I know, I know. 'Elise why are you writing one-shots when you got a story you need to be updating?'. Well now, I know. But hear me out. This idea came to me randomly and I'm having a block with my main story as a result. Best way to break out of a block? Jot it down and get it out of your system. So, let's see how we can do in getting that done and dusted.
-Hidden Leaf Village, one year post-war-
Over the course of her life, Tsunade had encountered a great number of things that had done their damndest to make her lose what little of patience she inherently had. Whether it was being teased in the academy, Jiraiya and to a lesser extent Orochimaru being constant sources of headaches, or any number of things that just came with her tendency to…somewhat overindulge in things like alcohol and gambling. 'The Legendary Sucker' indeed. But none of those things, not a one, was causing her the massive headache she had now when it came to her apprentice, Sakura, and the blond-haired knucklehead, Naruto. Ever since they, along with their old comrade Sasuke Uchiha, had ended the fourth great shinobi war through their combined efforts, their names were known from the shores of the Land of Water to the hills of The Land of Snow and for damn good reason. Tsunade couldn't fathom the possibility of being prouder of the shinobi Sakura and her team had blossomed into. There was already talk that the three of them were going to replace her team as the new legendary sanin.
And yet, with ALL of that going for them, she and Naruto were as dumb as a bag of sawdust when it comes to their romantic lives.
She hadn't noticed it right away. After the war there was so much devastation everywhere. One hidden village had been near wiped out and the rest were severely impacted. Working together, they were making fast progress and with Naruto in particular leading the charge they continued to push onwards no matter the setbacks. But because of retaking her spot as the Hokage once again after Kakashi politely stepped down, claiming he 'didn't have the stomach for it' anymore, she'd been seeing Sakura more often and, as a byproduct, more of Naruto. He was always around her, basically within earshot if she ever needed anything, and running menial errands for her if she ever needed it. It was amusing coming from Naruto, who had rallied against doing 'grunt' work as he'd always dubbed it back before the war. She suspected at first that with Sasuke dealt with, he was simply funneling his constant stream of energy into something else. But no. The little lingering looks that he gave her when he thought nobody was noticing, the way that he blushed whenever she smiled at him or complimented him and so many other little things had quickly shown her the real reason he was doing this. Naruto's feelings for Sakura hadn't gone away, if anything they seemed to be growing in strength as time passed on.
Given Sakura's history of feelings towards Sasuke however, she'd been unsure if it was really going to lead anywhere. The one time that she'd asked Sakura about where things stood with the Uchiha, she'd simply said she'd 'dealt with it' and had become so temperamental that she hadn't asked again. But eventually, she started noticing the same little signs coming from her towards Naruto. One time, he had returned to have a checkup. Having exhausted his chakra from overworking himself and during the exam while he'd had his jacket and shirt off, Sakura had been unusually flustered. And she wasn't even the one doing the actual exam, she was just observing while Shizune did it. What's more, whenever someone like Ino, Hinata or even Tenten who Naruto barely spoke to as far as Tsunade knew spent too much time around Naruto, Sakura had a little eye twitch going on, a scowl and If she was holding something you can bet it was being bent or broken from her strength. If she hadn't put two and two together, she wouldn't have been deserving of being Hokage. A blind man could notice. Apparently, that goofball Naruto was WORSE than blind then.
Finally, Tsunade could take no more of this foolishness. But Naruto and Sakura were both stubborn as mules. They wouldn't take kindly to being forced together and being told to figure things out, though she'd been tempted more than once, but a little nudge wouldn't cause any undue stonewalling and is probably the only thing that was needed here. So, this morning when she'd summoned Sakura to her office to go over the next round of hospital shifts, she saw a chance to give such a nudge. "How are things between you and Naruto?" she asked. Sakura looked up from her scroll, eyebrows raised
"Hm? Oh were…fine. Things have been okay, if the dummy would just watch his health a little more closely, though I'm probably barking into the wind on that one," she said with a soft smile. Her insult had absolutely no harshness to it whatsoever, it was almost said like a term of endearment. Coming from Sakura it might very well be, Tsunade thought with a chuckle. "Why do you ask M'lady?" Tsunade shrugged, offering her a slight smile right back.
"I've just been noticing the two of you seem to be getting a little closer these days. Even more so than before, I mean," she said. Sakura's cheeks flushed a little and she quickly averted her eyes. Tsunade wanted to laugh, but she bit back on the urge for now. Had to ease into this, it seemed.
"W-Well, he's a really good friend of mine, and it's nice to have him around with everything happening," she said quickly. "He's been through so much because of me…it's just good to see him so relaxed after all of that, you know?" Tsunade did know. Everyone close to Team 7 did. Naruto years ago, had promised to bring Sasuke back and put their little group back together no matter what he had to do. He'd worked himself to the bone, training and almost dying more than once in pursuit of that promise. In his almost seventeen years of life, Naruto had shouldered more of a burden than most shinobi did in the entirety of their lives. No words of gratefulness from anyone would likely be enough to express what they all owed him. And Sakura, for the most part, had been front and center seeing most of the pain he'd been through firsthand. Sakura had always taken on a similar burden, blaming herself for a large portion of the weight Naruto carried. And while it drove her to become the superb medical ninja she was, she never believed it was enough. They were so alike in that way. They gave their all for the people they cared about until they had nothing left for themselves.
These two deserved to have time for themselves now. Tsunade sighed softly. "Sakura…I think you and I both know that there's more going on with you two than friendship." Sakura went to argue but Tsunade held her hand up. "Just…. hear me out for a minute. Afterwards if you want to call me crazy and run out of here, I won't bring it up again. Okay?" Sakura hesitated, biting her lower lip nervously, face reddened again. Tsunade could almost hear the gears cranking in her head, but eventually, she relaxed with a sigh and nodded. Tsunade folded her hands into her lap and leaned back in her chair. "Ever since Sasuke left again, the two of you are practically attached at the hip. I think Naruto spends more of his free time helping around the medical corps than eating ramen or training, and I don't think I need to tell you how big of a deal that is coming from him," she chuckled, Sakura doing the same. "He's not complained one time about anything he's asked to do, as long as he keeps near you while he's doing it. And that strikes me even more. The Naruto I remember meeting back then would have gone stir crazy over some of the work he's now willingly volunteering for."
Sakura thought about it and nodded as she listened. She had indeed been noticing Naruto going out of his way to sign up for the little jobs that needed doing around the village, but she just assumed he'd wanted a break from outside the village work for a while. She'd understand why, and that seemed to make sense to her. "True…" she mumbled.
"And on the surface, that's honestly not THAT surprising. Everyone and their dog know that Naruto has had feelings for you for as long as they can remember. Even Sai picked up on it, and he's one of the newest people involved with your group." Sakura nodded, not wanting to think back on that moment too hard…the way Sai had so easily pierced through her emotions by laying bare what she'd put Naruto through, both purposely and not. Thankfully, Tsunade moved on. "No, what IS new…is your behavior," she said, going over everything she'd seen from her as well. "Look, Sakura…you know a little bit about my history with my team, right?" Sakura nodded. "Jiraiya was so much like Naruto growing up…you'd believe he WAS his grandfather, honestly. And I was a lot like you. I knew how he felt about me for years, but I always told myself that I didn't see him that way. Even when Dan and I were together, I could tell he never got over me, but he respected the boundary and he was there without a second thought when I lost Dan," she said softly. Sakura noticed a flicker of pain cross her teachers face as she said this, but it was gone just as fast.
"Then, later in life…I realized that maybe there WAS more there than I originally thought. But I'd already done a lot of damage to him without meaning to. He always took it with a smile, but rejection hurts no matter who you are, and I know it got to him at times. I was too hard-headed and embarrassed to ever risk anything, and…well you know how it ended up," she said softly. Sakura felt her stomach twist uncomfortably. So much of this sounded like how her and Naruto's early relationship had been. How many times had he put himself out there, only for her to harshly talk down to him, compare him to Sasuke or worse? 'Too many times' she thought miserably. Tsunade noticed Sakura's expression sadden and took a deep breath, giving her a moment before going on. "When we received word that he died…it was like fate just slapping me in the face one last time for how I'd handled things with him. Now, he'd never know. And I get to sit here and wonder 'what if'." She closed her eyes for a second, then met Sakura's, noticing tears forming in her bright, green eyes.
"You don't want that to be what happens to you, Sakura. You're going to hopefully live a long life, as is Naruto. But…there will always be threats out there. That's simply the nature of the world we live in. If, God forbid, something ever happened to Naruto, you don't want to be stuck with all the what if questions. What if I had told him how I felt, what if I'd made something out of what we had right in front of us. It will tear you apart, Sakura. Like it did me for quite a while after I lost Jiraiya. And you don't want to leave Naruto with the same questions if you die." By now, Sakura was crying, tears running freely down her cheeks and lightly dripping onto her clenched together hands. Tsunade looked at her in sympathy. "You both have sacrificed a lot…you deserve to have this. You both want it, but neither of you want to risk it. I get it…but I'm telling you, as your teacher and as someone who learned all this the hard way…the risk is better than the alternative. Even if it doesn't work out, you won't have any regrets about never trying. And that's worth its weight in gold if you ask me." Silence reigned between the two of them for several minutes, Sakura slowly mulling over everything she'd said. DID she return Naruto's feelings now? She thought back to the cold horror that had clenched at her heart when he fell on the battlefield, and she'd had to keep him alive with quite literally her bare hands pumping his heart for him. But not just that. Every time he lost control of the fox after he came home following his training, the fear that she'd lost him to it, the pain it caused him not just physically but emotionally as his friends and comrades got caught in the crossfire.
She thought of the fact that she'd become a medical ninja in the first place because she was sick of not being able to help him in any sort of meaningful way. The entire time she'd been training while he was gone, her thoughts had turned to him constantly, telling herself that next time he was hurt, she'd be there.
And then she considered that as time had gone by together, the idea of Naruto not being by her side felt like a large piece of her was missing. Over the years, he'd been the one constant in her life. He was always smiling, always trying to cheer her up, always wanting her to be okay even if he was suffering inside. That was Naruto to the letter. He brought so much warmth and caring to anyone he was around. Sure, he wasn't the brightest at times, he could be a screw up and he could sometimes get carried away with things like his love of ramen, and he talked far too much in situations that didn't call for it. But then…that was just who he was, and honestly what she loved about him. Her eyes widened as this last thought went through her mind and she stood, wiping her eyes and offering Tsunade a smile. "Thank you, M'lady…I think I need to go talk to him." Tsunade smiled and nodded
"Good luck," she said softly as Sakura left in a hurry.
-Naruto's Apartment-
It took a total of five knocks for Naruto to roll out of bed and head to the door. "Alright, alright. Jeez you don't have to- "whatever words he had died in his throat as he saw Sakura standing there. "Sakura…hey," he said with a bright smile. "This is unexpected, not that I'm complaining. Does Granny need to see me or something?" he asked, tilting his head a bit. Sakura shook her head and Naruto's smile dropped a bit. "You've been crying," he said softly. "What happened?"
Sakura smiled, feeling her heart squeeze a bit at his concerned voice. Straight into fretting over her. As always. "Tsunade called me in today and well…she helped me realize something important," she said softly. Taking a breath, she reached out and took his hands in hers before this nerve she built up faded away from her. Naruto's eyes widened and his whiskered face turned red. "Naruto…I know that you probably won't believe this at first, and I don't blame you. After what I did in the Land of Iron I have no right to demand you think otherwise, but what I'm about to say is nothing but the truth…okay?" Naruto felt his heart begin to beat all the faster. There was only one thing she could be referring to, but he didn't dare say it aloud, lest he wake up and realize he was dreaming. He simply nodded.
"Okay…go ahead," he said gently.
"Naruto…. the truth is, ever since you got back from training with Jiraiya, I've been confused. For the longest time, you were one of my best friends, and I didn't think I'd ever see you in any other way." Naruto's face fell a bit, but she squeezed his hands tighter to keep his attention square on her. "But when you came back after all that time, I started to see you differently. You'd grown so much, not just as a ninja but as a person in ways I hadn't even anticipated you would have. You saved me so many times, you saved Gaara, defeated Pain, I just...you just kept right on amazing me time and time again. I kept waiting for you to slow down, but you stayed right on course, all because of your drive. Even when your promises to me and others caused you nothing but misery, you kept pushing on no matter what. It just made me more confused…I hadn't thought of anyone since Sasuke in this way, and yet more and more I was starting to see you in the same light. Every time you got hurt, I felt so scared…. like a part of me was at risk of being gone. And when your heart stopped during the war, there will never be a scarier moment for me than that, Naruto. I was ready to use the essence transfer to bring you back if I had too. The truth is… I can't imagine my life without you anymore… and wherever you end up, Hokage or not, I want to be right there with you." She felt him squeeze her hands back and his blue eyes were shimmering a bit with tears, his lips quivering ever so slightly. She smiled, her face warming again. "Naruto…It took me way too long to figure this out, and considering the last time I said this, I know you might need time to answer me but…I'm tired of dancing around how I feel and I'm tired of pretending there's a chance that Sasuke is who I'm supposed to be with. Because the truth is…it's been you for a long time. I just needed to figure that out, with some help of course. I love you, Naruto Uzumaki, and if you'll still have me after everything I put you through…. I want to be with you."
"You…you really mean all this...?" he said, biting back on a sob. He had already decided that he was going to violently hurt the person who woke him if this was all in his head. He would pinch himself to double check if he'd had a free hand but both of his were occupied. He had wanted to hear those three words from Sakura since they were genin. He felt so elated that he was sure that even though he couldn't see, Kurama was probably smirking just by proxy. She nodded, letting go of one of his hands to bring it up to rest on his cheek. Her thumb traced along the whisker marks there.
"I do. I love you, Naruto. With all my heart," she said softy. "Like I said, I don't need an answer right now- "he silenced her with a kiss, and Sakura felt like a fireball burst inside her chest and rapidly spread throughout her entire body. Little shivers went up her spine as his arms wrapped around her and her arms went around his neck like it was the most natural action in the world. And hey, in a way it was. They stayed like that until they absolutely had to take a breath.
"I love you too," he whispered. Sakura could've cried again, but she decided to simply pull him back in for the second of what she knew would be a lot of kisses in the near future.
-Tsunade's Office, later that night
"So, it went well?" she asked. Shizune nodded, smiling.
"When I saw them on my way here, they seemed happier than I can ever remember seeing them before," she said. "I don't know what you said to her, Lady Tsunade but it worked."
"I just told her not to end up like me…that's all." Shizune frowned at this, not knowing what she meant right off, but when she saw Tsunade glanced at an old scroll in the corner of the office with the word 'toad' inscribed on it, she understood and let out a sigh.
"I think he knew, my lady. Even if you never said it…I think deep down he knew," she said before bowing and leaving the Hokage to her thoughts. Tsunade sighed and turned away from the scroll to look out the window. Maybe he did, maybe he didn't…but she hoped he did. It didn't bring him back, nothing ever would, but it helped a little bit.
"I need a drink."
I'm glad to have this out of my head and onto the page. I'll get back to work on the next chapter of Shadows Apprentice and hopefully have it out in the next day or so. Read, review you guys know the drill!
Till next time, fellow readers,
-Elise
