Spring had once again found its way to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, the bushes and trees that had wilted and lost their leaves during the winter had begun to bloom and grow once more as new leaves and flowers danced across their surface to the tune of the soft breeze. Two men approached the Leaf Village at a slow pace through the dense forests surrounding the village; one looked to be taking in the sights and sounds much more than the other who just looked tired from their journey.
"Could it really be them?" The gatekeeper ninja replied, alerting his friends.
"Yes, it's them. Go alert Lady Hokage at once." The ninja with the binoculars ordered as the gatekeeper nin jumped away.
"So, they've finally returned." The ninja thought to himself as he looked at them once more through the binoculars.
Ino Yamanaka, heiress to the Yamanaka family groaned as she carried the boxes of soil back to the Yamanaka family flower shop, "What's the point of keeping forehead around if she can't even help me move around a few boxes…" Ino muttered.
Ino hated to say it, but she was beginning to resent her parents for making her work these long, boring shifts in favour of missions. Yes, somehow Ino Yamanaka was fed up with doing nothing – Luckily something interesting always seemed to find its way back to her, and this must be one of her luckiest days in a long time. It was him. Ino picked up her pace and proceeded quickly to the flower shop in order to make the day – hell, maybe even year of a certain pink-haired kunoichi.
"And that Shizune, is why I need my sake. Does it make sense now?" The Hokage said with a pleading look in her eye.
"You know the rules Lady Tsunade, no sake until after you arrive home." Shizune said, whisking the alcohol from the disappointed Hokage before a shinobi quickly ran into the room panting.
"Lord Hokage…" He said in between his exhausted pants.
"Spit it out, I'm really not in the mood." Tsunade said, looking at the bottle in Shizune's possession.
"They've returned." He said, making Tsunade and Shizune focus their attention on the ninja in front of them.
"I see…" Tsunade said before pausing, "Have them brought to see me immediately, bring Sakura Haruno and Kakashi Hatake as well." She said with as a small stoic smile made its way onto her face.
Sakura Haruno sat in the Yamanaka flower shop with a bored expression painted across her face as she reviewed the order list, she smiled as the silver bracelet on her wrist came into her gaze. Sakura rubbed her fingers across its metallic surface and examined the words engraved into the silver, the pink-haired teenager smiled as she remembered how her blonde-haired boyfriend had gotten it for her as a late-birthday present.
Sakura's musings were thoroughly disturbed as her boisterous best friend bursted through the doors of the flower shop.
"Sakura!" Ino shouted with a huge grin present on her face.
"You're awfully excited pig." Sakura, said twirling her fingers through her hair
"You should be too forehead!" Ino retorted giddily.
"What do you mean?" Sakura replied, confusion laced in her voice.
"He's back." Ino replied, smiling as she saw Sakura's eyes widen.
"Man, it's just like I remember it." The blonde teenager in the orange and black outfit stated out loud.
"Feeling nostalgic yet?" The man with long, grey hair replied.
"You bet." The blonde teenager said with a smile as they approached the gate.
"Excuse me, I'll need to see your passports. One of the ninja said.
"Juro-sama?" The blonde teen said with his eyed widened.
Juro inspected the boy closely, trying to gauge who he was.
"That hair... it's him" Juro's eyes widened at his realization.
"Naruto Uzumaki!" The man replied with a huge grin on his bearded face.
The two hugged each tightly; Juro was shocked to see how tall Naruto was now. They were nearly the same height! Was this the same boy that left the village three years ago?
"Apologies, Jiraya-sama." Juro said as he paused to bow to sanin.
"It's no problem." Jiraya said, taking off his hat that had shielded him from the sun.
"Please, come in. Welcome home." Juro said as he signalled the gates to be opened.
Naruto looked overjoyed at the sight of the village, he quickly broke away from the group and climbed up a building in order to get a better overlook of the surrounding areas of the Leaf Village, he looked around the village he had been away from for three years and felt the homecoming nostalgia come rushing right back to him. He looked at Hokage monument and saw that indeed there was another face added to it.
"Wow, Sakura-chan was right. They really did do a good job on Baa-chan's head" Naruto thought out loud as he sat down on top of the roof.
"I'm back guys…" Naruto said quietly with a smile on his face.
"Sakura, slow down!" Ino complained as she tried to catch up with her friend.
"Naruto… is it really you?" Sakura thought as she pushed forward along the path to the gate.
Three years, three long years of anticipation and waiting had finally ended. Sakura turned the corner and to her displeasure she saw only the grey-haired Sanin talking to Juro and Kakashi. Inquisitively, Sakura paced over to their position rather quickly.
"Jiraya-sama, where's Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked, nervously.
"I'm sorry Sakura…" Jiraya replied disappointedly, making Sakura jump to conclusions rapidly.
"Naruto-kun…?" Sakura thought as she mentally withdrew from the conversation, ignoring what Jiraya was saying
"No, he can't be… You said you'd protect him!" Sakura yelled.
"Sakura I…-"
"No, how dare you take him away and then-" This time it was Sakura who was interrupted.
"Sakura, he's not dead. He's right behind you." Jiraya said, a bit annoyed at the girl.
Sakura swiftly turned around to see him; It really was him, it was Naruto. He looked much more… grown up. His face had matured greatly; his face now looked like that of an adult ninja and less like that of a child. His spiky blonde hair had grown out quite a bit, draping over his new black headband. She looked at his new orange and black outfit and smiled inwardly, finally the days of that hideously coloured jumpsuit were behind him. His blue eyes were the same as when he left, showing a surprised look of shock and excitement within them. He had definitely not been lying when he said that he had gotten taller, taller than her in fact.
"Sakura-chan…" He uttered out, his voice had gotten deeper as well.
Sakura looked at him a bit longer, he was… handsome. She gave him a small smile as she walked over to him with her green orbs shining brightly at him.
"She's… beautiful." Naruto thought to himself as he examined his pink-haired girlfriend closely, she was definitely a lot taller than he remembered. She wore her hair pretty much the same as when he had originally left the village; this didn't bother him though, he always thought that look really suited her. He noted that her outfit had changed too. Gone was the dress that she originally wore when they were younger, she now wore a a skirt and short combo and a red top.
Naruto gazed at her figure as well, noting that she had 'filled out' in the way that Pervy-sage had described on their journey. Naruto closed his eyes for a second, trying to clear out any perverted thoughts that plagued his mind as he walked over to meet his girlfriend who was slowly pacing towards him.
"You look…" They both said at the same time, making each other giggle.
"You go." Naruto eased.
"No, you should go." Sakura replied back.
"Fine, you win." Naruto said with a defeated smile.
"You look beautiful." Naruto said as he leaned down and placed a tender kiss on the pink-haired girl's lips.
"I've been waiting three years for that." Naruto said with a gentle smile.
"Me too." Sakura said, echoing his smile.
"Hey there lovebirds." Jiraya said, butting in on their conversation making the two teenagers glance at him with awkward looks.
"Pervy-sage, go away!" Naruto groaned.
"Naruto…" Jiraya replied over dramatically, feigning and injury to his heart.
"Did you need something, Jiraya-sama?" Sakura replied through gritted teeth, trying to keep her composure.
"Ah yes, The Hokage has asked for our presence immediately. I'm heading there now with Kakashi; I'll see you two there." Jiraya said as he gave Naruto a pat on the back and winked at him, making Sakura ball her fists.
Sakura snaked her arms around the blonde and encased him in a tight hug as she pushed her head to his chest ever so slightly, sighing as she felt the familiarity of his warmth and safety return to her.
"You have gotten really tall." She said, poking his forehead with her finger.
"You've gotten really pretty." Naruto said with a smile.
"So I wasn't pretty before?" Sakura replied with a pout.
"N-No I didn't… I-" Naruto was trying to explain himself before he looked down at the giggling girl in his arms.
"I know what you meant." She said gently as she stood on up her toes and planted a quick kiss to his lips.
"We should go, I think three years is a long enough time to make Granny wait." He said as he released his arms from her slender waist.
Sakura giggled before nodding, "You're probably right." She said she linked her hands before they both proceeded to the Hokage's office.
"So, any updates on the Akatsuki?" Kakashi said as the two were walking down the empty street.
"We learned that Naruto isn't their only target. They're after each of the nine jinchuriki's power and have already made capture attempts on each of them, we are still lacking a motive behind it all though." Jiraya said.
"I see. And how has Naruto been?" Kakashi asked.
"He's grown up, he's much stronger now. I'd assess his skill level to be at around the level of a mid to high level chunin." Jiraya replied.
"That's not what I meant." Kakashi said, a more serious tone in his voice could be heard.
"I know." Jiraya sighed. "The seal Minato placed on him is weakening due to his excessive use of the nine-tails chakra. I noticed when we were bathing, some of the imprints that were originally on the seal have faded. I have it within good belief that Naruto can now acquire up to four-tails if pushed to that limit, as opposed to his previous one tail." Jiraya said as Kakashi nodded in response.
"So, I gather each tail weakens the seal significantly?" Kakashi replied.
"Yes, it seems that way. When practicing chakra control for the rasengan he suffered severe chakra depletion that's when things got a bit out of hand, he sprouted two tails when I was napping. He suggests that it happened subconsciously without his control; I managed to suppress the chakra with a paper seal. I don't know what'll happen if nobody's around to control him though." Jiraya said with hands in his pockets as they approached the doors to the Hokage office.
"You're being awfully quiet, are you sure you're ok Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked, looking over at her boyfriend who looked like he was in deep thought.
"Narutooo" Sakura called out as she clicked her fingers, breaking him from his trance.
"Sorry Sakura-chan, I must've zoned out!" Naruto lied though a fake smile.
Sakura looked at the boy, "Naruto. I've been training with Tsunade-sama for three years. I can pick up when somebody is lying." She said sternly before pausing and stepping in front of him.
"If you really love me, you need to start telling the truth. We're meant to take on each other's burdens. That's what love is." She said, giving him a reassuring smile as she ran her hand across his jaw.
"Those nightmares I told you about all those years ago? They returned a little while back, maybe 3 months ago." Naruto said, meeting her emerald gaze with his cerulean one.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Sakura said, squeezing his hand.
Naruto nodded faintly as the two sat down under the shade of the blooming cherry blossom tree as Naruto cradled Sakura in his arms.
"This is nice." Naruto said as he tried to distract the girl from the matter at hand.
"Not gonna work." She smiled at him and he gave her a defeated look.
"It's the same dream, all the time. Like it's on loop or something." He paused, "I just keep… killing." Naruto sighed as his chin rested atop Sakura's head.
"Does it scare you?" Sakura asked.
"Sometimes." Naruto responded forthrightly.
"When?" Sakura asked, continuing with her questioning.
"When it's somebody important to me." Naruto said, gently tightening his grip on Sakura to assure that this was real.
"Sometimes it's just a random person then?" Sakura asked.
"Sometimes… and sometimes it's Mika-chan, or Granny, or Juro-sama, or Iruka-sensei... sometimes it's still you." Naruto said as he felt Sakura freeze up a little at his words.
"Do you regret it after?" Sakura asked, changing the position they sat in so she could look him in the eyes.
"So much. even if it's just somebody that I've never met before." Naruto said, tracing circles on Sakura's hand.
"Good." Sakura said, making Naruto look at her with a confused expression.
"Good?" Naruto said as he cocked his head to the left slightly.
"This. You talking to me about this stuff. It's good." She said, hugging him.
Naruto smiled and leaned into Sakura's hug. "Yeah, I guess it is pretty good." He replied warmly.
"We should get going; we can talk about this later ok?" Sakura said, standing up as she helped Naruto to his feet.
"Wow, you're strong Sakura-chan." Naruto replied with a mix of happiness and fear in his voice.
"I'd hope so. I've been training non-stop to keep up with you after all." She said with a grin.
"I guess we should be keeping a closer eye on him." Tsunade said as she took the report from Jiraya's hand.
"My thoughts exactly." Jiraya agreed.
"Tsunade-chan, may I make a request?" Jiraya asked the blonde Hokage who obliged with a curt nod of her head.
"Grant Naruto the chance to test his skills for the rank of chunin. I estimate his skills to be far above those of a genin; plus it would make sense for him to be the same rank as the rest of his class after all." Jiraya said.
"You really believe he's at that level?" Tsunade asked as she looked at the grey-haired man that stood before her.
"Of course, I trained him after all!" Jiraya said as he gave the Hokage a proud smile.
"Granny Tsunade!?" Naruto shouted from down the hall, making Jiraya's proud smile deflate.
"It seems you haven't trained him in manners though…" Tsunade replied with annoyance as she pinched her nose.
"Baa-chan!" Naruto exclaimed once more as he opened the door, Tsunade could see Sakura with her head hung down in embarrassment over her boyfriend's outbursts.
Tsunade's annoyance changed to a small smile as she inspected the blonde before her, he truly had grown up over those three years – physically atleast.
"Ah, yes. Welcome back brat." Tsunade said, trying to hide the grin that crossed her face.
"So, why did you want us all here anyways?" Jiraya asked, looking around the room at Sakura, Naruto and Kakashi who was leaning against the window excitedly reading a copy of his latest book in the make-out paradise series, which Jiraya thought was his best work to date.
"Well, you're right Jiraya. We should evaluate Naruto's skills and see exactly how he matches up to our leaf village shinobi." Tsunade said, looking at the blonde boy in front of her with a smile.
"Sakura and Naruto, you will be facing Kakashi in a two-on-one battle." Tsunade said, looking at the masked jounin.
"But Baa-chan, we'll wipe the floor with Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto complained.
"Don't be so sure of yourself Naruto." Kakashi said with a smile visible through the fabric of his mask.
"Kakashi-sensei's right Naruto-kun, he's an ex-ANBU black-op. It won't be easy to defeat him." Sakura said, trying to reason with her boyfriend.
"Alright then, you're on Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto said, pointing to the Team 7 leader.
"Hm, meet me at our old training grounds tomorrow evening." Kakashi said as he jumped out the window, eager to finish off Jiraya's new work.
"I guess it's settled. We'll see you all tomorrow for evaluation." Tsunade said, dismissing the group of ninja before her.
"Oh, look at how big you are!" Mika cooed as she reached up and pinched his cheeks.
"Mika-chan, you're embarrassing me…" Naruto muttered as he looked at his giggling girlfriend.
Mika smiled and gave Sakura small hug as she motioned them both to sit down at the table for dinner as she listened to Naruto recount his day to her and Juro.
"So, you think you can take ol' Kakashi then?" Juro said, looking at the two.
Sakura opened her mouth to say something but Naruto cut her off with his typical response to any challenge, "Of course we can beat him!" Naruto exclaimed as he gave Juro a thumbs up.
"I'm sure you both can." Mika chimed in with a smile as she placed the food down onto the table.
Naruto smiled giddily as he began devouring the meal at great speed. Instant ramen was delicious but nothing compared to a home cooked meal by Mika-chan!
"So, am I still welcome to live in my old apartment Mika-chan?" Naruto asked as he looked at the brown haired woman who smiled and nodded.
"Of course, I cleaned it up a bit when we got your last letter. We even brought you some food since we thought you might be hungry." She said as she looked at Naruto who was smiling gratefully at the two landlords.
"You guys are really the best, I promise I'll repay y-"
"It's not a big deal Naruto-kun, I promise. Think of it as a homecoming gift." Mika smiled.
"You know you can't change Mika-chan's mind once it's set boy." Juro said as he stifled a laugh.
"Yeah, you're right." Naruto said with a gentle smile.
It was a nice dinner, Sakura smiled as she watched Naruto converse with the two like they were his parents which when she thought about it – they kind of were. She had a solemn look on her face for a little while as she thought how hard it must be not even knowing who your mother and father even were but smiled again when she realized that Naruto atleast had people that loved him when she was foolishly ignoring him.
Once the dinner was over Sakura and Naruto retreated back to Naruto's apartment to inspect it, waving goodbye to the two hospitable landlords as they left up the staircase.
"It looks just like I remember it." Naruto said with a happy grin.
"Yeah, it looks good." Sakura said as she turned around but didn't see him there.
"Naruto-kun?" She called out but didn't get a response, making her worried. Sakura walked around the apartment for a while with nervousness coating her face but let out a relieved sigh as she saw Naruto in his bedroom… looking at the wall?
"Naruto-kun?" She said quietly as she approached him hesitantly.
"They must've caught wind that I was returning." Naruto said with a sad smile.
What Sakura saw next made her sick to her stomach. Naruto's bedroom window was smashed through with what looked to be a brick, his wall had been recently painted on with black paint. The painted words read out 'Stay away demon, you are not welcome here', making Sakura's heart sink.
"Naruto-kun, I-"
"No it's alright Sakura-chan. I'm used to it." Naruto said as he left for the kitchen to get a few sponges and a bucket.
"He's used to it?" Sakura thought as she saw Naruto enter the bedroom once more, she walked over and grabbed a second sponge as she helped him rub the graffiti off the wall.
"It's ok Sakura-chan I can do i-"
"What did you mean when you said you were used to it?" Sakura asked worryingly.
Naruto sighed, "Ever since word got around that I lived here people started doing this when I was out on a mission." Naruto said as he continued scrubbing with no emotion on his face, like he didn't even care about this.
Sakura dropped her sponge and walked up behind her boyfriend as she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her head lightly into his back, feeling his muscles move as he continued to scrub.
"I-I'm sorry…" She whispered softly.
"You're not to blame." He said gently, trying to ease the pink-haired girls guilt.
"Maybe, but I still can't help but feel I was part of this group once. The ignorant people who treat you like dirt." She said as she tightened her hold around him.
"But you're not anymore." He said as he finished scrubbing the wall, he placed the sponge inside the bucket and then turned around to face the pink-haired beauty in front of him.
Sakura smiled as she stood on her toes to plant a kiss to his lips. Naruto smiled as they broke from the kiss and moved to grab the cleaning supplies before Sakura's voice hesitantly called out to him.
"N-Naruto-kun?" Sakura said nervously.
"Sakura-chan?" He responded, looking over at the green eyed girl who had a slight red flush across her face.
"Would you mind if I stayed here for the night? It's too late go walk back to the other side of the village and I'd really like to get good night's sleep" Sakura asked.
Naruto's eyes widened, "The night… with Sakura-chan…?" Naruto's lips tried to move but he couldn't find the words. He simply nodded a 'yes' in response to the girl in front of him.
"I guess I'll go shower first, don't peak or do anything perverted!" She warned.
Naruto sat down on the bed, never in a million years did he think Sakura Haruno would ask to 'sleep' at his place. He was broken from his thoughts as he heard the shower begin to run. He walked past the door and blushed as thought about the sight that would be lying beyond the door but shook it from his mind as he prepared his overnight couch bed for himself.
Ten minutes later Sakura nervously called out from the shower, getting Naruto's attention. "Sakura-chan, are you alright?" Naruto asked.
"Umm… I don't really have anything to sleep in, Naruto-kun." She said awkwardly.
Naruto's eyes widened at what she meant, "OH!" He exclaimed as he quickly rushed to his room, looking for anything for the girl to wear.
"This will do!" He quietly said to himself as he pulled a shirt and a pair of boxer shorts out of his travel bag.
Naruto knocked on the door, getting Sakura's attention. "Sakura-chan, I'm going to put my arm in there ok? I have some clothes for you. I promise I won't peak." He said as he carefully slid the door open.
"I wouldn't mind if you do…" Sakura thought before shaking the perverted thoughts from her head as she grabbed the t-shirt and boxers from Naruto.
The black shirt was really too big for her. Then again, Naruto had gotten much taller so it made sense. She slipped the boxer shorts too, they felt nice – she smiled at Naruto's kindness and made a note she would thank him later for lending her some clothes in absence of her own.
Sakura yawned tiredly as she emerged from the shower before signalling to Naruto that it was his turn, once both of them had finished their nightly rituals it was time to go to bed. Naruto and Sakura sat on the end of the bed in silence before Naruto decided to speak up.
"Well, goodnight Sakura-chan." Naruto said as he got up and kissed her on the cheek before preparing to leave the room, as he was about to leave he felt Sakura reach out and grab him.
"Where are you going Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked.
"To the couch?" Naruto replied, confused.
"Naruto-kun, we've been dating for over three years now. I think it's okay if we sleep in the same bed." Sakura said as a light blushed crossed her face, meanwhile Naruto looked as red a tomato.
"A-are you sure Sakura-chan?" Naruto spluttered out, look at the girl who was trying her best to remain composed.
"Y-Yeah, just don't try anything perverted. Ok?" She said as she stood up and slipped under the blankets.
Naruto faintly nodded as he too picked up the blanket and moved under it, a blush still coating his face.
Sakura rolled over and locked her green orbs with Naruto's blue ones and smiled gently at the boy, "Just because I said you couldn't do anything perverted doesn't mean we can't be close Naruto-kun." Sakura said as she scooted over incredibly close to the boy and pressed her back to his chest as she grabbed his arms and wrapped them around her waist. Sakura smiled at the relaxing warmth she felt in his presence. Naruto too acknowledged that this position made him feel nice, like he was protecting her. They snuggled closer and they both attempted to drift off to sleep.
"Naruto-kun?" Sakura quietly called out.
"Hm?" Naruto groggily responded.
"Nightmares aren't real. And you're not a murderer. You're the furthest thing from one." She said rubbing her hand across his larger one.
"Thanks Sakura-chan. I'm fine now." Naruto said with a tired smile as he drifted off to sleep.
"Naruto… are you really fine?" Sakura thought to herself before letting the exhaustion of Naruto's homecoming lull her to sleep as well.