A/N: Hey again! This is my second story, and I wanted it to be much longer and more developed than my first, even though it's still a oneshot. When I wrote this I was thinking of the song 'Kiss the Girl' for no particular reason, and I kind of centered the plot around it. Vaguely, but that's my sort-of inspiration.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of its components in any way, nor do I make a profit.
"Sasuke! Quick, duck!" Sakura's shrill voice was the only warning Sasuke had before a hand shoved his face down into the dirt.
He came up, spluttering angrily, and glared at his pink-haired teammate. Her attention, though, was fixed on something beyond the bushes they were currently hiding behind.
She was perched up on her knees, peering through the thick leaves, every muscle in her body tense. Sasuke wiped the dirt from his face in an annoyed gesture and waited impatiently for her to turn around.
Finally she sank onto her bottom, sighing in relief. "Wow, that was close. For a second, I thought Naruto had seen us!"
Seeing Sasuke's soiled face and irritated expression, she sighed in exasperation. "Don't look at me like that, Sasuke-kun. I had to do something! You were going to give us away with your hair sticking up like that!"
Sasuke ignored the subtle jab on his hair and opted for an expression conveying his utter dislike of this situation. Sakura frowned and turned away, peering through the leaves again.
"This is pointless, Naruto doesn't need our help," Sasuke told her bluntly, as he had already told her ten times since she had dragged him on this pointless escapade.
Sakura turned her head to give him a doubtful look. Sasuke relented.
"Okay, so maybe he does need our help, but that doesn't mean we have to give it. I'm going home."
He stood to make his exit when Sakura squealed and a hand yanked him forcefully back to the ground.
Wiping dirt off of himself for the second time that day, Sasuke opened his mouth to berate Sakura thoroughly when her hand clapped over it.
She leaned over him, putting a finger to her rosy lips. He narrowed his eyes dangerously, but complied, and she lifted her hand.
"Naruto and Hinata just got up. They're coming this way," she whispered, her eyes glinting excitedly.
"Now's his chance!"
Sasuke rolled his eyes.
"Why bother? It's none of our business!"
Sakura snorted. "Of course it's our business! Naruto needs encouragement, and they belong together!" She turned her head to the side, her emerald eyes following the walking couple. "They just can't see it yet."
Sasuke sighed. Sakura would never give up her romantic dreams, whether for herself or for someone else. He hadn't been expecting to be stalking Naruto and hiding behind bushes like children playing hide-and-seek today.
When Sakura had shown up on his door step, quivering in excitement, he had naively allowed her inside. Once in, she had gushed the whole story of how Naruto had finally asked Hinata to go out and how they should follow, just in case.
Sasuke had unfortunately missed the mischievous gleam in Sakura's eyes as she said this, and thus, here he was, sprawled in the dirt. They had been at it all day, jumping from bush to bush, tree to tree, or in some cases, from person to person.
I knew I should have stayed in bed today…
Sakura kept her eyes glued to Naruto and Hinata as they walked away, then prepared to follow, setting her sights on the next bush.
She turned her head to give Sasuke the 'look' that she had already proposed as their signal. He rolled his eyes.
In less than a second, she was hidden safely behind the bush, having used her chakra for super speed. She glanced back at Sasuke to give him the signal that it was safe, but he frowned at her.
Standing in plain sight, he sauntered over to Sakura's bush, hands shoved in his pockets.
"Sasuke! Get down!" she hissed, glaring at him while sparing glances over her shoulder to make sure they hadn't been spotted.
"Sakura, this is stupid. We shouldn't be following them, because it's a waste of time that could be better spent training." Seeing her tense expression as he remained standing, he added dryly, "Naruto and Hinata can't see us from where they are, anyway."
Craning her neck to look, she could see that he was right. The demon vassal and his blushing date were seated by the lake, their backs to their spying friends.
Sakura turned her head away, snorting.
"Speak for yourself." Instantly, she disappeared, reappearing at a bush dangerously close to the conversing couple. Stupid Sasuke…she thought, eyeing the two critically. She didn't need the Uchiha prodigy's help to keep watch over Naruto.
She hoped he would leave, because frankly, he had been a liability the entire day. The point of their mission was to stay hidden. And truth be told, Sasuke sucked at it.
She sucked in a breath as she felt him appear beside her, crouched out of sight. She was still concerned for that gravity-defying hair, though.
"Back already? Don't you trust me?" Sakura whispered, fighting back a smile.
Sasuke scoffed, which she interpreted as she pleased. They watched as Naruto leaned slightly towards Hinata.
"Go on, Naruto. Kiss her, kiss her," Sakura encouraged quietly, almost too excited to stay still.
Sasuke remained silent beside her with his usual air of indifference and arrogance. She ignored him, her main focus on Hinata and her best friend/brother.
As Naruto leaned in, Sakura caught her breath. Closer, closer, just a little more…
Hinata turned her head to look at something at the critical moment, and Naruto fell short. Sakura groaned silently.
"Oh, no. So close!"
Sasuke huffed quietly, and Sakura smacked him upside the head without looking away from Naruto.
"What was that for?" he asked, scowling. Sakura pursed her lips and glared at him for a second.
"We're here to encourage Naruto, not degrade him!" she murmured. Suddenly she ducked.
"Get down, they're coming!" she whispered frantically. In order to save himself an express trip to the ground again, Sasuke obediently crouched behind the frilly leaves.
Sure enough, Naruto and Hinata walked by a few seconds later, apparently still oblivious to the two shinobi stalking them.
When they had gone, Sasuke turned to Sakura.
"And how are we encouraging Naruto-baka if he doesn't know we're here?"
Sakura lifted her chin, giving Sasuke one of his own derogatory looks. "It's called spiritual support. A silent, invisible strength that will help Naruto and Hinata without them knowing."
Sasuke looked at her skeptically. "Where did you get that load of crap?"
Sakura looked offended, but decided not to answer, instead flitting through the trees after Naruto and Hinata. Sighing, Sasuke followed.
The next spot that Naruto and Hinata found themselves at was a sunny clearing bordered by a cheerful stream. It was thick with lush grasses and the scent of cherry blossoms drifted through the air.
Sakura stopped in a tall tree overlooking the stream and grinned at Sasuke.
"This is the place. I can feel it. It's so romantic..." she sighed, a smile curling her lips as she watched Naruto and Hinata take a seat on the grassy bank, Hinata's cheeks reddening as Naruto sat himself very close to her.
Sasuke, from his place further down on the branch, gritted his teeth from the frivolousness of it all.
Sakura moved closer to the tip of the branch, peering through the leaves as Hinata giggled at something Naruto said. After her giggling trailed off, she remained looking into Naruto's eyes as though transfixed. Naruto was watching her with matching intensity, and they remained that way for several seconds.
Sakura's whisper was strained in excitement. "Now Naruto! Oh, Sasuke, so close!"
Sasuke, who could see everything perfectly from his current perch, grunted in reply.
Sakura's head swiveled around to glare at him yet again.
"I don't know why you're even here, Sasuke. Why did you agree to come if you weren't even going to be helpful?"
Sasuke turned his head to look at her for a second, then looked away, shifting his position on the branch.
"Hn."
Sakura's eyes narrowed.
"That's not an answer, Sasuke. You--"
Sasuke ignored her, instead pointing towards the bank. Sakura's attention flipped like a switch, focusing back on Naruto and Hinata. Naruto was leaning in, Hinata's eyes drifting shut.
Sakura took another step towards the tip of the branch, now directly over the bubbling stream.
"Finally…" she murmured.
The distance between Naruto and Hinata slowly dissipated, until their lips tentatively met.
Sakura gave a little hop out of joy, shaking the end of the branch. Her face froze when a loud cracking sound resonated from beneath her. Panicked, she reached out to grab onto the closest thing, which happened to be Sasuke, as the branch snapped.
Sakura tumbled into the stream, dragging a furious Uchiha with her. Naruto and Hinata sprang apart to stare in bewilderment at the large splash in the stream.
Sakura broke the surface, gasping and choking violently. Sasuke bobbed up next to her, looking like he wanted to strangle her ten times over. His raven hair was plastered to his head and he looked for all the world like drowned rat, but his eyes somehow retained their cold arrogance.
"Sakura…" he growled menacingly, and she glanced at him, looking mortified and unsure.
Naruto's eyes widened at seeing his two best friends flounder their way out of the river and onto the bank.
"Sakura-chan? Sasuke-teme? What were you guys doing?" he asked in puzzlement, having no suspicion of the real reason. Hinata began twiddling her thumbs, her entire face red as a tomato.
Sakura, dripping from every part of her body, fumbled for an excuse.
"Well, Naruto, we were—um, we…uh…" she glanced at Sasuke frantically, but he merely watched her coldly, crossing his arms. She supposed this was payback for the entire day and the little dip in the stream as well.
Suddenly Naruto's cerulean eyes lit up. "Oh, I get it. I know what you two were up to," he said, a devilish grin spreading across his face. Sakura frowned and waited.
"Sasuke and Sakura, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G."
Sakura's jaw dropped, a hint of red tinting her cheeks. "That is not what we were doing, Naruto!"
Sasuke's glare deepened at Naruto's gleeful expression, but he remained silent as Naruto continued in a singsong voice.
"First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes—"
Sakura's hand slapped over his mouth, firmly cutting off the rest of the mortifying song.
Naruto's eyes crinkled over Sakura's hand, and she removed it hesitantly. Naruto was still grinning.
"Well fine. If that's not what was happening, then what were you two doing in that tree?" he asked, raising a brow.
Sakura glanced at Sasuke, who finally opened his mouth.
"Sakura had an idea that we should—" Sakura, enraged and alarmed, cut him off, talking loudly.
"Okay, Naruto, I admit it. You caught us. We tried to keep our relationship a secret, but you found us out."
Turning, she grabbed Sasuke's hand, praying he wouldn't kill her on the spot, and moved close to his side.
She could practically feel Sasuke's murder intent as she gave Naruto her best defeated expression. Naruto grinned and clapped his hands.
"It's about time, you two! Kakashi-sensei owes me a meal at Ichiraku's now. Come on, Hinata-chan, let's go find him!" With that, he dragged the flustered heiress out of the clearing towards the village.
As soon as they were out of sight Sakura gave a sigh of relief, turning to face Sasuke. The relief was short-lived as she watched his expression. He was beyond furious.
"Sakura."
She tried to pull her hand away but his fists were clenched tightly, one unfortunately around her hand. It didn't hurt, but it sure wasn't comfortable either. She gave him a small smile, to which he narrowed his eyes even further.
"Look, Sasuke, it was the only way!" she exclaimed. He merely glared.
"They couldn't find out that we'd been spying on them all day!" she pointed out, scrabbling for a reason that would pacify Sasuke's rage.
With a yank, Sasuke pulled Sakura to him, his face inches from hers.
"We did not spy on them. You spied and dragged me along," he ground out, fierce obsidian eyes pinning her in place. Sakura scowled.
"You didn't have to come, you know. You could have left whenever you wanted to!"
"Not when you kept slamming my face into the ground."
"Only because you were being obvious!"
"Hn." Oh yes, his patented, limitless answer for everything. As Sakura glared back, a bead of water from a lock of Sasuke's hair dripped onto her upper lip. Sasuke's eyes snapped to the drop of water, and he seemed to be studying it for some reason.
Sakura was about to question him when he kissed her. It was quick, but surprisingly gentle. Then he was gone, disappearing in a swirl of leaves. Sakura raised a hand to her lips in wonder, a dazed expression on her face.
Across the field, too far away to hear the conversation, Naruto, Hinata, and Kakashi sat behind some bushes. As Sasuke kissed Sakura quickly and left, Naruto grinned triumphantly and pointed.
"See, Kakashi-sensei? I told you!" he exclaimed, while Kakashi pondered, watching Sakura.
Naruto turned to go but added "And you owe me a free meal at Ichiraku's, so meet us there after, okay sensei?"
Kakashi nodded, absently calculating the possible food bill and wincing, while Naruto dragged Hinata off. His Icha Icha book lay forgotten for the moment in his hand as he took note of Sakura's astounded expression. He suspected that the story was different than what Naruto had conceived, but that wouldn't stop him from casually letting the juicy tidbit slip the next time he saw the Yamanaka girl.
He grinned at the chaos he could cause. Deciding to call it a day, Kakashi stood and strolled from the clearing, intending on giving Ichiraku's a wide berth for the rest of his life.
A/N: I really wasn't very happy with the ending, but there you go. Thanks for reading! Review!