Sai was sat painting, as per usual, out in the training field. The afternoon sun kissed his face softly, and he wondered briefly if his pallid skin would tan, like Naruto's.
His teammates were busily training in the field before him. He looked up from his landscape to observe them for a while. Naruto was getting stronger every day, improving exponentially, as was to be expected from the ninja. But his eyes were drawn to the kunoichi, panting next to him.
Sakura had always lived in her teammates' shadows, quietly getting on with her work, getting no praise for the part she had played. But Sai had seen what she was capable of. Not only was she insanely strong and a skilled medic, but she was intelligent and was strong willed. He watched her short pink hair stir in the wind like something alive, the small beads of sweat trickling down her soft skin, her chest heaving from all her effort. There was something wild and tremendously beautiful about Sakura when she trained, and Sai felt a pure, innocent love for her.
He flipped his notepad paper over to reveal a blank page and began to draw Sakura as she was now; strong, fierce, perfect. He watched her push herself harder, trying to contour her arm muscles in a flattering manner.
He looked up from the page to glimpse his subject once more, and found her looking back at him with those large emerald eyes of hers. She smiled brightly at him, and he hazarded one back, but he knew it looked wrong. She let out a sigh and straightened out her clothes, a sign he'd come to realise meant she'd finished her training.
"Hey Sai, what're you drawing?" She asked as she walked towards him. He flicked back to the landscape, knowing she would not like being portrayed as muscular. And secretly, he was a little embarrassed.
"Just a landscape." He muttered to her.
"Do you have a name for this one?" She asked curiously, leaning over to inspect his unfinished work.
"No..." He mumbled. "Though it has made me contemplate how the most powerful of things are usually the most beautiful, too." That made no sense, he berated himself. She smiled at him, and he marvelled at how full her lips were. He felt sick to his stomach suddenly, and he had to look away.
"Well, it looks great." She was always full of compliments, another reason she had to be the most perfect woman in the world to him. "I'm going to head home and get a shower. See you later." She waved briefly, that sweet smile still spread across her face, and she walked away. Sai watched her walk for a short while, watching her hips swing slightly from side to side, and wished only for her to be happy.