Warning! For the safety of the Author…

Please do not feed the troll cookies or other such sugar products. Consumption of said dietary products will cause the troll to become excessively kawaii and unnecessarily aggressive. When in such a state, the troll inevitably causes harm to the Author until a new chapter is written.

It should also be of note…the troll reads the reviews more anxiously than the Author himself does. Any mention of the troll leads to immediate glomping and much ear and cheek (both sets) pinching for the Author.

On a side note: Congratulations to the troll's sister on the birth of her first child, Jaylan. May he be healthy and happy all of his days. I now have a brand new respect for mothers everywhere.

Thank you for putting up with us whom you bore.

I apologize in advance for the awkwardness of the first part of the chapter. I wrote it while in the waiting room waiting for baby Jaylan's arrival and I can't think of any way to improve it.

Chapter Four

A delicate hand brushed blonde hair over one shoulder before settling on a curvaceous hip. The sound of knuckles cracking echoed through the still air and told the man in no uncertain terms what was about to happen. Kakashi carefully set Sakura down on the blanket and stood up. He walked with his hands in his pockets for a few meters and then turned to face the older woman, making sure that Sakura was still in his sight.

"How much did you overhear?" he asked. He stood in his usual slouched position and stared at the woman with one droopy eye.

"Enough," was the terse reply. She stood, arms akimbo, ready to avenge the young woman she thought of as her daughter and glared at the man with honey-brown eyes.

"Give me the chance to make it up to her."

"I already gave you your one chance and, apparently, you blew it," she shot back. "I thought I made it clear what would happen to you if you hurt her."

"I could fight back," he said.

"Please do."

"I could run."

"I'd catch you."

The thing was…he knew she would, too.

"One question before you start then," Kakashi said, holding up one hand.

"You only have one question?"

"I have several, but I'm sure you want to get to the ass kicking."

"Go."

"Why did she faint? That's not like her."

"From what I hear, she used to faint all the time."

"She's not twelve years old anymore."

"You'd know more about that than I would, I suppose," Tsunade snapped. Kakashi tensed at the insult, but remained otherwise still. He deserved a few verbal lashings for his actions. He just didn't expect them to go along with a physical one.

"Most of the people who know her know she's been running around trying to make sure your anniversary was special. She even managed to get Iruka to switch mission assignments so that it was Genma and not you who was sent to Rock Country," the blonde revealed. "I let it slide considering the circumstances and the fact that Genma is just as qualified as you for the job. But Iruka must've owed her one helluva favor. Changing mission assignments when you're not the Hokage is a class B crime."

"She introduced him to Anna-chan," Kakashi answered dully. He couldn't believe that Iruka, the "play by the rules," straight-laced man himself, had risked expulsion from the Ninja Corp for Sakura.

"Iruka's lovely girlfriend? Sakura's the one who introduced them?" The older woman understood Iruka's debt to her apprentice now. The newly promoted jounin and his civilian girlfriend were going to get married next month.

"That doesn't explain why she fainted," Kakashi said. They were getting off topic now.

"I was leading up to that, Hatake. I wanted you to know that Sakura was anxious about your anniversary. The stress she's been through for the past few days can take a toll on any body," Tsunade explained. "Even one as strong as Sakura's."

"One more question," Kakashi said. He waited a few beats as he looked at the prone form of the woman behind Tsunade. "Is she pregnant?"

Tsunade's eyes widened in genuine surprise at Kakashi's question and she glanced back over her shoulder at her apprentice. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "If she is, then she hasn't told me."

"But you'd know if she was," Kakashi pressed.

"Of course," she said. "But I'd have to examine her first."

"Then do so."

"I can't do that!" Tsunade gasped. "Not without her permission!"

"Sakura and I have processed the necessary paperwork," he calmly stated. "In the event that one of us is in need of medical attention and unable to make an informed decision on the matter, then the other has the lawful power to request medical attention and action."

"That's a pretty serious commitment to each other, Hatake. One usually reserved for married couples and family members," Tsunade said, raising an eyebrow. "Were you planning on marrying her soon?"

"We're shinobi," he answered, neatly avoiding her question. "The medical arrangement between Sakura and me has existed since she was 16. She said that I was a better choice to make the decisions if she was seriously injured than her parents. And she's the only one I trust enough to give that power to."

"She'll skin us both," she said.

"She fainted and we were worried," Kakashi replied.

"I can't give her a full examination here," Tsunade warned. "I'll have to use chakra and that's only 75 percent accurate in detecting pregnancy."

"Do it," Kakashi said. Tsunade looked at the determined set of his shoulders and the glint of curiosity and hope in his eye.

Hope? She wondered. Does he want Sakura to be pregnant?

The blonde Hokage walked back to where her apprentice lay sleeping. Her hand glowed a soft green as she ran it an inch above the other woman's stomach and abdomen. Tsunade's brow furrowed in concentration and her eyes shut as the answer to Kakashi's question came to her.

"Well?" the silver-haired man demanded as Tsunade stood back up and approached him.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi," Tsunade began. The glow of hope died from the man's eye and his shoulders drooped just a fraction more. "She's not pregnant."

"Oh," he said. "There were just a few things that made me think…"

He felt disappointment and sadness run through him. He didn't know if a child at this point in time was the best thing for Sakura. But it would be perfect for the Copy Nin. He'd almost given up on becoming a father when he and the pink-haired kunoichi got together. He didn't even know that he'd been anticipating the arrival of a child until Tsunade told him that one wouldn't be coming anytime soon.

The look on Kakashi's face dampened Tsunade's righteous anger at the man. It was so full of disappointment and regret. She sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder. The blonde woman placed her other hand on his bicep and shook him slightly to get his attention. He hadn't noticed her approach and jerked in surprise. When he raised his gaze to hers, she looked at him and sighed. "Kakashi…" she began.

"Shishou! Stop!" Sakura grabbed her sensei's shoulder and pulled the older woman away from Kakashi. Her strength caused Tsunade to fly back several meters before she caught herself. The younger kunoichi spun around and protected Kakashi's body with her own. "Please, Tsunade-shishou, don't hurt him!"

Tsunade rubbed her shoulder and glared at her student. "Sakura—"

"I know you said that you'd smash Kakashi into a mushy pulp if he screwed things up with me," Sakura interrupted. "Naruto told me and Sasuke that that's what you told him. Actually, his words were more like 'Tsunade-baachan told Kakashi that she'd tear his testicles off without anesthetic and force him to watch as she fed them to Tonton. Then she'd smash Kakashi into a mushy pulp if he ever screwed things up.' And I know that he messed up by forgetting our anniversary, but—I mean—it's Kakashi. You shouldn't maim someone just because he was being himself."

"Sakura…" Kakashi said, trying to stop her insane chatter. He hadn't heard her go on speaking for so long without stopping to breathe before—he was getting worried. He'd winced at the "tear his testicles off without anesthetic" part, though. He could still remember the fire in the Godaime's eyes when she threatened him with that statement.

"I mean, sure I made a big deal about our anniversary," she prattled on. She began to slowly walk backwards to force Kakashi further away from the woman. "But it's not like I told him what a big deal it was. He just thought that we were having a normal dinner. Sure he was late and everything, but he must've been pretty confused when I got mad at him like that. Kakashi's talented, but he's not a mind reader. I can't blame him for not knowing about forgetting our anniversary."

"You were quite willing to blame me for it before, Sakura," Kakashi whispered behind her. Her dramatic change in attitude amused the man and he lightly grasped her hips to hold her close as they continued walking backwards.

"Shut up, Kashi. Can't you see that I'm trying to save your life?" Sakura rasped back urgently. She looked at Tsunade and raised her voice. "We were just having lunch to work things out. Look, he even packed a picnic for us."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow and glanced at the orange-pink sky. "It's a bit late for lunch now, isn't it?"

Sakura finally noticed the late afternoon sky and frowned. "When did it get so late?" She turned to face Kakashi and poked him in the chest. "When the hell did it get so late?"

"You fainted," he replied, amusement causing the skin around his eye to wrinkle as a smile formed beneath his mask. "You've been out of it for a while. Tsunade-sama was just reassuring me about your health when you threw her."

No need to tell her about Tsunade's examination, Kakashi assured himself. The results were negative anyway. She'll only get mad and she just began talking nicely to me again.

"I-I d-did?" she stuttered. Sakura blanched at the realization that she laid her hands on her sensei and threw her several meters without permission. The young woman stared at Tsunade. The blonde stood tapping her foot and with a frown marring her brow. Sakura immediately began bowing and apologizing.

"I'm sorry! I just misunderstood! I mean—Ino-pig knew that Kashi forgot about last night and if she knows, I assumed that everyone knew. I know that Naruto overheard you threatening Kashi before and when I woke up and saw you grabbing his arms and shaking him like that, I got scared. I know you care about me and only want to protect me from getting hurt, but hurting the man I love isn't really going to keep me from getting hurt. In fact, hurting the man I love will only hurt me and you don't want to do that, right? I mean—"

"Sakura-chan," Kakashi whispered into her ear. He held onto her upper arms and rested his chin on her shoulder. Breathing in her apple blossom scent, he chuckled softly and nuzzled her neck. "Breathe."

His grin grew as the kunoichi proceeded to drag in huge gulps of air through her mouth. He placed one hand behind her back and the other behind her knees and picked her up in his arms. He strolled past the bemused Godaime and easily gathered the remains of their meal into the basket with one arm. He picked up the wicker basket and turned to the Hokage.

"Thank you for your concern," he began, nodding his head to the older woman. "But Sakura and I can iron things out ourselves." Tsunade barely had time to nod in acknowledgement before the couple disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Basket and all.

"You changed your mind about being mad at me pretty fast back there," Kakashi remarked.

"Watching the one you love in what you think is a life-or-death situation, really helps in getting rid of petty anger right quick," Sakura said, laying her head on her lover's chest. "You shouldn't scare a girl like that."

"We were discussing your health—not fighting," Kakashi chuckled as he lay back in his bed. Sakura was curled against his side like a cat, nestled in the crook of his arm, and he couldn't keep himself from playing with a few strands of her hair.

"All I saw when I sat up was Tsunade-shishou grabbing and shaking you," Sakura replied, defending her actions. "You had this kind of dazed look on your face and I got scared."

"How can you tell that I looked dazed?" he wondered out loud. He glanced down at the woman in his arms only to find her absently tracing the embroidery on his yukata with her fingers.

"I know your looks, Kashi. I can tell what you're feeling even with that stupid mask of yours in place," she answered simply. She continued tracing the dark red embroidery until she reached the matching obi that kept the garment closed. She tucked her hand in the gap of the yukata, her eyes focused on her task. Otherwise, she would have noticed the flash of desire that came and went over the features she claimed to know so well.

"I knew that this would look good on you," she remarked smugly. "It just took a fight and a really pathetic attempt at groveling to get you to wear it."

"Who says that it was a pathetic attempt?" Kakashi asked. As good as Sakura's hand on his abdomen felt, he placed his own over it and stilled its movements. They needed to talk before anything else. And he knew, despite his wish to straighten things out with her and Sakura's lingering anger at him, "anything else" would happen sooner rather than later if she kept up her unconscious petting.

"Most men who grovel don't end up insulting and then holding their unconscious girlfriends in their arms," Sakura responded.

"Says you."

Sakura laughed and lightly punched Kakashi's side. They remained silent for a while after that. Kakashi's hand continued to play with her hair and she shivered when his fingers lightly ran over her neck in the process. Sakura snuggled closer to him. She knew he had an expectant look on his face.

"Okay, so maybe the idea of an apology lunch was pretty un-pathetic," she conceded.

"And?" Kakashi prodded.

"The flowers were a nice touch; so was the fact that you dressed up for the occasion. And you picked the spot where our team used to meet, which was very sweet by the way."

"Sakura…"

"The food was good."

Kakashi waited for her to add to the last statement and frowned when she remained silent. He abruptly turned onto his side, facing away from her, and stared at his paint-chipped green wall. Sakura sat up at his movement and stared down at him with laughing eyes. Naruto and Sasuke would never expect this from him—hell, no one in the five shinobi villages would ever expect this from him—but Hatake Kakashi was an accomplished sulker.

"The chicken was delicious," she said.

Her smile widened at Kakashi's continued silence and stifled a chuckle when she saw him fold his arms over his chest. She lay on her side, propping herself up with her elbow, and lightly ran her free hand down his arm. When the feared Copy Nin only shrugged his shoulder away, she moved closer so that he could feel her breasts against his back.

"The chicken wasn't overcooked at all," she drawled.

Kakashi grunted in answer. Her breath fell against his hair and he knew she was leaning over him from the weight of her body against his back. He suppressed a shiver when she lightly grasped his hipbone through his yukata. Her thumb pressed against the bundle of nerves located just above it and he felt a thrill run through him.

Damn her and her Medic knowledge, he thought.

"The Hyuuga Chef must've asked for a vial of your blood and your firstborn child to make us a feast on such short notice," she murmured into his ear before licking it and pulling away from him. Sakura moved onto her back and brought her hands up to cushion her head. "I had to promise him five free D-ranks before he'd even give me the recipe for that fish last night—and I asked him one month ago."

Kakashi mourned the loss of her warmth and turned onto his back as well. They both stared up at the ceiling and sighed. He softly stroked her upper thigh as she began to doze. The room began to darken as the sun set. The streetlights began to turn on and filled his small apartment with their yellow-ish glow. He finally broke the comfortable silence when the last rays of sunlight disappeared.

"I have to build his sons a tree house," he said. Sakura moved her head to glance at his profile and kept her laughter under control. "And do 15 free D-ranks for him."

Sakura's laughter couldn't hold out against that last piece of information. The kunoichi curled up into herself as giggles erupted from her mouth. Kakashi let a wry grin form on his face and pounced on her. They wrestled for a bit, each one trying to beat the other without really trying. Kakashi finally managed to pin her down and he smiled down into her laughing eyes. They both stilled as the laughter slowly faded and they realized the position they were in.

Sakura raised her hand and slowly removed Kakashi's eye patch from his head. Green orbs met mismatched ones as they continued to gaze at each other. She trailed her fingers through his bangs and over his Sharingan. Kakashi leaned into Sakura's hand as she caressed his face. Slightly calloused fingertips traced the long scar that disappeared under the red mask he wore. Sakura gently dragged the fabric down and watched as her lover's face was fully revealed to her.

The green-eyed beauty never got tired of the rush she felt when she saw Kakashi's face. It truly had nothing to do with the fact that she was the only one on Team 7 lucky enough to see it. Instead, the thrill she felt was the pure shot of pleasure a woman feels when looking at the man she loves. She ran her fingers over strong cheekbones and soft, pale skin that rivaled her own. She rested the tips of two fingers against a pair of full—but not fat—lips and closed her eyes when he kissed them.

Passion—never far below the surface for them—swelled and she hooked her arms behind his neck. She was about to pull him down to her lips when his hands on her waist stopped her. The rosette-haired woman glanced at him in confusion, but Kakashi's grip remained firm. He shook his head and kissed her forehead.

"I'm sorry, Sakura," he whispered. He stared earnestly into her eyes. He had to make sure she understood and believed him this time. "I didn't mean to forget."

"I know," she answered. She didn't break their gaze as she brushed his silver bangs off of his forehead. "I should've reminded you about it. I remind you about every single other important event you have to go to. I don't know why I didn't remind you about this one."

"I didn't mean what I said today at lunch."

"I did," she said. The light in Kakashi's mismatched eyes dimmed a bit. She bit her bottom lip nervously, but continued. "It's true that you take me a bit for granted and that I resent that. I didn't have to say it the way I did though. I'm sorry about that."

"You don't have to apologize. I'm the one who—"

"Yes I do," Sakura interrupted. "It takes two people to have an argument and I'm just as stubborn as you when it comes to winning one. In fact, I think that I'm more stubborn than you. You usually give up after a while if your 'indifferent genius' and 'indifferent pervert' tactics don't work." Kakashi smiled at that and bent to kiss her lips lightly.

"And I meant what I told Tsunade-shishou," Sakura added. She pressed her head back into the pillows when Kakashi's lips traveled from her lips to nibble at her throat. "If she hurt you, then she'd end up hurting me too."

"Are we okay then?" he asked, more than ready to stop talking. "No more fighting?"

"No more fighting," she sighed, grabbing the edges of his yukata. She shoved her hands into the fabric and felt his muscled chest through his dark red turtleneck.

"So on to make-up sex?" Kakashi grinned, untying the obi around his waist.

"No make-up sex," Sakura answered. She smiled as the man above her stilled and brought her head up to peck at his lips. "We're going to make love—Anniversary style."

"I've never heard of that position before."

"Shut up and kiss me, Kakashi."

Kakashi and Sakura lay next to each other, panting softly. She rested her hand on his bare hip and the man shivered at the contact. He held her other hand in his and lazily brought it to his lips for a gentle kiss. He closed his eyes and contentedly ran his hand through her sweat tossed hair.

"Happy Anniversary," he whispered gruffly in the darkness.

"And to think you almost missed this," Sakura joked.

"I'm an idiot," he repeated for the second time today.

"No doubt," she answered.

Sakura suddenly remembered something and began to wriggle away from her lover's warm body. Kakashi half-complained about her movements, but she managed to escape his embrace. She swung her legs over the side of his bed and bent to put on the red turtleneck Kakashi stripped out of hours ago. She used the dim glow from the streetlamp outside to make her way to the light switch. They both blinked in pain when the bright lights turned on.

"Sakura," Kakashi asked, sitting up. "What are you doing?"

The rosette-haired woman was looking through the tangle of clothes for her blue shirt and largely ignored the man. The silver-haired ninja didn't mind since he got a good view of Sakura's long legs under his shirt as she moved around. The sound of her voice dragged his attention away from his ogling.

"You might want to cover yourself up, Kashi," Sakura said absentmindedly. "There's a really good view into your room from the roof of the next building and we forgot to close the blinds."

"And how do you know about this 'really good view,' Sakura?" Kakashi leered. He reached out a pale limb and brought the sheet up to cover his lap. Sakura looked up from her search and gave the Copy Nin a lewd grin and a seductive wink.

"Secret," she sang out to Kakashi's dismay. He hated it when she sang out that word in that particular manner. It meant that there was no way in hell he was going to find out what the secret was. Sakura found what she was looking for and bounded over to her love. She sat down on the rumpled sheets and hugged her knees to her chest.

"This is for you," she said, holding out a small black velvet box. "I was going to give it to you last night, but you know how that went."

"You had my anniversary gift with you at lunch?" Kakashi asked, avoiding looking at the small box. "I thought you were mad at me."

"Sure I was mad," Sakura agreed. "But I wasn't going to stay mad. I've known you for too long to give up on you now, Hatake. Besides, I wanted to see what kind of groveling you'd be capable of. Naruto bought Hinata a diamond bracelet when he forgot her birthday the first year they were together."

"Now every time they fight, Naruto apologizes by giving her another diamond something-or-other to match the bracelet," a small dimple appeared in her right cheek as she recounted her friend's list of expenses. "At last count, she had the bracelet, a lavaliere, earrings, and a choker. Naruto told me that he's saving the ring for last, though. Something about wanting her to wear the entire set at their wedding. I think that's sweet."

So that's where Hinata's diamond obsession comes from, the Copy Nin realized.

"Um…Sakura," Kakashi said, holding the box. He remembered all too clearly Ino's certainty that Sakura was going to propose to him. "Is this what I think it is?"

The pink-haired woman grinned in excitement. "You won't know for sure until you open it," she replied. "But when I asked Naruto for his opinion, he said—considering the circumstances—this is the best gift to give you. Well, it's the best gift to give both of us, really."

"Circumstances? Naruto?" Kakashi echoed. A thought suddenly occurred to the Copy Nin and made his hand shake slightly. Tsunade said that detecting pregnancy using chakra was only 75 percent accurate, he recalled. What if today's examination was in the 25 percent that it wasn't?

Sakura lightly snapped her fingers in front of Kakashi's face. "Kashi?" she asked. "Why don't you get out of that trance and open my anniversary gift to you?"

The jounin blinked and looked down at the velvet box in his hand. Slowly he opened the top and took a breath. He opened his eyes after a moment and gaped at the ring he saw lying on the cream colored satin. Stunned mismatched eyes met Sakura's glowing green ones. A feline grin spread across her face at his look.

"So will you?" she asked, semi-shyly. It was hard to pull off the shy act when she was sitting in nothing but Kakashi's shirt and with a sexy grin tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Kakashi continued to sit in stunned silence. No matter what his imagination thought up—and his imagination was quite creative—nothing matched the reality of what Sakura was asking him. He looked at the ring once more and brought up a finger to trace the delicate engravings.

"Hatake and Haruno"

It was exactly like Ino described.

And at the same time…

It was nothing like Ino described.

Sakura's natural impatience won out and she grabbed the velvet box from Kakashi. She removed the ring from the satin and held it out to him. He stared at it as if it were a new life form. When he remained silent, she realized that he was going to make her ask him out loud and in a complete sentence.

Damn the man and his denseness, Sakura thought. I'm the girl; I'm not supposed to be the one asking this.

She took in a deep breath and held the ring out to Kakashi once more. The circle of silver slipped easily over her thumb and she cupped her hand protectively over it. She cleared her throat to get his attention off of the object in her hand and on her face. It was time for green eyes to stare earnestly at the mismatched pair as she asked in a soft, but eager voice:

"Hatake Kakashi, will you move in with me?"

The muffled sound of a body falling unconscious onto the bed echoed dully through the small apartment. Sakura's brow furrowed in confusion that easily gave way to anger.

"Kakashi!" she yelled at the man who had just fainted. Fainted, for heaven sakes! She felt her blood boil at his reaction and forgot all about staying calm.

"WHAT THE HELL?"

A/N:

HAH! Bet you didn't see that one coming!

Thank you all for reviewing. I didn't know that this story would become so popular when I started it.

That said…this is not the last chapter of this story. There's more to come!

Ja ne!