The winter mission
Chapter 2
"Guys, I'm starving! When are we going to take a break?!"
" It's not as if we ate just one hour ago, you moron!" – exclaimed Sakura and kicked Naruto with a loud bang.
"Ouch! You didn't need to use that much force Sakura-chan!" – yelped the blond rubbing his sore head.
"It seems you are lucky, loser"- Sasuke interjected looking toward seats where Sakura and Naruto were located – " because a map shows that our apartment is just 500 meters away."
"Yay, food!" - Naruto yelled, almost hitting Kakashi who sat next to Sasuke. However, the perverted jounin was too occupied reading the newest chapter of "Icha Icha Paradise" to pay attention to Naruto's outburst of happiness.
Few minutes later, mules, which were pulling their wooden vehicle through the forest, stopped.
" We arrived." – a driver, man in his late forties, announced. The trio was slowly coming out of the truck while Kakashi stopped to pay.
Winter was severely felt in this part of the country, considering they were on the not so low mountain. Sakura strongly pressed her jacket around herself, hoping it will warm her enough until they come into heated rooms.
She didn't have long to wait though – soon, she saw before herself small, but appealing apartment. It had three floors, the central one even a balcony.
"Nice house" – passed through her head.
At the reception they were met by a tall man with a kind expression on his face.
"Welcome to Fairy Tale. My name is Gradimir, I'm the owner of this place. A few days ago I received a notification from the Leaf village, in which I was told you are coming." – he said politely.
"So I prepared you rooms opportunely." With that being said Gradimir put on the reception desk two pairs of keys – blue and red.
"Red ones are from the lowest apartment, and blue from the central."
"Thank you. I will take the red one." – replied Kakashi and took the key from the desk.
Now I'll be able to reed "Icha Icha" at some rest – he thought mischeviously.
"Kakashi-sensei!" – Naruto yelled like a madman – "Wait for me! I'm sure I will get some ideas from that book of yours for improving my Sexy no Jutsy double-quick. We'll have some great time, I bet on it!" – Naruto was grinning from ear to ear as he grabbed another red-colored key from the reception desk.
"Too quickly" – sighed Kakashi.
While Gradimir watched the scene with a mild surprise, Sakura tapped her forehead. "What an idiot."
At that moment another thought struck her.
" Wait, if Kakashi and Naruto are going to be in the same apartment - that means I'm going to share a room with Sasuke-kun!" Her cheeks received pink color at that knowledge. She stole a glance at him, but his expression was just as passive as ever. She quickly tried to composure herself, not wanting Sasuke to see that this event caused a thrill in her.
"Unlike him" – passed through Sakura's mind with a hint of sadness.
For three years, while Sasuke had been absent from the village, she tried to strengthen herself. She was aware that she was of a little use at that time. Because of that, she spent countless hours studying medical literature, helping in the hospital and refining her shinobi skills.
Even so, she couldn't shrug off the only remaining weakness from the old days – Sasuke.
She thought her feelings would change over time, transform into deep friendship, but that wasn't the case. Her love for him just became more mature, peaceful – she dropped that clingy behavior when she's around him. But she couldn't bring herself to stop harboring romantic feelings for the respective Uchiha.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Sasuke who wordlessly took their keys and climbed the stairs which led up to their room.
"G-goodbye Gradimir, see you tomorrow! – Sakura stuttered and accompanied Sasuke to the second floor of the house.
"Bye!" - the pink haired medic heard the owner's voice before Sasuke opened the door of their apartment. When Sakura entered the room, it became clear to her why this place bears the name "Fairy Tale".
On the walls, which were painted in a light brown color, hung light bulbs shrouded in elegant white lampshades. On the left side of the door was a small kitchen, and next to it hung a code of conduct in this place. It forbade smoking, as well as noise in hours reserved for resting.
In the center of the apartment was placed a spacious couch, and across from it stood a small wooden table with an embroidered handkerchief on the top.
However, the biggest part of it occupied a fireplace. It was huge and bordered by black bricks.
On the right side of the apartment was a door which led to a balcony filled with a big table and benches on the both sides of it. Ultimately, in the corner of the room, were placed a bedroom and a bathroom.
It was a décor – a mix of old and new times which Sakura found astonishing.
" The name really suits this place." – she commented in awe.
"Hn." – a little smirk made it's way on Sasuke's lips.
"This place is freaking cool, don't you think so guys?!" – Naruto squealed entering the room of his teammates.
" This time I'm gonna have to agree with you" – Sakura smiled.
"Well, as we saw our rooms, I think we can go to dinner now!" – announced Naruto leaving Sakura's and Sasuke's room, not giving them the time to object.
(In the nearby restaurant)
"Gradimir is a really weird name, ne ya?" – Naruto asked no one in particular, waiting for his ramen to cool down.
"It is indeed…Maybe we should ask him tomorrow about the origin." – replied Sakura curiously.
"Hmpf." – the raven haired chunnin made a noise in the back oh his throat.
"What is it, Sasuke-kun"? – Sakura questioned softly.
"It's stupid of you to think about such trivial matters." – he replied blankly.
A pained expression flew over Sakura's face, before she replaced it with a calm one.
"Well, Naruto and I are interested and we are going to ask him." – she commented putting emphasis on the last part of her sentence.
Sasuke just raised his eyebrow a bit, before continuing to eat a sushi.
Kakashi noticed a sudden change in the mood, so he took over – "Calm down, kiddos. We are here to investigate disagreements between the two most influential businessmen in this region. Tomorrow we have a meeting with Kimura in his company and we'll discuss the details of our cooperation."
"And now, back to the food" – he said contentedly.
Sakura's mouth was shaped in a slight "o" when she saw the sight in front of her. In Sasuke's and her bedroom was just one bed. Double.
"Well… Sasuke-kun… I don't really mind sleeping on the couch." – she said preparing to live the room with her belongings.
"No." Sasuke's steady voice stopped her in her tracks. "I'm going to sleep there." With that being said, he calmly passed beside Sakura going to the living room.
"Oh, okay…thanks." – she replied, but Sasuke already closed the door.
To be honest, she didn't expect him to show his gentleman side. Besides, there was no real need for him to give up the bed, it was enough for the two of them.
However, Sakura was glad that she wouldn't have to sleep next to Sasuke. At only a few centimeters from him. She was sure he would be able to just sense her nervousness.
With that thought on the mind, Sakura took her nightgown and went to take a much needed shower. After all, it was a long trip today.
A/N: Actually, I based the look of "Fairly Tale" on the real apartment which is located on a mountain Tara in my country. Here you can see pictures of it:
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