It was a beautiful day in the village of Konoha. Not a single cloud could be seen in the sky, allowing for the sun to shine down on the inhabitants without any obstructions. Civilians and ninjas alike could be seen strolling through the village, laughing cheerily with each other without a care in the world.
Of course, there's always the exception.
"Excuse me," A blue eyed blond shouted as he ran through the streets. He jumped over a young couple, causing angry shouts to emanate from both the man and woman. He looked over his shoulder, rolling his eyes as he picked up his pace.
"Hey, I'm not the one who's blocking the person with an urgent mission here!" He shouted as he raced pass Ichiraku. Ayame poked her head out, thinking her eyes had fooled her when she saw an orange and black blur zoom straight past the ramen stand.
"Hey Naruto, what's the rush?" She called out. Naruto looked over his shoulder, giving her a small wave.
"Sorry Ayame, no time to talk! I gotta get to Sasuke's house; it's an emergency!"
Ayame shrugged, heading back into the shop to serve more customers. "He'll be back; all that running will have worked up an appetite."
Naruto slowed down once he reached his destination at the Uchiha Compound. He placed his hands on his knees, bending over as he panted furiously.
"Calm yourself Uzumaki," He told himself; wiping the sweat from his brow, "The last thing you need is for that bastard to not take you seriously!"
He took a deep breath, finally bringing his heart rate back to normal. He strode quickly up to the door, cleared his throat, and immediately began pounding wildly against Sasuke's door.
"Sasuke," He shouted, fists beating the door like a bongo drum, "Get out here quick! It's an emergency that doesn't concern my appetite for ramen at all!"
After a few more moments of pounding, the door opened slightly, partially revealing Sasuke's face. "Why do I doubt that statement?" He inquired blandly, staring blankly at Naruto. Naruto pressed his face as close to the opening as possible, causing Sasuke to take a step back.
"I swear this has nothing to do with ramen!" He said, stepping back so that Sasuke could watch him make a cross over his chest as he held up his right hand. "I cross my heart and hope to die if I lie!"
"I'll remember that," Sasuke muttered, opening the door all the way. He leaned against the doorway, watching Naruto carefully. "Now what is it?"
"It's Sakura! She's been missing for like a week, I swear!"
"Are you sure this isn't like the last time, where she was staying at Ino's to help her cope with that break-up?"
"She's dating Sai! I don't even think he knows what a break-up is!"
"Are you sure she's not on a mission?"
"I've asked Grandma Tsunade so much she's gotten ANBU to make sure I don't approach Hokage Tower!"
Sasuke sighed, running his hand through his hair as he leaned against the doorway. "Okay, so you think she's missing. Now the question is why are you coming here instead of searching for her yourself?"
Naruto glared at Sasuke. "Because if I'm going to make this a successful mission, I'm going to need help!"
"And why don't you ask Ino as well?"
Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, she just kinda waved her hand at me, told me that Sakura is fine, and then threatened to kick me out of the flower shop."
"Smart girl," Sasuke muttered, arms crossed over his chest. Naruto glared at him again, hands placed firmly on his hips.
"Hey! You're my teammate; you're supposed to love and care for my wellbeing and emotions! And the same applies for Sakura!" Naruto scolded, wagging his finger in front of his face. Sasuke fought the urge to snap it like a twig, opting instead to just intensely glare at him with the hope that he would leave.
"Did it ever occur to you that she might be sick at home?" He prodded, hoping that Naruto would have been dumb enough to forget to check there. Naruto placed his hand on his chin, rubbing it as he looked thoughtfully at the ground.
"Well yeah, that did occur to me, so I checked there first," He began, remembering how his worry began, "But it was locked and the place looked dark, so I figured she was out on a mission. And besides, I'm sure Ino or someone would be staying there to take care of her and all that stuff. So I went to Tsunade, and one thing led to another until it finally all led to here."
Sasuke thought over all the information Naruto had presented, trying to find a logical explanation so that he wouldn't be pulled into some ridiculous scheme. Before he could even begin to truly think, Naruto had already grabbed him by the arm and was dragging him through the streets.
"Thanks a bunch teme, I just knew you had a heart somewhere down there!" Naruto said, running at a furious pace. Sasuke could only sigh and roll his eyes as he was unwillingly dragged into Naruto's self-appointed mission.
"See, I told you! Completely dark!"
Sasuke hated to admit it, but Naruto was right. No light shown from any of the windows in Sakura's apartment, leading one to believe that it was uninhabited at the moment. The two were now standing in front of her door, Naruto demonstrating that it was locked.
"What if she's been kidnapped," Naruto said, eyes wide with dread, "What if she's been stolen away and is now being raped? Good Lord, what if she's dead?"
"What if none of that happened because the window isn't broken or open," Sasuke stated calmly, though even he was slightly disturbed at the thought of Sakura's recent disappearance being because of sudden death. Naruto rubbed the back of his neck as he grinned sheepishly.
"Oh right, I forgot about that fact…"
Sasuke sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "In any case, we should probably break the door down since it's locked."
Naruto nodded. "Right! Everybody stand back now!" He said, backing up as far as the hallway would allow. He took a running start at the door, jumping up into the air as he slammed his body against the door. The door held its ground as Naruto went flying backwards, crashing into the opposite wall.
"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, watching as Naruto rubbed his head in pain. Naruto stared wide-eyed at the door before turning his head towards Sasuke.
"Dude! I swear it felt like there was a ton of bricks behind that door!" Naruto shouted, pointing at the door. Sasuke raised an eyebrow, walking towards the door as well. He raised his fist and, pulling it back before using as much force as possible, slammed it against the door. A loud rumbling could be heard, the sound similar to that of a small avalanche. Naruto hurried onto his feet, running to the door just a shriek could be heard from within.
"What the hell," They both thought as the doorknob began to turn. They both stepped away from the door, drawing kunai to prepare themselves for whatever was about to appear. Immediately after the door swung open, out stepping a disheveled looking Sakura, her entire body tense with anger. Naruto's eyes lit up with joy as he put the kunai away, opening his arms wide to embrace her in a bear hug.
"Sakura-cha-" His joy was cut short as a chakra powered fist collided with his jaw, sending him flying out the building and into the clear sky above. His body became smaller and smaller until finally disappearing from sight. She huffed spinning on her heel to head back inside, only to have her eyes lock with Sasuke's. She grit her teeth as her body tensed again, hands balling into fists.
"You too," She hissed, taking a menacing step towards him. Before Sasuke could even prepare himself for the impact of his life though, Sakura's eyes rolled into the back of her head as her body went limp and fell forward. Sasuke caught her before she could hit the ground, her head landing against his chest.
"What the hell," He thought, staring down at her unconscious form. He pushed the door of her apartment open more, allowing him to stare inside the dark room. From what he could see, thick books and scrolls were piled all the way to the ceiling, and the only light that could be seen was from a desk lamp situated on her coffee table. On the couch behind her lay a fake cadaver; in front was a scroll clearly depicting the human body as well as a massive amount of information. He stared down at her, noticing the bags under her eyes from countless sleepless nights.
"Was she…studying?"
The sun beat down upon the village of Suna more mercilessly than ever, causing its inhabitants to seek shelter from the brutal heat wave. In the office of the Kazekage, the heat seemed to triple in intensity as he worked to finish signing and reading important documents. He wiped the sweat from his brow, red hair slightly damp with the amount of perspiration.
"Damn this ungodly abnormal heat wave," He thought, glaring down at the paperwork. He leaned back in his chair, picking the papers up to finish reading the latest report. As he began the first sentence, a large crash could be heard followed by a thundering thud as something hit the floor of the office hard.
He sighed, "Temari, go get the first aid kit." He called out to the sandy blonde outside of the room. He heard footsteps indicating a person leaving, as well as an appreciative groan of pain coming from the floor.
"Thanks Gaara, you're a real pal."
Gaara rolled his eyes as he continued to read the documents. "After the fifth time, Naruto, it just becomes routine."
Sakura groaned as she slowly began to surface back into consciousness. Her eyes fluttered open only to be immediately shut due to the amount of light that had suddenly appeared. She sat up, holding her head in her hand as she looked around her apartment. The scrolls and books were all still neatly stacked to the ceiling, and yet here she was on the couch instead of studying.
"How did I…" She thought, glancing down at the cadaver placed carelessly on the floor.
"You're awake."
Her body stiffened at the male voice, her head turning quickly towards the sound. She blinked in confusion as her eyes landed on Sasuke as he leaned against the wall. "How did you get here?"
"Don't you remember? You punched Naruto so hard he went flying and then you passed out." Sasuke explained, staring at her as she processed the information. She rubbed her head, the memory coming back to her immediately.
"I was hoping that was just a bad dream…"She muttered quietly.
"Why are you studying so much?" Sasuke asked, gesturing towards the thousands of books and scrolls in the room. She blinked, suddenly remembering what she should be doing instead of chit-chatting with Sasuke.
"Because I have a medic exam coming up that I need to pass," She stated, hopping off the couch and back onto the floor. She placed the cadaver back on the couch as she returned to her attention to the scroll on the table.
"Why," Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow in question, "I thought you already had the certification to be a medic nin."
"It's to renew it," She muttered, her eyes trained on the information in front of her. Sasuke frowned as she turned the page, already on the next batch of information.
"Okay, then why are you pushing yourself so hard," He asked, interrupting her train of thought, "You pretty much know everything you need to."
"I don't know, why do you push yourself so hard when you're pretty much invincible," She snapped, brows furrowing as she stared at the book.
"That's different."
"Is not!"
"Yes it is; you have to push yourself hard to keep up and improve your skill levels."
"Well then, there's your answer to your question."
"Yours is knowledge, not power."
"Ever hear the phrase 'knowledge is power'?"
"Again, that's different."
"And again, is not!"
He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Look; pushing yourself to the brink of exhaustion will not help you remember anything. And if you literally collapse after one chakra punch, then you surely can't pass any strenuous chakra portions of this exam."
She huffed, slamming her fist against the table in aggravation. "Will you just shut up and let me study?"
He sighed, running a hand through his hair as she went back to studying. "Fine; at this point though it probably won't make much of a difference either way though."
She gritted her teeth, turning around to face him once again. "Look, just because I nag you and Naruto about not killing each other with training doesn't mean you can do the same to me."
"Hn."
She sighed, running a hand through her hair as she turned back to the book. She waved her hand dismissively at him, her attention brought back to the previous paragraph. "Now run along and do whatever it is you do."
His eyebrow twitched slightly at her behavior. "Why should I listen to you?"
"Because if you don't you'll suddenly find yourself very confused in Suna."
The image of flying through the hole Naruto had created flashed through Sasuke's mind. He inwardly shuddered at the notion, though outwardly he kept his composure. "Considering that you're clearly on the verging of killing yourself, I'll take the risk."
Sakura felt her eyebrow twitch in annoyance. "I can take care of myself fine, thank you very much."
"Let's see…fire hazards, no sleep, depleted chakra, dim lighting…" Sasuke listed the various conflicts to her statement. Sakura's face flushed as she realized he was making a very valid point by just analyzing her study habits.
"This is only for a short period of time though!" She defended herself, turning around so that she could fully face him.
"You call a week a short period of time?"
"Compared to a month, yes I do."
"Well I don't," She stated defiantly, arms crossed over her chest as she turned away from him. "Now leave before I actually decide to carry out my threat."
He sighed; it was obvious that her mind was set. "Hn," He said, heading towards her door. He noticed the way her shoulders seemed to relax slightly as she began to study again, her body language practically celebrating in his exit. He stopped at the door, hand resting on the knob as a last ditch effort popped into his head.
"Although," He began, already sensing her body tense, "Studying only helps people who aren't already proficient in what they're doing." He finished, immediately opening the door and exiting. Sakura sat there, her eyes staring at the spot he had been standing at before. She blinked a few times, mind working on processing what he had just said.
"Did he just…compliment me," She thought, bewildered at just the thought of Sasuke even knowing what a compliment was, much less using such a phrase directed towards her. She shook her head, forcing her attention back on the scroll in front of her.
"No! No contemplating him," She thought, eyes trained on the diagrams, "You have to study."
However, the more she focused on the diagram, the more she found that she couldn't focus on the diagram. Her mind kept wandering back to his words, working to analyze and then look over the entire conversation to find any hints that would have led to his words. She groaned as she sank against the couch, running her hands over her face.
"This is pointless now," She muttered, glaring angrily at the door. "And it's his entire stupid fault!" She mentally hissed, standing up immediately from the couch. She marched towards the door, yanking it open violently. She stepped out into the hallway, closing the door behind her as she looked towards the only exit Sasuke could have taken. Her eyes narrowed as she spotted him leaning against the wall, his eyes closed while his hands were buried deep into his pockets. She marched towards him, placing her hands on her hips as she stood in front of him. He lazily opened an eye at the sound of her foot tapping, a smirk appearing on his face once he saw her.
"Took you long enough," He replied, body completely relaxed. She huffed, foot still tapping rapidly.
"Yeah well, I tried to get back to studying but you," She emphasized the "you" by pointing at his chest, "Had to go and distract me with your arguments and completely out of the blue compliments!"
"Oh really," He asked, amusement twinkling in his eyes. Sakura ignored it as she continued with her rant, her hand placing itself back upon her hip.
"Yes, it is. And because of your distractions, you owe me some kind of apology."
"Like what?"
"Like-" The sound of her stomach gurgling interrupted her rant, causing a blush to form on her face and a smirk to appear on Sasuke's. However, Sakura decided to use the stomach gurgling to her advantage as a way to get her apology. "Like treating me to dinner, or whatever mealtime it is right now! After all, I apparently can't take care of myself." She finished, crossing her arms over her chest; triumph shining in her eyes as she smirked up at Sasuke. He shrugged his shoulders, pushing off against the wall as he headed towards the lower floors.
"Fine; anything to appease your wrath," He said, a hint of sarcasm sprinkled throughout the sentence. Either Sakura was either too satisfied to notice or she chose not to, because instead of reacting with anger she instead walked behind him, her entire being glowing with triumph at having seemingly won this little skirmish.
"Damn straight."
Tsunade sighed, looking over the mounds of test papers that lay on her desk. "Why do these exams have to be so damn long?" She thought, completing her grading of one paper. She flipped to the front of the book, a smile appearing on her face as she saw who the medic was that tried to renew their certification.
"You've done it again kid," She said under her breath, writing a large letter 'A' next to the name of Sakura Haruno. She leaned back in her chair, turning it around so that she could face the landscape of the village.
"Yep, nothing like test papers and sake," She said, pouring herself another cup. She tipped her head back, eyes closed in appreciation as she downed the drink in her hands. A sharp tapping sound against her window however caused her eyes to open. She lowered the cup, confusion apparent on her face as a messenger bird sat on her windowsill.
"What in the world…" Tsunade thought, opening the window to let the bird in. The bird hopped into the office, a small scroll tied to its ankle. She reached down and untied it, unfurling it so that she may read it.
Dear Tsunade,
Please retrieve your village idiot from my village immediately. He has depleted the entire Wind Country's ramen supply with his insatiable appetite, and has now become nothing more than a nuisance.
Sincerely,
The Fifth Kazekage Subaku no Gaara
Tsunade blinked as she read the letter, turning around slightly in her chair to stare at the door. She looked back and forth between the letter and the door. She sighed, crumpling the paper in her hands as she tossed it in the wastebasket.
"Well, there goes my miniature unexplained holiday."
A/N: Um, so I began this while I was studying for exams. But then exams got in the way. And now, almost a week later, I am finishing it up. So yeah…I totally don't even care anymore. LET THE WORLD HATE IT; I DARE YA TOO! But anyway, leave a review and you'll receive a big basket of instant ramen! Because it is the busy student's best friend! (Or so I've been told) Until next time, JAA MATA!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. However I do own all headaches that are caused by me facepalming while screaming "WHEN WILL IT END DAMN IT? WHEEEENNN?"