Warnings: fluff. Teasing. Arguing.
Disclaimer: I really don't own Naruto.

Summary: Team Seven rides a bus, Kakashi brings onigiri.

Title: Onigiri
Narrator: third-person past.
Rating: PG-13 just 'cause.
Author: Taes
Pairings: Implied SasuNaru.
Status: complete as it gets
Date written: 2006—January 25.
What I wrote it for: a cute girl, (LJ user) gwichanaayo, who drew a cute pic.

http COLON SLASH SLASH www DOT deviantart DOT com SLASH view SLASH 28114154

Onigiri...by Taes.

Naruto fidgeted awkwardly, smiling despite his discomfort. His blond hair jilted into his face with every rock, bump and i groan /i of the ride, and he was most certainly i not /i happy.

"Sasuke..." Naruto whined. "Why do we have to take this stupid i bus /i anyways?"

The way he said i bus /i would have been more suitable for speaking the name of a rare breed of monster.

Sasuke rolled his eyes as he looked to Kakashi for explanation. "Because, idiot," he began.

Kakashi took the liberty of finishing for him; "Supposedly," he said very lowly, using a strange Konoha-dialect not even the children could follow perfectly, "this bus-route has been targeted by rogues, and intends to demolish the vehicle before the night's out."

Naruto squeaked as they turned a corner. "Well, go ahead and let them!" he yelped, "this thing's just...just..." as words failed him, his mouth opened again and again without sound.

"You look like a fish." Sasuke noted slyly, smirking in his usual Uchiha fashion.

Naruto sputtered, proclaiming loudly, "Sasuke!" as though the name was a challenge, and not at all something a comrade might say, "I do not!"

Sakura covered her smiling mouth with two hands, and contented herself to look out the window, giggling quietly as her teammates argued.

From the front of the bus, the driver called, "Oi," and then, "you brats! Shut up or get off!"

Naruto swallowed his words in a most amusing manner; he nearly choked on them, and Sasuke had to pat him on the back for the boy to regain his senses.

Kakashi, bored, and thinking the natives all too gullible for their own good, pulled out i Icha Icha Paradise /i and began to read.

Several long hours passed.

Naruto began to snore, and Sasuke began to practice various hand signals, much to Sakura's discomfort. Kakashi ignored them all.

The bus squealed to a stop, jerking all the passengers forward as the bus driver called, "kids, this is the last stop. Get off."

Kakashi turned the page in his novel, saying, "we'll follow you on your next route."

The bus driver grumbled, "no, you won't. I'm taking lunch."

Kakashi smiled behind his mask, "and we'll be here when you return."

The driver gave a long sigh, and departed.

Naruto's stomach growled. After a few minutes of squirming in his sleep, the boy woke up with a sleep-drowsed, "I'm hungry," and rapid blinking of cerulean-blue eyes, "can you give me—"

Sasuke's shoulders trembled with suppressed laughter, and Sakura rolled her eyes.

Kakashi reached into his kunai holster and pulled out—

—three innocent onigiri.

"Oh-tto," he murmured, "I only brought three,"

Naruto's mouth dropped open.

Sakura's mouth pinched shut as she glowered at the i jounin. /i "Kakashi-sensei!" she pouted, "no! This is i not /i going to be another of your weird, senseless teamwork missions!"

Behind his mask, Kakashi frowned, daydreaming of the three students fighting it out to eat the onigiri, thereby making the dull bus routine more interesting...he sighed, and tried to defend his tarnished reputation with his students, "I didn't i intend /i on leaving one behind..." he protested.

Sakura took two of the nigiri from Kakashi, and tossed one at Naruto. "You two!" she grinned. "Share."

Kakashi sighed again, thinking, i but that's not teamwork at all... /i

Naruto caught the little triangle of rice-wrapped-in-dried-seaweed, and his eyes practically shone with sleepy happiness. "Ah!" he proclaimed, ripping off the plastic with his teeth.

Sasuke leaned delicately over Naruto's shoulder, and took the first bite.

"Waaaaaahhhhhh!" Naruto wailed.

Sasuke chewed quietly, swallowed, and smirked. "What?"

Naruto's mouth quivered. "You're eating my onigiri!" he accused.

Sasuke's cool smile only fed Naruto's irritation. "We're sharing." Sasuke explained with a sigh.

Naruto lifted the nigiri to his mouth, and took a i much /i bigger bite than Sasuke's, just to spite the boy. His mouth full, he could only grin—with his eyes—as triumphantly as he could.

Sasuke's smirk returned, "I thought you might like it..." he leaned in close, "after all,"

Naruto leaned away.

Sasuke ignored the blond's curious actions, "it's like a second-hand kiss..."

Naruto sputtered. "WAH!" and gagged.

Sasuke whacked the back of Naruto's head. "Don't you i like /i kissing me?" he demanded.

"YOU'RE CHEATING!"

Sakura turned around to stare at them, a questioning smile on her charming face. "Something wrong?" she asked lazily, having much better ears than they gave her credit for.

Naruto choked. "Er."

Sasuke smiled. "No."

The bus driver returned, and another route was picked.

The nigiri was gone within six bites.

What'd you think?