CHRISTMAS LISTS FOR DUMMIES

AUTHOR: fantasylover12001

RATING: PG-13/T

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of it's characters. I'm just borrowing them for awhile for fangirl (and boy) torture..cough...enjoyment.

PAIRINGS: SasuNaru, mentioned KakaIru, LeeSaku, KibaHina, ShikaIno, and NejiGaar is looking like a definite possibility now. Also barely there Jiraiya/Tsunade.

AUTHOR NOTES: Thank you, thank you for the continued encouragement! As promised Sasuke arrives in this chapter.

CHAPTER 2: STEP THREE: FINE-TUNING YOUR GIFT IDEAS

Tip: Your first idea for a Christmas present isn't always necessarily the best. Occasionally it's a good idea to go over your list before you buy your gifts to double check and make sure that the gift is a good idea.

By the first week of December Naruto was proud to say he had figured out a gift for everyone. Well...almost everyone. There was a conspicuous blank next to Sasuke's name. He'd also changed his mind on what to get Iruka about four times but the for the most part he was done deciding what to get everyone.

Then to his delight, on December third, it snowed. That was one of the other things he loved about Christmas, it usually snowed around this time of year. While he didn't care for the cold, snow was fun to play in. He also had fond memories of throwing snowballs at unsuspecting people when he was a kid. He snickered when he remembered throwing some snow balls at the Third Hokage once.

It hadn't snowed much. Only about two inches or so but it was enough to have enjoy a relatively decent snowball fight with Konahamaru and his friends. He was now headed home and in a happy mood despite the fact that he would most likely be freezing that night during patrol. Naruto was near the entrance to the village and about to turn onto his street when he saw a sight that startled him and then made him grin like mad.

Sasuke was back from his mission.

The ninja hadn't seen him yet to Naruto's delight. He was busy pulling off his ANBU mask and shaking out his hair. The blonde grinned evilly. This was going to be fun...

It was good to be home, Sasuke thought absent mindedly. The mission he and Neji had been assigned had been longer then either were expecting it to be. This was the first time he'd been back in Konoha in almost a month. He sort of wished the snow wasn't there but he could deal with that.

Just as he bent over to put his ANBU mask away snow came out of no where and hit him in the face. "Hey-," he started to say, but before he could threaten whoever had the nerve to hit him with a snowball a bright orange blur tackled him from the side. Instincts took over and he flipped whoever it was over and pinned the person on their back. He found himself glaring down into mischievous cerulean blue eyes.

"Sasuke! Welcome back!" Naruto exclaimed, with a beaming grin.

'Of course', he thought in half exasperation and half affection, 'Who else would have the nerve to throw snowballs at me?'

"I think you can let him up, Uchiha," a calm and slightly amused came from behind him.

He glared at Neji Hyuuga who stood slightly behind them. The other ninja had obviously seen the whole thing.

"You could've warned me he was there, you know," he grumbled at Neji. He and Hyuuga might have worked out their differences, but that didn't mean the other didn't annoy him to death sometimes.

Neji shrugged carelessly at him. "If I warned you about every little danger, you'd get as lazy as Shikamaru."

"No one's that lazy," he and Naruto said in unison and then stared at each other in surprise. Naruto blushed and Sasuke realized that he should probably get off Naruto and did.

"So Naruto, how have things been here?" Neji asked as the two stood up, dusting snow off of themselves.

Naruto shrugged. "Same as usual; kind of boring actually. Even the missions have been lame." Then he grinned, "But I was able to figure out your Christmas gift and this year, you're NOT going to guess what it is!"

"I highly doubt that," Neji said cooly.

Naruto just stuck out his tongue at the other boy.

Sasuke remained silent throughout the whole exchange and couldn't help but feel a little jealous. He was still getting over the fact that somehow in the four years he'd been gone, Neji and Naruto managed to become friends. Close friends from what he'd seen. It was odd to see.

'You have no right to feel jealous,' he scolded himself. 'You're the one who left in the first place and you're the one who decided Naruto would be better off if you stayed away from him.'

That didn't stop him from feeling like he'd been replaced though. Naruto proceeded to crow about the great presents he'd found and was in the process of getting while Neji listened with a slightly amused look. Naruto used to constantly chatter at him like that before that damn Orochimaru showed up.

He probably could of left without either of them noticing but he wanted to stay and just drink in the sight of Naruto actually there for once. Just because he'd made the decision to stay away from the blonde didn't mean he couldn't indulge himself in the other's presence for awhile. Of course those few minutes of indulgence usually made it harder for him to avoid Naruto later but he was good at self control. If he wasn't, he would've kissed the ninja the minute he realized who he had pinned to the ground just now.

'Get over it, Uchiha,' he frowned and came to his senses. Out loud he said, "I'm out of here."

Naruto paused in his description of the painting he had found for Kiba and Hinata. "Really? But I was going to invite you guys to come have ramen with me!"

"I'm not a fan of ramen, you know that."

"Oh, right," Naruto said, in a small voice. Sasuke started to feel bad, but turned before he could say something he would regret.

'I'm sorry Naruto, it would be better for you if I stayed away.'

Naruto sighed as he watched Sasuke take off. This was how it had always been ever since Sasuke had returned.

"Still hung up on him, huh?" Neji asked.

"I'm not 'hung up' on him!" Naruto said, glaring at the boy.

"Right. Of course you aren't," Neji said. Naruto could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn't believe him.

'Can't blame him. I don't believe me, either' Naruto thought glumly.

Tip: Take your list with you when you shop! Mental lists do not work, you always forget SOMETHING.

Naruto was sure he looked ridiculous carrying four large bags of gifts and three rolls of wrapping paper but he didn't care. 'I'm done!' hethought in triumph. 'Except for Sasuke's present, of course' but he preferred not to think about that. He was sure if he kept looking between now and Christmas he'd find SOMETHING that would make Sasuke smile. 'Maybe I'm aiming too high, there' he thought bemusedly. 'I'll at least get him something he'll LIKE and not just toss aside.' But that was the problem, he realized.

Sasuke didn't go in for the normal things that you tended to get people. He wasn't much of a reader, unless it was a scroll of some sort that would help him improve his ninja skills. He didn't care for trinkets and other such whimsical items as he was rarely home to enjoy them anyway. As far as Naruto knew, aside from training, Sasuke had no real hobbies. He could have gotten his friend some of the usual ninja gear but judging from who he talked too EVERYONE was getting him stuff like that. Naruto wanted his gift to be special. Something that showed Sasuke that Naruto forgave him and would make the other see that they were still friends. Maybe if he knew that, Sasuke would stop avoiding him or finding quick excuses to leave when they ran into each other.

But it was so hard coming up with a gift that said all that! Finding a gift that Sasuke would actually like was hard enough, but finding one that would send a message was even harder.

"Lousy bastard," he muttered. "He always has to complicate things."

"Naruto!" a voice called out from behind him, and he turned to see Sakura, carrying two bags and walking towards him.

"Sakura-chan!" he yelled back in greeting. His mood lifted greatly as he saw her. He might have gotten over his crush on the pink-haired girl a long time ago but the sight of her still managed to cheer him up. The two had become a lot closer over the time that Sasuke had been gone. Now he considered the girl the sister he never had.

"Finished all your Christmas shopping already?" she asked in surprise, looking at all the bags he was holding.

"Yup! Just one more person to buy for and I'm done!" he said proudly.

"Still haven't found a present for Sasuke, huh?" she asked, knowingly.

The blonde pouted. "No. How'd you know?"

The pink-haired girl rolled her eyes. "I'm having the same trouble. He's so hard to buy for!"

"Tell me about it," Naruto grumbled.

"Want some help with those?" she gestured towards the rolls of wrapping paper Naruto was balancing in his arms.

"That'd be great! Thanks! Hey, I have some hot chocolate; we can have some when we get to my apartment."

"You have something at your place besides instant ramen?" Sakura teased as she took the rolls from his hands.

Naruto stuck out his tongue at her and they headed to his apartment complex.

"Did you know that Sasuke and Neji got back yesterday?" Sakura asked as they reached the building.

"Yup. I hit Sasuke with a snowball to welcome him home," Naruto snickered as he remembered the incident.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Naruto, are you sure you're nineteen?"

The blonde blinked. "Yeah, you were there at my birthday party, remember?" Then he glared. "Hey, are you implying I'm immature!"

"I'm not implying anything, Naruto," Sakura said sweetly. Too sweetly in his opinion.

"Yeah, right," Naruto grumbled as he opened the door to his apartment.

The two spent the rest of the afternoon going over what they got for everyone and trying to rack their brains on what to get Sasuke. Neither came up with anything and so started to rant about how difficult the guy was to buy for. One thing Naruto loved about being friends with Sakura now was that the two now were able to rant together. It was actually very stress relieving to rant out loud with someone else instead of ranting in your head, or so he had found out.

Sakura finally had to go home. As she put on her coat she looked at Naruto, "Don't forget about the Christmas party I'm throwing. It's on Christmas Eve, remember?"

Naruto grinned. "I remember." Then he paused. "Um...you're parents aren't coming are they?" Sakura's parents were not exactly thrilled that their daughter had made friends with the Kyuubi-holder and didn't hesitate to be rude to him if he ever came over.

Sakura frowned. "No. They have another party they're going too. Even if they were coming, you'd still be invited. It's MY party and I'll invite who I want. God, I can't wait until I find my own place."

Naruto smiled. "I'm sure you'll find a place soon."

"Hopefully. See you." With a wave, she left, and Naruto was once again alone.

He couldn't help but feel slightly guilty. Naruto had become a slightly sore point between Sakura and her stubborn parents. She had found out about the demon inside Naruto awhile ago and stated that she didn't care. Afterwards the two started to become close friends despite the Harunos trying to get their daughter to stay away from him. This caused several arguments between Sakura and her parents. It didn't help that her parents were already not happy with their daughter's growing independence, wanted her to become a Jounin instead of a medic-nin, and didn't really approve of Lee that much. They felt that she could find a much better suitor.

Now Sakura was in the process of finding her own place because she was getting fed up with her parents trying to control her life.

'It's probably for the best' Naruto thought. But that still didn't stop him from feeling bad for causing problems in the Haruno family.

Tip: The earlier you get your Christmas shopping done, the better. Don't forget that real life can be as hectic Christmas shopping. Work, whether in the job world or in school, can pile up and before you know it you have three or four things you have to do before Christmas vacation and don't have time to buy Christmas presents.

On the first weekend of December Naruto got a summons from Tsunade to meet her in her office. That usually meant that there was a mission for him. 'Good thing I bought all my presents while I had the chance' he thought ruefully as he headed towards the Hokage's office.

The blonde walked into the office and stopped in surprise when he saw Sasuke sitting in one of the chairs in front of Tsunade's desk. 'Oh no, please tell me she's not sending us on a mission together!' he thought in slight panic. But then, he had been feeling restless lately and due to that restlessness, he had tricked Tsunade and Jiraiya into getting locked into the scroll room together for about five hours a few days ago.

'I was hoping it would get them to stop arguing and start kissing, but NOO, they had to be stubborn. Though it was still damn funny watching them trying to get through all my jutsus' he thought as he sat down and looked warily at the fifth Hokage.

"Nice of you to join us, brat," Tsunade said in a misleading pleasant voice. "Since he got here early, I already told Sasuke about the mission. Now I'm going to tell you. You two are to travel to Wind Country and escort Gaara of the Sand and his sister, Temari back to Konoha. There's always a little get together between the Kages around Christmas and it's my turn to host it this year."

"What," Naruto started to protest. "Gaara and Temari hardly need protection!"

"No," Tsunade agreed. "But it's protocol. I had to deal with annoying escorts the last time, now it's his turn."

"But-," he started then paused. In his head he ranted 'You had to choose me and Sasuke to escort him? Yeah right! You're doing this out of revenge you old hag! I locked you in with Jiraiya-sensei and now you're sticking me and Sasuke on a mission you know the two of us can't refuse.'

If he hadn't been so mad, he would've admired the brilliance of the revenge. In a way, sticking him with Sasuke on this mission was just the same as Naruto locking her and Jiraiya in the scroll room. 'She's giving me a taste of my own medicine.'

"Are you turning down this mission, Naruto?" Tsunade said in a slightly teasing tone.

"No," Naruto grumbled.

"Good. You and Sasuke leave tomorrow morning."

Naruto glanced over at Sasuke and saw that he was staring straight ahead with an emotionless face. 'This is going to be a long mission' he thought miserably.

AUTHOR NOTES: I don't know much about Gaara except for what's been translated and what I've heard. I heard somewhere that he became the kage for Fire Country. I'm not sure if this is right but if it isn't, well this pretty much AU anyway so go with it. It gives me a way to bring him into the fic. PLEASE REVIEW!