Summary: It's her special day and everyone gave her a gift except the one person she really wanted something from. However, he has much more in mind for her on her birthday.

Pairings: Sasuke/Sakura

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, at all. All the characters belong to Kishimoto Masashi-sensei.

As Time Passes

A Bit More than Expected

"Happy birthday!" greeted many voices, streamers flying to her face, as she opened the door to her apartment. She was especially surprised at this. She didn't expect them the actually go through the trouble for her eighteenth birthday. "Happy birthday Sakura!"

"Thank you," said Sakura with a slight reddish tinge on her face. In the room was her master, Tsunade and Tsunade's pupil Shizune. Asuma and his team were there as well as Gai's and Kurenai's. Of course, the gathering wouldn't be complete if Sakura's very own Kakashi-sensei and her teammates Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke weren't there.

"Let's get this party started!" shouted Ino as she slung her arm around her best friend, some sake in her hand. Of course, most of them were still slightly underage but for tonight, Tsunade would make an exception. After all, it was the day her most talented pupil to date would become legal.

A couple of hours passed and after everyone had eaten their fill and drank until what they could take, except of course the two Sannin, they began giving Sakura gifts.

Shikamaru had given her a shogi set so one day he could find someone else to play shogi with. Chouji thoughtfully gave her a few bags of his favorite barbeque flavored potato chips. Ino had given her a book on ikebana. Asuma gave her a set of kunai and shuriken.

Lee had obviously gone overboard and gave her a bouquet of cherry blossoms. Tenten decided to give her a specially forged katana in place of the one Sakura had recently broken in her last ANBU mission. Neji decided to give her a couple of hair ribbons, one red and one pink. Gai had, to everyone's extreme disgust, given her a green jumpsuit that was like his and Lee's.

Kiba had given her a book about different kinds of poisonous plants, since she was a medical specialist. Shino had given her a new jacket. Hinata had gone through all the trouble of making Sakura a yukata by hand which the eighteen year old was eternally grateful for. Kurenai had given her a couple of advanced Gen Jutsu scrolls.

Shizune had given her one other advanced Gen Jutsu scroll and one scroll about Medical Jutsu. Tsunade had given her a couple of books filled with more medicinal facts, the Godaime expressing that she herself learned so much from those books.

"Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan! Open my present!" said Naruto happily as he handed it to her. There were two, actually. One a tall stack, which everyone assumed was instant ramen, the other was a thin rectangular one. Removing the wrapping paper, a frame came into view and a picture of Sakura, Naruto, Sasuke as Chuunin with their Jounin instructor Kakashi behind them. "It took me days to find that!" Sakura simply said thank you.

"Here you go, Sakura," said Kakashi casually, a slight shine in his visible eye as he handed her a bottle of sake, "One of the best! Since you're eighteen now, might as well give you a bottle of sake." Sasuke, much to no one's surprise and to Sakura's disappointment, did not go to the birthday girl with a gift in hand.

Thirty minutes later, everyone had gone except Sasuke who had at least offered to help Sakura clean up the mess in the living room of her apartment. Awkward silence reigned in the room as the two ANBU cleaned the place up.

"Thank you, for at least being here, Sasuke-kun. It means the world to me," said Sakura sincerely as she continued picking up the trash. Sasuke stretched out his arm and pulled Sakura closer to his body. "Sasuke-kun?"

"I do have a gift, it's just embarrassing to give it in the presence of many people," he said simply before lowering his head, effectively capturing Sakura's full pink lips. Sakura's eyes widened before she allowed herself to drown in the ecstasy she was feeling, her arms snaking around Sasuke's neck, his wrapping tightly around her waist.

Owari

Birthday one-shot for Sakura-chan! Happy birthday!

I like it, what can I say?

In any case, these stories aren't going to be long, since they're the type devoid of any major storyline. If these one-shots inspire you to write any more, by all means