Disclaimer: Naruto is not mine.

Chapter 3

"Huh?" Sakura blinked at him in confusion. Sasuke's frown went even deeper, refusing to repeat what he just said earlier. He cursed himself, his mind reminding him that he wasn't supposed to say something. She was the one who came up to him and demand whatever shit to him, not the other way around!

Instead of speaking, he motioned his eyes at her torn dress for a split-second before looking away with a grunt, hoping that Sakura would be able to comprehend what he was talking about. He fought the sudden urge to look at her again. The way her chest heaved up and down made the zipper of her dress move down by itself little by little…

He wondered how much skin he'd be able to see until she becomes aware that she was unconsciously undressing herself before him…

Shit… Sasuke wanted to punch himself on the face for thinking about dirty thoughts. Ever since he unwittingly tasted her that fateful day a few weeks ago, he kept on craving for more. No matter how hard he tried to forget about it, the temptation to have more of her kept on getting stronger everyday.

Stupid, fucking hormones… Gods… he was better off without them in his life!

Forcing himself to look at anything else except the barely-clad girl in front of him, he directed his focus on one of the trees past her shoulders.

He needed to concentrate… Not looking at her when she looked so incredibly enticing like this was as difficult as hell!

His concentration was interrupted, however, when he sensed two grown men heading toward their way. Sasuke suddenly had an urge to shove Sakura behind him. The way those bastards stared so lecherously at his teammate made him want to advance towards them and pluck their disgusting eyes out of their sockets.

He stopped himself, however, because he didn't have the right to do that even if he wanted to. He didn't own Sakura.

So, he settled with glaring at the two men with all his hatred instead. His piercing eyes warned them to back off right now or else he was going to do something they'd definitely wouldn't like!

Sakura was one of her precious friends… He wasn't gonna stand here and do nothing while those bastards molest her with their disgusting stares! Although he was well aware that he himself tend to ogle at her sometimes, at least he was making an effort to stop his thoughts or actions from venturing any further! These two guys looked like they want to pounce on her right here and now!

Much to his satisfaction, the two men stopped in their tracks, their faces masked with absolute fear. Instead of walking ahead, they scrambled back to where ever hell they came from.

With that menacing glare, who wouldn't?

No one messes with an Uchiha.

When the two men disappeared, his attention returned to Sakura's still clueless face. He frowned. How much longer was she going to stare at him like that? Would it have been better if he had told her about her torn dress?

She'd better hurry up. He was starting to have a difficult time trying to focus his attention solely on her face. If something didn't catch his attention soon, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from looking at something else. That exposed skin just between her breasts was starting to look very interesting to him…

The awkward silence lingered around them for a few more minutes before realization finally dawned on Sakura's face. She looked down at herself and gasped in surprise. With a face that was as red as her dress, she hastily brought her arms up in order to hide whatever exposed parts of her body that her hands would be able to cover.

No matter how hard Sasuke tried, he couldn't hide his disappointment after seeing that she had zipped her dress.

Much to his relief, Sakura finally found her voice. "Well…" She started. "Lee-san kinda got rough on me today. He messed me up real good!" She chuckled lightly. "I never knew Lee-san could be so aggressive when motivated! Look at my dress! He almost tore it apart!"

Sasuke's mind twisted her words in his head, forcing himself to see visions that made him want to gag in disgust. He shook his head. What am I thinking? He screamed at himself.

But his thoughts couldn't help but wonder…

Messed you up…? Aggressive…? Almost tore your dress apart…? He tried to convince himself that his mind was just playing tricks on him again. He couldn't stop his eyes from narrowing, though.

There was no way in hell that Sakura and Thick Eyebrows…

"….he kept saying, 'Harder, Sakura-san!' or 'You've got to go faster, Sakura-san!'. He kept on urging me until my body completely went limp!" Sakura went on, not aware that her listener was starting to have difficulty maintaining his cool composure.

Harder…? Faster…? Those words screamed continuously inside his throbbing mind. A low growl escaped his throat. Sakura was far too busy chattering to notice the way he gritted his teeth together in anger.

What the fuck... Sasuke's blood was starting to boil …did they do that morning? No, he shouldn't jump into conclusions. He saw them training that morning! He saw them with his own eyes! That was the reason why he stormed out of the forest in the first place!

"…it took me several tries before I managed to please him in the end. But boy, did we sweat so much like pigs after that! It was so wonderful! I feel so fulfilled!" She exclaimed happily as if that was the most amazing thing that had ever happened in her entire life.

Sasuke, however, thought that it was the most infuriating and disgusting thing that he had ever heard.

Several tries…? Managed to please him in the end…? Fulfilled…? His mind completely altered what Sakura was trying to say to him. From her explanation and the way she looked right now, he was having major trouble believing that they were really just training that morning!

His hatred began to increase.

A certain thick-eyebrowed guy's days were numbered…

"Umm… Sasuke-kun?"

He snapped out of his raging thoughts. Unconsciously, he sent Sakura a dangerous glare. He was so pissed off. His hands were aching to strangle someone! He knew he shouldn't have left them that morning! No wonder that bastard Lee came prancing like a happy idiot when he saw him a while ago!

Fuck this… Even if it was the last thing he'd do, he'd definitely teach that son of a bitch a lesson he rightfully deserves!

Sakura looked at him with shocked and fearful eyes. Sure enough, she didn't expect him to react like this. Well, he didn't expect himself to react like this either! His anger just came up and exploded without his knowing! Using all his will power to calm down and wear that infamous poker face of his, he grunted and started to walk away from his pink haired teammate.

What was he going to do again? Before Sakura came up and completely messed up his day?

He couldn't remember anymore… even if his stomach growled loudly in his ears.


Sakura gaped at Sasuke's retreating back. She was completely speechless.

What's wrong with Sasuke-kun…? She wondered, her concern for her teammate growing even more. Why was he so angry with her? Did she do something wrong? She wasn't pestering him! And she was definitely not asking him to date her! He asked her why she looked like a mess right now and all she did was to explain it to him!

She was getting annoyed at the way he was harshly treating her. However, she told herself that there must be a good reason why Sasuke was mad at her like this. There had to be!

I mean…Sasuke-kun had a very good reason why he thinks I'm annoying. Her thoughts went back to the messy incident that the two of them had with Sasuke's fan girls. That experience taught her a lot of things. Because of it, she finally realized why Sasuke hated his fan girls. If it weren't for her stopping him, he would have killed them right then and there!

She realized just how much she was being such a pest in Sasuke's eyes. This time, she really wouldn't ask him out on dates anymore. She wouldn't try to hug him in her arms, chase after him to the ends of the earth, or try to flirt with him like she usually does when they were young.

Admiring him and not being able to express it openly to him would be hard for her, but she'd sacrifice that natural trait of hers just for him. She would care for him as a friend, even if it hurts her inside.

So why was he angry with me? I didn't do anything wrong! Sakura thought in confusion and slight irritation. She didn't deserve this cold treatment! If he thought that he could get away with this then he'd better think again!

Gathering all her courage, she quickly ran to catch up with Sasuke and demand from him what was really going on. "Sasuke-kun!" She called out, hoping that her voice was loud enough for him to hear.

Sasuke ignored her and didn't stop walking. Sakura frowned at this, remembering all the times Sasuke gave her the cold shoulder for the past few days for no reason at all. She picked up her speed, but to her surprise, Sasuke picked up his pace, too.

Sakura got the message that he wanted to be left alone, but she wasn't going to stop running after him until he tells her what was wrong with him. She had enough of his mood swings, and she really wanted to know why he was starting to act so much like a jerk!

As if he wasn't such a jerk before… Inner-Sakura exclaimed.

"Sasuke-kun!" She called out to him again as she pursued him, her intent on finding out about his ill manner giving her energy that she didn't know she possess. And so, they ran, ignoring the couple of odd looks from people who have seen them. Sakura fought the urge to laugh.

The scene they were creating must have been hilarious! Sasuke, the Uchiha prodigy, was running away from her! She expected him to stand his ground and yell at her to leave him alone, but he decided to just run away.

I wonder what's wrong… Sakura thought in concern for the tenth time that day. He seemed so determined on running away from her…

She gasped when Sasuke suddenly halted into a stop in front of a deserted alleyway. Sakura almost shrieked when she thought that she was going to bump into his back. She sighed in relief when she stopped herself on time.

"What the hell do you want?" Sasuke growled out, his back still facing her. Sakura noted that his shoulders shook for a moment before his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

Ooops… Maybe running after him wasn't such a good idea…

"Uhh…" She trailed off, the courage that she had gathered earlier slowly disappearing along with her ability to speak. What was she going to say again?

Sasuke turned to face her. She was expecting him to be angry with her or something, but when she saw his face, it was expressionless, completely devoid of emotion. "What?" He asked stiffly as he bore his sharp eyes on her.

Much to her surprise, she saw his eyes twitch for a bit.

"Umm…" Was all she managed to utter. She cleared her throat, trying to bring back a bit of her courage. "What's going on, Sasuke-kun?" She thanked the heavens that her voice didn't shake as she blurted her thoughts out loud.

He was silent for a bit, his face still emotionless. "What are you talking about?" He asked and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Why are you so upset?" She asked, concern evident in her voice. The glares that he directed towards her this morning and a while ago made her feel like she did something really bad.

"I am not upset."

"Yes, you are! And not only that, it's me that you're upset with! Did I do something wrong?"

Silence filled the air.

"I told you, I'm not upset."

Sakura frowned. "Sasuke-kun… I'm not being such a pest to you anymore." She took a deep breath. "I don't think I deserve any of your cold shoulders. You asked me why in the world I looked like a mess and all I did was answer your question. I told you I got tired from training with Lee this morning and you stormed off just like that! What's wrong with you?" She knew she wouldn't be able to say these things to Sasuke if she was still a thirteen year-old girl. But times have changed, she was sixteen now. She had enough gall to talk back to Sasuke like this.

But her heart still wouldn't stop pounding in her ears.

"Training?" His face looked cynical when he said that word. "You call that training?"

Sakura fumed, completely oblivious to what Sasuke really wanted to say. "Yes! I was training, for your information!" She couldn't believe this! How could Sasuke act so much like a jerk! He wasn't like this towards her before!

Like hell he wasn't. Inner-Sakura said.

He didn't respond as he regarded her with disgust in his eyes. Sakura was surprised at his expression. Why was he like this? She just couldn't understand. Was he upset at her training? He told her before that she shouldn't waste her time asking him out on dates and try to train herself instead. She was doing just that! She was trying her best to improve her skills! What more did he want from her?

Was it because she was training on the same training grounds as him that morning? If he didn't want that then he should have told her sooner. She would have gladly searched for another place to train just for him. But from the way he was treating her right now, he would just have to deal with it. She wasn't planning on moving out of the training grounds anytime soon. It wasn't his to begin with, anyway!

She wasn't going to be his loyal lapdog that he could easily order around anymore.

"What were you doing with Thick Eyebrows?" He suddenly blurted out. Sakura saw his eyes widen in surprise as he muttered curses at himself. She was shocked, too, not expecting him to ask something like that. She then realized that he didn't really mean to say those words out loud.

But… why would he think about what she was doing with Lee? It wasn't his business and Sasuke rarely paid any attention to anyone's business unless the situation calls for it.

Unless…

Sakura shook her head in denial. There was no way. No way, but Inner-Sakura forced her to believe at the absurdity of the thought.

Sasuke was jealous.

The idea knocked the air out of her lungs. She staggered back, unable to believe the possibility of that thought. Sasuke was jealous? No way…

Inner-Sakura squealed in joy inside her mind.

And she couldn't deny the fact that her anger towards him began to fade away.

"Sasuke-kun…" She started, still unable to believe it. "Are you jealous?"

Sasuke's face twisted into a scowl and he looked at her incredulously. "Whoever gave you that idea?" He asked sourly, his temper rising. The way he looked at her made Sakura doubt her thoughts about Sasuke being jealous.

"Then why are you upset? And why do you care about what I did with Lee-san this morning?"

"I'm not upset. And I don't give a damn about what you and Thick Eyebrows did." He said in an annoyed voice. "Now leave me the hell alone."

Sakura narrowed her eyes at him, not believing every word that he had just uttered to her. "I'm not leaving until you tell me, Sasuke-kun. I don't like it when you get angry at me for no reason at all!"

Sasuke looked like he was fed up with all her pestering. He took a step closer to her and glared at her with all his might. Sakura shrank back, fear gleaming in her green eyes. "Sakura… you're really… annoying." He growled in her face, his dark eyes flashing in anger.

Sakura stood her ground. She didn't want to back down. She reminded herself that she was fed up with him as much as he was fed up with her. She held his intense gaze, trying to make him see that she was serious, that she wouldn't let him treat her this way any longer.

The way he was looking at her forced her mind to suddenly flash blurred images in her eyes that she couldn't quite understand. All she managed to recognize was someone was also looking down at her with an intense expression. She then remembered something soft and wet trailing down her skin. If she didn't know any better, it looked like she enjoyed the sensation immensely. She wanted to know more, to remember more, to see who was doing that to her, but her head began to throb painfully. She shut her eyes tightly, hoping that the pain would go away.

Much to her disappointment, the images were gone.

"Sakura? Sakura?" She was driven out of her thoughts when Sasuke's voice echoed in her ears. She fluttered her eyes open, and soon she became aware of her surroundings. Sasuke was gripping both her shoulders and was lightly shaking her, concern clearly seen in his eyes.

She groaned, wondering what had happened to her. She rubbed her temple in an attempt to ease her headache. It took a few seconds for her to realize that Sasuke was still holding her by the shoulders.

She flushed scarlet and attempted to escape from his touch. It wasn't that she minded, but she knew that the whole situation would only turn awkward for the both of them if this continued.

Sasuke, however, wasn't planning on letting her go anytime soon. "You okay?" He asked. His voice was unusually tinged with worry.

Sakura nodded dumbly at him and tore her eyes away from his face. It wasn't everyday you get the infamous Sasuke to worry about you while holding you at the same time.

They remained silent for a few seconds, neither knowing what to do at the moment. Sakura was having trouble breathing. The stillness in the atmosphere was starting to suffocate her! "Sasuke-kun?" She started before lifting her gaze to meet his.

He voice caught in her throat as Sasuke looked down at her with a very intense expression. She felt something stir inside her stomach. The way he was looking at her made her want to melt beneath his feet. She realized in a fraction of a second, that her grip on her shoulders tightened.

Much to her shock, she found him slowly leaning down towards her.

She knew his intent, but she simply could not believe her eyes, but even so, her eyelids began to drop down.

Slowly…

"SAKURA-CHAAAN!"

Faster than the eyes could see, the couple bolted away from each other as if they were burned.

Their gazes locked towards the bubbly blonde-haired fox boy and his shy Hyuuga companion.

Naruto…

To be continued...