Disclaimer – I do not own Naruto!

One month.

One miserable month in Kirigakure.

Sasuke did not enjoy the damp village in the slightest.

She hated to admit that the village she preferred the most, on the basis of weather, was the one that caused her a lifetime of pain.

"Uchiha-san, you're back already?" Two Chūnin sat at the back entrance to the village, not unlike the duo from Konohagakure. Seeing the dark haired shinobi stroll up to their post originally invoked a sense of fear in them. After weeks of witnessing the long purple arm holding unconscious bodies, it was becoming a part of their daily routines.

They even had bets going on for how long it would take her to capture the rogue shinobi.

"Yes." Her plain answer was pretty normal too, she didn't talk much in their experience.

"Great!" The Chūnin who spoke certainly seemed happy. Unknown to Sasuke, he just won a decent amount of money. "Uh… is he alive?" She'd get her payment either way, but the Mizukage definitely preferred to have them interrogated.

"Probably." From under her long cloak, it was hard to tell that she shrugged carelessly. Her Susanoo disappeared in the blink of an eye, and the Jōnin ranked shinobi dropped pathetically to the ground.

"Um…" Sasuke was always annoyed with how much these two stuttered or jumbled their words around her. "Good job." The shinobi who congratulated her appeared young, he couldn't have been more than sixteen. He progressed in the ranks quickly despite his age.

"The paper." Sasuke reached a hand out with purpose. She needed them to sign off on the capture in order to get her payment. While atonement was her goal, she wasn't doing Kirigakure's dirty work for free.

"O-Of course!" Hastily, the young boy scribbled a few lines on the parchment and held it nervously to Sasuke. She retrieved the paper and turned away in the same breath, leaving the gate watchers to gaze at her back.

"It seems like someone has a little crush." The older Chūnin teased his younger counterpart.

"No way! She's older and completely out of my league!" He shouted in response, making his partner chuckle.

"That's the wrong mentality to have. Don't worry, you'll mature eventually and maybe she'll give you a chance." Nudging the boy as he went to collect the body, his comrade continued to watch the last Uchiha disappear into the crowds.

Neither shinobi would ever know how wrong those words were.

She'd never give him a chance. No clan could love more than the Uchiha, and once an Uchiha set their eyes on an individual, they'd stop at nothing to obtain them.

"Naruto-kun, I must admit, you are one of the funniest individuals I've had the privilege of speaking with." Mei kept her hands under her chin while staring at the boy she 'took under her wing' for the month. He far surpassed her in battle, but when it came to maintaining a village, he had much to learn.

"It wasn't even a joke! I seriously put graffiti on the Hokage's faces." Naruto recalled one of the biggest pranks from his youth. Mei's long hair swayed as she shook her head in disbelief.

"For someone aspiring to take the position, that is highly disrespectful. Yet, I am amazed that a child could pull something like that off." Leaning closer, her cleavage did its best to draw his attention.

It failed.

"In broad daylight too." His triumphant grin only caused her to giggle and lean back in her chair.

They were done for the day of reading over heaps of paperwork. Boring and terribly busy work, but she wanted him to be prepared for the future. She greatly enjoyed defining some of the more sophisticated words for the young man seated across from her, it amused her.

"You are-" Whatever she was going to say to continue their discussion on his childhood was cut off by her offices door opening. No knock, no asking for permission, the person merely walked in like they owned the place.

"Mission complete." Sasuke dryly told the busty Kage.

Naruto's bright eyes instantly swapped targets. The second she entered the room, he couldn't keep his gaze off of her.

'It's quite funny how they are enamored with each other, but neither are able to come out and say it.' Mei had no luck finding her own man. That didn't mean she was clueless when it came to matters of the heart.

"Alive, right?" Naruto aimed that question at Sasuke, getting her to groan quietly.

"For the most part."

"That's my girl!"

Naruto's prideful exclamation made the Uchiha's nose twitch and her cheeks heat up.

'While I may not care much for her, she is a fellow woman and I should help her out.' Mei thought to herself. Her dislike for Sasuke came from their small battle during the Five Kage Summit. Consumed in darkness, the girl should have been executed for attacking such high profiled individuals. Her involvement with the war and the plea from Naruto and Kakashi changed their minds. Seeing her efforts to change herself for the better, Mei did her best to pull in her negative feelings.

"My payment." Mei blinked a few times before looking at the slip of paper that Sasuke dropped on her desk. The action was both rude and expected. Truthfully, there wasn't much she could do to Sasuke even if she wanted to. Mei fought Madara in the past and she wasn't eager to fight someone like Sasuke.

"Hmm…" Sasuke narrowed her eyes at the playfully humming Mizukage. "Is that the correct way to ask for anything from a Kage?"

"It's a way to ask for something from a-"

Naruto appeared behind the girl and pressed his hand to her mouth, stopping her from insulting the woman.

"From an amazing Kage." Naruto finished with a shaky grin. Sasuke felt his body press against her back tightly and that was the only reason she didn't bite at the appendage blocking her from speaking.

"Naruto-kun, you continue to flatter me. You're going to make a girl very happy someday, maybe even… me." If Sasuke could have it her way, Mei would already be consumed by her Amaterasu.

"Haha?" Naruto awkwardly laughed before releasing Sasuke from his clutches. He shoved the thoughts away that pertained to how soft her lips felt.

'I preferred when you would mentally discuss the pink haired medic and the flower girls bodies.' Kurama wished the link between the two was weaker whenever Naruto thought of Sasuke, which was far too often for the Kyuubi.

'I did not think about Sakura-chan's or Ino's body…' Naruto defended himself weakly.

'I've watched over you since you were a baby, I know everything. Everything. That damn jutsu... I suffered through it all.' Naruto didn't need to ask Kurama to elaborate. He knew what jutsu his partner was referring to. One that required extensive research and practice over the span of years.

The Oiroke no Jutsu.

Naruto made turning into a beautiful woman an art form.

"Naruto-kun? Are you still with us or has my beauty left you stunned?" Mei's plump lips pulled up into a smirk when Sasuke's glare amplified.

"Huh? Sorry, I was talking with Kurama." Naruto told the Kage with a sheepish expression.

"Oh… the Kyuubi…" Mei would never get used to the mass of chakra having a name. "Anyway, I asked if you would distribute the payment to your teammate from the villages funds." What she was suggesting for him to do left him shocked.

For a Kage to allow a shinobi from outside their village access to its funds, it was unheard of.

"Don't give me that look. You've been with me for a month now and I know how trustworthy you are. This is another way to prepare you for doing this when you're Hokage." Mei explained it to him calmly.

"Wow…" Naruto would never be used to people actually believing in his chances of becoming Hokage. "Thanks Mei-chan!" His way of addressing her made her giggle.

"Oh Naruto-kun, get going before I make you melt."

'I'll make you melt.' Sasuke was one jutsu away from depriving Kirigakure of a leader.

Watching the two leave her office, with Sasuke being forced into moving by Naruto, Mei contemplated how to help the two.

Mostly for Naruto's sake, but she couldn't deny how hilarious it would be to see an embarrassed Uchiha.

The next day Naruto was a little confused on why he couldn't continue working with Mei. Her explanation wasn't exactly a good one, though she reassured him that they will continue during the week.

It's not like he could complain, free training from a Kage would have given him a heart attack as a kid. It wasn't bad to have a day off, as he got more time to spend with his favorite person.

"Leave me alone. I'm trying to focus."

Naruto huffed and sat cross legged in front of Sasuke. The Uchiha was practicing using one handed seals again. It was definitely not an easy task, but she was committed.

"I bet I'd be able to get that down in less than a week." Naruto tried to rile the girl up. He certainly matured after the war, although he often disregarded that maturity when with Sasuke.

"Hmph. You use like three jutsu." Her face displayed arrogance, something that she knew angered Naruto from their youth. "I have an entire arsenal compared to your pitiful techniques."

Sasuke's maturity also disappeared around him.

"If I recall correctly." He raised a bandaged arm. "I won our last fight."

"You…" Sasuke breathed in deeply, knowing that he was doing this on purpose. "You still only use three jutsu."

"You're not counting the best one!" Naruto crossed his arms across his chest, looking extremely smug.

"Turning into a naked woman or man isn't impressive. It's stupid."

"It worked on Kaguya."

Sasuke hung her head in defeat at that point. The old rabbit goddess really was affected by naked men.

Before they could continue their conversation, a small shroud of mist appeared before them and a figure remained when it dissipated.

"Sasuke-san, Mizukage-sama requires your attention in her office." The voice belonged to someone that neither shinobi knew particularly well. Sasuke regarded him with an unimpressed stare. Chōjūrō looked the same to her, weak and nerdy with an oversized sword.

"For what?" Her dry tone and question were expected by the blue haired swordsman. Mei expressed her distaste for the girls personality many times.

"A... mission request. I also need to borrow Naruto-san here for something." Chōjūrō gave the blond a smile, he respected his strength and character greatly.

"No problem!" Naruto patted Sasuke on the knee before standing with a grin. Chōjūrō could have sworn he saw the Uchiha smile for a moment.

"Fine." Sasuke couldn't wait to get out of Kirigakure. Mei and her dumb cleavage got on her nerves.

"I'll see you later, Sasu-chan." Naruto nudged her with his arm before following Chōjūrō.

"That idiot… calling me that in front of people." She blamed the kid from Sunagakure for starting this… and Sakura.

She'd always blame Sakura.

Making her way to the office, she realized that navigating the village was actually a challenge. It had nothing to do with her abilities, but rather it was due to how overpopulated the area was. Naruto mentioned that they were planning on 'modernizing' the village, whatever that meant. She did wonder what it would be like if this so called modernization reached Konoha.

'If I ever return... I...'

Sasuke walked into the office with a frown on her face. She wasn't sure how things would play out in the future.

"Would it kill you to smile?" Mei interrupted her thoughts with her usual teasing voice.

Sasuke bit her tongue, holding herself back from insulting the woman.

"When I take a good look at you, beneath those bangs there is a pretty face. I told you before, the Uchiha clan members were always quite attractive." Mei noted that Sasuke's face soured at the mention of her family.

"What do you want?"

Cold and straight to the point. Mei wondered how a boy like Naruto could put up with her.

'He must really love her.' As Mizukage, she knew a fair amount of the gossip going on in her village. Shinobi girls young and old would constantly talk about Naruto. His abilities, attitude, and appearance earned him many admirers after the war. He could pick any girl, from any village if he wanted to. If she were a few years younger, she knew she'd be pursuing him relentlessly. Yet, he chose Sasuke. The complete opposite of him in every way.

"I'm arranging a little date for you." Mei wasted no time in telling her.

"… Is this a joke?" If this was the mission, Sasuke would tell her to get lost.

"Not at all. You see, you're a young woman who needs to learn how to loosen up and relax. For the past month you've only taken missions to capture rogue shinobi. No matter how strong you are, you need a break."

Sasuke stared at Mei and her seductive smile for what felt like an hour. She couldn't understand this woman.

"I am not going on a date with a random person. If that's a mission request, I refuse." Mei giggled at the confused Uchiha.

"Oh, Naruto-kun will be so disappointed. I arranged a nice private room in a restaurant for two… what a shame. I'm sure one of my shinobi would kill for an opportunity to spend a night with him." Putting a finger to her chin, Mei looked up at the ceiling innocently. "I even heard one woman say she would love to show Naruto-kun how wet her… Suiton Ninjutsu could become."

Sasuke clenched her only fist tightly, she knew this shouldn't get to her. She wasn't a jealous child, she was a shinobi. 'But there's no way in hell I'd let that moron get taken advantage of by some Kirigakure slut.'

"Actually, I have a nice dress for such an occasion. Hmm…"

"I'll go." Sasuke put a stop to Mei's teasing.

"Perfect! I will be the one to get you ready for the evening." The Mizukage looked the girl up and down. "A cloak and that messy hair won't do for a date."

'I hate the Mizukage…'

Sasuke stared at the body length mirror in disbelief. The person looking back at her was almost unidentifiable. Makeup… a dress… she felt numb.

Her lipsticks color was comparable to her deadly Sharingan. Her hair was styled similarly to how she had it in her youth, with her Rinnegan finally being uncovered for the world to see. Dressed in a very form fitting sleek black dress, Sasuke felt her hidden insecurities swell.

Her arm was exposed completely. There were no sleeves on the dress that Mei forced her into. She couldn't hide the missing appendage.

"Now I can certainly say you Uchiha have been gifted with good genetics." Mei commented from behind her. Turning around to face the woman, Sasuke scowled.

"I regret agreeing to this." A part of her truly did, and the other part was strangely excited.

"You shouldn't. Chōjūrō told me Naruto-kun only took a little convincing to agree. You don't want to disappoint the boy you love right?" The upfront way in which Mei said that left Sasuke frozen.

"What…?"

"Oh please. I've been trying to get a man of my own for years. You think I don't know what two people in love look like? I'm no fool." Mei waved her hand dismissively.

Seeing as Sasuke sealed her own mouth shut, Mei continued. "You've helped my village out greatly in the past month, and Naruto is learning at an alarming rate. You both deserve a break, and since you both are so close, going out for dinner shouldn't be a problem. Don't get me wrong, we aren't friends, but seeing a woman in need of help inspired me to set this up."

Sasuke's scowl dropped at Mei's explanation. She didn't deserve this treatment from the Kage. Naruto did, considering his efforts to unite all shinobi, but not her. There was also one problem...

"This dress reveals my missing arm." Sasuke reluctantly told her.

"So?" Mei's casual response startled her. "Plenty of shinobi lose limbs. You aren't the first and you certainly won't be the last. Does he care about your arm?"

"No…" She knew that Naruto believed she was the prettiest girl he's ever seen. Her tiny blush made Mei laugh.

"Then I wouldn't worry about it. He doesn't seem to be the type to care about appearances anyway. I've shown that boy my cleavage more times than I could count and I never got a reaction."

Mei eyes met with a uniquely shaped Sharingan.

"I hate you."

"Hush. Unless I have a moody face and dangerous eyes, that boy wouldn't give me the time of day." Mei's statement was definitely true.

"Whatever."

"There's that Uchiha charm."

Sasuke glared at the back of Mei's head as they walked to the doorway of the dressing room contained within the Mizukage's personal home.

"You both have a reservation under my name. It's a lovely and romantic restaurant so please try to enjoy yourself. I'd hate to see Naruto's cute face become sad because of his boring date."

'I'm really going on a date with him.' Sasuke couldn't get over it. Even as Mei gave her directions to the restaurant, she continued to think about being with him. After everything that's happened in her life, she never would have expected to do this with Naruto. She tried to kill him multiple times, and here she was, about to sit with him and have dinner.

They've ate together before, but this was different. This was 'romantic', and Sasuke had no idea what to do on a date. 'Naruto definitely doesn't either, he's probably never kissed a girl. Besides… me.'

"I was completely right. Seeing an embarrassed Uchiha is definitely amusing."

If Sasuke had a list of females that she detested, Mei certainly made her top five.

"Now get going. If you continue to hesitate, I'll take that dress right off of you and go myself. I'm sure Naruto-kun would love to see me in something that tight." Mei's threat earned her another Sharingan enhanced glare.

'Top three. She's definitely top three.'

"Why'd I agree to this? I've never been on a date." Naruto sat at a very expensive table in a private room of Kirigakure's most lavish restaurant.

Within the seal, a large fox was lounging peacefully as Naruto panicked. It was a different experience for Kurama to see Naruto worrying about something so trivial. The past years consisted of the boy training, fighting, and experiencing pain. Now his biggest battle was a simple date with Sasuke.

'Kurama? Why are there two different types of spoons? Are you supposed to hold both at the same time?' Naruto hoped his partner could provide an answer.

'I don't need to eat. How would I know about stupid spoons?'

'You're right… I'm screwed aren't I? I don't know what to do!' Naruto pulled on the tie that Chōjūrō forced him to wear. The Mizukage apparently planned the whole date out herself. While he was initially reluctant, Chōjūrō's suggestion of a random shinobi going to dinner with Sasuke convinced him. No matter how unrealistic that may be, he wouldn't risk it.

'And you think Sasuke knows? Face it, you're both hopeless.'

Naruto wasn't scared when staring down Obito and Madara. A date with Sasuke? Now that terrified him.

'A date should be between two people who like each other… does Sasuke like me?' Naruto pondered in his thoughts.

'Kushina was a fool too, but she was never this dense.' Kurama blew out a tired sigh.

'Huh? What do you mean?'

'I mean you're an-'

"Idiot?" A voice addressed him and Naruto instantly locked eyes with the source.

"Sasuke…?" He felt his mouth become dry as he gazed at the dressed up girl.

"I asked if you were alright. You look pale." Sasuke stood at the entrance of the room and her form was bathed in bright light.

Naruto wasn't often rendered speechless. That changed when seeing Sasuke in her current attire. He always admired her appearance, she knew that. This time though…

"Stop looking at me like that." Sasuke felt naked under his gaze, it was a different feeling for her. "You… look nice." That was her best compliment. She had no idea what she was doing. She did mean it, as Naruto was wearing an expensive black suit that fit him perfectly. The lean yet muscled body that he built up from his training and battles appealed to her greatly. Her favorite part of Naruto was still his stupid, dumb, and annoying face.

"Uh… you too." Naruto stood awkwardly from his seat to approach his teammate. He briefly noticed her missing arm was uncovered. 'She really is beautiful…'

"Thanks." Sasuke considered herself a master when it came to having a poker face, most Uchiha had one from birth. Unfortunately, that was failing her as she was doing her best to keep her eyes off Naruto.

'Damn you, Mizukage.'

'Thank you, Mei-chan.'

'Kill me.'

"I guess we should sit down?" Naruto offered his suggestion pitifully, gesturing to the expertly set table. The room was equipped with soft playing music, large candles, a hanging chandelier, and plenty of flowers.

"Yeah." Sasuke felt like something was stuck in her throat when she approached the table. Naruto fought an internal battle within himself as he debated on pulling her chair out for her. Pervy Sage always mentioned one thing about first dates to him.

'If you pull the chair out, she might put out.'

"Wait, I got it." Naruto stopped his date by grabbing her chair suddenly.

"Okay...?" She suddenly found the tiled floor interesting. The ear piercing screech of a chair being pulled back added to the awkwardness.

'Smooth.'

'Kurama...'

Naruto felt his face burn while holding onto the chair tightly. He finally spoke to Sasuke after a tense fifteen seconds of silence.

"You can sit and I'll push it back in."

"Ah..." Sasuke sat daintily on the chair, almost like she was afraid of breaking it. Naruto's fingers brushed against her bare shoulder and she had to bite the inside of her cheek.

Easily pushing the chair towards the table, Naruto secretly nodded to himself. 'I did it Pervy Sage... not so sure about what she's going to put out though.'

Walking back to his own seat, Naruto seated himself with a nervous smile. More silence ensued between the two.

"So..."

"Yeah..."

They fought in a war together. They almost died together. There was no reason why this should be equally as hard.

"I've been getting better at sorting through paperwork recently. It's not fun at all, but it's necessary." Naruto took the initiative and spoke first. Sasuke mentally thanked him for doing so.

"That's good. You probably never realized how much paperwork these Kage have to go through." Sasuke kept her eyes directly on his, it eased her anxiety.

"I never even thought about it." Naruto admitted with no shame. "Kakashi-sensei mentioned that I can become a Jōnin after my studying is complete. This training will definitely help with that."

"You should have been promoted a long time ago." Sasuke didn't personally care about her shinobi status.

"I was so busy with things, ya know? I never got around to it." He scratched at his cheek thoughtfully and Sasuke felt herself relax. A gesture like that meant Naruto was becoming comfortable, and that was all she needed to feel the same way.

"Hmph, you better get promoted eventually. I hate hearing Sakura mock you." Naruto laughed at her annoyed face.

"Kakashi-sensei will promote you too when we go home."

Sasuke said nothing in return. She'd rather not talk about returning to the village. Naruto wasn't deterred by her silence, he knew how she was.

"Hey, Naruto." She softly called out to him, staring across the candle lit table. "Why'd you agree to this?" It was eating away at her ever since the Mizukage brought it up.

"Oh. Well…" Naruto did his best to avoid her gaze. "I figured we needed to have some time off. Chōjūrō is a really persuasive guy too."

Unsatisfied with his answer, she planned to pry more before the door opened. A waiter entered slowly. From his body language alone, Sasuke could tell he was skittish.

"Hello!" The man squeaked out. Serving two shinobi that could literally tear him to pieces wasn't easy for a civilian. "I-I hope you're pleased with the room that Mizukage-sama set up." He gave a weak bow in their direction.

"We are! It's an amazing room! I smelled some of the food while walking back here and I can't wait to eat." Naruto gave the waiter his best smile, easing the man's nerves somewhat.

"I'm happy to hear that..." The waiter didn't dare look into the predator-like eyes of Sasuke for long. He felt that she was evaluating him with her stare.

"Here is the menu." His hands shook when Sasuke pulled it softly from his grip. The poor waiter couldn't handle her serious visage. He wondered how her date could handle such an expression.

"Can we order alcohol?" Naruto smile began to widen when their server nodded slowly. The Mizukage did mention that they could try Kirigakure's finest wine.

"No. We will have two glasses of water." Sasuke's dared Naruto to challenge her.

Naruto may not know the definition of giving up, but he relented when remembering how their last time drinking went.

"Sure... water is good." Sasuke smirked, pleased with his decision.

The waiter gulped deeply. He wasn't paid enough for this. "P-Perfect. Please take your time and read over the menu. I'll return shortly with your drinks." Naruto never saw a waiter leave that quickly.

"Seems like a nice guy."

"Mhm."

Naruto chuckled at Sasuke's unimpressed noise. He perked up when he remembered he had to ask her something as well.

"Sasuke? Why did you agree to this?" He mimicked her previous question.

Sasuke pondered how to respond before leaning forward towards the table. She wet her red lips, an action that made Naruto embarrassed, and answered.

"It was either me or some Kiri... girl." The words 'whore', and 'bitch', came to her mind. She knew her mother wouldn't be happy with her crude language. It was unbecoming of an Uchiha, though she felt she wasn't wrong to classify those girls as such.

"Is that all?" Naruto hid his slightly hurt expression well. That was her only reason?

'Good.'

Kurama's input was unappreciated.

Sasuke's been watching Naruto from when they were kids. She'd pretend to ignore him as a way to anger him, but her eyes always drifted to his expressive face. She easily picked up on his disappointment.

"Listen idiot... I don't mind going out with you or anything. Alright?"

Naruto practically lit up at her whispered words. "I don't mind going out with you either."

Sasuke reasoned that the burning feeling in her cheeks was due to her close proximity to a candle.

Fighting the Five Kage while pushing her body and Sharingan to exhaustion and blindness?

Easy.

Getting stabbed with her own sword by her clansman who was supposed to be dead long ago?

That almost killed her, but it was manageable.

Trying to cut into a large piece of steak with only one hand and trying not to look like a fool?

Impossible.

Sasuke was not prepared for the little struggles that came with missing an appendage. Flipping the pages of a book, dressing herself, and apparently cutting meat.

Glaring down at the offensive piece of beef, she refused to be defeated by food of all things.

"Let me do it."

When Naruto reached across the table to grab her plate, she felt anger boil up within her. She wasn't a helpless child who couldn't take care of herself. She didn't need his help with such simple things like pulling a chair out or handling her food. Opening her mouth to voice her displeasure, Naruto beat her to it.

"I'm happy I can do this for you, Sasuke. You don't need to do everything on your own."

Her anger subsided instantly. Those words reminded her of Itachi's last conversation with Naruto during the war. He warned her idiot to not do everything on his own. A lesson that Naruto took to heart.

"Fine." Sasuke watched him easily cut through the steak with little issue. She mumbled something incoherent under her breath and Naruto stopped cutting the food until she spoke up.

"Cut it into smaller pieces. I'm not trying to choke." She couldn't hide her blush, it wasn't physically possible.

Naruto chuckled and did as she asked. Neither shinobi realized that the awkward atmosphere was disappearing completely.

"There you go." Naruto placed the plate in front of his embarrassed teammate. Giving a soft "thank you" in gratitude, Sasuke decided to begin eating.

They ate slowly, and Naruto made sure to fit conversation in between their bites. Some of the stories he shared left her amazed. Naruto experienced a lot more than he let on.

"You really were sent into a different world by Obito?" Sasuke questioned him in disbelief. This story seemed ridiculous.

"It was just a genjutsu. The world was the same as ours but… people acted differently and some things never happened. I went with Sakura-chan actually." Naruto wondered why the pink haired medic never brought that back up.

"Sakura." Sasuke muttered the name before dismissing her. "Did you see me in this… fake world?" The second his face gained a tint of red, she needed to press for an answer.

"Maybe."

"No. Tell me." Sharingan spinning slowly, she tried to intimidate him.

"That doesn't work on me, ya know."

"Naruto, did you see me in Obito's fake world?" Sasuke wondered if she left the village there as well.

"Yes. You were still around." Naruto's response was given slowly, irritating his date. He knew she wouldn't budge so he needed to come clean or she'd be annoyed all night.

"And you said some people acted differently. How did I act?"

"That's… um…"

"Stop rubbing the back of your neck. I know you do that when you're nervous."

Dropping his hand from the exact spot Sasuke called out, he blamed himself for getting into this situation. There were many stories he avoided telling Sasuke, for good reason.

"You wouldn't leave me alone. You brought flowers to my house and got into a bunch of fights with Hinata." His smile was strained.

"Flowers. I brought you flowers." Naruto will never stop surprising her.

"You were a lot nicer to Sakura too. You called her your 'wingwoman'." Naruto couldn't forget the extremely flirty Sasuke.

"Now I know it was definitely fake. Why was I fighting Hinata?" Hinata, the girl she interacted with maybe two or three times in her entire life. One of those conversations consisted of her telling the girl "shut up" and that was it.

"I'm really not sure. Maybe it was a girl thing."

'It's definitely a girl thing.' Sasuke's scowl returned. Even in a fake world, they disliked each other. She never expected that shy and gloomy girl to have a backbone, especially when Hinata stared at her with such hatred after the war.

'Just like that, you killed the mood.'

'Remember when you hated me and wouldn't speak?'

Naruto darted his eyes around the room in an effort to find a distraction or a way to change topics. Soft and slow music played from a small speaker situated by the door. There was his distraction.

Naruto was by no means a dancer. However, Jiraiya attempted to teach him some skills that he referred to as 'lady killers'. During his youth he barely paid attention to the lessons involving girls. He regretted it now.

Standing up, he channeled every bit of confidence he had in his body for what he was about to ask.

"Do you want to dance?"

The priceless expression on Sasuke's face would forever be engraved in his memory.

"You…? You want to dance?" She was completely right, he'd never stop surprising her. Sasuke knew she would make a fool of herself if she agreed. She was a shinobi, not a dancer.

"This is a date, and even I know people dance together on dates."

"I…" He was right. This was a date. She was on a date with a complete loser that she couldn't stop thinking about. She went on a date with him before Sakura, before Hinata, before any other worthless girl could sink their claws into him.

"Sure." The grin he sent her way made her stomach flip. Accepting his larger hand into her own, he pulled her up. The dining room was small, but there was some room between the table and door for them to dance.

'I've never danced before. I can use my Sharingan to copy his movements.' Her thoughts were preoccupied and Naruto quickly noticed her pensive expression.

"I suck at dancing. Pervy Sage tried helping me, and I only really learned one specific type of dancing. It's embarrassing that I had to use a clone though." Naruto's words reassured her somewhat.

"Well I'm better than a clone." Sasuke wasn't sure where that flirting came from.

"One hundred times better." He agreed and hesitantly placed his hands on her waist.

Sasuke stood still like a statue. The soft music and their breathing was all she heard. Naruto's hands touching that area made her body tingle.

"It's basic slow dancing. I was told it's the kind you do with somebody you care about." He whispered to her.

"Oh…"

"I know tonight is weird, and Mei pushed you into this." His hands held onto her hips gently. "But I don't think I'd want to go on a date with anybody else. I'm having a great time."

The raw emotion in his voice reminded her of those painful shouts he sent her way during their fights. He really cared about her. He was an idiot who never knew how to give up. It was too much for her and she felt a burning sensation in her eyes. She knew what it was. She couldn't show him her tears again.

Placing her head close to his chest, she wrapped her arm around him and finally surrendered to the music. 'Maybe Kirigakure isn't so bad...'

Naruto felt his heart beat faster while swaying his body along with hers. He knew his mother told him to find a girl like her.

"Your hands are on my butt… Naruto."

"Sorry, Sasu-chan."

His heart already decided on the girl he liked years ago, and she was nothing like his mother.

A/N - As the kids say nowadays… poggers. Relationship progress, let's go.

One reviewer mentioned that the story goes a little slow, and yeah… it will. That's just the way I want it for this story. Naruto and Sasuke both suck at being upfront here, so they won't magically start banging in the next chapter lol. There's also no real threat or antagonist so the stakes in this story are real low.

Shion is coming up real soon, I know a lot of people are waiting for that lmao. Personally I can't wait to write the "Last Movie" stuff. In fact, I already have a few scenes written for that in the future… F in chat for my girl Hinata.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, thanks for reading :)