Disclaimer:…Do you honestly think I'd say I own Naruto?
Warnings: Humane!Kyuubi and bad puns.
They say he wears his heart on his sleeve, but Sakura thinks that there's something wrong with that expression. Naruto's heart is not that easily won. He gives affection freely, but affection is different than love, and it is not the same.
On the other hand, Naruto's emotion shows itself in every wrinkle on his face, on every curled finger on his hands. When Naruto gets upset enough to cry, he doesn't tear up silently. No, Naruto snuffles and winces and turns red and his tears are large and snotty in nature. When Naruto gets happy enough to laugh, he doesn't chuckle gently. Naruto laughs obnoxiously, irritatingly smug and occasionally terrifyingly devious. But when Naruto laughs, it's a good bet that he's got something to be happy about. And when Naruto gets angry, he yells.
Loudly.
Sakura is sure she's never met anyone who could yell quite as loud as Naruto, and privately, she's glad. The yelling is actually good, a signal that it's still Naruto in control and that a centuries old monster isn't about to be released to wreak havoc on the world. When Naruto goes still and silent, it's then that Sakura takes her cue to run for it.
She doesn't know Kyuubi, has never met the fox demon outside of a battle situation, and even then, it's not like he's coherent. She's heard from his host, though, that he is actually quite intelligent, if a bit bloodthirsty, and Sakura wonders if it says something odd about her when she realizes that she'd like to meet him. The knowledge he could—and must—hold is enough to overcome her terror.
It is many years later when Sakura finally does meet Kyuubi, and somehow he is both everything and nothing she ever hoped for and feared. He is surprisingly calm when his host's life isn't being threatened, and his anger at being contained has slowly dissipated into a great sadness. Naruto has told her that the seal on his stomach binds the fox to him forever, that it is a life-bond, created by the sacrifice of the Fourth.
She didn't really think about it then, but now that she's talking to him, she realizes that it means he will die when Naruto does, and for a demon who's used to being closer to divinity than any other creature on the planet, that's a terrifying thought. It doesn't change his arrogance, or his scorn for humankind in general, but Sakura is startled by the softness in his mountain-shaking rumble when he speaks of his jailer, his killer. There are many reason she can think of for this—Naruto is irrepressible, and perhaps it is grudging admiration for him that shows itself as kindness. Kyuubi laughs in her face when she suggests it.
It is nothing like having a true child, kin through blood, but it's the closest he's ever going to get at this rate. Horror flashes through Sakura's mind, because how could the monster ever think of sweet, clumsy Naruto as a son? But then she thinks about it, and it starts making sense. Naruto is blunt, forthright, and there isn't anything he prizes more over loyalty to his friends. It is intriguingly different than the lone terror that threatened several countries, and Kyuubi admits that. More than that though is that Naruto doesn't see Kyuubi as a monster, or as a handy source of power and invincibility to be exploited. Naruto sees his tenant as a sentient being, wildly powerful but still a creature with feelings and with thoughts—more complex than the boy's own more often than not.
It doesn't really matter, Sakura supposes, and instead of being glad when the mock-interview is over, she bows, deep and solemn, to the giant fox trapped in a human's body. Kyuubi studies her for a moment, then inclines his head, a sovereign's acknowledgement of his subject. A flicker, and then Naruto's back, and he's looking more serious than she's ever seen him. Naruto wraps his arms around her, and Sakura sniffles.
She'll talk with Naruto for hours, and then she'll go home, and write down a story. The story of a god. The story of a demon. The story of a creature with a sadistic streak and an odd sense of humor, a sense of justice and a blood lust that has lasted centuries. She's planning on calling it Tales of the Fox. Naruto is the first one to laugh at the pun.