Naruto Fan Fiction ❯ Thick Brows ❯ Advice ( Chapter 5 )

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto, but it is fun to write about

Chapter 5

Sakura spent the day with her team, showing them what Lee had taught her. By the time afternoon rolled around they were all sprawled in the grass rubbing their sore arms.

"Ahh!" Naruto groaned, "How does Lee-san do this every day? I hurt!"

Sakura chuckled, "Ah…me too. Lee-kun is so dedicated to his taijitsu. He wasn't tired or sore at all when we did this same exercise yesterday. I thought my arms were going to fall off."

Naruto turned over on his belly and propped his chin up with both hands, "So why weren't you sore earlier today Sakura-chan?"

She flushed, "No reason."

Naruto jumped up and pointed at her laughing, "Tell us!" Sasuke turned his head and smiled slightly at her, waiting expectantly.

She flushed harder and sat up. "He massaged my arms and shoulders for me," she muttered.

Naruto grinned devilishly, "Oooohhh? What about your legs? Did he massage those for you too Sakura-chan?"

"Naruto! You pervert!" she yelled blushing furiously. "W-we're not doing that kind of thing yet."

Naruto saw the funny look on her face and frowned softly. He sat next to her and patted her shoulder, "Hey Sakura-chan…do you like Lee-san very much?"

She nodded and blushed, "Yes I do Naruto-kun."

He smiled cheerfully and put an arm around her shoulders, "I'm glad Sakura-chan. I like Lee-san, even if he does have fuzzy eyebrows and cries a lot. He's a good fighter and doesn't give up."

She smiled and leaned into his side. "Thanks Naruto."

"Am I interrupting anything?" a familiar voice asked from behind. The three turned to look at the person that had managed to slip up behind them so silently.

"Lee-san!" Naruto cried happily. "You look like you're getting much better!" He jumped up and grinned, "I knew Granny Tsunande could do it!"

Lee smiled lightly and nodded at Naruto and Sasuke. Sasuke stood up and smiled, "I assume that you're here for our teammate?" Sakura stood blushing a little.

"If you're done for the day," Lee said softly. "I don't want to interrupt your training."

Naruto groaned, "We were doing your exercises today. I don't think I'll be able to walk tomorrow at all!" He grinned when Lee chuckled. "Sasuke and I have plans anyway, so you can take Sakura-chan this time."

Sakura blushed and waved to her teammates, then joined Lee on the path to the village. Lee smiled happily at her and held out a hand to her. Flushing prettily she took his hand and they strolled down the path silently.

As they approached the village he spoke softly, "Do you suppose that they wanted to keep training?" When she looked at him in question he explained, "Naruto said they had plans."

She coughed and blushed, "Oh that…well you see…they are kind of…together…."

He held up a hand, "Never mind, I think I understand. That happens sometimes with those we are so close to. Take Shikamaru and Ino for example. An unlikely pair at first glance, but extremely happy together."

"Or perhaps us?" she asked softly.

He smiled and nodded, "Yes. Who would think that the village's smartest girl would fall for the dramatic Rock Lee?"

"I would," she said smiling and blushing adorably.

He smiled and squeezed her hand, "Come to dinner with me."

She nodded, "Alright. How about ramen?"

He laughed and nodded, "Ramen it is. Is Naruto starting to wear off on you a little?"

Laughing she just shook her head and pulled him along. Once they were seated at the ramen bar and happily slurping down noodles she glanced over at him and smiled. "How did the mission go? You never said what it was."

He groaned, "Walking some village dogs and babysitting three children that I swear were demons in disguise. I didn't think that something so small could cause so much trouble." He shuddered, "Do you know how disgusting it is to pull a rock out of a little kid's nose?"

She laughed and shook her head, "My little brother used to do that too. It is pretty nasty and I wouldn't think it would feel very nice for the child either." She sighed, smiling and stirred her noodles a moment. Finally she blushed and cleared her throat, "Lee-kun?"

"Hm?" he asked looking over at her curiously, eyes wide.

She'd always found that assessing stare a bit unnerving, and did even more so now. It was almost like he could see exactly what you were thinking and only waited for your move. She flushed a little more. "D-do you think you'll want children some day?"

He closed his eyes and smiled slightly. He turned back to his noodles and sighed, "I don't know. The life of a ninja is hard and often short…but I suppose it might be nice to teach and nurture a child into an adult; instill my beliefs in them, help them along in life." He smiled again and looked over at her, "Why do you ask?"

She flushed and shrugged, "I always wanted two or three little ones of my own."

He nodded, "You would have had lovely pink and black haired babies with Sasuke I think. I suppose it's sad that you lost him."

She frowned softly, "I never had him. Besides I didn't love him, not really. He was simply a prize that all of the girls wanted." She quirked a smile at him, "And anyway, I can still have those pink and black haired little ones…they'll just have a different taste in haircuts."

He choked on his noodles and flushed, his eyes darting over to her. She wasn't looking at him, but the devilish smirk she was giving her noodles meant only one thing. Lee was caught in her net and she planned to keep him there. All in all, he didn't think he'd fared too badly. Blushing at the suggestion of babies…which came after something much more interesting, he turned back to his dinner and tried to finish without choking on every bite.

***

Three days later Kakashi returned and they had to resume their normal schedule. He was impressed when he saw that they had added a considerable amount of punching and kicking to their training and happily incorporated it into his training schedules. They'd always whined about it before, but now it seemed like they enjoyed it. He couldn't help but wonder if a certain green-clad young man had anything to do with it.

He'd learned from Iruka earlier that morning that Sakura and Lee had been spending the week together and seemed to be getting along quite well. Sasuke and Naruto didn't even seem to mind the young man's presence at their training sessions. He felt a certain amount of pride that his students were maturing and developing as ninjas so well. Most of the petty arguments had even stopped, except for the screaming matches between Naruto and Sasuke when they were sparring. Echoing Sakura's thoughts on the subject, one really wouldn't know that they were lovers from the way they acted around each other. Perhaps that was their goal.

Kakashi settled next to Sakura high in a tree where she'd stopped to rest. She'd been working on her chakara (spelling?) control all morning. "Hey Sakura-san," he sighed lazily.

She smiled over at him, clearly exhausted, but feeling good about her efforts, "Hello Kakashi Sensei. How did your mission go?"

He shrugged, "We escorted an important diplomat home and caught a few assassins, but nothing too difficult. I should have taken you three with me. In retrospect I'm kind of glad I didn't though. I think leaving you all here worked out for the best. I can see Lee-san's mark here. I would imagine that is your doing Sakura-san."

She flushed and shrugged, "He showed me some things and I showed them to Narut and Sasuke. He is very devoted to his training."

"Is he feeling better about himself then?" he asked softly.

She flushed, "Yes, I think training me helped some. He realized that he is very strong and that he is also improving some. I didn't have to do anything…else…."

He patted her shoulder, "All in good time. Your feelings are still fresh and new, don't rush it too much." He hesitated a moment, "Sakura-san…when you do take that step…be careful."

She blushed and looked at him curiously, not understanding completely.

He sighed, "With Sasuke and Naruto I don't worry much. A fall-out between them could be potentially annoying…but with you…." He actually blushed a little, "You're a female ninja…and female ninjas have to deal with things that male ninjas don't in the course of their lives…."

"Kakashi Sensei, are you trying to tell me not to get pregnant?" she asked shyly.

He sighed in relief, "Yes…it would be very troublesome right now in your life. You're not even a Jounin yet."

She blushed, "I went to the hospital yesterday and talked to a medic." Sakura twisted her hands together and cleared her throat uncomfortably. To be having this talk with a man! How embarrassing! She felt that her Sensei should know as much as he could about her though. "Sh-she gave me some pills to take everyday and some…some protection devices…."

"Condoms?" he asked softly. She gave a jerky nodded and flushed deep red. "I'm proud of you Sakura. You did a very smart, grown up thing. Some girls would have been too embarrassed…but then you are a genius aren't you?" He patted her shoulder and she couldn't help but laugh at the comment.

"Sensei?" she asked after a moment. He looked at her sideways, curiously. She blushed, "How will I know when I'm ready Sensei?"

"Hm?" he responded softly. "I don't know Sakura. I think it will just happen one day and hopefully you are ready for it. Are you attracted to him?"

She blushed and nodded, "When we kiss…I like it." She frowned, "He is very reserved though and gets upset when he does things without thinking."

"Such as?" he asked quietly. He really hoped that the pair sparring below couldn't hear all of this. Sakura would be terribly embarrassed.

"W-well he touches me sometimes…but then apologizes…no matter how many times I tell him it's okay," she said looking a little annoyed.

"Hm…" he sighed softly. "Iruka was shy too, at first. He's a bit younger then me and hadn't been with a man before." Sakura listened, blushing at that intimate look into her Sensei's life. "With some young men you have to take the initiative and make them realize what it is that you want. Sometimes they have hang-ups that you have to dispel before you can move on. Make him realize what it is that you like and that it's okay to do it." He grinned playfully at her, "You might even have a little fun along the way."

She smiled happily at him and impulsively threw her arms around him, "Thank you Kakashi Sensei. I feel much better." He stiffened slightly at first, but then relaxed and patted her shoulder. He disengaged himself and with a wave disappeared into the branches of adjacent trees. She mused to herself softly, "I'll make Lee-kun realize it's all okay." She smiled and rubbed her hands together. "Watch out Lee-kun."