A/N: Well, um, I sorta have to admit something. It's not really important, but… well, I have summer homework this year because when school starts in three weeks I'll be taking honors classes. And, heh, I kinda procrastinated on some of the projects, so while I should be working on them I'm kinda…updating this fanfiction. Yep, Mama might not be to happy when she hears that…
A Promise Made On A Sakura Tree
Chapter 6
When Sakura's parents found her that evening snoring with the pair of roses, they were very confused. Sakura, used now to lying, came up with a quick fib about how tired she was from training, and that these were the roses she had gotten for her parents.
"I thought roses came in bundles?" Mr. Haruno said, despite his appreciation of the parting gift.
"Um, they do, but on my way home…a villager attacked me and stole the others." Sakura said quickly before making an excuse to run upstairs. The next morning Sakura's parents prepared their departure just as the sun was rising. A yawning and bed haired Sakura stood in her living room, waiting until her parents had a moment to say goodbye.
"Suitcases are packed….you have the number for the hot springs we'll be staying at…I guess that's everything." Mrs. Haruno uttered as she turned to face her daughter.
"Have a good time you two." Sakura stifled a yawn and hugged her parents.
"Be a good girl while we're gone, okay?" Mr. Haruno ruffled his daughter's already messy hair and off they went. Sakura walked them outside and waved goodbye until her parents were tiny black dots in the distance.
'This'll be nice; I have the whole house to myself for the next couple of days!' Sakura thought as she rubbed the sand out of her eyes. There was no use going back to bed; she might as well get ready for the day. She turned away and moved to go inside.
'Huh? What's that?' Sakura noticed a folded piece of white paper lying under the welcome mat. She knelt down and unfolded the mysterious note.
"Dear Sakura-san, if you aren't to angry with my disgusting behavior, I'd like for you to swing by the shop today. I feel awful for how I treated you before, and would like to make it up. Hope to see you soon! Love from, Ino-san." Sakura read aloud, her eyebrows rising in surprise.
'Ino-pig wants to see me? This has to be a dream. But, I guess it couldn't hurt…' With a slight smile on her lips Sakura stood up, stretched, and hurried inside to comb the rat's nest out of her hair.
~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~
Sasuke pinched the bridge of his nose for what felt like the billionth time.
'How can one person be so annoying? We've only been at this for an hour!' he thought with an inward growl. Today was the day he was to 'hang out' with Naruto. They decided it would be acceptable to go see a movie. So far all they did was argue about which was better: pirate movies or ninja movies.
"For the last time Uzumaki-baka, pirate movies are better because we already are ninja. That takes the fun out of the action." Sasuke snapped in an exasperated tone.
"Duh, Uchiha-teme, everyone knows ninja movies kick pirate movies in the rear. It's an act of betrayal to like anything else! Besides, you just don't like them 'cause you don't have a killer side kick like Jackie Chan!" Naruto smirked at the black haired boy, knowing he hit a nerve. He paused for a moment, letting Sasuke seethe in anger.
"I bet Sakura-chan likes ninja movies better." Naruto added with an evil grin. Sasuke's shoulders tensed for a moment as he remembered his last encounter with his pink haired teammate.
"So?" Sasuke put his hands in his pockets and looked in another direction.
"So? So you like her, and you should care what she thinks." Naruto poked Sasuke in the chest, earning a smack across the head from the fuming Uchiha.
"I do not like Sakura-san." Sasuke growled, running a hand through his hair.
"Oh yes you do. Sakura-chan told me all about your guy's date!" Naruto chuckled and moved closer to Sasuke's face.
"Don't you want to know what she had to say about it?" Naruto ducked as Sasuke tried to deck him.
"Ah, watch that temper Sasuke-teme. If you don't want to know what Sakura-chan thinks of you, then that's fine. I'm sure Itachi-san would love to hear all about it." Naruto scolded, his sky blue eyes alight with enjoyment and mischief.
"You wouldn't dare." Sasuke stated, his voice dripping with acid.
"Try me." Naruto stuck out his tongue before turning to leave. Sasuke grabbed his shoulder and spun the blond around.
"Not that I care, but what did Sakura-san say?" Sasuke demanded to know, his usual antisocial casual-ness gone. Naruto pulled away and laughed nervously.
"Well, heh, the funny thing is, Sakura-chan really didn't tell me anything. But that proves that you do like her, and I know she likes you too. So you need to go ask her out while her parents are gone!" The blond boy rubbed the back of his head while Sasuke looked angry enough to kill a kitten.
'I can't believe I fell for such a stupid trick! Naruto-baka knows just how to push my buttons; I've got to put a stop to that.' Sasuke thought as he cracked his fingers. Naruto, sensing a well-deserved beating, quickly said,
"Okay, if you don't believe me, then I'll prove it." He sighed a breath of relief when he saw Sasuke drop his fists.
"Prove what? That you're an idiot?" The Uchiha boy looked up at the sky and wished he had stayed in bed.
"No, stupid. I'm going to prove to you that Sakura-chan likes you back!" Naruto grinned like an idiot at what in his mind was a brilliant plan. Sasuke glanced at his companion and shook his head.
'He just doesn't get it, does he?' Sasuke thought mutely.
"Well, what do you say? You game?" Naruto questioned, getting somewhat impatient.
"How do you plan to prove Sakura-san's non existent feelings?" Sasuke asked, knowing he wasn't going to like the response.
"That's the easy part; I heard from Ino-san that she was going to hang out with Sakura-chan today. While they're at the flower shop, we can sneak into Sakura-chan's house and find some proof. Sakura-chan is a girl; she must have a diary or something somewhere." Naruto was forced once again to duck as Sasuke sent another punch flying.
"You dork, I'm not breaking into her house!" The onyx-eyed boy hissed.
"Okay, fine. I didn't know the big bad Uchiha boy was afraid of a little love!" Naruto laughed. That was one step over the line.
"NARUTO-BAKA!" Sasuke hollered, his eyes glinting red with Sharingan. Naruto took a step back and gulped.
'Looks like my plan worked; but now I have a blood thirsty Uchiha on my tail!' Naruto thought as he spun around and fled. Sasuke chased after the blond, and Naruto had no trouble leading him to the Haruno home.
"Good, it looks like Sakura-chan already left!" Naruto yelled over his shoulder at his attacker. Sasuke skidded to a stop as he looked up at the Haruno house; it was one Konoha building he hadn't seen in nearly six years. The last visit didn't count; he hadn't had the time to get a good look at everything.
Naruto approached the frozen boy and lightly placed a hand on his shoulder, his face sympathetic. Sasuke remained silent for a full minute, and during the silence he stared at Naruto in mild surprise.
"Let's get this over with." Sasuke sighed before shrugging Naruto's hand away. The blond didn't seem discouraged at all; in fact, he was practically shaking with excitement as he moved to go inside.
"Wait, Naruto-san," Sasuke said suddenly before reaching out and tapping his companion on the shoulder.
"Huh? What's with the 'san'?" Naruto asked, his eyes wide with confusion.
"You like Sakura-san, right? Well why are you trying to get us together then?" Sasuke uttered, ignoring Naruto's question.
"Oh, that's an easy one. As much as I like Sakura-chan, I know she likes you better. It wouldn't be fair to make her have to choose between us. And, I've sorta been talking to Hinata Hyuga recently. She thinks I'm funny!" Naruto grinned sheepishly.
Sasuke didn't have a comment to that, so Naruto led the way inside. Sasuke was slightly relieved to see that everything seemed the same; there was the familiar couch in the living room, family photos on the walls, and the refreshing scent of flowers in the air...
'It's like I never left…' Sasuke thought as he took in the childhood scene.
"Alright Sasuke-san, lead the way to Sakura-chan's room." Naruto commanded as he put his arms behind his head.
"Why do I have to do it? This was your idea." Sasuke grunted, knowing it was pointless to argue. Naruto had never been inside Sakura's house; he had no way of knowing which room was hers.
So Sasuke led Naruto up a set of stairs and to the second door on their right. He stopped in front of her door and stared at the wood, his hands frozen to his side.
'I'm getting a bad sense of de ja vu…' Sasuke thought with a muffled sigh. How many times had he been in her room, all those years ago? Far to many to count, that's for sure.
"Hurry it up Sasuke-san; I don't know how long Ino-san will be able to keep Sakura-chan busy." Naruto hissed in the Uchiha's ear. Sasuke opened up the door to Sakura's room, and the first thing he saw was pink.
'Just as I remember…' Sasuke thought as he looked at the brightly painted walls with matching blush carpet.
"Whoa! So this is what a girl's room looks like!" Naruto pushed past Sasuke and began examining everything from the bookcase near the door to the wooden dresser near the bed.
"Alright, I'll look under the bed while you look through the bookcase and the dresser." Naruto declared as he got down on his knees. Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the bookcase.
'If we're looking for a diary, then Sakura-san wouldn't hide it here. Her nosy father would find it for sure. I suppose the dresser is a possibility…' He wandered over to the said piece of furniture and pulled open the top drawer. Without much thought to what he was doing Sasuke reached in to dig around.
His fingers closed around something soft, yet firm, and he pulled it out. When the Uchiha boy looked at the object in his hands, a brilliant scarlet blush crept up his cheeks. His breath caught in his lungs, and Sasuke had to gasp for air. He was holding up a black bra, the kind with lace around the edges.
And, like all teenage boys, a few thoughts came to mind relating the article of clothing in question to his pink haired teammate. Naruto, hearing the surprised sound, pulled his head out from the darkness.
"Sasuke-san, what did you- WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH THAT?" Naruto's eyes were as wide as dinner plates as he stared accusingly at Sasuke.
"It's not what it looks like!" Sasuke proclaimed, throwing the bra back in the drawer and slamming it shut.
"I didn't know you had such a nasty mind Sasuke-teme!" The blond boy said while shaking his head in disapproval.
"You had better hope Sakura-chan doesn't find out; you won't like her when she's angry." Sasuke shot a death glare at Naruto before turning away. He couldn't stop blushing, and to make matters worse he knew Naruto was right.
'If Sakura-san ever did find out…I'd be a dead man walking.' The black haired boy gulped before going to take another look at the bookcase.
"Hey, Sasuke-san, look at this!" Naruto pulled something out from underneath Sakura's bed.
"Did you know she had this?" Naruto asked, holding the mystery object out. Sasuke marched forward and ripped it out of Naruto's hands.
"What is it…?" Sasuke's voice trailed off as he saw the familiar photo. He was holding the same picture he had given Sakura back when they were still friends. It didn't look a day old; each flower was as perfect as the day he had picked them.
'Yamanaka-san must have had her parents use a jutsu to preserve the cherry blossom petals. But why would Sakura-san still keep it?' Sasuke thought as his fingers delicately examined the photo and frame. Naruto seemed to know what Sasuke was thinking.
"See, what did I tell you? Sakura-chan wouldn't have kept something stupid like this unless she really cared about you!" Naruto, convinced he was right, did a victory dance.
"I was right, you were wrong, ha!" Naruto sang as he pointed a finger at Sasuke.
"Shut up, baka." Sasuke growled as he put the gift back under Sakura's bed. As much as he hated to admit it, it seemed to him that Naruto was right. He thought finding out the truth would make him feel better, but found he now felt worse.
'Sakura-san…it can never happen. My family wouldn't allow it, and neither would yours.' To Naruto Sasuke motioned it was time to leave before walking out of his childhood friend's room. Naruto followed, shutting the door behind him as he went.
"Are you going to tell Sakura-chan you love her?" Naruto asked as he followed the Uchiha out of the Haruno residence.
"Hn." Sasuke replied shortly before walking away.
'Good luck, Sasuke-san. I don't know what you're planning on doing, but you'll need it.' Naruto thought as he watched his teammate disappear.
A/N: What's with Ino's strange note? Will Sasuke convince himself it's time to swipe Sakura off her feet? Could they pull a relationship off, considering the bad blood between their families? Find out the answers to these questions soon!
