discLAiMEr: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.

Secrets of the Heart

Chapter One: Anticipation

Naruto Uzumaki was very excited. Maybe too excited for his own good. He convinced Sakura Haruno to go on a picnic with him, secretly leaving Sai behind. Sakura considered it a picnic. Naruto considered it a date.

Me and Sakura, all by ourselves, with no distractions, was all Naruto could think about. He couldn't help but giggle under his breath as they forged their way into the forest. He led the way, carrying a basket, while Sakura carried a plaid blanket to sit on.

"Naruto," Sakura said annoyed. "Where is this clearing you were talking about? It seems we've been walking forever."

Again, Naruto thought of the distance away from the village and giggled under his breath. He composed himself to answer. "It's just up ahead, Sakura."

Naruto turned his head and flashed her a smile.

What are you up to? Sakura thought. But she remained silent and let him lead the way.

A few feet ahead, Naruto pulled down a tree branch. "Here it is."

Sakura wasn't expecting much. She walked up beside him to look and gasped. It was the most beautiful place she'd ever seen. Water was gushing down from a waterfall in the distance. It ran into a river that headed west. Right in front, was a clearing with dark green grass, wildflowers, and a few shade trees.

"Naruto," Sakura said in disbelief. "How? When?"

"Oh, I found it a long time ago," said Naruto, as they walked into the clearing. "I come here when I have a lot on my mind."

Sakura couldn't stop staring at her surroundings. A small gust of wind picked up her pink hair and swirled it around her face. She smiled at Naruto. "It's so beautiful."

Naruto's blue eyes were locked on Sakura. "Yes, beautiful."

Sakura blushed, feeling a little uncomfortable. She still considered Naruto a friend. Though, she couldn't deny the bond between them had grown much stronger. She remembered Yamato saying that she had strong feelings for him. He almost said that she loved Naruto. Well, she did love him. Though, even she was unsure what kind of love she felt. She couldn't imagine living without him. She couldn't stand the thought of Naruto ever being hurt or in pain. She did love him that much.

Yet, there was someone else that still held her heart. But she didn't want to think about him. It was too painful and she didn't want to ruin this special time with Naruto.

Suddenly, Naruto's stomach growled very loudly. He tore his gaze away from Sakura to stare down at it, embarrassed.

Sakura was glad for the distraction. She spread the blanket out and they both sat down on it cross-legged.

"So, what did you bring?" Sakura eyed the basket Naruto set down in-between them. Naruto said he would bring the food if she brought the blanket.

Naruto smiled and opened the basket. "I must admit, I cheated."

Sakura gave him a confused look.

"Well, I'm not much of a cook, so I bought some ramen from Ichiraku's shop."

Naruto pulled out the boxes and some chopsticks. Sakura giggled and took her share. They began munching silently on the ramen, listening to the waterfall and the birds chirping in the trees nearby.

Sakura noticed, every chance Naruto got, he was staring at her. She felt self-conscious about slurping her noodles and set the box down.

Naruto panicked. "Sakura, did you not like your ramen? I should have gotten something else."

"No, Naruto. I'm not that hungry. I ate a late breakfast." Sakura felt there was more to this picnic than she bargained for. The way Naruto was staring at her made her feel uneasy. She didn't want to lead him on. She thought it best to cut things short. "Are you ready to go back now?"

Naruto look defeated. He dropped his chopsticks into his box. Sakura instantly felt bad. She didn't want to break his heart. It seemed she crushed it all the time.

"Why, Sakura?"

"I told you why."

"No. Why won't you let me in?" Naruto looked up at her, pain in his eyes.

Sakura looked away. "Naruto, I don't know what you mean."

"Did you ever consider, you and me…"

"No," Sakura said too quickly, and snapped her head around to look at him. Naruto flinched. She wished she could have taken it back. "I don't want to hurt you, Naruto. I do care for you. I appreciate everything you've done for me. Please know that. It's just…"

"It's just him." Naruto didn't have to say his name. They both knew whom he was talking about. "He'll never care about you the way I do. And I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm still here and he's not."

This time Naruto wished he could have taken his words back when he saw tears welling up in Sakura's eyes. He couldn't forget that he was on a mission to bring Sasuke back, no matter what the price. "I'm sorry, Sakura. I know you miss Sasuke. I just wish things were different... in more ways than one."

The tears flowed down Sakura's face. Every time she wiped one away, another would trickle down. She felt embarrassed in front of Naruto; weak even. She didn't want to know what he thought of her, so she guessed out loud. "I'm pathetic, I know. Just the mere mention of him destroys me. I'm so stupid."

Naruto shook his head and leaned forward to wipe a rogue tear from her cheek. "Sakura, I didn't mean to hurt you. Please forgive me."

Sakura looked into Naruto's sincere blue eyes. He had grown up so much, physically anyway. But there were times like now that he seemed very caring and mature. She reached up and touched his hand on her cheek. Naruto froze.

"He didn't just leave me," said Sakura, finally regaining control of herself. "He left you too. No matter how hard we tried, he turned his back on us. He'll never realize how much hurt he caused."

"He was such a fool to leave you, Sakura," Naruto said honestly. "Believe me, I know what it's like to feel lonely. I wish I could take it away from you. I wish I could make you forget."

Naruto leaned closer to Sakura. To his surpise, she didn't back away. Sakura still held his hand to her face. Naruto felt his heart beating in his ears. This was the moment he had been waiting for. Sakura closed her eyes and Naruto closed his too. He leaned in further, anticipating the feel of her lips against his own.

Suddenly, Naruto was thrown back with great force. At first, he thought Sakura had changed her mind and punched him. But when he opened his eyes, he realized he was pinned.

It took Naruto a second to figure out what was going on. A swirl of snakes slithered around him, binding him against a tree. He couldn't move his body at all. He knew immediately who had done this. He struggled to look over at Sakura, who was also pinned against a tree beside him; not by snakes, but by Sasuke.