True to his word, Sasuke met Naruto for ramen at Ichiraku the very next day. He bought Naruto two bowls, hoping to keep his mouth sufficiently full so that he wouldn't interrupt Sasuke as he explained his relationship with Sakura. He kept his voice low as he explained how he'd come to terms with his feelings for Sakura and had decided to pursue her. He emphasized the fact that Naruto was not to tell a single soul aside from Kakashi about any of this.
Naruto took a moment to absorb all of the information, slurping his noodles as he did so. Finally, he spoke. "Are you sure you know what you're doing, Sasuke?"
His question took Sasuke by surprise. "Honestly? No." he admitted.
Naruto nodded thoughtfully. "Let me remind you that after you left, Sakura-chan was a complete wreck. You don't know much about girls and relationships, and neither do I, but I know this: if you break her heart again, she'll never forgive you, and she'll never get over you, either. You'll ruin her. Forever." he said emphatically.
"Don't think I don't already know that, loser." Sasuke growled. "Why do people have such a hard time believing that I'm in this for real?"
Naruto crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair. "I mean, you did abandon us in pursuit of revenge. You did try to kill us all. You considered destroying the entire Leaf Village. You can't blame us for being cautious, can you?"
Sasuke looked downward, and although he was not the kind of person to admit regret, he secretly felt a bit ashamed of his past actions. "Things are different now," he began quietly. "Itachi is dead. Orochimaru is dead. The war is over. I've run out of reasons to keep pushing my friends away. I've run out of things to protect you from."
Naruto raised his eyebrows in surprise; Sasuke was a man of very few words, and here he was, confessing his innermost thoughts and feelings.
Sasuke sighed. "Itachi would have wanted me to try and mend the bonds that I've broken. So that's what I'm doing."
Naruto grinned and slurped the rest of the broth from his second bowl of noodles. "If you're serious about her, then go for it. Honestly, Sakura-chan is the only woman in this village who could keep your ass in check, anyway." He wiped his mouth on his sleeve and stood up. "Just make sure you don't screw anything up." he said with a smile. "I'm tired of our team being divided."
Sasuke smirked. "Don't talk down to me; you were always the one screwing things up, as I recall."
Naruto scowled. "Was not!"
Sasuke chuckled, placing some money on the counter to pay for Naruto's lunch. "So says the guy who destroyed my front door and ruined my night."
Naruto rubbed the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, about that…I promise I'll fix your door! But first," he said, giving Sasuke a sly grin. "Tell me what it's like to do it with Sakura-chan."
Sasuke smacked Naruto in the back of the head. "You went too far." he said, walking away with his hands in his pockets as Naruto wailed.
Naruto knocked on Hinata's door while rubbing the large bump that was beginning to form at the back of his head.
Hinata answered the door and smiled warmly when she saw that it was her boyfriend. "Naruto-kun," she greeted, stepping aside to allow Naruto to enter. "What kind of trouble have you gotten yourself into now?" she asked softly, hiding a smile.
"That damn Sasuke." Naruto grumbled, sitting down on the couch.
Hinata giggled and sat down beside him. "Was your visit with him less than pleasant?"
Naruto shook his head. "No, it was fine. I think I just screwed up at the very end." he laughed. "But hey, you can keep a secret, can't you, Hinata?"
Hinata nodded eagerly. "Of course, Naruto-kun."
Naruto grinned widely. "Alright, so you gotta listen to this!"
And Naruto proceeded to tell Hinata all about Sasuke's relationship with Sakura.
Sakura met Hinata at a local bistro one day during her lunch break. The two girls had grown closer since Hinata and Naruto started dating, and Sakura had come to appreciate Hinata as one of the best listening ears in all of Konoha. After exchanging greetings and ordering their food, Sakura couldn't hold back any longer.
"Hinata! I've got so much to tell you!" Sakura said excitedly. "I mean, ever since Sasuke came back to the village, my life has been so crazy! You'll never guess what happened last month."
Hinata tried her best to look politely curious. "What happened?"
"I moved into Sasuke's house!" Sakura said, struggling to contain herself.
"That's lovely!" Hinata said enthusiastically.
But Sakura saw straight through her façade. "Naruto already told you." she said with a knowing smirk. "That bastard told you everything, didn't he?"
Hinata smiled apologetically and nodded. "But please know that I haven't told a single soul."
Sakura just shook her head in amusement. "I guess I should be grateful that he only told you and no one else. And I suppose since you're his girlfriend, I'll forgive him for telling you." she laughed. "Well this actually makes things easier, because now I don't have to explain everything to you! I can get straight to the point: I need your advice."
"I'm not sure if I'm the right girl to come to for advice…" Hinata said nervously.
"How did you and Naruto get past all the awkwardness of, um, being intimate?" Sakura asked shyly.
Hinata blushed furiously. "Um, well, um…"
"I just don't know what's normal and what's not. Like, sometimes I get the feeling that he wants to jump my bones. But as soon as things start heating up, one of us gets nervous and we just settle for cuddling and kissing."
Hinata was as red as a tomato. "I mean, I don't know how Sasuke feels, but I'm sure there are several reasons why you two aren't, um, getting anywhere."
"I'm all ears." Sakura said, desperate for advice from someone besides Ino, whose first suggestion was always to strip down completely naked and surprise Sasuke. That wasn't exactly Sakura's style; she was a bit more modest.
"First, I'd say that you're both nervous because you're both inexperienced. I know that was my problem." Hinata said quietly, averting her eyes. "But that gets better over time. Second, I wonder how Sasuke feels about, um, casual encounters before marriage."
"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, clearly confused. "He's a man, isn't he? I would've thought he'd love the idea of casual sex without any real commitment."
Hinata took a deep breath, trying to overcome her discomfort about discussing such sensitive topics with her friend. "Well, he's an Uchiha, and they were a very proud and infamous clan throughout the shinobi world, right? If they were anything like my clan, then they would've placed a lot of importance on making sure you think twice before you, um, sleep with someone." she explained. "It would have shamed the clan for there to be an unplanned pregnancy, because the kekkei genkai could then be passed onto someone less than worthy of bearing the clan name."
Sakura had to admit that Hinata had brought up a point that she had never considered before. "So what does that mean? Does that mean he loves me but he doesn't think I'm good enough to possibly…" Sakura didn't want to say 'have his babies' out loud, because something about that just seemed too far off to even think about.
Hinata shrugged. "As the heir to my clan, a lot of pressure has been placed upon me to pick my future spouse wisely so that I can give my clan the best future. I'm sure Sasuke feels even more pressure, seeing as he's the only remaining Uchiha."
Sakura took a moment to mull that over. "Interesting."
"But that doesn't mean that he thinks you're not good enough!" Hinata said hurriedly. "If he's told you that he loves you, then that's probably not the problem at all. He's probably just hesitant to do anything that either of you might regret. I mean, have you two discussed the possibility of marriage and children?"
Sakura blanched. "Not at all! I don't even know if he intends to marry me. I mean, he says he loves me and wants this to be a serious relationship, but I just don't know how far he wants it to go." she admitted, feeling rather dejected once she realized what she was saying. Even if he loves me, he'll have to leave me if I'm not what's best for his clan. He can tell me all day every day that he loves me, but there's no point to any of this if he doubts my ability to help revive his clan.
"What do you want out of this, Sakura?" Hinata asked softly.
Sakura's brow furrowed as she wondered what exactly she had expected from this relationship. Why haven't I thought about these things before? she thought to herself. I've been in love with this guy since I was a kid. But marrying him? Having his children? Is that what I really want? Sakura didn't want to become someone's baby-making machine; she was a respected kunoichi, and she didn't want to sacrifice everything she'd worked for just so Sasuke could restore his clan and leave her behind at home with his babies.
"I hope I haven't upset you." Hinata mumbled nervously.
Sakura shook her head quickly. "No, no, you've brought up some really good points. I guess I was just so caught up in the excitement that I hadn't bothered to think about these things before. I guess I really don't know what I want. And I don't know what Sasuke wants, either."
"You two should talk about it." Hinata suggested.
Sakura laughed sardonically. "Ha, as if Uchiha Sasuke would ever be so open with his feelings. He's not really good at conversation. It's been a struggle to get him to communicate; he's a man of action, not words."
A few days later, when Sakura was lying in bed with Sasuke (after some really intense kissing), her lunch conversation with Hinata came to mind. "Hey, Sasuke," she said lightly, trying to keep things casual.
"Hm?" he asked, playing with Sakura's hair as she laid there in his arms with her head on his chest.
"Don't bite my head off," Sakura teased. "But I'm just curious about something."
Sasuke grunted in response, waiting for her to continue.
"Do you want to have sex?"
Every muscle in Sasuke's body froze and his eyes grew wide. "Excuse me?"
"With me, I mean." Sakura explained nonchalantly, almost as if she was simply asking him to go to the movies. "Do you want to have sex with me?"
Sasuke still didn't understand what was going on. "Right now?" he asked hoarsely.
Sakura giggled at his expense. "Not right now, silly. Just, whenever. Like, do you ever…" she looked up at him, batting her eyelashes innocently. "…want me?"
Sasuke refused to answer that question. "What's going on? Is this some kind of trick?" he asked suspiciously.
"I'm just curious, that's all. You're a strange bird, Uchiha Sasuke." she teased. "Most men would've tried to have sex with me a dozen times by now. Am I not good enough for the last remaining Uchiha?" she asked lightheartedly, reaching up to kiss Sasuke under his jaw, causing him to shiver with goosebumps.
When Sasuke didn't say anything, Sakura continued to tease him. I just love getting inside his head, she thought mischievously. "Does it make you nervous when I talk about sex?"
Sasuke didn't respond, but with her head so close to his chest, Sakura could hear his heartbeat, and she could see the pulse quicken in his neck. She reached up and nibbled on his ear gently before she whispered, "Or does it excite you?"
Sasuke began to fidget, his eyes looking anywhere but downward and into the eyes of the beautiful woman lying on top of him. He was suddenly very aware of the fact that Sakura was nearly naked, wearing only her undergarments. It made his heart beat even faster when he thought about what she would look like without anything at all.
"Aren't you curious, Sasuke-kun? Don't you want to know what it's like?" Sakura purred into his ear.
In all their time together, they'd yet to see each other completely nude. Not that they hadn't come close, of course. But something had always gotten in the way and stopped them.
Tonight, that "something" would be Sasuke.
"It's getting late. You should sleep. I'm going for a walk." Sasuke said abruptly, gently pushing Sakura off of him and rising from the bed. "I'll be back in an hour." he told her, quickly exiting the bedroom.
Sakura huffed and threw herself back onto her pillow. He's definitely nervous, she decided as she turned to face the wall. She wouldn't be sleeping any time soon.
Uzumaki Naruto and Hyūga Hinata had just settled into bed for a night of frolicking between the sheets when there was a single knock on the front door. Naruto gave Hinata one last sloppy kiss, leaving her in a fit of giggles as he walked down the hall to answer the door.
"Who the hell is knocking on my door at this time of – oh, hey Sasuke! Is everything okay?" Naruto asked, looking a bit concerned.
Sasuke was as white as a sheet and there was the smallest bit of perspiration on his forehead. He stepped into the house and walked past Naruto without waiting for an invitation.
"Who is it, Naruto-kun?" Hinata called from the bedroom.
"Uh, it's just Sasuke!" Naruto hollered back, joining Sasuke in the living room. "Um, is everything okay? You've never come to visit before."
Sasuke sighed. "I need advice."
Naruto's ears perked up. "Advice? From me? Are you sure about that?" he laughed. "What could you possibly need advice about?"
"Girls." Sasuke said through slightly gritted teeth. It was very hard for him to admit to Naruto that he needed help with something.
Naruto laughed again. "Uchiha Sasuke needs girl advice? That's hard to believe."
Sasuke shot him a death glare from his position seated on the couch.
"I'm just kidding! Gosh, lighten up! But seriously, what's up?"
Sasuke took a deep breath. "I don't know how to…" He was unable to finish his sentence, so he tried again. "I think Sakura wants to…" Once again, he couldn't say it out loud. He growled, frustrated with himself.
Just then, Hinata walked into the room, tying a silk robe around herself as she did so. "Hello, Sasuke-kun." she greeted politely, sitting on the arm of the chair Naruto was currently occupying.
"Hello," Sasuke grumbled, feeling twice as embarrassed with two people in the room.
"Naruto, I think I can help you help Sasuke." Hinata said quietly, bending down to whisper something into Naruto's ear.
Naruto's eyes grew wide and he tried to hide a snicker as Hinata pulled away, blushing slightly. "What's this? Sasuke and Sakura haven't even had sex yet?!" he asked, failing in his attempts to conceal his laughter.
Sasuke stood up abruptly and walked towards the door. I don't need his bullshit, he thought angrily.
But Naruto grabbed his arm before he could leave. "Sit your ass back down and learn to take a joke. If it's advice you want, then sit back and get comfortable, because Hinata is an expert on girls' feelings, and I'm an expert on feeling girls." He winked in Hinata's direction, and she turned as red as a tomato.
Sasuke threw himself back down onto the couch and sighed. This could take all night, he thought to himself wearily.
Kakashi was sitting in his office the next day when Sasuke entered through the window, as usual. "I don't understand why you can't use the door like a civilized human being, but to what do I owe the pleasure of your company today?" the masked man asked lightly.
Without a single word of greeting, Sasuke walked over to the Hokage's bookcase and snatched a copy of the first Icha Icha Paradise novel from the shelf. "I'm going to borrow this." he said plainly. It was a statement, not a request for permission.
"Trouble in paradise?" Kakashi asked innocently.
Sasuke didn't even bother to waste a glare on his former sensei as he leapt through the window and disappeared as quickly as he had arrived.
I wonder what those crazy kids are getting up to, Kakashi thought to himself with a smirk.
A/N: Not much to say this time, except please review! Your reviews are what keep me going! I didn't have many reviews for the last chapter, so I was hesitant to post this one (especially since this chapter is lacking SasuSaku fluff), because I'm a little concerned that people won't like it. So please, positive or negative, review! Thanks, have a great weekend everyone.
