Quick Info~
I've been dying to post this chapter and the time has finally arrived! Sorry about the cliffhanger before! Hopefully all will be satisfied in regards to that this chapter. ;) If I haven't said it enough already, I am seriously so appreciative of all of your kind words! Every time I get a notification my heart jumps a little (which is nice, since college and work combined can be a bit of a drag sometimes). I don't want to spoil anything, but let's just say that Kakashi's got a little something up his sleeve for this chapter... (Also, quick disclaimer, I am not an "anti" shipper by any means, so the Sasuke reference later on reflects no ill-feelings towards the SasuSaku ship or Sasuke himself) Enjoy and please feel free to let me know what you think!
"So your birthday is only a few weeks away," Kakashi said, stealing a quick glance at her out of the corner of his eye.
"Looks like it," Sakura responded, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her cheek against them.
"Have you given any thought as to what you might like for a present?"
Sakura thought back to her conversation with Ino a week prior. At the time, it didn't seem like such a big deal to be the only virgin left from her class. In fact, part of her was proud that she held fast to the belief that she needed to find the right person first. But as the date of her birthday drew nearer (and as the feeling of genuine arousal hung low in her belly for the first time), she started to wonder if she really did want to give that part of her away.
But instead of telling Kakashi outright that she wanted someone to fuck her so well that she couldn't walk the next day for her birthday, she simply sighed and decided to give him a safer answer.
"Just practical stuff, I guess." She shrugged.
"That's a bit boring," Kakashi said. "Surely you aren't too old to lose real desires?"
Sakura's stomach clenched at the word 'desire.'
"Well, I wouldn't say that practical is boring," she said, skirting around the subject as she attempted to swallow the heat rapidly spreading across her face.
"Then how would you define 'practical'?"
The slightest hint of playful teasing was laced in his usual nonchalant tone. And even though he was staring out into the darkness calmly, Sakura could tell that he was on edge by the way his fingers were drumming unevenly against the dirt.
"I don't know," she said. "Something you can use often."
"That doesn't narrow it down," Kakashi said, frowning. "There are plenty of things in the world that you could use often."
"At a loss for what to give me, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked, playfully nudging his shoulder.
If he was going to insist on teasing her like that, she was more than capable of retaliating tenfold. He turned to her and held her gaze evenly, seemingly unmoved by her banter.
"Oh, I have more than a few good ideas," he said smoothly. "It's just a matter of whether or not you'd want them."
Sakura blinked, a rosy hue lighting up her cheeks despite the dark night. "I'm quite sure I want them," she murmured.
Kakashi smiled and reverted his gaze back to staring into the black nothingness in the forest. Sakura wanted to hit him over the head with that damned book resting in the dirt beside them. She wanted to say that she could hardly believe he had the gall to leave her hanging like that, but she knew that would be a lie. Kakashi Hatake was the master of leaving people hanging.
Sakura twiddled her thumbs in front of her, occasionally stealing a glance at Kakashi when she was sure he wasn't looking. His eyes, although just as half-open as usual, hardly seemed tired despite the fact that Sakura hadn't seen him blink in minutes. Perhaps intense focus was one of his odd methods of staying awake?
"Kakashi-sensei, can I ask you another weird question?" Sakura asked, her voice much smaller and more timid than she would've liked.
"A majority of your recent questions have fallen into that category," Kakashi observed. "But of course you can."
"Have you ever really wanted to kiss someone? Like, not a specific someone, but just because you really wanted the feeling of it."
Kakashi's eye slowly shifted to meet hers. "I suppose," he said lightly.
"Really? Back when you were a teenager, then?" she asked.
"No. If you wanted to put a timestamp on it, I'd say it's much more recent."
Sakura gulped. She wasn't sure which one of them decided to move closer, but Kakashi was unquestionably nearer to her than he was before. Her fingers inched across the dirt, stopping just shy of brushing against his own, and her eyes were peering up at him as round as they were wide.
She just had to do it. She just had to muster up all of that courage she knew was buried inside of her. All of that courage that Ino, Naruto, Rock Lee, Shikamaru, and even Hinata apparently had.
"I know what I want for my birthday," Sakura murmured.
"And what would that be?"
"I want you to kiss me," she said.
Kakashi wasn't exactly stunned by her request; although, he didn't make any sudden movements to comply, either. He merely stared at her for a moment, as if he were drinking in every ounce of the way she looked in the firelight. Red cheeks, plump, pink lips, and green eyes that sparkled with the intensity of Chidori twice over.
"Close your eyes," Kakashi instructed.
Sakura wanted to question him, but as soon as she saw one of his fingers hook into the corner of his mask she knew why. A kiss was one thing, but getting a glimpse at his face underneath the mask was an entirely different level of trust that Sakura knew she hadn't quite earned yet.
So her eyes fluttered shut and she waited, willing herself not to shiver in the cold breeze. His hands were the first things she felt. They slid carefully up the expanse of her neck and cupped the back of her head gently. Next, she felt the warmth and newness of his nose brushing against her cheek. She inhaled and held her breath as his lips pressed against hers tentatively.
He was warm, much warmer than she was, and she shivered underneath his touch. Her hands were initially frozen in her lap until some part of her subconscious knew to move them to his chest. His heart was beating evenly, completely mismatching the rapid pumping in her ribcage.
Kakashi didn't make a sound as he slowly began to open his lips, allowing himself to kiss her more fully. That was the type of kissing she was talking about. The kind that made your knees feel weak and your insides dissolve into jelly. The kind that Jiraiya so skillfully wrote about and the kind that Sakura wouldn't mind receiving from Kakashi all over her body.
When Kakashi pulled away, Sakura felt like she had been shocked. Her fingers felt tingly and her thighs clenched together. She kept her eyes closed—not because she remembered not to look, but rather because she wanted to bask in the feeling for a few moments longer—until the sound of fabric sliding back over Kakashi's face ended the moment.
"Happy early birthday, Sakura," Kakashi whispered against her lips, trailing one finger along the precise smoothness of her jawline before dropping his hands to his lap.
Sakura didn't know what to say. She had half a mind to thank him, but decided against it considering how strange it would sound. So instead of saying anything, she merely nodded and then dropped her head onto his shoulder. She let out a yawn and realized that sleepiness was the only thing left once the adrenaline from the kiss faded.
"If only Sasuke knew how easy it was to tire you out back then," Kakashi teased lightly.
"Sasuke who?" Sakura asked slyly.
Kakashi couldn't help but smile. Just like that, Sakura had grown up in the blink of an eye and he was lucky enough to be part of it. So he didn't move her when she adjusted herself into a more comfortable position on his lap. Instead, he merely leaned back on his palms and waited for the earliest rays of the morning sun.
"Pervert!"
Naruto shouted the word loud enough to rumble the very earth. A few birds made a mad dash from the trees they were peacefully perched in, rustling the trees with an erratic, flapping sound.
Sakura blinked and then groaned, now thoroughly (although quite unwantedly) awake. Kakashi was simply staring at Naruto with a calm, 'I'm going to try not to murder you right now' face. Naruto, on the other hand, was crouched with his legs spread as wide as they could go with one finger pointed accusatorily at Kakashi.
"Do you always have to be this annoying in the morning?" Sakura asked, combing her fingers through her hair as she sat up from Kakashi's lap like it was the most normal thing she had ever done.
Her insides, however, knew that this was most certainly not normal and the event from the previous night was making her stomach clench up. Still, she cast an irritated glance at Naruto and tried to keep the blush attempting to give her away at bay.
"But Sakura!" Naruto whined. "You can't just let Kakashi-sensei get away with stuff like that!"
"With what? She was just sleeping," Shikamaru pointed out, already taking out the nails keeping the tent in the ground.
"Exactly," Sakura said, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm also a grown woman who can sleep on or with anyone I so choose."
If Naruto could've spontaneously combusted, Sakura was sure that he would've in that moment. His jaw practically hit the floor and he was flailing in place like an overdramatic chicken with its head cut off.
"You can't talk about sleeping with Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto exclaimed.
Kakashi let out a tiny puff of air, but Sakura couldn't tell whether he was just exhaling or stifling some sort of amused scoff. She stood up and strode as calmly as she could towards Naruto. Then, in one quick motion, she knocked him to the ground with a swift punch to the gut.
"Listen up, knucklehead," Sakura said, brushing her hands off on her dress before placing them haughtily on her hips. "I never said I was sleeping with Kakashi-sensei. We were both keeping watch and I happened to fall asleep on him. Forgive me if I didn't want to spend all night getting kicked in the side by the nine-tails Jinchuriki while being simultaneously serenaded by earthquake-inducing snoring."
"Temari says my snoring isn't all that bad," Shikamaru muttered.
"Alright, I'm sorry," Naruto said, defeated.
"As intriguing as this conversation is," Kakashi started as he stood, "I believe it'd be best to return to the village as quickly as possible."
Shikamaru cast Kakashi a grateful half-smile, which was returned by a thumbs up and an eye-crinkle. Sakura and Naruto both sighed, partially happy that they needn't discuss Sakura or Kakashi's sex lives any further and partially disappointed that the argument stopped as soon as it started. That was the odd thing about their relationship, they relished fighting with one another just as much as they resented it.
As soon as the four took to the trees, it looked as if it would be smooth sailing the rest of the way back to Konoha. Kakashi was reading again, occasionally catching Sakura trying not to blatantly stare over his shoulder. Naruto was going off on a tangent concerning something Tsunade scolded him about a few weeks prior. Shikamaru was simply staring ahead, perhaps contemplating duct-taping Naruto's mouth shut.
"Sorry if the mission was a bit boring," Kakashi said as soon as they were standing in front of the main entrance to Konoha. "But I suppose it's better than running into trouble, right?"
"I still had fun," Naruto said, shrugging. "Right, Shikamaru?"
Shikamaru merely grunted in response, jamming his hands into his pockets and staring directly at the clouds above them.
"Did you have fun, Sakura?" Kakashi asked innocently, despite the mischievous smirk quirking his lips underneath his mask.
She nearly squeaked. She'd have fun all right, fun shoving her foot up his ass as she punted the cheeky bastard all the way to the Cloud Village.
"It was fine," Sakura said, flashing Kakashi an incredibly fake, incredibly bright smile.
"Good, we're all in agreement then," he said. "I'll just finish up this paperwork and turn it into Lady Tsunade. Seeya later, guys."
And with a single wave of his hand, he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Naruto was already high-tailing it to Ichiraku and Shikamaru had slumped off somewhere (probably to hang out with Choji or Temari, or both).
So Sakura was left alone. She decided on going home and taking a shower cold enough to make the Land of Iron look like a hot spring. Every time she thought about kissing Kakashi, it was like she was lighting a match inside of her stomach while simultaneously sucking all of the bones out of her legs.
"Sakura!"
Her name was spoken in a hiss, followed by someone violently yanking her arm underneath the entrance flaps of a nearby restaurant. She blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the dim lighting, until Ino and Tenten's faces were smiling eagerly in focus.
"I can't believe you're still able to walk," Ino said.
Sakura sighed. It was going to be a long afternoon.