marinette found that she didn’t mind the extra blocks. It gave them some more time to talk together.

Unfortunately, they didn’t make it far.

They’d just turned onto a street when something crashed into the building next to them. A large boulder off the roof came tumbling onto them, and before Marinette could react, Damian grabbed her arm and pushed her against the wall, using his body as a sort of shield.

The chunk of building landed right in front of them, blowing dust and debris everywhere.

Marinette tried to level her breathing as she looked him over for injuries. How did he react so fast? Not to mention, why would he put himself in danger so recklessly!

“Are you okay?” He asked, looking her over as well.

Was she okay? He’s the one that almost got hit by a building!

An eerie laugh sounded over head, and the two looked up to see none other than an akuma standing haughtily on another building.

“I have to go” Damian and Marinette said in unison.

Their eyes met, both a bit surprised. She couldn’t help but notice how close they were, his hands pining her to the wall. Or how she could still smell his cologne despite him wearing her clothes..

She shook her head, fighting back the blush crawling up her neck. Now was not the time for that!

“Get to safety.” She ordered, ducking out of his hold.

Damian nodded and started running in the other direction. For it being his first time in an akuma attack, he had an uncanny sense of calm.

They gave each other a final, reluctant glance before Marinette turned the corner to find a place to transform.

Tag List: @thebookwormfairy @unholykrow @constancetruggle @vixen-uchiha @derpingrainbow @kceedraws @graduatedmelon@starry-bi-sky @worlds-tiniest-spook-pastry@sweatyruinsstudentbored @go-n-ef @tinybrie @resignedcatservant @never-neverland @captainmac6 @drama-queen-supreme

#Damian Wayne #Daminette #Gotham AU #Marinette

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raendown · 5 years

Link

Pairing: MadaraTobirama Word count: 4207 Chapter: 4/? Summary: Not all wars are fought on the battlefield. Some are fought at the conference table, with whispers in the shadows, or even in the bedroom.

In a world where the Senju and Uchiha traditional lands were too far apart to have ever made them enemies, Butsuma and Tajima are the ones who come together and sign a treaty of peace. Madara isn’t happy to have his life signed away for him in a political marriage to strengthen the bond between their clans. He is even less happy to have Tobirama make assumptions of him from their very first night together. What follows from there is a journey of healing, of learning, and finding the places to belong in the places least expected.

Follow the link or read it under the cut!

KO-FI and commission info in the header!

Chapter 4

Madara watched the birds nesting in the tree outside his kitchen window and wondered for the thousandth time why he, of all people, had to be the one deprived of such a happy family. It should have been him returning home to small voices all crying happily for his attention. Granted he had done quite a bit of thinking in the time since he’d gotten married and he was fairly certain his tastes truly did lay within his own gender but that shouldn’t have stopped him from choosing the right man to adopt with, to raise children with, to build a proper home with.

Instead he’d been forced in to a loveless contract with a man that felt nothing at all. Tobirama’s face remained consistently devoid of any emotion save for when he was angry and even then he exhibited inhuman self-control. It simply wasn’t natural. Madara still had trouble believing he was expected to spend the rest of his life with an animated statue lying next to him at night.

Although to be honest he had very little proof that Tobirama did return to the bed every night. The cold bastard always waited until he was sure Madara was asleep to come lay down and he was gone again before the sun had properly risen each morning. It stopped Madara from having to deal with that unfairly attractive face, though, so it wasn’t like he minded very much. Were they not forced in to this sham without consent and maybe if he hadn’t known Tobirama lacked any sort of personality it was possible he might have developed a crush on the other for his looks alone but knowing how empty that pretty face was made such notions impossible now.

If it weren’t for the few and far between mornings when he woke up just in time to see a shadowed figure leaving their bedroom he might sometimes be inclined to believe he had hallucinated their farce of a union. Madara closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm the anger that rose again as he remembered the now-familiar scene he had watched through his cracked eyelids only a few days before. Someday in the future he would be the head of his clan. How was he supposed to hold his head up with pride and keep the confidence of his people when his own husband refused to wear their clan symbol? The man could deny it all he wanted but Tobirama counted as an Uchiha now; his continued insistence on covering himself with the Senju mon was not only an insult to Madara personally, it was an insult to everyone around him. It was also a much too obvious sign of their lack of harmony, a way for just about anyone to tell that they weren’t exactly a tightly knit couple, and just thinking about one of their fathers catching on to what was happening left Madara feeling cold with anxiety.

The very thought of the threatening lecture he would have to listen to and the accusations that this all must be his own fault had him scowling deeper and reaching for the coffee pot to refill his cup. No one should ever have to deal with an angry Tajima without caffeine to bolster their spirits, not even when it was just inside their own heads.

Since today was his day off when he was not expected to show his face at the tower where the village was mostly run by a council made up of the heads from each of the clans currently living together, Madara was allowed to finish his coffee in a leisurely fashion before trotting out in to the backyard for a quick bit of exercise. Afterwards he puttered around the house cleaning all the small messes that tended to get left behind by a man too busy during the work week to deal with them. Most of it was easy, just a pile of clothes in the wrong place or a few dishes he’d been letting soak for too long. Some it was more annoying like cleaning out all the food gone bad in the fridge because he didn’t know how to cook small portions for himself instead of the massive dinners he was used to cooking to feed an entire household.

Izuna, it seemed, had developed the power of reading minds; he showed up just as Madara was questioning his own sanity for actually missing the chore of feeding such a bottomless stomach. Ruffling his older brother’s hair in place of a greeting, he flopped down in the closest kitchen chair and grabbed one of the slightly withered apples set out in a bowl on the table.

“Home alone?” he asked knowingly.

“When am I not?” It was hard to keep the bitter tone out of his words but since they were alone anyway Madara didn’t really try very hard. “What do you want brat?”

“Nothing, really. I’ve got a meeting with some of the prospective recruits in an hour to go through some training drills. Thought I’d waste time here until then since I’ve caught up on all that unnecessary paperwork your darling husband insists on.”

Madara pinched his lips together. He wanted to hate that just like he hated everything else about Tobirama but unfortunately he could actually see the man’s point on this. A paper trail was as much of a curse as a blessing but in some cases it was better to have it than not. Starting a new village, the very first attempt in history at merging several different shinobi clans, that was the kind of situation that bred suspicion and fact checking. Now was the time to do everything by the book so that later down the road they had evidence to pull out and wave around in the face of anyone accusing them of not doing their jobs correctly. It was just a pity that Tobirama had been the one to point that out.

Tossing the fridge door closed and tying off the bag of rotten food with a vicious twist, Madara blew the trailing fringe of hair away from his face before growling, “Must be nice to get caught up so easily. It always takes me until noon to clear my desk and then they always bring me more.”

“Any idea where your wayward asshole went today?”

“Not a fucking clue. Who the hell knows where he disappears to? For that matter, who the hell cares?”

“I mean, you’re supposed to,” Izuna pointed out.

“Ugh.” Madara rolled his eyes and hauled the bag up like it was Tobirama’s neck. “I know. But not here. This is my house and I can hate whoever I want when I’m inside these walls. As long as father doesn’t come over for something, I suppose.”

With a nod Izuna crunched in to his apple and spoke around a full mouth. “Kami that must be awkward. He doesn’t expect you guys to kiss or anything still, does he?”

“No, thank the sage.”

That had probably been the worst period of his entire life, the expectant looks from his father driving him and Tobirama to trade short reluctant kisses to each other’s cheeks whenever they were caught in the same room together and then waiting for Tajima to turn his back so they could wipe their mouths. Of all people he would have thought his father would understand Madara not warming up to his new ball and chain immediately, him being the one that chained them together, but at times Madara wondered if his father had somehow tricked his own memories in to believing they were a love match. He certainly seemed to expect them to act like one even in private.

Releasing a heavy sigh, he carried the bag out of the room and down the hall to set it outside at the edge of the porch where it would get picked up that night by whoever pulled sanitation duty. This village had sounded like such a grand dream when it was proposed. He should have known those dreams would lose their shine for someone like him before he’d even really had a chance to appreciate the incredible strides they were taking.

Izuna had picked out another apple when he got back inside and was spinning it between his hands in slow rotations, trying to spot any bruises. As Madara stepped inside and shut the door he replaced it in the bowl.

“Wish I knew how to make this better for you, Aniki. Maybe if we knew what crawled up that albino’s ass we could figure out what his problem is and you guys could at least make a truce.” The apple dropped out of the bowl but Izuna caught it and set it back once more, making sure to find a more secure place to balance it.

“You know what…that’s a good idea.”

“I didn’t give you any ideas.”

“Well I’m blaming this one on you anyway. If I want to find out what his problem is then I need to figure out how his head works. And since I’m not exactly keen to chat with him – I don’t think he’d give anything up if I tried – the next best option is to go to someone who knows him almost as well as he knows himself. Damn, I’m a genius.”

He was already halfway back down the hall when he heard Izuna calling after him, “Wait, I thought you said the idea came from me!”

“Get out of my house! And lock up when you leave!” Madara didn’t bother going back to try and oust the idiot himself. His sibling was as stubborn as he was and he didn’t want to waste the entire day shoving each other back and forth across the kitchen for nothing but stupid pride.

At least the weather was nice as he marched his way through the Uchiha district. Several of his fellow clan members stopped to nod respectfully as he passed and Madara made sure that he acknowledged all of them individually. If he was going to run the clan someday he didn’t want these people to think they were going to be led by a tyrant even if they would now have a higher authority to appeal to. When the position was passed to him he wanted to be good at it. He wanted their respect.

The further away he got from the Uchiha compound the less he encountered people who stopped to pay him their respects. Not that he found it insulting since these weren’t his people and they obviously knew him less, it was just a little disappointing in an oddly selfish way. He wanted to earn respect from others in honest ways but he could admit in the privacy of his own thoughts that he also enjoyed the way it made him feel important to have his kin stop and pay him their dues as he went by. If he wanted that from people other than the clan he’d grown up with then he would need to work twice as hard for it, a task he was more than willing to give his best to.

Entering the Senju compound, unfortunately, made him feel quite the opposite of important despite all the eyes he could suddenly feel watching him. While he was sure that Tobirama was too proud – and too smart – to tell anyone about their marital discordance, he was still the stranger who had married these people’s secondary heir and spirited him away. None of them knew much about him so he could understand why they watched him so curiously yet never approached. He was also aware of how standoffish he could be so it was also understandable that they weren’t eager to make friends.

Only one among them was that eccentric and that was exactly who he had come to see.

Hashirama’s home was a quaint little thing that hardly befitted a clan heir, though he seemed to like it. According to him he didn’t need much space for just two people and he could always add more rooms with his Mokuton should he and his wife ever have any children. Personally Madara thought that was stupid. A man with power could never afford to let those underneath him completely forget about that power, no matter how affable and open he wanted to be. Being friendly with the members of his clan was one thing, building their trust so they knew they could turn to him if they ever needed to, but letting them think they were on the same level as him could only result in a lack of respect when he needed them to remember their place.

Not that social cues were particularly important to him right at that moment, storming in through the front door without knocking. With a flash of infused chakra he could tell that the man he was looking for was tucked away in the backyard where he had built a little greenhouse to putter around in. He stumped off in that direction immediately.

Mito passed him on her way down the hall, eyes narrowed dangerously though she opted not to say anything about him barging in to their home without an invitation. Not now at least. He was sure the lecture would come later. Hashirama’s wife was not a woman known for holding back her words when someone had displeased her and her wrath was something he had learned to fear within his first couple of visits here. Whatever lecture she was surely already composing in her mind he would get her get it out, solemnly promise to change his ways, and probably do the same thing all over again the next time he came over because he might fear her but that wasn’t something he wanted her to ever find out.

As a half-assed sort of peace offering he made sure not to slam the back door when he stormed outside and made his way across to the greenhouse. Hashirama’s backyard was surprisingly barren for a man who enjoyed flora so much, nothing but well-trimmed grass covering the fenced area between main house and greenhouse, not even a single flower bed or wild bush. The front of their home was decorated with perfectly manicured bushes which Mito apparently cared for, two to bloom in every season, but the rest of the man’s flora was kept under cover where he could spend hours at a time tending and trimming as he liked without ever having to worry about the weather.

When Madara stepped inside he found Hashirama bent over a row of flowers he had no name for, probably something exotic brought in by one of the other clans as a gift, but his friend stood up with a brilliant smile to greet him right away.

“Well hello there, I wasn’t expecting to see you today,” he said. “Didn’t you mention you wanted to spend your day off relaxing at home? Is Tobi there? I’ve been meaning to come around for a visit.”

“No he’s not there. Your cretin sibling is never there when I am; it’s one of the only good things about him.” Madara curled his upper lip in a sneer that he wiped away just as quickly at a disapproving look from Hashirama. For all that the man’s wife was scary in an obvious bodily harm sort of way, Hashirama was scarier in that he had a way of making you actually feel bad for the things you said. A terrible power, really.

“There’s no need to be unkind to someone who isn’t here to defend themselves. I don’t understand why the two of you are having such troubles getting along; I’ve never seen Tobi act like this before.”

“Like what?” Madara demanded. “Like he has no emotions? Because news flash: your brother has no emotions!”

The rant he was about to take off on was cut short before it could even begin when he saw the genuine hurt on Hashirama’s face and winced. He really hadn’t meant to hurt his friend, though he wasn’t sure what he’d said to do so. Surely it couldn’t be actual news to the man that Tobirama was a walking brick wall. The two of them had grown up together, had lived in the same house right up until the village was built. Not even Hashirama could be so blind as to miss something that obvious about a person living under the same roof as him.

Setting down the pruning scissors that Madara hadn’t even seen until he moved his hand, Hashirama wiped dirt from his palms on to a nearby rag before propping both fists on his hips with a disappointed expression more suited for a misbehaving child.

“My brother has just as many emotions as the rest of us! Just because you and I are a little more free with expressing ourselves than others does not mean we feel more than him!” He shook his head and tutted. “A marriage is about work, my friend. I’ll admit Tobi may seem like a little more work than some but he’s very worth it!”

“Don’t take this the wrong way but I highly fucking doubt it.”

Hashirama pinched his lips together thoughtfully.

“This is because you two aren’t having sex, isn’t it?”

“What!?” Madara could feel all the blood draining from his face only to rush back in with a vigor, probably turning his skin a brilliant cherry color. “What the hell, Hashirama!? That is no business of yours!”

“It’s no big deal. I don’t understand why you won’t just sleep with him.” His friend shrugged as though it were perfectly normal to try and hook his own sibling up.

Trying to speak around his utter mortification, Madara hated that his voice came out all squeaky with panic. “It is very much a big deal! I can’t just – just – just sleep with him! I barely even know him! He’s just as asshole that happens to sleep in the same space as me and never talks!”

“What does getting to know him have to do with sex?” Hashirama asked. Incredibly, he sounded genuinely confused. Madara stared for a few seconds just to make sure he was serious. He was.

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“No? I don’t get it. Sex has nothing to do with how well you know each other.”

“Sex has everything to do with how well we know each other! Sex is supposed to be between two people who love each other! It’s an expression of affection!” Madara’s arms shot out to wave up and down as though that would help him make his point better. He recognized that he was getting a bit worked up but there was no one else here to see him fall apart, only Hashirama, and although he’d only known the other man for a few months he trusted him completely.

Or at least he did until Hashirama tossed his head back to laugh.

“What?” He crowed. “That’s ridiculous! It’s just a bodily desire, Madara! Are you telling me that you’ve only ever had sex with the people you’ve been in love with? How often do you Uchiha fall in love?” Hashirama’s giggles slowly faded as he took in the utterly mortified expression on his friend’s face. “Madara…have you…have you even had sex at all?”

“No! Of course I haven’t!”

“Oh, wow, I wasn’t expecting that. Why not?” he tilted his head curiously.

Then he jerked his head back when Madara shoved an angry finger in his face. “I just told you! Sex isn’t something you just – that you just – it’s special! Gods above, are all you Senju just out here sleeping with whoever the hell you feel like!?”

“Um…yes?”

“Come again now?” Madara demanded in a low voice.

Hashirama help up both hands in a helpless expression. “It’s just sex, Madara. When we’re married it’s different, I agree with that, married people should stay faithful to each other of course! But before our partner is chosen for us there’s no reason we can’t enjoy ourselves. These desires are natural, after all. Nothing about that is shameful.”

Staring wide-eyed, Madara could hardly believe what he was hearing. Underneath the shock he had to admit that this explained quite a bit about their wedding night and the way Tobirama had acted then. Also the way he reacted when Madara rejected his advances so vehemently.

Not that this was any sort of valid excuse. Maybe the Senju had different values and practices than the Uchiha but he shouldn’t have assumed like an overbearing asshole that his were the more important, that he could just take what he wanted without first making sure Madara was comfortable or even on the same page at all. Which he very much wasn’t! Even if he had known that Tobirama and the Senju as a whole viewed sex so casually that wouldn’t have negated the fact that he still had his own values!

Unable to even begin with the sheer idiocy of just sleeping around with all and sundry before marriage, Madara chose to focus on the other part of this he didn’t get.

“So you all really just wait for your marriage to be arranged by someone else?” he demanded.

“Well yes.” To his frustration Hashirama shrugged casually as though it were no big deal. “It’s tradition in our clan for the parent to find a match for their child. Usually the matches are based on social status and compatibility but some people still hold to the old ways of breeding for stronger soldiers.”

“And that doesn’t bother you!? What kind of life is that? I can’t imagine not loving my – well. I suppose I can imagine not loving my spouse and, let me tell you, it’s awful. I can’t believe your entire clan subjects themselves to this loveless existence willingly.” Madara did his best to inject as much scorn as possible in to his voice to make sure Hashirama fully understood how upsetting he found this.

“Oh, no, it’s not like that at all! Of course we love our spouses!”

Lifting both eyebrows Madara shook his head. “You just told me that you don’t marry for love! Now you’re contradicting yourself so which is it?”

Hashirama smiled at him and it made him snarl, one of those softly condescending smiles that a parent might give to a child who is asking questions about something they should really know about already. He very much did not appreciate that look. In no way did he feel he had earned that look.

“Marriage isn’t just something you fall in to, my friend, whether you marry for love or by arrangement. We allow our children the freedom to explore themselves until it comes time to settle down and then it becomes their duty to make the marriage a success. A relationship is something you work at, something that takes a lot of effort.” Looking over in the general direction of his own house, Hashirama’s smile turned gentle. “Just because my marriage was arranged for me doesn’t mean that I don’t love my wife very much. I’m glad that she was chosen for me; I can’t imagine anyone else in her place.”

“It just…doesn’t seem fair.” Madara sighed deeply. He didn’t have the words to express how deeply it cut that he wasn’t allowed the chance to marry because he loved his partner. The idea of working to fall in love was something he just couldn’t wrap his head around, it made no sense to him. Maybe he was missing some key component here but the subject was rapidly depressing him and he realized he was quite done discussing this.

Of all the insights Hashirama had to share about his brother’s behavior, Madara hadn’t expected them to involve anything as deep as this. The rest of their discussion could wait for another time. All the energy from his previous anger was quickly draining away to leave him feeling empty and cold. Instead of being comforted by understanding his husband a little better he felt more discouraged than ever, almost to the point of feeling truly hopeless. The two of them were nothing alike with no common ground. What kind of life could they possibly build together if they couldn’t see eye to eye on anything? No life. Or at least not a happy one.

“Whatever. Forgot your idiot brother. Just…tell me about your plants or something.”

He regretted that as soon as he said it. Hashirama’s eyes lit up and words were tumbling over each other to leave his mouth a moment later, some rambling explanation of where the flower in front of him originated and how it had adapted to grow in warmer climates. Madara turned away but the chatter continued to wash over him no matter how disinterested he looked. He really should have known enough to choose any other kind of distraction than setting Hashirama’s motor mouth loose.

At least he accomplished what he’d been looking for. By the time five minutes had gone by Madara wasn’t thinking of Tobirama at all and the problems in his home life slipped away to be mulled over another time.

#rae writes #madatobi #madara #tobirama #hashirama #izuna #fanfiction

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myaekingheart · 5 years

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26. Konoha Matsuri

Just wanna say real quick that this is lowkey my absolute favorite chapter so far and I quickly posted the two previous just so I could post this one on my birthday (May 13th) ^_^

read the scarecrow and the bell on ao3

index | from the beginning | < previous | next >

For as long as anyone could remember, Konohagakure held a festival smack dab in the middle of every May to commemorate its celebrated establishment. It was no secret that Konoha was a monumental fixture in shinobi history, the first dedicated shinobi village. After its creation, more and more areas followed suit until reaching the geographical landscape of today. Children learned about Konoha Matsuri in the Academy, where in history books it was said that Hashirama Senju created the holiday at first to commemorate the Leaf Village’s first successful year, only for it to become an annual tradition, a true display of patriotism and loyalty to one’s own home.

It was a few days before the festival when Kakashi paced his apartment as he shuffled through his thoughts. He was grateful to have gotten off work for the day of the festival, a truly coveted achievement in the ANBU especially. His only hope was that Rei may have, as well. The inner cogs of his mind churned as he formulated his plan.

When Rei awoke that morning, she found a bag of pastries on her doorstep and a note from Kakashi. She unfolded and skimmed it, then pressed her hand to her forehead and sighed. Kakashi would be expecting a response, and soon as this was time sensitive. Konoha Matsuri was a huge celebration that warranted preparation. She wasn’t sure what to tell him.

As a child, she remembered being mesmerized by the all the festivities, as most children are. The colorful lights, symphony of smells, luxurious kimonos, and brilliant fireworks display were enchanting. Now that she was an adult, the novelty had worn off. This was only further enforced by the social climate she was currently trapped in. The aftermath of her mother’s birthday still loomed overhead, everpresent.

“I think you should go” Naru said with a definitive nod. That was the only way Rei was ever going to firmly make a decision: confide in her best friend. “I know you’re nervous, but this is supposed to be fun! Try to lighten up just for one day. Oh! And besides, this gives us an excuse to do my favorite thing: shopping!”

Rei groaned and buried her face in her hands. “My drawers are already stuffed enough, I can’t handle anymore clothes.”

“Rei, you wear the same three outfits every week and the only reason your drawers won’t shut is because you don’t fold a damn thing” Naru replied nonchalantly. “Whether you like it or not, we are going shopping for Konoha Matsuri.” It was hard to argue with her when she was this excited. Besides, if Naru was going then that provided an extra cushion for any negative encounters she might face. Or so she thought. The blonde’s face suddenly lit up and she squealed with delight. “Oh my god I just got the best idea!”

“Normally your ‘best ideas’ always end up being the worst” Rei replied skeptically.

“No, no, no, I mean it! This time, it’s gold” Naru insisted. “I’ll invite Sekkachi to go with us tomorrow, and we can all try on kimonos together and have a great time! It’ll be just like the old days!” Naru was full to bursting with excitement, meanwhile her best friend flopped back on her bed and made the most ungodly noise.

“I liked the old days better when they were just that: old and in the past” she sighed. “Does Sekkachi really have to come? I’ve had my fill of her for the rest of the year. She barged into my apartment the other day, you know.”

“Oh, she’s not that bad!” Naru said with a dismissing wave of her hand. “Why can’t you just let bygones be bygones? We’re all adults here! We can be civil with each other, right?” The way Naru looked at her then made Rei feel vulnerable and exposed. Naru wasn’t an Uchiha but with that glare, she might as well have been.

“Okay, fine, Sekkachi can come but I’m not happy about it!” Rei finally agreed. Naru leapt up in the air and squealed as she did a little happy dance. If only making her happy wasn’t such a pain in the ass.

It wasn’t that Rei disliked Sekkachi. The blue-haired ninja actually had many positive qualities that Rei found admirable. It was just that Sekkachi was also rude, cynical, insane, and a total killjoy. She lacked the scruples of a compassionate person. Rei was certain the only time she had ever seen her former teammate smile—genuinely smile—was whenever she was hanging out with Might Guy of all people. She never understood the dynamics of their friendship, but somehow she supposed it worked if they had remained steadfast and true to one another this long.

When Rei awoke the next morning, Naru was standing in the lobby by herself. For a moment, Rei felt a surge of relief thinking that perhaps Sekkachi had cancelled on them. She was also always impulsive and flaky, as far as Rei was concerned. As she descended the stairs, however, she caught sight of the ninja in question standing outside with a cigarette between her lips. Typical.

Naru waltzed them down the street with one girl in each arm and a massive grin on her face. “Isn’t this just the best? All we’re missing is Chikara-sensei and it’ll be just like old times!” she enthused.

Sekkachi smirked and flicked some ash onto the ground. “So where are you dragging us first?” she asked. The inclusion of first was instrumental here, because when Naru went shopping, it was an exhausting, all-day endeavor that involved at least an hour in every shop’s dressing room. At least this was one thing Rei and Sekkachi could agree on: they hated shopping.

After a few hours of no success, Naru insisted they get something to eat since, after all, they needed to keep their energy up for the second half of their adventure. They slipped into Yakiniku Q, and Sekkachi was more than grateful for a chance to sit down.

“So, I know you’re going with Kakashi, but what about you, Naru?” she asked, tending to her meat on the barbeque.

“I actually have someone, too!” Naru exclaimed. “It’s Konoha Matsuri, after all, so I had no choice but to go big and hire someone!”

Rei nearly choked on her pork. “I’m sorry, hired?” Naru nodded vigorously, a wide grin on her face. “Who the hell did you…?”

“You’ll never guess” the blonde replied, full to bursting with laughter. Rei and Sekkachi blinked in unison. Naru then turned to the redhead, resting her chin in her palm, and said, “I guess there was at least one good thing about your mother’s birthday, and that’s that I was able to get set up with one of the boys her friends were trying to pawn off on you.”

“Oh, no…which one?” Rei asked, dropping her head to the table.

“Nibui!” Naru exclaimed. She couldn’t hold back her laughter any longer. Sekkachi looked at her quizzically.

“And who is this Nibui guy, exactly?” she asked.

Rei turned her face toward her former teammate and replied, “Nibui is the nephew of this lady my mom is friends with named Suisen. Apparently he is newly single and great with finances.” Sekkachi nodded knowingly, then turned back to Naru.

“So you having trouble filing your taxes or something? You were always were an idiot when it came to math” she said. Naru frowned and delicately took another piece of meat into her mouth.

“I’ll have you know, Nibui is brilliant. So much so that he even works in the cryptology department” she explained. Sekkachi nearly choked on her food.

“And how much did you pay this nerd for this?” she asked.

“A hundred bucks an hour” the blonde replied casually. Again, Sekkachi nearly choked.

“A hundred an hour?!” Rei repeated. “Naru, don’t you think that’s a little…I don’t know, steep?”

“You really do need help with your finances�� Sekkachi said in disbelief.

Naru waved them off and laughed. “Don’t worry about it, I am perfectly fine with my finances! You wouldn’t believe the kinds of mission the hokage has been sending me on lately.” And that was the last that was said on that.

It wasn’t until late in the afternoon that Naru had finally found the perfect outfit for the festival. She squealed and burst out of the dressing room showing off the color and fabric of the “perfect” kimono. Rei caught a glimpse of the price tag and winced. She doubted she would find anything within her budget here, nor did she have much luck anywhere else. Sekkachi, however, was perhaps in the worst shape of them all. Not only had she not found anything for herself (though, honestly, she wasn’t even really looking) but she had by now become incredibly fatigued and her face had grown considerably pale.

“Alright, you found the kimono. Wonderful. Now can I go home?” she sighed, leaning against a rack of clothing.

“But what about you guys?” Naru asked, looking them up and down. Quite frankly, she didn’t think much of their senses of style. Konoha Matsuri was a celebration and it called for spectacular clothes, which neither of these girls really owned.

“I will go in a chicken suit if you let me leave right now” Sekkachi begged. “Just please…I need to go home. This has been too much for one day.”

The blonde paused for a moment, then sighed. “Fine” she said, waving her off. “Go ahead.” Sekkachi looked like she was nearly about to break down in tears, she was so grateful. She rushed off as quickly as she could. Now that it was just the two of them, however, Rei knew there was no way she was going to get out of the remainder of this. Naru wasn’t going to let her go until she found the perfect outfit.

She flipped through racks and racks of kimonos, offering up ones she thought would look good with her hair color and whatnot, but Rei shook her head to most of them, mainly due to the price tag. After a while, Naru caught on.

“Rei, is there something bothering you?” she finally asked, extending her arm across the rack so Rei couldn’t continue searching. “Something tells me you don’t even want to do this.”

A stout woman in the back room poked her head out and announced impatiently that they were closing in ten minutes. The pressure rose.

“Listen, it’s not that. I’m just really nervous about this, the last thing I have on my mind is clothes, alright?” Rei explained.

“There’s nothing for you to be nervous about! Like I said, can you just relax for, like, one day in your life?” Naru replied.

“I relax!” Rei countered. Naru stared her down. “I just don’t know if I even want to go through with this, you know?”

“Well, you’re going to whether you want to or not now we’ve got a total of eight minutes left to find you something to wear and buy it and we’re going to find you something, got it?” the blonde insisted. She then began frantically searching through the kimonos, pulling whatever she could find, and shoving them into Rei’s arms. She then pushed the redhead into the nearest dressing room, insisting, “Try on every single one and then pick which one you like best! If money is the problem then I’ll buy it for you, don’t worry about it!”

Rei had to admit, Naru offering to buy her something was insanely generous. Not that she wasn’t a generous enough girl already, but the prices in this store were quite frankly obscene. This had to have been really important to Naru for her to be so determined to spend this much money.

It took Rei all of five minutes to whip through the three kimonos Naru had pulled for her, though she admittedly did not pay much mind to the proper procedures. She eventually picked a floral turquoise brocade and that was the end of it. She zipped out of the dressing room, dragged Naru to the cash register, and checked out much to the shopkeeper’s dismay. They left with two minutes to spare.

When the day of the festival arrived, it took all of Rei’s strength not to sit and have a panic attack for fifteen minutes. She took her time getting ready, standing under the shower head and just letting the hot water beat against her back. She even applied minimal makeup just to waste time and keep her mind occupied. She was scared that if she got ready too quickly, and was stuck waiting, she would surely lose her damn mind.

There was a knock at the door just as she was pinning her kanzashi in place. She sighed and mentally prepared herself for what was about to happen, then opened the door to find Kakashi standing on the other side. She had never seen him quite like this before, dressed so casual and relaxed. He still wore his ninja headband covering his left eye and, of course, his mask, but his kimono and sandals were a welcome surprise.

“Are you ready to go?” he asked, looking her up and down. She nodded, then took his offered hand. “You look beautiful” he commented as they descended the stairs.

“Thanks. It’s new” she laughed, extending her arm out to fully display her long sleeve. “Naru forced me to get it.”

As they stepped out into the streets, they were instantly assaulted with the chaotic splendor of festival life. For a moment, standing there beside Kakashi, the novelty of it all returned to her. The lights were mesmerizing, the food smelled to die for, and a tinge of excitement (or was it panic?) struck her chest at the thought of fireworks. She smiled up at him and he returned the favor.

It didn’t take long for Naru to track down the happy couple, dragging a deadpan Nibui along behind her. Kakashi eyed the young man suspiciously, asking, “Have we met…?” Nibui shook his head.

“I know you, but you don’t know me. But then again everyone knows you, Kakashi Hatake” he explained. Rei hated the fact that her first impression of him was that he greatly resembled a mole. His beaty little eyes were unsettling, and that middle part in his hair certainly was not the most flattering. But what else could she expect from a cryptologist? They all gave off an aura of sleep-deprived intellectual maniacs.

As they passed a game of Ningyo sukui, Kakashi nudged Rei on the shoulder and with a smile and whispered, “You should go play a round. That used to be your favorite, right?”

Rei’s cheeks went dark red as she laughed nervously. “What? Kakashi, no, that’s a kid’s game” she insisted.

“Dammit! How many times is it going to take?!” a voice then erupted. Kakashi and Rei, as well as Naru and Nibui, looked over to find a familiar face crouched by the Ningyo sukui tub, a focused expression on his face.

Kakashi chuckled, then turned to Rei. “Well, Guy doesn’t seem to think so.”

Sekkachi stood over him, arms crossed, then handed the person manning the game another dollar. “Guy, I’m gonna go broke if you keep this up” she said.

“Just one more try! I’ll get it this time, I swear” Guy insisted. The blue-haired kunoichi didn’t seem convinced.

“Glad to see you’re feeling better, Sekkachi” Naru greeted as she approached. Sekkachi rolled her eyes.

“I’m only here because Guy made me come” she replied. Then her eyes shifted to Nibui standing dutifully behind his date, and she couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. “Is this your man-whore?” she asked.

“Excuse you!” Naru shouted, slapping Sekkachi with her fan. “Don’t be rude! I know that’s hard for you, but at least try, alright?”

“And what about you?” Sekkachi asked, then turning to Rei. “And where is your date?”

Rei blinked, then turned around to find Kakashi had disappeared. A surge of panic coursed through her, her mind jumping to the worst case scenarios. “H-he was just here a second ago!” she replied.

A look of concern crossed Naru’s face, as well, searching the area for where he may have gone. Then, her concern changed to a sweet delight and she pointed in the direction of the sukui tank. Kakashi was handing over a dollar, then approaching with a small paper paddle and a grin.

“Kakashi, no!” Rei whispered, hiding her face with her hand. But Kakashi persisted. He handed her the paddle and then guided her to the tank with a smile.

“You do remember how to play, don’t you?” he asked.

“Kakashi, this is ridiculous. I’m not doing this” she insisted. “This is a kid’s game, I’m going to get in trouble.”

“So long as he’s getting money, I don’t think the man running the game really cares” Kakashi replied. “I would go for that rubber duck if I were you” he then added.

Rei huffed and shook her head. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. She had never felt so hyperaware of her own age before, terrified someone was going to come along and tell her she couldn’t do that. Yet every time she turned around, Kakashi was crouching beside her grinning and silently encouraging her to go on and just do it. Dammit, I hate how convincing he is.

It took her only a few tries before she was able to scoop the rubber duck out of the water and into her little basket. And when she did, it all came rushing back: that childhood nostalgia, the unadulterated happiness, a simple sense of victory. She laughed and turned back to Kakashi, taking pride in her success. He smiled back at her, overflowing with nothing but love for her.

“Oh, look! A photo booth!” Naru then exclaimed, gripping Sekkachi’s arm excitedly. She looked around at their little group, then announced, “We all need to go get a picture together, all six of us!”

“Ugh, is that really necessary?” Sekkachi groaned.

Naru narrowed her eyes. “Yes. It is” she growled, then in a lighter tone, “I mean, how often are we all together like this? This is a once in a lifetime chance! We have to take it!”

Before anyone could protest, Naru was dragging the whole clan toward the little shack like a chain of kindergarteners on a field trip. She paid for their picture, then situated everyone in the perfect position. Sekkachi went in the back because she was the tallest, and then Guy went next to her. Kakashi belonged on Sekkachi’s other side, but Rei should be in front of him just enough so that he can put his hand over her shoulder, and Naru would put herself on the other side of her. Nibui, despite Naru’s protesting, opted to stay out of the picture. He didn’t feel particularly included in their little group. After all, he was just a paid date. He didn’t have any emotional or historical connection to any of these people, and he never would. If he was to join in, they would all look back on this night struggling to remember who he was.

“Alright, fine, you’ve gotten out of it this time but I’m getting another one of just the two of us!” Naru shouted right before the photographer snapped the picture. There was a bright flash of light, and then it was over. He smiled as he watched the final product develop.

“That sure is a keeper alright” he commented, then turned to the group and asked, “Alright, who gets to take this photo home?”

As the sky darkened overhead and the festivities began to wind down, the little group made their way to the roof of a nearby building to watch the fireworks. Rei held her little rubber duck in her hands as she cuddled close against Kakashi, resting her head on his shoulder.

“Don’t fall asleep on me yet” he laughed. “Or else you’ll miss the fireworks.”

“I know!” Rei replied. “I’m not falling asleep. I’m just happy.” And she truly was. She looked around at their motley little crew and her heart swelled. True, Sekkachi was as unpleasant as ever, Guy was a little too pumped up, and she couldn’t care less about Nibui, but all in all this was the absolute perfect night. She almost felt as if she was going to cry at the thought of how it would all be over soon. The fireworks would flare, they would watch in awe, and then once they were over, the night would end. The street vendors would close up shop. The festival games would be gone by morning. Sleepy children would be carted home on their parents’ backs. And when she awoke the following day, reality would seep back in.

And speaking of reality, a part of her was truly shocked she had not run into anyone she knew or overheard any snide remarks. Little did she know, Kakashi was determined to give her the best night possible. He had met up with the others previously, insisting that they help him shield Rei from anything that might ruin her night. They put their ninja skills to good use, expertly steering her away from bad situations and distracting her with rubber ducks and photo ops. Every positive memory she would have of this night was the result of her friends fighting to keep away the bad ones. Had she known this, she may have perhaps considered this night even more special.

Explosions of color and light danced overhead, bursting so close that Rei could feel the vibrations in her chest. She gripped Kakashi’s hand in hers and sighed happily, fighting back tears. She hadn’t realized how badly she needed this until now. And as she sat there atop the roof surrounded by all the people she cared for the most, she realized just how important each and every one of them was to her, regardless of whether they were overbearing or snarky or what have you. Her parents may have rejected and renounced her, but that didn’t mean anything. A family is not determined by blood or by clan affiliation, but by those who care about you the most and in those halcyon moments, Rei realized that she was surrounded by her true family and that was all she could have ever asked for.

#kakashi hatake #rei natsuki #the scarecrow and the bell #naruto #naruto oc #fanfiction

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theclosetpoet7 · 7 years

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Of Apples and Cinnamon

Disclaimer: I don’t own Naruto.

Notes on chapter: In which Sasuke asks Sakura for a favor.

Summary: Their love was not built on rose-colored petals or romantic walks on the beach. If there was one thing Sasuke and Sakura has always had, it was most definitely chemistry. A series of one-shots and random drabbles.

Rating: T

He Wants Her To What?

Haruno Sakura stares at the person standing on her doorstep.

The pinkette doesn't think to hide her surprise. It was evident in the way she allowed herself to gawk blankly at the item Uchiha Sasuke held in front of her.

'What the hell was this supposed to mean?'

Don't get her wrong, she was quite happy to see the raven-haired prodigy. Although it would have been better if she knew he was coming then she would have changed into something more appropriate. The young woman shyly pulls the edge of her cotton shorts down. Her form is awkwardly hunched, spaghetti straps hanging loosely off one pale shoulder. She attempts to hide the fact that she isn't wearing any chest binding by clasping her hands to her front.

'Crap'

Sakura swallows the lump on her throat and tries to let this occurrence sink in. It has always been a dream of hers, to wake up one morning, hear a soft knock on her door and find her dear Sasuke-kun, looking as devilishly handsome as ever, hesitantly standing on her porch, trying to get the right words out, presenting to her, the one thing she craves the most…a wonderful, perfectly shaped, shiny…

Pair of scissors.

'Wait, what?'

It takes a second for her to snap out of her daydream. Her vision zooms in on the object.

Is this his idea of romantic?

She hesitantly reaches out to the item, confused as to what her first love was trying to say with this unusual gesture.

"Uhm, Thank you?"

It was uncanny for her to say thank you when given such a dangerous tool, well, aside from when she was operating on a patient. But, she tells herself that with him, she'll take whatever she can get. Before she could even touch the handle however, Sasuke pulls his hand back and lifts an eyebrow at her. Sakura abruptly stops and lifts an eyebrow as well.

'Eh? What's happening?'

Realizing that she was crazy for ever thinking that he was here to woe her with …. sharp objects , she mentally kicks herself in the shin. Uchiha Sasuke must have had a motive as to why he decided to visit her today. Sakura crosses her arms and examines him, trying to hide the embarrassment.

"Ano, is something wrong Sasuke-kun?" she questions.

"I." he starts.

"Yes?" she looks on at the wanderer.

He was standing there, hands in his pockets, with an annoyed expression on his face. Onyx eyes bored onto the floor as he held the sharp object in his left hand. Sakura briefly wonders if he plans to jab it at her.

'So much for happy ever after.' She thinks to herself

'Well, that would be a good idea, considering my senselessness a while ago.'

"I need you to give me a haircut."

Sakura manages to stop herself from gasping. But her eyes widened anyway. This had to be a joke right? She observes the stoic nin. His head lifts to look into her emerald eyes and quickly averts his own to narrow them at her rose bushes.

He looked too adorable.

Who would've thought that one day; the greatly admired Sasuke Uchiha would come knocking on her door, asking her to cut his gorgeous black mane? He was her teammate, yes, but she didn't think that he would ask her to do something like this.

Or maybe she was just overreacting.

This didn't really mean anything special right? Ever since the young Uchiha came home a few months ago - and started a somewhat confusing relationship with her -

- (one that made her question if he even had feelings for her- and what the hell did he mean by 'I'll see you when I come back.' anyway? Were they seeing each other now? Oh fuck, she didn't really know) –

-he had started to allow her to do small things for him.

And she was more than happy to do that.

Ecstatic really.

She just didn't expect him to go directly to her for something as personal as getting a haircut.

"I..are you sure Sasuke-kun? If you want, I can accompany you to the barber or maybe Ino can do it for you. I'm sure she can handle it better." She nervously rambles on, a finger scratching her left cheek.

"I trust you."

The sentence catches her off guard.

"So, will you cut it for me?"

Her eyes go to regard the handsome man again. He seemed serious, though a little embarrassed for having asked her for a favor twice. A surge of warmth immediately fills her. He was asking her because he trusted her, that was enough to tell her that maybe she was special, or so she hopes. She smiles fondly at her love, going swiftly into caring mode.

"I see." Sakura takes his hand in hers and leads him inside her apartment. She blushes when he doesn't pull away.

The two Sannin remain silent as she directs him to her room. She tells him to sit in front of her dresser, busy hands clearing it of items that would hinder her in completing this task. She lays the scissor Sasuke brought with him first, and then goes to the bathroom to get a glass of water, some powder and her blow dryer.

Sakura tries to hide her nervousness, but it is obvious to Sasuke because she is talking silently to herself, trying to figure out what else she needs. She walks around her room, gathering more items, putting on a huge sweater to cover her state of undress. He sits up when she finally puts a shiny black cloth around his neck. Sakura notices this but tries to not let it bother her. It takes him only a brief second to realize that he isn't in any danger.

"So." She starts.

"How do you want it to look?"

The young medic looks at him through the mirror. Green eyes meeting black and purple ones. She allows him to ponder on this for a minute because she wasn't sure if he even knew what kind of cut he wanted. Did he want her to just trim it and bring it back to his infamous chicken butt hairdo?

"I want one side to cover the Rinnegan."

Sasuke surprises her the second time that morning. She didn't expect him to want to hide the power so forcefully trusted upon him.

Did it bother him? The difference in the way he looked with one eye color different from the other? She decides not to question his decision.

"Ok."

Her hands weave themselves through his dark tresses as she angles his head, trying to imagine how she was going to go about it. She almost groans at the softness of his hair. He was a guy for Kami's sake! Why was it so smooth and silky?

'I bet he doesn't even put conditioner on it.' She muses with envy.

After a few minutes, she finally reaches out to the pair of scissors.

_________________

The room is noiseless, except for the snips and the quiet hum Sakura fills the air with. Sasuke relaxes into his position on the chair. This was something he hadn't planned on doing this morning, getting a haircut. A few hours ago, he had woken up like usual, ready to start his routine when he saw himself in the mirror. It wasn't the usual, brush his teeth, wash his face look at his reflection way.

He was really seeing himself.

It looked strange.

Staring into his one eye and not seeing his clan's characteristic black iris.

It made him feel like something was missing.

The same way it felt when he lived for years without his left arm.

He studied the Rinnegan closely, it stood out like a sore thumb.

And he concluded,

Something wasn't right.

It took him less than five minutes to decide. He didn't want to be constantly looking at it, so he hastily grabbed the pair of scissors on his bathroom sink and grabbed a fistful of his hair. He stopped when he realized that although he wanted to change his hairstyle, he was not familiar with the skill. That's when he thought of her.

Sakura.

Of course, she was the only person he could think of who would do this for him. Though she wasn't the most skilled (he distinctly remembered her horrid locks when she had violently ran a kunai through them during the Chuunin exams – though she was doing it to save him), she was at least the only person who wouldn't question or judge him for this decision.

He didn't even realize that he had reached her apartment and was knocking on her door until she appeared in no more than thirty seconds, a vision of pink cotton candy and fair rosy cheeks.

He snaps himself out of his brief flashback.

Did she always answer her door looking like…

Pure sin?

It took all his willpower not to let his oculars scan over her scantily clad form.

He takes a mental note to tell her to not answer her door without at least putting on a robe next time.

What would she have done if he wasn't the one on her porch? What if it was some kind of pervert?

Sasuke smirks as he answers his own question.

Of course, she would pummel them to the ground if they ever tried something.

Haruno Sakura was…

If there was one word to describe her.

Scary as hell.

She was a monster wrapped under a guise of soft skin and a petite height. A small caring medic with light pink innocent tresses which would sway so prettily in the wind as she punched humongous holes into the ground.

She would make the earth shake every time she wanted to make her presence known, or was that his insides shaking whenever she was around?

He didn't really know.

Honestly, he knows that his future is with this ex-fangirl.

He knows that home was where Team Seven is.

Where she is.

He knows because he had always had a weakness for her.

Be it her insistence on always making him special.

Or the sincerity in her heartfelt confession.

Haruno Sakura would always remind him of unconditional love.

It was still confusing though.

He never really thought about how he was…

How he was going to court her.

It was something he was extremely inexperienced with because in all his twenty-one years in this world, he had not considered asking someone to become his girlfriend.

Who would he ask anyway?

Aside from her.

Weren't they already going out in a way? They spent an ample amount of time together, training, dinners, festivals and what not. She was the closest girl to him, and he had implied her place in his life when he came to her the second he was back in Konoha.

Did he need to do anything else?

He silently muses on the thought.

"Does it look okay?" She nervously looked at his reflection through the mirror.

"Aa."

"Hontou ni? I wouldn't get hurt if you just told me the truth." She anxiously nibbles on her bottom lip as she maneuvers his head to the left then to the right to see the hairstyle better.

"It's fine Sakura."

"Oh? Okay."

Sakura cleans up the drawer, hands shaking as she grabs the brush and dusts a few stray strands from Sasuke's neck. She is hyper aware of her actions trying to mask the fact that she was furiously blushing. Blushing because she had just done something amazing. Blushing because, she didn't think that Sasuke would ever be hotter than he already was.

And he is.

Hotter.

'Shit, it looks good on him.'

The hairstyle suited him well. Long soft strands covered the left side of his face. The side bangs reached up to just below his chin. All black and straight. She managed to maintain a light spiky do at the back, keeping the look he had when he came back from his journey. The hairstyle gave him an air of mystery.

'As if he wasn't mysterious to begin with.' She inwardly scoffs.

Sakura almost jumps when he suddenly stands from his position, straightening his back and stretching his arms. She gulps as she stares at him. The black cloth was still hanging off him, it looked like a cloak, adding more to the look.

Sasuke notices her stare and raises an eyebrow at her.

"What?" he asks.

"I, uhm, you look good." She manages.

There is a hint of a blush on his face and he coughs into his hand, clearing his throat.

"Hn."

It was plain awkward from then on out. After keeping the things she used, Sakura ushers Sasuke out of her apartment, mumbling a 'I have to get ready for the hospital and it was nice seeing you today.' He doesn't mind because he knows that they are in an uncomfortable atmosphere as of the moment. Without any complaints, he finds himself outside her door again. With a simple nod of his head, he turns to leave. However,

"Sasuke-kun!"

Her voice stops him.

"I… Uhm. Thank you for, er trusting me with this. It makes me feel, extra, really super happy! So I uh…" She groans in frustration at her stutter.

"Sakura."

"Hm?"

"I should be the one thanking you."

"Ah, You're welcome! You're always welcome. Haha! I don't know why I'm so nervous...so.."

The sentence is cut short as she feels it again.

The poke.

"Annoying."

She blushes beet red immediately, bowing her head to hide her face from him. She could see that he is smirking. Then, as if losing control of her body, she lifts a hand, and grabs one of his.

Sakura tries to think of anything other than her small hand holding his strong, calloused one. She feels like she's about to catch fire.

She doesn't notice the warmth on his cheeks too for she is hiding behind her bangs.

'What now?' she asks herself.

Her heart was beating fast, as if it wanted to jump out of her chest.

"Sasuke-kun… Will you go out with me? Wait, not go out like date go out..."

She bites her lip to stop herself from stammering again. Seriously, was she turning into Hinata now? She hasn't heard someone stutter as much since the purple heiress started going out with Naruto.

"Dinner! I mean, dinner. Let's have dinner." She fretfully laughs.

"Yes."

She is shocked at the abruptness of his reply. Before she can lift her head to look at him however, he is off her porch and going on his own way, waving a hand in dismissal.

She waves back in silent defeat.

Later on that day, during lunchtime, Haruno Sakura nearly chokes on her sushi when she realized something.

She didn't really know what Uchiha Sasuke just said yes to.

R & R. :)

#sasusaku #ss #sasusakufanfic #sasusakufanfiction #sasusakufic

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kuriquinn · 7 years

Text

Walk A Mile [5/?]

Cover & Disclaimer

Chapter Beta: Sakura’s Unicorn

AN: As promised, the beta-read version. I know those of you who follow on FFNet, AO3 and Wattpad have read it already, but this is the updated version.

The door of the Hokage’s office closes with a click, leaving Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi in the empty outer hallway.

“That’s it?” Sakura squeaks, and Sasuke wonders how it’s possible for her to make his voice sound like that. “That’s all we get?”

“I thought it was pretty clear,” Kakashi replies, sounding bored, as he starts down the hallway. With no other recourse, Sasuke and Sakura follow him.

“How can either of you think this is going to work?” Sakura laments. “He’s never going to convince my parents – especially not my mom!” Sasuke bristles at this, not used to being the one that people expect to fail in a task. “We should just…both use henge whenever we’re around other people.”

“All right. If you think you can,” Kakashi says easily. He leans back against the wall and raises an eyebrow. “Let’s see how long you can keep it up.”

At this, Sakura and Sasuke exchange glances and then make their hand signs in unison. Nothing happens.

“And that’s the problem with your cunning plan,” Kakashi says. “Not to mention that for genin of your level, sustaining a transformation over a long period of time is next to impossible. If this little swap lasts longer than Lord Hokage and Inoichi expect, we can reopen the discussion. But for now, we stick to the basics.”

“The basics being lying and subterfuge,” Sakura mutters.

“You wanted to be a ninja,” Kakashi reminds her. “And on that note, I leave you two to work out the kinks yourselves.”

Sasuke thinks their teacher is a little too obvious in his relief at not being around for that experience – or any of the others.

“Ehh?! You’re just leaving? And what, we just…head home now?”

“You should head to Sasuke’s apartment. Pack a bag, seeing as how you’re going to stay with me. I’ve got my own preparations to make.”

There’s a puff of smoke and he’s gone.

“I hate when he does that,” Sakura mutters and Sasuke silently agrees.

With nothing else for it, they head for the Uchiha district.

Luckily for them, it’s still early enough that there aren’t many people walking the streets, and they reach the compound quickly. Sakura has never been to Sasuke’s house before, something both are chiefly conscious of; he doesn’t let anyone inside if he doesn’t have to.

“I can just wait out here,” she says when they reach his front door, folding her elbows in nervously.

Now that they’re alone, she’s reverted to that irritating, awkward, shy-girl front. He hates when she does that – pretending to be demure when he’s seen her put Naruto on his back with a well-placed right hook. Life’s too short for false modesty, and the only good thing to come out of this whole disaster so far was when she started to talk to him like she would anyone else.

“Don’t be stupid. You look like me. You’re expected to go inside,” he tells her harshly.

“Oh. Right.”

“Well, go on. Open the door.” He rolls his eyes, and she hesitantly does. The familiar smell of cedarwood, incense, and tatami washes over them.

Sakura lingers by the door after they close it.

“Well…I’ll just wait in the entrance or –”

“Whatever,” he interrupts, slipping out of his shoes and striding into the apartment. Mentally, he makes a catalogue of things that she will need as him – clothes, weapons, toiletries – anything he can think of to ensure she doesn’t have to come back here and root through his home.

He supposes Kakashi would have extras of anything actually necessary, but still.

As he tracks down an old duffel bag and begins to fill it with items, he tries not to feel hyper-aware of her presence. Even if he couldn’t sense Sakura’s chakra in such close proximity, he would know that there was another human being occupying space in his home. It’s been a long time since anyone actually came this far. When Lord Third drops off his monthly allowance, he only ever comes as far as the entrance; any other rare visitors stop at the door.

It’s relatively quick work to go through his closet and drawers for everyday clothing, but he completely freezes when he reaches his underwear drawer. The absurdity of this whole situation hits him again.

Sakura is in my body. She’s going to be wearing my clothes, my underwear, and –

His brain practically stutters.

If they are really going to be trapped like this for days, Sakura’s earlier worry is an imminent reality. At some point, they’re going to have to bathe. There’s no way around it.

Unless you’re Naruto, who I seriously doubt has taken a shower in the past week.

As lame as their missions are, Sasuke and his teammates usually end up sweaty, dirty, and (sometimes) bloody by the end of them. And while he might be able to avoid looking at this borrowed body of his directly – avoiding mirrors and pretending he doesn’t notice how odd it feels to walk – he won’t be able to ignore it when nature calls.

In fact, he really has to pee right now.

Any kind of bathroom activity means that, at some point, both of them are going to have to touch each other’s…parts.

Sakura, the girl whose crush on him is utterly obvious and inarguable, will get intimately acquainted with his body. If that isn’t the most embarrassing idea in the world, it’s only made that much more unbearable by the knowledge that he’s going to have no choice but to touch a girl’s body parts.

And not just any girl, but Sakura.

Someone he’s been more or less aware of ever since first meeting her. Someone who he’s unconsciously, unwillingly noticed in the past few weeks has started to develop in, well, areas. It’s not like he wants to notice this, considering the information is utterly useless to his goal of revenge, but he’s thirteen.

As Sakura unhelpfully pointed out earlier, a certain measure of it is biological. His own body is changing; there are some things he has no choice but to notice. The fact that his female teammate has started to wear a bra is one of them.

It’s all made even worse considering he is genetically disposed to notice more than the average person. Of any problems caused by his kekkei genkai, this was definitely not one he was expecting –

Wait a minute. Sakura wears a bra. I’m in Sakura’s body. I’m going to have to wear a –

“Sasuke?”

He physically jolts back to the present and glowers up at the imposter using his voice.

Apparently, Sakura couldn’t help her curiosity because she is lingering in the doorway of his room, examining it with wide eyes.

“You’re so organised,” she says tentatively.

He doesn’t reply, furiously grabbing a bunch of boxers and shoving them into his bag in hopes that she’s not watching what he’s packing.

“You’ll have to…um…relax a bit when you’re at my house,” she mumbles, shuffling forward to wander through the room. “I’m not a slob or anything, but…if things start looking too clean, you’ll give yourself away.” She trails her hand across his pristine dresser, and then gives a sudden cry of surprise. “You kept it!”

Sasuke glances up, noting that she is holding his framed copy of their team photograph. He can’t help bristling at her tone, slightly offended. “What’d you think I was going to do with it, throw it out?”

“I don’t know,” she replies. “I mean, you weren’t exactly happy about having to take it…”

“I just happened to put it there when I got home,” Sasuke mutters, though his cheeks heat up a little at her knowing look; his lie isn’t believable.

“Oh.” Sakura says and looks away uncomfortably. She catches sight of something else poking out of the drawer and her fingers reach forward.

Sasuke shoves it back down and closes the drawer tightly before she can grab it. “That’s none of your business.” Bad enough she’s offering commentary on his choice of memorabilia, all he needs is for her to find his old dinosaur plushie!

“S-sorry,” she says, hands behind her back. “You’ll have to, uh, make me a list of things I shouldn’t do. Or shouldn’t touch if I have to come back here. Or what I’m not allowed to say, and…” She shifts, uncomfortable. “And I guess we should make sure we can pass for each other before we leave.”

“Yeah,” Sasuke mutters, throwing a bunch of socks into the bag. “You give that a try.”

He hears her shuffle.

“How’s this?”

Her borrowed voice loses that higher pitch it’s had since they swapped bodies. Sasuke glances up to see that she’s adjusted her posture, shoving her hands on her pockets and slumping her shoulders forward. She’s arranged his face into a scowl.

He mirrors the expression. That’s how she thinks I look?

“Don’t slump,” he says instead. “It makes me look lazy.”

She adjusts her stance. “Like this?”

“No. Now you’re too relaxed. Anyone could take that as an invitation to attack you.”

“Tch. As if you even know what you look like from the outside,” she mutters.

Sasuke blinks. “That actually sounded like me.”

“Really?” she beams.

“Until just then. Look, just don’t talk to anyone and you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, well, that might be normal for you, but it’s not normal for me,” she sniffs, and finally, the awkward, shrinking violet she’d reverted to disappears. “My vocal chords are going to rust from disuse.”

“They’re used to it.”

“Not these ones. My actual vocal chords,” she clarifies. “If you think you can get away with not talking to people for a few days – or weeks – you’ve never met my family.”

Sasuke tenses at this, the way he usually does when he hears the word family. Sakura’s eyes fly to his clenched fists and her expression softens.

“Don’t look at me like that!” he snaps because that expression on his face is jarringly reminiscent of his mother’s face. He never realised how much he resembled her until just now. It just makes it worse.

“Listen,” Sakura begins gently, “if this is going to be too hard for you, we’ll go back to Lord Hokage and get him to –”

“No,” Sasuke cuts her off, instantly annoyed at being coddled. “He said to treat this as a mission and he’s right. We should be able to do this.”

“Okay. So, we will. Do me. I-I mean, pretend to be me,” she hastily corrects herself, cheeks turning red.

He sighs, throwing the last sock into his bag, frowning as he tries to figure out how to proceed.

“If that’s your attempt –”

“It’s not!” he snaps.

“You’re way too tense. You need to relax.”

“I am relaxed.”

“For you, maybe, but that’s not relaxed for me. So loosen up.”

With a supreme amount of effort, he forces himself to ease the strain in his shoulders and unclench his fists. It feels completely unnatural, like someone could pull him apart if they tried; it’s only his stubbornness that keeps him from tensing again.

Sakura seems to notice, however. “Seriously? We’ve been on the same team for almost a year now and you don’t know me well enough to pretend to be me?” she demands.

“It’s not exactly something I ever figured I was going to need!”

“Well, you need it now.”

His eye twitches and he exhales angrily through his nose. Then he straightens up, squaring his shoulders the way he’s seen her do when she’s gearing up for something mildly unpleasant. With an exaggerated toss of her long pink locks (that are definitely going to need some getting used to!), he adopts an imperious expression as he approximates his version of Sakura’s know-it-all demeanour.

“This is utterly ridiculous,” he complains. “I could be doing something important right now, like catching up on my beauty sleep or painting my nails.”

Sakura’s eye twitches. “I don’t sound like that,” she snaps.

He sneers at her and crosses his arms, unexpectedly filled with the same smug note of satisfaction he feels when needling Naruto. “You do so. Or it’s –” He leans forward now, hands on his hips and chin jutted outward, “Na-ru-to! You are sooooo immature. Could you grow up?”

“Right. And you’re so much better?” Sakura demands. She turns and frowns off into the distance, assuming an excessively low and sinister voice. “I am Sasuke Uchiha. I’m so broody and mysterious that no one could possibly know my pain because I’m too much of a superstar to let anyone in!”

This time it’s his turn to glare. “I don’t do that.”

“Well, now you know how I feel!” They exchange annoyed frowns and then Sakura sighs. “This isn’t working. All we’re doing is making each other mad. Let’s try something else.” She considers for a moment, and then nods. “Okay. What if we come up with some kind of…stock reactions for different possible situations? It’ll be like learning jutsu or formations.”

Sasuke ruminates on this and decides he appreciates the analytical take on it. “That might work.”

“Okay. Let’s start with you, because you need more practise.”

“Tch!”

ナルト

“First of all,” Sakura declares matter-of-factly, “You can probably minimize about fifty percent of all interactions with people if you just smile.”

“I hardly think it’s that important.”

“Well, it is,” she retorts. “My first year in the Academy, our kunoichi instructor said that a woman can use a smile as a weapon. It hides one’s true feelings, and can be used to disarm someone before you even strike. So, think of it that way – a ruse to make people underestimate you.”

It’s a good, practical piece of advice which she thinks will appeal to Sasuke’s purely functional view of the world. He seems to accept it as such because, after giving an annoyed sigh, he offers her his first attempt.

“That’s a smirk, not a smile. It needs to be less…smug.”

“I’m not smug.”

“You look smug. And that’ll definitely get people asking you questions you don’t feel like answering.”

He grumbles and tries to rearrange his expression, forcing atrophied muscles into a clearly unfamiliar gesture. The result is a disaster. Sakura’s eye twitches at the sight.

“You look like you just sat on a pine cone,” she informs him solemnly.

Sasuke turns red, instantly losing the painful looking grimace and snaps, “Shut up! I’m working on it!”

“It’s a smile, not a summoning jutsu. This should be –”

“If you say easy, I’m going to punch you.”

“But it is!”

“Maybe for you. You’re happy all the time. It’s unnatural.”

“I’m not happy all the time,” she exclaims, insulted by the notion. Granted, she hasn’t dealt with the same kind of stuff that he or even Naruto have growing up, but to automatically assume that she has the perfect life shows just how uninterested he’s been in her.

She tries to shove away the hurt at that realisation.

“Look, physiologically speaking, it takes fewer facial muscles to smile than to frown,” she sighs, “It should be easy. Just…think of something funny or something that makes you happy.”

“There’s nothing.”

“Really?” she cajoles. “Nothing? What about…sleeping in on your days off? Or when you trick Naruto into paying the lunch bill? Or when we get assigned a higher-ranking mission?”

He rolls his eyes. “Those things don’t make me happy.”

“Not even a little?”

“No.”

She can’t believe this. “So there’s nothing that you find amusing then? Nothing that makes you laugh? Do you even know how to laugh?”

“It’s not exactly a skill I need for my purposes.”

“Hm.” Sakura frowns at him, tapping her finger on her chin thoughtfully. Then she nods to herself and punches her fist into her palm. “All right. I have an idea. Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

She steps closer to him, a determined expression on her face.

“What?”

“Don’t you dare hit me,” she commands. “I’m only doing this because I know how I’d react.”

“Wha–”

And then she lurches forward, zeroing in on his sides just below the ribs.

“Hey!” he cries, trying to stagger back, an expression of utter confusion and worry on his face. “Hey – hey stop it!” She ignores him, focussing on the spots of her body that she knows are the most ticklish – and render her utterly useless. “Sakura, what are you – ha! – what are you – ha-ha! Stop that!”

“No,” she replies, feeling a tiny, ruthless element of enjoyment. “You need to get used to how it feels to laugh, so…”

“Not – ha-ha – not this - this way!” he gasps, words interspersed with astonished guffaws. “This – is – ha! – ridiculous!”

But he is laughing, and even though it’s her own face she’s looking down at and her own voice that she’s hearing, there’s an underlying note of surprise and shock in his reaction that isn’t hers. She knows with a sudden clarity that this is probably the first time he’s laughed since his parents died. And even if it’s not as hard won as making him laugh naturally by just saying the right thing, it’s a start.

She continues her ruthless assault until they are both down on the ground, and he has curled his knees into his chest, laughing uncontrollably and trying to avoid her hands.

“Stop it!” he gasps, weakly beating away her fingers. “You’ll make me piss myself!”

Which instantly causes both of them to freeze.

Then they separate very quickly, putting at least six feet of distance between each other.

Sakura supposes it’s time. They have to have the discussion about bathroom usage and bathing habits sooner or later. She doesn’t want to – honestly, she would rather spend a day hunting angry boars than bring it up at all – but she knows, if she doesn’t say anything, he definitely won’t.

Gods, and it’s not just hygiene, either!

She doubts he’s noticed – she is fastidiously careful not to let anyone on the team know – but she’s started getting her monthly cycle. And if this body-swap goes on longer than a month –

I’m going to throw up! How the hell am I supposed to talk about this to a guy?! And not just any guy, but Sasuke Uchiha?!

She groans pressing her face to her hands. “I can’t believe this is happening.”

“Tell me about it,” Sasuke agrees, mutinous.

“Okay…okay. Let’s just approach this calmly…and rationally,” Sakura declares. “There’s no point in…in us getting embarrassed over stuff we both have to do, right? So we don’t have to…we don’t have to talk about going to the b–”

“No.”

“Okay. Okay. Good,” she exhales in relief.

There’s a long silence.

“Showers,” Sasuke says after a minute through gritted teeth. “Not baths. And only when absolutely necessary.”

“Right,” she agrees. “We can take care of everything important without having to…expose anything we shouldn’t. And even when we have to, we’re just going to be very quick and…and detached about it. No…looking at stuff, or…or touching longer than necessary.”

“Agreed,” Sasuke says with a firmness that suggests he expects to be turned to stone if he considers the alternative.

Another long, awkward silence, both of them avoiding each other’s eye.

“I have to tell you –”

“You should know –”

They both begin to speak at the same time, exchange embarrassed, panicked expressions, and then look away again.

“You first,” Sakura mumbles.

“It’s fine. You go.”

“Oh. Um…okay. I’m just telling you this i-in case. I hope it doesn’t become an issue, but we don’t know how long this will go on and –”

“Spit it out, Sakura.”

“I started my period three months ago,” she blurts out. Sasuke freezes. “It should be another two weeks before…but in case you’re still, uh, there when it happens, just so you’re not surprised by it and, uh…”

“I’ll figure it out,” he replies, voice strangled.

“There’s supplies in the drawer next to my bed, and painkillers, and –”

“I get it.”

“Okay,” she breathes. “But, if you need anything, or have any questions –”

“I won’t,” he interrupts, clearly not wanting to continue this particular line of discussion.

Fine. Just for that, I hope you do have to go through it. It might be a humbling experience for you.

“Make sure you only wear the loose shorts,” Sasuke tells her suddenly, drawing her out of her somewhat vindictive thoughts.

“Huh?”

“Loose shorts,” he repeats stiffly.

“Why?”

He shoots her an expression like she’s dribbled on her shirt. “You’ll know. Trust me. Also, make sure you know where Kakashi keeps his spare sheets. Just in case.”

“Just in…” Sakura’s eyes go wide as the penny drops. “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh. Are we done?” Sasuke snaps. “Or do you want a diagram, too?”

“Don’t get mad at me. You think I like this any better than you?” she cries.

“If you hadn’t broken open the shrine, this wouldn’t have happened.”

“You don’t know that for sure!”

“Got any other explanations then?”

“No…” she murmurs, looking down; she knows he’s probably right, but it doesn’t make her feel any less terrible about the whole thing. Her eyes start to feel tight and there’s a sharp twinge in her nose, the precursor to tears.

“Hey!” Sasuke exclaims, eyes wide and somewhat panicked. “No! Don’t do that! Don’t cry. That’s not…it’s not going to help, okay? So, let’s focus on what we can do to make this easier.”

“It’s not easy. It’s not going to be easy. You’re right, I messed things up for everyone,” Sakura sniffs, rubbing at her eyes. “I get it if you hate me. I hate me right now.”

“I don’t hate you,” he tells her through gritted teeth. “But crying about it isn’t going to help. And you can’t start bursting into tears at everything anymore.”

“What do you mean, anymore?” she cries, self-pity instantly giving way to anger.

Gods, this body has more moods than I do!

“Forget it,” Sasuke sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Look, just…tell me what I have to do when I get to your house. I’m the one who apparently has to watch myself the most, right?”

“I guess,” she agrees, sullen. “First of all, if you have to call them anything, it’s Mom and Dad. Anything else and they’ll think I’m mad at them or something. Then my Mom won’t leave you alone, and my Dad will make a whole bunch of really terrible jokes to make you feel better.”

“I’ll just avoid addressing them,” he replies stiffly.

“Fine. Just in case you have to, though,” she allows. “Every morning, I have chores – which you shouldn’t have a problem with. Just…every so often, you have to forget to do something…like taking the garbage out or making the bed. I sometimes forget, so you should, too.”

“Hm.”

“Don’t sleep with my contacts in, or your eyes will feel like sandpaper the next day,” she advises. “And don’t eat anything spicy before bed or you will get sick.”

“Fine.”

“And, very important – beauty regimen,” she tells him. “You have to wash my face every day or I’ll get really bad acne. Lukewarm water only – not hot or my skin will dry out, and then you have to use toner and moisturizer. Steam my face once a week to clean out the pores, and every other day it’s a face mask – oh, and my makeup – don’t touch the stuff in the blue case; it’s old and I didn’t get around to throwing it away. But the stuff in the green case is new. Make sure to brush my hair – one hundred brush strokes before bed and a hundred when you get up in the morning. That’s enough to make sure it stays healthy looking. If you notice split ends, you have to see the hairdresser and –”

“Sakura, none of this is important.”

“It is so! Can you imagine what would happen if Ino or the other girls thought I was getting lazy about this sort of thing?” she demands. “They’d know something was up!”

“Or you’d be showing them you have more important things to care about,” he points out.

Sakura glares at him, silently promising him injury if he ignores her. “One. Hundred. Brushstrokes.”

He rolls his eyes. “Whatever. If it’s that important to you…”

“It is. Oh! Speaking of Ino, if she comes up to you, you can insult her however you want. You don’t take any of her garbage,” she continues, inwardly beaming because, even though it will be her mouth doing the talking, the idea of Sasuke telling Ino off makes her giddy with glee.

“I’ll just avoid her.”

“No. You can’t avoid her. That’d make her know something is up. Just treat her like you treat Naruto – wait. No. Don’t treat her like you treat Naruto. Dial it down a bit. Or a lot.” Sakura huffs. “Ino drives me crazy, but I don’t want her dead. The way you are with Naruto, he’d be dead if he didn’t have that whole…thing about him.”

Don’t think about the Nine-Tails right now! Don’t think about the Nine-Tails right now!

“I doubt anything I could do in this body would amount to a quarter of what I’m usually capable of,” he returns coolly, and Sakura winces as that barb hits its mark. “Speaking of, you have your own work to do. I don’t want my body getting weak just because you’re occupying it.”

“Hey, I train!”

“Not enough,” he retorts.

“Oh? And just how much is enough?!”

“Eight hours.”

“Oh. That’s not so bad.” She would’ve thought it was more.

“A day.”

“A day?!”

“Only on days when Kakashi works with us, or we have a mission that doesn’t take long. Weekends, it’s ten.”

“It’s no wonder you don’t know how to laugh! You never have any fun, do you?” Sakura cries in dismay. “You actually expect me to…to do push-ups or jog for eight hours?”

“No. A lot of it’s training the Sharingan which you’ll need because you can’t call it up yet.” He wanders over to a drawer and pulls out a chart. “Kakashi drew up these exercises when I first awakened it. The ocular muscles need to be used or they’ll get frail. The more you use it, the less it will drain you when you need it. And make sure you’re eating. It helps keep your strength up to deal with it – so no dieting.”

“Why would I diet? Your body’s fine.”

“And what exactly is wrong with yours then?” he shoots back. “Because I’m starving right now, and I shouldn’t be after the meal we just had. You do get that you need to eat to become stronger, right? Maybe you’d be a better shinobi if you actually had the energy to fight.”

“And maybe you’d be a better one if you knew how to take it easy,” she retorts, cheeks flaming because she is not going to discuss her personal insecurities with Sasuke Uchiha, especially not when he’s being so mean.

Stupid jerk. He’s just lucky I like him, or I’d be kicking him right now.

It’s a definite change from the usual, where Sasuke’s cold comments usually just inspire a patient decision to ignore him.

“And if you’re so concerned with me being able to fight, maybe you could deign to spar with me every so often,” she continues, irritated. “Naruto’s not the only one trying to improve himself.”

Which you and Kakashi would know if you ever bothered to pay attention.

Sasuke shrugs. “We have to anyway, if we’re going to be of any use in these bodies. You have to know my moves and I have to get used to not relying on the Sharingan again. If we work together, it’ll be less of a transition when we get our bodies back.”

“Okay,” Sakura says, “but only if you promise that when we do get them back, you won’t just start ignoring me again. I want to improve myself. And that means fighting against the best.”

Sasuke blinks, looking oddly uncertain, though whether it’s about her request or her compliment, she isn’t completely sure. It can’t be the latter, she decides, because she’s always complimenting him. But is training with her really so bad that he actually has to think about it?

“Agreed,” he says, cutting off her thoughts. “Of course, before any of that happens, we have to make sure I can pass for you, so…”

“Right,” Sakura says. “Let’s focus on behaviour. We can work on the smiling thing later.”

“Just…as long as you don’t tickle me again,” Sasuke says, shifting uncomfortably.

ナルト

Kakashi arrives home at the conclusion of his very long, very strange day and promptly falls face-first onto his bed.

It will probably be the last time he actually gets to use said bed for a while – he isn’t about to make Sakura sleep on the couch indefinitely. It’s not entirely a chivalrous gesture on his part, more the knowledge that kids her age need all the sleep they can get. He’s used to going without, she isn’t; and in that body, she’s going to have to keep up her strength.

Kakashi’s head throbs and he wonders if that sake was a good idea. At the time, sure, it felt like a blessing, but right now…

He groans.

There is a knock at the door.

He groans again, not wanting to deal with it. Anyone on official shinobi business would use the window, and none of his students would come inside without an invitation. Well, Naruto might, but he’d barge in, making a huge amount of noise, and considering he’s currently an ostrich, it’s obviously not him. Sakura or Sasuke would wait outside, respectively patient and exasperated.

When the lock clicks and he hears it slide open, he knows it’s Manako. He relaxes even more when the smell of smoke, ink, and accelerant fills the room. Not a common reaction to have to that scent, but he’s gotten used to associating it with his…

Well…

His thoughts stall here, as they usually do when he reflects on what to call the Inuzuka woman.

Girlfriend is too childish, lover is too intimate, and anything else he can think of is just crude. They lead completely separate lives, so partner doesn’t exactly fit either. They are both fiercely independent – he’s a jōnin and she’s a former ninja who runs a successful business. Despite an impressive clan lineage, she makes a point of staying out of shinobi matters. He’s never asked why and she’s never volunteered the information; just like she never asks him about his childhood or why he’s remains such a loner.

Kakashi keeps his life carefully compartmentalised into separate spheres. In one, he is a jōnin instructor. In another, a former ANBU. In another, he is a man who has lost his whole family and all of his friends. In another, he is a connoisseur of fine literature. And, in yet another, he is a healthy man in his late twenties with certain biological needs.

The point is, he and Manako have an arrangement: they have sex. And when they aren’t engaged in various naked pursuits, she’s the closest thing he’s had to a confidante in his entire life (he doesn’t count Gai, because Gai is…well, Gai is a special circumstance. He defies all attempts to fit him into a specific category, but Kakashi thinks their relationship is somewhat closer to Sasuke and Naruto’s, only without the need to draw each other’s blood on a regular basis).

“You look like shit,” Manako tells him bluntly, taking a seat next to his head.

He grunts out that he feels like it, too. At least, he thinks he does. It’s possible he just grunts.

With a supreme amount of effort, he turns around until his head sits in its usual indentation on his pillow. “I’m exhausted. It feels like I’ve been operating on full power since this mission started. Which should tell you something because we were escorting a damn bird from Point A to Point B.”

“And then it got complicated?” she offers, amused.

“Got it in one,” he grumbles.

“Ah, complications,” she muses. “Yeah, I actively avoid those.”

“What’s your secret?”

“Blowing things up.”

He laughs then moans, instantly regretting it when the movement jars his head.

“Wuss,” she says, but reaches over to massage his temples.

It’s both the best and worst feeling in the world, and he lets out an incomprehensible gurgle which might be a protest or a plea to continue.

“You know what the best cure for a headache is?” Manako asks, bringing him back to the present. He knows that tone in her voice and the familiar way one of her fingers begins to trail down his chest. In reaction, a warm, tight sensation builds in certain lower regions of his body. For a minute, he even considers it because if anyone deserves release after the day he’s had…

Instead, he groans and pushes himself into a seated position.

“Can’t,” he says, apologetic. “Sak-Sasuke is going to be here in a little while.”

She shrugs, looking unbothered. “Okay. Later then.”

“Probably not for a while,” Kakashi says, hesitates, and then adds, “not here, anyway. He’s going to be staying here for a bit.”

This makes Manako’s eyebrows rise. “Okay. That I didn’t expect.”

Kakashi reflects on what he should tell her. As a rule, they don’t lie to each other. Manako because she doesn’t see the point of it, and Kakashi because it’s just too much trouble to keep his heartrate and breathing steady or worry if he’s giving off some kind of scent that she’ll pick up – Inuzuka are pretty much human lie detectors.

However, telling her would be in direct violation of an order, and so, he resigns himself to making the effort. As usual in situations like this, he settles on the truth as much as possible.

“The Chūnin Exam is coming up,” he explains. Even though he has no intention of entering his students until their bodies are swapped back, he had been contemplating it. “There’s bound to be a lot of interest in Sasuke. Sometimes he feels held down by the others, and this way, I can give him some guidance. I know he’s been feeling stuck lately, and I thought some one-on-one training would get his mind off things.”

“Which you could do with him still living at home,” she points out and smirks teasingly. “You just want to keep an eye on him.”

Which, even without the strange circumstances, is essentially correct. Kakashi does check up on Sasuke a lot, even going so far as to watch over him when the boy is off-duty. He tells himself it’s because it’s his responsibility as the only other Sharingan user in the village, but he knows it’s because he sees a lot of himself in the kid – alone, no family, a genius dogged by an infamous family reputation.

“You got me,” he says, shooting her a hopeful glance. She rolls her eyes, but allows him to lie back down, head in her lap, as she continues to massage his aching cranium.

“What about the others?” she asks. “They’re on your team, too. Are they getting one-on-one time with you as well?”

“Not exactly,” he yawns. “Sasuke and I are of similar temperaments and, I suspect, similar chakra natures. I can achieve the best results with him. As for Naruto –” He thinks of the boy-turned-ostrich working with Tenzō who will, no doubt, teach him a few much-needed lessons in chakra control. “– he’s got alternate plans.”

“And Sakura?”

“Huh?”

“Has anyone been helping her train?” Manako clarifies. “It’s a lot harder, coming from a civilian background.”

Kakashi shrugs. “I’m not worried about her. She’s smart. She’ll excel at whatever written test they give her, and she’s devoted enough to the others that teamwork won’t be an issue.” Of his three students, Naruto is the only one he could imagine screwing up.

Manako snorts and her fingers stop moving. “So, the boys get guidance and the girl gets to figure it out herself. The way of the shinobi world continues.”

He is confused by her tone. “What are you talking about?”

“That mentality right there is why you don’t have very many women who are shinobi,” she tells him. “At the Academy, in squads, in exams…their instructors are much more concerned with making sure the boys succeed than worrying about the girls.” She adopts a mocking deep voice. “‘Oh, they’re so much more disciplined. They don’t need my help.’ And then you people are surprised when only a fraction of girls go on to become chūnin or jōnin.”

“It’s not that simple.”

“The hell it isn’t. I see it all the time – I lived it. On my genin squad, we had two girls and a guy, and our sensei constantly spent any extra time with him. I was the screw-up he couldn’t be bothered with, and Izumi was…well…” Manako trails off here, a pained look on her face that Kakashi doesn’t need to ask about.

Izumi was an Uchiha. Greatness was expected of her with minimal effort, yet it was destined to never be achieved in the wake of the clan massacre.

Manako shakes this off and picks up her train of thought as if nothing happened. “It also doesn’t help that the judges of these things are biased against women. But you’ll figure out all of this in time, I guess. The point is, don’t assume just because a girl is intelligent and talented, she wouldn’t like or need a mentor.”

Kakashi is quiet, reflecting on this.

She has a point, he realises, and it’s one he didn’t really bother thinking about before. Casting his mind back to his own team, he remembers Minato taking an interest in him much the same way he is now interested in Sasuke.

Natural talent and a damaged psyche. Gods! It’s like history repeating itself.

And after him, it was Obito, who always needed whatever extra help he could get. Minato used to encourage him with tips and tricks and compliments. But he never needed to help Rin because she was just naturally hardworking and smart. She taught herself basic medical ninjutsu and sought out teachers to help her improve on her own. She was the only one Minato was “not worried about.”

And she ended up kidnapped and killed for her trouble.

Kakashi decides right then that this won’t happen to Sakura. He’ll do his best to offer her guidance while she’s under his roof, and as soon as her body is swapped back, he’ll find a mentor for her.

She’s a genjutsu type, and he suspects she’s been talking to Kurenai, but the Yuhi woman has her hands full with her own team. Sakura will need someone who can devote the time just to her. Kakashi might as well start looking now, since Sasuke is going to be in her body and he’ll want to keep busy.

Which means finding someone that Sasuke won’t antagonise.

Easier said then done.

“Well, you look sufficiently distracted,” Manako says, standing up. “I guess I’ll just be going if you’ve got company coming. I hope you have enough food stocked for a teenaged boy. If he’s anything like Kiba, you may have to get a second job while he stays with you.”

Kakashi suddenly stumbles from his bed and scrambles to his feet. “Damn it! I forgot!”

He hurries over to his shelves and cabinets, frantically collecting every third or fourth item that has been neatly tucked away. Within minutes, he has a bundle of magazines and videotapes with lurid covers.

“I need you to keep this stuff at your place for a while,” he tells her, trying for nonchalant despite his earlier panic.

Manako raises an eyebrow, looks down at what he is offering, and then snorts. “Are you seriously giving me your porn collection?”

“It’s erotica. And I can’t have it here with a minor in the apartment.”

“Right. Because the first thing Sasuke Uchiha is going to do is snoop around your house to find your titty magazines?”

Kakashi shifts uncomfortably; Sasuke might not be the snooping type, but Sakura is easily bored and very curious. It’s bad enough she scolds him for reading his favourite series. He doesn’t want to have to live with the constant disapproval if she finds the other stuff.

“Oh, come on – you’re serious?” Manako laughs. “Relax. Maybe seeing it would do him some good. Kid needs to loosen up.”

Kakashi shoots her an unimpressed look. “This is why you should never have children.”

“On this point we both agree.”

“Would you just take these?”

“Fine,” Manako huffs with the air of someone acquiescing to a major burden. “Do you want me to also take the Icha Icha –”

“Excuse me, that’s literature,” Kakashi sniffs. “It stays with me.”

“There’s something wrong with you,” she informs him, adjusting her hold on the bundle of contraband and heading for the door. “Well, fine. I’ll take one for the team – wuss.”

Kakashi exhales as he hears the door close, and grudgingly sets about trying to put his apartment into some kind of order to accommodate two people. Seconds later, something occurs to him, so he hurries to the door, yanks it open, and shouts down the stairwell, “And if you watch any of them, have the courtesy to rewind this time!”

“Rewind what?”

Kakashi jumps and turns to see Sasuke – Sakura – standing in front of him with a duffle bag.

And I’m clearly more tired than I thought if I didn’t even notice her standing there.

“Nothing,” he lies, moving aside. “Come in.”

つづく

AN: I know, no Naruto this time, but there was a lot of heavy stuff that had to be gotten out of the way and I figured doing it earlier was better than later. But we’ll see him again next chapter :)

Reviews and constructive criticism are much appreciated! Also, if you are in a supportive mood, I have a tip jar button for ko-fi located at the top of the page - or through this link. Thanks for your interest in my work!

クリ

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#naruto fanfiction #genin era #team 7 #eventual sasusaku #rating: teen #bodyswap #humour #drama #action/adventure #kuriquinn #sasuke uchiha #sakura haruno #naruto uzumaki #kakashi hatake #condor the ninja ostrich

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sun-summoning · 7 years

Note

More of that time travel fic you wrote for basama plsssssssssssssssssss... please???

continuation of this

naruto is ready to tell sasuke that the ghost of one of his deceased relatives is haunting them, looking for its mother, when sakura elbows him in the stomach to shut him up. the little girl stands at sasuke’s feet and reaches up, asking him to pick her up. he assesses her briefly before bending forward and complying.

“what just happened?” naruto whispers to her.

“i have no idea,” sakura replies. she smiles at the little girl – this strange child that, honestly, could very well be a ghost like naruto insists – and the girl smiles back.

“i love you, mama,” she declares, reaching out for sakura. she squirms wildly until she’s mostly leaping out of sasuke’s embrace, forcing sakura to catch her.

“she thinks you’re her mother,” naruto says. he walks around sakura to stand in the hall with sasuke. he doesn’t even looked ashamed as he slowly backs away, tugging sasuke along with him. “sakura-chan, i know you’d want us to survive without being cursed or made into ghosts as well, so–”

“naruto, you ass!”

the girl giggles and pokes sakura’s chin. “mama said a bad word,” she whispers conspiratorially. she wraps her arms around sakura’s neck and leans into her. “i’m sleepy, mama.”

sakura laughs awkwardly and tries explaining that she isn’t this little girl’s mama. but the child laughs as well and shakes her head and just calls sakura “mama” another time. then she yawns widely, exhausted from the day’s events, and closes her eyes to rest in sakura’s embrace.

naturally, team seven is at a loss.

naruto paces through sasuke’s living room, one of the few rooms in the house that they’ve managed to clean so far. or well, that sakura has managed to clean so far. really, he and sasuke were just in her way. the little girl sleeps on the couch while sakura sits beside her. sasuke leans against the opposite wall, trying to look disinterested but still watching the child like a hawk.

“you shouldn’t sit so close to her, sakura,” sasuke says.

sakura frowns. “you literally picked her up.”

“to ensure she had no weapons on her.”

naruto holds up the plastic kunai she’d thrown at him. “this was the extent of it.”

on the table between them is the fanny pack the girl was wearing, a few other toy weapons, a porcelain mask that definitely could not have been hers, and a suspicious-looking scroll.

“so like, just to be clear, she is not the ghost of a vengeful uchiha child looking for her mother?”

“naruto!”

“what?! i need to be sure. i’ve watched a ton of horror movies and this is all really suspicious.”

sasuke rolls his eyes. there is certainly reason to be suspicious, but the girl certainly isn’t the ghost of one of his fallen kin. when he says this aloud, naruto doesn’t look particularly convinced.

“but are you sure?”

“well…yes.”

“you’re not actually sure!”

“i’m sure, you idiot.”

sighing, sasuke looks back at sarada. he considers the contents of her pack and picks up the scroll she had on her. “we need to figure out what this is,” he says. he doesn’t recognize the characters on it, and judging by naruto and sakura’s own confused stares, they don’t either.

sakura nods. “we should go to kakashi-sensei,” she suggests. “maybe he’s seen something like it before?”

“yeah,” naruto agrees. he picks up the scroll and nods to sasuke. “last one there is a rotten egg.”

sasuke shakes his head. “are you really that immature?”

still, both of them are scrambling to get their shoes at the door.

“wait!”

naruto and sasuke pause and turn back to sakura.

“what?”

“are you guys leaving me?!” sakura hisses. she doesn’t mention the fact that although she doesn’t agree with naruto’s ridiculous idea of the girl being some kind of ghost demon whatever child, the thought does have some merit to it. also why did she have to be the one to stay behind?

“you’ll be fine,” naruto says.

“screw you!”

“well what do you want us to do, sakura-chan?”

“stay here! one of you, at least!”

“no way. you’ve got this.”

“ugh!”

“also,” naruto adds, “you’re the only one out of the three of us that doesn’t make children cry.”

“naruto, you ass–”

“sakura,” sasuke interrupts, silencing them both. they look at him expectantly, sakura a tad bit more frazzled. “you punched a god before, remember?” he looks at the sleeping child. “you’ll be fine.”

not too long after sakura’s left alone with the girl, she wakes up. she yawns widely and rubs her eyes. her clothes are twisted and her hair is a mess. there’s no way she can be evil, sakura thinks, taking in how utterly adorable she is.

“mama,” the girl calls. she doesn’t even open her eyes as she sits up. “mama, i’m thirsty.”

sakura says nothing so the girl blinks until she’s adjusted to the light. she grins when she sees sakura and all but crawls across the couch to sit in her lap.

“mama, can i have juice?”

“huh?”

the girl pouts. “can i have juice please?”

sakura nods gingerly. “uh. sure. yeah, sure.” sakura lifts the girl off of her lap and leaves her on the couch. she walks over to sasuke’s fridge and finds nothing but soy milk, tomatoes, and the beer naruto likes. great. she turns around to break the bad news, only to bump into the little girl. “oh!”

after sakura steadies her, she grins. “i snuck up on you,” she whispers smugly, making sakura reconsider the ghost demon child theory all over again.

“yes, you did.”

“i’m going to be a super amazing ninja just like you and papa.”

“yes, you are.”

you and papa. because she is, apparently, her mama. sakura can’t even wrap her head around the girl’s claims. and she doesn’t even look like she could be this girl’s mama. not unless she was fathered by someone with some incredibly dominant genes, that’s for sure. but then again, sakura thinks, the girl has her nose and her mouth and–

“mama!”

sakura blinks. “hm? oh. right.” she looks back at the fridge and smiles. “well, kiddo, we only have soy milk, beer, and water, so i guess i’m pouring you a cold one!” she winks and the girl giggles even if she doesn’t comprehend the teasing. sakura doesn’t trust sasuke’s maintenance of his groceries though so she opts for pouring the girl a glass of water while she prepares some tea for them.

the girl gulps down the water greedily and sakura watches her.

“so,” sakura begins, “what’s your name?”

“huh?” the girl’s eyebrows furrow. “i’m sarada. duh.”

“right. duh. and do you know my name?”

sarada nods. “you’re mama!”

“um.”

“sakura – the bestest medical ninja in the whole universe.”

sakura blushes. “well, no, not really. i still have a lot to learn, but thank you.”

sarada shrugs and begins running her finger around the rim of her glass. “that’s not what papa says. papa says you’re the greatest medical ninja that ever existed.”

“is that so?”

“yep!”

“and,” sarada continues, “he says that you’re also super duper strong and that you can shatter a mountain with one punch and one time – one time, mama – you even punched a god! that’s so, so cool.” suddenly sarada is pouting, her chin tucked into her chest as her voice loses its joy. “he said he would tell me that story when he got back from his mission but that was so long ago!” then she raises her head and smiles. “but that’s okay since he’s back now!”

“that’s right,” sakura says slowly as she stands to return to the couch. sarada lifts her arms telling sakura to carry her and, without thinking, sakura complies.

sakura puts her down on one cushion so they may sit side-by-side, but sarada is quick to crawl into her lap and begin playing with sakura’s growing hair.

she’s incredibly touchy, sakura has come to notice. and clingy. and she’s always smiling and looking at her with such adoration in her eyes. sakura isn’t her mother, but she knows that whoever this girl belongs to, that woman and this girl love each other very much.

sakura asks sarada little questions and slowly learns that she’s from konoha, is four-years-old, dislikes tomatoes, doesn’t have the best vision, likes to sneak desserts before dinner, loves her mama, and really misses her papa. or, at least, she did miss him. he has, after all, returned.

“and what’s your papa’s name?” sakura finally asks.

“mama, you’re so silly,” she replies, shaking her head fondly. "sasuke uchiha.”

so the kid isn’t a ghost demon looking for its mother, they come to learn.

“that’s no fun,” naruto whines when kakashi points this out.

sasuke rolls his eyes. “were you hoping for a ghost demon child?”

“i mean…i wasn’t not hoping for a ghost demon child. we haven’t fought one of those yet! it could’ve been fun!”

“your definition of fun is messed up.”

“your definition of fun is eating a tomato and staring out the window. screw you.”

“screw you!”

“children,” kakashi interrupts, waving around the scroll they had brought to him. kakashi smiles thinly and, for a quick moment, wonders why they worked so hard to bring their team back together when this was the kind of shit naruto and sasuke pulled whenever they were around each other. and where the heck was sakura?

“oh, we left her,” naruto answers when kakashi voices that question.

he raises an eyebrow at them. “with the child that you thought was a monster?”

“a ghost demon. and yes.”

“sakura can handle herself,” sasuke mutters, feeling a bit ashamed under kakashi’s unimpressed stare. “the kid likes her. keeps calling her ‘mama’ for whatever reason.”

“mama?” kakashi echoes.

his students nod and kakashi looks at the scroll contemplatively. he hasn’t yet told them about this sort of scrolls time-travelling properties, only confirming that it has nothing to do with ghost demon children. kakashi catches the inch of blood along the edge of one part of the scroll and the little drops on the page. if this was that girl’s blood and she came from somewhere else in time and called sakura ‘mama’–

kakashi feels his shipper heart skip a beat. “i need to see this child,” he declares, standing up and struggling to stay calm.

“are you going to tell us what this scroll is?” sasuke asks. “you haven’t said anything of value since we got here.”

“i will. after. once i’ve seen this child.”

naruto groans. “but why?”

“because i’m the hokage, naruto, and i do what i want.”

sarada is pleased with herself for knowing all the answers to mama’s questions. mama used to quiz her like this when she was younger, making sure she knew her parents’ names and her grandparents’ names and their phone numbers and addresses. it was silly for her to be asking the questions now though. she’s a big girl now, after all.

“where did papa go?” sarada asks.

“sasuke-kun – i mean, er, papa…he went to speak to the hokage.”

sarada nods. that makes sense. papa always has to talk to the hokage after a mission.

“now…sarada, there’s something i, mama, need to tell you.”

mama smiles when she pauses and sarada smiles back. she straddles mama’s lap and begins playing with the ends of mama’s hair. it’s so pretty and it’s pink and that’s her favourite colour. sarada holds the locks of pink closer to her face and wonders what she look like if she had pink hair too.

“papa…was…injured.”

“what?!”

“but just a little! a very, very small injury. in his head. small. super small.”

sarada doesn’t look convinced but she awaits the rest of mama’s explanation.

“right. yes. sarada, papa was injured on his mission. nothing serious, of course,” mama promises, “but he’s forgotten a few things.”

sarada frowns, afraid for her papa. “what kinds of things?”

“papa has lost his memories and thinks he’s eighteen again. this means he doesn’t remember me, his….wife? or…” mama bites her lip and looks so, so sad, “or you, sweetheart.”

“oh.”

“ah, fuck,” mama curses, but sarada feels too sad to point out the bad word. papa forgot them? but how?

“it was a jutsu,” mama clarifies, “by his enemy. but the effects will wear off soon enough, okay? there’s nothing to worry about!”

“s–so papa is going to be okay?”

“yes! yes he will be!” mama assures her. “in fact, he’s already okay. mostly. you don’t even have to worry about him, sarada.”

she wraps her arms around sarada and kisses her forehead and sarada buries her face in mama’s neck. she doesn’t cry because crying would be silly since mama just told her papa would be okay. still, sarada kind of wants to cry. so she does.

“it’s okay, it’s okay, sweetheart…”

“it’s okay,” sarada says as well. she smiles a wobbly grin. “mama is the bestest medical ninja in the whole universe. you can fix papa sooner, right?”

“i…yes! yes, i can!” mama wipes away sarada’s tears. “all i ask is in the next few days, sarada, you just call papa ‘sasuke’. can you do that for me?”

sarada sighs because that’ll be annoying, but she can do it. “yes, mama.”

“great. we just don’t want to confuse him while he’s recovering.”

that makes sense. sarada nods and considers what she’ll call papa in the meantime.

so she lied. she also made the child cry, but honestly…how was sakura supposed to know this kid wasn’t a ghost demon? and that she wasn’t, for whatever reason, manipulating her and sasuke into thinking they were her parents so she could do…whatever.

okay, she probably isn’t a ghost demon – she’s too damn cute for that – but what other options did she have? let the girl run around calling her ‘mama’ and sasuke ‘papa’ as if they were her real parents?

sakura watches the little girl play and tries not to feel too guilty for her fib from an hour ago. she’s captain kitten, she explains, putting on her mask and jumping around between pieces of furniture because apparently the floor is lava.

“uh, by the way, am i in trouble?” sarada suddenly asks.

“for what?”

sarada holds her porcelain mask and grins crookedly. “you told me not to touch your mask but i took it because it just really goes with my ninja costume, mama!”

“you’re not in trouble,” sakura tells her.

and why would she be? that isn’t her mask. and judging by the fact that that must’ve belonged to a former member of the black ops, that definitely isn’t her mask.

“okay,” sarada says, twiddling her thumbs, “but i also went into the study. and i picked the lock on papa’s cabinet.”

“oh.” sarada looks like she’s waiting for some sort of scolding so sakura aims for stern. “how…dare you?”

sarada chews her lip. “i’m sorry, mama.”

“um.” sakura scratches her head. “well…did you…learn your lesson?”

sarada looks equally as unsure as sakura feels. “yes?”

“then that’s fine. i guess.”

“okay!” the girl is back to grinning and sakura breathes a sigh of relief because after having to lie to her and then having to discipline her – albeit very, very weakly – sakura can’t bear to see her looking sad. “mama, can we play outside?”

sakura glances at the backyard they – or well, she – haven’t been able to clear out. the grass is overgrown and it’s kind of just a huge mess. she and naruto had come over to help sasuke make his home liveable again but so far the two had done nothing and all sakura had managed to clean up was the kitchen and living room.

“why don’t we go for a walk?” sakura suggests instead.

sarada beams at the suggestion. “oooh, okay! can we go to the lake so i can practice my fireball jutsu?”

sakura nods and they walk to the front door. “lead the way.”

part iii

#Anonymous #fic

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behindheremeraldeyes · 7 years

Text

SasuSaku Month 2016 . Day 22- The Prince( Princess) and the Pauper . Title: Endless Year. . Summary: The war has ended just some months before, and a new year is about to start. They're finally back home, yet, they choose to spend the new years all alone. Will fate allow them to do so? . A/N: AHH! I tried to make a really fluffy one this time, guys! I’ve decided to add the new year thing to this theme, and even if it turned out quite short (for my patterns XD) I’m happy with how it ended! I’ve also decided to make a more literal interpretation of the theme, because if I followed the original idea, it would be way too big or a one-shot! I wish you all an AMAZING year, and I hope I can help it somehow with my stories! I hope you like the story, and please, tell me what you think! . . . Konohagakure was as bright as he’s always remembered it to be around that time of the year. Streets were crowded with people from all over the ninja nations, and most of them-if not all- were excitedly smiling as the beginning of a new year approached. A new year that already carried millions of hopeful wishes and peaceful thoughts from all of those who were deeply injured during the battle against the undead; and a new year that, for sure, would put all those changing promises to test. The political scenery would suffer a radical process of remodulation, and an economic crises was most likely to affect the nations due to the huge amount of money spent during the war.

Chaos would be inevitable, for a wave of side effects was about to hit all the ninja nations.

The world needed peace and luck more than ever at that moment, and even if it seemed to be just a silly preoccupation during such delicate times, the villagers still decided to get together in order to celebrate the New Year. Apart from the finances and the physical destruction, the emotional side of those who risked their lives for the sake of the world could not be ignored. They were the real heroes of the war, and even if things were bad at that moment, they could be even worse if the war had been lost. They deserved a chance to rest before facing new problems, and they deserved a chance to focus on trivial matters again, like with whom would they spend the last seconds of the year.

It seemed to be a waste of energy, but this time, turning all their efforts into happiness and hope would be necessary in order to heal.

For the traces of the war were still present inside everyone’s hearts, the Godaime decided to promote the celebrations as if nothing had happened months before. There would be food, music, decorations, and of course, fireworks to send that troublesome year away. Even if it was clear that it would be a much smaller celebration, no one seemed to care about that. Everyone around was going to help as much as they could, and by doing so, their minds would eventually be occupied by things that were not related to the war. That kind of therapy would replace the mourning feeling by a renovation one, and by working together, people would eventually support one another during such had times.

They would lean on each other so they could move on with their lives.

Together, they would heal.

And watching it all from afar certainly brought peace to his wounded heart.

Even if the whole thing seemed to be extremely welcoming, the raven haired boy knew he didn’t belong with all those happy people. A former criminal that had threatened all those lives not even a year before could never be accepted that easily, and more than anyone, the Uchiha understood that. He understood the glares, the insecurity, the whispers and even the bad words that were daily thrown at him whenever he walked around the village.

He deserved that, he thought. He deserved it all and until the day those people could finally forgive him, Sasuke would simply accept what his past brought upon him.

He would spend the last moments of the year alone, sitting on that stone bench that once watched him leave the village, and where he once left the only girl that could ever love him unconscious and with tears streaming down her rosy cheeks. On the last night of the year, Uchiha Sasuke would be alone with his regretful memories and that would be more than just fine for him.

Or that was what he thought until he felt that monstrous chakra approaching him.

Tch… They really wouldn’t leave him alone, right?

“ Shouldn’t you be with the others?”

His voice left his mouth, as his lips slightly curled up. His head was hanging down, making his dark hair fall over his closed eyes. There was no tension in his shoulders, as his unexpected company approached him, the clicking of heels getting louder until they stopped right next to him.

She really didn’t know how to be discreet, he thought. Not that she really wanted to.

“ I could ask you the same thing, don’t you think, Sasuke-kun?"

Touché, he thought, smirking.

Dark eyes finally shot open, as he finally turned to face her. As he had expected, her beautiful green eyes were set on him and a teasing smirk was taking over her rosy lips. Just like him, the pinkette wasn’t wearing anything special for the occasion, as her casual clothes could be found covering her body. Her regular combination of skirt and shirt was a little kneaded, and her short, pink hair was tied up in a messy ponytail, as many stubborn locks refused to remain trapped.

As always, Haruno Sakura was beautiful.

But it was not like he would admit it to her like that.

Finally, he sighed. “ What are you doing here, Sakura?”

“ The same as you, of course. Running away from all that mess and avoiding all my friends.”

“ Really funny… Did Naruto send you to get me or something like that?”

“ Nope. I don’t even know where he is, to be honest. Won’t you even invite me to sit?”

“ Tch…” He smirked, straightening his position and moving his head as if telling her to accommodate herself. Without thinking twice, the girl walked around and found herself a comfortable spot next to him. “ You should be there with everyone.”

“ And what makes you think you shouldn’t?”

At that moment, his eyes turned to face her, reflecting a certain empathy in them. He knew what she meant with that question, and he really appreciated that. However, both of them knew that there was no way the former avenger would join the celebrations. At least not yet. As always, he would observe it all from the shadows, because that's where he belongs.

But at least he wouldn’t be alone. Not anymore.

For the first time in her life, Sakura didn’t even try to argue against the Uchiha’s decision. She simply smiled, biting her lower lip in amusement. That boy is really impossible and apparently it would still take her a long time to be able to change his mind.

Still, she wouldn’t give up on that.

After making up her mind, the girl simply stretched her arms in relief and moved her neck in order to get herself rid of the tension that had built up in her muscles. She, then, scratched the back of her neck, swirling some of her pink locks around her index finger, letting out a deep yawn that almost brought tear to her eyes. Apparently, the girl next to him was really worn out, and if he didn’t know her better, the Uchiha would’ve even thought it was because she had been partying up until that time with all the others.

But that’s not the Sakura he knows. It never was.

“ You look really tired.” He said, playing with the hem of his empty sleeve.

“ Are the dark circles that big?”

“ Hn, Have you been up working on the prosthetic arm again?”

She sent him a playful glare, confirming his words. “ Am I really that obvious?”

“A little. You should go to sleep then.”

“ Am I bothering you that much that you want me out of here?”

At that moment, her sweet eyes looked at him as if trying to trick him into something. Both of them already knew the answer to that question, because everyone already knew that her company was one of the few the Uchiha could actually call pleasurable. He didn’t look at her like he looked at the others and he certainly didn’t give her short answers like he gave everyone else. She’s special for him in the same way he’s special for her. And that was why having her around would never be a bother to him.

She would never be a bother to him.

“ Of course not.” He said, no hesitation in his voice. “ It’s just that you look tired and you shouldn’t be forcing yourself for useless things.”

“ What am I doing that is useless to you?”

“ Well… You’re here, a war heroine, and you’re away from everyone who wishes to thank you. You’re here with a former criminal instead of sleeping or just enjoying the last minutes of the year with your friends.”

When the word “heroine" escaped his lips, it was possible to see how drastically the expression on her face changed. If there was one thing she didn’t consider herself to be, it was a war heroine, for many were the lives she couldn’t save during those hard times. People shouldn’t thank her for anything, yet they insisted on doing so. They insisted, and that was when he could see her own war scars escaping her facade.

Yes, the war scars. Even Haruno Sakura, the princess of Konoha, has them buried deep inside her heart. She was no different from all the others who fought against the undead just because she was there to punch Kaguya in the face. She was no different, and her scars were no less significant either. They were as troublesome, if not more due to the fact she didn’t really bother to share them with the others. She faced them all by herself, and that was the main reason why he didn’t want her to be with him when all the others could make her happier during such difficult times.

He was aware that he could neither heal her wounds nor her broken heart, and that was why he wanted her to be by her friends’ side. He’s not Naruto, and he didn’t know what to do to make her feel better.

To make her feel less lonely.

Still, there was no way he could simply push her away, right? It was almost midnight, after all.

She would soon have to go, anyway.

“ You see… Even if I wanted to, I can’t go have fun with the others.”

“ Eh? Why not?”

“ I’m working tonight. I took the new year’s shift this year again, so up until now I was taking care of some drunk people who were already listening to imaginary fireworks.” She chuckled, looking up at the stars.

“ Working?” His eyes widened in surprise. Apparently, medical ninjas didn’t know the meaning of holidays. “ Then shouldn’t you be at the hospital?”

“ Yes… But Tsunade-sama saw me handling the paperwork and got super mad at me. She told me to go out at least until midnight so I could have some fun and kiss a guy or two.”

“ Tch… That old woman.” He said, clenching his fist due to the inappropriate advice from the Godaime. His cheeks grew a little red, but thanks to the dim light coming from the center of the village, his shades of embarrassment couldn’t be seen by the pinkette.

So that was why she was there, he thought. She was there to escape both her master and the crowd until the clock hit midnight.

What a smart girl, he thought.

“ She just wants me to have some fun, I guess… It’s not her fault if her apprentice already has the spirit of an old woman.”

“ Hn, she would be mad if she knew you were here.”

“ Well… At least I’m not alone, right?” She looked at him, smiling gently as soon as their eyes connected.

“ Did you… Did you know I would be here?”

“ To be honest… I thought you could be here since this is probably the furthest place from all those people… But then I thought it would be too much of a coincidence for us to meet here. Hn, guess I was wrong.”

“Hn, sorry for destroying your plans then.”

“ As if… I’m glad you’re here. I can’t stand crowds, but… This feels just fine.”

The way her eyes looked at his at that moment meant the world to him. Knowing she preferred his company over the loneliness was relieving, and taking their past in consideration, being able to sit on that bench and actually have a good time really made their hearts feel warmer. They enjoyed each other’s company. They always did, and now things wouldn’t be any different.

A comfortable silence set around them after her words. They could hear people’s laughter from afar, and every now and then they could swear they could hear Naruto’s famous “dattebayo” echoing all the way to reach their ears. It was a warming sensation that made them imagine what their blonde friend was probably doing to celebrate the last minutes of the year.

He really is an idiot, they thought.

An idiot who should probably be looking for them.

“ Naruto will kill us when he finds out we’ve spent the new year without him.” She said, chuckling.

“ Aah… That idiot will definitely feel left out if he finds out.”

“ Yeah… It would be the first time we would spend the new year together after everything, after all.”

“Hn, it’s not like this will be our last chance, right?”

“ I hope so…” She smiled tenderly to herself, not taking her eyes away from the stars. “ How did it feel to spend the new year with Orochimaru and Kabuto?”

“ Well… It was different, I guess. There were no parties and we barely remembered about it, to be honest. We only new that it was the beginning of a new year when we saw the fireworks exploding in the skies.”

“ Really? Didn’t you have like… A watch?”

“ It didn’t really matter for us back then… Time simply passed and we didn’t care. It was't that bad to forget about the clock.”

“ It doesn’t sound bad at all… “

Her nostalgic expression captured his eyes as she was probably reflecting about time itself. Their lives as ninjas have always been ruled by the ticking clock as every second mattered to determine life and death. The three years they’ve spent training and the endless months they’ve spent away from home and so close to destruction were more than enough to change everything they knew about themselves, and nothing they did would ever change them back to how they used to be.

During the war, time indeed stopped. And that certainly helped create the endless sensation of combat.

Eternity can certainly be a blessing, but when it’s turned into a curse, then the consequences will never fade.

Still, when they were less than 5 minutes away from the next year, creating an endless memory seemed to be a good idea for Uchiha Sasuke.

“ Do you wanna try it, Sakura?”

“ Eh?”

“ Hn, No counting this year, just the fireworks. What do you say?”

A wide smile crossed her lips and a warm pink took over her cheeks. The idea did seem to be a good one, especially because the girl didn’t feel like ending that year that soon. The idea of moving on still didn’t seem to please her, for she knew that after the war, she would have to face all the nightmares and terrible memories that would haunt her for the rest of her life. Sakura knew that there was no escaping anymore, and at the same time she wanted to say goodbye to that tragical year, she also didn’t want the last year of her sanity to vanish.

At that moment, Haruno Sakura was a mess, and forgetting absolutely everything, including time itself, seemed to be more than just a great idea.

“ Let’s do this.” She said, taking off her wrist watch and placing it upside down on the bench. She smiled at him once more, before finally turning to face the dark night above their heads.

And so, their silent waiting began. She was watching the sky while he was watching her, thinking of how hard it must have been for that lovely girl to turn into the strong woman standing in front of him. Time wasn’t the only thing that passed, for it was not only her appearance that had changed. He could see deep into her eyes that there was a lot more in her than the simple consequences of aging.

She’s a warrior now. A medical ninja who has mastered the supreme technique and a girl whose eyes have seen the world in ways no one should have. She’s seen death, but her hands have also given life, and that kind of contrast is probably what keeps her eyes shining so bright like in their youthful days.

Yes, her eyes are still shining as brightly as he remembered them. They still held that same innocence, showing the girly side of that impeccable warrior to anyone who looked at them.

Her eyes are the most precious jewels of the world. And through their stunning reflection, Uchiha Sasuke welcomed the new year in the most dazzling way.

Never before had fireworks exploded so beautifully than when seen through the emerald eyes of Haruno Sakura.

“ Happy new year, Sasuke-kun!” She was smiling brightly, looking at him with all the love in the world. Her voice brought him back from that trance, and without even noticing, they were still holding that intimate eye contact.

Eternity did feel good by her side.

“ Hn, Happy New Year, Sakura.”

#sasusaku #sasusaku month 2016 #ssmonth16fanfiction #sasusaku fanfiction #ssmonth16 #myssfics

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