Revised on 1-6-10
"Sakura! There you are! Where's Kakashi-sensei?" The blue eyed shinobi asked in his usual loud tone, probably blowing out Hinata's eardrums as tried to catch her attention from down the road. His default tone of voice was still the same: screaming at the top of his lungs.
"He had go home." She yelled back, for she was still some feet from him. "I really need to get going too." She said remorsefully as she approached them. She saw Naruto all of the time due to his persistent checking up on her, but she rarely saw Hinata anymore. She missed how close they had been before she'd gotten married. She patted Hinata on the shoulder, and grabbed her purse. "I really need to get groceries."
"Awwww..." Naruto pouted, and for a moment he looked exactly like he had when they were twelve.
"Sorry, but I really need to get going." She apologized as she dug in her purse for her wallet so she could hurry and pay before Naruto distracted her with another conversation.
"Don't worry about it Sakura, I've got it." Naruto said, laying a hand over hers. He had had a lot of money recently due to the amount of missions he was assigned. He was top choice for local missions, because he would always complete them in an extremely short amount of time. He was so goddamn hyper all of the time.
"No, it's okay, I have it in my wallet, my purse is just overcrowded..." She explained, resuming her search through her abyss of a bag. She hated purses with a fiery passion.
"Sakura, it's on me."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course. Now get going." Naruto said, ushering her away.
"Thanks Naruto, I appreciate it. I'll see you later Hinata." She said, waving as she hurried off.
It was dark outside, and she was cold. Setting the three large brown paper bags she'd been carrying on her front porch, she cursed to herself as she had to yet again dig through her purse, but this time to find her key.
"Mmmeowww."
Sakura glanced down to see a small gray kitten, looking up at her with sharp piercing green eyes, similar to her own. It was staring shyly at her from between two bushes next to her porch stairs. The kitten's skin hung loosely on it's small frame, making it apparent that it had been some time since the poor thing had eaten.
"C'mere kitty…" Sakura whispered. It approached her cheerfully, and sat right at her feet, meowing softly, and purring.
Patting it softly on the head, she stood and reached under the mat and removed the spare key. She'd bring some food out to it as soon as she unpacked her groceries.
As soon as the door opened, she saw a gray blur dart past her and through the open door.
With a sigh, she lifted the heavy bags and carried them into the house, kicking the door shut behind herself.
"Here kitty, kitty, kitty..." She called.
Much to her frustration, it completely ignored her. She stumbled into her spotless kitchen, and saw the intruder sitting on the counter, drinking out of the cup of milk Naruto had failed to finish earlier that day. With another sigh, she placed the bags on the counter beside it. The kitten was dipping it's paw into the spoiled glass of milk and then licking it up hungrily.
She reached into the cabinet and pulled out a small, porcelain bowl. She poured some fresh milk into it, and placed it on the floor. As soon as the bowl touched the floor, the kitten dashed off the counter, and landed in front of it. Sakura grabbed a can of tuna that she was never going to eat anyway, and opened it.
Now that she had taken care of that, she turned her attention back to the task at hand. Examining the bags of groceries, she began shoving various items into her empty refrigerator. If Naruto hadn't already gotten her out of the house, she wouldn't have gone shopping, and she would be living off of their excess supply of tomatoes and riceballs.
Yuck.
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There was a blur of pastel pink as the tired woman collapsed onto her couch. She was relieved to finally be able to relax without having to worry about Sasuke coming home grouchy, drunk, or both.
Then, there was a weight on her stomach. She opened an eye to see half of the feline's torso sitting comfortably on her stomach, it's front paws tucked beneath itself. It was purring loudly, and happily. She didn't really mind, actually.
She couldn't understand how Kakashi could just use one eye at most times. She couldn't stand not seeing all she could of her surroundings. She laid her head back down, and then she smelled it. The strong scent of wet dog, dirt, and… something else. She couldn't quite place it.
"Ugh. Cat, you stink," she coughed, "If you're going to live here, you're going to have to take a bath." She muttered. Sasuke would have a fit when he came home, but she would stand her ground. Besides, she had a good four months until she had to deal with him. She needed something top love her, at least. Maybe she would train it.
Then she'd have both a cat, and a slug...
Maybe not...
As soon as the word "bath" passed her lips, the kitten jumped to the floor in a rush and was gone from her sight.
Smart cat…
She resolved to wait, and just get it done and over with tomorrow, after her training session with Kakashi. That way, she could just stop at the store and pick up a few things on the way home...
Suddenly remembering something, Sakura stood and walked into her bedroom, and over to her wide mahogany desk. Taking a seat in her rolling chair, She opened the drawer and removed a sheet of her favorite stationary. Hurriedly, she scribbled out a short letter for her best friend. Hopefully, she'd still catch the mail-nin. Ino deserved a letter, for she had been at the border for the past four months, she was going to be home soon. Afterall, it was only supposed to last for four...
Four months until Sasuke returned...
-Dear Ino-...
