Title: One Leads to Another
Author: Regal Baring
Fandom: Naruto
Disclaimer: I don't own these suckers, I don't make any money, so don't sue me. I'm poor.
Pairings: Sakura/Naruto. Maybe more. Who knows? Only time will tell.
Note: I haven't read the manga, but the relationships are kind of based off of the jumping point of shippuden episodes 40+. This is set in the future beyond that, so obviously I'm going to be making a lot of stuff up. All are of legal age. (We'll say in Konoha the legal drinking age is 17).
Chapter 1
In which Naruto will eventually be thrown out of a window
"You know, 's my birthday today," Sakura slurred, her arm slung companionably around Naruto's broad shoulders. She didn't bother to even look at Sai who was lounging at the bar next to her, knowing he'd have rebuffed her one-armed hug.
"And we're celebrating!" Naruto said enthusiastically, practically yelling in her ear. He had wrapped one arm around her waist, each holding the other up, while he downed another shot in her honor. She heard a few snickers, but Sakura was feeling too good to be particularly embarrassed about anything.
Why, she could even kiss Naruto right now, and she wouldn't be one bit embarrassed.
She narrowed her eyes, her face pressed close to his. She could hear Ino babbling to Shikamaru behind her, but she didn't bother to look around.
All in all, it was a good turn out. A few were missing on important missions (like Kakashi-sensei for starters!), but she felt confident if they had been around, they would have enjoyed the party too. If Sasuke hadn't been an enemy of Konoha, he may have liked it too.
Everyone was having such a great time. Especially Sakura. And probably Tsunade-sama who sat at the other end of the bar, running up Sakura's tab.
Slumping further into Naruto's quasi-embrace, she snitched the cup he was raising to his lips and hurriedly gulping down the clear liquid down before he had a chance to glare at her. She smiled brightly, licking her lips, and with the upmost care, set down the little sake bowl in front of her.
She must have misjudged the distance, however, for the bowl fell into her lap. Luckily, she had drained the entire drink, and none was left to slosh onto her cute pink outfit.
Well, a few drops had spattered her bare leg, but she hardly noticed. She was so happy! Who could think about being sticky at a time like this?
Naruto noticed.
His eyes stayed glued to the little droplet as it slid down the curve of her thigh. It paused at the soft skin inside of her thigh, trembling, before falling silently to the floor.
Naruto felt like falling too. But only after tracing the damp residue the alcohol had left with his tongue. And maybe with Sakura underneath him.
He shook his head rapidly, almost slipping off of his stool, determinedly looking away from Sakura's legs. It was that damn little dress. It was too short; she really shouldn't have…worn…it…
Naruto tried to hide his nosebleed in the sleeve of his black jacket while Sai watched him with his indifferent, dark gaze.
"What?" Naruto snarled, trying to force back the blush staining his cheeks.
Sai didn't bother to answer, merely dropping his gaze to rest on Sakura's long legs.
"Hey, cut it out!" Naruto said angrily, abruptly getting to his feet.
"Naruto?" Sakura asked, raising a blurry gaze to his face. "Wha's wrong?" The little cup was still cradled against her belly. Naruto desperately tried not to let his gaze wander between her legs.
"Ah," he said, ruffling his hair in his absentminded way while glancing hastily around the bar. "Nothing. It's nothing."
Sai snorted softly in disbelief, and while Sakura completely missed the small sound, it made Naruto look at the boy with narrowed, warning eyes.
"You've dropped something," Sai said helpfully, and before either of two knew what his intention was, he deftly plucked the cup from her lap.
"Oye, you - how dare – I'm going to-" Naruto sputtered in outrage.
"Oh," Sakura said, staring at the bowl in front of her. "Sh-anks," she hiccupped. She giggled, slumping down as if to rest her forehead on the damp countertop, but Naruto hurriedly grabbed her before she could knock herself out.
Instead of resting on the bar as she had planned, she leaned her head back against the soft cloth of his jacket, and stared up at Naruto's face. He seemed so far away, she thought blurrily. Well, he had gotten so much taller than her. Why, he was almost as tall as Asuma had been (Kami rest his soul).
And he looked kind of red, she thought. Was he blushing? Hmm, maybe it was just the alcohol.
"I shink you've had t'mush to drink," Sakura said, stretching up to tap him lightly (no chakra) on his smooth cheek. He never grew facial hair for some reason. He was self conscious about it, and when the other boys called him a Baby-Face, he would go into an instant defensive-growly mode.
"I can't help it!" he would yell, balling up his fists and leaping on the nearest instigator, which usually turned out to be Kiba.
As her eyes struggled to refocus on his face, he said, smiling, "I don't think I'm the only one."
His eyes were so bright and so blue it hurt her eyes to stare into them sometimes. At the moment they seemed warm and soft and safe. She didn't even bother trying to remember what their conversation had been about. She was feeling delightfully hazy. No need to be thinking.
Turning her face to snuggle her head into his chest as much as was possible – which wasn't much since she was facing forward – she sighed happily as she relaxed completely in his hold.
It had been so long since she could relax. It was okay if it was just this minute. It didn't matter if anyone could see. She was warm, happily fuzzy-minded and suddenly so tired it was hard to keep her eyes open.
"Oye, you fallin' asleep on me?"
She squinted, looking as if she was trying to scowl at her long-time friend, but it merely made her look sleepy.
She gave a jaw cracking yawn. She hadn't worked at the hospital today since it was her birthday, but she had trained hard with Naruto and Sai that day. Both boys had not gone soft on her just because she was a girl, which was just the way she liked it.
Lucky she was a medic and could heal all the bruises she had earned. She reluctantly shook free of Naruto's hold and turned around on the bar stool, stretching her legs out on either side of his hips and wiggling her toes in the delicate heels she had bought just for this occasion.
She raised her arm above her head, stretching happily. Naruto looked like he was having some sort of spasms, but she ignored his twitching.
"Ah, 'm so sleepy now," Sakura mumbled. Pushing him out of her way, she moved carefully to the edge of her stool and hesitantly slid off of the seat. Trying not to wobble, she waited for her head to stop spinning.
Tsunade-sama didn't need to worry about rising. She had already slumped, passed out, on the bar. Shizune looked weary and altogether too well-versed with the situation.
"Ugh," Sakura groaned, her head swimming dizzily.
She took one shaky step forward and almost collapsed. Naruto wrapped his arms around her just in time to prevent her dive to the floor.
"Shorry," she slurred guiltily. "I don' feel s' good. Kin'a sick," she said apologetically.
"Silly Sakura-chan," Naruto said, gripping her more firmly. He surreptitiously breathed in the flowery scent of her short, vivid pink hair. "Don't worry, I've got you."
"Looks like Big-Forehead loses to me again. She definitely can't handle her alcohol," Ino hollered from her seat, Choji laughing uproariously beside her.
Naruto shot her a dark look as Sakura took a blind step forward. She raised a blue glowing fist, and swung out towards Ino's face.
Ino, with a look of surprise, fell back over in her seat and barely avoided getting punched. Hard.
"Shut up, Ino-pig," Sakura screeched, trying (and managing, hooray!) not to slur. "I'm drunk, but I could still pound your face in."
"Hff," Ino huffed. "You couldn't hit me even if I was standing right in front you."
"Oh yeah? How 'bout we test that," she said, still trying to enunciate carefully while struggling against Naruto's firm grip.
"I think it's time for Sakura-chan to go home," Naruto said, holding her back from launching a kick into Ino's smirking face.
He hefted her in his arms, cradling her as much as her squirming would allow, and walked towards the door. She was still spitting fire at Ino, who could smirk easily now that her best friend-foe was being hauled out of the bar.
"Calm down, Sakura-chan," Naruto huffed, still struggling to contain the girl. Sai fell into place beside them, his hands loose by his side.
Sakura's adrenaline rush seemed to have jolted her out of some of her alcoholic stupor. She calmed down a bit – which means she stopped scrabbling at Naruto in an effort to launch herself away – and clung to his shoulders.
As her heart rate slowed, she was more aware of the rocking of Naruto's footsteps.
"Ugh," she groaned again, this time burying her head into his soft, well-worn sweater. She could feel his body heat seeping through the cloth. "My head is already starting to hurt. It's not supposed to happen until the next day."
Sai gave his usual bland smile, crossing his hands behind his back as he looked up at the dark shapes of the rooftops surrounding them.
"I think you're both enjoying my misery," she said, sending them each a wounded glance.
Naruto hastily warbled out a negative, griping her tightly in his anxiousness to reassure her. "No, no, Sakura-chan. Not us."
"I am," Sai said.
"Creep," Sakura mumbled. She squeezed Naruto around the neck. "At least one teammate is on my side."
With her head resting against Naruto's shoulder, she missed his flush of pleasure. But she felt his arms tighten around her so that she was pressed against his body in a gentle hug.
She snoozed a bit on the 'ride' back, trying not to snore. She was sure one or two little grunts escaped, but she didn't care. Since the boys walked silently, it seemed extra loud in the thick night air.
Thank Kami she didn't have her birthday in winter. She would never have been able to wear this outfit otherwise.
Which reminded her…
She surreptitiously lowered a hand from her grip on Naruto's shoulders, gingerly feeling around for the hem of her skirt. Ino (before that little scuffle and when Sakura had been feeling more generous) had come over earlier that afternoon, she had convinced Sakura that her little gray shorts were quite inappropriate to wear with such a cute little icy-pink dress, which went surprisingly well with her hair.
She was not surprised -- though still horrified -- to find that the hem of her dress had slid up past proper, skipped over decent, waved goodbye to skimpy and embraced scandalous.
She immediately began tugging at the hem, trying to yank it down to at least cover the curve of her bare skin (yes, she was flashing a lot of ass). Damn underwear. She had forgone her usual little bikini styled bottoms that covered all the important bits for the smaller kind that discouraged panty lines.
She squealed in dismay.
"Let me down, let me down!" Sakura thundered, embarrassed, struggling to swing her legs out of Naruto's grip and to the ground.
He obeyed her command a little more quickly than she had expected.
Her legs, tangled together in his arms, were abruptly let go. He, in his haste to do as she had wanted, had also let go of his support cradling her back.
She ended up collapsed on the ground in a mess of limbs, her tailbone aching. Rolling over to her hands and knees, she winced in pain at the throbbing in her backside.
And then, she felt the breeze.
Her skirt had hiked up well above the curves and was bunched around her hips. Everything. Was. Showing.
"Ahh, don't look!" she cried, hastily pulling her dress down.
"S-s-s-Sakura-chan," Naruto stuttered, "I didn't peek!"
It didn't take a genius to figure out he was lying. If the stutter and too-quick denial hadn't been a strong indicator, the furious blush staining his cheeks had given him away.
Sai looked as composed as always, though he had just as obviously seen the entire set of goods. She wasn't sure which reaction she preferred.
"Oh, that's so embarrassing," she moaned. She knelt on the dusty road and covered her flushed face with her hands.
Naruto had gone strangely quiet, but she was too flustered to look at him. Her drunken haze had almost completely disappeared leaving only a sick feeling, and now she just wanted to go home and hide her head.
She stumbled to her feet before either of the two boys – well, only one, really – thought to offer help.
"I'm going home. You don't have to walk me anymore," she said, her head hung low as she moved forward. She didn't want to look at either of them, or she'd simply die in flames of mortification.
Sai didn't bother to answer, merely walking next to her. Naruto caught up with her on her left side as well, but said nothing as well.
What a terrifically horrible way to end her birthday.
Sakura lay cuddled in her futon, blankets pulled over her head and clutching a pillow to stop the swaying of the floor. Eighteen years old, already a seasoned medic-nin, and here she was, unable to handle her alcohol and wallowing just because two of her teammates saw just how little underwear she had been wearing.
It had only been an accidental peek anyways. She had traveled with Naruto since she was a kid, and had seen her at her best and her worst. Sakura guessed that Sai didn't even care.
Still…it wasn't the same. She had been a kid before. Now she was an adult, with adult body parts.
Even through the blanket she heard a small scuffle outside of her apartment window, which she had left it open in hopes of inviting a small breeze. Damned air conditioner had gone on the fritz again.
When she heard nothing else – no one entering said window – she guessed it had just been some sort of bird hunting. Since she was on the second floor, it wouldn't be the easiest for some punk burglar to climb up to her small patio. Unless they were shinobi of course.
Sakura lowered the blanket from her face, glancing towards the window. Though her vision was slightly blurry, she could still make out the spiky blonde hair peeking over the edge of her window sill.
"Nar-u-to?" she drawled out slowly in question. "What are you doing out there?"
He sighed, shifting to settle more comfortably against the window frame and lifted his hands to rub the back of his head. Since he was facing away from her, she couldn't see his expression.
"Naruto?" she asked again. She hugged the pillow tighter against her chest, her soft blankets pulled over her shoulders. "Is something wrong?"
"No," he murmured. "I just wanted to make sure you were alright."
"Then at least come inside, silly," she said lightly. "I'll even let you have one of my pillows if you insist."
Naruto turned to peer over the edge of the window sill at her. His eyes looked troubled. Wounded.
Sakura gasped, sitting up, with her nest of covers falling to her waist. "What's wrong Naruto? Did something bad happen?"
He shook his head, but would not move inside.
She crawled out of her cocoon of blankets to kneel beside the window, close to his face.
"Did you get in some sort of trouble?" she asked, concerned. "Do you need me to heal a few bruises? You know you'd heal over night without it, anyways."
"I'm sorry, Sakura-chan," Naruto said, lowering his head to rest it against the wooden sill. His fists clenched so tightly on the wood he was leaving finger grooves.
"What's to be sorry for?" she asked. She hesitated a moment before resting her hand on his head, patting him lightly. His hair was softer than she had expected, and she wondered what shampoo he used. She combed her fingers through the thick blonde spikes, wanting to soothe whatever was distressing him.
He had gotten into the habit of coming to her when he came back to Konoha from his journeys. Sometimes he required healing, sometimes he just wanted company. Since she couldn't see any obvious wounds, and he didn't sound in pain, she assumed it was the latter.
"Come inside, Naruto. You'll be more comfortable in here." She tugged at his blonde locks she still had wrapped in her fingers, trying to pull him gently inside.
"I don't think that would be a good idea, Sakura," he said. Sakura noticed his slip. He always called her 'Sakura-chan'. Something had to be wrong, and it had to do with her.
"Please come in," she whispered. She couldn't think of anything she had done tonight to make him so nervous. Sure, she had flashed him, but the less said of that, the better. She figured he'd laugh it off in the morning, make some joke about it, and they'd all forget about it.
He moved away, and for a moment she thought he was going to leave, but then he started to climb into the room, and she moved out of his way.
She crawled back to the bed on her hands and knees, and didn't hear his choked off gasp of surprise.
She had no clue how she looked. With her sleep mussed hair, her little tank top with colorful flower petals, and little shorts that hugged her bottom, he could feel the urges he had been fighting all night about to explode. Literally.
He knew he should just get up and leave. It hurt so bad to be around her sometimes. That's why he left Konoha as soon as he could when a job came along, especially when he knew she was tied down at the hospital. But it hurt so much more to be away from her, which is why he inevitably hurried back.
She tossed a pillow at his head as she slipped onto her futon again. He caught it automatically, indecisive for a long moment.
But when she beckoned him closer with a wave of her hand, he sighed and gave up.
He collapsed in his usual boneless heap beside her, stuffing the pillow under his head as he lay down facing her. The floor was hard, but he had slept on worse.
He knew she was watching his face, waiting for the moment when he would cave in and tell her what was wrong. He couldn't, not this time. Not when it was about her.
He was distracted by the heat of her pillow. He breathed in deeply, and it smelled so much like Sakura that he had to close his eyes.
His heightened sense of smell could pick out all the layers of Sakura. The sweet scent of perfumed bathwater (like flowers, though he didn't really know which one); the soft, cool scent of the body powder he knew she would sprinkle on sometimes if no one was around (except a peeping Naruto); and the warm invitation of a smell that was purely Sakura.
Soft. Enticing. The scent of a girl who had become a woman.
When he opened his eyes, Sakura's face had become red, and she was staring at him with her mouth open in an 'O' of surprise.
"What?" he asked roughly, his voice deepening in embarrassment.
"Oh, n-nothing," she said, laughing nervously. "It's just that you seemed so…different for a moment."
"Different?" he asked. He tried not to let hurt creep into his voice, but when he saw her stricken look, he knew he had failed to mask it.
Moving to get up, he kept his eyes adverted from her. Since he had had a bit too much to drink tonight – which was by no means his first time with Jiriya as his master – he shouldn't have come. It was stupid. His control always slipped up when he drank, though not nearly to the extent of Rock Lee of course. That guy's slip ups were legendary.
"No, no, I didn't mean different, I just meant…different from how you usually look. You know, upset." She looked frustrated, as if she couldn't find the right words to explain.
"It's okay, Sakura-chan," he said, struggling for a smile. "I know what you mean."
"Ah, good," she said, and he must have pulled off a normal grin because she smiled back at him. She lay down, resting once more against her pillow. He relaxed down on the floor beside her, though this time he knew not to face her. Instead, he stacked his hands behind his head and stared thoughtfully at the ceiling.
"I'm not really sure why I came tonight. I just wanted to make sure you were okay," he said abruptly. Sakura, who had been drowsing in the silence, jerked awake again and gazed at him with expectation.
"I just didn't want you to be…angry at me," he said haltingly.
"Oh, about my…fall?" she asked. She rubbed her cheek sheepishly. "It's okay, it was my own fault. I shouldn't have had so much to drink."
"Oh…okay. Well…it's not like I really saw a lot anyways," he said, trying to reassure her.
When she started to glare at him angrily, he could have slapped himself. Duh, don't remind her. Scrambling, he tried to think of a way to divert her attention.
"If Sai saw anything either, I'll make sure he doesn't tell anyone," he said, trying to cover up his slip-up.
"If Sai tells anyone I'll kill him," she vowed, her fist glowing starkly in the pale moonlight that flooded her bedroom.
"Me too!" he chimed in hastily. "Don't worry, I'll take care of it!"
"Naruto," she sighed, her chakra fading away, "it doesn't even matter. No one but you two saw me, and I trust you both not to go blabbing to people."
The sudden darkness made them both blink for a moment to bring their eyes into focus. Well, it made Sakura blink. Naruto's eyesight, being superior to hers, had adjusted almost immediately. He watched her, and it was almost as if his heart were breaking.
"When Sasuke came back, will you be with him?" he blurted. He wanted to take back the words as soon as they spilled from his lips.
He watched her turn surprised green eyes to meet his.
"Well sure, we'd all be a team again," she said, as if them being a group again was the most obvious thing in the world. As if she had no doubts that one day Sasuke would return, and they would all be together just as before. Only stronger, of course.
Then again, it was the same reason Naruto had said 'when' because there was no doubt that he would bring Sasuke back to them. It was just a matter of time.
"I mean, when Sasuke came back, would you want to be with him?" he stressed. His voice was lower, throatier.
"I…I'm not sure what you mean," Sakura said. She looked away from him, unable to meet his eyes.
Naruto felt as if he were disconnected from himself. As if he could finally say what it was that he wanted to say. It was now, or he would have to stay silent forever. Here, in this moon-washed darkness, both still a little drunk (she by alcohol, he by the scent of Sakura), it was now or never.
He crawled to his hands and knees, and moved so that he knelt beside her body, looming over her prone form, his arms bracketing her head.
It was amazing how their relationship had changed over the years, he thought. If he had even tried this a few years ago, she would have pounded him through the wall without a moment's hesitation. And now, here she was, almost in his arms, staring up at him with a lost expression.
"If we both wanted you, would you choose him over me, Sakura?" he asked through clenched teeth. "If he wanted you the way you wanted him, would you choose him?"
Sakura wasn't quite sure what had come over her friend, but she definitely didn't like it. Why was he acting like this? She wasn't sure what made her lay still underneath Naruto's body, and she definitely didn't know why little shudders were racing through her.
She met his eyes, and when she saw how his eyes glowed and burned, with rage and sorrow and things she couldn't define, her own vision grew hazed with tears.
"Why are you asking me that, Naruto?" she questioned thickly, her throat tight. "What's gotten into you tonight?"
He looked ready to shake her. When he took her by her shoulders, he gripped her so tightly she could feel his blunt fingernails (not the Kyuubi's claws) digging into her flesh.
"I have to know. I have to know right now. I can't stand it anymore!" His voice was hoarse and raw, and when she met the intensity of his gaze she flinched away.
"Why are you asking me this? You know that Sasuke never had an interest in me like that." A sob caught in her throat, emerging as a painful gurgle.
"I said 'if he wanted you', Sakura," he growled, and she finally understood. It was a flare of jealousy his eyes. When he lowered his head, she could feel the warm puff of his breath against her ear as he buried his nose in her hair.
She was glad she no longer had to meet that demanding blue gaze, but the feel of lips brushing her ear was almost more than she could stand. She could feel the hair rising on her arms, her scalp tingling and alive with Naruto's closeness. Her nipples tightened suddenly underneath her thin tank top, and she crossed her arms over her chest in an instinctively protective motion.
It got his attention as a predator scenting weakness in his prey, and his body drew closer to hers. He hadn't stripped off his sweater, but even through the thickness, she could feel the heat of his chest pressed down against hers.
It was as if she were being smothered by his nearness. It sent her mind panicking, but her body grew languid and warm underneath his.
As if he could sense her mood, his voice lowered, and his question was huskily whispered against her ear. "If we both wanted you, would you pick him over me?
She hesitated a moment, before surprising herself by saying, quite faintly, "No."
"No?" He finally pulled away from her to meet her eyes, and it felt as if she could breathe again.
"No," she said, and this time she was sure of her answer. She loved Sasuke and she always would. He had been her first love, after all. But he had made very questionable decisions, all in the name of power and revenge. And he had left them, not the other way around.
He had worked with Orochimaru for a long time now. Orochimaru had killed many innocent people, and even if Sasuke hadn't helped, he hadn't stopped him. And no matter what had been done to Sasuke, or all the horrors he had faced, it wasn't right for him to gain power through something so evil especially when it hurt innocent people.
And Naruto…Naruto had been there for Sakura in the aftermath. After Sasuke's betrayal, not only against Sakura and Naruto, but against their whole village, Naruto had made the vow to her that one day he would bring Sasuke back. And Naruto never went back on his word.
"Why not?"
Sakura lifted her eyes slowly to meet the boy hovering above her. Gone was the angry, hurting man, and in his place an indecisive, unsure boy. She reached out a hand and gently traced one of the whisker marks on his smooth cheek. If they had been like this in the light, or in another room, or hell, just a day ago, Sakura would never have touched him like that. She wouldn't have even thought to do so.
He lifted his hand, still kneeling above her, and touched the hand pressed softly against his cheek.
"Because our choices make us what we are, Naruto," she said. "Sasuke chose to leave us both behind. He was jealous of you, bitter and angry, and we weren't enough for him. But when you left with Jiryia-sama for those two years, it wasn't me you were leaving behind, but your old self. There's a…a big difference," she said, her voice choked up. Tears dripped from her eyes, and her face was turning red and splotchy, but she didn't look away.
Not when his eyes grew damp and misty. Not until he grabbed her, hauling into his arms and holding her tightly against his body. She buried her face into his neck, wrapping her arms around him, and finally took the comfort he offered.
It was painful coming to the realization that all of her girlhood dreams had ended. She couldn't hide what she had known for a long time – she would never be with Sasuke, not in the way she had wanted. He didn't need her like that, and never would. And even if he hadn't been power-blinded, would he have ever needed her the way she needed him?
"We'll bring him back one day," she said, her voice strangled. "He'll always be our friend, even if we don't understand him."
He hummed agreement, his face pressed against the softness of her hair while she breathed deeply against his neck.
And as her tired shuddering eased and she fell into a dreamless sleep, he moved to lay down on the abandoned futon. He shifted her so that she was sprawled on top of him, her curves fitting perfectly against his, and he fell asleep with his arms wrapped tightly around her.
When Sakura woke the next morning, she was feeling cozy. As soon as she moved an inch, trying to get a little more comfortable (her hip was digging into something hard), her head began to pound as if little miners were set to work detonating her brain cells one by one.
"Mrrph," she mumbled, lifting a limp hand from her strangely lumpy futon to press gently on one temple. She knew if she opened her eyes, the bright sunlight would only be like daggers and make her eyes water relentlessly.
Daggers, huh?
Perhaps she had taken on her kunai into bed last night (never could be too careful as a girl living alone). She probably had rolled on it in the night, which could have been potentially dangerous. She tried to roll to one side, but arms tightened around her.
Arms?
Her eyes shot open immediately.
"Naruto?" she gasped, looking down at the sleeping boy underneath her. He. Was. In. Her. Bed. And now she knew that it wasn't a kunai.
Thank Kami he wasn't naked, or she would have had to kill him.
He grumbled in his sleep and pulled her closer. She wanted to scream in outrage, but she knew it would only hurt her head even more.
She did the next best thing. Balling up a fist, she lifted Naruto by his jacket -- which took some maneuvering as she was still held on top of him, and she had to use a lot of back muscle to lever him up -- and let him fall (not so gently) to the floor.
It would have worked better if she had moved the pillow first, because he didn't even wake up.
So she simply smacked his face. Hard enough that a nice, bright red handprint immediately rose on his face.
"Wha? Sakura-chan, what was that for?" he complained groggily, blearily opening his eyes to stare at her.
"Let go of me, you idiot," she growled, struggling to get out of his arms.
He let her go, scratching the back of his head as he sat up and laughing nervously. "Sorry about that Sakura-chan. You fell asleep on me last night and I didn't want to wake you up."
"Wha-I-why-"
And in a rush, it all came back to her. The drinking, the exposure, the question and answer. The crying. The waking up in the middle of the night and finding her hand tucked underneath Naruto's sweater and resting against the smooth, tight muscles of his stomach.
Wait. Had she really done that? And if so, why in the world hadn't she shoved him away then?!
Arrrgh. It was too much to think about this early in the afternoon!
So she took the easy way out. She threw him out of her window and got up to take a shower.
TBC
I hope you like this. If you do, tell your friends. LoL.
So I don't really know where this came from. It was originally going to be a one-shot with a lot of smut, but I just kind of fell into the story. Now I want to know what happens.
Yes, there will be gratuitous nude scenes as well. So if you're a young'in you'll have to close your eyes when I say so. But, it'll just take a little while to get there. Which is good, right? Uh…well I wanted it earlier too. However, the plot was most insistent that I not give in. So I didn't. But I wanted to.