DISCLAIMER: No matter how much I want it, I do not own Naruto. I am still only borrowing the characters and promise to return them in good condition – well, maybe slightly battered!

Chapter Seven:
Worst Day Ever

I've been watching, I've been waiting
In the shadows for my time
I've been searching, I've been living
For tomorrow's all my life
~Rasmus~

As Sakura trudged up the steps to her apartment, she searched her pockets and then her bag for the keys. "You've got to be kidding me!" she exclaimed as she realized that she didn't have it. She began to knock on the door in hopes that Ino might actually be at home, but quickly came to the conclusion that she wasn't at there.

"Just great," she muttered, banging her head on the door in disappointment. She had really been eager to get clean and thanks to Kakashi for putting those seals on her windows, there was no way that was going to happen anytime soon.

The door behind her opened and she turned around to see Naruto silhouetted against the frame. He gave that special grin that always managed to lift her spirits and said, "Sakura-chan, you're finally back!"

"Oh hi. Yeah, I just got in. Have you seen Ino, by chance?"

"Mmm," he said, scratching his chest. "You know, I think she took the day rotation this week at the hospital." He glanced at the clock on his wall and nodded, "She should be on her way home real soon. What's the matter, are you locked out?"

With a slight pink tinge, Sakura admitted, "I think I lost my key."

Naruto opened his door wider and said, "Come on in, you can wait for her here."

"Oh, um…" Sakura took a step forward and hesitantly looked around. "I don't want to be a bother if you have a um… 'lady friend' here."

"There aren't any." He gave Sakura an intense look, one that she had only seen in the heat of battle.

"Any what?" she asked softly. Her stomach fluttered and her skin grew warm under his gaze.

"Lady friends."

"Lady friends?" repeated Sakura distractedly. God, what's wrong with me? This is Naruto. Don't think about all those dreams… don't think about how soft his lips look or how his eyes crinkle when he smiles, or how warm his hands would feel on my skin…

"I said that I'm no longer seeing anyone."

"Oh… That's… good," she whispered, and his eyes jerked back to hers in surprise. He caught the tiny smile on her face as she walked into his apartment, leaving him grinning like a fool.

He shut the door and took a deep, calming breath. For an instant he felt like his twelve-year-old self again - easily excitable and impulsive. That just wouldn't do. Not now, not here with her. He had to remember his plan…

"You could never be a bother, Sakura-chan. There's no one here but us. Sasuke left early this morning for his mission and still hasn't finished yet."

Naruto said mission with a twinkle in his eye as he winked at her. Sakura giggled. "He's still not liking those D ranks is he?" she asked innocently even though she knew better.

"Nope," said Naruto, stretching the word and letting the P pop at the end. "But that's all about to change real soon."

"Oh?" she said curiously, "Why's that?"

"Because he might be allowed to go on a B rank mission real soon. I'm going to talk to Baa-chan tomorrow about it. I think it's time for the rules to be eased up a little. He's been home a year now and has been a good boy."

At Sakura's lifted eyebrow he amended, "Well, good for him anyways. Have a seat and I'll get you something to drink."

"Thanks, water will be fine."

Sakura set down her bag, walked over to the couch and made herself comfortable. She glanced curiously around the apartment. Obviously there were some benefits to Sai and Sasuke as his roommates. The place was clean. A half-finished painting was sitting on an easel. Sakura got up to take a closer look. She was studying it when Naruto walked back into the room.

"It's pretty," she said, still staring at the moonlit scene.

"It's beautiful," corrected Naruto softly, staring at her.

She turned with a smile to take her drink and her eyes rose to his. There was an intense look on his face - hot, captivating, and so sensual it went right to her core.

And there it was again, those dreams of him flashing through her mind; their limbs entwined in an intimate dance, fingers caressing each other everywhere, and… Afraid that he would see what she was thinking, she blushed slightly and quickly looked away.

When she looked again, his boyishly charming smile was back in place. Thinking her imagination was just running wild, she moved back to the couch and sat down while Naruto slowly followed.

They spent the next twenty minutes telling each other what they had been up to during the last two weeks, but the entire time Naruto seemed distracted. Finally she had to ask, "What's wrong? And don't tell me 'nothing' because I know you better than that."

"Well actually… there is something I want to tell you." Naruto cleared his throat and stood up. He began to nervously pace the living room. "Sakura-chan, I want you to know that…"

"Yes?"

"Well… umm… You see… damn, your eyes are pretty."

"Um, thank you?" Sakura gave Naruto a strange look. There was definitely something wrong with him, if she didn't know better she would have thought he was anxious. That was ridiculous of course, because Naruto was one of the most confident shinobi she had ever known. She waited another couple of seconds for him to tell her what was on his mind, then tried to help. "Was there something you wanted to tell me," she prodded.

Sweat broke out on his brow. "Yes."

"Well, what is it? I'm listening."

"Well, you see… Um… How did your mission go?"

"I just told you all about it," she said slowly. "What's really bothering you Naruto? You can tell me anything you know. That's what friends are for."

"Yeah… friends…"

Naruto walked back over to the couch and sat down next to her. Strong, tanned fingers reached out to curl around her hand. His skin was cool, but it managed to send a flare of heat racing straight to the pit of her stomach. "Sakura-chan, I wanted to tell you that…" he began to say.

The door suddenly opened and Sai came in holding Hachiko. Naruto leapt up and hastily backed away.

"Ah, there you are, Hag. I found your… well, what I am assuming is a feline, in the bushes outside. I know you have some sort of attachment and intense feeling of deep affection for this odd creature so I captured him for you. I feel I must inform you that this is the ugliest creature I have ever seen. Did you by chance happen to smash his face with a blunt object?"

Sakura didn't even blink at the horrible nickname he had bestowed upon her long ago. Instead, her eyes lit up at the sight of her beloved pet. "Oh thank you, Sai!" she exclaimed as she reached for the cat. "I can't believe he got out. I would have been so upset if he got hurt while I was gone. And he's not ugly. All those battle scars are marks of valor."

Naruto stared hard at Sai, trying to make him understand without words, that he needed to go away. Sai was clueless. Figures.

"Oh my god, what is that smell?! Hachiko, what did you roll in?" Sakura jumped up and sat the cat down. "It's all over my clothes!"

"Don't worry, Sakura-chan. I'll take care of it for you. You can take a shower here."

"But all my clothes are dirty."

"That's okay, you can use some of mine. I don't want you to have to wait until Ino gets home."

"Are you sure?

"Yeah, it's no problem.

As soon as Sakura left, Naruto eyed the cat. With a disappointed sigh, he ran his fingers through his hair and said, "You're helping me, Sai. You just had to pick this moment to come in, huh?"

"I do not know what you're talking about, Dickless. I had just returned from my mission. Where else was I supposed to go but home?"

"Never mind." He took a long look at Hachiko and commented, "Wow, that is one… don't tell Sakura, but I agree with you. That really is the ugliest cat I've ever seen." He bent down to pick it up, but he laid back his ears and hissed.

Sai cocked his head and furrowed his brow. He gazed at Naruto with a questioning look. "Are you sure it is even a feline?"

"So… um, Sakura-chan, I didn't know you liked cats," he said, ignoring Sai as he heard her enter the bathroom.

From her bedroom she called out, "Well, I admit I've never been much of an animal person. I'm much too busy to be able to take care of one, but Hachiko has really grown on me. Ino said he followed her home and well… we can't just rid of him now."

"That reminds me," he said with a twinkle in his eye, "What do you say to a dog when you hear it Meow? Get that cat out of your mouth!"

Sakura was just taking off her shirt when she heard the comment. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. At times, Naruto's humor left much to be desired.

Apparently Hachiko was not amused. He growled loudly and took a step towards the Jinchuriki.

Naruto backed up. "Um… nice kitty…?"

Hachiko jumped up on the side table, plopped his butt down and stared at Naruto, growling low under his breath. "Not good," he thought. "Nice kitty," he said soothingly, "Sai will clean you up and you'll feel much better." The cat continued to growl menacingly.

"Me? Why would I cleanse that animal? You told the Hag that you were going to do it."

Naruto glanced around as the feline hissed. He took a few steps back. "Well, look at him. You know how some animals react to me. Come on, do it as a favor for me."

Sai studied Hachiko doubtfully, who was now swiping his claws at Naruto.

"Nice kitty, pretty kitty... Be a good boy now," said Naruto nervously. "Help me Sai!"

"I believe that the saying 'I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine' fits the current situation rather appropriately."

"Shit!" exclaimed Naruto as he looked at the bleeding scratch on his arm. "What the hell? Are you psychotic or something," he muttered under his breath. Not taking his gaze away from the advancing cat, he agreed, "Fine, whatever you want. Just tell me and I'll do it."

The cat responded by taking a step closer, giving another growl and then a rather threatening hiss. Naruto slowly eased further away and said with a frown, "Bad kitty."

"So what will you do for me?"

"Um," said Naruto, thinking quickly, "How about from now on whenever we go out I'll warn you if a girl is really a lady-boy?"

…

…

"Okay-okay…" said Naruto with a pout and a roll of his eyes, "before you take her home with you."

"That is acceptable," said Sai, scooping up the now purring cat and taking him into the kitchen.

As the door was swinging shut, Naruto caught a glimpse of a paw lifting off Sai's shoulder, and he could almost swear the cat flipped him off… after giving him a rather smug look.

"I don't know a lot about cats, but somehow I don't think it's normal for them to act that way," said Naruto to himself. He sat back down on the couch in frustration and thought about what had almost occurred. If Sai hadn't walked in he would have told Sakura how he felt. He would have just blurted it out like an idiot… like some… some pathetic loser. 'No, Sakura deserves better. I've got to make her see that I'm not some jerk. I've got to prove to her that I am the man for her.'

He ran through many scenarios in his mind until he figured that the best time and place would be during their mission together - if she would accept it. He had just come to that conclusion when all hell broke loose.

The kitchen door opened and an angry ball of wet fur raced through the apartment and launched itself at him. Razor, sharp claws pierced his leg as it attached itself to him, and then higher as it climbed to his thigh and bit out a large chunk of flesh, and then…

HOLY MOTHER OF ALL SHINOBI!

White, hot needles of pain consumed his entire being. All other injuries he had ever suffered before paled in comparison to this. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. Time stood still.

His bedroom door opened. "Could this day get any worse?" thought Naruto with a sinking heart.

Apparently it could.

Sakura came running into the room at the sound of her pet's enraged screams and saw Naruto's hands around the cat's neck. "What are you doing?!" she yelled as it sailed across the room and into Sai's arms. "Did you just throw my cat across the room?!"

Naruto stood there with his mouth hanging open and bleeding profusely. He quickly denied, "It wasn't like that, Sakura-chan, I swear. Your cat attacked me."

"So you tried to kill him?!" she screeched. She ran over to Sai and snatched the cat out of his arms. She held him close and tried to sooth him, but Hachiko would have none of it. He struggled to be free, bit her, and ran from the room to hide under Naruto's bed where he promptly peed.

Sakura turned to him, fury etched on every line on her face at his treatment of her pet.

"I can explain!" said Naruto with a slight whimper. Oh god, it burns, it burns! Will this pain ever end?!

"Perhaps you should listen…" began Sai.

"I swear I didn't try to kill him…"

"You had your hands around his neck!"

"To keep him away from my face," stuttered Naruto. "I panicked. He dug his claws into my…"

"You threw him across the room…" said Sakura with gritted teeth.

"Maybe if you would listen to Naruto's explanation…"

"Get out Sai! This is between me and Naruto!" It was said in such a threatening tone that Sai weekly mumbled something under his breath, grabbed his bag from the floor, and walked into the kitchen. As soon as the door slid shut she turned to the blond and demanded, "You can explain how you tried to kill my cat?"

"It was an accident, please, I'm so sorry…"

"You have three seconds before I kill you," growled the enraged girl.

"Sakura… please… Calm down."

"Calm down?!" she shouted in disbelief. "Calm down! I will not calm down. I won't ever be calm again."

"Uh, maybe some sake will help." He started for the door, limping heavily and grimacing with every step. At once, a hand holding a bottle shot into view in the doorway and Naruto grabbed it. Sai stayed discreetly out of sight. And range.

"Sake? You think sake will help? A whole bottle won't be enough to calm me down. I would have to be completely drunk and passed out, and even then my lifeless body would still be twitching in anger!"

From the doorway, Sai's disembodied hand appeared again and offered two glasses. Naruto took them gratefully, moved to a table and poured a glass. "Baa-chan says that a little bit of sake helps her think more rationally."

He cautiously held out the glass. She snatched it from his hand, downed it in one swallow and clenched her teeth. Eyes narrowed and flashing dangerously, she hissed, "I am rational."

Naruto carefully took the glass from her fist and refilled it. "Listen, Sakura, I swear it wasn't like that. Your cat freaked out. He must have sensed Kurama; a lot of animals do. He attacked me and he stuck his claws in my…"

"Your what?

"Umm… never mind."

Sakura instantly remembered the Tora mission from when they were genin. He was right… animals did seem to have an unusual amount of hostility towards him. She calmed down a little, but was still a little doubtful. He only had a few scratches - less than when they sparred. She marched over to him and shouted, "Look, I can see the scratches on your face and arms Naruto Uzumaki. But that still doesn't justify trying to kill my cat."

"It wasn't my face I was worried about!" he shouted back without thinking and then after realizing that he raised his voice to her, said more calmly, "Look, I really am sorry, Sakura. I wouldn't hurt your animal on purpose. I lost control and just panicked," he admitted with a shamed look.

"Well, I'm very sorry he attacked you. He must have been very scared." She eyed his pant leg which had several rips and a small bloody stain. She began to feel guilty and more than a little embarrassed at her pet's behavior. "Why don't you show it to me so I can heal it."

Yup, this had to go down in the history books as the greatest, most humiliating day of his life. Naruto's face turned bright red and he said, "Um.. It's okay… really... You don't need to see it."

"I do need to see it," she insisted. "I feel bad. It was my cat that attacked you so let me heal it for you as my way of saying sorry."

"I can't. I mean I would show you if I didn't think that it would piss you off even more."

From beyond the door, Sai's voice floated out, "Just show her your injured penis so that she will forgive you for attempted murder and so that I can come out of the kitchen."

"What!"

Sai stuck his head out of the door and said, "His dick, wang, ding dong, chubby, cock, manhood, member, prick, rod, sword, third leg, winkie, purple headed meat hammer…"

"SHUT UP, Sai!" they both shouted in exasperation.

"God, what have you and Sasuke done to him?" Sakura turned bright red and stuttered, "Wait - you mean he attacked you in your… umm, he sunk his claws into your…?"

Too late, Naruto made a grab for Sai's arm, his expression warning of dire retribution as the artist opened his mouth again. "Tonsil-tapper?" he offered helpfully before ducking a hurling kunai and then hastily retreating back into the kitchen.

"Oh my god, Naruto, I'm so sorry Hachiko clawed you in the… Um yeah… I'll… uh.. I'll just… um yeah, you know I think I should probably go now."

Sai called out, "You might want to get your feline neutered. That should even out his temper."

Sakura left so fast she forgot her cat… the cat that was currently on his bed, in his room (which now smelled like cat pee), covered in feathers from his destroyed pillows, and shredding his blanket.

Is that cat puke?

Yup… worst day ever…

AN:

Thanks to everyone that followed/favorited/commented on the last chapter!I just wanted to say that I would really appreciate some comments right now…not that I'm begging for reviews - a PM would be fine. It's just that I am stuck on the next chapter! I'm usually 2 - 3 chapters ahead. Your reviews and PM's always encourage me and help me write. Don't worry - I know where this story is going, I'm just stuck at the transition chapter and have been for 2 weeks. First I thought it would be pretty cool to do a chapter with Naruto dumping his harem, but I had difficulty writing it. Anyways - I didn't mean to write this huge Author's note so goodbye for now!

This weeks recommendation is From the Heart by thunder3swords: Based after the war - Sakura gets on with her everyday life and reminisces about past events. She has several encounters with friends and a certain hero, helping her to make a decision about her future.

Also, I know I already recommended Digifruit's work, but The Promises we Exchanged that Day is one I wanted to personally urge everyone to read. It's beautiful and sad and wonderful...When the leaves change color for autumn, bright orange clothing doesn't seem like such a dumb idea for camouflage anymore.

Ja Ne,

AZFAERYDUST