Chapter 3
Ino was the first person to visit Sakura after her little sister was brought home. She was there that first day, and fell absolutely in love with her best friend's new baby sister.
"Oh my gosh, she's so cute, Sakura~! She's getting so big!"
Sakura grins and nods, patting baby Hana on the head while she slept in her bassinet.
"She really is, I just love her! She's the greatest. Sasuke-kun has been coming over a lot lately, to see if he can help with anything."
Sakura knows it was a mistake to say that the second Ino grins, and it makes her blush and turn away, focusing on Hana rather than her best friend.
"Oh really now?"
The high pitch in Ino's voice lets Sakura know that Ino is thinking things a thirteen-year-old shouldn't be thinking, and she regrets ever saying a word. Ino is thinking something scandalous is going on, but Sakura knows it's far from that and simply a friend helping out.
Maybe...?
"I-Ino! It's nothing more than Sasuke-kun helping my family out! His mother has been coming by a lot too!"
"Of course," Ino grins and leans back, watching Sakura. "I believe you…for the most part."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Just that I remember what happened at the baby shower… so Sasuke-kun coming over just to help out with your little sister sounds less innocent than you think."
Before she can protest, Hana starts crying and Sakura is surprised, but she picks the three week old up, rocking her gently.
"Shh, Hana-chan, it's ok."
Hana slowly calms down, whimpering a little and sucking on her fingers. Sakura smiles and looks at Ino.
"I think she's hungry. I'm going to take her to my mom."
"Sure," nodding, Ino watches Sakura get up and walk into the kitchen, "but we're going to be talking even more about Sasuke-kun coming over when you get back."
Sakura almost screams.
+!+
Mebuki permits Sakura to take Hana on a walk when the baby girl is two months old. Sakura gets her all dressed and ready, gets the stroller and diaper bag set, and the Haruno siblings are off in no time. Sakura watches where she's going, but also makes sure to look at Hana and see her little sister cooing and looking around, taking everything in.
Sakura smiles at her, saying "Do you like looking at everything, Hana-chan? This is our home. It's a very nice place."
She takes Hana to the market to pick up some things for dinner, and everyone around them would come over and swoon over Hana, saying how beautiful and precious she was, and congratulating her on becoming a big sister. Sakura grins and thanks them, before saying she needs to get going and finishes paying for her items.
On the walk home, Sakura is surprised to see Sasuke around their part of the neighborhood, and smiles.
"Sasuke-kun!"
Truthfully, it doesn't surprise Sakura when Sasuke looks at her and gives a slight smile, he's been doing that so much more frequently than ever before.
"Hey. What are you up to?"
"I was picking up groceries for dinner and taking Hana on her first walk around the village."
Nodding, Sasuke looks at Hana in the stroller and smiles a little when she coos.
"I see."
"What were up to?"
"Oh that… Kakashi wanted to talk to me about a mission he's going on."
Sakura perks up when she hears that, and starts walking again, Sasuke following next to her.
"Oh really? What did he want to talk to you about?"
"He wants me to go with him."
"That's great!"
"But… it'll take three years."
She stops, and Sasuke's ready for her to flip out, tell him he can't leave because it would upset Hana-chan (yes, she would say Hana over herself), that she wanted him to stay around.
"Wow… three years is a long time."
"Yeah."
"…you should go."
Sasuke is surprised to hear Sakura say that. She starts walking again, looking at Hana and he starts to follow her again. They're both silent, the only sounds coming from Hana as she coos and make happy sounds, and Sasuke hates this silence.
He wants Sakura to be upset, or to be happy, or something. It doesn't matter! He just wants her to talk to him, to tell him why she thinks he should go, or tell him the secret that she doesn't want him to go and wants him to stay in the village (to stay with her).
"Saku—"
"I think it'll be good training for you. When you come back, we can all take the Chunin Exams together!"
Sakura's smile tells Sasuke her words are only a half-truth, and she very much wants him to stay, but Sasuke's not sure if he wants to go or stay. He still hasn't decided.
"If I do go, I'll write you."
"Heh… you better make that a promise!"
Sasuke smiles and nods.
"Ah… I will."
+!+
Sasuke stays for dinner that night. Mebuki is happy to have a guest, while Kizashi is absolutely sure this teenage boy is going to steal his precious Sakura from him, but he doesn't make it known and simply tries to get Hana to laugh at him (she does, she always does. Hana thinks her daddy is funny).
He helps them with setting the table and stays by Sakura when she's helping Hana calm down from getting upset over feeling like she was being ignored.
"Let me see her." Sasuke says after a little bit, and Sakura hands Hana to him. The eight-week-old cries and squirms as she handed to him, but Sasuke doesn't even mind when Hana flails her arms and hits him. It doesn't hurt, she's too tiny to cause any kind of pain to him.
"Shh, you're ok."
Sakura just watches Sasuke while he holds Hana. He looks at her softly and smiles at her, telling her everything was ok, that no one was ignoring her. Hana cries more, but it makes Sakura stare in awe as Sasuke holds her close, kisses the baby's forehead, and it starts to calm her down instantly.
She's amazed by this.
+!+
"Thank you, for calming Hana down earlier."
When he's about to leave, Sakura follows him outside to the porch, so she can tell him goodbye privately and her dad wasn't staring down Sasuke (he was too busy, again, getting Hana to giggle and laugh at him).
Smiling, Sasuke says "It was nothing."
"How… where did you learn to calm a baby down like that?"
"Sakura, I have tons of cousins, lots of them older than me. I've held several babies and even babysat a number of them."
"Oh… I see…"
Once again they're quiet, and all they can hear is a stray cat meowing somewhere, and the wind blowing around.
"Sakura, I need to—"
"When I said you should go on the mission, it's not that I want you to leave."
Sasuke stops speaking the second Sakura starts, and he watches her, listening to what she says. He's not shocked, at all. He knew Sakura wasn't trying to get rid of him, and he knew she loved it when he came over to help with Hana (personally, he enjoyed it as well, though he didn't know why).
After a moment, Sakura hugs him and says, "I'd hate for you to leave… but I want you to grow stronger."
So…if one day, you come to love me and we marry, we can protect our family together…
Sasuke hesitantly hugs Sakura back, and he knows she's going to start crying. She already knows his decision is to go with Kakashi on the mission, and that they won't see each other for three years.
"I'll write you every chance I get." He whispers, and she nods, saying she'll do the same, and they stay like that for a while. Quietly hugging while Sakura cries into him, knowing she won't see him for three years, that they won't get the chance to really, honestly get to know each other as they get older, not until he got back at least.
It's quiet for a long while, and what comes next shocks Sasuke, but he's not surprised when Sakura hugs him around the neck, and gives him a full on kiss. He can't complain about it, because he kisses her back. (They stay like that again, until Kizashi catches them and runs Sasuke off his porch with cursing.)
Things were going to be interesting for the next few weeks.
Author's Note: Yo, yeah, Sasuke will be going away with Kakashi on that mission soon, but not for a few chapters, I promise! He and Sakura have a LOT to think and talk about.
You may be wondering where all the NaruHina fluff is, since I'm focusing so much on SasuSaku right now... But it'll come soon! I'm thinking about some things and trying to get the future of this fanfic worked out!
OH ALSO. This WILL go to when they're all grown up, it's just going to take a while to get there, so, sit back and enjoy the fluffy ride. :D
(and yes, all my other fanfics will be updated as well.)
