Merry Christmas everybody! I hope you've had a happy time! I'll try to post two chapters per week. Enjoy!

DANGO

Naruto was lying in his bed. It was a very interesting night. It wasn't planned but usually that's how the best encounters occurred. He didn't know that Karin could be so much fun. He was surprised for not finding out about her neighbor in the four years that they had been living in the same building. He remembered how she looked with that little blue shirt she was wearing, it was made of a soft material satin-like, its translucent effect showed the contour of her breast, beautiful. How could he have ignored her? He turned around in his bed watching the seven team picture that rested on a shelf. Sasuke stared right to the camera with his usual serious expression, Kakashi on the other hand looked happy and his eyes showed warmth; half of his face was covered by the mask, but by what was visible, people could tell that he was happy. Sakura looked out of the corner of her eye at Sasuke with a soft blush on her face, whilst Naruto saw how Sakura had eyes only for Sasuke.

It was curious how the smallest current things hit you up in the face waking you out of a dream. When he saw himself in the picture Naruto could answer his question. He had not noticed Karin or any other girl for that matter, because he had had eyes for Sakura only. That was why he also lost Hinata, even, when overcoming her shyness she told directly to him that she was in love with him, he could not stop paying attention to Sakura. He could not keep on feeding that obsession if he would ever want to have something serious with anyone. And…, in reality, what this obsession has left him with? Loses. Wasted time. Opportunities with girls as amazing as Hinata, lost. Would he keep on going, waiting that a god damned day, lady Sakura would be gracious enough to see him as something more than a clumsy and reliable friend?

He stood up from his bed and reached for the portrait resting on the shelf. He looked at the mirror that hang behind the shelf and confronted his image. He felt that something in him was changing. The remainder of feelings for Sakura that were stuck in him started to melt like, when the water rush to meet the drain, releasing him from a chain that had tied him for a long time. He took a deep breath and tossing his head back, eyes wide shut, he felt that little by little all the memories he had of Sakura, turned to take a new meaning. Now, they were just memories of shared moments with a good friend and nothing else. He would no longer give those, other meanings that simply did not exist. He would not think of that time that Sakura smiled at him or that other time when she asked him how he was doing, as something with a veiled romantic innuendo from her part that allowed him to feed the false hope and illusions that someday she would be more than just a friend. Not anymore.

He exhaled and looked straight to the mirror. He smiled and felt free. He lowered his eyes to the portrait, took it and held it for a while; he smiled again and proceeded to put it away in his old stuff box.

Early next morning, Naruto went to work out at the training fields in the villages' outskirt. There he found Kiba and Sasuke whom were talking about the upcoming missions.

"… Yes, I think Sai is going too, Karin also" Kiba said

"A mission was assigned to Habani too. They have not told her yet what is it about. I think is dangerous" Sasuke replied.

"They have not told us what is it about either"

"Hi Sasuke, Kiba!" Naruto approached his fellow mates.

"Hey Naruto, you know what the mission is it about?" Kiba asked

"What mission?"

"Mmmm it seems that you have not been notified yet. You have been assigned together with Sakura and Hanabi for a secret mission. You leave the village next Sunday, early in the morning"

"It is weird that two groups leave in different days without knowing what the mission is all about" Sasuke intervene.

"What other group?"

"On Monday the second group leaves. Hanabi, Kiba and Karin are part of it"

"But, that doesn't make sense. Karin is injured. I don't think that Tsunade knows that she is sending injured shinobis to risky missions" An incredulous Naruto replied.

"Oh she knows, I bet you that she herself picked them for this mission" Sasuke expected Naruto's reaction.

"I think this is a mistake. I'll speak with her." It is weird that Tsunade assigns missions to ninjas who are not apt physically. Weird.

"Well Naruto, meanwhile train with us" Kiba invited.

Naruto, Sasuke and Kiba trained all morning. They took a bite and split up. Sasuke was meeting Hanabi, while Kiba had to go see Shikamaru so he could give him some instructions related to the Sunday's mission. Naruto had a date and thus he had to shower first.

Well, it wasn't an actual date…, he was just going to help his neighbor buy something. Obviously she would need help; she couldn't carry an aquarium by herself… not with her arm still recovering. He felt a little stupid for been impatient; he wished for time to pass quickly that it were three o'clock already so he could meet with Karin. What did that girl had?

Naruto arrived half an hour early to the fair. He decided to take a little walk and watch the stands. There was a lot of movement; a lot of people went to the Hanami Festival to watch the blooming cherry trees. He saw Sasuke across the street with Hanabi, they truly looked happy. A little envy stung him so he decided to turn around and walk to the dangos' cart that was the nearest to the aquarium store.

He bought two brochettes to go and walked to the aquariums store door as it was already 3:00pm. He saw her from a far, she was beautiful.

"Hello Naruto! So punctual" Karin said. She took him by the hand to which he responded by receiving her hand firmly.

"Hi Karin, of course. You said three and here I am"

"Come on!" Karin invited and taking him by the hand guided him inside the store.

"You know Karin, last night you did not tell me why you changed your mind, regarding buying beta fish" Naruto said, stopping for a moment at the store's door.

"Well Naruto, is simple. They, the betas, cannot live with other fishes and, you know? Enough with me living alone so that my fishes have to live alone too! I'm tired of that" smiling she pulled him inside the store.

Naruto smiled and he let himself go.

The aquarium store was organized in a U shape. Aquariums filled the walls of the room and a little line of aquariums divided the store in half, making two parallel halls which finally connected at the end and thus making the U. As soon as they entered the store Karin released Naruto's hand and detailing each fish in each aquarium, danced through the room. She seemed like a little girl in a candy store. Her eyes shined and she looked really excited. Naruto couldn't help smiling, seeing her like that, she looked like a ballerina, walking and softly touching the aquarium surfaces, pinpointing fishes that she liked and sometimes simply enthralled by the sight of a particular colorful one.

"Oh Naruto come!" Karin shouted from the end of the store hall. Naruto approached the place where Karin was watching a special fish.

"Look this is a clownfish, aren't they beautiful? They live in symbiosis with the anemones. The anemones are those with those little arms, like octopuses and…" Karin described the fishes while she stared at them. Suddenly she looked up to find that Naruto was staring at her intensely.

Naruto was dangerously close to her. She already had noticed it, she had noted his smell, his delicious lotion with wood accents mixed with his own aroma and it was hard for Karin to focus in her fishes.

"and?" Naruto was getting closer to her almost unconsciously. He leaned on the aquarium where Karin was observing the fish, placing his right arm above his head looking down at her. If he would have wanted it he could have reach for Karin with his left arm, locking her up in a hug… but there were not enough trust yet, thus his other arm was resting in his pocket.

"…and, well" Karin blushed a little but didn't forfeit. She moved a step closer to him and continued with her fish examination. "In their tentacles they have little thorns that cut the fishes with which they do not have a symbiotic relation. But with the clownfish this just doesn't happen.

"Did you learn all of this with Orochimaru?" Naruto asked in a low tone with the sole intention to make her turn and lock eyes with him. She caught the invitation and she accepted it.

Slowly Karin turned to him and there was electricity. Their lips were getting closer, they were just a few inches away when…

"Hello, what can I do for you?" The owner of the store approached the couple interrupting the moment. Karin and Naruto separated acknowledging the existence of the intruder.

"Mr. Tanaka, how are you? Finally I'm here to take the aquarium that we have talked about"

"Ahh Miss Karin, I'm glad! It is an excellent aquarium. It includes the fishes that you see there" Mr. Tanaka pointed to the clownfish that a few moments ago the two of them were watching.

"Good!"

"It also includes some Yellow tang and Royal Gramma"

"I'm taking it now Mr. Tanaka"

"Good! Come this way"

They pay for it and settle the shipment. Mr. Tanaka assistant would take it in a cart. As soon as the aquarium was set up in the cart and the fishes were ready to travel, the three of them parted to Karin's apartment which was close enough.

The assistant and Naruto carried the aquarium up to the third floor where her apartment was. There they placed it in the living room and the assistant explained them about the cares that they should keep with the fishes.

Immediately Karin started with the aquarium installation according to Mr. Tanaka's instructions. Naruto helped her and after hours of hard work the fishes were finally in their final home.

Naruto and Karin admired their work and felt happy.

"I should have bought something to eat at the fair. I'm starving" Karin commented.

"I forgot, I think nothing happened to them" Naruto remember he bought some dangos there, and taking them out of the paper bag they were packaged in, and out of his inner jacket's pocket offered one to Karin taking the other for himself.

Karin received it whilst Naruto ate the first dango ball.

"emmm Naruto, I really appreciate the help you gave me today. It was more fun that what I thought it would be" She started moving closer to him.

"There is nothing to thank, Karin…" he move closer to her. They were going to finish what they started at the store. Now, nobody would interrupt them.

Their voices could only be heard by the two of them, it was an intimate conversation and the tone was low.

"No, on the contrary I…" Naruto could not resist the tension, and reaching for Karin hug her and kissed her.

The kiss was intense and corresponded. The dangos fell to the floor when they hugged. It was a deep and sweet kiss. It was a perfect kiss for a Hanami's festival closure. Naruto would no longer envy Sasuke, he was happy too.

The kiss ended and Karin smiled happily.

"No intruders this time"

"Karin, let's meet tomorrow, at Tanami's waterfall, I would like to show you something" He proposed Karin while he hold her and gently caressed her face.

"Ok, what time?"

"9:00a.m"

They kissed again and then Naruto said good bye and retired to his apartment.