A/N:

Thanks to everyone whose reviewed!^^

Here's the second (official) chapter. You'll see what I mean in upcoming ones^^ Like I said in the previous chapter, it's unclear when these drabbles take place, so I'm stemming a few scenes from cannon. I find that it's a bit hard for me to really get into NaruSaku (esp. altering canon scenes to fit with my story)...I need to familiarize myself with their canon vs. fandom situations first, but once I do, I promise that my NaruSaku will be total WIN.

Enjoy!^^

Art lesson #1. Teasing

'Don't nag, complain, or vent (too much). Drive him…wild with temptation…Gently lean in and whisper something dirty in his ear. Yes. You read this correctly. Even the great Toad Sannin could master this. I've heard it's a fun tease and he will be glad to play along with you and every male loves a great tease.

It's mere speculation of what I've heard and read. I think...

— Sai's Official Book of Male Art—

"Yo, you should be proud o' your teammate, coz withou' mergin' Kyuubi, it'll be too late," Bee rapped for beat, sensing Sakura's worry.

"Well, Naruto's gotten much better at mastering sage mode…so you shouldn't worry a thing about him. Even if the nine-tails is rather stubborn and devious," Yamato said before creating a familiar jutsu with his hands and placing them on the ground.

Sakura frowned. She shook her head. She couldn't dwell on this for too long. She needed to keep her thoughts focused on the "s-rank" mission and track all of Naruto's progress with Kyuubi, as well as writing reports during their time in the Land of Lightning. It was difficult keeping tabs on all these things for shishou. At least Sai was here with them, but since Shizune was totally occupied with other issues, Sakura knew Tsunade was not in the best place right now—with the Fourth Shinobi world war about to begin. Shishou had to make sure that someone would keep an eye on Naruto and keep them updated. So Sakura and Sai went with them.

Later that evening, Naruto heard her approach, but did not shift his position to greet her, nor did he even bother opening his eyes. He was meditating; after all, didn't she know that? Couldn't she tell? His legs were folded beneath him, and he sat up straight, taking deep and even breaths. Not to mention he couldn't move anyways in order to maintain perfect balance.

And now it was after dinner.

She couldn't have possibly forgotten, he's kept this very same routine for the past week and a half they've been traveling together. But, she couldn't ignore the fact that he was doing this to her on purpose.

Ignoring her.

The blond cracked an eye open, the reddish-orange hue appearing around his eyes. "I'm meditating."

She smiled, and he found it was much harder to shut that eye. Then she took a seat next to him, appearing rather troubled by something.

"I know," the kunoichi said hastily, fiddling with the bowl resting on her lap, "I just…"

He waited for her to continue, but she only looked away, hiding behind a curtain of pink curls. Naruto let a faint scowl cross over his features, before closing that same eye and returning to his routine-

"Now is the only time that I could get you alone."

What?

The blond stiffened, relaxing immediately, and turned to her with peaked curiosity. "So you caught me. What is it?" He asked, knowing that even trying to meditate now would be pointless. Not that he minded much, talking with Sakura-chan was by-far more intriguing than this dull exercise. Well, when she wasn't yelling and punching him or something of that matter.

Her hand traced the edges of the bowl, fingers gliding along the smooth clay pot. She was squirming now. "I just…"

"Yeah…?"

"I just…"

Here they go again.

"Just spit it out already, Sakura-chan," Naruto sighed, telling himself not to think of her cascading hair and those slender fingers and her luscious lips and bright green eyes and—

Dammit, the jinchūriki mentally swore, banishing such fantasies from his mind.

Sakura blinked, jerking her head to the side to give him a withering glare. "I'm trying to be nice here," she growled, affronted, a vein twitched against her forehead.

"And I'm trying to listen to you being nice, but it's hard when you keep stopping in mid-sentence like that," her counterpart replied tersely.

Sakura's eyes flashed. When in the world did he get so—

"I'm trying to find the right words," she replied instead.

Before he could stop himself he gasped, "You don't know what to say? Well this is a first from you." Curse his quick tongue! The blond reeled at his own insult, shaking his head once the words left his lips, almost cowering as to fear a punch from her. "Wait, Sakura-chan I didn't-"

But it was too late, the figurative hat was dropped.

"Oh is it? From what I know lately, the Kyuubi is still very much in the recesses of that baka head of yours and hasn't lent you any of his chakra yet!"

Naruto started – no, he had made no progress with the nine tails…yet, but she should not critique the entire fact that he was trying. The kyuubi, yes, but his own chakra control? "I bet you would've loved to talk to him for me for a day." He countered abrasively, and added in retribution a curt, "Maybe…just maybe you two could be such pals."

Sakura's mouth fell open in response to his jab. "How dare you insinuate-!" And she went on with a list of insults and name-calling. Really, it wasn't difficult to tune her out, but even though Naruto couldn't make out her words, there was still that dull buzzing noise that told him she wasn't finished talking—yelling—nagging. He was rather surprised at her doing so. Normally, she would've just punched the daylights out of him by now…but now that he thought about it, she was acting rather odd.

Meditating was obviously not an option, and what a wasted effort those first fifteen minutes were – he was wound up again because of his teammate's hypersensitive emotions. Women. He definitely agreed with Shikamaru now. Without thinking, he lifted a hand to her flapping lips and suddenly there was a relative peace. But her eyes suggested otherwise as they trailed over his in question.

"Did you…come here to argue with me?"

The kunoichi scoffed, brushing away his hand – that was warm and oddly comforting. "No, but you're just such a—"

"Because I didn't ask you to—"he began, his blue eyes tracing over her obvious discomfort.

"_knuckle-head baka—"

"_come along with me."

"_that it's hard not to."

Naruto sighed, raking his fingers through his blond hair and convincing himself over and over that he did not lament the softness of her lips against his palm. "Alright I'm sorry, now what was it that you wanted?" He repented.

She surveyed him suspiciously, eyes calculating and judging, deciding if it was worth telling (teasing) him, asking him, whatever-the-hell she planned (Sai planned). Naruto took her moment of silent mental study to appraise her with his own scrutinizing gaze.

Sakura was strong, beautiful and opinionated. She had been there to heal him, to listen, to help, and to hit him over the head on more than one occasion. She took care of them all, of him. She would recollect herself for battle (for the most part) and prepare for the worst to come. She loved to help people and was compassionate and forgiving (also for the most part).

And she lied to him (to herself). His mind wandered, for the briefest of seconds, where he silently buried the recollections of a land covered in snow and a pink-haired girl pleading her love for a baka who couldn't even keep his promises, just to be begged to throw them away.

Naruto deflated at the thought. Sakura wasn't the only one he would protect. He cared for her deeply, yes, but what was going on through the recesses of her mind that day drove him angry, hurt, and confused. She was so dead-set against even accepting a date from him in the past…that what she did just crossed the boundaries of expected right into wounding offense.

Arguing and ignoring her all the time now did nothing to remedy it.

But she just made it so easy, always on about this or that, and there was only so much nagging and punching one young man could take! Even from an attractive pink-haired girl with the greenest eyes and the largest charming forehead he's ever seen.

"I wanted to apologize," she said at last, eyes lowering to the bowl of fruit sitting on her lap, "for everything."

He blinked, taken aback.

A moment of silence stretched between them, during which Sakura lifted her eyes to look at him, the makings of a smile slowly crossing her lips.

Naruto decided that he always liked—no loved— her smile.

He nodded, letting a lopsided grin tug up a corner of his mouth, "Apology accepted."

Her smile froze. "What?"

The blond hesitated, confused. "I-I…forgive you…?"

Those were clearly not the words she wanted to hear - Sakura was not appeased. "You forgive me?!" She exclaimed, "You should be the one apologizing!"

Now Naruto was at a complete and hopeless loss. "Me?! What for?" He had already apologized a trillion times over for what he's done in the past, what did he do wrong now?

"FOR—FOR BEING A SUCH A BAKA!" she shrilled, eyes raging with suppressed fury.

He scowled, trying to make sense of things – of her claims, her actions, her mood-swings…and found that he had no idea what she was on about.

"You're the one who came over here to yell at me,'ttebayo! Like you always do!"

In one fluid motion, the bowl of fruit was smashed into his whiskered face and Sakura stormed away in a fuming fit.

Sai stopped by after, having watched from lift-off to crash-landing, with his aerial scouting and looked pityingly down at the blond. Naruto had an excuse prepared on his tongue, but the emotionless bastard spoke up first,

"Hmm...So Ugly didn't do as I suggested."

.

.

.

Sai awoke the next morning with a bruised eye.

'Be wary of when you nag and tease. Though most of the time it is successful and will create chemistry and laughs, there is a line between teasing and fighting, one that doesn't even exist if the male is a dickless baka.'

-Sai