Handsome water disregarder

The sand always reminded him of Suna, Suna who was lead by Gaara. Gaara, who was a dear friend.

But this sand made him think of Konoha. Konoha who would one day look to him as Hokage. Konoha who had water.

Water. Yes, water would be good about now.

Heavy padding too. To stem the impact of occasional punches, and therefore bruises. But then again the padding would make him hotter…and he'd long for water more.

He continued walking, hunched forward and gazing at the sand below him. Not looking up because then his eyes would meet the gritty substance.

Beside him, also bent in the same manner as he was Sakura chan.

Sakura chan was currently angry at him. For what reason? Simple. He had forgotten most of their water. And unknowingly drank their last canteen eight hours back.

So now he was thirsty. Sakura chan was thirsty. He was a dead man if they ever made it back. And Sakura chan would take great care of making him into a punching bag.

He trudged on, his sandaled feet sinking into sand at every foot-fall. He breathed wearily through the material of his raised jacket; he had lifted it over his mouth, nose, and ears when the wind had picked up.

Sakura chan had wrapped a scarf over her head and tied it to cover her mouth and nose. Her ears by default had been secured, and she wore medic goggles to protect her eyes. Unluckily she had only one pair, but Naruto would not have blamed her if she had actually lied and deprived him of them to make him struggle.

The mess they were in was his fault after all.

"Sakura chan?" he voiced suddenly, and in a very raggedy way. "How are you doing?"

She had to have been more thirsty than he, since it had been over twelve hours since she had drunk anything. 'All for the sake of even consumption,' she had reasoned…but that had been without her knowing that he had been stealing drinks the entire time. So when the time came to have a drink…there had been none.

She responded with silence, and then by falling over.

He rushed to her side immediately, surprised by how he managed to break his sluggish trail and move that fast.

He gathered her into his arms and situated her on his lap. "Sakura chan?" he said worriedly.

Her eyes did not open, and he pulled apart the scarf to release her mouth from the cotton confines of it. As he did so his jacket fell from his mouth and particles of sand flew in. He choked a bit, and coughed it out.

Her lips were dry and parched looking. "Sakura chan?" he said again, and this time her eyes opened a smidge. "Naruto?"

"Yeah," he affirmed. "That's me," he said, glad that she was okay to some degree.

"I'm so thirsty, you idiot," she breathed, and then began to close her eyes. Frantically he shook her as she did. "Don't go to sleep Sakura chan!" he exclaimed.

She obliged and he gazed at her frantically. Then she raised her hand, and he braced himself for the blow.

Except it never came. Instead she did something he would have never chanced to bet on. She traced her fingers over his jaw. "You're so handsome," she muttered, and he felt his heart race ahead, forgetting one beat.

"Sakura chan?"

"So strong, and such a handsome Hokage you'll be, Naruto," she said softly. "If only you weren't an idiot…"

She had trailed off and closed her eyes. He held her to himself, letting shock wash over him. Had Sakura chan actually called him handsome?

Suddenly there was a rush of wind, and he looked down to spare his eyes. "Naruto?"

He looked up, and saw Gaara standing over him, holding a bag full of canteens in his hand. The bag dangled in what he thought was a taunting manner. "Gaara," he said.

"You forgot something," said Gaara, and Naruto could see a hint of amusement in the way he said it.

"She," said Naruto, pointing to Sakura. "You won't believe it, Gaara!" he exclaimed. "Sakura chan called me handsome!"

Gaara raised an eyebrow. "Rest," he said. "A team of medics will be here soon."

Naruto blanched. "You don't believe me?" he asked incredulously.

"As I said. Rest," advised Gaara.

Naruto shook his head, and the motion thundered in his world. Soon everything went at hazy black, and sleep came for him.

"She called me handsome," he muttered in his dream, and Gaara sighed in the corporeal world. He hoped those medics would arrive soon, and get Naruto back to his senses.

He glanced to his friend's arms and found the pink-haired Kunoichi Naruto had been raving about. Right. Only in a delusion would she ever call his friend handsome.

---

"Sakura chan?" asked Naruto. "About before?"

"I know, Naruto," she said. "It wasn't your fault entirely. I shouldn't have let you be in charge of the water."

He glowered. "No, not that," he corrected. "I meant about what you said to me in the desert."

To his words she blanched, and then colored considerably. "Forget about what I said," she told him hastily. "It never happened."

His face dropped as disappointment began to weigh him down. "Oh, okay," he agreed.

The two walked steadily, Sakura ahead. In a few minutes they would be out of the forest, and a mile from Konoha's gate.

She stopped and turned, this caused him to almost run into her. "Don't," she said. "Don't make that face, it doesn't fit you, idiot."

He was confused. What face?

She reached out, and he instinctively shielded himself with his arms. "Oh," she said, sounding sad. "I'm not going to hit you." And she didn't. Instead she stroked his jaw, just as she had done before.

"Sakura chan?" he said uncertainly.

She smiled. "Don't look so put out," she whispered. "Handsome Hokage to-be."

With that said she retracted her hand and turned to continue back to Konoha.

"She did it again," he said to himself, and then broke into a wide smile.

Who cared if no one believed him. Sakura chan thought he was handsome.

An attempt at humor. Please don't kill me!

Also, anyone out there like IchiRuki from Bleach, if you do the check out Gathering Strawberry!

-cf-