Sakura had gotten used to admirers over the years. As she had grown older, she had become everything that Tsunade had hoped she would be. Sakura had surpassed her teacher not only in skill as a medic, but in beauty. Her exotic looks, including her once-despised large forehead, drew more attention than Tsunade's own ample ... "attributes."

These admirers of Sakura rarely openly approached her. This was mostly due to an incident involving a date that became too "hands on" for Sakura's liking and said pushy male being slammed through a brick wall. Now, the show of appreciation was usually in the form of flowers left at Sakura's office in the Konoha hospital. Sakura had developed a habit of reading the cards, then distributing the large amounts of bouquets to patient rooms and waiting rooms around the facility. They may not impress her, but they could at least brighten up someone else's day. After half a year, though, the number of flowers she received each day hadn't dwindled and she no longer even read the cards. She merely threw the cards away and distributed the flowers as usual.

One day, however, she walked into her office and started going through the usual motions of disposing of the various bouquets when something caught her eye. Shifting some of the vases off of her desk, she saw a lone white flower. Picking it up, she noticed that it was a rose made of intricately folded paper. No card, no note of any kind. Just a flower.

For the first time in years, Sakura kept a gift from an admirer.

Throughout several months, every day Sakura would walk into her office to find the usual bouquets and one lone paper flower. The flower was not always a rose. The paper was not always white. But the flower always looked perfect nestled in a vase along with the others she had received. Each day it was the only thing she kept and each day it made her smile.

This continued even as Konoha was plunged into war. Every day, no matter how busy she was, Sakura always managed to find time to check her office for those paper flowers, even after the other arrangements stopped arriving. As the war turned even more vicious and conditions worsened, the daily blossom was often the only thing that could bring a smile to her face as she spent days without sleep at the hospital patching up friends as well as enemies, proofreading and posting the latest list of casualties, and comforting those who had lost someone.

The devastating war was at the end of its sixth month and during the worst of its fighting when the flowers stopped appearing. Sakura had collected 363 blooms.

The day that Tsunade died, Sakura was inconsolable. Her tears didn't end even after she knew she should have been too dehydrated to cry any longer. Tsunade, along with Naruto's assistance, had managed to strike the final blow to the enemy, ending the war after two long, painful years.

The funeral for the Godaime Hokage was held three days after her death. It was sunny and Sakura was still crying, in the arms of the equally tearful Shizune. She was the last to lay a chrysanthemum on the table in front of the most beautiful portrait of her mentor - the woman she looked up to almost as a mother - that she had ever seen. As she stepped forward to pay her respects, she noticed a sake bottle on the table with a single white paper flower placed in it.

That night Sakura stopped crying.

The morning of the day the Rokudaime Hokage was to be sworn into office, Sakura awoke with a start. She could have sworn there had been someone in her room. As she looked around her bedroom, she saw a paper lily on her nightstand. This time there was a piece of paper attached to it. It was a page torn out of a book. After she read it, for the first time in 547 days, Sakura felt a true smile grace her features.

Later that day, Sakura stood on the roof of the Hokage Tower with the surviving members of the Rookie Nine as her best friend took the office and title of Rokudaime Hokage. She had never seen Naruto happier or more determined then he was as he swore to protect Konoha with his life and promised to do his best to live up to his predecessors. As she stood in her kimono that Naruto had insisted upon buying her years ago just for this occasion, she listened to the crowd cheer and watched her friend grin and wave his ceremonial hat in much the same way that Tsunade had so long ago. She watched him embrace his blushing and beaming wife. She watched the people of the village begin the celebration amidst the rubble that had yet to be cleared from the final battle. She watched as a red rose made of intricately folded paper came into view, held by the man who had silently moved to stand behind her.

"It took me quite some time to realize why you always became so angry when I was just trying to compliment you." Sakura turned around, allowing the man to tuck the flower into her hair. He was smiling. A real smile.

"Women often dislike hearing the truth, especially in regards to their appearance. For instance…" She let out a sigh as the party continued around them, the revelers oblivious to their conversation.

"I know what the damn book said, Sai. You don't need to quote it. I read the page you left for me."

"There are some things that I didn't need a book to tell me." He stepped closer and she had to tilt her head to look at his face. When had he gotten so tall?

"Like what?" Sai leaned in and gave her a soft, sweet kiss.

"I love you, Ugly." Sakura smiled and wrapped herself in his arms. "I'm sorry. I couldn't figure out what your favorite flower is."

"Yes you did."

"I did? Which kind? You kept all of the flowers I made for you."

"Exactly."

A/N: This is dedicated to my good friend, the-yaoi-squirrel. I hope you like it.