Chapter Six

The Best of Friends

He was reclining on his sofa with a volume of Icha Icha Paradise in his hands. He was so engrossed that he didn't hear her enter.

She cleared her throat, not once but twice, in order to gain his attention.

"Sakura, I didn't see you there."

He snapped his book shut and immediately sat, his feet on the ground—allowing her room to sit at his side. She hesitantly did so.

"Call me Saku," she said—and stiffened when he chuckled. "Why are you laughing?"

"It's nothing, really. It's just that when I think of my Sakura, it's what I call her in my mind."

Saku smiled, relaxing a little. "I guess that's no surprise, since the nickname came from you...er, um, I mean the you in my world."

They settled into a silence that was neither comfortable nor uncomfortable.

"So…" Kakashi began. "tell me about the me in your world."

Saku began to run her fingers through her hair. He contemplated at this.

"Why are you nervous?"

Saku looked at him, startled. "What?"

"You always run your fingers through your hair when you're nervous."

Saku dropped her hand down to her side and began to chew on her bottom lip.

"Now you're nervous and uncomfortable."

"Will you stop doing that!"

"What?"

"Naming my every emotion! It's disconcerting!" Saku screeched.

"I know, but at least you're not nervous anymore," Kakashi stated.

Saku realized then that the anxiety that she had felt upon entering the room was no longer there. All she felt now was irritation—and a mild sense of annoyance.

She had a feeling that was his plan all along.

"We aren't close in my world. In fact, we avoid each other."

Kakashi frowned. "Why?"

"We were close, but we had a fight a few years back. Ever since then, we just didn't get along. It was like there was a thinly-veiled layer of hostility around you, always."

"Why don't you tell me what happened from the beginning?"

Silence.

Then, with a sigh, she began to talk.

"Well, it all started with Iruka's wedding…"

Flashback:

"What are you doing here, Saku?"

Kakashi had just walked into his bedroom to find Saku sprawled across his bed, looking as if she belonged there. She lay on her stomach with her chin resting on her hand. She looked up at the sound of his voice, a small smile playing on her lips.

"We were supposed to train today, Kakashi."

She had forgone the 'sensei' as they became closer friends. They were equals now and the very best of friends.

"I forgot," he said sheepishly.

"Yes, I assumed as much. What have you been up to?"

Saku frowned when he looked away from her. She immediately sat up, observing. Head tilted to the side, she inquired.

"Kakashi?"

"Hmm. Oh, nothing. I just went to see a man about a dog."

Saku's lips pursed together. She folded her arms across her chest. "How about we try the truth this time?"

"Are you going to Iruka's wedding?"

"Shit," Saku said. "I forgot all about that."

Kakashi chuckled. "I take that to mean you don't have a date."

"No, I don't—and I hate to go to those things alone. I feel like an old maid."

"Go with me, then."

"With you?" Saku asked incredulously.

"Yes, with me. Is that so far-fetched?"

Saku shook her head. "Of course not. It's just that I didn't really think you did the whole wedding thing, with you being the eternal bachelor and all. You know women are constantly looking for their soulmate at those things."

"All the better for you to be there to protect me."

Saku laughed. "So now your true intentions come out. Sure I'll be your…date." Saku hesitated at the use of the 'd' word. She bit her bottom lip, then shook her head. It wasn't like it was a real date, anyway. He was just using her to ward off women with matrimony on the brain. Saku chuckled again, and began changing the topic.

"So, are we going to spar or what?"

Kakashi nodded his head briefly, then turned to exit the room with Saku trailing behind him.

The day of Iruka's wedding arrived, and Saku found herself staring at herself in the mirror. She looked phenomenal. She had not wanted to go and buy herself something—she really didn't care for shopping, to be honest. So, she had given Ino some money and told her to get her something appropriate.

She didn't think that Ino would come back with this.

The dress was gray and strapless. It hugged her body like an old lover—yet, despite that, it was still elegant.

She looked like one classy dame.

"Hmm," Kakashi said, interrupting. "I remember that dress. Sakura wore her hair up in this thing."

Saku smiled slightly at his male terminology.

"Yes, I had my hair up in that thing. I was very happy with how I looked. It turned out I wasn't the only one."

Saku grinned at her reflection and stepped out of the bathroom. The doorbell rang, signaling Kakashi's arrival. She opened the door to find...not exactly who she had been expecting.

"Uchiha-san? What are you doing here?"

Uchiha Itachi's eyes surveyed the most brilliant kunoichi in the village. She was beyond lovely. In fact, he would go so far as to say that she was the most exquisite creature that he had ever laid eyes on.

"Haruno, you look…" His voice trailed off. He didn't need to say more, anyway. It was written all over his face. Saku blushed.

"Thank you," she said. She waited awkwardly for him to reveal his reason for stopping by. While he stood speechless, Saku took that opportunity to survey him. He wore a charcoal gray three-piece suit. His shirt was white, but his tie was red—the blazing red of the Sharingan. By the time Saku raised her eyes back up to his, he was smirking at her. Saku answered that smirk with a grin of her own.

"Did you just check me out, Haruno?"

Bold as brass, Saku replied. "I did, indeed, Uchiha-san."

He nodded, as if it was perfectly acceptable. "The Hokage wants to see you before the wedding. Come with me."

Saku started to blindly follow him when she realized that she had forgotten something.

"I can't. I'm waiting for Kakashi. We're going to the wedding together."

"He can meet you there."

Saku sighed at the unyielding tone in his voice.

"Well, let me leave him a note, then."

"No time. He'll get the point."

She had already turned, though, and began penning him a brief letter. She sat her pen down and turned towards Itachi.

"All done."

"And just how will he receive that note?"

"Kakashi has a key. He'll use it if I don't open the door."

Itachi stared at her blankly but said nothing more.

Together, they entered the Hokage tower and headed straight for Tsunade's office. Itachi rapped on the door twice then opened it, not bothering to wait for her permission to enter. Saku's eyes narrowed at his blatant disrespect. She opened her mouth to scold him—but the disarray that greeted her threw her off.

The office was a mess.

"Lady Tsunade?" Saku said questioningly.

The Hokage's head whipped around rapidly after catching sight of her apprentice. Her hair was disheveled and she had a wild look in her eye. "It's about time you showed up. Where the hell are my Hokage robes and the marriage scroll?"

Saku's mouth dropped open. She was summoned all the way here for that?

"Didn't Shizune—"

"She's in the wedding. I couldn't trouble her right now."

"They're—"

"I've looked all over this damn office twice and I couldn't find it. I even had the Uchiha look and he couldn't find them with his blasted Sharingan. Where the hell are they?"

Saku opened her mouth and tried again.

"I'm waiting," the Hokage interrupted.

Saku tried not to lose her patience. "Lady Tsunade, you had me take them to the temple earlier this week because you were afraid that you'd misplace them."

Tsunade stared at her momentarily. The anger was quickly replaced by irritation.

"And you listened to me? You knew I was going to forget that. Why didn't you come here earlier?"

"I was getting ready for the wedding, Lady Tsunade. I had no idea you were going to forget."

Tsunade waved her hand at her dismissingly, abruptly changing the subject. "Are you and the Uchiha going to this wedding together?" she asked curiously, looking back and forth between the two of them.

Saku blushed. "No. Actually, I'm—"

"Well, you should. He doesn't have a date and neither do you so—"

"Lady Tsunade, I—"

"You two should go together," Tsunade finished.

"Lady Tsunade. I'm going with Kakashi to the wedding."

Tsunade paused, taking in that bit of information.

"That is your problem, Haruno Sakura. You are attached at the hip to Hatake Kakashi. It's no wonder the men in this village steer clear of you."

Saku stared at her mentor, flabbergasted as to how her love life became the topic of the conversation.

"The wrath of the Copy Ninja is a fearsome thing," Tsunade said, nodding. Saku frowned. "I understand why that would be troubling to you," the blond woman continued, noting Saku's facial expression. "You could have been married by now. Maybe you would have even had a kid—"

"Excuse me, Lady Tsunade, but that's not what is troubling me at all."

Tsunade's studied her student momentarily. "Then what is it that's bothering you?"

Saku shrugged. "It's just that I'd rather people fear approaching me because of me. Kakashi takes the joy out of all the fun stuff."

Tsunade's mouth dropped open. Sakura never ceased to surprise her.

"Don't you want to be married?"

Saku, very aware that they weren't alone, answered reluctantly.

"It's not a matter of whether or not I want to be married…it's wanting a man to just accept me and what's mine. Kakashi is mine. He's my best friend and I'm not willing to trade him for anything or anyone." The fierce determination in her voice stunned the Hokage.

She briefly wondered if there could be more going on between her apprentice and the Copy Ninja than she previously thought. She immediately dismissed the thought as ludicrous.

"Fine, Sakura. Just go. You can clean up in here later."

Sakura looked around at the mess in dismay.

"But—"

"I said go! And take the Uchiha with you."

The duo exited the Hokage's office. Sakura's forehead pulsed with mild irritation.

"You could have told me what she wanted," Sakura muttered.

"I could have," he agreed.

"But you didn't. Why?"

"Because I didn't have to."

Saku stopped walking.

"You're an ass."

"Yes, but I'm sexy," he said, not bothering to stop.

Saku studied him thoughtfully and then said, "Ah, Touché." She then left him, intent upon finding Kakashi.

"We're going to be late and for once it's not my fault." Saku stuck out her tongue at Kakashi, but he ignored her. "So, clean up duty, huh?"

"Shut up, Kakashi."

"You're awfully irritable. Did something else happen that you want to tell me about?"

Saku hesitated, thinking about her encounter with Itachi and Tsunade.

"Kakashi…am I a hard woman to approach?"

Kakashi's whole body tensed at the question. Cautiously, he asked, "What do you mean?"

"Say that I had the type of relationship with Naruto that I have with you, if you were interested, would it deter you?"

Kakashi looked away from her, suddenly intent upon reaching their destination as soon as possible. He couldn't leave her question unanswered because she was waiting expectantly—and he would never disappoint her. He looked down into her eager emerald eyes, and spoke the truth.

"Saku, if I desired you, the only thing that would stop me from having you…is you."

A brilliant smile covered her face, causing his heart to lurch before he turned away from her. She latched onto his arm and allowed him to escort her the rest of the way.

The wedding was beautiful.

It was awfully surprising that the duo was even a couple, let alone get married.

Iruka and Anko.

It boggled the mind. Yet they seemed to balance each other out, somehow. Saku sat at Kakashi's side, trying to hold back tears, knowing that he would tease her about it if she did.

"Did you manage it?" Kakashi asked.

"Manage what?"

"To keep yourself from crying?"

"…no."

Kakashi chuckled. "Neither did Sakura. I teased her mercilessly that night."

"That's funny because my Kakashi didn't."

Kakashi looked down at the tears that silently slid down Saku's face. He raised his hand and wiped one of the tears away from her cheek. She looked up at him and caught his soft smile. His smile, for some reason, made her feel so much better that the tears dried. He brushed away the tears from the opposite side of her face.

"No tears," he whispered. "Today is a happy day."

Saku nodded, and thought nothing of it when Kakashi took her hand in his.

While the wedding was very traditional and formal, the reception was a full-blown party. The bride, to everyone's amusement, had shed her wedding kimono and exchanged it for leather. Lots of it. She even made sure that Iruka dressed what Anko deemed 'less than his normal stuffy'. This meant he wore jeans and a T-shirt.

Saku and Kakashi went to their respective homes to change. They decided to just meet up at the reception to kill a little time, because they knew that they wanted to miss very little.

Saku walked into the 'reception hall' to see everyone dancing. It was more like a club scene rather than a wedding reception. She couldn't keep the smile from creeping on her face at Anko's audacity.

She looked once more at the people dancing. She really wished Kakashi would hurry up because she wanted to dance. Her foot began to tap on its own accord to the beat of the music. She nearly jumped a mile high when a hand suddenly grabbed hers and started leading her to the dance floor. She tried to tug her hand away--but the hand only tightened.

He must not have known who he was dealing with. If she weren't at a wedding reception, she would have broken his hands by now. So, instead, she fumed at the head of her unwanted dance partner.

It was then that she noticed his hair.

His hair was long and dark, and it was unbound. It flowed with his body…predatorily.

His shirt was black, matching his hair—but it was tight, and she could see the muscles ripple in his back with his every movement. Her eyes lowered, and she noticed he wore blue jeans.

He wore those blue jeans.

If he looked that good from behind, Saku thought, then what must he look like in the front? The anger that she had initially felt was overwhelmed by curiosity. She guessed he sensed that she was no longer going to struggle—so he turned his head and looked at her.

Saku found herself confronted with the dark eyes of Uchiha Itachi.

She stopped breathing when he smirked at her.

She was surprised that he managed to turn and look at her and continue moving. He didn't bump into a single person.

Actually, the crowd parted for Uchiha Itachi.

They had finally reached the dance floor. The tempo had slowed, and Itachi pulled her body close to his. Saku allowed it, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"You know, it was awfully presumptuous of you to think that I would dance with you."

"Perhaps," came his short reply.

"What are you up to, Uchiha?"

His lips curved slightly at her question. He leaned down to her ear, his lips brushing it slightly as he whispered.

"It's simple, Haruno. I'm making you mine."

Saku's eyes grew large at his proclamation. She didn't have time to think it over, because she was no longer in his arms—but rather, she was behind Kakashi. She hadn't even had time to sense his presence.

She peered around Kakashi, thinking she'd see some unknown danger—but all she saw was Itachi engaged in a fierce glaring match with her ex-sensei. Saku frowned, wondering what was going on. She placed her hand on Kakashi's arm. He looked down at her, and his facial expression immediately changed.

"What's going on?" she asked, looking back and forth between the two of them.

Itachi's body immediately relaxed, the irritation that she had momentarily seen on his face replaced by a blank look.

"Kakashi?" Saku tried again, noticing that people's attention were being drawn to them.

"It's nothing, Saku. I just wanted you to know that I'm here. Enjoy your dance." With that, he turned abruptly and left her behind.

Flabbergasted, Saku went after him. She was no Uchiha Itachi, and crowds did not part for her—so Saku found herself pushing people out of her way. She finally caught up with him outside the building.

"Kakashi, wait!"

He looked momentarily as if he wasn't going to stop.

But he did, anyway.

"What's going on? Why'd you leave like that?"

"It's nothing, Saku. Go back and enjoy the party."

Saku looked at him, but could discern nothing from his facial expression, because his blasted mask covered his face.

"Kakashi—"

"It's okay, Saku. Go have fun."

She knew something was wrong, and she didn't want to leave him. "No, I'm ready. We can go."

"You're lying, Saku."

"So what? I'm not the only one."

Kakashi walked closer to her. He leaned down and placed his masked lips against her forehead.

"You don't have to take care of me, Saku. I'm fine. Now I'm telling you to go back inside."

He quickly disappeared before she could protest.

Saku stood outside in silence, still trying to figure out what had just happened. She was joined a while later.

"Come, Haruno."

"And who are you to tell me anything?" She was slightly surly and more than a little hurt that Kakashi had abandoned her.

Itachi ignored her tone and didn't reply. He just waited.

And since his presence was preferable to the worry in her mind and the pain in her heart, she went with him.

"Saku, do you really not know what was happening with him? With your Kakashi?"

"No," Saku replied honestly.

Kakashi began to chuckle.

"What's so funny?" Saku asked, surly now that she began to suspect that he knew the answer that had been plaguing her for years.

"Continue your story, Saku. I want to be sure I'm right before I present you with my theory."

And slowly, reluctantly, she continued.

A/N: Cutecrazyice...you know. : )

I've decided that I should probably add this piece of information because this story is confusing enough as it is. There are two pairings in this story. It is KakaSaku and SakuIta. Since I can't put both at the top of this page it may change at times and say Sakura and Itachi. I can't give out any more details other than that...because I don't know them yet. So for emphasis this story will end with two pairings. Not just one.