Swapped

The Memory & the Aftershock

Kakashi nearly keeled over in shock.

"What are you talking about?" He demanded. Sakura just laughed. He had long forgotten her back and was moving to sit in front of her and look her in the eye. "You're lying." He said, even though he knew she wasn't.

"You're so cute, Kakashi." She said through her laughter and reached out to pinch his cheek. He swatted her hand away.

"Sakura." He said in warning. Her laughter subdued to little giggles.

"Kakashi-sensei never could hold his liquor." She said dreamily. Thoroughly disturbed, he sat hard on his behind and stared at her in confusion and disbelief. How could he have kissed Sakura and forgotten?

"W-when? Why—how? When?!" He stammered. She sighed, feigning annoyance. He knew she was enjoying this torment. Part of him thought maybe he deserved it, but that was overruled by his mortification that he'd kissed Sakura and forgotten.

"I can show you." She proposed and opened her scarred eye. His Sharingan stared back at him, alongside her cocky smirk. He nodded, staring intently at the swirling tomoe. He allowed himself to be swept up in the genjutsu.

He was back in Konoha, seeing the world from Sakura's perspective. This was her memory, he realized. It was a summer night; he could feel the air conditioning in Sakura's apartment blowing cold air at her body. She was currently lacing up a shoe that reminded him an awful lot of the one she'd worn in her henge back in Fang. He tried not to get so caught up in the look of her long slender leg, but he was failing. Oh well, he thought and just allowed it to happen. It's not like anyone would find out.

Once the strappy shoe was on, she stood to look at herself in the mirror, turning and observing the different angles of herself. Kakashi watched as her face pouted and scowled at her reflection, though he didn't fully understand why. He didn't see anything to pout about, personally, but he couldn't say he didn't enjoy watching the way she pawed at her body under the sexy little red dress she was wearing.

He remembered this dress, he realized with a start. He remembered the feeling of placing his hand a little too low on her bare back, and how soft her skin had felt beneath his palm. Still, he had no recollection of a kiss.

"Forehead, stop staring at yourself. We're gonna be late." Yamanaka Ino appeared behind Sakura in the mirror. "No amount of daydreaming is going to help you fill out that dress any better." Ino teased, stepping up behind Sakura and resting her chin on her shoulder. Sakura looked at the two of them in the mirror and pouted down at her chest.

"Shut it, Pig." She said, though she continued to pout. "…you don't think I fill it out?" She asked self-consciously. Ino rolled her eyes.

"I thought you got over this ages ago." Ino replied, cocking out a hip and raising an eyebrow. Sakura just blinked at her and awaited her answer to the question. Ino sighed and scrutinized her. "You look fine, Sakura. Small breasts are so much easier to dress! Look at you wearing that dress with no bra. I could never get away with that." She said, flicking her long blonde hair over her shoulder.

Sakura turned her attention back to her reflection, and so did Kakashi. He'd never considered the logistics of a dress with no back before, but now that Ino had pointed it out, his eyes zeroed in on Sakura's chest. Sure enough, he could see the outline of her nipples, loud and clear. Thank the gods for air conditioning, he thought before he could stop himself.

He was equally horrified and captivated when Sakura ran her hands over her breasts and paused with her palms over her hard nipples. He supposed she meant to keep them from the cold and make them less apparent through her dress, but that was secondary to the effect that it was having on him. He wondered why she was showing this to him. She could have skipped forward in the night to show him where he came in, but instead he was here, seeing her caress her breasts and wondering what it would be like to replace her hands with his own.

Satisfied with her results, Sakura scooped up the little beaded bag that sat atop her bed and left her room to meet Ino by the door. Ino was spraying copious amounts of perfume into the air to let it fall back down on her and Sakura had the misfortune of walking straight into the cloud and inhaling. She coughed and glared at Ino.

"Ugh, Ino-Pig! Now I'm going to smell like you." Sakura complained with a scowl. Ino laughed and flipped her hair over her shoulder, whacking Sakura in the face along the way.

"You're welcome, Forehead." She taunted and stuck her tongue out for good measure. Kakashi wondered if all friendships between women were like this. He guessed Sakura wouldn't have bothered having Ino as a roommate if they weren't actually friends, but this relationship was wildly beyond his understanding. Sakura did frequently walk the line of loving and cruel, though. Before knowing her, he never would have thought those two things were so closely related.

The two women walked side-by-side down the streets of Konoha towards the entertainment district. They were talking the whole way there, gossiping and giggling. Every time someone would call out to them, which was more often than not, Ino would laugh and lap up the attention and Sakura would giggle awkwardly and fidget with the hem of her dress. After the fifth fidget, Ino rolled her eyes.

"Sakura, what is with you? Why wear a dress like that if you're not going to enjoy the perks." She said as she winked at a tall, dark-skinned chunin that had been eyeing her shamelessly. Sakura blushed. "Don't tell me you're still pining after what's-his-name." She said, eyeing Sakura slyly. Sakura's blush deepened. Kakashi's interest peaked at this. Finally, Ino was giving him something good.

"I wouldn't say I'm pining…" She said softly, smiling to herself. Kakashi felt a strange feeling rise in his chest. She'd never mentioned she was seeing someone new to him before. Although, the last time she'd told him about one of her dates, he'd told Naruto and Sai about it and the two of them had crashed in and ruined that for her. He had pretended to be sorry (he really, really wasn't) but she assured him that if a man couldn't handle Naruto and Sai's antics, then he wasn't really worth keeping around.

"You won't even tell me who he is. You're totally pining." Ino pointed out. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"I don't tell you who he is, because if you know then all of Konoha will know within three business days."

"Oh, sweetie, it would take far less time than that." The two girls laughed and continued down the road. Kakashi wanted to tell Ino to keep prying. How could she just drop the subject? Wasn't she Sakura's best friend? She should be privy to this information! His internal griping was interrupted by their arrival at the bar. He was familiar with the place; it was a usual haunt for all the jonin in Konoha.

They spotted their large group immediately. They were pretty hard to miss, between Naruto and Kiba; they were easily the rowdiest group in the establishment. Kiba whistled loudly as the women approached the table, and slipped his arm around Sakura's waist. Naruto smacked him ruthlessly across the back of his head, and Kakashi was reminded how fond of that boy he'd always been. Kiba glared at him but didn't remove his arm from Sakura.

"Careful, you're gonna break a lot of hearts in that dress." Kiba leaned down to say in her ear. Sakura laughed and swiped him on the chest. Kakashi was disturbed. This was flirting. Sakura was flirting with Kiba. Was this the "what's-his-name" Ino had mentioned? If so, it didn't seem like there was much pining or mystery around him.

"Shut up, Kiba!" She said through her laughter. Ino grabbed her arm and tugged her out of Kiba's embrace and toward the booth where Sai was sitting. Ino perched herself on his lap and Sakura sat next her, greeting the other rookies at the table.

"Ino, there is another seat right beside Sakura." Sai stated, in his usual Sai way. Ino smiled at him flirtatiously.

"But I like this seat." She said, making herself more comfortable on his lap.

"I see. Would you like me to move?" He asked, looking in confusion between Ino and Sakura's laughing faces.

"No, silly." Ino said. Sakura tuned her out then as she continued to flirt with an oblivious Sai. Sakura's memory went a little hazy as it sped through endless laughter and drinks. When it came back into focus, she was considerably more intoxicated. Nowhere near the level of drunk she'd been in Fang, he noted, but definitely on the drunker end of tipsy. She was running her flinger along the edge of her sake cup and discussing chakra flow in great detail with Hinata.

Sakura's attention was suddenly stolen away by something going on at the other end of the bar. Her eyes zeroed in on none other than himself. He was sat with a significantly smaller, less conspicuous group of peers, nursing a beer alongside Gai, Genma and Tenzou. Sakura politely excused herself from the table and walked over to them. To him. Her eyes were only on him, he realized. As she approached, his eyes met hers with the same focused gaze.

He remembered this vaguely. He remembered seeing her walk over, and completely tuning out whatever the men at his table were talking about in favour of his inner monologue about this striking kunoichi in the sinful red dress. She smiled when she reached their table, standing just a little too close to him. Maybe it was just he who felt that way, because no one else at the table batted an eye. Seeing this from Sakura's perspective was disarming.

It wasn't exactly unheard of for them to have what could have been considered flirtatious interactions. Much as she had just had with Kiba or even Genma on occasion. She'd even set her charms on Tenzou once or twice, and his poor kohai had nearly had an aneurysm trying to decipher what it could mean. That was Sakura. Friendly and flirty were interchangeable to her, and he'd never thought much of it. Not until this night, anyway.

She was consciously leaning against him, from where he sat on a barstool, purposely pushing her hip up against his thigh. She had her arm draped across his shoulders, her fingers lazily drawing circles on his sweater while she made chit-chat with the other men at the table. The other men because Kakashi was reeling.

For one, he was already good and drunk, but more intoxicating than the alcohol was the woman pressing her soft body into his. He only momentarily returned to the planet when Genma signalled for a round of shots. He joined the rest of them in clinking their glasses together and downed his drink. Sakura peeked down at him with a small smile, noticing how red the tops of his cheeks were above his mask. She giggled a little and ran a finger down the back of his neck.

He didn't personally remember this happening, but he knew how this drunk version him was feeling. He'd felt a fraction of it in Fang, but this him was far drunker, and his inhibitions were exponentially lower. Sakura excused herself to get another round of drinks for them. She peered at the four of them talking in her absence, but Kakashi was still mostly silent. She watched as Tenzou and Gai shook their heads at Genma, who was smirking and nudging Kakashi roughly.

Sakura watched as Kakashi finally said something, although she couldn't hear what it was. Kakashi had a pretty good idea of what was going on over at the table, and he was grateful that Sakura was out of earshot. Men, no matter the age, could be idiots. He was not exempt from that, unfortunately. The drunk Kakashi in her memory turned his head to gaze at her, looking far too lucid for someone as drunk as he was.

She returned to the table with five beers, once again stepping to his side and pressing her body against his. When she leaned forward to place the bottles at the centre of the table, he snaked his arm around her and flattened his palm below the small of her back, dangerously close to erring too low. He remembered the feeling vividly. Her skin was nearly as silky as her dress, and felt a little too good beneath his hand. Experiencing this from Sakura's perspective was fascinating. He could feel her heart race when his thumb brushed against her back absently.

"Sakura, is it true you threatened to cut off Genma's hands and reattach them upside-down?" Tenzou asked her, both horrified and curious. Genma winced, and Gai guffawed as only Gai could. Kakashi continued rubbing that thumb along the base of her spine in silence.

"I sure did." She said with a slow smile and a bat of her eyelashes. "Keep your paws off my nurses, and you won't have to worry about it." She said with a laugh and a haughty shrug. Genma sighed and held his bottle up for a cheers.

"Here's to Sakura, the only woman I'm allowed to lay hands on at the hospital, from this day forward." Sakura joined him in a laugh, figuring him for joking. And he was, in part, but Kakashi knew that part of him was serious. Gai joined in their laughter, and Tenzou did as well, but very cautiously. Kakashi didn't make a sound. Sakura peered down at him curiously, but he had his eyes glues to his bottle. She leaned down slowly, pressing her chest into his shoulder.

"Is everything okay, Kakashi-sensei?" She whispered in his ear teasingly. At this point in their relationship, she had already stopped calling him sensei, except for when she was teasing him. She lingered by his ear, letting her warm breath blow across his ear and masked cheek. Goose bumps sprang up along her arms as he grazed his nails gently against the skin of her back. He turned his head slowly to face her.

Sakura's breathing was a little uneven now, and she was aware of it. Their faces were close now, and Sakura had the sense to glance at the other men at the table. They were doing a good job of ignoring the pair of them, or at least pretending to ignore them. Kakashi knew better. He was planning something horrible for when he saw them again. He couldn't believe they never mentioned this to him.

The drunk Kakashi moved past Sakura's pink face to press his mouth to her ear. Sakura felt his lips curve in a smirk under his mask.

"It's just a little cold in here, don't you think?" He said huskily into her ear. Her hand gripped his shoulder tightly and she flushed deeply. Kakashi couldn't believe he didn't remember any of this. Was she messing with him? How could he have said these things to her and have no recollection? As the memory of himself pulled away from Sakura, she peeked down at her chest, and sure enough, she could make out the outline of her hardened nipples. She knew it had nothing to do with the temperature of the room.

Thoroughly flushed, and more than a little turned on, Sakura said goodbye to the men and pulled away from Kakashi to head back to her table. She felt eyes on her back the whole way there. When she sat back down, Ino pinned her with a curious look, but Sakura waved her off. Kiba slinked back to her, wrapping that arm around her shoulders and pulling her into him. She laughed and flirted back good-naturedly. Kakashi found the whole thing absolutely infuriating and wondered why no one was putting an end to it.

"Hey, Sakura, were you talking to Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked loudly from across the table, his arm around Hinata, who looked just about ready to pass out. Sakura smiled slyly.

"Yep." She said, glancing back at the table of men she'd walked away from to see Kakashi staring right back at her unabashedly. He held her gaze until she turned away to talk to Naruto again. More time passed, and the memory got hazy again. More laughter and flowing drinks, and more furtive glances towards Kakashi. Every time their eyes met from across the room Sakura's breath hitched and she'd adjust her crossed legs to squeeze her thighs together under the table.

As the night went on Kakashi observed everything with increasing confusion and frustration. What on earth was happening here? He had absolutely no memory of this, beyond that dress and his hand on her back. He desperately hoped she would release the genjutsu and shout "just kidding!" in his face. He'd be embarrassed he fell for it, but his relief would overpower that easily.

The bar slowly started to empty out. Ino had convinced Sai she needed him to escort her home, which confused him to no end, but she promised to explain along the way. Naruto and Hinata had also cleared out with endless blushing from Hinata as Naruto took her by the hand to walk her home. Everyone else had slowly trickled out, leaving just Sakura and Kiba. Sakura spared a glance to see Kakashi's table was still full.

"Do you want to join them?" Sakura asked Kiba, nodding over to them. Kiba shrugged uncaringly and accompanied her, his arm still slung over her shoulder. Kakashi stared at that arm as they approached him.

"Sakura-chan, shouldn't you be getting home?" Genma asked with a lopsided smile.

"You're so sweet to be concerned Genma-san, but you should be worried about yourself," she teased. "Doesn't the retirement home have a curfew?" She mocked, pouting and tapping her chin in thought. Kiba laughed loudly at Genma's expense. Genma grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and dragged him off to the bar.

"C'mon, you can buy this round before last call." He said and Kiba cried out defiance, but was dragged off regardless. Sakura stood by Kakashi again smiling down at him. He returned her smile and placed his arm around her back, this time his hand landing on her hip.

"You're not cold anymore." He taunted. She blushed but rose to the challenge, running her finger across the back of his shoulders.

"Hmm, nope. Kiba's kept me quite warm." She said with an impish grin. Kakashi's displeasure with that was evident through the mask. His grip tightened on her hip.

"Is that so…" He muttered darkly. She laughed and took pity on him.

"No." She said, dropping her act. "Kiba's harmless." She said waving her hand. Just then, Genma and Kiba returned with a shot for everyone. Kakashi observed himself as he took the shot despite being completely hammered. He sighed inwardly. No wonder he couldn't remember anything. He was surprised he could remember how to walk. They all stayed at that table, laughing and teasing each other a little while longer. Kiba caught Sakura's attention and raised a questioning eyebrow at Kakashi's arm around her. She bit back a smile and shrugged in response.

"Ah…we should probably get out of here." Tenzou said at last. Everyone uttered their agreement, and those that were seated stood up. Kakashi maintained his grip on Sakura, even while they stood.

"Sakura, I can walk you—"

"I've got it." Kakashi said abruptly, cutting Kiba off coldly. Kiba backed away slowly.

"Alright…cool. See you around, Sakura." He said, shooting her a questioning glance. She just smiled and waved in response.

"See you at the hospital, Sakura-chan!" Genma called over his shoulder with a laugh as they all headed their separate ways. Kakashi and Sakura remained stood outside the bar, his arm slung lazily around her, hand riding low on her hip.

"Shall we?" She asked finally, breaking the silence. He hummed in agreement and let her lead him down the road. The meandered through the village, enjoying the night breeze. He expected the silence between them to be awkward, but Sakura felt quite at peace with it. She happily allowed him to cling to her hip as they slowly made their way to her apartment

"Is Kiba always so…friendly?" He asked after a while. Sakura smiled to herself.

"Yes. We're just goofing off; he doesn't mean anything by it." She said, patting her hand on his chest in a show of reassurance. He wasn't sure why he needed to be reassured, but it felt good that she did it anyway. Kakashi stopped walking suddenly and tugged her back toward him.

"And do you…goof off with everyone?" He asked, scrutinizing her face. She smiled softly and lifted a hand to gingerly touch his masked cheek. Kakashi could feel in the memory that he was endeared to her. She thought it was cute that he was jealous. Was he jealous? It certainly seemed like it.

"Hmm…" She hummed, "just about everyone but one person." She said, looking up at him from under her lashes. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tighter to him.

"Just one, huh?" He said, ducking his head to look more closely at her. She nodded and hummed in agreement.

"Yes, but he's being terribly difficult, you see. He never seems to notice me." She said with a wistful sigh, running that finger over his chest. He knew what was coming now, and he knew this wasn't a fabricated memory. There was no way this drunken version of him was resisting her. He'd barely managed to do that back in Fang. Once those hands started wandering, there was no stopping her.

"Oh, I'm sure he's noticed." He said lowly, running a finger just along the edge of her dress at her lower back. "You're hard to ignore." He said huskily, making her shiver. He felt her squeeze her thighs together again. She snaked her hands around the back of his neck and looked up at him imploringly.

And then his masked lips were pressed against hers. She didn't mind that she was kissing him through the mask, he realized. It was soft, and she could still feel his lips through it, and it was so very Kakashi that she didn't mind. They stayed like that for a couple of minutes, kissing in the middle of the road until they came to their senses and started walking again. They continued on, side-by-side with their arms wrapped around each other, pausing every now and then to steal a kiss under the moonlight.

He couldn't believe what he was seeing. This had happened nearly a yearago, and she had been sitting on this memory, all this time? Part of him was angry, but mostly he was confused why she would never have mentioned it. He continued to observe, hoping he would get his answers, but doubting it.

"I'm getting lip gloss on your mask." She whispered to him after a lingering kiss a couple of blocks from her apartment. He laughed lightly.

"It'll wash out." He said purposely skirting her efforts and leaning down to press another kiss to her lips. She allowed him to kiss her but she pouted as he pulled away. He could feel how much she wanted him and it was driving him mad. Every second of this memory that passed, the more pissed off he was at himself for not remembering this.

"Kakashi." She said sternly, frowning up at him.

"Sakura." He retorted mockingly. She sighed and chewed her kiss-swollen lip in thought before reaching up to take his hitae-ate and sliding it over her eyes.

"There." She said, grinning up at him blindly. He could feel she was nervous; worried he would reject her. He wasn't sure why she would be concerned about that after all the public touching and kissing he'd already done, but he could feel her anxious energy intensifying with every passing moment. Just when she thought she was about to explode, she felt his warm breath brush across her lips. Her lips parted as her breath came out in a huff.

She gasped against his mouth at the feel of his bare lips against hers. She pressed herself as close to him as she physically could, arching against him. His hands were on her back, cold against her flushed skin, and lifting her against him. Her lips parted beneath his and she let out a little whimper when his tongue brushed against her bottom lip. He growled lowly in frustration, before she felt his hands grip the backs of her thighs and hoist her in the air.

"Oh!" She exclaimed in surprise, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, her legs around his waist, and holding on for dear life. He plopped her down and she could feel the rough texture of concrete beneath her. Her legs were still around his waist and the cool concrete was jarring against her hot core. Kakashi could feel how jarring it was, and how it magnified that tightening feeling between her legs.

"You smell different." He complained as he buried his face in her neck, drinking her in. She clicked her tongue sharply in annoyance.

"Ino." She said breathily as he continued to nuzzle her neck.

"Beg your pardon?" He mumbled against her skin.

"I smell like Ino." She said shortly, grabbing him by his collar. "It doesn't matter, just kiss me." She said bring his face back down to hers.

The drunk Kakashi resumed in kissing her as instructed, open-mouthed, hot, and desperate. Sakura hitched her legs up higher on his waist and pulled him tight to her, reveling in the fact that he'd opened his flak vest and she could press herself even tighter to him. Her tightened nipples were brushing against his chest and it was serving to increase the heat between her thighs.

Kakashi thought he might die in this genjutsu. Maybe it was a mistake for him to see this, to feel this. How could he continue sharing a room with this woman after this?

Then, a little moan clawed its way out of Sakura and into Kakashi's mouth. He seemed deeply encouraged by that little sound, not that the Kakashi observing could blame him, and he met her deepened kiss with a roll of his hips into hers. She moaned again, a high whimper that had a profound effect on Kakashi. He pulled back very slightly to look at her hazily and wantonly before pressing a gentle kiss to her lips, and then trailing them down her jaw and neck.

Sakura balled her fists in his sweater at his back as he pressed those searing, open-mouthed kisses along the sensitive skin at her neck. She thought she might actually hit her peak when she felt his teeth graze her ever-so-slightly.

She felt him inhale deeply at the base of her neck. Suddenly he tensed and froze. He pulled back completely, and when he pulled his forehead protector off of her she saw that his mask was back in place. His visible eye was wide.

"Sorry." He choked out, and then disappeared with a pop and swirl of smoke. Sakura say there for a few minutes alone, confused and undeniably aroused. With a sigh she pushed off the concrete barrier he'd placed her on and made her way home alone.

Kakashi blinked to see Sakura closing her scarred eye and watching him carefully.

"So…there you go. Our first kiss." She said softly, watching him patiently as he gathered his thoughts. He didn't know where to begin. It was a lot to unpack, and Sakura had had months to come to terms with it, but for him it was like this had just happened.

"Why are you only telling me now?" He asked. She fidgeted with her hands in her lap.

"I never imagined you'd forgotten about it. Up until now, I thought you had decided to pretend it never happened, so I just went along with it. It wasn't until I experienced your alcohol tolerance firsthand that I realized how much of a lightweight you really are." She said half-bitter and half-mocking. "And I was embarrassed." She admitted with a laugh.

"What do you have to be embarrassed about?" He asked in confusion. From the way things went, it was Kakashi that should have been embarrassed. Kakashi was embarrassed.

"The sweet, sweet sting of rejection really plays with your mind, you know?" She said with a sad sigh. "Until recently, I felt silly about the whole thing. That you probably thought I was just some dumb girl you'd gotten carried away with."

"So you have no idea why I left?" He asked, although he had his own theories. Her ears turned pink.

"I think I have a pretty good idea why." She mumbled with an awkward laugh. "This body-swap experience has been very enlightening." So she'd reached the same conclusion he had, then. He'd smelled her arousal and it jarred him out of his drunken, lustful state. He was pretty sure, even drunk off his ass, that he'd thought better of having her right then and there.

Kakashi inwardly praised himself for getting the hell out of dodge. It was bad enough he'd forgotten their kisses; he didn't know what would have happened if they'd gone any further.

"Are you…upset?" Sakura asked cautiously. Kakashi considered everything he'd just learnt and all the emotions he'd felt throughout that rollercoaster of a memory.

"I just wish I could remember it for myself." He said in exasperation. "What a mess."

"Sorry for keeping it from you for so long." She said with an awkward half-smile.

"Sorry for teleporting away in the middle of making out with you." He said, with an equally awkward smile.

"You are a feckless bastard." She said through her laughter. "Abandoning me in the night like that. Chivalry really is dead." They laughed together at their own expense and the heaviness left his shoulders. He had been worried for no reason; they were the same as they'd always been. He could rely on her to always treat him, first and foremost, as a friend.

After what had been a ridiculously long day, they laid in bed totally exhausted in every way possible. Kakashi stared into the darkness of the room around them, well aware that he would be revisiting her memory in his dreams.

"Thank you for sharing your memory with me, Sakura." He said before she could drift off. She hummed sleepily.

"It's your memory too. You ought to have it." She mumbled. A small giggle escaped her and he turned his head to look at the dark lump that lay beside him.

"Still. You didn't have to."

"Oh, don't worry. I'll be cashing in a secret of yours one of these days." She said playfully. "Goodnight, Kakashi." She said softly into her pillow before her soft snores filled the room.

He thought back to the way he'd admired her body in these last few days, the trick he'd played on Tatsuya, the dream he'd had about her, and that little sketch of her he had tucked away in his bookshelf back in Konoha and said a silent prayer for his wellbeing.

A/N: so I got super carried away writing that memory whoops but it was just soooo fun to write sorry not sorry