Sakura watched Naruto, sitting far from the rest of the group. 'It must be cold sitting that far from the fire,' she thought. 'I'll just bring him a blanket and make sure he's ok. Well, as ok as he can be after today, anyway.'

The day's events had left both ninjas quite drained, emotionally, anyway. Seeing Sasuke again after their two-year separation hadn't exactly been a happy reunion.

But as she approached her friend, she felt a strange chakra, stronger than her teammate's, more likely the beast inside him. She turned on the edge of her foot back to the encampment area.

"Captain Yamato," she said urgently. "Will you come with me over to Naruto?"

"Why? What's wrong?"

As soon as the green-eyed girl gave her explanation, the man's eyes went wide. He ran over to the blonde, Sakura at his heels.

"Captain Yamato, what's wrong?" she asked frantically. She got her answer as she looked down at Naruto.

The teen was sweating and looked feverish. The kyuubi in him was clearly shown by his elongated canines and eyes, which had turned red and the pupils slit. She hadn't noticed from far off, but orange chakra was wafting around him as well.

"Na- Naruto-kun," she whispered. As she spoke, those catlike eyes saw her an widened, suddenly hungry.

"NO!" Naruto yelled, pulling his gaze from her. "No! I won't!"

Yamato squatted down to the blonde's eye level. "Won't what?" he asked gently.

The boy looked ashamed, and his words seemed to be forced. "Won't… take her…" he whispered, before curling up in obvious pain.

The man straightened. "Oh. I see."

"What is it, Captain Yamato?" Sakura pleaded him. "What's wrong with Naruto?"

"Spring time can be a lovely time of year," he told her.

"What?"

"But to a creature with no mate, spring is emptier and colder than any winter could ever be. Do you understand me, Sakura?"

The girl's face reddened. "You mean the kyuubi… it wants… to mate?"

"Yes. And it seemed he's dragging Naruto into his problem."

"I… see. Captain Yamato, could you join Sai at the fire?"

"Sakura, you can't possibly-"

"Either I lose my virginity or Naruto keeps suffering. If I can end his pain now, I will."

Yamato looked at the teen's determined, unwavering face. And sighed. A strangled cry of pain was heard from Naruto.

"All right. I won't deter you."

"Before you go, there's some wild yam in my bag. Do me a favor and make a tea from it, will you? I just had my period, so it shouldn't be a problem, but-"

"Okay, okay, got it. Does the phrase 'Too much information' mean anything to you?"

Sakura smiled as Yamato left. Then she knelt down in front of her friend.

"Naruto," she called softly. "Look at me."

"N- No," was the barely audible reply. "I c- can't… I- If I do…"

"Naruto, let me help you. You've done so much for us. Let me return the favor."

"T- That's t- too much…

Sakura pushed her hand under the blonde's chin and forced him to look up. "Trust me."

With those two words, all the remains of Naruto's resistance vanished. He lunged forward, pinning her to the ground with a fierce kiss. Their lips parted and suddenly the blond looked quite confused. "I… I've never… You will?" He was talking now, but it seemed to be to himself, or… the kyuubi? No, Naruto wouldn't know what he was doing, would he? Then again, she wasn't much wiser in this area.

'But,' she thought, unzipping his jacket. 'I do know where to start.'

The blonde looked surprised by her action, but finished taking the garment off. Sakura took advantage of the temporary release to unzip her own top and (after a moment of hesitation) pulled it off. She looked back at her partner and found him staring at the sight before him, a look of awe plastered on his face. She could feel her cheeks growing warm.

"Sakura," he whispered. "You're so beautiful."

She took his shirt collar and pulled him into a kiss.

He was on top of her once more; he was holding her so tight he seemed to think she might disappear at any moment. She could feel his erection against her now, as well herself getting wet. She pulled his black shirt over his head between kisses, then unbuckled the skirt she wore around her tight shorts. Naruto not only noticed the action, but replicated it on his own clothing.

Tentatively, he reached out a hand to her breast, letting his thumb brush against her nipple. She moaned softly. He tried gripping her a bit more solidly, and she pulled him into another kiss. Naruto worked his way down her chest, licking and lightly sucking. Suddenly, Sakura felt quite the draft. She realized she was now completely naked, but the blonde didn't give her much time to dwell on it. She soon felt his hand venture lower down her body; the cautiously stick a finger inside her. Her green eyes opened wide at the sensation. "N- Naruto…"

"It doesn't hurt, does it?" he asked, eyes suddenly clear and blue again. But she could still feel that chakra….

"J- Just the opposite," she told him. "Naruto… I'm ready."

"For what?" he asked, the looked as if he'd been hit over the head with a pile of Kakashi's books. It seemed the kyuubi had translated for her. He pulled his lower wear the rest of the way down. After a moment of shyness, he was on top of her once again.

"You're sure?" he asked one final time.

"Positive," Sakura replied, kissing him once more. A loud moan escaped her lips when he pushed himself inside her. She opened her eyes to find his feral once more. He moved slowly at first, but built up to a speed she couldn't keep up with. She cried out as her orgasm hit her, and moaned softly as she felt her partner come to his. There was a long period of silence before either spoke.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto spoke carefully. "The kyuubi- he's all kinds of happy in the back of my head- I know I shouldn't, especially after- but would you mind, again, with me?"

Sakura looked into his hopeful eyes. His hopeful, clear blue eyes.

"Give me five minutes, Naruto," she said. "And we can do whatever you want."

The smile on his face put every single one prior to it to shame.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Unknown to them, a pair of obsidian eyes had watched this entire scene unfold.

"See Naruto? I told you you'd be fine without me."