OOC: Fluff alert. Read at your own risk.
"Seriously, nii-chan…" Kaori sighed accusingly, turning herself in the direction of the lightly ajar bathroom door. "Why you do you always forget these things?"
"Mah mah, gomen." Came the unruffled reply. "You see, I had a sudden episode of memory loss-"
"-that somehow miraculously disappeared right when you got into the shower, I know." Kaori finished, shaking her head. "Unfortunately for you," she continued with the hint of a smile as she made her way back to the kitchen, "my hands are a little full right now."
Sakura watched with a small grin as the siblings bickered. They looked so happy, even if not expressed explicitly, to have each other as company. In some way, the pink-haired kuniochi was convinced that she had managed catch a glimpse of their rather harmonious private life together. Strangely, Sakura felt privileged with this knowledge, even happy, to a certain extent, that she was the only one at that moment to witness such a tender interaction between two normally very guarded and reserved individuals.
"I-I can do it." the words flew out of her mouth before she could properly register just what it was that she had agreed to do.
"Wonderful." Kaori replied, being particularly mindful to hide the smirk that was once again, threatening to bubble to the surface. "I should have folded some sets for him earlier when I did the rest of the laundry. They should be in the second drawer of the dresser that's to your left once you go through the door to nii-chan's room." She continued to instruct, although with her back towards Sakura. This was done on purpose, because Kaori knew full well that if she turned to properly engage her friend in conversation, all of her previous self-control efforts would be put to shame at once.
Nonetheless, Sakura was not exactly clueless either. As she got up from the sofa, the younger kuniochi could not help but feel that the older female must have been laughing at how red her face had become.
Sakura amused him to no end, Kakashi thought as he waited patiently in the steam-filled bathroom. Only the pink-haired medic could recline into a man's touch in the morning and blush at the thought of bringing him a set of clothing that very same evening. However, Kakashi wouldn't say that he was innocent either…If the silver-haired jonin could, he would happily make seeing the Haruno girl's pretty face blush his new favourite pastime. (In addition to reading the Icha Icha series and being beat over the head by his lovely baby sister, of course.)
"A-ano…s-sensei." a shy voice sounded at the other side of the door. "I-um…I brought-eek!"
Sakura gasped as the wooden barrier that separated them suddenly flinging open, water vapour tumbling about uncontrollably. She took a step back, emerald eyes wide at the silver-haired jonin who stood in her view with only a towel wrapped around his waist. Unable to stop herself, she allowed her eyes seized his figure with a hunger unbeknownst to herself, tracing her gaze over every detail of his masculinity—pausing only to focus for a few seconds on the jonin's toned chest.
"Ah, you brought them." Kakashi smiled. He stretched his hand out for the clothes, and she, as if controlled by strings, released them with a body that did not quite feel her own.
"Sakura."
"H-hai…"
"Do you…like something you see?"
Emerald eyes widened once more at their sudden proximity. She could feel his breath tickle her neck and the sensation of lukewarm drops of water falling from the ends of his hair onto her exposed shoulder. Daringly, she allowed herself to nod: uncertain, nervous, but most of all, excited about the outcome of her courage.
A hint of understanding flickered in the male's eyes. "Well…I suppose I should thank you properly for your troubles." His smooth voice lulled, deep and charismatic as he closed whatever little distance remained between them.
Kami…he has such thick lashes and clear skin. Sakura thought as she felt slender fingers tilt her chin upwards. As if on instinct, her eyes fluttered closed as her soft lips came into gentle contact with his—cool, fine, and delicious. The kiss was tender and innocent, but luscious all the same—leaving the both of them breathless.
His maskless face was gorgeous—the epitome of perfection. If anyone were to reflect the centuries-old saying that age was just a number, Sakura decided then and there, it would have to be Hatake Kakashi. All of a sudden, she felt very possessive of her ex-sensei. The young woman pursued her lips. It would do just as well for him to hide his face in public…Sakura thought, as she didn't exactly want anyone else to know about the angelic features that rested beneath the thin cloth that separated him from the rest of the world.
His bare arm had taken this time to sneak around her waist, drawing small circles on the smooth surface of her clothed back. Sakura almost purred at the pleasuring sensation.
"Why the long face?" Kakashi mused against the side of her face, smiling at the shiver that ran through her body. She was still so young, and so inexperienced.
Nonetheless, Sakura had grown well, her body blossoming with succulent curves and soft skin that poised irresistible temptations when watching her train. As of late, even though the silver-haired jonin had caught himself looking at his previous student in ways that were totally different from when she was a small genin under his tutelage, he had kept his distance. After all, the last thing that Kakashi wanted was to coerce Sakura into any form of intimacy, or, kami forbid, a substantive relationship, against her will.
However…judging by the strength with which she drew him down into another feisty but shy kiss, whatever hesitations that Kakashi might have had about her reply were now the least of his concerns.
"Thank you for the meal!" five voices exclaimed in unison.
Kaori smiled ruefully at the enthusiasm with which Naruto and Sasuke ate, feeling just a little bit sorry that her nii-chan's training regimen has been so tough on those boys. The poor things looked like they hadn't seen a proper meal in years.
"You've really outdone yourself, Kaori." Itachi remarked with some tenderness in his normally composed voice. "It's delicious."
Across the table, Kakashi and Sakura nodded in agreement. However, Kaori was keen to notice that the elevation of their mood was a little disproportional to the pleasantness of the meal—something that she was sure that the older Uchiha had also taken note of.
"Seconds please!" both Naruto and Sasuke shouted at the same time, disrupting the calm flow of dinner conversation and thought.
"Naruto! Sasuke-kun!" Sakura glared at them. "You could at least give Kaori-chan a chance to sit down and eat!"
"Mah mah, gomen, Kaori onee-chan." Naruto was quick to make amends. "I finished it so quickly because it was just so tasty."
"Dobe," Sasuke drawled, taking advantage of the blonde's talkativeness so that he could be the first to get to the rice cooker, "don't repeat words over and over in the same sentence."
"N-NANI?! Sasuke-teme! You don't know anything!" Naruto bellowed. "I'm going to pound you!"
Kakashi sighed. While he was glad that the original Team 7 was back, he hadn't expected…well…THIS.
"They sure get along very well." Itachi noted with a blank expression as he continued to eat, seemingly undisturbed by the ruckus behind his back.
If you can call this "well"…Sakura thought as she gave a strained smile. "Y-yeah…I guess."
Kaori smiled teasingly. "Talk about spoiling your otoutou-chan, neh Ita-kun?"
"Now, now." Kakashi put his hands up in a pacifying gesture. "I don't need you two to roll around on my kitchen floor either." He gestured to the squabbling teenagers behind them with a slight nod of the head.
Kaori's eyes grew wide at the chaos that engulfed the world behind the counter. "Naruto-kun! Sasuke-kun!" She barked, hurrying to separate the two before they could continue expanding their destructive vortex of entropy. "Look at the mess you've made! Get to cleaning at once!"
"Ah." Itachi sighed. "It looks like Kaori taichou has finally erupted from her shell."
Kakashi chuckled in mutual understanding.
"Doushite?" Sakura titled her head curiously. "Is Kaori-chan normally like this when she is away on missions?" Somehow, she found that hard to believe of the woman who had taken the time to mentor and encourage her for the past five years.
"Iei…" Itachi replied, calmly taking a sip of tea, "She's always like this."
A sudden gust of chill seized the room.
"I.t.a.-k.u.n…" a voice sang sweetly behind him, "I heard that."
Whack!
Sakura sighed. As she look from Naruto and Sasuke, who had their jaws dropped all the way to the floor, to Kakashi, whose expression seemed to say that it could be a lot worse, a small smile began to rise at the corner of her lips. It was moments like these that reassured the pink-haired kuniochi that she and Kaori had become best friends for a reason.
OOC: Okay. I'm sorry, but I can't stop myself any longer. NaruSasu will be a thing now. I'm really sorry Hinata-chan! D: