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“See ya later!” Naruto Uzumaki shouted with a wave.
The blonde ninja sauntered in the direction of Ichiraku Ramen, babbling to himself about his favorite noodles and how he couldn’t wait to see Iruka-sensei again. Nothing like a tedious D-rank mission to build his appetite.
Left with an awkward vacuum of silence in their teammate’s wake, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno stood at the intersection where the roads to the downtown business quarter and residential district diverged from the main street. So close to the object of her devotion, Sakura’s pulse hummed in her ears. Next to her, Sasuke crossed his arms and pivoted to face her, as if bracing tell her something – but unsure of what to say.
Team 7 had spent the entire day side by side in the bowels of the hidden leaf’s busiest teahouse, washing dishes, bussing tables and delivering orders. To her disappointment, their mission left no room for the tight smiles and fleeting glances she’d begun to exchange with Sasuke.
“Uh, Sasuke – my parents probably want me home for dinner now,” Sakura ventured. “I-I’ll see you for training tomorrow?”
“Oh, you...you live that way, don’t you?”
Sasuke tilted his chin toward the side street that led to the Haruno residence, a two-story townhome in the heart of the village.
“That’s right.”
“I suppose I should wish you a good night.”
Sakura gasped and furrowed her pink brows – was that defeat she sensed? She heard the same lilt in Sasuke’s voice on few other occasions. The last time she could recall Sasuke sounding so vulnerable, Team 7 sat next to a streambank trying to determine how to get themselves un-lost. Sasuke started and stopped speaking three times before admitting he’d misread the compass, leading his teammates two miles astray from their rendezvous location with a wealthy client.
“Are you alright, Sasuke?”
Her jade green eyes locked with his, deep pools of black that only showed lenses of brown when they caught the sunlight just-so. Sasuke tore his eyes away with an abrupt jerk, one that resembled a wince of physical pain. Huffing, he turned his back on Sakura.
“Y-yes. I’m perfectly okay.”
No, you’re not, Sakura silently countered.
She reached a hand toward him, stopping when her fingertips lingered inches from his shoulder. Sasuke lived in the empty Uchiha compound on the outskirts of the hidden leaf – alone. Without anyone to wish him goodnight or discuss his day over a warm meal. Her heart swelled until she felt sure a single pinprick would make it explode.
“I’ll walk you home.”
The words solidified in her mind and spilled in the same moment, eliciting a gasp from both teammates. Still facing away from her, Sasuke bowed his head.
“I’d like that,” he whispered.
Sakura smiled. Stepping forward to meet Sasuke’s eyes, she noticed a flush of pink creep across his pale cheeks. His arms quivered from his shoulders to the hands buried in his pockets. She set a hand on his upper arm, fingertips smoothing dark blue cotton. He muttered an apology, something about showing weakness unworthy of a Uchiha.
“Sasuke. Let’s...go then.”
“Right.”
Her parents would understand if she arrived halfway through dinner, once she explained her reasons. She could withstand the lecture if they failed to understand that she cared more for her friend than leaving them waiting and worried. Unlike Sasuke, she had a mother and father to worry over her, then spoil her with affection once their scolding passed.
They’d walked a block before Sasuke lifted his head and regarded Sakura with one corner of his lips tugged upward. She noticed a dimple form on the outer edge of his cheek, and thought with some embarrassment that she wanted to press her thumb into the indent. Then she could hold part of his smile. Not that Sasuke would ever permit her to touch his face with such tenderness.
He’d snap her wrist the moment he noticed her hand drawing too close for comfort.
“So, uh...what do you make yourself for dinner?” Sakura asked.
Damn it. Maybe he doesn’t want to think of that, she thought, praying to the gods she could retract her ill-advised question.
“Hm. Whatever’s around.”
Sasuke didn’t sound too offended, but his tone sent her a clear message – I’d rather not talk about this. Sakura’s mind filled the blanks. She pictured Sasuke watching a steaming cup of instant ramen with downcast eyes. She imagined him toting bags full of frozen meals through the Uchiha compound’s looming gates. Perhaps another day, she could stay to cook him a warm, homemade meal. Curry on rice, maybe – the one recipe she could prepare without her mother’s help.
“That’s...nice. Okay, then.”
Her other attempts at starting a conversation with Sasuke fizzled against his shrugs and noncommittal responses. Eventually, she resorted to rambling her thoughts about everything and nothing. She spilled whatever words crossed her consciousness to avoid confronting the suffocating silence between them. Otherwise, Sakura knew the tears pooling behind her eyes would spill instead.
She spoke of her love for the chocolate rolls at the bakery they passed. How she hoped their next mission would take them somewhere outdoors with fresh air. Wildflowers would be a plus. And didn’t he enjoy nature far more than the press of bodies inside the teahouse?
Sasuke responded with a careful what you wish for, and a reminder of the last time Team 7 spent hours combing through the woods for Tora the cat. The memory made Sakura fall silent. Naruto had spent an hour complaining about yet another torturous D-rank mission when their success in the Land of Waves proved they were worthy of greater challenges.
All three teammates reported to the hokage’s office with still-bleeding scratch marks. Kakashi provoked a screaming fit from Naruto when he remarked from behind his Makeout book that no shinobi could become hokage without spilling a little blood.
Sakura switched subjects, voice inflected with forced cheer. She tried to reassure herself that at least Sasuke had a basic interest in her petty ramblings. He gave an occasional nod or I understand when she paused for air.
Surely Sasuke’s sick of me by now, she worried. Sakura bit the inside of her bottom lip. Though she’d only glimpsed his half-smile less than an hour ago, the curve of his lips and the elusive dimple on his cheek faded from her mind like wisps of smoke. Now she only saw Sasuke as he was to everyone else – unreadable, stone-faced.
Midway through a rant about her parents’ shower habits, the building wave of insecurity overwhelmed her. Her ears burned along with her cheeks.
“S-Sasuke...I’m sorry if I’m annoying you...it’s just...I don’t know what to say because I like you.”
A firm hand grabbed her wrist mid-step, anchoring Sakura in place. Sasuke locked his teeth and set his lips in a thin line.
Oh no, he’s going to tell me I’m annoying and he hates me now, Sakura thought. Why’d I have to mess up my chance? Ino would never –
“Sakura. Please, keep talking. I don’t care what you talk about,” Sasuke insisted. “I’m only glad I’m not alone. In fact, I-I’m glad you’re better at this than me.”
This time, dimples bloomed on both of his cheeks. Smiling and giving Sasuke a thumbs up, Sakura continued her stream of minor complaints. She bemoaned her father’s habit of leaving his hairs strewn on the shower walls – “is it that hard for him to wash them down the drain? My mom always says even a dog would have learned by now!”
That managed to elicit a single laugh from Sasuke, which sent sparks of warmth radiating from her core.
Another block, and the whitewashed walls of the Uchiha compound rose before them. Sakura’s eyes widened when she noted the red and white Uchiha sigils painted on the walls. The war fans were identical to the one embroidered on Sasuke’s back.
“We’re here,” he announced, as if Sakura needed clarification.
Hands on his hips, Sasuke stood in front of the compound’s wrought iron gates. He pursed his lips, tongue running over his bottom lip. Drew a sharp breath and released it in a rattling exhale. Watching him with her head tilted in curiosity, Sakura reasoned that he wanted to tell her something – something he found difficult to articulate. She lingered for untold minutes until she saw the first tendrils of orange creep across the sky.
“Um...bye, Sasuke. It was nice walking you home.”
Sakura wiggled her fingers in the air and pivoted back in the direction of the village proper, readying herself to sprint home. If she bounded over the village’s rooftops and shade trees, she could reach home in less than 10 minutes. Quick enough that she would be through the door before sunset, sparing herself from her mother’s rant about how the village became a dangerous place after dark.
Before she took a single step from the Uchiha compound, Sakura felt a tight grip encircle her forearm. Sasuke, she noted, her pulse quickening. She turned her head to see Sasuke’s eyes downcast, a quiver in his extended arm.
“Sakura. Wait.”
“What?” she gasped. “I-I have to get home.”
Sasuke tugged on her arm, prompting her to face him.
“Thank you, again.”
Before Sakura could protest, he pulled her into him for a crushing hug. Her muscles tensed in shock before she nestled her head against his shoulder and molded her body to his.
Sasuke Uchiha had just given her a hug. Sakura’s heart fluttered with dizzying excitement. She grinned, the curve of her smile pressing into Sasuke’s shoulder.
“Any time. Really, I’ll walk you home every day if you want.”
“Yes, please.”