Ravens and Cherry Blossoms

Author's Notes: Hey, long time no see everyone! I just wanted to apologize for the delay in getting a chapter up. I've been pretty busy and writer's block decided to attack me. However, I'm back now though I may still not be able to update as fast as I previously did. Anyways, on with the chapter!

Chapter VII

"You're late." Coal eyes stared indifferently at the female before him, though it was obvious that he was annoyed but only to those who knew him well. The pink haired woman in front of him knew all too well how cranky her teammate could be, but she wasn't taking his little temper tantrum to heart. She rolled her eyes and pushed past him, purposely bumping her shoulder against his.

"I'm not that late, Sasuke." She swept past him into the living room after he had answered the door, ignoring the irritated sigh of the Uchiha boy as he closed the door and padded after her. Sakura paused and tossed a glance over her shoulder at Sasuke, raising a pink eyebrow at him. When he said nothing, she rolled her eyes again and instead headed directly for the kitchen where she knew that the Uchiha matriarch was toiling away.

However, before she could make it there, a hand seemingly shot out of nowhere and dragged her into the room she had almost passed. Her instincts flared as she raised a fist to punch her supposed assailant. Her curled fist froze inches in front of the grinning face, a huff escaping her lips when she saw who it was.

"Shisui, don't do that!" She yanked her arm from his grip, not yet noticing that they were not alone in the sitting room. Shisui blinked owlishly for a moment before breaking out into a grin once more and ruffled Sakura's pink hair.

"What? No hello? I'm hurt, kitten."

"Don't call me that!" Sakura's eye twitched as her temper began to flare, her green eyes narrowing dangerously as she scowled at the taller male before her. A quiet sigh broke their little staring contest as green eyes turned to find the source. One Itachi Uchiha sat on the couch, nursing a cup of tea with his eyes currently closed.

"Shisui, desist before you get punched. I will not make a move to help you. You should know by now not to antagonize her." He opened his eyes and stared at his older cousin blankly, before lifting the cup of tea to his lips and taking a careful sip of the hot liquid.

"T-taichou..." Sakura stuttered, cheeks flushing in embarrassment that he had just witnessed her childish behavior with his older cousin. Her earlier irritation at him had obviously been forgotten. His gaze slipped to her and he eyed her for a moment before shaking his head.

"Sakura, there's no need for that. We're not on a mission, so please refer to me as Itachi. Please, ignore my cousin and have a seat." He gestured to the empty seat beside him before focusing once more on his cup of tea.

Sakura flushed and moved to take a seat beside him, though she sat as far away as possible without being obvious about it. She didn't want to invade his personal space, especially if he was anything like his younger brother. As if on cue, Sasuke entered the room. His arms were crossed over his chest and he immediately scowled at Shisui.

"Why are you even here, Shisui? I don't remember you being invited, tch."

Shisui placed a hand on his chest, a mock look of hurt flashing across his features. "Aw, Sasu-chan, that's so mean! Of course I was invited. I am family, after all. You're just mad you have to share Sakura-chan with us."

The eighteen-year-old male bristled, looking ready to retort but thought better of it when he caught a glimpse of his father passing by on the way to the kitchen. Like a good boy, he sat down and kept quiet. Though, that didn't stop him from glowering at Shisui who also took a seat, grin still in place.

Sakura sighed softly, already feeling a headache forming as she tried her best to keep her temper in check. As silence settled into the room, it was soon broken by the sound of soft footsteps before Mikoto poked her head into the room and beamed at the sight of Sakura.

"Oh, you're here!" She shimmied into the room, moving to stand near the pink haired girl. "I can't tell you how proud I am of you, dear." It was no secret that Mikoto treated her like the daughter she never had. She couldn't help but dote on the female who kept her youngest son in line all of the time.

"Of course, I wouldn't miss this dinner for the world." Sakura smiled at the older woman, her expression genuine as she took in Mikoto's appearance. She had dressed up a little, but she still wore her apron. It was nothing fancy and she looked as beautiful as she always did. Sakura couldn't help but envy the beauty of the Uchiha. It really was unfair. There must have been something in the water for the Uchiha clan to be so blessed with good looks.

"I'll get you some tea, darling. I'll be right back." Before Sakura could protest, she had already scuttled away and back into the kitchen. Shisui snickered quietly to himself while Sasuke and Itachi remained silent. One with a scowl on his lips while the other had a blank expression on his features. Sakura couldn't help but chuckle softly as she rose from her seat. "Excuse me," She murmured softly to the trio before going to meet Mikoto in the kitchen, the smell of delicious cooking food wafting under her nose.

The woman turned at the sound of Sakura's footsteps and tilted her head with a small frown. "You didn't have to get up. I was going to bring it to you."

"Oh, it's okay, Mikoto-san. I just wanted to see if you needed any help in the kitchen, with the food."

"Oh no, dear. I've got it... here you go. Be careful, it's very hot." She warned as she handed the kunoichi the cup of tea, a smile on her lips. "Fugaku won't be able to join us tonight. He told me that he had to head to the Police Station. He just left, but he wishes you well."

Sakura lifted the tea cup to her lips, blowing softly on the hot liquid before taking a careful sip. She looked thoughtful as she leaned against the counter, watching as Mikoto turned back around to continue fussing around the kitchen.

"He sure does work a lot, doesn't he?" Sakura mused aloud as she leaned against the kitchen counter, mostly to herself as she continued to watch Mikoto bustle about the kitchen. The older woman paused, before glancing at the pink haired girl as her expression softened.

"He really does. He does his best for us and I couldn't be happier to be his wife. Why don't you go back to the sitting room? I'll let you know when everything's done cooking and you can help me set the table. How does that sound, dear?"

"All right." Sakura pushed off of the counter and walked out of the kitchen, returning to the sitting room. Before she could even step foot in the room, there was a loud banging on the front door. Sasuke scowled and hurriedly got up and stalked towards the door, already knowing who it was.

He opened the door to reveal a flustered Naruto, his blue eyes wide as he grabbed onto Sasuke and shook him a little. "Teme, have you seen Sakura? I can't find her anywhere! What if something happened to her? What if she was kidnapped?!" Sasuke slapped his blond teammate's hands away, offended by his personal bubble being stomped upon. He shot his male teammate a glare, dark eyes narrowed in annoyance. "Dobe, you're making a scene. Knock it off."

Sakura was confused about why Naruto seemed so worried and walked over to the door, peering around Sasuke's tall form. "Naruto, what's wrong? I'm right here... I thought you would have known I was having dinner here. Didn't Sasuke-kun tell you?" She glanced at her raven haired teammate who crossed his arms over his chest and looked away from her. The answer was obvious to her. He had definitely neglected to tell Naruto about the dinner.

Naruto looked relieved to see her and wrapped her up in a warm bear hug, holding her tight as he inhaled her scent and sighed softly. "No, he didn't tell me anything... Hey, wait a minute! Why the hell wasn't I invited?! You know I love Mikoto's cooking!" He released his female teammate and shook a fist at Sasuke, scowling at him.

Before Sasuke could retort, she smacked both of her boys upside the head, her eye twitching slightly. "Knock it off, you two."

"Is that Naruto-kun? I was wondering why he hadn't shown up yet. Sasuke, don't block the door and step aside so you can let him in." Mikoto scolded, pulling her youngest son away before enveloping the blond in a hug.

"I told him to tell you, but I guess he didn't. I'm so sorry, dear. Dinner's almost ready and you've arrived just in time. Hasn't he, Sakura?" She beamed at the girl and shooed the three into the sitting room after making sure the door was closed behind them.

Sakura made sure to pick up her tea cup when she returned to the sitting room, having left it behind so she wouldn't spill it. Itachi had left the room, but Shisui was still there as he waved at Naruto.

"Hey, Naruto! I guess Sasu-chan really did 'forget' to tell you. He's so mean, isn't he?"

"Yeah! That teme!" Naruto glared at Sasuke before plopping down on the floor, sitting cross legged as he huffed childishly. Sakura rolled her eyes as she took her place on the couch, noting that Itachi's tea cup was still here and empty. She couldn't help but wonder where he had gotten off to but figured it wasn't any of her business.

Author's Note: Originally, I had intended to make this chapter longer than usual but I decided against it. I've had this written for awhile now, but I've been a bit busy and lacking motivation. Let me know what you think in a review! Also, I'd like to apologize for the little amount of ItaSaku interaction. I'm a bit nervous about writing Itachi wrong, so I've been focusing more on Sakura. I'll try and fix that, though.