for: the general girl! Her prompts were mittens, cold hands, scarves, snow, flufffff. Thank you for accompanying me at Skype to write this! 15-minute flash sessions really work (erm, when Tumblr and YouTube and IchiRuki aren't trying to distract us). 8D
Hands and Feet
by: cutecrazyice
. . .
"Duck, Sakura-chan!"
If she'd listened to him from the very beginning, she would have been safe and sound from the harm, dry and cozy from head to foot. Instead – because she chose to be very, very stubborn – she was sprawled on the ground with her legs in the air, covered with snow and shivering from the sudden bite of cold.
Ouch.
"Ha! We win! Sorry, Sakura!"
Kiba's victorious shout floated through the snowy air, carrying on until it was replaced by noises of heavy footsteps and one very loud blond asking her if she was okay, if she was breathing well, are you still alive, Sakura-chan?
"I'm still alive," Sakura gasped out, still catching her breath. She made a move to stand up but was immediately flummoxed when her legs couldn't seem to come in contact with the ground—
Oh. He was carrying her.
"Naruto, you don't have to do this," she reminded him, trying to get herself down but unable to – it seemed he was even more stubborn than she was. "Seriously, I'm okay—"
"Hey, Ino-chan, let's have some hot chocolate at your house!"
"Sure thing!"
"Naru—"
"Everyone coming?"
"Sure, Naruto."
"—to. Naruto."
At her warning tone, he finally sighed. "Fine." Then he gently placed her down with a frown on his face. "Be careful, it's slippery."
"I can handle myself fine," she huffed. She took one step and felt the cold seep in through her footwear, and she wondered—
Splat.
"Sakura-chan, I told you to be careful."
The snow blurring her vision was only there for a second before she was on her feet again, and his warm hands were rubbing her shoulders and trying to untangle the scarf from her neck.
"Naruto!" she scolded him.
"Hush. Don't Naruto me. Look what you did to your scarf."
Indeed, her scarf was now stained with mud, and there was a tear running in the middle. She gave him a look that said don't you dare reprimand me and frowned when he only grinned at her, all bright and sunny. Then he was running to catch up to the others and yelling at her to hurry up because the last one needed to rub the winner's feet.
Smirking, Sakura puffed out cold breath before running after him.
. . .
"Duck, Sakura-chan!"
The shout reached her ears seconds before the whizzing sound came straight at her, like a bullet not to be deterred. Already anticipating it, knowing she couldn't dodge it in time, she turned around and brought her hand up, using chakra to block out whatever she could – the rest still went through, lodging themselves straight on to her shoulders and outstretched palm.
Cursing the air blue, she finally ducked and used her other hand to punch the ground. Her assailant, not expecting a move from such a petite kunoichi, was down in an instant.
A few more unconscious thieves later and Naruto was running towards her and telling her that they should hurry to safety. It took them fifteen minutes to find the secluded clump of big bushes where they decided to take a rest as he secured the area and she took off her winter gloves to survey the damage.
There was blood, of course – but the wound wasn't really as serious as she had initially thought. Using whatever chakra she had left over, she proceeded to remove the rust and stitch the skin back into place, then got a clump of clean snow and started rubbing it all over her palm to clean up the red stain. She was nearly done with the cleaning when she felt warmth radiate around her and hands cover her own, pulling her until she was sitting on his lap.
He began cleaning her hands in earnest.
"You've just ruined a perfectly good pair of winter wear," he grumbled.
She glared. "It's not like I could sweet-talk them into keeping it intact, you know."
"I know. You've been very badass there. Very sexy. I was pretty turned on – owwww!"
The smack was light, but already enough to shut him up and have him continue what he was doing with eyes twinkling mischievously. The wind howled around them, and snowflakes kept falling in succession on their hair and skin and clothes, but they ignored it. She watched as her hands became clean under her eyes and he watched until the pink flush came back.
"There. All brand new."
"Except the gloves," she teased.
"Doesn't matter. As long as you're safe."
She looked at him gazing at her, and saw the seriousness in his words. Her breath may have caught, but he was already back to grinning and telling her to hurry up because they needed to report the incident to the nearby village's daimyo before heading home and getting some ramen to warm themselves up.
She didn't need to hear his shout to know she needed to race after him.
After all, loser would have to rub the winner's feet.
. . .
Christmas day, and there was a knock on her door early in the morning. Fresh from the shower but still sleepy from last night's light drinking session with her fellow kunoichi, she smiled as black and bright orange blocked her view of the outside world before a cheerful voice greeted her and large hands shoved something in her own, making her blink.
The box was small and very red, wrapped unevenly but with a sweet, lopsided green bow in the middle.
"Open it, Sakura-chan."
She tore the package and ripped the box in half, making him laugh. Then she found herself staring at a scarf in the most gorgeous purple and green combination, and a pair of black gloves made from the best type of leather.
"Naruto…" she trailed off, touched.
"It's – I got it after you ruined your scarf," he explained sheepishly, scratching his head and giving out a nervous laugh. "And the gloves—"
"They're beautiful," she interrupted, beaming at him. He smiled back, a soft smile that left her oddly flustered and made the butterflies in her stomach dance wildly. Without thought, she stepped forward and kissed him on his left cheek, feeling the warmth and letting her lips linger to maybe, just maybe get a taste of him. When she pulled away, he was gazing at her with eyes so blue, so clear – this time, her breath caught in her throat at the sight, and her heart felt…something.
"Thank you," she said, breathless, then stepped forward again – and like a magnet looking for its opposite, kissed his other cheek, lingering even longer and smelling the scent that made her think, Naruto. Only Naruto would smell this good and familiar.
When she made a move to pull away again, she found his hand already at the back of her neck, cool from the snow and warm at the same time, and he was moving closer. His voice was husky, just as breathless, when he asked her one question.
"Does this mean you get to massage my feet this time?"
She laughed, then nodded her head shyly. Then nothing else mattered at that moment as his head came down and he kissed her, warm and wonderful and oh-so-sweet.
It felt like coming home.
a/n: Thanks for reading! If you wanna request, just give me the pairing/prompt over livejournal. Link is in my author page. :)