The conflict lasted until Sakura came up with a compromise.

"I'll go to bed ever y night at nine PM if you read with me from eight nine. Also, you have to go to bed at nine, too. If I wake up in the middle of the night and find that you've l eft the house to go party with Naruto, I will be seriously ticked off," was Saku ra's proposition. Sasuke deliberated for a while before deciding that it was acceptable. He knew t hat if he went to bed at nine, he'd lie awake for at least two more hours, but h e was used to such things. And reading with her actually sounded pleasant. So that was how, every night at eight PM, Sasuke found himself sitting on the co uch with a book that Sakura had chosen. Sakura would then tuck herself into his side, her legs drawn up and her head nestled at the crook of his neck. Often she would spread a blanket over the both of them a soft, downy comforter of dark gree n, which, while it was very lightweight, gave Sasuke the exhilarating sensation of being bound to Sakura. Sasuke would hold the book, turning the pages when they were done he was uncannily accurate at judging when Sakura had completed a page. However, many times Sakur a would have to prod him to turn the page; he'd be too distracted by the warmth of her, the scent of her the adrenaline rush that coursed through him from contact of their skin. When Sakura was playing the piano and when they were reading together were the b est parts of Sasuke's day. At nine PM, when Sakura would caress his forehead with a kiss before slipping aw ay from him to the darkness of her bedroom, part of him wanted to curve an arm a round her waist and draw her back to him. Another part wanted to follow her and hold her through the night. He would do neither, only bid her goodnight and watc h her go. -Sasuke looked down when he felt small hands tugging at the sleeve of his black s hirt. Sakura looked up at him, her green eyes solemn. "Sasuke-kun, I have a list," she stated. When she didn't elaborate, Sasuke felt it necessary to ask, a little warily, "A list of what?" She bestowed upon him a despairing look, as if the answer was painfully obvious. "A list of what I want to do today." Sasuke was somewhat relieved; he'd been imagining something less mundane. He shrug ged. "So what do you want to do?" She sighed and pulled him down to pat him on the head. "Read the list," she enli ghtened. "I don't have the list," he pointed out. "Then maybe you should ask for the list." "Or you could just give me the list." "But you haven't asked for the list, so how am I supposed to know that you want it?" "I asked what you wanted to do. The list would give me that knowledge, so an int elligent human being would thusly assume that I want the list." "You know what happens when you assume, Sasuke-kun." "What happens?" Sakura paused. " I'm not really sure. There's a saying I think it involves a donkey? Um." "You're a moron," Sasuke informed her fondly. She gave him a sunny grin. "But I'm your moron!" Sasuke couldn't quite smother the small smile that pulled at his lips at that. H e tapped his knuckles to her forehead. "Unfortunately," he agreed. "Now, give me the list." Sakura obligingly slipped a folded sheet of paper out of her pocket, having had enough of their earlier banter. Sasuke unfolded the paper. It read: A List of Things I Want to Do Today, As compiled by Haruno Sakura (AKA That Incredibly Amazing Girl),

Involving: Haruno Sakura (TIAG) and Uchiha Sasuke (That Broody Guy), and Not Necessarily in Any Particular Order at All 1. Go to library 2. Buy new pens 3. Convince TBG to buy TIAG lunch 4. Get haircut (for TIAG, not TBG, although TBG's hair is getting rather long-is h) 5. Engage in Epic Hunt for the Ever-Elusive Waldo (Dude with Obnoxiously Striped Shirt) Sasuke stared at the paper, reread it, and then slowly turned to face Sakura. "W hat the hell?" he asked blankly. She looked smug. "You're just astounded by its awesomeness, aren't you?" He shook his head disbelievingly and handed the paper back to her. "I can't beli eve that no one has diagnosed you yet," he muttered under his breath. "I mean seri ously, you want to go on a hunt for Waldo?" Sakura nodded eagerly. "Yeah! Because, come on where is Waldo? That's like, the et ernal question, right there. And I even have a theory: I bet you that Waldo is t he missing link. I bet you anything." Sasuke wasn't sure which he wanted to do more at the moment: kiss the silly girl or attempt to knock some sense into her. He just shook his head again. "Let's j ust go to the library." She shrugged, remaining upbeat. "To the library!" Sasuke had a feeling that it was going to be a long day. -Once they had checked out the books that Sakura wanted from the library, they st opped at the stationary store to buy pens. "I've been thinking about it," Sakura told him, "and all of my pens are boring. I mean, blue, black, red I want an exciting pen. I want something something with cha racter, something that screams individuality. I want a pen with ink that is purple with orange flecks!" "Ink doesn't have different-colored flecks in it," Sasuke informed her blandly a s they stepped inside the quaint shop. "How would you know? It's not like you've ever gotten a pen that wasn't either b lack or, if you decided to be daring, dark blue." Sakura browsed the rows of off ice supplies, searching for the pen she wanted. Twenty minutes later, they emerged. Sakura had, predictably, not gotten the pen she'd wanted. She had to settle for one that was the most obnoxious shade of gre en that Sasuke had ever seen. She was rather upset. Irritated that such a trivial thing could disappoint her (and by the realization that Sakura's emotional health still wasn't as stable as it should be), Sasuke posed, "You wanted a haircut, right?" As he had intended, her eyes brightened to the radiant green that Sasuke knew an d loved. "Yeah. I just " she fingered the tip of her now slightly longer than shou lder-length hair, "I just kind of need the change. You know?" Sasuke was not actually fully sure what she meant, but he nodded anyway. "Come o n, then." Sakura smiled softly and slipped a hand to the crook of his arm, directing him t o the local salon. Business was fairly slow, so Sakura was attended to immediate ly even though she hadn't made an appointment. Sasuke had initially intended to watch, but for some reason the sight of Sakura' s hair being cut discomfited him, so he stared out the window until he heard Sak ura's feet hit the ground when she slid down from the chair. Turning to her, Sasuke took a long look. Her hair had been cropped to just barel y chin-length, as it had been when she'd cut off her hair during the Chuunin Exa ms all those years ago. It flared out at the ends slightly. Her bangs were trimm ed to about eyebrow-level. Overall, it somehow made Sakura look younger and yet more mature. Sasuke wasn't sure what length he liked her hair at, but Sakura was looking in the mirror and smiling, so he instantly accepted and approved of the change. She approached him, touching her hair tentatively. "Do you like it?" she asked s

elf-consciously. Sasuke reached forward and batted a stray wisp out of Sakura's eyes. "Yeah," he said quietly, earnestly. At his response, Sakura didn't stop smiling even when they left the salon in sea rch of a place to eat. Experimentally, she kept turning and bobbing her head. As they made their way to a place known for its good sushi, she even began to head -bang. He stared at her, amused. "Why are you doing that?" She rolled her eyes. "I'm rocking out to the elevator music in my head." "One does not generally tend to head-bang to elevator music," Sasuke deadpanned. Sakura laughed delightedly. "And what do you know about head-banging, Sir Broody ?" He didn't talk to her for a while after that. -Once they had finished eating, they engaged in the Epic Hunt for the Ever-Elusiv e Waldo, which basically consisted of walking around town looking for people wea ring striped shirts. Sasuke found it rather tedious, but it amused Sakura to no end. While Sakura was thoroughly engrossed in her game, Sasuke took the time to simpl y watch her. His green-eyed girl was wearing a pleated black skirt, black stocki ngs, and a white shirt with a V-neck that exposed a triangle of red camisole. Th e brisk wind and the exercise made her cheeks flush, and her eyes shone with exc itement. Privately, Sasuke was of the opinion that Sakura was lit from the inside, that S akura had her own personal source of light and brightness that emerged whenever she was happy. Naruto was the same way, but his light came through in brilliant flashes and fireworks. Sakura's was softer, more muted, but steadier and more pe rseverant. Sasuke was shaken from his musings when Sakura suddenly ducked behind him. Think ing that she had pissed someone off by pointing at them, he turned to see where she was looking. And then he slowly turned back to her. "Why are you hiding from Hyuuga Neji?" he inquired carefully. She cringed. "I'm not hiding. I'm employing stealth." "Sakura," Sasuke admonished. "Tell me." For a long moment Sasuke thought she was going to refuse, but then, after starin g intently at his face, she acquiesced. "D'you remember when we went to the Hyuu ga Compound a few days ago?" Sasuke made a face. Sakura had absolutely insisted upon not dropping her weekly visits to check on Hiashi, and as Tsunade had not specified that she could not g o and Sasuke was unsuccessful in dissuading her, he had accompanied her to the C ompound. Sasuke again had tea with Hinata (he was a bit more sociable than he ha d been the last time) while Sakura went through her procedures. When Sakura walked into the tea-room after finishing, her face was flushed a bri ght scarlet and she was acting very jumpy. She refused to reveal what was bother ing her and instead hurried home. "Yeah," Sasuke nodded. "Why?" his eyes narrowed. "Neji didn't hurt you, did he?" he demanded, his voice suddenly gaining a frightening edge of malice and ill-in tent. Sakura shook her head. "No, no well. He " she blushed and looked away. "He, um." "Spit it out, Sakura," Sasuke growled. "Hetriedtokissme," Sakura blurted out rapidly, eyeing Sasuke as one would eye a bomb with three seconds left until explosion. Shockingly, Sasuke's face was a mask of eerie calm. "He tried to kiss you," Sasu ke clarified. She nodded hesitantly. "Uh, yeah. We were talking in the hallway and he suddenly began sort of backing me up against the wall and then he leaned really close an d I panicked and pushed him away and and, well, bolted." Her words came out in a r ush, as if she was trying to get it all off her chest. There was no change in Sasuke's expression, only a sudden chill in the air. "Sta

y here," he ordered in a detached voice, before turning in Neji's direction (the Hyuuga was talking to someone and hadn't thus far noticed Sasuke and Sakura's p resence). "Wait." Sakura's voice took on an apprehensive edge. "What are you going to do? Sasuke-kun, you're hey! Sasuke-kun!" Sasuke took no heed of her, instead beginning to walk towards to oblivious paleeyed boy. But then Sakura's restraining arms were wrapped around his torso. The spontaneou s embrace was awkward and clumsy, as she had ended up throwing her arms around h is side, pinning his arm between her and his body. "Give me one good reason not to beat the shit out of him," Sasuke snarled lowly. "He didn't mean anything by it, it was harmless, Sasuke-kun " "He tried to kiss you when you didn't want him to." Sasuke blinked once and look ed at her. "You didn't want him to kiss you, did you?" he confirmed, sudden drea d pooling in the pit of his stomach. She also blinked, astonished. "Wha no, of course not." "Then he had no right to even think about " Sakura cut him off. "Sasuke-kun, hey. Sasuke-kun. Let's just go home, okay? I'll I 'll talk to him about it later. Let's just go home, Sasuke-kun," she appealed, d etaching her arms from him and instead slipping her hand into his. Sasuke stared at her hard. "Let's go home, Sasuke-kun," Sakura repeated gently. If only for her sake, Sasuke nodded stiffly and allowed her to lead him home by the hand. Sakura didn't notice when they passed by Neji and the Hyuuga noticed t hem. Sasuke did, however, and he tightened his grip on Sakura's hand as he shot the other genius a vicious glare. Neji had gone and taken their rivalry to a new , highly personal level. LINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINELINE WHY DOES THE LINE THING-Y NOT WORK AGAIN?! So we can all recognize it as official, now. I am a fluff-whore. D: It's so sad. BECCA IS ASHAMED OF HERSELF. She also doesn't feel like even looking over the c hapter, so please excuse any and all stupid mistakes, mmkay? And I just had a revelation. It was: Where the hell am I going with this story? Because I seriously have no idea. (dies) I think...I should kill another charact er. Wait, no! Everyone should die. Except for Shino. Because he's Shino. But it' d be something straight out of Antigone! Which I actually have to write an essay about for Monday. Guess what I'll be doing at the last minute on Sunday night. Go on, guess. Unrelated: 1) Newest Naruto chapter (I've lost track of the numbers). Enh. Kinda bored me. Pein and Kakashi fought. I was...less than enthralled. 2) Let me ask you guys something: is it weird to feed marshmallows to one's hors e? Because my mom seriously laughed at me for at least ten minutes straight when I explained to her why all the marshmallows were gone. Everything Is Alright The next morning, Neji could be found sitting in the courtyard of the Hyuuga Com pound, nursing a cup of tea and glaring at anyone that approached him. Staring b roodingly into his teacup, he mused over his own situation involving one Haruno Sakura and one Uchiha Sasuke. Ever since Sasuke had come back to Konoha, Neji had felt threatened by the Uchih a's extraordinary bond with the object of Neji's affections. At first he had bee n mollified by his belief that Sasuke was not interested in Sakura romantically, but in light of recent events It was undeniable. Sasuke was in love with Sakura. And, as Neji had come to real ize, Sakura returned the black-haired youth's sentiments wholeheartedly. Neji had to admit that Sakura and Sasuke made a striking couple Sasuke, with his d ark good looks, and Sakura, with her delicate, exotic features. They complemente d each other. Sasuke was a noticeably more pleasant person to be around when Sak ura was with him, and Sakura was much less moody with Sasuke there to steady her . Still, Neji couldn't help but feel bitter about the whole thing. He had never de

voted so much time and effort to winning the approval of one person, and then, j ust when he was thinking that she was beginning to develop feelings for him as w ell, she was snatched away from him by a traitor. He couldn't even fathom how Sakura could love someone who had betrayed Konoha a sh inobi's village was everything, and to accept one who had trampled over that con cept so irrevocably it was inconceivable to Neji. But then he conceptualized that maybe it wasn't quite so unbelievable. He recall ed all of the little moments between Sasuke and Sakura that he had witnessed all o f the glances, all of the touches, all of the words. Sasuke's protectiveness, Sa kura's devotion. And he realized that what Sakura and Sasuke had was something t hat Neji couldn't even begin to understand. It was something strong and fierce and overwhelming in its subtlety. Something t hat had been escalating and growing and strengthening between the two, making ma tters such as political ties completely irrelevant. Neji couldn't imagine what s omething like that must feel like. That might have been why he had tried to kiss her a few days ago. After she had finished treating Hiashi she and Neji had been conversing in the hallway, and some thing that amounted to desperation and frustration and misplaced anger led him t o back her up against the wall and try to kiss him. Once she had realized what he was doing, Sakura had immediately pushed him away, the alarm and incredulity in her eyes evident. She had backed away, mumbling so mething about needing to 'get back to Sasuke-kun,' and fled. And thus Neji's campaign for Sakura's feelings went down in flames. "Neji-san ?" Neji grit his teeth in irritation when a meek maid's voice interrupte d his thoughts. He turned to face her slowly. "What?" he asked stiffly. The maid flinched. "Ah, well, you have a visitor." Neji was in no mood for company. "Whoever it is, tell them to go away," he instr ucted. "Wow, Neji, so must be seriously ticked off," came a voice from behind him. "Usu ally you at least ask who the visitor is." Neji knew that voice anywhere. And then Tenten was standing in front of him, peering down at him from her stand ing position. Neji considered telling her to leave before dismissing the thought ; Tenten's steady presence usually served to ease away distressing thoughts of h is. He stood. "Spar?" She nodded, and they walked to the Hyuuga's private training yard, where they bo th dropped into ready positions. Before they could begin, however, another voice interrupted. "Um " They both turned and found Sakura (who had spoken) and Sasuke approaching them. Neji tensed automatically, a practiced impassive expression sliding over face li ke a shutter. Sasuke's hand enveloped Sakura's, reminding Neji of the day before when he had p assed them on the street Sasuke's glare, angry and territorial, his hand tight aro und Sakura's. The same glare that Sasuke was directing at Neji at that moment. The two stopped about five feet away from Neji and Tenten. Sakura smiled uneasily. "Hi, Neji, Tenten," she greeted. Tenten echoed the pleas antry. Neji nodded. "So, uh, Neji, I just wanted to " Sakura began uncomfortably. Neji knew what she was trying to say. I don't think of you that way, I'm sorry. His gaze softened. "I understand." Indeed, he did. He was much too practical to pursue a relationship with a person that was so clearly going to end up with ano ther. He knew that he had never loved Sakura, only cared for her. He probably wo uld have grown to love her over time, had Sakura returned his sentiments. But Neji knew, without a doubt, that he never would have loved her as much or as strongly as Sasuke did. He didn't think that he could ever love anyone that much although, casting a brief , thoughtful glance at Tenten, he deemed it worth trying. Sakura smiled, obviously relieved at not having to voice what she was trying to say aloud.

-Sasuke was not in the best of moods, to put it mildly. Yesterday he'd learned th at Neji had tried to kiss Sakura, and then Sakura had insisted on going to the H yuuga Compound to clear things up with Neji which basically consisted of Sakura st arting to say something and then Neji just responding that he 'understood.' Sakura seemed to think that the Hyuuga truly did understand, so Sasuke didn't pu sh the case, but he decided to keep a close watch on the pale-eyed boy whenever he was around Sakura, just in case he got any funny ideas. That night, as he laid seething and brooding in bed, he came to what was most de finitely one of the most life-altering, core-shaking revelations of his life: He was in love with Sakura. The notion had been creeping up on him for some time now, all part of some proce ss, some escalation, some way of letting the notion ease in subtly. First he had realized that he truly did care for Sakura, which, at the time, had been very h ard to admit. Then he'd come to the conclusion that he loved Sakura platonically . And now? Now he knew that he loved her loved her in that way, that other way, that special, terrifying, beautiful way. He'd been reflecting on the past day's events and had recalled his sudden urge t o kiss Sakura. At first he'd dismissed it as simply a passing fancy, a trivial w him, but then then he'd found himself thinking that he wanted to kiss her still. And even Sasuke, socially stunted as he was, knew that wanting to kiss someone w as not a platonic form of love. Eventually Sasuke found himself sitting cross-legged on the floor of Sakura's be droom, staring at her as she slept. Like always, the sound of her breathing calm ed his troubled thoughts, but he was still very distressed. Mostly because he knew that falling in love with Sakura was the worst thing he c ould have done under the circumstances. Sakura would never love him in that way again. He was only setting himself up to get hurt or much, much worse, hurt her. Because what if Sakura did love him back? What would he do? What would he say? C ould he really just live happily ever after with Sakura? Marry her? The thought was almost inconceivable to him. That he could marry Sakura, make he r his in name as well, and and everything would simply be alright? No family to av enge, no power to seek, no brother to kill? Just waking up to Sakura's green eye s every morning? No, he told himself firmly. Because Sakura would never love him back. ________________________________________ GUESS WHOSE LINE-THINGY WORKS AGAIN? In your face, Kenna. Hah. YES IT'S SHORT. DEAL WITH IT. I WANTED IT THAT WAY. And it's probably really wei rd and random because I was aim-ing the entire time I wrote it (as I still am no w). Oh, and I periodically jumped around my room, head-banging to "Last Words" b y Thousand Foot Crutch. It's all very distracting. Ohoh, and I wanted to get thi s out early because I'm busy tomorrow and am not going to be home all weekend. Y eah. AND I have midterms tomorrow. Funfun. Except my teacher promised to give me a donut because I'm a genius!kid. Score. I think this (like, the story) is gonna end pretty soon. Unless Missa hits me wi th a plot idea that calls for extensions. Yes. Unrelated: 1) Chapter 423. Nah, Kakashi's not gonna die. I don't believe it. He either has a trick up his sleeve or someone's gonna come save him. But can we please get ba ck to Sasuke now? I miss him...even if he does bring unnecessary drama to the st ory. verything Is Alright "Where are you going?" Sasuke asked suspiciously. Sakura crossed her arms and averted her gaze. "Where are you going?" she muttere d rebelliously. "Sakura," Sasuke reprimanded. He had caught her trying to edge out the door whil e she thought he was taking a nap. She huffed. "Sasuke-kun, I haven't trained in three weeks; I'm losing all my ski ll!"

Sasuke dug in his heels. "I will absolutely not allow you to train. The Hokage s pecifically said no physical exertion for a month." Sakura rolled her eyes. "She meant like, real physical exertion! A little light training won't hurt me and will help me keep my skill up." He sliced her a frustrated glare. "Why won't you ever listen to me? I told you n o. You think I'm being mean, but I'm doing it for your own good." "That's the point, though!" Sakura shouted, clenching her fists and making agita ted gestures. "I know what's good for me. I can take care of myself and make my own decisions! Why won't you respect that?" Sasuke stepped closer so that he could purposely tower over her. "Do you want to know what your problem is?" he hissed. She stuck her chin out defiantly. "No, I don't. I greatly dislike problems, try to avoid them when I can, and I really don't like people pointing them out to me !" He ignored her. "Your problem," he began, dark eyes narrowed to slits, "is that you get so caught up in helping and taking care of every goddamn person on the p lanet that you completely forget about yourself. You have no idea what's good fo r you, but you get mad at the people who care about you for trying to help!" Sakura gasped, outraged. "That is not true." He sneered at her. "Yes, it is. Did it ever occur to you that I'm not letting yo u do what you want to do anymore because when I did, you became ill? Do you know how guilty I feel about what happened to you? Did you ever stop to consider how scared I was when you collapsed? Well, Sakura? You seem to have all the answers ." She stared at him. "Sasuke-kun I " she shook her head. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm really sorry. I know I've been stupid, but I just " she bit her lip, looking miserable. Seeing that he had gotten through to her, Sasuke put his hands on her shoulders and tried to steer her back into the manor. "Then just come back inside," he coa xed. "Forget about training." She immediately became rigid, her original stubbornness returning. "No. Sasuke-k un, please?" She tugged at his sleeve. "Just spar with me a little. Just for a l ittle while. Really light, I promise no jutsus or weapons or anything. C'mon, Sasu ke-kun. For me?" "That's not going to work on me this time, Sakura," he informed her, pointedly a voiding her bewitching eyes. "You don't care about me," she accused. Now that ticked Sasuke off. "Of course I care about you, stupid!" he growled. "H onestly, I don't think you care about me. You never stop to consider how much I worry about you. All I'm asking for is your safety and well-being. Is that so mu ch? Do you even care about how I feel?" Sakura stomped her foot. "Of course I do!" she yelled. "I love you, you stupid-h aired moron!" The instant that the words left her mouth, she grew extremely pale, her eyes wid ening, before her face turned beet-red. And then suddenly she was running. Running away from him. And all he could do was stand there, watching her go. -Sasuke stumbled around dazedly, seeking out Sakura's chakra signature. "Of course I do! I love you, you stupid-haired moron!" "I love you, you stupid-haired moron!" "I love you " He still couldn't even conceive of it. Sakura loved him? Sakura loved him? Sakur a loved him? The very idea that Sakura could be in love with someone like him No, he told himself. She was mistaken. She just thought that she loved him, as s he had so many years ago. After all, she had looked like she regretted it the mo ment she said it. Surely that meant something. Surely it couldn't be true. But still, still, Sasuke could not crush the horrible, treacherous hope that was growing. If there was even a possibility that Sakura loved him could maybe even l

ove him close to how much he loved her Suddenly he felt her chakra flaring. Immediately alarmed, he rushed to its locat ion, which was in Team Seven's old training grounds. There was Sakura, letting l oose a flurry of chakra-enhanced punches and kicks in a training sequence. Instantly, he was beside her, catching her punch and subduing her kick. She gape d at him, startled. Sasuke saw what hinted at tear tracks glistening on her face . "You never listen to me," he murmured, releasing her limbs and using the pads of his fingers to wipe away all traces of her tears. She ducked her head, and his fingers fell away. "I'm sorry," she blurted immedia tely. "I'm so sorry I just I was forget I said anything, okay? Just forget. Can we plea se pretend this never happened? I " her lower lip wobbled, which she hid by buryin g her face in his neck. "I want to go home. Please take me home, Sasuke-kun." Sasuke felt as if he had been punched in the gut. "So you really didn't mean it, " he said slowly. "What?" came her muffled voice. His own voice practically shook. "You don't love me." He was a fool, a fool, suc h a goddamn fool She came out of hiding to peer at his face. She seemed surprised by what she saw . "Sasuke-kun I you..." "Do you?" he demanded harshly, backing her up against a tree. "Answer me, Sakura ." He was almost pleading. "Just tell me. Do you love me?" "Yes," she whispered. "More than anyone. But it's okay, Sasuke-kun. I know you d on't feel the same way, so just " "Do you know how badly I want to hit you right now?" he queried sharply. She blinked at him, confused and surprised. "You're the most oblivious person I've ever met," he said lowly, running a hand through his hair. "How could you even doubt ugh. God, Sakura." He didn't even stop to think about it. "I love you. So much, and for so long. I " He was cut off by Sakura's abrupt kiss, her arms winding around his neck. He sto od, stiff, frozen, unable to process what was going on. Sakura Sakura was And then he was kissing her back, fiercely, desperately, clutching her to him an d refusing to relinquish her mouth even when his lungs began straining for oxyge n. When they eventually did break apart, Sasuke immediately buried his face in her hair, panting harshly. "Sakura," he breathed. "Sakura." Sakura, Sakura, Sakura -That night, they were curled up on the couch for their ritualistic reading hour. But Sasuke had abandoned literature in favor of resting his head on Sakura's sh oulder, his face pressed to her neck. Sakura was gently stroking his hair. They hadn't talked about what happened at t he training grounds, but they didn't need to; a glorious, beautiful understandin g had bloomed between them, and all the proof that was needed was Sasuke's refus al to unwrap his arms from around her and the tender look in Sakura's eyes. ________________________________________ Um. Hahahahahaha--yeah. Very late, I know--and I had such a good streak going, t oo...alas, alack. But anyway. As I hope I have made abundantly clear, I've never really known where I was going with this story, so all you really got was this half-assed attempt. Terribly sorry. This was my very first multi-chapter fic, an d, lame as this may sound, I learned a lot from it. For example: when writing a story, HAVE A PLOT. Yup. There'll be an epilogue-ish thingy after this because I know this chapter w as all random and WTF-ish. THERE WILL NOT BE A SEQUEL. Possibly a few related on eshots, though. Who knows. Certainly not me. Guess what, though? I have a new SasuSaku multi-chap planned; I'm really excited about it. -runs around in circles- Make sure to watch out for it, mmkay? Unrelated: 1) KAAAAAAAAAAAAAKAAAAAAAAASHIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!! -dies insideEverything Is Alright

"So, bastard, you and Sakura-chan finally got together, huh?" Naruto leered, sli nging an arm around his best friend's neck. "Took you long enough! But still it se ems like just yesterday you were an asexual, antisocial little awkward turtle. Oh , wait! It was just yesterday. And today, too. Actually, you never did stop bein g an awkward turtle, did you? Ah well, at least we know you're not asexual anymo re! But damn, that reminds me I lost the bet hey, d'you think Shikamaru would accept an I.O.U.?" The only reason that Sasuke didn't knock Naruto clear to the other side of Konoh a in the very beginning of his little monologue was because he was too focused o n waiting for Sakura to exit the flower shop. "How long does it take to tell someone one thing?" he muttered. As if in response to his irritation, Sakura and Ino stepped out of the shop. Sak ura was lagging behind, her face hidden in her hands, while Ino marched up to Sa suke, her hands on her hips. "Roses or lilies?" she asked him crisply as she extracted a tape measurer from h er pocket and looped it around Sasuke's neck. "I what the hell?!" he exclaimed, trying to fight off the tape measurer-wielding f emale. "Hold still!" she snapped. "I'm trying to take your measurements. I ask again, r oses or lilies?" "For what? Get off me! Sakura!" He stared accusingly at the green-haired girl, a 'make your insane best friend leave me alone' look in his eyes. "Ino " Sakura began, raising her hands in a placating manner. "Don't even start, Sakura!" the blonde warned. "Do you know how long I've been w aiting for you to get married? Do you?" Sakura's reply of "Who are you, my mother?" overlapped with Sasukes bewildered o utcry of "Married?" Ino rounded on him. "Yes, married! Or were you planning on just having a meaning less fling with my best friend, hmm? Is that it? C'mon, tough guy, answer me. We 'll see how pretty you are with a black eye " "Ino, stop it!" Sakura ordered as the tops of Sasuke's ears burned bright red. " You're embarrassing him " Naruto, meanwhile, found the whole scene terribly funny. "Yeah, Sasuke!" he snic kered. "What are your intentions for our dearest Sakura-chan? Speak up, now, don 't be shy." Sasuke glared savagely at him as he continued to resist Ino's ministrations. "Sh ut up, dead-last! I " he snuck a glance at Sakura, who was watching him expectantl y, her expression devoid of anything that told him what she wanted to hear from him. Disgruntled and humiliated, he growled to the group at large, "We're only ninete en!" Ino arched an eyebrow imperiously. "Time is of the essence, Uchiha. You're shino bi! You could go on a mission and die tomorrow! A meteor could hit the earth! A plague could spread! Naruto could say something intelligent and we'd all die of shock!" Naruto scowled and crossed his arms. "Funny, Ino, very funny." She waved a dismissive hand at him and opened her mouth to say something else, a t which point Sakura found it prudent to step in and save Sasuke from further mo rtification. She gently disentangled the tape measurer from around Sasuke and handed it back to Ino. "Ah, Ino this is all a bit soon, don't you think? I promise I'll let you a ttack Sasuke with a tape measurer and harass him about flower decorations some o ther time, okay?" she offered, ignoring Sasuke's betrayed hiss of "Sakura!" Ino's eyes softened. "I'm gonna hold you to that, Forehead," she cautioned. Sakura just grinned in response. -"Your best friend is crazy," Sasuke muttered sullenly as they walked away from t he Yamanaka Flower Shop, leaving Ino and Naruto squabbling behind them. Sakura ruffled his hair. "So is yours," she reminded him cheerfully. "Not the point," he grumbled, snatching her hand from his hair and holding it in

his own. She sighed happily and snuggled up to his side. "Sasuke-kun, do you love me?" He frowned at her. "You already know the answer to that." "Yeah," she conceded, "but I like hearing you say it. I'm a girl and therefore i nsecure by definition. Humor me." He exhaled and spoke to the top of her head, "I love you." "Do you love me a lot?" was her follow-up question. "Yes," Sasuke admitted, a bad feeling forming in his stomach. "How much do you love me?" she pressed. "Like, a lot, or a lot a lot, or a lot a lot a lot?" "That's a stupid question," he groused. Sakura tugged at his sleeve. "Sasuke-kun, if you want this relationship to work, you're going to have to learn to answer all of my inane questions, no matter ho w much they embarrass you." "I'm not embarrassed," he mumbled. "Then answer the question," Sakura urged. A pause, and then: "The third one." "The third what?" "The third option." " So you love me a lot a lot a lot?" Sakura smiled brightly. "Yes," Sasuke acknowledged wearily. "More than anyone and everyone and anything and everything else?" "Yes." "And you'd do anything for me?" " Yes." Sakura scowled at him. "You paused, Sasuke-kun. Why'd you pause?" "Because you're going somewhere with this," Sasuke accused. She looked offended. "Sasuke-kun! How could you say that? All I want to know is how much you love me. Is that so much to ask? Is it? Does that mean you don't lo ve me as much as you say? Do you not love me at all? If that's the case, I'm afr aid we're going to have to get a divorce. But don't worry! It's not me, it's you ." "What are you even talking about? We're not married," Sasuke pointed out reasona bly. Tears formed in the corners of Sakura's eyes. "Now you don't even want to marry me, either? That's it, Sasuke. We're through. I want all of your stuff gone by t omorrow." "It's my house!" he snapped. She tore her hand out of his. "Oh, so now you're going to leave me homeless and destitute? My mother was right when she told me not to marry you, but I didn't l isten to her! Now look what's happened my husband is cheating on me with a harem o f older women oh, the shame I knew I should have dated Naru " Sasuke couldn't take it anymore. "Alright!" he yelled. "Alright. I'd do anything for you. Happy?" She beamed at him, all traces of her tears immediately disappearing. "Yes! So th at means you'd buy me anything, right? Right?" "Yes," Sasuke groaned, wondering how long it would take them to reach the manor and if he could put up with his green-eyed girl and her nonsensical ramblings un til then. " So how about that pony, huh? Huh, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura looked up at him, pleased with herself, her eyes shining beautifully. Sasuke's only response was to drop a kiss to her lips and mutter, "You little tw erp." -That night, as they lay in bed, Sasuke watched Sakura drift in and out of sleep, content to stay up and watch over her, just in case. Then he remembered somethi ng. "Sakura," he whispered. "Mmm?" she responded, burrowing further into his side. He hesitated, and then realized that there was no other way to say it. He drew a

long breath. "Everything's alright," he murmured. And it was true; he was holdi ng the most beautiful girl in the world, a girl that loved him. A girl that was Sakura, his Sakura. Her eyelids raised about halfway, revealing the bright green that he loved so de arly. "I'm glad, Sasuke-kun," she smiled. "I'm glad." He was glad, too. ________________________________________ So guess what, guys? My older brother got arrested for underage drinking. Happy Thanksgiving, all. But, um, yeah. This story is finished finished finished. Hmm, what to say, what to say...first of all, I'd like to thank...myself, for being amazing; and then m e, for being myself and thus being amazing; and then also Becca, for being me an d thus myself and thus amazing. But seriously? All of you guys that reviewed and said very kind, very untrue thi ngs rocked my world. If you apply to that category, go buy yourself something ni ce. If you took the time to alert and/or favorite this story and read all the ch apters, pat yourself on the back. If you are just reading this story randomly, u m, thanks? And if you stumbled upon this page by accident...erm, just hit the Ba ck button, bro. It should solve your problem. And then, of course of course, I need to thank the uber-fantastical Missa for en couraging me and coming up with ideas and ranting about anything and everything with me (but mostly about pretty guys). Love ya. Again, though, I'd like to apologize for how I pretty much let this story go to hell in a handbasket. But hey, it was my first ever multi-chap, and I finished i t. That counts for something, right...? Kind of. You can maybe anticipate a few oneshots from me, and then I hope to see you all at my next SasuSaku multi-chap! Not sure of the title, yet...but right now I'm working the plot out with the he lp of the ever-helpful, ever-pimping Sharon. So expect something not-quite-soonish, but not-quite-later-ish, either. Y'know? Once again, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. For reviewing and just putting up wit h me in general. -runs in circlesEverything Is Alright Epilogue(-ish thing) "Sasuke-kun Sasuke-kun Sasuke-kun!" Sasuke turned to find his green-eyed girl racing towards him, up the stairs and onto the porch of the Uchiha manor. He caught her as she launched herself at him , lifting her up briefly. "What, what, what?" he asked, amused. Her eyes wide and bright and wild, she grabbed his hand, tugging. "Come on come on come on!" He allowed her to lead him by the hand away from the manor, into the inner Villa ge. The villagers were gathering, chattering excitedly, even though it was the p eak of summer and an ungodly hot temperature. Sakura, lovely in a pale yellow tank-top and a white skirt, charged through them , shouting "Excuse me excuse me excuse me!" Sasuke wondered whether this was ano ther one of her games, to repeat everything she said three times. He rather liked it better than her game last week, when she addressed him only a s "Sasu-baby." The crowd around the Hokage Tower was very dense, but they didn't have to work t o get to the front. Instead, when people saw them, they would just part so that they could get through, smiling. It really kind of made him wonder what was happening. Once they were at the front of the crowd, Sasuke looked at Sakura. "What's going on?" She beamed at him and pointed to the top of the tower. There stood Tsunade and N aruto except Naruto was wearing the Hokage robes. "Oh, God," Sasuke said. Sakura bounced up and down. "I KNOW, RIGHT?!" Once she was sure she had everyone's attention, Tsunade spoke. "As you all know, I'm " she frowned. "Getting old."

Sasuke concluded that it was indeed a very weird day, if Tsunade would ever admi t such a thing. Perhaps he was dreaming. "So," she continued. "I hereby resign my position as Hokage and leave my post to y our new Rokudaime, Uzumaki Naruto." She removed her Hokage's hat and placed it j auntily on Naruto's head. The blonde boy peace-signed, grinning broadly. The crowds cheered uproariously, shouting and celebrating. The boy they'd used t o scorn had come to be a great Village favorite. Tsunade shook her head wryly. "Gods save you all." She walked away, leaving Naru to alone on top of the Tower. "Well, it's official. We're all screwed," Sasuke murmured, but he was smiling. Sakura took his hands and danced around. "He did it he did it he did it!" Sasuke watched her as she laughed and cried and screamed all at once, hair wild and eyes green and God, she was so beautiful. Naruto spoke. "As my first act as Hokage I order the immediate construction of a c ommunity pool!" Better than Sasuke had feared. He'd thought for certain that Naruto's first orde r of business would be to build himself a personal ramen shack, right there in t he Tower. That would probably be his second act. -One Month Later "Sasuke-kun, can you go get me a drink, please?" Sasuke glanced over to where Sakura reclined in a poolside chair, her red tankin i exposing a strip of her abdomen, her sunglasses hiding her eyes. "What do you want?" Before she could answer, Naruto strolled over, looking thoroughly ridiculous in his bright orange swim-trunks. "Heyyy, bastard. Hiya, Sakura-chan." Sakura raised her sunglasses. "Shouldn't you be working on official Hokage busin ess, instead of chilling at the pool?" He grinned. "I'll have you know that ensuring the happiness of my people is offi cial Hokage business." He punched Sasuke playfully on the shoulder. "Some of us have real jobs, instead of just taking the occasional S-ranked mission when we f eel like it." Sasuke shoved him back, and the situation devolved into a full-fledged scuffle b efore Sakura stood, taking off her sunglasses. "Boys, boys. No rough-housing by the pool." She shook her head mournfully. "Kids these days " Naruto and Sasuke shared a glance, which caused Sakura to back up, hands raised. "Um, guys " They joined together to fling her into the pool. She surfaced, sputtering. "You !" Naruto laughed and cannon-balled in to join her. Sasuke sat on the edge of the p ool, smirking, and outstretched his arms towards her. "Come here, I've got you." She swam over to him, and he took her in his arms, lifting her out of the pool. She wrung out her hair. "You guys are jerks." Naruto's blonde head bobbed. "But we're your jerks!" She hid a smile and went back to her chair. This time Sasuke waited for her to d raw her knees up, then sat down on the end of her chair, using her legs as a bac k-rest. She pressed them closer together so he would have more support. He leaned back, and Sakura bent forward, massaging his head in small circles. He breathed out, and she peered down at him. "You look happy," she remarked. He felt the sun on his face, heard Naruto splashing around. He collected one of her hands, rubbing his thumb over her palm. "I am," he admitted. She smiled and bent down, kissing him on the mouth. He smiled into the kiss, til ting his head for a better angle, but broke off when Naruto splashed water at th em. "Get a room, you two! No one wants to see that!" This time it was Sasuke and Sakura who looked at each other, and rose to jump in the pool and give Naruto a good, solid thrashing. In the water, Sasuke took a moment to look at Naruto, yellow locks disheveled, a nd Sakura, treading water beside him, ankles brushing his. She noticed him watch

ing and swam closer, winding her arms around his neck. "I love you," she whisper ed into his ear, her wet cheek pressed up against his. Sasuke was happy. ________________________________________ OHMYGOD. I forgot all about this story until like, two hours ago, when I was lik e, hey, I should write an epilogue. So I did. Crazy, right? Right. So. I kind of want to write a sequel for this, from Sakura's POV mostly. Maybe h ave them go on some super-duper mission or something. But I don't know. I have a lot of other stuff I'm working on...and I'm afraid I'll write the first few cha pters and then run out of ideas/lose interest/get bored. As dictated by my histo ry. But, maybe. So, yeah. Thank you everyone for the reviews and kind words and...kindly-worded reviews! You've no idea how much they mean to me. ALL OF YOU ARE NINJA GANGSTERS . Doesn't get any better than that, yo. Unrelated: 1) Danzo. Is. Such. A. Bitch. -seethes2) Team Hebi (or whatever they're calling themselves these days) had a cute mome nt! I'm so upset. You know, in like, the second-to-latest chapter, when Karin wa s bein' all annoying and Sasuke was basically just like "Shut up, ho," and Suige tsu was like "Haha, Karin got in trouble!" and Zetsu or whoever was like "Sasuke , you've sure got a lot to deal with." Or something. ...Yeah, well. It was still cute, and I'm still upset. :)