A sneaky Naruto chapter ;) Please leave a review and let me know what you think! I am really digging into some research to try and get my facts straight to keep it cannon.

Naruto had his plan ready before either of his best friends agreed to go to dinner.

"Hey, Kakashi Sensei?" Naruto waited until the 6th Hokage looked up from around the huge stack of paper that was piling higher on his desk every day. "What are you doing later this evening? I've got the perfect plan for tonight."

Kakashi immediately recognized his tone. "What do you want, Naruto?"

"I've been thinking…" Naruto said as he pushed back from his makeshift desk. In his preparations to become the next Hokage, and to make sure he actually did his studying, Kakashi made him come in for a few hours everyday. It was tedious work, but Naruto tried to find ways to enjoy it.

Kakashi's expression didn't change. "That's never a good sign."

Naruto rolled his eyes. He stood up and started pacing in front of his former sensei. "I honestly can't stop thinking about Sakura-chan and the teme!"

A single brow quirked. "What about, exactly? They're living together aren't they?"

Naruto let out a frustrated noise. "Sasuke mentioned that he sleeps on her couch!" Naruto spat the last word out like it was something ridiculous. It drove him mad that his best friends hadn't gotten together yet. He wasn't a helpless bystander to their pain before and he sure wouldn't be when it came to their stupidity.

"Did you really expect them to have a normal relationship?"

"Obviously not! But the bastard's still a man and I've caught him undressing Sakura-chan with his eyes too many times to count since he's come back."

Kakashi placed his chin on his fist thoughtfully. "I think they'll manage fine on their own. Don't push them. Sakura is only patient with Sasuke and Sasuke will only talk to her."

Naruto's eyes snapped to Kakashi's. "And why do you say that?"

"They take walks," Kakashi said, shrugging.

Naruto looked at Kakashi like he lost his mind. "What in the world does that have to do with anything?"

Kakashi sighed and stood. He stretched long and hard before answering. "Don't worry, Naruto. I'm sure that between the two of them and your meddling, it'll be no time before we're having another wedding."

Naruto's eyes bulged. He hadn't thought for a second that his two best friends were moving that fast. Not at all. Kami, he had barely believed Sasuke when he had insisted the two had hugged already. But for Kakashi to say this… "You totally know something you're not telling me."

Kakashi's eyes crinkled, signaling his grin beneath the ever present mask. "Absolutely not the case."

"That's it!" Naruto stalked towards the door, his head turned to Kakashi to shout over his shoulder, "I'm getting to the bottom of this tonight at dinner, no matter what!"

Kakashi groaned. "At least try to be stealthy about it! We don't want Sakura killing you and poor Sasuke's ears burning off!"

Naruto gave a vulgar gesture over his shoulder before shouting back, "You're the worst!"

Naruto was already seated at Ichiraku's, his eyes peeled for pink and black. He had gotten there fifteen minutes early to scout a good spot for the three of them. He wanted Sasuke to feel secluded enough to not be hassled and also give the budding couple a bit of privacy for Naruto's plans.

Naruto snickered into his shoulder. He was totally going to catch them.

His gut told him they were still madly in love, just like it did back when they were younger. While waiting, Naruto found himself reminiscing on what he saw of their bond.

He first noticed Sasuke's change towards her when they saw him for the first time since leaving the village. He had acknowledged Sakura first, something Naruto was shocked by. He had been standing right there, yanno? But it was Sasuke's eyes that shocked Naruto the most. They were emotionless, but they seemed to…swallow her. He looked at Sakura like he was trying to memorize her before he snuffed their lives out, barely sparing Naruto a glance. It had frustrated Naruto to no end to see the two of them, like ends of a magnet drawn together. There was an aether in the air, their mixed shock, relief, pain, and longing. He had felt longing in both of their chakra's, even if only for a split second in the bastard's.

The most jarring moments were during the 4th Shinobi war. He acknowledged her first again, pissing Naruto off while simultaneously making him unbearably happy for Sakura. Sasuke hadn't stopped there, not balking once at her fighting alongside her. Sasuke took in Sakura's monstrous strength from her Yin seal with pride, Naruto watching on with satisfaction as finally, finally, Team 7 returned. When she took her rightful place as the third member of the next legendary Sannin, Naruto could feel the magnetic pulse of Sasuke's pre-battle energy. He was ready to go; what made him more excited, was that Sakura was by his side.

Their magnetism had grown, especially in the fight against Kaguya. Sakura had always been hyper aware of Sasuke, but Naruto watched in awe several times when it was flipped. Sasuke's eyes followed her, tracked her, even more so than Naruto. He knew when Kakashi had her and when he didn't. He thought of the examples of Kakashi's kunai to the lava wall and susanoo vs Sasuke protecting them both while the Infinite Tsukuyomi captured everyone else around him. He had started pointing it out by that point and felt a tug in his heart when every comment made Sasuke's chakra flicker ever so slightly.

But when Sasuke hurt her over and over…

Flickers of Sakura under Genjutsu, his refusal of the arm, her tears the night Sasuke left again, the memories flickered one by one until Naruto's hands had formed fists. He'd pummel that bastard for-

Naruto's thoughts were abruptly halted when he spotted the two of them walking his way. Sakura led the teme, her cheeks flushed and sporting a wide smile. Sasuke was her shadow, eyes trained on pink.

Oh, he thought to himself. This is going to be fun.

"Naruto!" Sakura hugged him a bit too tight, just as she always did. She slid into the booth seat across from him, her smile bigger than he had seen in ages. "It's good to see you!"

Naruto slid over to allow his friend to slide in next to him. However, Sasuke made a noise of disagreement and slid in next to Sakura. "It'd be nicer if I saw him eat something different for a change."

Naruto grumbled, but let it go, if only for the fact that there was definitely less space between them then Sasuke normally allowed. Naruto turned to listen to Sakura chat about work, but kept a close eye on Sasuke. He was genuinely surprised that he sat next to her instead of him and equally if not more surprised that Sasuke seemed to hang on to every work that came from the pink kunoichi's lips.

Naruto, seeing an opportunity, sat back and smiled. "Say Sasuke, how's it been living with Sakura-chan?"

He expected Sakura to get irritated at the invasive question, yell at him, or kick his shin at worst. He expected Sasuke to either not answer or give some vague response resembling "tolerable". What they both did surprised the shit out of him.

They glanced at each other. It was quick, but it held meaning. An understanding passed between them in a second, leaving Naruto open mouthed,

Sasuke eventually shrugged. "Sakura's cooking has definitely improved."

Sakura laughed good naturedly. "Even I can admit that!" She looked at Naruto in confusion. "Are you okay?"

Naruto quickly gathered his composure. "Of course! I'm just excited to have Team 7 back together! The original three!"

Sakura's answering smile was soft with memory. "Yeah, it's nice, isn't it?" She tucked her hair behind her ear and opened her mouth to speak, but Sasuke cut her off before she could say anything.

"I have too many memories of watching you slurp ramen at this restaurant, Naruto. Why don't we move locations for our next dinner?"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Whatever, teme. Don't act like you'll host dinner at Sakura's."

Sasuke merely sipped his drink, unbothered. "Depends." He glanced down at Sakura, who had been watching him. "I'll wash, you dry?"

Sakura's returning grin was blinding. "Sounds perfect."

Naruto felt like a fish out of water. Open mouthed and wanting to flop about until his world turned back to normal.

Ordering their food interrupted the conversation, but Naruto was still determined. He saw at best an intimacy among people who knew each other and cared about one another deeply. He already knew how Sakura felt, but Sasuke was an entirely different story. He cared for Sakura, but on what level? More than the familial bond that all of Team 7 had? Naruto wanted their relationship status. Kakashi's vague words had taunted Naruto until he had felt strangely left out of the loop. He wanted to know. He needed to know.

After their food was delivered to their table, Naruto decided to begin part two of his plan. His eyes glinted with mischief when he asked his next question. "So, Sakura-chan, have you thought about what Kankuro offered you the last time you were in Suna?"

As if on cue, Sakura blushed a furious rose. "Naruto…"

Sasuke looked mildly curious. He looked to Sakura who sighed, eventually looking up at him. "He's Temari's sister and…well, he was really quite sweet about it, erm, but-"

"What Sakura-chan is failing to say, is that she saved Kankuro's ass and he's been asking her to date him ever since."

Sakura winced. "It's not like that, Naruto! And, I didn't tell you about that for you to rub it in my face!" She looked back at Sasuke who was still waiting patiently for a full response from Sakura. "Yes, I did treat him for an illness and he asked me out. He was delirious," Sakura added with a pointed look in Naruto's direction. "And I didn't bring it up with him again to be nice, but I…I guess he remembered and asked me out again before we left. I…declined."

Naruto snickered. "It was priceless."

"Oh, knock it off, Naruto!" Sakura's eyes narrowed on the blonde. "You're being weird. Whatever you're up to, knock it off."

"Hey now," Naruto chuckled nervously. He held his hands up in surrender. "No shenanigans here! I'm just making conversation!"

"Uh huh," Sakura replied, not convinced. She turned to Sasuke and noticed something. Silently, she grabbed her chopsticks and moved her tomato slices from her plate to his, a small flush blooming in her cheeks. "Sorry, Sasuke-kun. I didn't realize they put those on my plate."

Sasuke didn't respond. Not verbally, at least. He gave Sakura a small nod, their eyes meeting for a moment before snapping back to their plates, both of them shoving food into their mouths. The moment had been filled with tension and chemistry and everything Naruto thought was proof of his bastard of a best friend being totally in love with Sakura.

Naruto grinned like the cat that caught the canary. "You guys are totally together, aren't you?"

"Naruto!" Sakura hissed through her mouthful of food, not caring at all for manners. Her eyes were like green lava, about to explode. That is, until Sasuke choked on his noodles. Sakura immediately turned to him to hand him his water, pat his back. His eyes were watering and narrowed as he lightly slapped her hands away. She just grumbled at him, but it was all with an air of weird affection between the two of them.

Naruto was equally perplexed and overjoyed at the scene in front of him.

When Sasuke finally recovered, he turned his full glare towards Naruto. "I told you before and I want to kill you for making me say it again." His tone lowered and he nearly snarled out the next words. "It's between me and Sakura. That's it."

Both Naruto and Sakura were stunned. Naruto recovered first, very quickly apologizing and promising to never bring it up with him again. He watched the two of them while he spoke, noticing the discreet way Sasuke slid his hand until it rested just next to Sakura's on the seat next to them. He finished his groveling, smiling and promising that he would stay out of their business.

"Good," Sakura mumbled, her fingers continuously tucking and untucking her hair. She glared at Naruto one more time. "And you're totally paying for dinner!"

Sakura's POV

Sakura had been wringing her hands together since the two of them had left Ichiraku's. They had said goodbye to Naruto not too soon after the dinner exploded in choked ramen and tomato red kunoichi's. Naruto had indeed paid for the meal and apologized in Sakura's ear during their hug goodbye, but she was still too nervous to do anything but jab him lightly in the side and growl a warning.

Kami, Sakura felt like she was going to explode in a fit of rage or nerves the entire evening. After Sasuke had declared that yes, they were together, they had hastily parted ways. Being a couple meant certain things, especially when you lived together. Sakura knew that Sasuke had already been through enough emotions for the evening and didn't want to push him any further, so she went to her bedroom to leave him be.

More like fled. Ran. Escaped. She had scampered away from him after realizing they were still huddled close in the kitchen, murmuring goodnight to one another, leaning in…

Sakura's hands wound themselves tighter together. She didn't notice Sasuke glancing down and frowning.

Sakura had been thankful for her busy day at work. She left early and buried herself in paperwork. However, when Sasuke came to pick her up at seven, she had been belligerent with nerves. Knocking into things, tripping over herself; it was like back to square one, unaware and unsure of who she was supposed to be around Sasuke in order to keep him from running in the opposite direction.

They had walked in silence to Ichiraku's. The silence was tense as Sasuke had tried to get her attention with his eyes the entire time and while Sakura had kept hers firmly planted on the route ahead.

When their door-

Sakura's hands squeezed so tight at the thought, her knuckles cracked. At the sound, Sasuke stopped. Sakura turned in surprise when his hand smoothed over Sakura's, relaxing them from their hold on the other. She stared up in confusion, the emotion temporarily dampening down the nerves still pumping through her.

"You're going to break your hands if you keep doing that," Sasuke murmured, his eyes downcast. He kept them on their joined hands when he continued. "Can you tell me…why?"

Sakura gulped in air and quickly looked down. She didn't want him to see her eyes right now. They had gotten too good at that form of communication. Her heart was racing and her free hand clenched and unclenched at her side. Sakura sorted through her thoughts, desperate to come up with a short, simple explanation that wouldn't freak either of them out.

"Sakura…"

"I know," Sakura mumbled. She shifted on her feet and took a deep breath before saying, "I'm nervous. We agreed that we're together and…" She had to pause when she felt Sasuke's hand squeeze her own. Eventually, she whispered, "I have no idea how to do this."

Sasuke was quiet. Seconds passed. Minutes. He finally dropped her hand, only to place it against her cheek. Gently, Sakura raised her head to meet his eyes and hoped that she didn't look as terrified as she felt.

Sasuke's expression was soft, his eyes equally so. Although they held a trace of nervousness, the affection for her had won outright. "Sakura," he said, his voice gruff. His cheeks were barely pink. He glanced down before returning his eyes to hers. "I don't know what gave you the impression, but I have no idea what I'm doing either."

Sakura couldn't help it. She let out a choked laugh, her head dropping forward until her hair brushed Sasuke's chest, his hand dropping to grasp hers again. She was so stupid. She wasn't expected to do anything. She was supposed to just be… and figure it all out as it came along. "Sorry, I'm being silly."

Sasuke let out a soft breath of amusement. "I'd say you're being more annoying than anything."

Sakura, now with a new understanding of what it meant when Sasuke called her annoying, beamed. Sasuke rolled his eyes, but it held no harshness. With a renewed spring in her step, Sakura led the two of them, hands now joined, up the stairs to her apartment. Sasuke was her favorite shadow behind her, every step of the way.

Sakura was confident until the door snapped shut and the lock clicked with a snap. She froze in the entryway, one sandal off and another halfway there. What did they do now?

Sakura's mind raced. Did their bedtime routine change? Did they hug before bed now? Did they say they loved each other with their goodnights? Sakura had no idea what she wanted to do now that she was presented with the reality of being Sasuke's girlfriend. The biggest problem wasn't what she wanted, it was what he wanted.

Sasuke slowly walked around her, stopping to turn to face her. He crouched and helped her take her remaining sandal off. Sakura flushed and thanked him embarrassingly, but found only patience from the Uchiha.

"Sakura," he said, his tone expectant. "Explain."

Sakura sighed, her shoulders sagging. "I just don't know what you want from me."

Again, silence for Sasuke to hear her, understand her meaning, then gather his thoughts. Finally, he responded, his voice quiet. "I…" Sakura could hear him swallow. "I want your ear. I want your response. I want you to heal my wounds when the dobe inevitably takes it too far. I want your time, your thoughts…" He trailed off, gauging Sakura's response. She was enraptured by his words, spun by them like they were a spell.

But the spell was broken when Sakura's expression fell enough to betray a hint of confusion, trepidation. "What?" Sasuke was earnest in his request.

Sakura swallowed her pride. She needed to know, for her sake. "Do…do you not want me to…touch you?"

Sasuke's eyes furrowed. "You have to in order to heal me."

Sakura became flustered. Of course the dense Uchiha would need it spelled out for him. She couldn't help but let the sentiment fall from her lips. She whispered to herself, "Oh Kami, I'm going to die from embarrassment from asking you this."

Unfortunately, Sasuke heard. Brows slanted further before disappearing behind his hair, his eyes wide with surprise. Sakura knew he understood when his eyes flickered to her mouth and back to her eyes.

Sakura bit her lip and looked at the ground, her cheeks a furious red. The blush was quickly making its way down her neck and across her chest. Kami, she even felt her stomach and arms begin to burn. Sasuke took a step back and Sakura's embarrassment and shame burned even brighter, nearly sending a sharp sting to her eyes.

"Yes."

Sakura's heart stopped. She looked up on instinct and found Sasuke, her Sasuke, looking more shy than she had ever seen him. His hand was twitching at his half-arm and he shifted on his feet. Sasuke…Sasuke never did that. He was looking here, there, pausing a moment before his blush hardened. He looked at the window, the door-

Sakura, overcome with joy and desperate to calm the flighty looking Uchiha, took a step towards him. "Okay," she said, placing her hands on his biceps. She gently tugged at his hand and held it down between them. "Okay," she repeated, softer. She rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand, slowly, making circles and then drawing letters she hoped he didn't understand.

Sasuke relaxed after a moment and squeezed her hand in return.

"We'll go really, really, really slow," Sakura whispered, hoping that he understood.

Sasuke's hand left hers and she felt deflated, but soon recovered when she found it pressed between her shoulder blades, pushing her into his chest. Sakura's hands wound around his waist and pressed against his back. They molded together, each issuing a sigh of release, like they had been waiting for this all day.

"Slow is good," Sasuke murmured into her hair. His breath blew her hair over her ear and Sakura fought not to flinch.

They stood there together for a moment before pulling away, hastily moving their hands back to their own respective personal spaces. Sakura gave Sasuke a cheeky grin. He harrumphed in response, but smiled softly over his shoulder. Sakura couldn't help the giggle that erupted from her.

"Goodnight," she said through her chuckle, lightly pressing her hand to his shoulder as she passed him to get to her room.

"Goodnight," he responded, his hand a ghost behind hers as she walked down the hall.

This was a struggle to write. I wanted to stay true to everyone's character and wow was it a mental workout. Please give me an honest thought!