Obligatory Statements:
I don't own Naruto
This is my first fanfic. Please review. Please be gentle.
So…after the first few reviews, I decided to fix up the chapter a little bit. I didn't change any of the content, just some grammatical stuff.
To the reviewers:
Thanks so much for your comments.
I promise the fic will be and stay Naru/Saku.
I suppose Kakashi is a bit out of character, but not too much I hope. If so, let's just chalk it up to the fact that he's got a soft spot for his students and feels comfortable with them.
I do realize that according to the manga, Sakura would know about Naruto's seal by now. However, for the purposes of this story, let's ignore that. I think having the whole demon fox thing be a secret will make for better drama later.
Up a Tree
It was a very warm day.
Correction. It was damn hot and Sakura was miserable.
She wanted to shed some clothing, but she already had on so little that she couldn't and remain decent at the same time. Her boots, shin guards, gloves, Konoha head band, and kunai holder were spread out on the tree branch she was sitting on. Her tan mini skirt was pushed up as far as it could go without revealing her underwear and her sleeveless red top was rolled up to the underwire of bra. And her flesh was still burning.
Probably because her heat had nothing to do with weather and everything to do with the sight beneath her.
Down there was Team 7's old training ground. Not that there was a Team 7 anymore. Sasuke had been gone for years. He had abandoned them. He had abandoned Konoha. He had abandoned her. He was a traitor.
And then there were three. Her, Kakashi, and Naruto. But not three. They had long since gone their own separate ways. Once Naruto and Sakura had become jounin, there was no need to pretend they still needed training. So they parted.
Kakashi never took up another student team. He went back to his normal jounin responsibilities and casually his old ANBU ones as well.
Sakura was a talented jounin medic-nin. She was often sent on ANBU missions because of her abilities, but she knew she'd never join ANBU herself. She wanted to save lives, not end them. And she knew as well as anyone that ANBU was almost solely used for assassination missions.
Naruto was a jounin as well. He didn't seem to be making any moves to join ANBU despite the fact that he was probably the strongest ninja in the Leaf. He seemed content to stay at his current level. Sakura wondered if it was because he didn't like killing people either.
Naruto was down there right now, beyond the deep green leaves hiding her, taking a break from a long afternoon of training. He sat on the grass with his back against a wooden post. His eyes were closed. He was topless and sweating and his chest was rising and falling rapidly.
And all Sakura could think was: when the hell did Naruto get so sexy?
This wasn't the first time she'd watched him train. It probably wouldn't be her last. She had stumbled upon him by accident the first time. But once she'd seen his semi-nude body, everything she'd somehow managed to miss for all the years she'd known him came crashing down on her.
He was handsome. Very.
He was broad-shouldered and muscular, but he had gotten so tall that he ended up looking lean instead of bulky. His hair had grown. Not much but just enough that it hung in his eyes when he took his head band off, like now. And those eyes. God those eyes! Deep and blue. Not like the sky. Not calm. Not serene. Like the ocean. Passionate. Volatile. Determined. Vulnerable. Open. Warm. Not cold at all. Not distant. Not like Sasuke's eyes.
That scared her. He was not like Sasuke. He was the total opposite of the spectrum. And she was falling for him. Hard. She didn't know how to feel about it. Or what to do about it. She sighed.
Beneath her, Naruto sighed as well. He opened his eyes and looked directly at the spot where Sakura was sitting. Her breath caught in her throat. If he saw her, he said nothing. He simply stood up, quietly called out "kage bunshin no jutsu," and went back to practicing with his clones. Sakura let out her breath slowly.
"Well, well, well. Who knew Haruno Sakura was such a peeping tom?" teased a deep male voice.
Sakura turned her head in the direction of the sound to find Kakashi sitting on a branch above her and to the right. His head was buried in the latest Icha Icha book. She mentally berated herself. She must have been really lost in her thoughts not to have sensed him when he was that close to her. If he had been an enemy, she'd be dead by now.
She was immediately embarrassed. How long had he been sitting there? How long had he watched her watching Naruto? She had to deny it. This was not something she wanted anyone to know about.
"I was not peeping!" She whispered loudly.
"Oh?" Kakashi asked in a bored tone, not looking up from his book.
Sakura began rearranging her clothes and gathering her things, making as little noise as possible.
"So you weren't ogling Naruto then?" Kakashi asked, still sounding completely uninterested. Sakura's mouth dropped open and she sputtered for a few moments before answering.
"Of course I wasn't! It's Naruto for kami-sake! Who would want to look at him?"
Sakura thought she sounded convincingly angry and offended. She congratulated herself on her acting skills.
Kakashi didn't respond but he did let out an elongated cough. Sakura had the distinct feeling that it was really a laugh in disguise. She huffed in feigned annoyance and a comfortable silence fell down between them. After a few moments, Kakashi casually flipped a page of his book and spoke.
"Too bad," he stated flatly.
"What?" Sakura asked, surprised.
"And Naruto was so happy thinking you had finally started to pay him some attention…"
Sakura leaped onto Kakashi's branch and sat down in front on him.
"Kakashi-sensei, Naruto does not know I'm here." She said it as a statement, but it was really a question, full of panic.
"Of course he does. He knows right now and he's known all the other times as well. What kind of ninja would he be if he didn't?" Sakura groaned and pressed her palms into her eyes. Kakashi chuckled.
"It's not funny! It's so… embarrassing."
Kakashi tucked his book in the back pocket of his pants and looked up at Sakura. His usual black mask was in place over his nose and lips and his head band covered his left eye as always, but she could tell that there was an amused look on his face.
"Why the hell hasn't he said something? Why hasn't he stopped me?" Kakashi shrugged.
"I suppose he likes the attention."
"He doesn't need my attention. Everyone acknowledges that he's strong now. He's even got his own group of fan girls following him around everywhere he goes."
"Does that bother you? The girls?"
"No," Sakura lied through her teeth. In fact she hated those girls. They were always following him and gawking and throwing themselves at him. She wanted to scratch their damn eyes out every time she saw them. But she would never admit that to anyone, least of all Kakashi. Mercifully, he didn't question her further. But he smiled knowingly beneath his mask.
"I meant that he enjoys your attention."
"Why?" Sakura asked in a small voice, her heart pounding against her chest.
"Because he loves you."
Kakashi said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Sakura supposed it was. She knew. Everyone knew. He used to declare it all the time when they were genin. But that was such a long time ago. And he never said so anymore. Sakura suspected he'd dated a few people over the years. And who knew what he did while away with that perverted sanin sensei of his. He had probably long been over his feelings for her.
"I don't think he does anymore," she stated sadly.
"He does."
"You don't know that, Kakashi-sensei."
"I know."
"But the way I've treated him – "
"He doesn't care."
"And Sasuke – "
"Doesn't matter."
"He and Hinata…"
Sakura couldn't bring herself to finish her thought. She knew Naruto and Hinata had been seeing a lot of each other lately. And she knew the poor shy girl had loved Naruto for years. A part of her was happy Hinata had finally gotten up the courage to tell Naruto how she felt. A part of her was happy Naruto had something nice in his life for once. But a part of her hated the situation with a passion. If only she'd gotten to him first! If only she'd seen what was sitting right in front of her earlier! She felt like crying and Kakashi's hesitation to answer didn't help. When he did speak, it was gently.
"Hinata is a nice enough girl. But he doesn't love her and he never will. They are too different."
"That's exactly it. They compliment each other. She's the yin to his yang. Where he's loud, she's quiet. Where he's hot-headed, she's calm. Where he's impulsive, she's reasonable," said Sakura, voicing her own fears.
"They may compliment each other, but they do not suit each other. Naruto won't ever love a woman who just stands in his shadow."
"If that's the case, he'll never be in love since any woman he could ever possible be with would be standing in his shadow. I mean, he's already as strong as the sanin and well on his way to becoming the next Hokage. Besides, Naruto has always respected people who try to change themselves. And Hinata works as hard as anyone to better herself. Naruto isn't Sasuke. He wouldn't look down on someone weaker than him as long as they're trying their hardest."
Kakashi blinked at Sakura, a little surprised at how vehemently she praised and defended Naruto. She really was in love with him. Kakashi was glad. He wanted to see his students happy. But he also loved to tease them. He smirked under his mask.
"Well, maybe you're right," he said very seriously. He watched in satisfaction as Sakura turned her horror stricken green eyes on him. "But I don't think so," he added with a wink. As expected she smiled broadly. He returned the gesture.
Same old Kakashi-sensei, Sakura thought warmly as he began to read his book again. She turned around and gazed at Naruto once again, feeling the happiest she had in a long time. It just felt so nice talking to Kakashi and seeing Naruto, even if she was stealing the sight. They had been her teammates. They had been her closest friends. As far as she was concerned, they still were and she missed them like hell.
Sometimes, despite everything he had done, she still missed that dumb baka Sasuke too. Not because she still wanted to be with him or anything. Because she didn't. But just because he was a special person to her just like Naruto and Kakashi were. Sakura sighed, feeling nostalgic for the old Team 7 days.
"Kakashi-sensei?" she mumbled quietly.
"Hn?"
"Why do you care so much anyway?"
"My students are important to me."
He didn't say "you are important to me" or "Naruto is important to me" or "I want you guys to be happy," but Sakura understood. She knew Kakashi had never taken any students before or after her team. She knew he cared about them deeply. But to hear him say so was rare. She giggled.
"You know Kakashi-sensei, you've been awfully talkative today."
"You're right. I think I may have had a little too much sake before arriving."
"Kakashi-sensei, it's three in the afternoon!" He only chuckled in response.
Out of the corner of her eye, Sakura noticed something on Naruto's stomach. She'd seen it before, but never close up enough to get a good look. She'd thought it was just dirt or a bruise at first, but it had never gone away and now she curious. Maybe Kakashi would know?
"Hey sensei?"
"Hn?"
"Do you know what that mark is on Naruto's stomach?"
"Yes."
"Really?" Sakura turned around to face him excitedly. He nodded lazily.
"Well?" He looked up from his book and met Sakura's eye.
"I'm sorry, but that I cannot tell you." There was a note of finality in his voice and Sakura knew there was no use in pursuing the matter any further. She sighed in disappointment and gazed down at the training area.
Naruto had a secret? Sakura smiled, wondering how the hell a loud mouth like him managed to keep one.