Title: About Love

Summary: How he was dragged into this, Sasuke will never know. But after watching Sakura play matchmaker, he might just ship them a little more.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Prompt: The student becomes the teacher.

Warnings: None

Comments: Contains KakaShizu.

It started the way it must: with an overly cheesy love confession and a punch to the face. The entire hospital was in an uproar when its Medical Director was serenaded by no less than thirty gruff, tough shinobi. As the last chords of the rather grating piece rung through the halls (now lined with people, much to her embarrassment), the entire choir disappeared in a puff of smoke. A single shadow was barely distinguishable in the white cloud, but a few things were certain: it had spiky hair and a bouquet of roses to boot.

With a sweep of his hand, the smoke dispersed, and the man bent on one knee, arms extended. Gasps rippled through the hallway at the familiar face of—

"In the time that I have known you, I've come to realize that you are a beautiful, sweet, and caring woman. I swear I love you. Would you go on a date with me, Shizune?"

––Kakashi.

"EHHH?" Shizune's fist connected with Kakashi's face, sending him flying backwards. "WHY WOULD I WANT TO GO ON A DATE WITH A PERVERT?"

And with that, she hurried back into her office and slammed the door. Sakura, her second-in-command, was quick to herd everyone else back to their respective stations.

"Oh, sensei," she said quietly when she came to him. He was clutching his bloody nose with one hand, expression perplexed and not a little stunned. Helping him to his feet, she led him to an examination room. "Let me see. You might have a broken nose, and I'll check your head for a concussion."

The broken nose was healed within minutes. Teacher and student regarded one another with an air of calculation.

"Icha Icha?" she finally asked.

"Aa."

"That was stupid," she snorted.

"It worked for the main character in the book," he shot back.

"That's because it's a book, Kakashi-sensei. Next time you want to try asking her out, you should talk to me."

"Thanks for the offer Sakura, but I think I'll pass."

"Suit yourself."

In the following months, Kakashi went through hair-brained idea after idea to ask Shizune out. It was as if he had reverted back to a teenager with the grandeur he carried out every event. And truly, they were all events. There was the time when he pretended to need CPR in the hopes of getting a kiss from her. Or another time, he transformed himself into a box in an attempt to land himself literally into her arms (she figured the trick out and had a burly security officer open it for her. Neither Kakashi nor the security guard were particularly happy with the outcome.). His efforts were so terrible, that besides being outraged that he was hitting on her adopted daughter after his first stunt, Tsunade generally heard tales of his exploits with a loud burst of boisterous laugh.

"How's your pursuit of Shizune-senpai going?" Sakura asked as Kakashi sat down at Ichiraku.

"Just fine," he said gruffly. The last few months had taken their toll on him. His arm was currently in a sling from the bout with the security guard, and what little could be seen of his face was a pallet of purples and blues.

"That's not what Shizune-senpai was telling me," she said derisively.

Immediately, Kakashi looked up hopefully. "She talks about me?"

"Only to complain or beg me to get you to stop." Kakashi wilted again. "You should've taken my advice in the beginning," Sakura sniffed.

"I think I've learned my lesson already not to trust my students for help," Kakashi muttered.

Several seconds of silence passed before his words sunk in. "EHHH? YOU'VE BEEN GETTING HELP FROM NARUTO?" she shrieked.

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto twitched from Sasuke's other side, obviously affronted by her complete derisiveness. "I'm the only one of his students who actually has a girlfriend! Who was he supposed to ask?" he snorted. "Sasuke? Teme is like a rock, the leeches come to him, not the other way around."

"He could've gone to ME!" she said in utter disbelief.

Unseen by her, Kakashi and Naruto traded a look. But Sasuke saw it, and he frowned at the exasperation and sadness conveyed in the simple gesture. "But… But you're a girl, Sakura-chan! You wouldn't understand!" Naruto spluttered out quickly.

"SO WOULDN'T I UNDERSTAND SHIZUNE-SENPAI BETTER THAN YOU, BAKA?" she exploded at his face.

"These techniques are guaranteed to work," Naruto whimpered in fear. "They're how I won Hinata."

"Hinata was already in love with you! Baka! All you needed to do was stutter out a half-assed request for a date! Also, Hinata is a teenager! Shizune-senpai is a respected adult! They're two different cases!

"But you know what, I can tell you don't believe me. Kakashi-sensei, I dare you—next time you approach her, do so discreetly, and apologize for all the ruckus you've been causing. If she doesn't treat you any better, then fine, I was wrong. But if she does," and here, Sakura pushed herself up until she was centimetres from Kakashi's face, "then you owe me big time."

"Why am I here?" Sasuke grumbled as Sakura pulled him into another open exam room.

"Because you have nothing better to do," she said, peeking out into the hallway. "Okay, knowing Kakashi-sensei, he'll come just as she's about to leave, that lazy bum. I need you to change into a nurse and keep an eye on her door. Let me know if you see anything."

She was about to leave when Sasuke caught her wrist. "Why does it matter to you that you're right?" he demanded.

She refused to look at him as she said, "You wouldn't understand."

As she predicted, Kakashi appeared in front of her door at five thirty sharp. By then, Sakura had finished her rounds and was hiding with Sasuke inside an office room. Despite himself, Sasuke was curious to see what would happen. He wondered if Kakashi would take Sakura's advice and if he did, whether it would work.

"What are they saying? I can't see anything!" Sakura whispered.

"I can't hear either. He's speaking very quietly to her, but he looks embarrassed," Sasuke replied. "She looks really uncomfortable now. Now they're laughing at something. I don't understand. Sakura? Sakura?"

The girl had stopped trying to see over him and had now simply leaned back against the wall, mouth curved into a happy smile. "I told him," she whispered to no one in particular. "I told him."

Neither of them were surprised when Kakashi came to the ramen bar the next day and sat next to Sakura. "She accepted my apology," he said in wonder. "And she even let me walk her out."

"It worked?" Naruto demanded in disbelief. "B-b-b-but Sakura-chan—"

"Is a woman, and I know how women act," Sakura said smugly.

"I… don't understand," Naruto muttered. "All those strategies were from Ero-sennin."

"Who was a man. Moreover, he was a man who had never been in a committed relationship his entire life, who had to pay women to even approach him, and who spent his free time disrespecting women. Yes, your role model is definitely the world's expert on women!" Sakura said sarcastically. Naruto still looked confused, but before she could lecture on, Kakashi interrupted.

"Maa, don't hold this over my head too long, Sakura. Okay, what do I need to do to win Shizune over?"

"Okay, so…" and she pulled him closer and began to whisper into his ear.

"Naruto-kun, why are we hiding behind some bushes?"

"…"

"Naruto-kun?"

"Because I lost Kakashi-sensei to Sakura-chan, and if I lose, we don't have to eat at Ichiraku for team meals anymore," he said sourly.

"Oh," Hinata trailed off quietly. "Ano, look! Sasuke-kun and Sakura are over there on top of that roof!—" She was forced to break off when Naruto lunged forward in an attempt to get at his rivals, prompting her to hold him (and his noisy temper tantrum) down and out of sight, "—I can see Kakashi-sensei!" she said urgently.

From her point above, Sakura watched with satisfaction as Kakashi led Shizune to the restaurant. The two adults were conversing animatedly, and she was happy to note the smile on Shizune's face.

Sasuke observed her gentle smile with curiosity. "Why are you so invested in Kakashi's love life?" he asked again.

And perhaps it was her heady triumph at the moment but she glanced over at him thoughtfully. "No one takes me seriously, because of how I was when I was younger. Among our friends at least, whenever someone has a romantic crisis, they always go to Ino. I just wanted to show them that I know what I'm doing. I always have."

Later that night, Sasuke lay in the dobe's spare guest room, pondering her explanation. The double meaning there was intentional, he was certain of it. However, a more pressing question consumed his mind: was she right?