It was a gorgeous day, the kind that makes you want to frolic in a meadow. Or play with flowers, or something carefree like that. The endless blue sky, dotted with strikingly white clouds practically sparkled, calling out to the habitants of Konoha to spend their time outdoors. And Inuzuka Kiba was more than happy to listen, having just gotten back from a mission in the dreary Mist country.
He strolled along the streets, nodding in greeting at the street vendors and occasional fellow shinobi. Children playing in the road earned a friendly grin from the nineteen year old. As he passed Ichiraku's ramen stand, a familiar orange-clad blonde caught his attention. "Oi, Kiba!"
Kiba smirked. "Naruto! Eating your weight in ramen, I see. No missions?"
Naruto grinned, rubbing the back of his head. "Nope. Granny-Tsunade gave me a few days off. I was going to hang out with Sakura, but she's buried under paperwork at the hospital. Hey," he paused, shooting Kiba a surprised look. "Didn't you just get back from one? Are you injured?"
Kiba shrugged. "Nothing big. Just a little scratch on my arm, but I-"
"YOU'RE HURT?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! GET TO THE HOSPITAL RIGHT NOW!!" And suddenly Kiba found himself being propelled against his will towards the hospital by his loudmouthed friend.
"Nar- Naruto! Stop! I'm fine, I don't need-" His protests were completely ignored, as expected, so he just resigned himself to getting checked out. Well, my physical is coming up. Might as well get that taken care of while this idiot is making me go.
Once they had reached the hospital entrance, Kiba expected Naruto to let go, but the blonde had other ideas. He continued to push Kiba inside the doors up to the stairs on the side.
After reaching the third floor, Naruto finally released his captive outside of an office door. Naruto knocked, then threw open the door with a bang, without waiting for a reply. "Sakura-chan! Kiba's hurt- you have to help him!"
The pink-haired medic, who had been sitting at her desk, sprang up when she heard the word 'hurt'. Her emerald eyes flashed with concern, as she vaulted over her paperwork, grabbing her medical kit, and proceeded to run out of the room. It was only when she saw Kiba leaning against the hallway wall that she stopped.
She paused for a moment, then asked Kiba slowly, "Are you hurt?"
Kiba rolled up his shirt sleeve to reveal a small, bandaid-covered wound on his forearm. "I accidentally nicked myself with a shuriken when I was cleaning it. Naruto dragged me here."
Sakura took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The only movement in the hallway for a full moment was her subtly clenching and unclenching her fists. "Naruto…" she muttered, in a tone that made Kiba back away slowly.
Naruto must have realized he made a mistake, and raised his hands defensively. "I thought he was really hurt! Sakura-chan, I-"
The impact of her fist on his noggin silenced him, as her eyes flashed again, but this time with fury. "BAKA!! I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF SIGNING RELEASE FORMS! NOW I HAVE TO START ALL OVER AGAIN!!"
She stood there, seething for another moment, before she took another deep breath. She unclenched her fists, and gently slapped Naruto upside the head. "Baka! Next time, make sure it's something life-threatening before you drag someone across the village to see me, ok?"
Naruto rubbed the back of his head again, and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry Sakura-chan. I can help with your paperwork if you want."
Sakura shook her head and smiled back. "Um, that's ok Naruto. But aren't you meeting Hinata in a few minutes?"
The gasp that came from Naruto made it clear that he had forgotten. "AH!! I have to go! Bye Kiba, Sakura-chan!" And the orange blur left the two standing in the hallway, staring after him.
Sakura sighed, then turned to Kiba. "Well, long time no see. Are you sure you're ok?"
The dog-lover laughed. "Yeah, I'm fine. But you must not be, to be cooped up here on such a beautiful day. Can you really not take any time away?"
She turned to her door, gazing sadly at her mountain of paperwork that seemed to grow whenever she wasn't looking. I have so much work still to do… Oh, come on! You can always tell Tsunade-shishou that something important came up! Like eating with an old friend…
Inner Sakura had a good point, and the pink haired nin decided to listen for once. She turned back to Kiba with a smile on her face. "You know what? Why not. You hungry?"
Later
Kiba turned his face upwards into the warm sunlight, breathing in the fresh air. His pink-haired companion mimicked his movement, reveling in the freedom from her medic duties for once.
"Thanks for lunch Sakura. I haven't had a home cooked meal in weeks," Kiba said sincerely. Sakura merely waved the thanks away.
"It's been so long since I've cooked for anyone, I'm surprised it came out as well as it did. By the way, where's Akamaru? He must be huge by now!"
He laughed. "Yeah, I never realize how fast he must be growing to you guys. He'll always just be Akamaru the little pup to me. But he's back home. The mission was pretty tough on him, so he'll probably be sleeping all day."
The two stopped their leisurely stroll, and Sakura was surprised to find themselves at the Team Seven training grounds. Memories flooded her head, especially of the most recent bell test that pitted Naruto and herself against Kakashi-sensei. She smiled and shook her head to herself. I'll never forget the look on his face after I found him underground. Hehe, don't think he'll underestimate us again
Kiba watched her, clearly lost in her own thoughts, and let himself go in his own. She's really grown. One of the best medics in the country, second only in Konoha to Tsunade herself. Probably still pining over Sasuke though, the dirtbag. He sighed, then laid down on the ground to watch the clouds in the sky.
Sakura snapped out of her reverie at his movement, and turned her thoughts towards her companion. I can't believe how much older he seems! Granted, I haven't seen him in months, but it's surprising nonetheless. Yeah, older and hotter!! He's a freakin' god!
Sea-green eyes suddenly widened, and she quickly shook her head free of those thoughts. Stop it! Kiba's a friend! I'm just glad for human contact, and not just ink and paper cuts. Think whatever you want sweetheart, but you can't deny that boy, no, that man, is a scrumptious sample of yummy male goodness. I mean, that lean frame, wicked grin, and little pointy canines? You can't resis-
"SHUT UP!!" Sakura's eyes immediately widened, and she clapped her hands over her mouth.
Kiba raised his eyebrows, and shot her his trademark grin. "I didn't say anything, but somehow I don't think you're talking to me."
Sakura blushed as pink as her hair, and tried to stutter out some response, some apology, but all that came out were unintelligible squeaks. Great! Now Kiba thinks I'm crazy!
Said cute boy just laughed and shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Nothing could make me like you any less."
As soon as the words came out of his mouth, he raised his hands, remembering her reaction to Naruto's mistake this morning. "NO! I didn't mean it like that, I-" He was cut off by the sound of laughter. Kiba looked over to see Sakura on the ground next to him, rolling around in the dirt, laughing so hard.
She had tears coming out of her eyes, and she was clutching her stomach, shoulders shaking silently. Kiba stared at her with a shocked expression, clearly confused. Well, it's better than hitting me, right? She'll probably smack me when she's done.
But when Sakura calmed down, she only rested her hand on his shoulder. "And here I was, afraid that you'd think I'm some crazy, insensitive lunatic. Guess I don't have to worry about that, no?" She smirked at his relieved sigh. "You thought I was going to beat you up, didn't you?"
Kiba nodded sheepishly. "I was also worried that you'd think I was an inconsiderate jerk. I swear I didn't mean it like that."
Sakura waved her hand again. "Don't worry about it, I know you're not stupid enough to mean it. And no, I don't think you're a jerk." She got up, dusting the dirt off of her clothes. "Well, as fun as this excursion has been, I do have get back to the hospital."
Kiba followed suit, cleaning himself off. "Yeah, we'll have to do it again. Maybe next time, without Naruto dragging me across the village, or without putting my foot in my mouth."
They laughed, then waved and headed their own separate ways, both thinking the same thought.
They sure have changed. Maybe in more ways than one…
AN: Ok, so this is a little different than my usual, although you guys are probably expecting it at this point. This story is a dedication to my friend amethyst-knight, who doesn't actually have a fanfiction account, but whatever. Let me know what you think!!
