I do not own Naruto. Nor shall I ever own Naruto.
SakuNaru cuteness.
Oneshot.
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Merry Christmas, Sakura.
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Sakura curled up under the blankets of her bed, and smiled to herself. She couldn't wait for tomorrow. She had all of her presents wrapped and labelled. And there were no missions in honour of the holiday. At that moment, everything was well in the world.
-o-
The same could not be said for Naruto. He paved his small apartment, chewing his lip and running his hands through his hair. What would he do?!? Kakashi and Jeraiya had been easy. Same for his other friends. But what about Sakura? What should he give her? It had to be meaningful, something that was nice, but had a deeper meaning to it. He wanted to show her just how much he had missed her while he was gone training with Jeraiya. When he had left, she had barely tolerated him, and he had left it at that. But now was different. She seemed more open towards him, more willing to listen and be together. He wanted to show her he liked that, and liked her, very much.
-o-
Her eyes snapped open suddenly. She had been thinking over the gifts that she had parcelled up earlier. She knew most of them were there, each with their inscription and patient effort in choosing them out. But what about Naruto's? She wracked her brain, her hand subconsciously tightening on her pillow, clutching it in panic. She hadn't found a present for Naruto. She had always just told herself that something would turn up in time. But now time had run out. She threw back her blankets and sat up, silently berating herself. How could she have not gotten Naruto anything? She had thought of the Ramen stand Naruto enjoyed so much, but it didn't say now she had felt when she had realized that Naruto would do anything for her, how she had missed him during the three years, how she had felt when she saw him on top of that telephone pole, older, calmer, and if possible, even kinder. A gift card just didn't cut it. She got up and got dressed, even though it was eleven at night. She needed to think, or shop, or something. She leapt from her bedroom window to the street below, and began to wander.
-o-
Naruto scuffed the road with the tow of his boot, dislodging loose pebbles and sending them skittering down the way. He spotted a particularly large stone, the size of half a fist, and wound up. He kicked it hard, hoping it would relieve some of his anxiety. The only thing it achieved was the stone skipping maybe three feet forward, and a sore foot. Naruto swore under his breath, then jumped at the sound of footsteps behind him, the sand and pebbles making each foot fall clear. He spun, and gasped.
-o-
she was just as shocked. What was Naruto doing out at night, alone, down a dark street? Then again, she thought to herself, why was she there?
Sakura let it lie, and opted instead to pay attention to the here and now.
-o-
"Hi, Naruto."
"Hi, Sakura."
"Well, um, Happy Christmas Eve, Naruto."
"Yeah, same to you."
"So, um, how do you plan on celebrating Christmas?"
"Well, you know, um, give presents, get presents. And there's Kakashi-Sensei's party."
"Yeah. You going?"
"Uh, yeah. Remember last time?"
Naruto started mentally kicking himself. Of course she would remember. Sasuke had been there. She had been with him most of the time.
"Yeah. Hah, that was where you ran around with the mistletoe, until you tripped and it landed on Kakashi-Sensei's head, right? And, like, five of the female shinobi used it as an excuse to take off his mask to kiss him."
Naruto hadn't realized she had been watching that.
Sakura chuckled. And right beforehand, Naruto had tried to approach her with the mistletoe. But it had failed.
The two started walking together, and emerged from the dark street into an open patch near the training fields. The sky stretched out above them, shimmering with clouds and stars. The moon was waving, a perfect mottled crescent hanging in the horizon.
A wind whipped across them, and Sakura shuddered, rubbing her arms with her hands. She had forgotten how cold it could get out here.
Naruto started to pull off his jacket, until Sakura saw what he was wearing underneath. "You'd be worse off than me!" she said, pointing to his mesh tank.
"then we'll share it." he stated. She nodded.
They lay side by side, the jacket draped across them. Their bare arms were touching, and they watched the stars far above them. Sakura reached into her pocket, and drew out some peppermints.
"Hey, Naruto, you want one?" she asked, unwrapping one and popping it in her mouth.
"Yeah." She handed it to him under the jacket, and he squeezed her hand a little before taking it.
She laughed towards the sky, her senses seemingly doubly acute, the bite of the cold, the smell of the peppermints, the shining of the sky, the warmth of Naruto's arm against hers. She tipped her head slightly to one side, and just barely caught Naruto as he hastily switched his gaze from her. As he blushed slightly, she watched the stars reflect in his eyes. Slowly, he turned his head back to look at Sakura. She smiled slightly. He smiled back.
Suddenly she shifted, leaning on her elbow.
"Hey, Naruto?"
He sat up too, facing her. "Yeah?"
"What time do you think it is?" a breeze ruffled their hair.
"Gotta be past midnight by now."
She smiled. "Good."
He nodded slightly.
" 'Cause guess what I just found."
He blinked. "What?"
She chuckled. "I found it in your pocket." She dangled the twig above their heads.
He glanced up, then grinned sheepishly. "I was thinking of giving it a-"
She leaned forward and their lips met, catching him mid-sentence. He closed his eyes, as did she. She lowered her arm, laying the mistletoe on top o the jacket, as Naruto wrapped his arm around her waist. The kiss ended. They were both smiling.
"Merry Christmas, Naruto."
"Merry Christmas, Sakura."
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Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.
And for all those annoyed because I used a Christian holiday in a Japanese setting, you can blame the Spanish. They brought Christianity to Japan. I'm just exploiting the fact.