Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Experiments ❯ Realizations ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Realizations

“Mother!”

Yori Haruno jumped at the aggressive tone of her daughter's voice, nearly dropping the plate of grilled fish that she was placing on the table. She sighed, knowing that this conversation had to come sooner or later, and ran a hand through her fading pink hair.

“How could you?” the young Haruno yelled, storming into the kitchen. She didn't seem to care about the large puddles of water she trailed behind her from her rain-soaked state.

“Sakura please understand...I'm just not comfortable with you near him—”

“There's nothing to understand!” She interrupted with an attitude that would usually get her punished, “Naruto has done nothing to you, nothing!”

“If you knew what he really was you would know why I don't trust him,” Yori tried to explain. If it weren't for the third's law she would be able to make her daughter see the truth—that she was just doing what was best for her.

“I know about the Kyuubi if that's what you're suggesting,” Sakura spat out contemptuously. Wizened hazel eyes widened and the disrespectful tone brushed right by.

“How...? The law...”

“Naruto told me,” Sakura said in a softer voice but with just as much resentment, “because I'm his friend and he trusts me like I trust him.”

She took brutal satisfaction with every flinch her mother made at the amicable terms. As her desperation at her daughter's unawareness increased, the lines in Yori's face seemed to deepen, giving her an older appearance.

“Sakura, please! He's dangerous; he could attack you any minute!”

“And I could attack him any minute,” Sakura countered, “He is not the Kyuubi, mom, he's just a boy.”

“He is not just a boy, Sakura!” her mother yelled back, her frustration finally taking the best of her, “You weren't there...” her voice began shaking, “You didn't see your brother get crushed at the hands of that—that—It can't be contained!”

Sakura stamped her foot on the floor, matching her mother's voice level.

“It is contained! It is! I've seen Naruto use its power; I've seen him use it and I've seen him use his own! There's a difference!”

Her mother was shaking her head, refusing to listen to her daughter's assertions, refusing to change beliefs that she held for nearly sixteen years. She began talking, but more so to herself. She didn't seem to see her daughter standing before her anymore as her mind took her back to that fateful night.

“It...it was so evil. And he walks around, among us—the people he hurt—like he deserves to be called a human. No...he deserves to suffer as we have suffered...he deserves everything he got!”

Tears were running down her mother's face, and though she had only seen such a sight a handful of times in her life, Sakura felt no sympathy for the woman. No, for the first time felt absolute disgust at her mother—disgust for being the daughter of her.

Sakura swallowed and stepped away from the distraught woman. She felt a coldness seep through her body, granting her an unsettling strength.

“You hurt him, didn't you?” It wasn't really a question because she didn't want to know the answer. Naruto had never said anything directly to her, he wouldn't have; he wasn't the type to, but she wasn't the smartest kunoichi of her age for nothing. She could string together the pieces of his guarded life almost as well as Shikamaru.

“Do you have any idea what people like you have done to him?” she hissed while fighting back tears of her own. She had to be strong; she had to make her mother understand, “He was an innocent child! You can't treat children like that no matter who they are!”

Yori seemed to realize her mistake and how bad it made her sound.

“I never physically hurt the boy. In fact I was much more...tolerant of him than most others.”

This did not help her argument at all. In fact, it only served to make Sakura's recent contempt for her mother and the village rise.

“What is with all the screaming?” The two females of the house turned at the soft spoken voice. Matsu Haruno, a middle-aged business man with jade eyes and peppered brown hair stared at the bickering pair, taking in the tears on his wife's face and her daughter's furious, shaking fists.

“Dad!”

“Matsu!”

“Dad,” Sakura rushed, “you understand that Naruto is not the Kyuubi. He's one of the kindest people in Konoha and he would never hurt anyone intentionally!”

“He's a demon,” his wife added harshly, “you saw what he did to our son and now he wants to take our daughter away from us! He was out there with her tonight—”

“Will you listen to yourself?” Sakura cried, “You sound psychotic!”

“Don't you dare talk to me like that, young lady.” her mother snapped, “You have crossed the line one too many times tonight.”

“Coming from the woman who terrorizes small children—”

“Enough, you two,” Matsu commanded, holding his hands up for silence. Both women fell silent and directed their attention back to him but the hostility was still thick in the air. “Now, I don't know what brought this on, but we will not be fighting like this in my house. Do you understand?”

He received two reluctant nods.

“Tell her dad,” Sakura pleaded, knowing her father was a reasonable man, “tell her she's wrong.”

Matsu sighed, not being able to fight the sea-green puppy eyes.

“Well...the shinobi of our village seem to respect him, as does the Hokage...” he trailed off at the betrayed look on his wife's face, “Of course we must take into account that foxes are known to be tricksters so...”

“Ugh! I knew it!” Sakura screamed suddenly, causing the reserved man to jump. “Of course you would take her side!”

“Now Sakura—”

“No! I don't want to hear it!” she stormed past her father and out of the kitchen, “I'm going to my room—don't speak to me!”

She made sure to stomp on each step as hard as she could. She didn't care if she came off as being immature; she just wanted to express her anger via violence.

“Hunny, your food—!”

“I'm not hungry!”

The angry statement was followed by the loud slamming of a door.

Matsu sighed and gave his wife a disappointed look, who returned one of complete innocence.

“What?”

It took quite a while before Sakura could calm down enough to find sleep—the empty stomach certainly didn't help matters either. What her mother said shook her to the core and made her curiosity about Naruto's past burn more than ever. Just to what extent was the village's abuse of him? What kind of pain did he hide behind those exaggerated smiles? For how long did he suffer through this alone?

She managed to calm herself with acknowledging that there weren't so many harsh looks these days; the chuunin exams three years ago had helped a lot with convincing the populace that he was a genuine and loyal shinobi of Konoha.

After a few yet satisfying hours of sleep, Sakura woke to find half her covers kicked to the ground and her pillow underneath her back. God only knows what she did in her sleep. Shrugging off the thought, she sat up in her bed giving a hearty yawn and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She stood and made her way over to her window, drawing the curtains and letting the warm morning sun wash over her rather girlish room. Padding her way towards the shower, a bright red marking on her calendar caught her eye. She leaned towards the chart and grinned as she read her little note. In her fury the earlier night, she had forgotten what she had planned today. She rushed into the bathroom wanting to get ready as fast as possible. Hopefully she could catch Naruto early before he left to train; she wanted to make sure he was invited as well.

0o0o0o0o

The whole of rookie nine was gathered at Kiba's house for a small get-together. They had been doing this for the last couple of years; every once in a while someone would make the time to invite everyone for a gathering—just to make sure their ties remained strong through all the missions and whatnot. She couldn't remember who's idea it was in the beginning or why but it had become a bit of a tradition. Being as Naruto was away since this started, this was the first one he got to attend.

It was a comfortable setting. The room was dimly lit, and the rookie nine plus team Gai were all scattered around on various pieces of furniture or the floor. The ground and tables were littered with half-eaten snacks and drinks. The air hummed with the chatting going around between everyone; the young ninjas were at ease catching up with each others' personal lives, exchanging training tactics and gossip.

Sakura and Naruto happily listened in from their personal corner of the couch they staked out, but didn't join for neither felt like drawing any attention to themselves. Sakura's form was curled around a pillow at the far end of the plushy red couch with Naruto seated on the ground right under her. His back was pressed against the base of the couch with his legs bent close to his body, and his head rested neatly against her thighs. Sakura contented herself with lacing her fingers alternatively through his soft hair and down his whiskered cheeks. The blond seemed to be in heaven. The nerves of his `whiskers' sent warm, humming vibes down his body, forcing him into a blissful relaxation.

`Now this is true happiness...' Sakura thought to herself as she looked down on the inebriated boy fondly. She knew at that moment that she was ready to admit she felt something a little more than friendship for her teammate.

Across the room, sitting cross-legged in a curbed circle, were the other three girls of the gang enjoying their own deep conversation of ethics.

“I mean, I can't believe he just walked away like that...after everything I just confessed to the cold hearted bastard!” Tenten steamed as she retold her venture for the third time, hoping to get some advice or commiseration. Hinata was patting her shoulder sympathetically but seemed slightly entertained about something that Tenten didn't catch.

“A-at least you got even with him, right?”

“Ha! Yeah I did. That jerk won't be walking strait for a while.”

Ino wasn't listening to either girl. Her brows were furrowed as she kept her eyes on Sakura's fingers lighting brushing up and down the strange stripes on Naruto's cheeks. The boy's face was relaxed in a way she had never seen before; his eyes were half closed and hazed. There was something about the sight that was intimate...sensual...sexual, even.

Ino frowned. Was there something going on between them?

The last she knew Sakura was still secretly in love with Uchiha Sasuke. Could it be that she had moved on?

The female of team ten stared hard at Naruto, trying to pinpoint what it was exactly that attracted Sakura to him. She had only seen him a couple times since he returned, and they were all brief encounters. It was obvious to anyone that he had physically matured and could even be considered borderline handsome. He was no longer the runt of the litter being as tall as the other boys, his face had thinned out from the plump baby-cheeks, and he seemed generally calmer, not shouting out stupidities at every opportunity. Strait nose, crystalline blue eyes lined with dark lashes, unruly golden locks contrasting nicely with tanned skin—okay, so he was a bit more than borderline handsome.

Her frown deepened as she observed the loving way Sakura gazed down on him, how he seemed to cherish her touch, returning to her a tender look that spoke volumes. They truly appreciated each other, as if they were all the other had.

She felt a thread of envy wriggle its way through her stomach for her rival having that kind of bond with someone. Her deceased sensei's parting words chose that time to float through her mind.

“...Don't loose to Sakura...in ninjutsu or in love...”

“Now do you see what I've always seen?”

Ino jumped, hastily whipping her head around to meet a pearl stare.

“H-Hinata! I didn't—I mean...It isn't like that!”

The blue-haired beauty smiled kindly at the stuttering Yamanaka and turned to look at the subject of her scrutiny a few seconds ago.

“He's amazing.” She said in her dulcet voice, “He can touch anyone's life without even trying...bringing light to the darkness within themselves that they can't face alone. He doesn't even realize what a pillar of strength has become for everyone...”

Ino stared at Hinata, amazed. She had never heard the girl speak so much at once, and with such conviction.

“He has so many qualities that...just...I mean he's compassionate, he's honest, he's supportive, he's...he's...”

“Hot?”

Hinata squeaked at the weapon mistress's suggestion and her face flushed. That was most likely the word she had been thinking of.

“Yeah...that dorky little blond kid is turning out to be quite the looker, eh?” Tenten said, waggling her eyebrows and nudging the shy girl in the side.

“D-don't...”

Ino shook her head at Tenten's sassy antics and cracked a grin. She turned her attention back to the lounging pair, sizing them up before narrowing her eyes, vowing to get to the bottom of this.

Sakura could feel herself drifting off. The atmosphere was so comforting, so soporific, she couldn't help it. She was vaguely aware of a small vibration under the tips of her fingers. A low puttering glided over her ears. It sounded familiar to her, and after short contemplation her eyes opened fully upon the full recognition of the sound. Looking down only confirmed where it was coming from. No, it couldn't be...

“Naruto,” Sakura whispered in his ear, bending down low as to not drag anyone's attention over to their happy little corner, “are you...purring?”

“Quiet,” he commanded without opening his eyes and nudged her loose fingers with his face, giving her a silent request to continue her ministrations.

Sakura giggled a little at her teammate's cute, animalistic behavior and granted him his silent request.

“Does the purring have something to do with the whiskers?” she asked sounding delighted, “I didn't think foxes purred.”

“They don't, demons do.”

Sakura's body was shaking with silent laughter at this bit of information and she found it hard to keep petting his cheeks.

“Demons purr?” She asked, coiling forwards a bit more so she could bury her face in his hair to help muffle her giggles. “Why would demons purr?”

“And why not?” Naruto asked sleepily as if it were perfectly normal.

“Purring is cute, and they're supposed to be scary.”

“He purrs.”

Realizing he was referring to the Kyuubi, the most feared demon in existence left her laughing out loud. This sadly brought unwanted attention.

“Hey lovebirds, you too good to join the rest of us?” Kiba asked loudly. He along with many others present was grinning at the pair. Sakura could feel her face burn under all the laughing stares while Naruto flipped them off and made no further movements.

“Troublesome...” Shikamaru muttered. He stood slowly, popping his back as he stretched out the stiffness from sitting in one place for too long. “I better get back. It's getting late and my mother will be a real pain if I skip dinner again.”

Chouji got up to follow him, waving to the others.

“Yes,” Lee agreed, “Now seems a good a time as any to head out.”

The group filtered out of the Inuzuka residence, each going their separate ways to their own homes.

“Well, see you tomorrow Sakura-chan,” Naruto said cheerfully, walking towards the more shady part of Konoha.

“Wait!” Sakura called to him, “Want to get a bite to eat?”

Truthfully, she really didn't want to be anywhere near her parents at the moment. Naruto's eyes lighted, no doubt at the thought of ramen, and he opened his mouth to respond.

“Oh no you don't, billboard brow!”

The remnants of team seven started at the boisterous voice. Ino stormed up to Sakura and grabbed her arm, pulling her in the direction of her own home.

“Your date will have to wait, I need her tonight.” She said to a completely dumbfounded Naruto as she dragged the medic-nin away.

“Ino-pig!” Sakura growled struggling to pull from her grip. She had Tsunade's strength for Christ's sake so why was this so hard? “Just what do you think you're doing?”

“We're having a girl's night tonight,” the purple-clad girl said in a sickly sweet voice.

“We are?” Sakura asked somewhat fearfully.

“Yep. You're sleeping over!”

Sakura would have liked to argue for the sake of arguing, but she really didn't want to go home either.

“Fine.” She grumbled. “But I'm borrowing your clothes.”

“As if you could fit in them, fatty.”

“Why you—!”

0o0o0o0o

Sakura bounced a little on the large, canary-yellow bed. The pale pink nightie she wore rode up her legs as she sat, showing off inches of elegant milky thighs.

“So what did you really want, piglet?”

Ino scowled at the name and plopped down on the other side of the bed, dropping a few cotton balls and different shades of nail polish onto the comforter.

“I want to know what's going on with you and Naruto,” she said straightforward as she unscrewed the cap of a teal polish. Sakura's hand slowed as it hovered over the pile of colors and she glanced up at Ino's uncharacteristically serious face. Choosing a color that she felt matched her eyes, she straitened her posture and began her own grooming.

“That's a pretty vague question.”

A tick went off on the side of Ino's head.

“You know what I mean, forehead. I saw you two today, all snuggled up together—”

“—we were not snuggled up!”

“I haven't seen you look at anyone like that since Sasuke.”

Sakura stilled and her jaw tightened and Ino was afraid she crossed some forbidden line.

“Sorry, I didn't mean to...” she trailed off when the other girl began shaking her head. Sakura's pink bangs shaded her eyes, leaving Ino to wonder if she was crying or not.

“It's different than Sasuke.” She began quietly. “With Sasuke it was more of a fantasy. Then man I fell in love with was brave and selfless, he was quiet because he was shy...and after Sasuke left I kept telling myself it was just a mistake and that it was the cursed seal making him act like that. I had my suspicions but...”

Ino was quick put her bottle of nail polish down on the dresser next to the bed when she saw the first tears skate down pastel cheeks.

“But when I saw him again after all those years, and heard how he felt about us from his own mouth, and saw first hand that he really wanted Naruto, his best friend, dead for more power...I knew for certain that that man I fell in love with, that man I was positive was just hidden under a shy and modest exterior, he never even existed.”

The tears were dripping off the soft curve of her jaw now, leaving a constellation of dark splotches on the nightwear, and like a true friend Ino said nothing but pulled the older girl into her arms. She was glad Sakura could start to recover from Sasuke's betrayal having now admitted it out loud.

“And with Naruto...” Ino prompted after a moment. Sakura sniffed a bit and pulled away, clearing the tear streaks with her arm.

“He's...I've known this all along but I refused to recognize it for some reason or another...but he's everything I thought Sasuke once was...” she said thoughtfully. Her face cleared from her earlier episode and her slightly bloodshot eyes took on an enlightened look, as if she were just realizing it for herself. Ino could have sworn she was hallucinating.

“You can't be saying...what I think you're saying...” she said slowly. Sakura snapped out of her daze and caught Ino's predatory look.

“I, uh, what am I saying?”

“That you're in love with Naruto!”

“N-no! It's not like that! We're just...we're getting a bit closer that's all,” she decided, once again more to herself that anything.

Ino gave a Cheshire grin and sidled up next to Sakura, who had resumed the painting of her toenails, trying to avoid the conversation entirely.

“So...you and the stamina freak have been hooking up behind our backs, huh?” she asked slyly. Sakura blushed brightly, realizing that she was found out.

“I—we just—I mean it's nothing serious...”

Ino's eyes widened and she leapt from the bed pointed an accusing finger.

“Y-you actually do stuff with him? I wasn't actually serious!”

Sakura slapped a hand to her forehead for her stupidity.

“I...” she tried to think of something to say but drew up a blank. Giving a fleeting look at the other girl, she jumped to her feet on the bed with every intention of running away.

“Oh no you don't!” Ino cried, grabbing a pillow and whacking Sakura in the back of the knees hard enough to send the girl bouncing down on the mattress. Shrieking from the fall, Sakura grabbed her own pillow and began to attack back, inducing a long night of cushioned warfare.

0o0o0o

Sakura managed to escape Ino's place the next day after Mrs. Yamanaka forced a hearty breakfast down her throat. In all honesty she loved the Yamanaka's, minus their intrusive daughter; they were always willing to accommodate her when things with her mother got too bad.

She breathed in the fresh air of the morning as she idly strolled through the streets of Konoha. The sun was burning brightly above her and there were few clouds to be seen (sorry Shikamaru). She wasn't to meet with her master until four since the woman was booked with diplomatic meetings for most of the day, so she had nothing set in her schedule for hours.

Maybe she should train with Naruto today? She really wanted to know what kind of training he was doing; all the secrecy from Tsunade made it even more unbearable.

Why the hell was she thinking of that idiot again?

She rubbed her temples as she walked. She was probably tired, that's all. She didn't get much sleep last night, having spent most of it under ruthless interrogation.

She shuddered, thinking back to all she spilled to the blonde. That pig could be quite persuasive when she wanted to be. Though, it wasn't as bad as she initially thought it would be. If she recalled, Ino's reaction to their first kiss was quite comical, actually. And Sakura definitely enjoyed describing in detail all the skill that Ino was missing out on.

And it wasn't as though Ino would go blabbing. There were unspoken codes of girl-dom that could not be broken.

Sakura stopped suddenly, now aware that her short walk had led her strait to the where team seven had taken their very first bell test. She walked up to the three posts and touched the middle one fondly. She could almost make out a ghostly image of a weedy, twelve-year old Naruto bound and struggling futilely. She shook her head to clear it and the image disappeared, leaving the center log aged and heavily chipped.

Why couldn't she get him out of her mind? When had this happened? When did he become so important to her?

She thought back to the previous night...and what she had said to Ino. Was she really holding his value over the Uchiha?

Sakura placed a hand against the roughened wood of the post again and closed her eyes, trying her damnedest to find an exact label for her feelings regarding Naruto.

It was a feeling the sight of Sasuke used to bring her, making her young pre-teen mindset believe she was in love. And now this is what she felt every time Naruto focused his dazzling sapphire eyes on her, or when the back of their hands brushed against each other as they walked side by side, or when she was in such close proximity to him that she could smell the warm, tantalizing musk that reminded her of autumn fields and sandalwood. It put her neurons on fire and made her chest constrict with euphoria...

Sakura gasped, her eyes flying open. The once peaceful scenery faded out, leaving her to her own mind. Her body felt numb and her outstretched hand slipped down the post, falling lifelessly to her side as she stared unseeingly at that significant middle log.

She was not aware that she spoke out loud the startling revelation within her thoughts.

“I...I love Naruto...”

0o0o0o0o