Sarada's Day | Hokage | Rebel
It's the last day! And finally time for a one shot I'm decently proud of x) Post Time-skip in cannon, fluffy, and a little hint of angst.
Sarada's head was exploding. Not literally, but the working capacity of her brain felt like an old, stretched out rubber band that was pulled tight and ready to snap. It was no wonder Naruto made thousands of clones and still couldn't keep up with the demands of being Hokage.
Why was her signature needed for workers to cut down the trees to build a toy store? Did she have to sign off on a mission to prove an old lady's lost cat had been found? Why did she have to be involved with the academy, with welfare projects, with making sure retired folks had enough money to get by? Weren't there other divisions, other people that handled some of these things?
No. Apparently, the hokage had to do all of it.
With the upcoming organization of the chunin exams and all the meetings that would follow, Sarada decided. She wanted to rebel against all of her work, against Konoha, against everything.
A tiny knock against her door was all it took for her mangekyo to flash red, sunlit eyes glaring at the door, her tone forced as she grunted, "What."
Shikadai poked his head halfway in the door. "I'm sensing major bloodlust in here... But is it alright if I come in?"
"As long as you're here to help me and not give me more work." She stamped another mission report and set it in the giant stack on the right, deactivating her eyes.
Her bad mood was partially due to the workload, partially due to the fact that it was her time of the month, and partially due to the fact that Boruto had been gone for three weeks now on some atonement mission with an unknown return date. What did he need to atone for? She was the hokage, for crying out loud. No one was going to kill him, and if they tried, they'd be arrested. End of story.
Sarada took another deep breath in and sighed. The other reason she was frustrated was because it was her birthday... And she specifically told everyone not to celebrate. There were too many things for her to do and her mood was too foul for congratulatory company. Despite herself, she was hoping the people that stopped by would at least acknowledge the special day... Unfortunately, three people had been in and none of them ever mentioned it.
"About the Chunin exams..." Shikadai started. "Shinki called and said he picked three genin to participate. I haven't gotten word from the Mizukage or Tsuchikage yet, but it should be coming soon."
"Is that all?"
"That, and..." Shikadai looked at the ground. He tucked his thumb into his fist, a nervous habit Sarada came to recognize when he was holding back on telling her something.
"Go ahead," she sighed. "What is it?"
"...Well, it's good news, really. Boruto came back."
Sarada froze. She slowly lifted her head. "He's... back?"
"That's all," said Shikadai, quickly walking out of the office. "I'm sure he'll be by in a little bit, so... I just wanted to give you a heads up. In case. You know."
In case what?! I don't know anything! She tried to remain calm until the door closed, but the second it clicked shut, her fingers curled into her short raven hair.
No. Work. There was no romance, there was only work. She picked up a paper. Scanned it. And without really reading it, signed her name at the bottom.
It wasn't like she had to be concerned about why that idiot came back early... Specifically on her birthday. Especially not... After kissing her forehead.
What was a kiss to her forehead even supposed to mean anyways? It didn't mean they were dating, it didn't mean they were in any sort of relationship, it didn't necessarily even mean he loved her, it just meant...
It meant three straight weeks of intense struggle to focus because that moment kept playing through her head.
"I'm sorry..." His voice was pained, his hands on her shoulders. "But I promise I'll be back."
She didn't want him to leave. Not again. What if the villagers came to hate him again? What if Eida did something again? He wouldn't tell her the details of this atonement mission, where he was going, what he was doing, nothing. He just had to go, and that was that.
Like an idiot, she'd stopped him by putting her arms around his waist.
And to her complete bewilderment, he went and kissed her forehead.
And then he disappeared.
Sarada knew (for quite some time now) that their relationship and care for each other far surpassed those of friends or teammates. But perhaps because of her position as the hokage, he never stepped foot over the romantic boundary line. Sarada did her best not to cross it out of respect for that.
Even though a single touch of his lips to her forehead sent her spiraling into so much distress she couldn't do her job properly for three whole weeks. Just how far behind had she gotten?
A towering stack at least 200 pages high to her left waited for a signature. A higher stack of at least 300 pages high waited for a stamp. Three important meetings to arrange. 30 new documents to review. It had to be done before the end of the day. It was the 31st, the end of the month. She could get it all done without a problem if she could organize her schedule and just. Focus.
In hidden grass village, there is a food shortage and a report of bandits stealing frequently. Konoha's assistance is requested.
Stamp. Sign. To a pile on her left on the floor.
D rank mission completed by team 32. Lost ca... Capybara? Rubbing her eyes still didn't produce clear results. And that was when she realized... It was because her eyes were wet with tears. Her head throbbed and pounded, her stomach cramped and ached... She had to do her work. She had to. But as tears dripped down her cheeks and onto her desk, all she could think was... She just wanted to see him.
Whenever he noticed a large stack of papers on her desk, he'd stand behind her chair and rub her shoulders. Whenever she was too overwhelmed to handle things and got snappy and stressed, he'd walk behind her desk until she caved. She'd curl under her desk, hiding from any visitors. And then, she'd lean her head in his lap while he played with her hair. Let him stamp things that needed to be stamped. Was that a fair thing to do as Hokage? No. But she trusted him to do it because he was Boruto. And because a mere five to ten minutes was all she needed to feel human again.
Where was he? How long had he been back for? How long would he stay?
Thinking about it was making her dizzy. Her heart did that stupid annoying thing where it raced too fast for far too long, and then everything became numb all the way down to her fingertips. Her vision blurred. The pen fell from her hands as she held her head to get a grip.
She didn't want to think of Boruto as the type of person to avoid her out of embarrassment, but the possibility did cross her mind and linger there for longer than she would've liked for it to.
She took a deep breath in and took her eyes off of the door, gritting her stomach to bear with the pain, trying to fix her migraine with medical ninjutsu. Come on Sarada. Focus. Focus... Focus!
After grabbing a clear file off of the top of the stack, her computer screen went black. And just before she could move the mouse, she caught a glimpse of her reflection. Her hair was disheveled, her eyes sunken in, glasses slightly crooked on her face. Perhaps that was what Shikadai hesitated to say. She looked like a hot mess, minus the hot.
The oversized hokage hat could fix that. Her hair, her eyes, all of it. She could just hide. And then, on top of concealing her appearance, she wouldn't have to worry about what reaction her idiotic hormone ridden brain would have to seeing him if he did happen to show up.
Just as she set her hat on her head, she noticed.
There was a clear glass vase of red roses on her desk that hadn't been there seconds before, and there were only two people that could flicker in and out of her office without her noticing. Neither of them were there, not on the ceiling, not under her desk, not behind any of the stacks of paper or even just outside the window. The fresh floral scent chose that particular moment to enter her nose... And the throbbing in her head grew worse with the pounding of her heart.
Calm down. It's your birthday. Maybe he just came back to give you flowers for your birthday...
And then. There was a box of chocolates. It was now sitting on top of the clear file she'd placed there moments ago. How was he doing this completely soundlessly?! This was not fair.
The crocodile tears stinging her eyes were also not fair.
Sarada picked up the box and inspected it hoping to find some sort of note, only to notice... There was a silver ring on the fourth finger of her left hand?! She abruptly dropped the box and fanned out her fingers, staring, touching it to make sure it was real. It was very real. And cold, and round, and smooth, and imbedded with tiny diamonds that ran in a spiral around the metal.
"Yo."
Sarada's entire body was so tense that she banged her knees on her desk out of startlement. "Idiot! What is... What did... How is..."
He really owed her an explanation for this, but she wasn't sure whether to yell at him, pull him down by the loose collar of his white t-shirt and force him into a kiss whether he wanted one or not, feelings be darned, or sob harder because this was all some cruel prank. She looked down. She had to. She was really crying now, curse her stupid emotions. Fat tears dripped over her cheeks, the metal of the ring warming as she clenched her hands.
"Sorry it took me so long," he said sheepishly. "Himawari wouldn't let me go until I could do it all without making any noise..."
Sarada tried to hide her quivering by telling herself to relax, but the built-up stress in her body decided that now would be a good time to escape, and her muscle system blatantly refused to shut down.
"...You okay?"
"Of course I'm not okay!" Her swollen throat had a lump the size of the Land of Fire. Her voice sounded like a sad cross between an underwater donkey and an angry sheep. The trembling was doing nothing for her headache or her cramps, and every second she spent in this confusing situation was another second lost in completing her work. "...Idiot! Stupid! Dummy! What... What even is this?"
His boots scuffed awkwardly against the floorboards. "A... Proposal. Sorry... I wanted to do something else, but I didn't think you'd leave the office."
Had his time away from the village three years ago robbed him of his common sense? She was only 18, and he didn't even tell her he liked her. They hadn't been on a single date... Or perhaps they'd been on several? But neither of them called it that.
There had to be something more to this, something that she was missing. Of all people, Boruto would never propose to her out of the blue. But he wasn't talking about it. And she wasn't in the mental state to formulate the words to ask. All she could do was hold her arms to try and make the shaking stop.
That was when... His cape lightly brushed against her skin. He was just standing next to her. Not forcing any sort of comfort but letting her know he was there if she wanted him.
Sarada didn't want to want him after whatever this was he tried to pull, but her attempts to hold back were lost in the tears running down her face, the shivers, the stomach cramps, the headache, the whimpers turned to childish sobs that leaked from her mouth all at once. She buried her face into his stomach, tucking her arms around his waist. Her hormones were not having it, and neither was she. She just missed him. She really loved him. And her heart wouldn't be able to take it if this was all a joke.
Boruto removed the falling hat from her head and set it gently on her desk. His hand sunk into her hair, massaging the back of her head in a soothing repetitive motion, easing the aching in her head.
It took a good thirty seconds for her sobs to taper back into whimpers, and another three minutes for them to become sniffles, but when she was done, she lifted her head from the wet stains on the front of his shirt. "I'm sorry..."
Boruto shook his head. "I didn't mean to make you cry..." His voice was soft and sad, a hint of tightness in his throat that indicated her emotional outburst might have even triggered him to shed a few tears.
But that was when she realized. She wasn't in the hokage office anymore, she was sitting on her couch.
Boruto knelt down in front of her and took her hand. The kiss he brushed against her knuckles heated her swollen face. It sent a tightness swirling into her stomach. Since when did he become this... Sweet?
"I'll be right back."
Before he could disappear, she squeezed his hand so hard she would've broken a finger if he was anyone else. She had to if she didn't want him to go. Her eyebrows furrowed, her tone of voice a mere whimper. "Stay."
He leaned forward, close enough for her to feel the subtle exhale of his breath on her nose. This time instead of kissing her forehead... His bangs brushed hers. His head tilted, eyes closing. The distance between them closed... Boruto pressed a still and gentle kiss to her lips.
Her world was suddenly shrouded in a magical darkness that tingled and took away the cramping sensation from her stomach. That single touch suddenly brought thousands of tiny creatures to life just beneath the surface of her skin, some rushing about in a frenzy, others walking drunkenly slow to any destination they pleased. Everything was soft and warm, from his bangs against her temple to the smoothness of his mouth... And then it was over.
"I really will be right back this time... You can count to three if you'd like."
Sarada was too frozen to move, but his relaxed fingers lingered on her limp ones as he placed them in her lap. The moment he flickered away, she started counting.
One. Two-
He returned with a fluffy blanket, one of the ones she kept in her closet.
"...How did you-"
He laid it over her, tucking it around her shoulders, making the warm tingling fuzzy sensation spread and burn inside her coiled stomach. Then he flickered away again.
This time he returned with a movie case. She only knew because she heard the familiar pop of the plastic notches coming undone. He turned on her TV and opened the old DVD player, setting the disk inside.
"...Boruto?"
After the movie loaded, she noticed it was an older romance movie, one she'd forced him to see in theatres when they were kids, one that made her cry from how touching it was... One that he claimed to have no understanding of.
She looked to her right to find him in the kitchen.
"Boruto, what are you doing?"
"Boyfriend things," he responded, and with that, the switch for the electric kettle flipped on.
He really was serious. It really was a proposal. Sarada stared at his back as he opened several cabinets, searching for a mug. She didn't want to say it, but it really needed to be said. And it was the thing he hated most... And the reason why they could never be married. "As sweet as this is... I really have to go back to work-"
"Take the rest of the day off," he said, walking back over to the couch. His blue eyes were serious as he sat down next to her, making her hyper aware of the space between them, unsure whether it was too little or too much, and which one she wanted it to be. This wasn't a request. It was a command.
"I..."
"If you're going to reject me, at least wait until tomorrow."
Sarada blinked. Reject him? He honestly thought she was going to reject him?
The switch for the electric kettle flicked off again, prompting him to get up. He wordlessly strode away, cape trailing behind him.
"...At least take off your cape," she said softly, "if you're going to force me to stay home."
Even if she went back... There was no way she'd be able to focus now.
On his way to the counter, he hung his cape over the back of the chair where her father usually sat at the dinner table, then got out her favorite kind of tea: a blend of black that was comprised of camellia sinensis and a touch of cinnamon. Somehow, he even knew how she liked it: half a teaspoon of sugar and a drizzle of honey.
When he returned to the couch and held out her mug, she didn't bother to take her hands out from under the blanket as she accepted it. The warmth seeped into her fingers and calmed her racing heart and the cramping in her stomach. But before she could sip on her tea, she glanced over at him. "...Can we talk?"
"Yeah..."
"...What is this all about?"
Boruto ducked his head as he spoke. "I guess I should start with this... You know how I can kinda see the future?"
"...We both know it's not just kinda... But continue."
"I saw this conversation," he said, and if it wasn't her imagination, Boruto's eyebrows were the slightest bit furrowed. "You were talking to Eida... And she said that if you weren't going to tell me, she would."
"...Tell you what?"
"Your feelings," he replied, and now she was certain he was embarrassed. "For a while now, I thought it was kinda obvious," he replied. "People have been teasing us since we were kids, and I tried to imagine you liking someone else and couldn't really, so I thought it was safe to assume you liked me, but that conversation confirmed it."
Sarada took the first sip of her tea. "And so you took that as a sign to propose?"
"I..." He sighed. "That conversation between you and Eida... triggered another happening of omnipotence."
Her gasp caused her to choke. Boruto took the teacup from her, patting her back gently. She really hated coughing when she was on her period. But now wasn't the time to ask for a bathroom break.
When she finally caught her breath, her wide eyes stared at the frozen actors smiling behind the DVD selection menu on the TV screen. "You're serious?!"
"Unfortunately. It was terrible. In that future, everyone was congratulating me on my relationship with her. And you were crying. And I really didn't know what to do because I hadn't even told you I liked you, and suddenly you were avoiding me... And when I came back to reality, I decided the best way to fix it was to make it clear who I liked before it happened."
"So instead of confessing you went straight to a proposal?!"
The tips of Boruto's ears were slowly turning red, still hiding his face from her, sitting to her right so she couldn't see his eye. But that didn't change the redness in his face. "You can think of that ring as a birthday present if you want... I just... Whenever I saw this on TV or read about it in magazines as a kid, they always said confessions were supposed to be romantic things, and proposals were supposed to be even more extravagant, but I didn't have much time, and I wasn't sure a simple confession would be enough to stop Eida, and if you played it off as a joke and ignored me, I'd want to kill myself again, so I figured the only way to do it was to show you I was serious."
Of all the things that Boruto was, she would've never thought of him as any sort of romantic. But then again, there were little hints dropped here and there when he was a kid that he most certainly cared about these types of things, even if he found them to be a pain. Likely the result of being raised by "princess" Hinata.
Sarada sighed. Then her eyebrows furrowed. She made a fist with her left hand and squished her fingers together. "Boruto... Did you take my ring?"
"I... I didn't know if you wanted it."
She leaned her head over on his shoulder, closing her eyes. "Give it back."
He tensed, but slowly dropped his guard, then held his hand near the edge of the blanket. "Okay."
When she felt the ring slip back onto her fourth finger, she folded her hand into his.
"W-What are you doing?"
A grin tugged at her tired and swollen cheeks. "Girlfriend things."
Somehow, he could easily kiss her with a lovesick puppy dog look on his face, but holding hands made him stutter. His only response was to curl his loose fingers around her hand and hold it back.
"How did you know about the blanket? The tea? Was that in the future as well?"
"...Actually... When I asked Himawari for help, she kinda trained me on how to be a decent boyfriend. If you ever seem overwhelmed, I'm supposed to wrap you in a blanket and give you some tea. She even told me how you liked it. And if you need a break, force you to watch a romance movie. This is the only one I knew from our shelf at home. Sorry."
"I see." She shifted closer to him, covering half of him with the blanket and wrapping her arm around his. "And what are you planning to do when all of this causes me to fall behind in my work?"
"Make Shikadai do it."
This actually caused her to laugh. "Shikadai can't forge my signature."
"No, but he can stamp your stamp. And go through your documents and put all the ones you need to sign in a pile so all you have to do is sign them tomorrow morning."
The smile on her face softened. "Hey Boruto."
"Hm?"
"For just today... I think I'm going to rebel."
"...Rebel?"
"I'm not going to do any work. No matter who asks."
To her surprise, Boruto let go of her hand only to lean forward and pick up the TV remote. "Good."
"Good?"
He pressed play and the screen went dark, plunging the room into darkness along with it. His arm wrapped around her shoulders, his mouth tucking down against the top of her head as the intro song started... And the soft glow of the TV re-lit her surroundings and untensed her stomach.
"I was terrified that you'd say no."
Light laughter escaped her nose in the form of a puff of air. His voice was so small, so weak. So uncertain. In times like these, the edgy idiot that copied her dad way too much turned into a rather adorable derpus. "You really didn't know, after all these years, that I liked you back?"
"...I wasn't sure."
"I guess what they say is true... The only people that are blind to love are the people that fall into it."
"...Hm?"
"Don't worry about it." She leaned into his half-buttoned shirt, rested her ear over his heart, relishing in the warmth and comfort she'd always wanted but was too scared to ask for. After she wrapped the blanket so it was around them both, she decided to ask. "You're really okay with me? Even though I'm hokage?"
"...Mm."
"I'm always going to be busy, you know."
"I'll help you when you're busy instead of pouting like a kid."
"I see... I just hope Eida decides to leave you alone."
He hugged both arms around her, holding her like a folded sack of potatoes against him. "As obsessed with romance as she is, she's probably watching and freaking out about how cute this is... And understanding why forcing me to date her wouldn't be any different than her charming power."
"Hmmm..." Sarada brought her hand to his chest and traced one of the pins. "Did you see a different future? After you proposed to me?"
"...Yeah."
"Oh."
After that, she was content not to talk anymore and suffer in the quiet silence of cramps. And once they eased, the movie was halfway over, and the craving for chocolate hit... "Boruto?"
"...Mm?"
He was half asleep. She decided not to bother. "Never mind."
"...What's wrong?" The thumb that had fallen limp restarted its gentle motion through the fronds of her baby hair at the back of her neck.
On screen, the main character was saying goodbye to his lover to go on a dangerous mission. She snuggled further against him. Pain meds, chocolates, tea, blankets... Maybe next month, that would matter more. But right now, she decided she didn't want to get up, even if the world ended.
So instead, she decided to ask. "If Eida didn't want you, would you have still proposed to me?"
"Mm. But probably not as abruptly... I wanted to take my time. But I didn't know how much time to take."
Sarada closed her eyes. She already knew the answer, but his voice directly under her head was one of her favorite things, even more so when it was soft and gentle and talking about loving her. "Are we... Really married now?"
"...As long as you're okay with that."
"...Oh... Alright."
Boruto paused. Lifted his head slightly. "...Is that a yes?"
"...I suppose."
A smile must've crept onto his face at her repones. His full hand toyed with her hair, the motions of his fingers still lax and lazy. With each new scene of the movie, Sarada found her eyelids growing heavier. And heavier. Just as his movements stopped and his soft snores threatened to lull her to the land of the unconscious, she picked up her tired head and kissed his cheek. Snuggled fully under the blanket... And fell asleep in his arms.
. . .
Sakura walked through the door after a long day at the hospital. She was going to take off work and spend time with Sarada for her birthday, but Boruto was franticly running around that morning like a chicken with his head cut off trying to make sure no one else stole her away. She only hoped he had a decent plan.
That was when she flicked on the lights of their dark house to find a cape that wasn't Sasuke's spread out over his chair and a lump of blankets on the couch. And when she got closer, Boruto's blonde hair was plainly visible atop them, her daughter's head tucked down so far that only a mound of black was visible. She was neatly curled into a ball between his chest and the back of the couch, and judging from the position of the TV remote and the DVD menu screen, they'd both fallen asleep watching a movie. But when did they get that close...?
"I'm back."
Sakura spun around to find her husband walking through the door. Uncertain what his reaction to the scene would be, she tried to distract him. "Welcome home," she answered, rushing towards the entryway to take his cape. "What would you like to eat for dinner? You must be tired."
He peered around her and saw the cloak, and then the bundle on the couch. "Hm. Took him long enough."
"...EH-"
Sakura's inherent surprise was stifled by Sasuke's hand. "He needs to sleep to recover his chakra. He's been using raijin continuously every day for the past three weeks..."
"You knew about this?" She hissed, clearly left in the dark.
"Of course," Sasuke whispered back, wandering into the kitchen. "I was the first one he told... Begging on his hands and knees for permission to save the world again... And for me to kill him if something went wrong."
"Save the world?"
"Seems like that included marrying Sarada."
"THEY'RE WHAT?!"
There was a grumble from the couch.
Sakura slammed her hand over her mouth so hard it stung, her teeth cutting into her top lip. Luckily, she could fix the injury within seconds. She didn't mean to wake them... But married?! Why hadn't she heard anything about this? Shannaro.
Boruto sat up in a haze, his hair sticking up from the way the couch flattened it.
"Boruto," said Sasuke, heating up water for tea.
"Mm? Uncle Sasuke." His groggy voice was accompanied by a yawn. "Welcome home."
Welcome home?! Sakura mused. Was this his house? True, he had been showing up on their doorstep and letting himself in since he was old enough to walk, supposing he was Uzumaki Boruto. But Sakura was still startled by the whole ordeal.
Half asleep, Boruto slid his hand down his face and then looked to the side to check on Sarada. "Shikadai is gonna kill me... I gotta get going."
"If you're going to leave, take her upstairs and put her in bed first."
"...Okay."
Rather than disturbing their position, Boruto apparently thought it better just to float, right up off of the couch with her in his arms, up the stairs, and into her room. Sakura could hardly contain her shock.
"When did this happen?"
"It's been happening since they were twelve... No. I suspect even before that."
Sakura briefly recalled something Sasuke had told her several years prior... Something about Boruto's ninja way. To become like Sasuke. To become Sarada's right hand man and protect her well after she became hokage. She supposed in a way, this was a possible outcome.
"That being said... I find it odd he didn't think to talk to me."
"He was probably scared," Sasuke chuckled. "You're not the nicest when you get mad."
"Wha- I would not have gotten mad!"
"Are you sure you wouldn't have beaten him up even if you were happy?"
Sakura hid her face in her tea. "Putting someone in a congratulatory headlock isn't the same as beating them up."
"That's what I thought."
Shannaro. After all these years, Sasuke could still predict her behavior as accurately as ever.
When she finished her tea and conversation about why marrying Sarada was going to save the world, she climbed the stairs to find the door to Sarada's room wide open. She was about to close it when she noticed Boruto asleep on the floor, his head resting on the edge of her bed. Sarada's hand was clenched tight around his wrist, even in her deep sleep.
Sakura couldn't help but stifle her laughter. Sasuke put a hand on her shoulder, and she closed the door. "My habits seem to have gotten passed down along with genes..."
"Although I had the sense to stay awake long enough to remove your hand."
She smiled. "Hey, Sasuke-kun..."
"I'm already planning on it," he sighed, taking his hand off her shoulder and descending the stairs.
"I guess we'll get to give her a present after all." Sakura followed him towards the door.
"We?"
Her cheeks puffed up. "Sheesh. I wasn't Tsunade's assistant for nothing!"
"...Fine."
She followed him outside, going to do the job that Boruto was supposed to be doing... Relieving Shikadai of catching Sarada up on her hokage work. A clean desk was apparently supposed to be her real birthday present. But Sasuke must have decided that Boruto had already done enough. And so had she.
That was why, even when Boruto eventually showed up in the middle of the night apologizing profusely, ninety five percent of the work was done. He was told by both Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto (who decided to pitch in when he found the three having a party in his old office) to go back and be by her side when she woke up.
That was also how Sarada was in tears the next morning, bowing her head to everyone and thanking them for giving her the best birthday she could have possibly asked for.
