A/N: an InoSara request I got on my main blog from tumblr that I'm also posting here. I happen to be quite fond of this ship myself, so I figured "why the hell not, I'll post it on FFN too!" I hope to write more things with these two in the future if possible as long as I have ideas for it.
Boys
For the most part, Sarada herself didn't have much of a high opinion on boys. It was a stark contrast in comparison to her best friend, Chouchou, but Sarada didn't see the the pleasure in them. Especially after becoming a ninja.
She considered them lazy, messy, and generally they were jerks. It probably came from the fact most of the boys she grew up with came off that way, but the ravenette digressed. If anything, her only exceptions to this perception were her father, Sasuke Uchiha, and the Seventh Hokage (who happened to be the father of one particular boy that wasn't an exception to her perceptions.)
But adults aside, if Sarada had to pick at least one boy her age that didn't go into her typical generalizing of the masses… It would have to be her Auntie Ino's son, Inojin Yamanaka.
The two of them had grown up knowing each other outside the Academy. (It was same with both Boruto and Himawari, but meh. This was about Inojin.)
Typically this was because their mothers were both best friends, but Sarada would be lying if she said that she didn't enjoy the Yamanaka boy's company.
He smelled nice. Probably from working at his family's flower shop all the time; but he had a faint gentle fragrance upon him.
Inojin was also a hard-worker in comparison to his teammates. Sure, Chouchou and Shikadai worked their hardest in their own way– but Inojin took the cake in the fact he never ditched his InoShikaChou training.
And above all else, he was actually a gentlemen (as if Auntie Ino would would settle for anything less).
Inojin didn't fall under the whole category that all men were "perverted animals no matter the age", something her father told her one day.
At least, Sarada used to think that.
"Inojin?" Sarada managed to ground out as she noticed the pair of light blue eyes close to her peripheral vision. She took a few steps back. "What are you doing here?"
The blonde boy smiled impishly, gesturing to his apron and the immediate area surrounding them. "I work here."
"Oh." Sarada blinked, deadpanned. "Right." That was an embarrassing question.
Sarada was currently standing in the middle of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, crouched in front of a cluster of baby's breath, and yet she failed to notice the presence of Inojin.
Inojin crouched down beside her, unnervingly close. But Sarada pushed it to him doing this with his usual customers. It's nothing, it's nothing.
"So who are the flowers for, Sara-chan?" Inojin asked. "Does Auntie Sakura want some?"
Sarada shook her head, "No and it's Sarada." She crossed her arms, lips turning into a frown. She hated the nickname he gave her from back when they were toddlers. "Konohamaru-sensei was injured this last mission I went on so I'm bringing him flowers. The job got pushed onto me." Boruto was adamant it was her and didn't let her or Mitsuki (who was already bringing snacks) get a word in edgewise. Not that she didn't mind bringing Konohamaru flowers. It just would've been more meaningful an activity if it was all of her team.
"Boruto again?" Inojin asked with a sympathetic chuckle.
"Yes." Sarada replied without missing a heartbeat. "So how much for a bouquet?" She stood up, her knees feeling sore.
Inojin stood up as well, "You just want a simple mix of flowers?"
Sarada nodded. "You're the flower expert, so I'll just leave it to you."
"The language of flowers is a lot more important that you think, Miss Glasses." Inojin crossed his arms with a sigh. "What if you give someone the wrong message?"
"I doubt that Konohamaru-sensei actually knows the meanings behind any flower."
"But it's the thought that counts." Inojin persisted. "What if you were giving the flowers to a loved one and you gave them orange lilies?"
Sarada failed to see the young artist's point.
"Orange lilies mean 'hatred'." Inojin sighed.
"Then don't put any orange lilies in the bouquet." Sarada snapped. She was already irritated because of Boruto, and Inojin wasn't making her feel any better.
Inojin sighed as his gaze swept over the various plants in the shop. "Just wait for the day you give the wrong kind of flowers to someone you like and they know flower language." His voice had a 'you poor soul' tone to it. "You're going to end up all alone, Sara-chan."
"Well if you're such a love expert, tell me the flowers you'd give to someone you liked!" Sarada growled, too annoyed to even correct him on the proper usage of her name.
"Fine." Inojin replied, looking amused. "I'd give them… Gardenias, to let them know I think they're lovely. White violets (let's take a chance on happiness), whenever I felt as if I were ready to ask them out…" As Inojin spoke, he nimbly picked the flowers he mentioned, eyes firm. "A few crocuses to let them know I can't help but feel cheerful around them. A carnation to let them know they fascinate me. And a couple gladioluses to let them know I'm really sincere." Inojin then knotted a few blades of grass around the bouquet, tightly securing it. "And a few blades grass to keep it all together to represent submission, because they have me tightly wound around their little finger."
Blue met black as Inojin placed the new arrangement in Sarada's hands and the ravenette felt a wave of heat rush over her.
Since when was Inojin so eloquent?
"A-ah…" She couldn't help but feel a little envious. "Whoever that person is won't ever feel neglected if they knew all this information. No! She couldn't be feeling envious! This was Inojin she was talking about, not some chunin with an impressive personality and ambitious goals.
Inojin was just Inojin. A childhood companion who enjoyed playing multi-player role playing games at hamburger joints with Boruto and Shikadai whenever they had the free time.
"Oh, I forgot one."
See? Sarada said to herself like she had a point to prove. This is Inojin we're talking about. But any more of her rambles were cut short as she felt fingers traveling through her bangs. "I-Inojin?"
"A gloxinia." Inojin said, not removing his hands until he believed the dark pink gloxinia was set perfectly in the girl's hair. His index finger brushed her bangs one more time as he pulled his hand away slowly. "To let you know I've always loved you at first sight… Sara-chan." He closed his right eye, winking with a grin as he adjusted her bangs.
Sarada blinked. Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
"WHAAAAAT?!" Sarada backed away from Inojin's grip. Was he joking?! He had to be joking. She considered looking back at the blonde to check for any signs that it was a joke, but she couldn't.
This was something she might have expected from maybe Boruto.
But this was something else entirely.
"Sara-cha-"
Sarada was already running out of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, head hanging low. "Tell Auntie Ino I'll bring the money tomorrow!"
And as if coming to girl's call, said woman entered the entrance of her shop, a curious expression in her eyes as she looked at her son. "Was that Sarada-chan?" Ino was impressed at the speed the girl was running at. "Inojin did you do somethin– Inojin?! What's wrong?"
Inojin had his face completely covered by his hands as he crouched down, his face and ears scarlet. "I can't believe I actually did that!"
He was quite sure he wouldn't be able to face Sarada for a week.