Sakura had never expected Shino to actually kiss her, let alone initiate the whole thing. Sure, he had asked her out, which she had eventually chalked it up to certain malfunctioning kikaichu. But getting kissed by a guy like Shino? Yeah, it was as conceivable as Naruto never eating ramen again.

What was troublesome wasn't that Shino had kissed her. Sakura was no pushover. She had wanted to tell him that it was too soon to start sucking at each other's lips, even if there was a possibility for said sucking. They hadn't even progressed to the handholding stage yet!

But the problem was that Shino had turned out to be a damn good kisser.

So good that Sakura's protests had immediately died on her tongue after those surprisingly soft lips had attacked hers without any warning. Okay, there might have been a slightly romantic moment with those stupid butterflies hovering over their heads for some mysterious reason but that didn't mean you seized on it without any forethought! There was a sequence for these things dammit!

And how in the name of Orochimaru's tongue had Shino learnt to kiss so... He couldn't have had any prior experience, that was for certain. With a blabbermouth mutt for a best friend, there was absolutely no way that he could have secretly been in any relationship before. Besides, girls were hardly seduced by the bug factor. Unless they were into bugs themselves.

It was supposed to be sloppy, landing at the wrong places and being generally awful. Not a sensual encounter where his lips set over hers with uncanny ease, sucking with just the right pressure, no disgusting saliva business when he slyly cajoled her lips to part. Like he had done it a hundred times before.

Sakura plopped down on her futon with a loud sigh. There she was racking her brains about a stupid kiss (okay, it was more than one) after a grueling day at the hospital.

Seduced by the kisses of Aburame freaking Shino. Who was apparently a natural.

She was really in trouble.

*

What Sakura didn't know was that Shino had had some really serious practice in the kissing department not a long time ago.

"Dude, you have lost your mind!"

Shino didn't feel it necessary to dignify his teammate's outburst with a response.

"I love you, man but this is just way too much."

"Not at all. Why? You owe me. It was I who saved you when your lecherous self was caught in the Hyu-"

"Fine, fine. No need to rehash that episode," Kiba broke in with a visible shudder. Leave it to his fate that the only time his-- ahem presence had been unintentional, he was discovered by one furious Hyuga who'd have gladly castrated him there and then.

"This makes us even, dude. Ugh."

Kiba turned out to be a surprisingly good teacher.

"Ew, Shino, man, we are not exchanging saliva here! You just spat in my mouth! And what's up with that awful slurping noises? It's kissing, not eating a lollipop!"

Shino was rather slow, though determined to learn.

"Kami, even Akamaru is better than you!" Said creature howled in agreement.

Kiba was feeling quite proud of his pupil's progress by the time Hinata discovered them in the act.

"It's not what it seems like, I swear! Hinata! Hina-" His pleas dissipated in the wind as their teammate practically ran away after making some incoherent apologies.

"Oh man!" Kiba dejected fell on his back. "You better name your first born after me, Bug-boy."

Shino was totally unperturbed. As long as he was prepared, he didn't mind losing his first kiss to "Dog-breath" or even getting caught when making out with his best friend. It just wouldn't do to disappoint his reluctant pink-haired paramour.