Results of Tenacity
Disclaimer:
As much as nyahxneko would like to, she ―nor any of us― own the characters in this story.
Another odd fic that starts off our series of one-shots :)
Enjoy!
.
.
.
.
It was just another day in the life of Rock Lee, where his shouts of youth could be heard throughout the whole village as he trained by himself in one of the training grounds. People paid no mind to him, as having two almost exact replicas in one village had reduced the shock somewhat. Newcomers, however, continued to be traumatized as they come and go.
Thick eyebrows furrowed in concentration, Lee pushed himself up once again onto his palms. "345...346...347..." He would not go home until he finally finishing his last set of handstand push-ups.
While on his 529th push-up, a movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention, and the pale pink colour that caught his eye made him jump up, face flushed.
"Sakuraaaaaaaa!" Lee shouted, running up behind her. But before he could reach his arms out for her, a punch landed straight into his face.
"Lee, what are you doing?" Sakura hissed, her face slightly reddening already.
He blinked, sprawled on the ground, eyes owlish while rubbing his sore cheek. "S-Sakura, you look so beautiful today as well! Why, the youth in you seems to be overflowing and that lovely pink hue on your face reminds me of the tender petals of a cherry blossom! I think that―"
He was about to continue on singing his praises when a familiar, loud, and annoying voice popped out of nowhere. "Hey! What are you doing to MY Sakura?"
Looking up, Lee saw the owner of the voice, and furrowed his dark, thick eyebrows. "What do you mean, YOUR Sakura, Naruto? She is clearly far too precious and exquisite to belong to a ruffian like you."
Naruto leapt down from the branch he had been standing on and dusted off his pants. Blond hair ruffled and six scars prominent, he looked Lee in the eyes, calculatingly before then cracking a smile, his blue eyes crinkling in amusement. "Whoa there, you should learn some manners, Lee. It's only a form of endearment, besides, we all know I own Sasuke's ass."
At that statement, Sakura turned beet red, remembering why she had stumbled through these training grounds in the first place. "NARUTO, YOU SHAMELESS LOSER, DOING THAT IN PUBLIC TO SASUKE. I OUGHTA PUNCH YOUR EYEBALLS INWARDS AND THROUGH THE OTHER SIDE."
"What? It was only a kiss." Naruto shrugged, unrepentant."We're a couple, get used to it."
As the two bickered, Lee continued to sit on the side and watch, feeling strangely left out, as he rested his gaze on Sakura with sad but determined eyes. It just wasn't fair that she was part of team seven. If they had been assigned under the same instructor, maybe he could have been able to convince her to let go of that silly obsession over the Uchiha during their earlier years and by now, perhaps they would have been married. He could have been the one to stop her tears, learn about all the things she liked, loved and hated. But at the end of the day, all those what ifs simply summed up into one truthful ―and painful― reality: he and Sakura were still mere acquaintances. Nothing had regressed nor had anything bloomed.
By the time Lee had refocused on the bickering duo, Sakura had already destroyed the tree Naruto was on, pummeling the jounin while she was at it. Just as she was about to deliver one last punch, a firm hand reached out to block her fist.
She started, eyes traveling up a pale arm to a firm jaw line and finally resting upon the well-defined features everyone and their sister were currently pining for in Konoha.
"Sakura, look around you. What are you doing, having Naruto string you along like the idiot he is?" Sasuke stated with annoyance. "This isn't your house, so stop treating it as you wish." He turned around to glare at the blond who was trying to camouflage.
"S-Sasuke! He and you-!" Sakura began in an exasperated voice, obsidian eyes closing in irritation.
"Dobe, get up; we're out of here." He turned to walked away, with Naruto scrambling up and starting after him.
"Bastard! Don't walk so fast! Hey!"
Sakura watched them leave with longing eyes, wishing she could be the one walking beside Sasuke. Lee too, watched with the same look, only his gaze was on Sakura.
Maybe now that they're gone, I could try to get closer with Sakura, he thought.
Deciding to act right away on his thoughts, he said out loud, "Sakura, do you want to go grab a bite to eat with me? If you haven't eaten already that is." Please say yes, please say yes.
She looked uncertain for a second until he added, "My treat."
Her eyes flashed with something indescribable as she dragged him along. "You better have plenty of cash on you because I'm in the mood for something expensive."
Lee barely heard her as he was trying not to hyperventilate from having her hold his arm. I'm going out with Sakura, he thought excitedly, feeling as though he was going to burst from happiness. I'm going out on a date with Sakura!
By the time his thoughts had come back down to earth, they were sitting across from each other in a restaurant.
"S-So uh, what would you like to eat, Sakura?" Lee stuttered out, still too nervous to behave as he usually would.
She looked around, picking up the menu. "Have you been here before?" Green eyes quickly scanned the pages and Lee forgot to reply as he followed the fluttering of her eyelashes and the fineness of her skin.
"Yeah...oh, uh I mean, yes. Yes I have. Their Penne alla Vodka is very delicious and last time I was here I tried their Cappellini Primavera; it too, was amazing." He beamed at her, lips quivering and face absolutely shining.
"Oh, I'll have the Penne alla Vodka then."
Lee waved the waiter over and placed the order for one Penne alla Vodka and one Cappellini Primavera. They didn't order any wine since it was still midday.
He squirmed in his seat, now pink from nervousness. "S-So, Sakura, how have you been doing lately? Any exciting missions?"
She sighed. "No, I wish. I've been at the hospital with Lady Tsunade all day. There's a flu going around and with how things are with my team lately... I …" She trailed off, face troubled.
Lee panicked. Oh no, what had he done. Stupid move.
"W-Well, you could always join my squad for a day if you want." Lee said quickly, trying to change her focus away from the couple in team seven. "I'm sure Tenten would love to have another girl around."
Sakura lips pulled up in their corners, and Lee could feel his heart starting to melt. "Thanks Lee. I'll do that sometime. It's been too long since Tenten and I had a nice chat."
Their food arrived just then and their conversation was cut off as their dishes were placed in front of them. Both looking wonderfully delicious, the two ate quietly, each digging into their own. Before long, their plates were clean, and Sakura wiped her mouth lightly with her napkin.
"Thank you, Lee. That was a great dish. You were right about how good it tastes."
"I-I'm glad you like it." Lee replied, tears in the corners of his eyes. She praised me, he thought happily. I could die a happy man.
A silence hung in the air, and neither of them knew how to break it. Finally, Lee gathered up his courage, and, still stuttering, asked, "S-Sakura, would you like to go on a walk with me? Just around the village?"
"Sure," she replied without hesitation. "I could do with some walking after eating so much."
Lee jumped up, pulling wads of cash out of his green jumpsuit and slamming it onto the table. "Let us go then, beautiful Sakura. Oh, youth is so sweet!"
"Drop the useless praises, and I'll go."
.
.
The sun was beginning to set as they took their stroll around the Hidden Leaf village. As they approached the rock carvings of the hokages, they stopped, both of their faces glowing from the fading sunlight.
"I really did mean it before when I said that you could join my squad anytime you want." Lee reminded again, his voice now strangely serious.
"I know, I know." Sakura replied, gaze still focused on Tsunade's carving on the mountain.
"No, I mean―" He took a moment to think carefully before gently putting both of his hands on Sakura's shoulders, turning her to face him. "I meant that you should come...and see me."
"Lee..." Sakura began, her voice half-amused, half-exasperated. "I thought I've been over this a million times, I don't ―"
"Don't see me that way?" Lee finished off for her. "But did you ever even try?"
The atmosphere around them was changing, the tension rising, but Lee didn't stutter anymore. He'd gotten serious. He wanted Sakura to know that his feelings weren't just for laughs: they were real.
"You would always laugh it off or say that you like Sasuke but the truth is plain and right in front of you: he doesn't like you. He has Naruto already, so why can't you just let him go?"
"Because we were meant to be!" Her face contorted as she yelled at him. "I've been in love with Sasuke since day one! Why is it Naruto? Am I not good enough? It should be me!"
It was clear how painful this conversation was for her, and Lee regretted a little about pushing her towards this, but he needed her to know, to understand.
"Then I could say the same to you!" Lee shouted, for the first time in his life, at Sakura. "My feelings for you have always been put out there, right for you to see, but you don't even cast the slightest glance my way."
"If it's the same, why can't you let me go?!"
"Because it's YOU!" Lee looked down now, unable to face Sakura. "Because Sasuke's already gone, and if you would just let him go, you could have what has always been waiting for you. I've been waiting for you."
A heavy silence weighed upon them, and Lee took a huge breath, breathing out slowly in an effort to calm himself, before continuing on, "You're asking me why I don't just let you go? Because Sasuke's has Naruto on me, and like I said, he's already gone, but you're not gone from me. If you would just try, try, and give us a chance, maybe you'd get an unexpected result." He finished quietly, finally looking up at her again and allowing a small smile to show on his face.
"Lee... I really don't know..." Sakura bit her bottom lip, looking hesitantly at his face. "I don't think you should put yourself through this..."
He met her gaze. "If you can put yourself at such lengths for Uchiha Sasuke, I can do far more for the lady I love."
As Sakura took a moment to ponder his proposition, Lee realized that he was shaking. It took a lot for him to actually profess his love for Sakura, not that he hadn't done so before, but profess with real meaning and intention of taking action.
He watched as her eyes grew soft with what he could only hope was acceptance and not defeat. "Alright, I'll take you seriously." She paused. "But I'm not easy, you'll have to work hard. And no one can ever replace Sasuke."
Lee stood still for another second longer before he leaped and brought Sakura into a bone-crushing hug. "Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU SAKURA! I definitely won't let you down!"
"Ow...you're hurting me already, doofus." Sakura teased with an exasperated smile.
"Sorry!" Lee squeaked out in an unmanly voice as he let go hurriedly, turning red at the girly sound. Taking a step back, he accidentally tripped over a tree root, a momentary bout of clumsiness, and collapsed on the ground. He was in the midst of sitting up before a sound stopped him in his movements.
"You laughed." Lee said, gaping at Sakura while rubbing his head.
"Yes, Lee, I'm laughing at you."
"Whatever happens, I swear to you that I will protect your smile and your laughter. You'll never lose them with me." He vowed solemnly, after standing up and brushing himself off.
A snickering sound floated from the shrubbery followed by the sound of an undignified yelp. "Ouch, that hurt you bastard! That was so cheesy, I had to laugh!" The bush whispered fiercely.
"Not my fault it takes extra the effort to knock some sense into that hole you call your brain."
"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" And Naruto stood straight up, leaves falling from his shoulders before stopping, turning horrified eyes onto the two in front of him.
"Frick, what do we do now Sasuke?" He rasped.
Standing up since their cover had been blown by the blond, Sasuke sighed. "You wish them congratulations and I save your behind."
"Uh...congrats guys. Glad you finally got together." Naruto smiled sheepishly, "So we'll just be leaving now..."
"Hang on a second." Sakura ordered sternly, face turning into a terrifying shade of pure anger. "How, why, and when did you guys start following us?"
"We love you Sakura!" Naruto cried before picking Sasuke up by the waist and fleeing the scene with Sakura hot on their heels.
Lee swooned. "Sakura is truly youthful when angered." He murmured before trailing behind and following the footsteps of the love of his life.
fin.
.
.
.
Yay! We actually choked out two fanfics within one month of each other (technically) XD! Both myself and nyahxneko approve of this pairing, gemire7 not so much, but we managed to get it done :) Nyahxneko also had lots of fun incorporating that little side bit of sasunaru. Hope you guys liked it!
See you soon :)
-S. Rukagi