Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine.

Deleted Scene 2: Holiday Cheer (Ch. 9 in Can They Be Trusted? when the parents get home)

Same day: December 14

"Yah! The Christmas tree looks super good!" exclaimed Natsumi, observing the lighted decoration with an exuberant grin.

"Thanks to me."

"Hikari, stop giving yourself all the credit." said Aime.

"Yes, it's beautiful thanks to you all…" Akio sniffles emotionally. "Santa Clause is coming in 12 days!"

"…" Sasuke hid the roll of his eyes at the sight of a 35 year old father getting hyped up and believing still that some fat, jolly old dude was going to come to their house through the non-existent chimney…and give them gifts. It was really ridiculous. But that was Akio for you.

"I HOPE WE GET PRESENTS!"

"That is…if you're good, Hikari"

"What's that suppose to mean, dad?"

"Oh, nothing, my dear…"

"Time to put up the mistletoe in front of the doors?" asked Aime with a smirk. "Who will it be?"

Natsumi made a disgusted face. "Eww…heck no"

"Um, no thanks," said Hikari, unusually timid.

Sasuke turns the other way. "I'll pass."

"No way, José" muttered Junko, frown.

"Oh, I'll do it." said Akio, fed up with the latency of getting, in his opinion, an important job done. "But…" He looked at his wife with a sly smile. "You have to stand underneath it with me when I'm done hanging it up."

"Alright then."

"Oh, brother." The Uchiha rolled his eyes for the second time. This was really getting old.

"Don't worry Sasuke…you'll like it soon enough."

"Yes, it's the truth Sasuke." agreed Akio as he put the cursed plant atop the doorway. "Alright it's hung. Time for some loving…"

Aime giggled and dashed to her husband, embracing him and giving him a chaste kiss on the lips which all the teens wrinkle their nose at.

"Ew…totally gross." said Hikari, making throw up sound effects; yes this a 17 year old by the way.

Natsumi nodded, but looked at Sasuke somewhat wistfully and sighed. That's not gonna happen again… (1)

"Akio pulled away from his beloved wife and turned to the teens. "You four hang one on your bedroom doors."

"What?!" yelped Junko in disbelief. This was going waayyyy too far and out of proportion!

Sasuke folded his arms and gave a semi-glare to the father. "No way."

"Uh-un." Natsumi nodded her side to side in a swift motion.

"Not me, too." chirped the eldest of them all.

"Kids…" began Aime gently. "Just do it or no presents this year."

Reluctantly, the four, yes Sasuke too, heed the gentle warning (who the hell wouldn't want to get presents?! I'd do it meh self too!) and hung there's in their respective places.

"No fair…" whined Natsumi as she came back down first with a pout.

Eating a bowl of ramen at Ichiraku's was none other than Naruto, accompanied by Rock Lee. The blonde turned to the older teen after slurping down the last of his noodles from his 5th bowl.

"Hey Lee…"

"What is it Naruto?"

"Let's drop by the Takara's. I wanna see them."

"The Takara family?" repeated Haruno Sakura, coming up to them, bundled in a red knitted dress sweater. "Oh, let me come too; Sasuke-kun's over there!"

"Yosh! Then let us go."

"Let's make some sugar cookies~yum!"

"Why?" asked Junko, curious.

"So we can watch The Polar Express, yeah!" exclaimed Akio and Natsumi exuberantly.

Hikari frowned. "What?!"

"We did this marathon last year. Let's at least do a different movie." growled Junko.

"I second that." muttered Sasuke.

"No!" snapped Natsumi, standing up quickly only to wince at the aching sensation in her back. "Ow…" She slowly sat back down. Hikari, Junko and Sasuke sent her a warning stare; the teens all had mutually agreed not to tell them of their encounter with Itachi and Kisame the second they entered inside.

"What's wrong dear Natsumi?" asked her dad, looking concerned.

"Ugh…uh…" She blushed and muttered, "Cramps."

"Ah…" Akio nodded knowingly. "Yes those kinds of cramps are a pain indeed."

"But you're not a girl…" pointed out Hikari. "So how would you know?"

He sighed. "Your dear mom used to b**** and complain about those cramps a lot. It drove me crazy. Don't mess with her when that time comes."

Akio glanced at his wife who had just walked in wearing a serene expression so he lowered his voice to a hushed whisper. "She'll bite you head off, all joking aside."

"Huh? What's that you say Akio?" Seems like Aime had heard anyway, but Akio was too preoccupied with talking to notice.

"Huh…looks like you've taken after your mother's side Natsumi; you're a wimp when it to pain."

"A wimp am I?!" growled Aime, smacking him across the room in one fatal swing of her fist where he landed on his face on the floor.

"Ow! The pain…" he moaned into the hard wood floor. "What the heck, Aime, my love?!"

"That's what happens, my Akio-koi." she simpered mockingly. "Who's the wimp now, huh?"

Sasuke smirked and chuckled at their silly antics. Just one of the many reasons he put up with the Takara's; they were extremely amusing to watch.

"Naruto you dumbass, how do you not know where the Takara's house is at when you practically live there?!" yelled Sakura, delivering a punch to his spiky blonde head.

"Oww…aww, Sakura-chan I'm sorry, I'm sorry." he whimpered, cowering in terror. "I haven't been there in two weeks so I just kinda of…forgot…"

"Well un-forget!" she snapped, wrapping her hands around his neck and proceeded to throttle him senseless. "I want to see Sasuke-kun!"

Lee frowned and then brightened. "Hey, I have an idea!"

"What is it?" inquired Sakura, ceasing her mauling of the poor kitsune who fell to the snow in a dizzy daze.

"Let us just follow the past way that leads past the Academy; Natsumi told me a long time ago that if I could find their house to do that and we would pass by it shortly."

"Well it's worth a try…" Anything to stop Sakura-chan from strangling me…

"Junko can you please pass me a sugar cookie?'

"I hope you can catch." He throws it neatly across the living room and Natsumi catches it in her mouth and gives him big thumbs up.

"It was a strika!"

Hikari groaned. "Imouto…stop being like Jiraiya."

"Obviously you've hung around him too much." remarked Sasuke.

"Shut up I like this part."

"Gyee, sorry Akio."

Akio and Natsumi start to sing to the beat of the Hot Chocolate song loudly, sometimes falling out of sync.

"What loserz." muttered Aime with a soft sigh.

"Mom…I've been thinking…" spoke Junko suddenly. "When can I get a girlfriend?"

'Random much.' "When you're sixteen."

"Sixteen?! Mom I'm already seventeen!"

Akio abruptly stops jumping and dancing around manically. "Wait, you're seventeen?"

"You two know nothing do you; Hikari and I have been seventeen for at least four months and both Sasuke and Natsumi are sixteen."

"I had no…idea."

"I guess so." Junko turned his magenta orbs to his mother. "After all the times you've call us "KIDS"."

Aime looks thoroughly shocked at the accusation. "I, ahk, I never called you guys kids."

"Really." Junko squinted at her suspiciously.

Aime looked up at the ceiling when it all resurfaced.

Kids…we're home…kids…time for breakfast…kids…do your chores…bye kids see you tomorrow…kids just do it…

"Hmm? Remember now?"

Aime looked rightfully guilty. "All right. I guess I do."

"In that case, Hikari, Junko, Sasuke, and Natsumi…you're all allowed to date if you chose to do so."

Sasuke actually smirked to himself. Heh.

Hikari gave a high five to her twin brother for this new breakthrough. The youngest in the house however was too busy dancing to the holiday spirited songs from the Polar Express and heard not the news.

"This movie is so awesome!"

"Open up!"

Naruto and Lee sighed when, for the third time, the irked pinkette curled her fist and hammered the door furiously. They had been standing outside in the cold for a good five minutes after finding their way here, but still no answer. And they could hear loud music playing from inside.

"Uh, Sakura-chan, you don't want to break their door down."

"Shut up Naruto!" she hissed and continued anyway.

"It seems almost hopeless." commented Lee.

"Who the heck is banging?" muttered Hikari out loud.

Natsumi tosses another cutely decorated sugar cookie into her mouth and went back to dancing. "Not me."

"Duh…" The eldest looked around and saw the only one person in the room who wasn't doing anything much. "…Sasuke can you get it, please?"

The Uchiha gave Hikari a look that plainly said "hell no" and continued eating his favorite brand of potato chips; Lays Original sitting in her favorite spot on the couch on top of that. She growled at him and trudged to the door. "I'll get it since no one wants to take the initiative." Sasuke's such a douche…I even said please too!

More thunderous pounds echoed on the mahogany door. "I'm coming, hold you're ninja hounds!"

(1) That relates to the chapter: The Bond between Us in Moments Past By. Self explanatory if you choose to read it.