Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ 11 Ways ❯ Curious ( Chapter 4 )

Four: Lunch

 

The first time Sakura came over for lunch Kakashi was curious.

 

He'd felt her chakra approaching so he wasn't all that surprised when he opened the door and found her standing there. Pausing a moment to take in the newness of this particular situation he pointedly sent an interested glance at the takeout currently in her hand. The shy smile she sent him as she ducked her head slightly instantly made him suspicious.

 

Of course, after years of working and traveling together they knew each other's food preferences, so when she stepped past him into his apartment and began taking the contents of the bag out he noted with interest that the markings on the container were not familiar at all to him.

 

The earlier bid at shyness had fled and her mannerisms held much more confidence, and if he must guess - stubbornness, as she turned to face him squarely.

 

“I wanted us to try something new,” she said, waving in such a vague manner he wasn't sure whether he was indicating the food or this new arrangement she was initiating by barging into his living quarters. “Never know what you're missing out on otherwise, right?”

 

Slowly he nodded, not quite sure where she was going with this, but seeing as she wasn't saying anything further he resigned himself to ponder it while they ate. He was sure, with a temperament like hers, if she wanted him to know then it'd be hard to prevent her telling him, so there was no use in trying to pry information out. Especially not when there was hot - and free - food on the table.

 

His suspicions, which had never really laid to rest since she'd knocked on the door, quickly rose to new heights when half way through the meal, which he'd been eating with his trademark lightning-fast bites, he found her eyes focused dazedly on his mouth.

 

Suddenly her gaze snapped up to his and she couldn't hide the mischievous gleam therein. “Why is it you always wear that mask, Kakashi?”

 

He glared at her for a bare second before averting his eye to his food and studiously ignoring her.

 

“Seems to me it'd be more of a hindrance than anything else. It can't be all that comfortable. Doesn't the material scratch your face? Isn't it itchy? Are you all red and raw under there?”

 

His lack of response didn't faze her in the least.

 

“What about when you have a cold? Did you have to learn a super-fast nose-blowing jutsu too?”

 

His eyebrow twitched in irritation and her lips curved in response.

 

“Now then, why do you cover it? That's the million dollar question, isn't it? And I'll have you know, though I'm sure you're no doubt aware already, that everyone in Konoha has at least one theory on it.”

 

She proceeded to launch into a detailed list that lasted far too long for Kakashi's liking of the many abundant and far-fetched ideas people had regarding his personal tastes in clothing, most of which he did indeed know. A few, however, did catch him off guard and he was amazed at the imagination - or insanity - of the people those particular speculations had come from. By the end of it he was thoroughly aggravated to know not only what people thought of him (and his apparently many discretionary habits that would require use of a mask on a regular basis) and that they talked about him so much in his absence but also that Sakura not only heard all these hypotheses but also participated in the discussion.

 

“You know what I think though?” She asked him, noting the slight tension she saw in the muscles of his forearms. “I think you wear it to hide all the nosebleeds you get every time you read Icha Icha in public.”

 

He couldn't take anymore; his ire had built too high.

 

“Sakura!” His voice was hardly louder than his normal speaking level but she knew for him it was as good as a tantrum.

 

She grinned impishly at him, pleased at being able to get under his skin enough to elicit any kind of provoked response. It would make this next bit so much sweeter.

 

“The point of all that is I wanted to let you know that's not what this is about.” She swept her arm to again vaguely gesture at what could be the entire room.

 

He raised a mocking eyebrow letting her know he was far from believing her on that point.

 

Her cheeks suddenly reddened. “I backed out of the bet ages ago and paid my way out.”

 

The bet. He was more than aware of what that was and needed no clarification. A stakes had been formed almost from the very beginning of Team 7's initiation with him regarding who among them could first see his face sans mask. He also knew that over the years the wages had drastically risen and that the winner would be getting both a hefty chunk of change and also the revelry of watching the losers perform some very embarrassing stunts.

 

He wondered whether Sakura's blush was due more to this or to her admission.

 

“What exactly did you have to pay in order to forgo involvement in the bet?” He smirked at her discomfiture.

 

“That's neither here nor there,” she replied quickly, refusing to meet his eyes. His curiosity spiked but he allowed the question to lie. Everyone was allowed to his or her secrets, of course.

 

“Anyhow, the whole point is,” she continued nervously, “was to tell you that I didn't have an ulterior motive for coming here. Like I said…`something new'.”

 

Kakashi stared at her for a moment, contemplating. “Don't think this means I'll show you anyhow though.” He resumed eating as though nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.

 

Knowing he was gauging her reacting in his peripheral vision Sakura feigned disappointment, which in truth she did feel just the slightest hint of, but it was far outweighed by the fact that had not said `no' to this new sort of meeting between them. She tried but could not fight the delighted grin that spread across her face.

 

The next time she came over for lunch she noticed his normally bachelor-dirty apartment (not filthy but still needing to see a sponge) was measurably cleaner than the last time she'd seen it and couldn't help but wonder at the reason.