6

Sweet

Sakura Haruno was walking through the streets of Konoha, carrying a red box in her hands.

It was a box of sweets, sweets for Sasuke.

"Yo, Sakura."

Sakura, who was lost in her thoughts, looked up. "Kakashi-sensei," she said with a smile. Kakashi stood leaning against the wall next to the entrance to a dango shop. "Hello."

"Where are you going?"

She lifted up the box. "To Sasuke's. I've got some home-made sweets for him."

"Oh," Kakashi pulled away from the wall. "Can I go with you?"

"Um… yes, of course, Kakashi-sensei."

She wasn't much excited about the prospect of Kakashi spoiling a possible nice moment with Sasuke, but it was less likely for him to simply snap her off with Kakashi around.

"I needed to talk to him, anyway."

Sakura nodded absent-mindedly.

Kakashi walked by her side, hands stuck in his pockets. "Why are you getting him sweets, by the way?"

Sakura blushed a bit. "I… um... I… happen to like Sasuke," she admitted.

"Oh…" Kakashi didn't seem a tiniest bit awkward about the way their conversation went. "I've noticed few hints."

"Oh."

"Like the looks you give him when he looks upset or angry."

Sakura looked at her hands clutching the box tightly.

"Or the sneaky touches of his shoulder or arm."

She almost regretted saying yes.

"Do you happen to have something licorice in that box of yours?"

She looked up, taking a bit off-guard by the question. "Huh?"

"Licorice," Kakashi repeated helpfully.

"Licorice?" She blinked and looked at the box. "Oh, yes, of course. Licorice, cinnamon, vanilla… all kinds."

"Do you like licorice, Sakura?"

"Why, yes, sensei," she replied, confused.

"Why? It's so bitter."

Sakura frowned a bit. "It is - on the first taste," she shrugged, suddenly having an obsessive feeling that she wasn't talking about licorice. "But then, when you taste more and concentrate on the taste… it's sweet. Not perfectly sweet like vanilla, not spicily sweet as cinnamon. Bitter, but sweet." She smiled slightly again. "Bittersweet."

Kakashi's eye crinkled. "Why not vanilla? It's simpler."

"Because…" She looked up at Kakashi. "Because when I try vanilla, it's not the same feeling that I have when I taste licorice."

Kakashi pondered about that for a while, as they slowly approached Sasuke's door. "So… you like licorice because of the bitterness?" he asked finally.

And Sakura smiled, smiled broadly, because somewhere inside she felt like one piece of the puzzle just snapped to place. Something found its place. She smiled and answered, the answer confusing her poor, silver-haired sensei even more.

"No. I like it because it's sweet."