Hey everyone! It's been a while. Sorry for the long wait to get this chapter up, but school has taken so much of my time. You know when I was reading fanfiction I used to wonder how school could have that much effect on someone's writing and always thought it was a way to excuse their laziness. Well boy was I wrong! School is a huge time consumer! Well, here's the next chapter. Please enjoy and make sure to read my comments at the bottom. Thanks!

Chapter 2

Time Skip 2 Weeks

She still couldn't believe he left. He was really gone, she even gave Naruto her first kiss. It wasn't a true waste, Sakura could feel all of Naruto's bottled up love released for a few seconds when he kissed her back.

She knew he loved her, and she felt horrible for not apologizing to Naruto after the incident in the Land of Iron. The plain truth was that she just didn't love Naruto, yet she found herself longing for another kiss.

She felt like she didn't deserve him anyways, "Why does that idiot love me?"

Sakura held her tears from her eyes, trying her best to not let them fall into the cooking pot. She was preparing ramen for a lunch date she had with Sasuke. She knew that the fact she chose to cook ramen was a direct result of missing Naruto, yet she chose to make it anyways.

"Naruto." she thought. "I miss you." Sakura heard knocking on the door and to no surprise found Sasuke on the other side. Sasuke lately had been her comfort. She noticed how ironic it was to have Sasuke comfort her and Naruto leave. Her two teammates had literally switched places.

However, it wasn't the same. Sasuke comforted her by listening and understanding, while Naruto would do both but also make her laugh and brighten up her day.

"Hey Sasuke." greeted Sakura. "Good afternoon Sakura." replied Sasuke. "Come in, the food is almost ready. Please, sit down."

Sakura served the food and watched as Sasuke took a bite of her ramen.

"Do you like it?" asked Sakura. "Yeah, I like the saltiness aspect you added." Sakura realized that her attempt at keeping the tears out of the meal was unsuccessful.

"Thank you." she said. They ate their meal in silence until Sasuke spoke up, "What's wrong Sakura?" Sakura had barely touched her food. All she could think about was Naruto's goofy face as he ate ramen at Ichiraku's. She missed it.

"Sorry, it's just that all he...all he ever ate was ramen you know?" choked Sakura.

Sasuke knew that she was sad but all his attempts to make her feel better didn't work too well, but this time he was determined to cheer up. Sasuke stood up from his chair and walked over to Sakura, who was staring at the bowl of ramen.

"Sakura." he says. She looks up and emerald eyes meet dark ones, but it felt awkward to her. Those eyes are so black and dark and cold. "They're not warm like his." thought Sakura.

Then suddenly, Sasuke closed the distance between their faces and kissed her. Sakura should have been elated, but she just wasn't. She kissed him back, hoping to feel love and happiness swell up in her heart. She tried so hard, but this kiss was different.

When she kissed Naruto, she felt sparks and love emanate from him. With Sasuke's kiss she felt that he truly had feelings for her, but the there were no sparks and it left her unsatisfied. She couldn't stop though. Despite the fact that she missed Naruto, Sakura couldn't stop. She deepened the kiss, desperately searching for something.

She was looking for one sign, any sign, that would tell her she truly loved Sasuke. She didn't find it.

When they broke the kiss Sasuke hugged her and confessed to her, "Sakura Haruno, I love you. I'm so glad you return those feelings too. I was afraid you wouldn't love me after all that time."

"Yeah, I love you too." managed Sakura. "Do I really love him? Why does this feel so wrong?" she asked herself

They stayed hugging like that for what seemed like hours until Sasuke had to he left, however, Sakura fell to her knees and cried. She didn't know why, but she couldn't stop.

Time Skip 1 Year - (Couples emerge: Shikamaru and Temari, Choji and Ino, Sasuke and Sakura, and Lee and Kurotsuchi)

It was a beautiful Friday morning. The birds were singing, the sun was shining, and there wasn't a single cloud in the sky, which made the 6th Hokage dread the fact he had to stay indoors and complete his neverending pile of paperwork.

"Ugh, It's such a nice day and I'm stuck in here finishing all this stupid work." complained Kakashi. "I could be outside reading up on the Icha Icha series. Its been so long since I've had any free time." Kakashi exhales loudly and closes his eyes, attempting to reach some tranquility. His peace is interrupted when he hears a knock on the door. He sighs.

"Enter." he says. The door opens to reveal his favorite pink-haired kunoichi. "Ahh, good morning Sakura. What brings you here today?"

"Hey Kakashi Sensei! Well I figured that since it's such a nice day today I'd invite you to join Sasuke and I for some training." said Sakura

"Ahh that's right! You and Sasuke are dating aren't you?" asked an interested Kakashi

"Yeah, just recently actually." blushed Sakura as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Sakura had just recently growing her hair out again. She figured she'd make it longer for Sasuke and because she missed her long hair.

"Well thank you for your offer Sakura, but I'm afraid I'm stuck in here until I finish this." The Hokage points to the massive stack of paperwork that sits on his desk and sighs."Thank goodness Naruto is solving so many political dilemmas or else there would be so much more work to do."

"What? Naruto is solving things?" asked a surprised Sakura. "Yes, as a matter of fact he just got that pesky priest in the Village Hidden in the Petals to stop accusing us of poisoning his daughter. Turns out that she just ate some flower that promotes stomach aches. Frickin idiots."

Sakura chuckled at her Sensei's comment. "So he's really doing well huh? He's spreading peace wherever he goes." said Sakura while staring out the window. Kakashi notices this and decides he can spare some time for his student. "Sakura sit down please." She looks at him confusingly, but obeys.

"Tell me Sakura. Did you thank Naruto yet for bringing back Sasuke yet?" asked Kakashi, catching Sakura off guard. "Of… of course! I mean I ate ramen with him and kind of implied it know?" stammered Sakura.

"No Sakura. Have you genuinely and personally thanked him yet? He is the one who worked for years trying to make you happy." Sakura paused and looked out the window again. A solemn look plastered on her face as if she were reminiscing about something.

"No sensei, I haven't. I mean, I've tried I really have, but how do you say thank you to someone who spent 5 years of his life trying to fulfill a stupid promise you practically forced him to make?" asked Sakura. "A simple thank you doesn't really cut it…"

"Sakura, this is Naruto we're talking about. He doesn't need anything special. Tell me, have you apologized to him about what you said in the Land of Iron?"

"No, but I-"

"You said you loved him, yet when he brought Sasuke back you completely ignored him and now you're dating Sasuke…" interrupted Kakashi. "No, it's not like that! I've just been getting to know Sasuke better, I've never ignored Naruto!"

"Maybe ignored isn't the right word, but you've spent a considerable less amount of time with him since he brought Sasuke back right? asked the gray-haired Hokage. "Yes…" managed Sakura.

"How do you think that looks to Naruto? How do you think it makes him feel?"

Then, realization hit Sakura like Tsunade's chakra enhanced fist. She realized that everything she failed to say to her blonde jinchuuriki affected him greatly. She finally connected the dots. The reason why Naruto never attended Ino's get-togethers, why he always had a glum face when he looked at her and Sasuke, and why he left… She realized that she pushed Naruto out of the village. Yes, he left to train and promote peace, but he needed some space. He couldn't bear to see her and Sasuke together anymore.

She began to think about their kiss. That amazing kiss which still made her feel tingly to this day. Why couldn't she stop thinking about it? Why was it so much better than Sasuke's? "Wait, did I just say Naruto's kiss was better than Sasuke's?"

"Sorry Kakashi Sensei I gotta go!" Sakura ran home without stopping and without looking back, charging through unlucky villagers who got in her way. When she arrived she went straight to her room.

"Sakura are you home? I've baked-" Mebuki's sentence was cut of by the slamming of Sakura's door.

Sakura threw herself on her bed, buried her face into her pillow, and cried. It had been a while since she cried because Naruto left, but at the realization that she was partly to blame for Naruto's departure made her feel sick inside.

"Please come back Naruto. Thank you for saving Sasuke and I'm sorry for my false confession!" said Sakura as tears feel from her face and soaked her pillow. However, her apologies weren't heard by anyone. She'd have to wait until Naruto returned from his journey.

She slowly began to calm down and found herself dozing off. She thought about Naruto and her eyes gradually fell on his lips. She dreamt about the kiss over and over, but every time they kissed, Naruto would push away and leave. Was she having a pleasant dream or a nightmare? Why couldn't she stop thinking about that kiss!?

Suddenly Naruto became an image stood there hanging in the air. A strong breeze blew Naruto away and replaced it with Sasuke. For some reason Sakura stood there in fear. Sasuke unsheathed his sword and thrust it into Sakura. "I love you." he said as he kissed her on the lips. His breath was cold, his sword was cold, his eyes were cold, everything about him was cold.

Sakura woke up with a scream and drenched in sweat. Panting she stood up and walked to bathroom. She stared at her reflection and for the first time questioned her feelings.

Days went by, and Sakura and Sasuke furthered their relationship. They had only kissed three times, but for some reason to Sakura that was three kisses to many. She had continued to have the same nightmare and for some reason they wouldn't stop. She'd always wake up screaming to the face of Sasuke. She longed for Naruto, but something kept her attached to Sasuke. She was happy with him and convinced herself she loved him, but that nightmare kept haunting her.

Ever since she had that nightmare Sakura would always whisper something before going to bed. "Naruto, please come back." but just like her apologies, her words weren't heard.

Time Skip 2 Years

Today was the day. He was finally returning. Sakura awaited by the gates with glee hoping she could see Naruto, apologize, get some closure, and stop those terrible nightmares. Though she did wonder how he would react to her and Sasuke living together. Just a couple months ago Sasuke had asked her to live with him and she accepted.

Hopefully he got over her during his travels, but did she really want that? When it came to her feelings Sakura made it a habit to begin telling herself lies such as, "I love Sasuke, I don't have feelings for Naruto, I don't prefer Naruto's kiss over Sasuke's."

She stood there for hours and wondered why he hadn't returned yet. He couldn't be dead because she had been hearing rumors of all the amazing feats that the Great Naruto Uzumaki had accomplished. One could say that Naruto's peacekeeping journey was a success. He solved many political problems and took down quite a few rogue ninja. In truth, all she ever heard of were great stories of her blond teammate. "Then why is he late?" she asked herself.

Sakura looked around her and saw all of her friends wondering the same thing. She took a moment to see how much everyone had changed these past 3 years. Everyone was promoted to jonin and changed their outfit to suit the more mature versions of themselves.

Ino still wore purple and still showed her belly, however her bottom piece is longer than before.

Shino wore a green jacket like piece of clothing with black pants, and wore silver eye gear.

Rock Lee wore the same stupid green jumpsuit as always, and Tenten kept her white clothes.

Temari had come to live in the Leaf Village after her engagement with Shikamaru, who wore a gray tinted white jacket and grew a goatee.

Kiba now gelled his hair back, also grew a small goatee, and wore an unzipped jacket similar to the one he wore as a genin.

Hinata hadn't changed much. She was no longer as timid and shy as before and was a great shinobi.

Choji remained the same kind and plump Akimichi they all loved, and his relationship with Ino was going fantastically from what Ino told her.

Then there was Sasuke. In Sakura's eyes, Sasuke looked absolutely stunning. His face matured and he wore a purple cloak like top which hid Kusanagi well. He also put his hair over his left eye which covered his Rinnegan.

Sakura had worn her clothes to fit that of a shinobi and somewhat a maid. It was perfect for her shinobi missions or just relaxing at home. Also, she now held her hair up with a white handkerchief and still wore her black pants and red top.

She was happy that everyone had matured more, however, everyone was silent. They were all waiting anxiously to welcome Naruto back, but where was he?

(I don't really like having to describe clothing so basically everyone looks the same as what Kishimoto did. Same thing no real or drastic change.)

"Where is that knucklehead?" wondered Sakura

POV Change - Naruto (3 days later)

"So that's everything that happened Pervy Sage. Well, it was nice talking to you again old man. Catch ya later!" Naruto was on his way back to the Leaf Village and decided to tell his old master all about his travels and keeping the peace. He was a few days late, but he was sure nobody would mind.

"Man, I could really go for a bowl of Ichiraku Ramen! It's been forever since I've had some!" Naruto walked pass the village gates, making sure to greet Kotetsu and Izumo, who looked baffled at how much he had matured. Naruto had changed his clothing quite drastically. He didn't wear a jump suit, however he still kept the orange aspect. It wouldn't be Naruto without orange right?

Naruto's hair was shorter and he now wore an orange jacket zipped to the collar. The jacket had black highlights and stripes which made it look like Naruto was part tiger. He also wore black pants and black shinobi boots. Finally, he now held a black steel sword, which hung on his back, and everything except the hilt was covered by a white cloak. His cloak had red flames at the bottom similar to that of his father's. His right arm was also covered in bandages up to the shoulder, a consequence of intense training. (Have you seen how grownup Naruto looks like in the manga? HE LOOKS EPIC!)

Naruto held his hands behind his head as he walked to his favorite ramen stand. He couldn't help but chuckle at the all the heads of women he was turning. Everywhere he looked he saw girls drooling over him.

"So this is what Sasuke felt like when we were genin." thought Naruto.

When Naruto arrived to the ramen stand he inhaled 10 bowls of ramen, caught up with Teuchi and Ayame, paid, and left with a full stomach.

"Man that was soo good! Alright, time to meet up with Kakashi Sensei." He had a slight problem though. News spread fast in the village and soon there was a mob of women rushing towards him.

Naruto sighed in annoyance and threw a three-pronged kunai to the top of the Hokage tower. At this point all the women were throwing their panties and bras at Naruto. He hid his blush and used his Flying Thunder God Jutsu to teleport on top of the Hokage tower.

He took a moment to look over the entire village. It changed so much. He could see buildings that were built in areas where there was nothing but trees, new shinobi training grounds, and more. The sight took his breath away. There was more than one moment where Naruto felt homesick, and now he finally returned.

After watching the village Naruto walked to the office of the Hokage, bust open the doors with a mighty slam, and yelled, "I'M BAAAAAAAAAAACK!"

Kakashi almost pissed his pants at the sudden entrance his student had made. He sat there for a few seconds with a confused expression and blinked his eye a couple times to make sure his mind wasn't playing tricks on him. He stared at Naruto, who had spread his legs out and held his hands out in a surprise gesture.

"Ehh, Sensei… are you gonna say something? My arms are getting tired…" complained Naruto

Kakashi quickly regained his composure, changed his expression, and flash his famous one-eyed smile.

"Well, its nice to have you back Naruto Uzumaki."

"HAHA! Believe it!" exclaimed Naruto.

Author's Notes:

Hey everybody! First things first, thank you to everybody who left reviews and constructive criticism. I'll use it to improve my writing.

Well here is chapter 2. I don't feel too happy with this chapter, but leave your comments and tell me what you think.

A couple things I want to address:

I kind of just threw in couples in this story. This is a NaruSaku story so I didn't really find it fitting to describe the relationships of the other ninjas in detail.

Lots of SasuSaku so far, but I want to promote the feeling that Sakura is lying to herself. Sorry to those who don't like SasuSaku.

Sasuke truly loves Sakura. I won't say what happens because even I don't know, but be assured that this is a NaruSaku story, and Sakura won't just be able to change her feelings, land a relationship with Naruto, and everything will be all fine and dandy. Sakura needs to experience some consequence for her blindness and stupidity lol.

Sorry for all the massive time skips. Maybe in the future I'll change that, I'm not sure.

I know Ino and Choji had to be separated because of the whole InoShikaCho thing, but I couldn't put Ino and Sai together or Choji and Karui because I hate those couples. Lets just say that love trumps all.

No homosexuality will be in this story. I am neutral to the topic, but I don't think that homosexuality should be present because I'm trying to make the story somewhat appropriate for all ages.

Also, I'm having trouble with the next chapter and I want your opinion. I have been thinking about including a fight scene in chapter 3, however, I have realized that a lot of the jutsu's that I've "created" have come from other Naruto fanfictions I have read. Should I maybe try to rename them, or give credit to the other authors by stating that jutsu is not my own creation. Any help would be great.

Besides that, thanks so much for reading and have a fantastic day!