A/N: I'm a day late, but I wanted to post this for Sarada's birthday! Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed and asked for more. It motivated me to produce this final chapter.

Beta read by: Bingbin. Thank you so much for your help with this one, love!

I don't own Naruto.

Eighteen. The age of womanhood. On this momentous occasion, it's tradition for members of the Uchiha clan to present different colored roses to express the meaning of the celebrant's life to them. Pink roses were a common staple gift among family, as this shows great love, admiration, and appreciation for the celebrant. Yellow roses were usually received from friends. Blue roses were gifted by those who held the celebrant dear to them, yet felt that they were unattainable, or that their love was unrequited. This color of rose was uncommon, as this was an occasion wherein Uchihas were expected to be bold with their feelings. The most important one comes next, the ever-popular red rose. Red roses with unique colored ribbons were presented to the celebrant by those who wished to confess their love, and ask if she felt the same. The celebrant would wear the red rose in her hair, tied by the colored ribbon, to reveal to all whose feelings she reciprocated.

He flipped through the mail that he had retrieved that morning.

"Bills." He flung it to the breakfast table. "Bills." He flung it again. "Bills." He flung three more envelopes before his eyes landed on a luxurious red envelope with silver trimmings. His name was written in a beautiful script font.

Boruto Uzumaki

Gingerly, he opened the envelope, and pulled out a cream colored card. The black font was intricately written. It read:

Sasuke and Sakura Uchiha would like to formally invite you to join in celebrating their daughter, Sarada Uchiha's, eighteenth birthday. It will be held in the Uchiha Mansion, on March 31, at six in the evening.

Attire: Black Tie

Please RSVP and refer to the card included for the color of rose to be presented to the celebrant.

He pulled out a small silver card from the envelope, he read the legend for the colors of roses to be brought:

Pink – appreciation and adoration

Yellow – friendship

Blue – unrequited love, unattainable.

Red – Love. Should this be your choice, a colored ribbon will be assigned and provided to you at the registration table.

Boruto read the card again and again. He was given his own invitation this year. For the past years, it was always addressed to the Uzumaki family. True enough, there was another envelope in the mail that read, 'For Naruto, Hinata, and Himawari Uzumaki.'

"Ah, looks like you finally got your own invitation." Naruto grinned.

Boruto jumped. "Wh-what? Yeah, I did. What is it to you?" He glared.

Naruto laughed. "Bet ya Sakura-chan had to convince Sasuke to give you one."

He pouted. He still didn't understand what the big deal was. This wasn't going to be like any other party for Sarada, and he knew that. She had been planning this since she turned seventeen. Her grandmother was adamant to make sure everything fell into place nicely for this party.

Naruto laughed. "You still don't get what it means, do you?"

Hinata entered the kitchen. "What's this?" she asked with a smile on her face. "Ah, it looks like Sakura-san already released the invitations." Her light eyes moved over to the invitation Boruto was holding. "Oh? You got one addressed to you, huh?" she giggled. She opened the envelope and scanned it quickly. She looked at the rose color guide.

Boruto was exasperated. "I don't understand what the big deal is!" He threw his hands up in the air. "Sarada and I have been friends since we were born. Is it so weird I get one to myself?"

Naruto and Hinata exchanged a look, with smiles on their faces.

"I'll call Ino-san and reserve three pink roses for us," she said to her husband.

Naruto nodded. "Make it a bouquet. Screw that bastard. I'm not just giving my goddaughter one rose on her eighteenth birthday." He laughed loudly.

Hinata nodded and turned to face Boruto. "How about you, Boruto? What color should I reserve for you?"

"He's old enough, Hinata," Naruto interrupted. "Let him go to Ino's flower shop on his own so he can choose."

Boruto felt the heat fill his face. Now he understood why he received his own invitation. He was expected to present her a rose on his own, and not with his family. "I still don't see what the big deal is," he scowled. "Of course, I'm getting her a yellow one."

Naruto and Hinata exchanged sideward glances with each other, small smiles on their faces.

"Whatever you feel for her, that's the color of rose you should get, dear." Hinata smiled.

"Maybe you should get her a blue one," Naruto teased.

Boruto walked to the Yamanaka Flower Shop with his hands stuffed in his pockets, and a pout on his face. "What's the big deal?" he muttered under his breath. "It's just a stupid tradition. It doesn't even apply anymore. We're just friends…"

He trudged into the flower shop, the bell rang to signal the owner that there was somebody inside. There was a cheery greeting, "welcome!" and after a pause, "oh, it's just you, Boruto."

Boruto's eyebrow twitched. "What a warm welcome, Inojin."

Inojin grinned. He was wearing a green apron with the shop's logo over his purple hoodie. He was moving boxes of roses and orchids over to the side. "Are you here to pick up the bouquet? I just finished arranging them."

"No. I'm here to buy a yellow rose for Sarada."

Inojin nearly dropped the box of orchids. "Yellow?" he screeched. "I didn't peg you to be a liar, Boruto."

He clenched his fists, and stomped on the wooden floorboards. "Will everyone just quit it already? We're just friends!"

Inojin laughed and placed the box down. He plucked out a red rose and pointed it to Boruto. "Are you sure you're not supposed to get one of these?" He smiled slyly.

Boruto grimaced. "Yellow, please."

Inojin pursed his lips. "Are you setting yourself up to be friendzoned for life? You do know what this tradition means for an Uchiha, right?"

He laced his fingers behind is head. "You present the debutant with a colored rose, she picks one and places it in her hair. Big deal," he muttered.

Inojin wagged his finger chastisingly at his friend. "Boruto, the Red Rose tradition goes back for over a hundred years. Back when marrying into your clan was still acceptable. Uchihas were known to be nonchalant, but on this occasion, they were expected to drop the sticks up their asses and confess their feelings." He decided to throw in a good insult, just to get the point across further. "You would be considered as the biggest pussy if you presented her a yellow or blue rose, when you so obviously love her."

Boruto scowled. He was not a pussy. "I don't feel for her that way!" he shouted.

Inojin sighed. "When are you going to stop being in denial? Look." His eyes hardened as blue met blue. "We've been selling these roses to the Uchiha clan for years. This tradition is important for them, and my family has been supporting and respecting this tradition for years. If you're just going to chicken out and get her anything less than a red rose, then buy it somewhere else. I'm not going to allow you to ruin this for Sarada."

Boruto glared. This was the only flower shop in town. He would have to take a bus for an hour just to get another one. He would be late for Sarada's party if he did. He chewed on his inner cheek. "Fine. I'm not getting her any, then."

Another customer entered the shop. "Oh, Boruto, Inojin."

"Hey, Denki," Inojin greeted him. "I have yours ready." He walked over to the chiller and plucked out a rose.

"Blue?" Boruto's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. "You like her, Denki?"

The boy colored until his ears. "Well, umm… Yes. But I know she won't reciprocate." He lowered his eyes. "Sarada-san has always been unnattainable to me." He then lifted his eyes to meet Boruto's. "I'm cheering for you, though. I know she would be happy with you."

Boruto choked. "There's nothing going on between us. There's no harm in giving her a red rose…" He looked away. "You never know how she might feel towards you."

Denki and Inojin exchanged a look. The dark haired boy grinned. "Are you saying that to me, or to yourself, Boruto-kun?"

It was Boruto's turn to color until his ears.

Denki took the rose and paid Inojin. "Well, I'll see you two later!"

It was just Inojin and Boruto at the shop again. "Sooo…" Inojin looked at his watch. "Shall I pack you a red one? I need to close up shop soon to get ready."

Boruto glared and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Forget it. I'm not getting her a rose." He turned around and left.

In the invitation, there was no address. It simply stated "Uchiha Mansion." Everyone knew where it was. The Uchiha Clan's family grounds were located on the upscale side of town, up on the hills, isolated from the busy city center. Those who resided in the Mansion were Fugaku and his wife, Mikoto Uchiha. All the official functions and clan affairs were held in his home. It was often rumoured that the house would be given to Sasuke, instead of Itachi, when Fugaku passed.

Boruto pulled at his bow tie for the nth time that night. Was it just him, or was it getting hot in here? The growing sight of the mansion was making him sweat for some reason. His sister sat next to him at the back seat. She was wearing a yellow gown, and a giant bouquet of pink roses sat on her lap.

"Don't worry about not having a rose, Boruto," Naruto said. "The registration table usually has a bunch for people who haven't decided which one to get, yet."

He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I'm not getting her one."

Hinata looked at him, a worried expression painted on her delicate features. "Are you sure? I'm not really one to believe it, but that's bad luck for the celebrant."

Boruto stiffened. Was he really going to let his stubbornness ruin this for Sarada? "Really?"

"Bad luck?" Naruto gasped. "I thought it meant you were going to be single for the rest of your life."

Boruto gritted his teeth and punched the back of Naruto's seat. His father, sister, and mother laughed at his naivete.

Boruto had never been invited to a Red Rose party, but he has been to wedding receptions. This party looked like it would put all the weddings he had ever attended to great shame. The Mansion was well lit, and there were high-end cars pulling up at the main entrance. He watched the Uchihas come out of their vehicles with effortless grace and poise. All of them had dark hair and eyes. It was like seeing Sasuke being replicated a hundred times over.

"Are these all of her relatives?" Himawari asked quietly. She was also watching in wide-eyed wonder. "They all look like movie stars."

Naruto smirked. "Sasuke isn't the only pretty boy in their family, ya know?"

When it was their turn, they all hopped out of the car, and Naruto handed his keys over to the valet boy. As they entered the mansion, there was a registration table. Hinata approached and signed all of their names.

"Welcome, Mrs. Uzumaki," a girl with dark hair and eyes nodded. "You're at table number three with Mr. Uzumaki and Ms. Himawari. Is Boruto Uzumaki with you?"

Hinata nodded and called her son over. Boruto had his hands in his pockets, and looked at the girl.

"You're at table number five." She looked at another list and picked out a fuchsia colored ribbon from the box next to her. She handed it to him. "If you don't have a rose, you can pick one out in the corner. Tie it around the stem and present it to the debutant when you get the chance."

Boruto stiffened. "I'm not getting-" he was interrupted when his father hooked his arm around his neck. "Thanks! You bet he will." He was dragged to the corner towards the roses by Naruto.

"What's the big deal, dad?" He asked, irritated. "I already told you I'm not giving her one."

Naruto shook his head and chided him. "I didn't think you would be this selfish, Boruto. This isn't a tradition you're supposed to take lightly. Uchihas are very honest about their feelings, and they feel way more than any other person would. Her whole family is here. Don't embarrass her."

Boruto looked away, a sour expression on his face. He was already nineteen, and yet his father still had a penchant for lecturing him. It's not that he wanted to embarrass her. He just wasn't sure about how he really felt. He looked at the box of roses, the yellow and pink ones were nearly gone. There were a number of red and blue ones left.

A group of boys approached the box. The first one snickered. "I'm getting her a red one."

"Red?" The second boy asked. "Do you even like her?"

"No." The first one laughed. "I just want to see how she'll react when she sees it."

"Dude, I'mma do that, too! It would be so funny." The third one laughed.

Boruto scowled. He did not like the idea of a bunch of boys treating this tradition like it was some sort of game. It angered him even more to think that they were doing this just to get a reaction out of Sarada.

"You see?" Naruto had a grim expression on his face, his blue eyes also fixated on the boys. "It doesn't feel nice to have her being played around with, right?"

Boruto shook his head. He took a step towards the boys, but Naruto caught his arm. "Leave them to me and Sasuke." He grinned and winked. "Just go choose a rose already."

He walked over to the box and picked up two roses. One of each color that remained. It looked like he didn't even have a choice anymore. One was blue, the other red. Both signified love, but to bravely ask for her feelings in return, or to resign and assume she would never feel the same?

He decided he needed some air. He went outside to the garden and sat down on the bench. He twirled the two roses in his fingers.

"Oh, Boruto."

He jumped. Before he could hide the flowers, she was already seated next to him.

"A-Aunty Sakura!"

Her green eyes landed on the roses and she smiled. "Can't decide yet?"

"There-there weren't anymore yellow ones… So I had to get one of these. Mom said it was bad luck not to give her one, and you know, I wouldn't want that for her. So I just...umm."

Sakura laughed, effectively cutting off his rambling. "You're so cute, Boruto." She stood up and ruffled his hair. An affectionate gesture she had always done to him for as long as he could remember. "It wouldn't be right for me to dictate which to give her. Just follow your gut." She winked. "It's usually right, you know."

He looked at her with his big, blue eyes. This was the reason why she was his favorite aunt.

"Whichever you choose to give her, I'm sure Sarada will have something to tell you in return."

Dinner was over, and it was time for Sarada to roam around the ballroom in order to receive her roses. She started at the presidential table. Her father was the first to present her a rose. Her eyes widened—it was red. Tied to the stem was a silk, dark blue ribbon. She smiled and accepted it. She and Sasuke shared a knowing look.

Her mother gifted her a pink rose, one that was the same color as her hair. She hugged her. "Happy birthday, sweetheart. I'm so proud of you."

"Mom, too tight!" When they parted, they grinned at each other.

Later on, she was joined by two assistants to carry all the roses for her. There was a huge pile of pink and yellow. The only roses she held on to personally were from her father and mother. She walked on, her posture never dropping, despite how much her feet ached.

Her dark eyes scanned the room for a familiar mop of blond hair, but never found it. She stopped by her friends' table.

"Sarada! Happy birthday!" Chocho gave her a big warm hug. Right behind her was Inojin and Shikadai. She then noticed they were holding on to pink roses.

She felt her heart swell. "Pink? Really?"

"Of course!" Chocho chirped. "We're practically family, aren't we?"

The two boys nodded and handed her their roses, along with their birthday greetings.

Sarada's mouth went on autopilot. "Have you guys seen Boruto?"

Shikadai and Inojin exchanged smug looks. Chocho flipped her hair. "Come to think of it, I haven't. He was supposed to sit with us."

"Oh." Was all Sarada could say. The evening was about to end, and they hadn't seen him at all?

"He's here, don't worry." Inojin laughed nervously. "I saw him earlier at the shop."

Sarada nodded. She waved at them and continued walking around to collect her roses.

As she approached the last table, she collected the last roses. She would then have to go to a room to contemplate whose rose she would wear on her hair, while her guests watched a string quartet's performance, and the host would run through the ribbon colors with the audience.

The assistants carried the flowers to her room, and one of them handed her a slip of paper with the color legend for the silk ribbons. She sat down on the bed and read the paper, taking note of some of the people who had given her red roses. She sighed. Sarada didn't even expect to receive any. She was even more surprised that she received a lot more blue roses.

Unattainable. She thought. Do I really come off that way?

The bundle of red and blue roses sat next to her on her bed. She clutched onto the red rose her father gave her a little tighter as she read the list of colored ribbons again, checking who had confessed to her that night.

There was one rose missing.

Tap tap.

She perked up and looked behind her. It was coming from the balcony. A knowing smile graced her lips. That idiot always did have good timing.

She opened the door to her balcony, and found Boruto standing there. His hands were behind his back.

"I heard you've been missing in action all evening," she said.

Boruto smirked. "Yeah, and I heard you've been missing me."

She crossed her arms and glared at him.

"Anyway." He took a few steps closer to her and said, "I keep hearing how important this tradition is for your clan, and I know uncle Sasuke takes it seriously. But what I don't know yet," he looked right into her dark eyes. "Is how important it is, and what it means to you."

She blinked a few times. She didn't expect him to ask her that. Sarada spoke slowly, "it's important to me, as it's important to my clan. It's nice to know how deep my relationships and bonds are with the people I hold dear to me."

Boruto nodded thoughtfully, digesting her words. "How does it feel to be gifted blue and red roses?"

She gave him a measured look, and answered him carefully. "It's surprising. I would have never known. I didn't expect to receive any, to be honest."

Boruto repeated her words incredulously. "You didn't expect to receive any?" He shook his head and fought back a laugh but failed.

Sarada pursed her lips and her eyebrow twitched. "Are you done laughing at me? Because if you are, I have a rose to choose."

He stopped and straightened up. He suddenly looked so shy. "You're going to seriously choose a suitor?"

She cocked her head to the side. "There is a possibility," she said casually.

"You know, some of those guys only gifted you a red one because they thought it would be funny," he scowled. "I don't want you to pick the wrong one."

Sarada laughed. "I'm sure if I wear Papa's rose in my hair, no one would even dare to come near me."

"What?" He gaped. "Uncle Sasuke gave you a red rose?" Boruto looked so scandalized.

Sarada laughed again. "The debutant's father usually gifts his daughter a red rose, in case she doesn't want to accept a suitor. It signifies that even if I am of age, Papa will still take me under his care, and that I willingly place myself under his protection."

Boruto blushed. "So you've decided you're not going to pick?"

"I don't know yet." A shy smile crept up her lips. "There's one rose missing."

He stiffened. "Well, if you are…" he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, refusing to meet her gaze. He pulled out the red rose from behind his back and presented it to her. "Will you consider me as a suitor, too?"

Silence.

"Do you mean it?" She asked quietly as she reached for the flower.

Boruto looked away, a small pout on his lips. "Of course, I do. I would rather not give you one, than lie to you."

"Well, aren't you the honest one?" She smirked. She twirled the red rose in her fingers, and examined the fuchsia colored ribbon.

Boruto bristled and scowled. "If you're going to turn me down, you don't have to be so mean about it, ya know!"

He stopped his outburst as he noticed that Sarada was tying the rose to her hair.

She tilted her head, for him to see the flower. "There. How does it look?" She had a light blush on her face.

"You look beautiful," his eyes were glazed over, he then smiled sincerely. "As always." He bowed to her and offered Sarada his arm. She rolled her eyes, but she slipped her hand into the crook of his elbow.

They both made their way back to the ballroom together.

"Darling," Sakura called for her husband's attention. "Have you seen Sarada yet?"

Sasuke shook his head. "She should be making her entrance anytime now."

Sakura hummed, a small smile on her face. "I wonder whose rose she'll wear."

Her husband smirked. "Watch out for a dark blue ribbon. I'm confident she'll still choose me."

The doors opened, and Sarada walked in, arm in arm with Boruto. Sakura immediately spotted the red rose on her daughter's jet black hair, strapped on with a fuchsia colored ribbon.

Sakura laughed. "Dark blue? Sorry to break it to you, Sasuke-kun, but it looks like our little girl has chosen a suitor."

His dark eyes widened upon hearing his wife's words. He spun around so fast, it was amazing his champagne didn't spill. It was then he saw it. A single red rose, tied on with a fuchsia colored ribbon.

Sasuke dropped his champagne glass. He couldn't believe his little girl wasn't so little anymore. How could she choose that idiot over me?

Sakura hugged him from behind, trying to comfort him. "Don't worry about it, Sasuke-kun. I'm sure she still loves you."

He looked at his wife with a pained expression. Sakura simply nodded towards Sarada's hand. She was still holding on to the pink and red rose they gave her earlier. Sasuke relaxed.

After a while, he smirked. "Just because she accepted him to court her, doesn't mean they're already together," he said to his wife.

Sakura gave him a hard stare. Her voice had a warning tone to it. "Sasuke-kun."

"Don't forget, she's Itachi and Shisui's favorite, too." He nudged his head towards his brother and cousin. Sakura's gaze landed on them. She could have sworn their eyes were flashing red.

Sakura laughed nervously. "Well, if he's anything like Naruto, he isn't going to give up on her so easily."

A/N: I imagine Itachi and Shisui to be such overprotective uncles, since they would offer to babysit Sarada for Sasuke from time to time. Hihi. I placed in more details about the Red Rose tradition, since a lot of people have asked about it. I based it off the Eighteen Roses tradition for Debutants in the Philippines. It's kind of hard to explain. But if you want to know more about it, just holler in the review, and I'll try to explain it a bit more. :)

Thank you again to everyone for reading and supporting. Please review!

Happy Easter! :)

~Kairi