Blossoming Sakura

A/N: Ok, enjoy guys and the next chapter is nearly ready to be put out. Just making some changes on it.

I am finally up here in Maine, and loving it, so I have time to write. So, as I get even more settled, I'll be putting up other fics.

*This fic is AU and won't be following the anime-story line.*

Now onto the fic, and please remember that reviews make me happy, happy, and no, I am not giving up on IY fictions. Thanks.
~!~

Frowning, Sakura made her way outside and watched as her former sensei and her friend spoke to each other. Her eyes narrowed as Kakashi waved his hands in the air, while Sasuke simply stared at him, before giving a slight shrug.

Both men turned when she approached, followed by Naruto, and froze when she asked, “Are we intruding?”

For a moment, neither man said a word, but then Sasuke shook his head. “No. We were just about to go back inside. Besides, we still have not ordered anything to eat, and I am hungry.” He said, and brushed past them, but managed to turn his eyes to capture Sakura's as he passed.

As soon as he disappeared inside the bar, two sets of eyes turned to stare into a pair of mis-matched eyes. Shaking his head, the older man quietly said, “He's a grown man, and it's his business. Let's just enjoy the rest of the night, ok?”

Nodding, Naruto followed Kakashi back to the bar, leaving Sakura to stand out in the street by herself. Narrowing her eyes, she wondered if she should go and check on Ino, but then decided that the girl would probably not want to see her, seeing as how upset she had been by the entire situation.

Sighing, she walked to the door and opened it, only to see Naruto and Sasuke yelling at each other, while Kakashi held his head in his hand. Marching up to their table, and ignoring the laughter that was all around her, she snapped, “What in the hell are you two fighting about now?”

“The bastard won't let me order a pizza for us.” Naruto complained, as he pointed at Sasuke. “He says that my tastes suck.”

Sasuke rolled his eyes. “He wants to put ramen on it.” He replied, his tone bored as his fingers drummed on the table.

Sakura's stomach did a flip-flop, and she knew that she had just turned green. Unlike Naruto, ramen was not her favorite food. In fact, she had not even eaten what she had been bought when they sat with Iruka. Thankfully, Naruto had finished it off for her.

“Geez, you two act as if you're an old married couple, just by the way you fight. Can't you compromise on anything?” She snapped, and glared at Kakashi when the older man began to laugh loudly at her question. “You are not helping.”

Finally, it was decided that she and Kakashi would order, and they chose to get a large pizza with the works, minus ramen. Grumbling, the blonde crossed his arms and sunk down in his seat, his handsome face twisted into a pout.

As she settled back into her seat, she nearly yelped when Sasuke's hand brushed against her thigh. Peeking over at him, his face remained stoic, as if nothing had happened. Kakashi turned when someone called out his name, and he excused himself to go and speak to the person, leaving his former students alone.

Both young men began to fidget, after a couple of minutes, and when her eyes turned to them, she found both males glaring at each other. Finally, they just couldn't hold back any longer, and so, they began to argue.

Cringing, she found herself sinking even lower into her seat as their voices grew louder and prayed for the night to end quickly. It got so bad that she decided that she didn't even want any pizza.

Kakashi came back to the table when the arguing got to the point where both men were threatening bodily injury, and sighed when he saw Sakura.

“Well, I didn't think that they could hold out as long as they did. They set a new record for themselves.” He muttered, and reached over to give his former student's hand a comforting pat as he stood beside the table.

Giving the man a tired smile, she quietly said, “You know, I think that I am about to head out of here. I've got to be up early to start training my students.”

“Yes, I have training, as well.” Kakashi replied, and turned towards the two males. “Sakura and I are leaving. We have training, and need to get some sleep.”

Neither Sasuke or Naruto heard him. Both were too busy glaring at each other and refused to break eye contact with the other. So, when their companions called out their good nights to them, they went unanswered.

When they were at the door, and Kakashi moved to open it, a loud voice shouted, “Finally going to score, eh Kakashi? Well, remember that we want details, man.”

Shaking his head and giving Sakura a shrug, he gently pushed the woman out of the bar and into the cool night air. Loud laughter could be heard, and Sakura gritted her teeth together.

“I wonder if they'd be laughing that hard if my fist was shoved down that asshole's throat.” She muttered, her green eyes glaring at the bar door.

Kakashi chuckled. “Probably....and there would also be clapping, I'm sure.” He replied.

Laughing, and feeling her mood lighten a bit, she turned in the direction of her apartment and then glanced over her shoulder.

“Well, are you coming, or not?” She asked, her tone telling the man behind her that she was tired. When he caught up with her, he glanced down at the woman, and then looked away. Damn, she was beautiful.

But, he also noticed that not only had her looks and attitude changed, her nature had also undergone a serious change.

When she was younger, she had not been able to keep her mouth closed, except on missions, but now, she seemed content with the silence, and he found himself enjoying her company now, even more than when they were in the bar.

The walk to the apartment building was silent, and when they reached her floor, she turned and flashed the copy ninja a grin and said, “Well, I guess that I will see you tomorrow.”

Nodding, Kakashi watched as she unlocked her door, and then allowed his eyes to widen in shock when she casually threw over her shoulder, “You know, if you are going to spy on people, you really should not be so obvious about it. Don't worry, I won't tell Naruto or Sasuke where you live. Clearly, you didn't want them to know, or else, Naruto would have knocked your door down before mine.”

Before he could utter a reply, she opened her door and closed it behind her, leaving the stunned man to stare after her in amazement.

“Well, damn.”

$$$$$$$$$$$$

Gritting her teeth, Sakura stormed over to the man, who was leaning against a tree, reading his book. Looking around, she took note that his students were currently attempting to master one of many jutsus that he had taught her own team.

Walking right up to him, she reached down and yanked the beloved book out of its owner's hand, causing Kakashi to glare up at her.

“Is there a problem, Sakura?” He asked, his tone curt. His eyes were glued on the novel in her hand as she snapped, “Yes, there is a problem.”

Gritting her teeth, she took in a deep breath and said, “Ikki is going to kill me.”

Laughing, the man stood and towered over her and allowed his eyes to crinkle, letting her know that he was grinning.

“Now you know how I felt about Naruto.” He said, and reached over to ruffle her hair. Snarling at him, she yanked away and snapped, “Quit that. I'm not a little girl. I have a serious problem, Kakashi.”

For a moment, they stared at each other, but when a loud 'boom' was heard, Sakura groaned and hung her head.

“Guess which jutsu he has mastered.” She muttered. For several moments, Kakashi didn't speak, and then he softly begged, “Please tell me you didn't teach them what I think you taught them.”

When Sakura didn't reply, he cringed and glanced over at the area where the boom had come from. “You taught him the chakra bomb jutsu.” He stated, his tone worried.

“Yes, I did.” Sakura snapped. “It's the first real jutsu I learned as an omega, and I just thought that they should learn things the way that I did.”

Before he could say another word, both he and Sakura dove for the ground as the ground before them exploded. When they looked up, both of their teams were running towards them, and stopped when they saw their senseis stand up.

Ikki smirked and said, “Gee, you're pretty quick for an old lady.”

Sakura felt her temper rise and before she could move forward to deal with the brat, Kakashi grabbed her arm and calmly said, “Patience, Sakura. After all, he is only learning.”

Her eyes fell onto the ground behind the masked ninja and then turned them to her former sensei's face. Sighing, she nodded and then said, “I suppose that you are right. After all, since he is learning, then I guess that means that you can't be angry about the smoldering pile of filth behind you.”

Turning, Kakashi looked down to see his beloved Icha Icha Paradise burned and now smoldering. Falling to his knees, he quickly patted out the remaining flames and bowed his head.

She wasn't sure, but Sakura thought that his dark eye had a tear in it. Biting back a laugh, she turned to her students and calmly said, “I think that is enough for today. You guys did wonderful, and brat...remember that chakra bombs are only used in life and death situations.”

Her three students nodded and turned to walk away. Turning back to look at Kakashi, she found herself staring at a black-clothed covered chest, and heard him say, “You. Owe. Me. Another. Book.”

Tilting her head up a bit, she grinned and shook her head. “Sorry, but you said it yourself that he was only learning. Besides, you shouldn't have that crap out here to begin with.” She replied, then grinned and disappeared in a flurry of sakura petals.

Kakashi noticed that his students, too, were gone, and he turned to carefully pick up the remaining pieces. Gathering them in his arms, he slowly walked off the training field and went to mourn his precious book in private. It was a sad day in Kakashi's world.

~!~

“You are kidding me!” Naruto exclaimed, his voice filled with awe. “I can't believe that Kakashi's book was destroyed!”

Sakura sat at the table in the bar, and grinned. As the laughter rang out through the bar, she looked around and noticed that there were many familiar faces. However, it was Ino's sad face that caught her eye.

The blond looked horrible. Her hair was down and looked messy, and her eyes held dark circles underneath them. When she finally stood up, Sakura took that chance to excuse herself and followed the girl to the bathroom.

Waiting patiently by the sinks, she waited for Ino and smiled at her when she finally emerged from the stall, her eyes red and puffy. Giving her friend a sympathetic look, Sakura turned on the cold water and grabbed a paper towel. Wetting the towel, she silently handed it to Ino and watched as the blond ran it over her face.

“Men suck, don't they?” Sakura asked, her tone soft. “I'm guessing that things have been pretty rough for you.”

Ino sniffled and nodded. “You know, when you left, I went after Sasuke hard, and when I got him, I felt as if I owned the world, but now...I feel as if I am living in a nightmare.” She whispered.

For a moment, neither woman spoke, but then Sakura softly said, “You know, in Sajai, I dated someone for a while, but later found out that he was cheating on me with someone I considered to be a friend. Believe me when I say that I know how it feels, and that he doesn't deserve you if he can't show you any respect.”

Ino narrowed her eyes a bit and carefully considered Sakura's words. She was.....right. Just who in the hell did Uchiha Sasuke think he was? If he had ever cared about her, even a little, he would not have treated her so badly.

Giving a sharp nod, Ino turned to the mirror and grumbled about her hair, and was shocked when Sakura reached into her shoulder bag and pulled out a brush for her to use. Sasuke wouldn't have her to use anymore. Besides, there were other shinobi out there who would treat her well, and she wasn't going to waste a single minute more thinking on the one who hurt her.

When the girls emerged from the ladies room, it was clear to all of their companions that something had happened to brighten Ino's mood, something that both Shika and Choji were grateful for. The two girls were laughing at a private joke as they returned to their seats.

Naruto and Hinata scooted down so that Ino and Sakura could sit together, and smiled at each other as they took in Ino's smile. It was nice to see her smile, rather than cry.

As the group began to talk again, Kakashi's crowd entered the bar, and made their way over to the tables that held the younger shinobi.

Genma grabbed a chair and pulled it up so that he was sitting next to Sakura. Grinning at her, he asked, “So, is it true that one of your students destroyed Kakashi's book?”

“Well, I learned the chakra bomb jutsu when I first became an omega, and thought that they should learn in the same fashion that I did. It just so happened that when Ikki performed it, one of the bombs got away from him, causing me and Kakashi to hit the ground, and it the process, I dropped the book. I must say....I didn't know that shit could burn.” Sakura replied with a smirk.

The table roared with laughter and Sakura noticed that Asuma was smiling fondly down at Ino. It was clear to her that the older shinobi looked at his students as something more than a former sensei. However, his smile faded when the door opened and Sasuke entered the bar and headed over to the table.

When the dark-haired young man stopped, he glanced over at Sakura and narrowed his eyes when he saw that Ino was sitting next to her. However, instead of lowering her eyes, Ino met his eyes with a glare from her own. He was not going to dictate who she could and could not sit next to, and Sakura was a friend of hers.

If he was shocked by Ino's defiance, he didn't show it. Instead, he allowed his eyes to move to Sakura and he calmly said, “I heard that you made a grown man cry, Sakura.”

More laughter was heard and it was Naruto who exclaimed, “Who wants to bet that the old man is probably sitting at home, mourning those burn pages while sobbing his eyes out?”

“Or, who would like to see this old man beat the ever-loving snot out of a certain blonde who just can't keep his mouth shut?” Kakashi said, his tone even as he smacked Naruto upside his head.

Heads snapped around to stare at the copy nin as he settled himself in a chair a few feet away from where Sakura was sitting. His mismatched eyes settled on her green ones and narrowed. Finally, he said, “I have a deal for you, Sakura.”

Lifting an eyebrow, Sakura motioned with her hand for him to continue. However, when he did, it took all of her power not to gasp and yell at him for being a sick pervert.

“I bet that you can't read one Icha Icha Paradise from cover to cover, and you must know who the characters are, and what the plot is and tell it to me. If you don't, then you have to buy me the entire series. If you do, then I will give up reading the books on the training field.” Kakashi calmly said, his voice soft.

At first, the table was silent, but then exploded as everyone began to talk. However, Kakashi kept his eyes trained on Sakura, and knew that with her being an omega, it would not be in her nature to pass up a challenge.

And, she proved him right. “I'll do it.” She said. “After all, how bad could it be?”