Sakura stirred first, feeling something soft underneath her. She looked down drowsily to see that she was lying on top of Naruto. "AH!" Sakura shouted, jumping off of him. The handcuffs tightened around her wrists and Sai and Naruto were jerked towards her roughly. They both woke up instantly. Sai looked around quickly before his eyes settled on Sakura's. They both sighed and looked at Naruto, who was slowly sitting up, his injuries seemingly healed. He looked around at them, still half-asleep, and then down at their wrists.

"..."

Sakura waited for his reaction as he absorbed what had happened. Naruto took a deep breath. Sakura and Sai braced themselves for the complaints.

"WOOHOO!" Naruto shouted, jumping up and nearly ripping both their arms off. "I'm handcuffed to Sakura-chan! This is a dream come true!" Sakura huffed as Naruto calmed down and looked down at them. "How'd we end up handcuffed together?" Naruto asked. Suddenly his expression changed and he looked around cautiously. "Have we been kidnapped?" he whispered.

"No, you baka," Sakura told him. "Kakashi-sensei did this. Once we all get along, the handcuffs come off."

"Naruto! Glad to see you're awake!" Kakashi appeared next to them with a sneeze. "Did you explain the situation?" he asked Sakura and Sai.

"Sort of," Sai commented. Kakashi told Naruto everything, and then they all cleaned up camp and headed out. Kakashi had handcuffed them facing eachother, so it was particularly hard to walk.

"Naruto, your breath smells like ramen!" Sakura complained, already in a bad mood as she was the one stuck walking backwards.

"Sorry," Naruto mumbled. Sai reached around behind himself and took a pack of mints out of his backpack. He offered one to Naruto. Naruto looked sideways at Sakura and took one.

Sakura's expression softened, and she changed the subject. "Sai, how have you gotten so good at moving around? I can barely move my hands thanks to these things!"

Sai shrugged.

Naruto grinned. "Maybe he's used to being in handcuffs!"

Sakura was about to shout at Naruto when Sai said, "You would know, Naruto,"

Sakura gaped at them. "What!?"

Sai smiled at her. "How else would I know Naruto's dick is nothing special?"

Sakura's face turned green, but Sai started laughing, avoiding Naruto's glares.

"I am just kidding, Sakura-san."

Sakura's face slowly returned to normal, but she held back a glare when she saw Kakashi watching them. "You actually joke?" she asked.

"I am trying," Sai told her.

Sakura gave him and Naruto a small smile. "I have a feeling we're gonna learn a lot about each other before these handcuffs come off," she said.

They arrived at the village by the end of that day. "Let's go get some Ramen!" Naruto exclaimed. "I'm starving!"

"No, I want a salad!" Sakura argued.

"I myself would prefer some shrimp," Sai put in. Kakashi looked at them.

"This is the part where you compromise," he explained. The three ninja sighed.

"Alright..." Sakura started. "We can get a salad and some shrimp across the street from Ichiraku Ramen, and then head there for Naruto's meal. Okay?"

Sai and Naruto nodded. "That was easier than I thought," Sakura said.

"See? It's not that hard! I'm going home, now good luck!" Kakashi said, starting to walk away.

"Wait! How will you watch us get along!?" Naruto shouted.

"I have my sources," Kakashi said without turning around. With that, he dissapeared.

Sakura and Sai picked up their food a few minutes later, and then the three ninja headed over to Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto ordered five bowls, and when Sai and Sakura were done eating, Naruto could use his hands to eat.

"Hmm...seems you three are in quite a predicament," the owner observed.

"Yup!" Naruto said through a mouthful of food.

"Kakashi did this, I presume?"

Naruto froze. "How'd you know?"

The owner laughed. "I remember when his team ran through the village with the very same handcuffs on. They weren't much younger than you three, come to think of it. Ah...the Fourth sure had some wacky ideas back in the day..."

"That's right..." Sakura remembered. "Kakashi's sensei was the 4th Hokage! Did he come up with the handcuff idea?" she asked.

"That's what Kakashi said," Sai interupted as Naruto slurped down the rest of his ramen.

"Hey..." Naruto said. "where are we sleeping?"

Sakura stared at him. "I didn't think of that...where are we sleeping?" she asked Sai.

He shrugged. Sakura and Naruto looked at each other. "I don't think my parents would like if I came home handcuffed to two guys..." Sakura told them.

"How about my place?" Naruto asked.

"Hell no, I've been in your room, don't think I've forgotten: rotten milk, old ramen, and don't forget the boxers!" Sakura shuddered and Naruto blushed.

"Then I guess we will go to my house," Sai said. Naruto paid for his meal and they waved goodbye, Sai leading the way, meaning he had to walk backwards.

After a few minutes they reached the house. Sai unlocked the front door and led them to his room. There was only one bed.

"How are we gonna do this?" Naruto asked.

"Well...even if all of us...hey, I've got it!" Sakura exclaimed. "You two can lay down next to each other with your heads on the same end, and I'll lay down in between you with my head on the opposite end! That way, we'll all be comfortable and our wrists will be close together, too!"

"Uh...I'm not really looking forward to smelling your putrid feet," Sai said, and Naruto nodded in agreement. Sakura's face turned red, but she remembered Kakashi.

"Well, I've got two pairs of feet to worry about, so lay down and shut up," she managed to not hit either of them, and they all turned the lights out and layed down on the bed. Once they got arranged, they were all at least comfortable enough to fall asleep, even if it was a little awkward. Just as Naruto's snores filled the room, Sakura felt a hand on her thigh. She held back a gasp, bue before she let her temper take over her, Sakura thought things over.

"Okay, it's on my right thigh...who was on the right...Naruto. He's asleep." Sakura took a deep breath of relief and reached down, grabbing the hand and placing it on Naruto's stomach instead. It had definitely been Naruto's hand. Nothing happened to show that he was awake, so Sakura sighed and closed her eyes, eventually falling asleep.

Naruto slept the most peacefully, dreaming of Sakura actually liking him. Just as they were about to kiss, Sakura jerked in her sleep, kicking Naruto in the face. He woke up, sitting up and looking at her feet with surprise. He covered his nose.

"Geez Sakura, do you ever wash those things?" he whispered to himself. Sunlight was already streaming through the window, so he reached over to shake his comrades awake, but stopped when he looked at Sakura's face.

"She's even prettier when she sleeps," he observed, grinning mischeiviously. "I wonder what her skin feels like when it's not punching me..." Naruto poked Sakura's arm lightly, then looked back at her face. She didn't stir. His eyes settled on her lips, and his hand moved towards her face, brushing against her cheek. Careful not to put any pressure on the handcuffs connecting him to Sakura so she wouldn't wake up, Naruto reached up and tucked some of her hair behind her ear, smiling down at her. A thought struck him. "She's asleep...she would never know..." Naruto thought. After a moment, he puckered his lips slightly, moving his head so it was above her face. He leaned down slightly...

"Naruto, what the hell are you doing?" Naruto jumped as Sai's shout came from behind him. Without turning around, Naruto already knew he was dead. Sai would surely tell Sakura about this.

Sakura's eyes opened halfway at Sai's yell, and she sat up, vaguely registering how close Naruto's face was to hers. Time seemed to slow down suddenly as Sakura's eyes widened. She saw Naruto's shocked expression a moment before his eyes closed, and their faces came together. Sakura broke the kiss with a strangled yell, pushing Naruto away roughly, but he was too busy in heaven to notice. Sai watched in disbelief. She met his surprised gaze, before looking over at Naruto, who's eyes were still closed and had a slight smile on his face. Sakura stared down at her legs with wide eyes.

"I...kissed...Naruto," she thought in shock. "...and I liked it!"