Double Edged

Song Reference: Neutral Ground
Artist: Sea Wolf
Lyrics: We turn onto our backs and see/A streak of light above the trees/And lie here on our bed of leaves/Listening to each other breathe/And here in the sky/Lights flash before our eyes/I feel your warm hand/Slipping into mine/And we lay and we wonder when/Will I come around?

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There was sunlight in the sky as Shizune and her team finally returned home from their mission. It was cold and grey, the type of light that came just before sunrise flashed brilliant sorbet colors across the sky. She stifled a yawn as her feet continued their slow trudge down the street, lifting her hand wearily in a goodbye gesture as Raidou grunted the same.

It had been a nice surprise when he'd met up with them a day away from reaching Konoha to help escort them back. He was helping Teisan, a newly promoted jounin who had accidentally twisted his ankle through a misstep just the day before, walk toward the medical facility. The steady, even sounds of Raidou's step combined with the uneven limp of Teisan made an interesting rhythm to her ears, like a drummer who...

Goodness, was she tired! She tended to get a little weird with the metaphors and poetic licensing when she was at the point of utter exhaustion. Fortunately, Genma wasn't there. For some reason, that man made a babbler out of her. She would have shared her thoughts about sunrise looking like raspberry ice cream and he would have said something about that time he blew so hard on her belly that she nearly wet herself from laughing, which in turn would...

Apparently, she didn't need him there to make her babble. Just thinking about him provoked the tendency. And it was really odd to her that he could make her do that, especially when her conversations with most other people would have been stinted and... well, awkward. Oh, it wasn't that she couldn't make friends or socialize! It was more accurate to say that most others would have given her a weird look had she shared her thoughts concerning the colors of the morning sky.

Raidou typically ignored her random associations. He had always been the serious one back when they were on the same genin team. His responses were either grunts, as few words as were necessary or a quirked eyebrow and perhaps a twitch of his lips. His quiet nature always seemed to get worse when he was as tired as she was, which was why she was a little surprised she'd even gotten a grunt from him.

The last two members of her team each mumbled a goodbye to her as well before peeling off for their own homes. This had been the first mission she'd ever worked with either of them, so it had been an interesting trip to say the least. Nearly three weeks away from home on an A-ranked mission to track down some missing nins who'd turned to robbery and murder... at least no one had been seriously hurt. One of the new ones, a boy named Shikamaru, had been especially useful. She would have to make certain that Tsunade-sama assigned him to missions requiring a leadership role in the future.

Shizune groaned as her aching, worn out legs began the torturous climb up the uneven steps to the apartment complex. They'd all known that pushing it so hard on the last day of travel would be a bad idea, but they'd all wanted to just go home so badly. The Hidden Mist village was always so muggy this time of year, the air so thick and cloying on the lungs that it made breathing difficult. When the sun was hot enough, one could see vapors from the steaming pools of water everywhere rising up to shroud the world in a blanket of fog so thick it made trying to see one's hand seem pointless.

She pushed the outer door to the building open, her eyes barely half open as she paused at the bottom of the steps leading upward. The apartment complex was four stories high. Guess which floor Genma's apartment was on? Of course, considering that she hadn't had a place to stay when she'd first returned to Konoha with Tsunade-sama, she really shouldn't complain about four flights of steps. But... she was tired and 'shouldn't' didn't mean 'couldn't'.

It had been Genma's idea that she move in with him, though the arrangement had been strictly platonic at first. When he'd found out that she'd basically been using whatever empty room was at the clinic (sometimes even sleeping outside the Hokage's office when there wasn't) for the first three months that she'd returned, he'd slapped Raidou on the side of his head for not saying anything sooner and immediately gone out to make a spare key for her.

Raidou hadn't been too happy with getting slapped and had made it a point to remind Genma that a) he hadn't known she'd been crashing wherever there was a spare hospital bed either, and b) he had five other jounin living in his two bedroom apartment. Adding another would have been impossible.

So... she'd become Genma's roommate. Genma had lived in the same apartment since he'd moved out at the age of fifteen. According to him, the landlady had simply given him the place as his own a couple years back, claiming that he'd paid enough rent on it to consider it his own anyway. According to Hatake Kakashi who lived directly below him, the apartment had been a bribe for Genma to stop rerouting all the hot water in the building to his shower. The complaints from the other tenants had driven the poor old woman nearly mad. Somehow, Shizune was more inclined to believe the Copy Ninja over her mischievous lover. But no proof had ever been uncovered to confirm Genma had been the one responsible for it. All she knew was that his hot water lasted much longer than could be completely natural.

Shizune smiled at a man she recognized from living on the floor below them. He gave her a sleepy smile back and asked, "Just getting home?"

"Mm. How's the baby?" The only reason she remembered that was because his wife had gone into labor late one night and had been progressing too swiftly for them to get to the hospital in time. Shizune had delivered the baby herself right there in the apartment. Even though she'd helped bring their child into the world, she still couldn't for the life of her remember who they were. The one thing she did remember clearly was that had been the night she'd almost witnessed Genma faint.

She'd needed someone to assist her with the birth, and he'd been the only one available at the time. Apparently, he could handle any battle field with an iron stomach, but watching a woman give birth had turned him a shade of grey she'd never seen before. As soon as she'd helped him walk back to their apartment, he'd informed her that if she wanted children she would be in the birthing room alone. She'd told him she would be fine with that, but that she had no desire to have children. That was the first time he'd ever told her he loved her, albeit he meant it in jest.

“Fine, fine. Noisy... and messy... but that’s a baby for ya,” he chuckled before waving over his shoulder and disappearing down the flight of stairs. Shizune mumbled a goodbye to him and added those two reasons to why she really didn’t want to have children. The noisy wasn’t so bad, but the messy... she didn’t do well with messy.

After what seemed like a hike lasting forever and a day, Shizune finally found herself standing outside the familiar abused door of her home. That poor door had seen hell and then some from the looks of it. It was essentially two wooden panels with a gap between them that one had to lift slightly after unlocking in order to get it to slide open. The outer panel facing the hallway had a hole almost three inches around in it and several scratches and scuffs from being kicked and beaten by various objects. Except for the five nail marks scratching down the inside frame, none of the damage was caused by them. The nail marks were from her and had happened after they had celebrated their one year anniversary with drinks and dinner and... well, yes.

Shizune's fingers worked stiffly to get the key into the lock and turned, a soft sound of irritation slipping from her shortly before she finally managed to get it to work. There was no quiet way about opening their door, so she didn't even try to keep it down for her sleeping partner's sake. She lifted it and pushed back slightly to send it grinding on the tracks running just inside the doorway, opening it just enough for her to slip in. Any further and that awful screeching noise would start. No matter how many times Genma oiled the track, it never helped.

She slid the door shut with just as little care for keeping the noise down as when she'd opened it. She could already hear Genma rolling over in bed from further inside the apartment but knew him well enough to know he wasn't going to bother checking who was entering. If someone was there to rob him, they were welcomed to whatever they could find so long as they didn't disturb his sleep.

Sighing as a thrill at finally being home again swept over her, Shizune began stripping off her gear as she walked back to the bedroom. She would clean it up later... unless Genma beat her to it. It had surprised her to learn her lover was more meticulous than she was about keeping the place tidy. It was so bad in fact that, if he knew they were both going to be away on missions for any extended period of time, he hired a cleaning service to take care of things until they got back. She personally thought it was a waste, but seeing as it was his money paying for the service she had no right to comment.

By the time she reached the bedroom, she was already unhooking her bra and wriggling her panties off her hips. As much as it had surprised her to learn Genma was an obsessive cleaner, it had floored him to learn she preferred to sleep naked. It was a habit she'd developed from traveling with Tsunade-sama all over the different countries, when all they had was one set of clothing to wear at a time. Now, however, she did it just because it was more comfortable. The only time she wore pajamas was when she was lounging around the apartment on those rare days off.

Shizune smiled tenderly as she approached the bed, pausing to stare down at Genma as he lay on his side. No senbon in his mouth, no covering on his head. She really loved his hair, though the fact that he woke up with absolutely no bed head was really irritating. She loved the chocolate brown color of it, the almost downy soft texture as she passed her fingers through it. Some of her most treasured memories were of them stretched out on the couch on rainy days, his head on her stomach so that she could simply stroke his hair.

Genma cracked an eye open to look up at her, a tired smirk curling his lips. Moving as little as he possibly could, he flicked the covers back in an invitation for her to join him. "Stop staring at me while I'm tryin' to sleep," he muttered. "It's creepy, especially since you're naked."

"Sorry," Shizune mumbled back as she dropped to the mattress next to him. He continued to grumble as he arranged the blanket over her before his arm dropped under the covers and slid around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She smiled through the yawn stretching her mouth open when she felt his lips brush over her forehead before moving down to her nose.

"Welcome back. Good timing, too. You just missed the army of strippers leaving the place."

A chuckle escaped her as she tangled the fingers of one hand into his hair, which made him smile in return. "I must be more exhausted than I thought to miss an army of scantily clad women," she replied, earning her a full out, albeit sleepy, grin from him.

Genma's hand rubbed up and down her spine in a gentle massage that did wonders to relieve her strained muscles. Though she was naked and this was the first time in weeks they'd been together, the act of touching had nothing to do with sex and everything to do with conveying all the emotions that words failed to communicate. They could say they loved each other as many times as they wanted, but it was moments like these that made Shizune realize just how much he really did.

"So... you will not believe what's been happening since you left," he continued, speaking even though he looked about ready to go back to sleep at any minute.

"Can it wait until I've had some sleep? And breakfast?" she murmured, inhaling deeply to reacquaint herself with the familiar scent of him. Genma always smelled clean but never like anything she could really pinpoint. As with most jounin, he didn't wear cologne or anything much stronger scented than laundry detergent. And that was how she liked it, just the fresh scent of plain soap and clean skin.

Genma kissed her nose again and pulled her more securely to him. "Sure. Want pancakes or eggs?"

"Mm... pancakes."

"Too bad we don't have any. It's gonna be coffee and granola bars."

Shizune wasn't too tired to give his shoulder a hard punch. "You're such a jerk," she complained under her breath.

She caught the faint trace of a smile on his face as he mumbled back, "Funny how when you call me a jerk, all I hear is how incredible I am."

If he was looking for an argument, he wasn't getting it from her. Not until after she made him go to the grocery store for pancake mix and syrup.

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"Ew... what the hell are you wearing?"

Sakura grinned as Ino's nose wrinkled in disgust at her choice of second date attire; a long sleeved t-shirt that was at least two sizes too big and had last been used to help Ino paint her room twice in one week, an old pair of black pants that had one knee ripped out and was fraying at the hems from being too long for her and the sandals Sakura normally only wore when occasionally helping out at the Yamanaka's flower shop. She had her short hair pinned back and a scarf that only ever saw the light of day when it was time for cleaning the apartment hid all but a few stray pieces of pink.

"What, don't like it?" Sakura asked, feigning a look of complete innocence.

Ino's face twisted up as if she'd just smelled something completely revolting. "You look like you're trying to scare Kakashi off, not entice him. Just what the hell kinda date is this anyway?"

"Well... you said to do something personal for me. So, after thinking about it for a while, I came to the conclusion that I'm gonna have to think a little creatively with this whole dating thing. Kakashi's not the type who'll be interested by the usual sort of dates, after all."

"Sakura, he took you out to dinner. That's pretty standard as far as first dates go."

"True," she conceded while pulling on the beaten up gloves she wore when training with Tsunade. "But I was the one who actually mentioned the idea of dinner. And eating in the dark is not standard for a dinner date." She double checked the heavy duty travel pack that she normally used for long term missions to make certain she hadn't forgotten anything. Satisfied that everything she needed was there, she hauled the pack onto her shoulders with a grunt. It was really heavy, but she only had to manage it for a little while.

Ino shrugged, admitting silently that Sakura had a point with that. "So, what did you come up with?" she pressed, pretending to be interested in her magazine while trying to get her roommate to slip up and tell her where the date was going to be. Yes... she would admit it. Her currently nonexistent love life was starting to get to her, so much so that she was willing to follow Sakura on her pretend one just to have a little fun. God... when had she gotten so pathetic?

Sakura laughed and shook head while settling her hands on her hips. "I don't think so, Pig! You are not following me this time!"

Giving and exasperated growl, Ino tossed the magazine onto the coffee table and sat up on the couch, scowling at Sakura as the other girl started for the door. "Fine, can you at least tell me why this date requires that you look like shit?"

"Don't wait up, Ino!" Sakura called as she left the apartment, completely ignoring the other girl's indignant glare.

"Forehead, get back here this minute and- DAMN IT!" The door closed before Ino could finish delivering her threat.

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When he arrived at training ground three, he really had no idea what to expect. They were both more or less operating like they were on a mission and he couldn't help being just a little curious as to what his former student had up her sleeve. Sakura had certainly grown up under Tsunade's tender (and sometimes not so tender, he'd heard) guidance. Any regrets he might have initially felt at not showing her as much favor as he had Uchiha Sasuke was wiped clean by the fact that she was now with a teacher more suited to her talents.

It had been something he'd known since he'd first taught the lesson on chakra control. From the very start, her control had been flawless, a feat that most genin and even some chuunin couldn't boast. It was a skill that was most useful in healing... an area in which he wasn't the most suited to teach. Even if the incident at the chuunin exams hadn't happened, he would have started looking for a better mentor for her talents anyway. At the most with him she could become a passable chuunin, possibly even a low-ranked jounin. With the right person, however... Well, now look at her.

And it seemed as if, in addition to all the extra training Tsunade put her through, Sakura had developed a creative streak that was proving to make the task of discovering what she was up to more fun than he'd anticipated. The downside to her creativity was that he would now have to step up on his 'dates', something he hadn't been forced to do in... oh, a while. Maybe a year. Maybe closer to five. But he was confident he could get back into the swing of things easily enough.

"Yo," he called as he approached Sakura, his eyebrow lifting in surprise at her choice of clothing. She'd been serious about wearing something to get dirty in, hadn't she? Not that she didn't look pretty or anything, simply that it was a complete change from that dress she'd worn their first night out. He almost liked this better. She looked comfortable, whereas in the dress she'd fidgeted quite a bit. Still... that skirt had been awfully fun.

Sakura smirked from on top of the large rock that was her perch, a blade of grass stuck between her lips in a way that reminded him of Genma and his senbon. "You're late," she commented as she pulled the grass from her mouth and leaned forward, her choice of seating now making her just a few inches taller than he was.

"Ah, yes. About that... Well, there was a slight issue with the fireplace at my apartment and-,"

"You have a fireplace?" she interrupted, her eyes widening in a mixture of envy and eagerness.

Kakashi laughed and leaned back against the rock, purposely allowing his shoulder to slide against her leg. There was a sharp little hiss of breath from her before she managed to force herself to relax. "That was the problem. I don't have a fireplace. The neighbor next door decided to give me one. A nice gesture, but it's a little late for my birthday."

"Or incredibly early, depending on how you want to look at it," Sakura added with a snicker, crossing her legs at the ankles as a fairly subtle way of putting some distance between him and her. Kakashi couldn't help the amused little smile at her actions.

"True," he conceded before turning so that one shoulder was now pressed to the boulder and he was not only facing her but touching her again ever so slightly. "But they only managed to get so far as to burn a hole big enough to crawl through into my apartment. I'm thinking the couch is going to be moved there until it gets fixed."

Sakura laughed, her bright green eyes catching in the quickly fading light from the sun sinking into the horizon. It painted training ground three's grassy, boulder strewn slope in deep oranges and pinks that were beginning to slip into purple hues with the approaching evening. At first, he'd thought perhaps she'd planned a sunset picnic on the scenic training area, but there was no basket of food anywhere to be seen. The only things other than Sakura on the rock were four thigh pouches used for shuriken and a large gear bag.

"So... you've had me curious since yesterday, Sakura. What are we doing that requires us getting dirty?" He purposely added just the right lilt to his words to make the double entendre apparent.

The pink haired young woman's cheeks turned a shade that rivaled the sunset as she shot a mild glare in his direction. "Nothing you'd find in one of those damned books," she fired back.

"And we're back to Icha Icha Paradise once again. Really, Sakura, if you're that curious about them all you have to do is ask."

"Is that so?" she murmured, her eyes narrowing thoughtfully as she studied what she could see of his face.

Kakashi kept his expression neutral as he shrugged nonchalantly. "Sure, I know them all by heart. If you want, I can recite volume one-,"

"No thanks!" Sakura shouted, swinging her foot toward his chest. He caught her ankle easily, and a subtle twist of his grip had his fingers curling around bare flesh. The fight instantly ceased in her at the touch of his fingers on her smooth leg. Sakura gaped at him as all sorts of interesting emotions crossed over her face. Shock, annoyance, outrage and... was that just a hint of enjoyment he saw there? He wasn't certain of it, but it looked damned close to him.

Releasing her leg slowly while maintaining eye contact and putting just a touch of answering heat to his own gaze, Kakashi made a show of clearing his throat and asking in a soft voice, "So, back to our plans for the evening. I take it we're doing something active?"

"Oh... right," Sakura murmured, blinking as if she had just woken up. Moving slowly, almost like she was reluctant to do so, she reached behind her for two thigh pouches and handed them over to him. "When I was in the Academy, this was an exercise we used to do to practice throwing and dodging shuriken. If we were good, Iruka-sensei used to let us out early just to get in a round or two before going home."

Kakashi took the leather cases and opened one up, his eyebrow rising as he removed a single bright blue bead that was a little bigger than a marble. "Paintballs?" he questioned before dropping the bead back into the pouch.

Grinning, Sakura grabbed the remaining two pouches and jumped to the ground, bending over to fasten them securely around her thighs. He followed her example and secured his own supply of paintballs as well, still a little surprised she’d picked what amounted to a training exercise as a date. "Yup," she replied happily. "We're gonna play paintball tag. But there's a catch."

"Oh?"

Nodding and looking as pleased as a cat who had just stolen all the cream, she continued, "Because this is a date and not a training session... no jutsus. And no using the sharingan either."

"Fair enough. No chakra tracking then."

A wicked, teasing glint entered Sakura's eyes as she drawled, "Oh, really? Are you saying I'm better at it than you are?"

Kakashi snorted and rolled his eyes. "Are you forgetting who you're talking to here? Tracking chakra was one of my specialties in the ANBU."

Sakura gave a light laugh and held her hands up as if to fend off a blow. "Okay, okay! Do you want to hear the rest of it before it gets too late to do anything or not?"

"I'm all but breathless with anticipation," he deadpanned, grinning when she gave him a mild glare.

"The person with the least number of splotches on them wins," she explained, still looking as if she was half way to punching him out.

"What's the prize?"

Sakura hummed innocently under her breath, but there was nothing innocent at all about the look in her eyes and the triumphant little smirk to her lips. "You'll just have to avoid getting hit to find out."

"You mean like this?" She hadn't been watching his hands while she'd been gloating. Kakashi didn't throw the ball at her so much as squish it between his palm and her shoulder, grinning as he wiped his fingers down the length of her sleeve while her mouth hung open in shock. "So... these are filled with glow in the dark paint, eh? Nice touch."

"Y-You... You..." she stuttered while a fine tremor began to move through her.

"Me, what?" he taunted while casually changing his stance to get ready for a sudden sprint.

Sakura growled angrily as her hands flew for her own supply of paintballs. Kakashi had a split second to marvel at how much faster she'd become before he was running full tilt toward the next boulder for cover. He dove behind it just as a wet splat connected with the solid surface, a few luminescent green speckles spraying outward to decorate his sandals.

"She just had to pick the green one," he muttered, grimacing as he cautiously peered around his shelter to check her location. As he expected, she wasn't anywhere in sight. Had she moved for the thin line of trees at the edge of the training area? Or maybe she was using the tall grass to cover her movements. His eyes narrowed as a section of grass began to waver against the light breeze.

"Looking for me?" Sakura demanded... from right above him. Damn, she was a lot quicker than he remembered!

"Shit!" Kakashi pushed off the ground and leapt to a spot several feet away just in time to avoid the paintballs she'd thrown at him. Dropping down low, he followed the trail of various, glowing paint spots in the grass back to his former hiding place. Sakura was still up on the boulder, scanning the field for any sign of him. So, she'd thrown the paintballs but not actually seen where he’d gone, huh? A slow smile curved his lips as he began to plan his counter attack.

His wrist flicked almost faster than even he could follow while his feet propelled him sideways, using the movement of the wind to disguise his actions. He heard her shriek before three paintballs burst exactly where he'd been only moments before. Kakashi peered through the grass up at the rock she'd been using to scout the area and grinned when he noticed she wasn't there any longer. It appeared she'd learned her lesson about doing that again.

Now, however, they were both at an equal disadvantage. The grass was tall, easily high enough to cover a person if they were crouched low enough. There was no way he could search out her location without risking a peek over the tops of the gently swaying blades or feeling out her chakra signature, which went against the rules for their game. Slowly, being carefully not to disrupt his camouflage too badly, Kakashi scanned the area in front of him...

Just as he noticed a small projectile aiming for his head. He ducked back down again, just barely missing the shot that would have caught him on the head protector. Not bad... unfortunately for her though, he'd seen her movement and now knew her exact positioning. Chancing that she was still there, he flung the two paintballs poised between his fingers, not bothering to see if they’d hit their target as he rushed toward her hiding place in order to flush her out.

Sakura yelped when she saw him coming and pushed off the ground into the air, twisting midway through to fire two more shots at him. Both were dodged easily as he slipped behind a boulder, breathing a little hard from the sudden burst of speed but grinning under the mask from the rush the chase was giving to his system. So far, the only bits of paint he had on him were the specks on his sandals. From what he’d noticed of her before he’d taken cover, she was starting to look like a piece of modern art.

"Ready to give up?" Sakura called, her voice carrying on the breeze and echoing in the open area.

Kakashi chuckled, dropping his head to his chest and shaking it lightly. "Lesson number seventeen; When hiding from the enemy, observe silence if the enemy is within striking distance!" He sent one paint ball arching high into the air and the other directly toward her. A burst of electric blue exploded on his shoulder before he could spin back behind his shelter. So much for going home clean.

"Looks like you broke your own- Ah! AH! YOU JERK!" Both of his shots hit her exactly as planned, if the shouting was any indication.

"Something wrong, Sakura?" he hollered back while edging his way around the chunk of rock his back was pressed against. He couldn’t stay there any longer. She knew where he was now and he had no intention of letting her win so easily. Most guys would simply let their date win a contest like this. He wasn’t most guys though and therefore would make her work for a victory. Slowly, staying low and making as little sound as possible, Kakashi began weaving his way against the breeze. It was more risky, but she would expect him to conceal his movements with the wind.

Silence met his query, which meant she'd learned that lesson well and good, too. Kakashi gave a quiet sigh while he waited for her to make a move. All of his years of training, conditioning and experience kept the anticipation that came with waiting for an attack under control. It was sorely tempting though to just use the slightest amount of chakra to search her out. But then again... why bother? If he was patient, he knew Sakura would eventually move.

He didn't have to wait long for it to happen. There was a rush of black fabric from his left, moving out of the shadows of the thin trees with a speed that was actually pretty impressive. Kakashi waited until she was almost at the boulder before springing up behind her and letting loose a string of paintballs. He counted twelve hits to her back and ass before he dropped to the ground and rolling out of sight into the grass. So far, the plan was working as expected.

"Damn it all!" Sakura shrieked from only a few feet away.

Laughing as she continued to cuss and twist about to examine the new color to her attire, Kakashi stood up from the grass and held his hands out to the side to show he was unarmed despite the fact that he still had a few shots left. As tempting as it was to get in another few licks while she was preoccupied with swatting at her clothing, he refrained from doing so. He didn’t want her getting too angry with him, after all. "You're a lot faster than you used to be. Well done," he complimented.

Sakura scowled as she wiped the back of her hand across her cheek. All it served to do was smear more paint on her skin. "Thanks," she said with a healthy dose of dry sarcasm to her voice. “But… I suppose that means you’re empty now, so…” With a sly grin, her quick hands flew to the pouches on her thighs to pull out a handful of paintballs.

Kakashi's lips lifted into a sly curve as he said quietly, "Who said I’m empty?" She was certainly quick… but he was quicker. Years of having to be faster than the enemy or end up dead weighed in his favor as he too grabbed a handful of balls and flung them at her while spinning aside to avoid her attack. He managed to avoid all but three of the paintballs, one hitting him in the shoulder while the other two landed near his hip.

Sakura yelped and held her hands up in front of her in a futile effort to keep the attack from happening. She stumbled back a step, tripped over something hidden in the grass and toppled backward onto her ass as a myriad of colors exploded in neon bursts all over her. All he could see for a moment were her multicolored sandals flailing up above the grass before flopping back down as she groaned miserably.

Kakashi was trying hard not to laugh as he hurried over to her side. "Are you okay?" he asked, an edge of amusement slipping free and earning him a glare. He leaned over her, carefully positioning himself away from her legs and fists to avoid having any part of his anatomy abused by her.

"Oh... fine. Awesome, in fact," Sakura answered tightly and with a curve to her lips that looked more like a grimace than a smile. She sat up and looked down at her multicolored shirt for a minute before trying to clean it off a little with her hands. Kakashi bit the insides of his cheek to hold the laughter back when this only made the problem worse, smearing the paints together while now coating her hands completely.

"Sorry." The chuckle that he quickly cut off as she redirected her angry glare on him gave lie to the apology. He wasn't sorry, not in the least. He'd purposely waited for her to empty her supply before unloading his arsenal in one blow just like she did, except with more paintballs. Was it maybe the wrong thing to do? Perhaps... but he almost preferred her being angry at him for winning rather than insulting her abilities by letting her win.

"No, you're not," she grumbled as she pushed to her feet without any help from him, not that he’d offered it anyway. Sometime during their activity, the dark bandana she'd had tied in her hair had disappeared, revealing short, pink locks with chunks of glowing blue, green and yellow speckled through it.. She was a mess... but he had to admit she looked awfully cute.

He shrugged and didn't bother trying to hide the fact that he was laughing any longer. "Remember, this was your idea."

Sakura's eyes narrowed to thin, dangerous slits as a slow smile began to curve her lips upward. Kakashi had only a moment to wonder what sort of revenge she had planned when she reached out and placed a hand directly on his chest... and wiped downward, leaving a trail of paint in the shape of her hand in its wake. She gave his shirt a couple more wipes, smirking as his eyes dropped to the newly applied paint before returning to her face again.

Arching a brow, Kakashi took a deep, slow breath in and muttered, "Right," before his hand flicked back into the pouch and removed the last three paintballs he had left. His other hand grabbed her wrist to hold her still for the final assault. Sakura shrieked and tried twisting away, laughing as she dug her heels into the ground to keep from being hauled in.

It didn't take much effort to reel her into him, but it was hard to tell if that was intentional on her part or not. She continued squirming, her back pressed to his chest and curled over in an effort to keep her head covered and away from the paintballs. Grinning under the mask, Kakashi held the paintballs up as if preparing to smash them down on her while she cringed with her eyes squeezed tightly shut. And then... he simply let them fall from his hand to be lost in the grass, opting instead for wrapping his other arm around her to hold her still.

Sakura froze against him, which very nearly made him burst out laughing in triumph. She really wasn't cut out for the job of tempting him, not if it was so easy to one-up her own plans. He had no doubt now she'd allowed herself to be captured so easily, which ended up giving him the perfect opening to start laying the foundations for his own game. She obviously hadn’t planned on him hugging her.

Typically, he wasn't much on the touchy-feely aspects of romance, especially in public, but this whole thing was far from typical to begin with. He knew the kind of girl Sakura was; loyal, loveable but always needing to be reaffirmed emotionally. That didn't mean dropping an 'I love you' every single day. Thank god she wasn't that type, otherwise he would have reconsidered seducing her from the start. Basically, little things like how he was holding her now were what would do the trick, essentially killing two birds with one stone. It would make her feel like her plan was working because he was obviously responding while subtly playing upon what she wanted out of a potential partner.

Oh, and the fact that it felt good when she squirmed against him? Yeah... completely incidental to the goal, but very nice nonetheless. He may be a man on a mission, but he was still a man. When a pretty young woman was twisting around in his arms, what man wouldn't get a thrill out of it?

"Um... K-Kakashi-sen...," Sakura began, catching herself when the honorific almost slipped out. She continued to remain completely still in his arms, almost to the point where he was afraid her muscles had locked in place.

"Hmm?" he asked back, turning his head just enough so that he was speaking into the area just behind her ear. A shiver ran down her spine, letting him know he'd been right on the mark on their last date. Sakura was apparently very sensitive along her throat, especially the area right near her ears. That information was filed away for later use.

"C-Can you let go now?" Her voice was a little choked and barely sounded more than a whisper. A small shiver ran through her, which assured him she wasn't uncomfortable with the embrace so much as the reaction it caused in her.

Kakashi hummed under his breath, as if pretending to think about her question carefully. "Sure, on one condition," he replied, chuckling as an irritated groan met his ears.

"More conditions," she muttered, turning her head slightly to toss a mild glare over her shoulder. "I'm getting pretty sick of them, you know."

"It's not so much a condition as a request then. Take the pouches off."

"I'm empty," she complained.

"Humor me. Unless you want to stay here all night like this? I personally don't mind, but..."

Sakura squirmed a little against him as she wriggled her hands down to her thighs. Two thumps sounded in the grass, which not only told him that the pouches were gone but that she'd been far from empty as well. Apparently, she’d been playing with loaded odds from the start. She squawked in surprise when he walked them back and away from the pouches, making certain she wouldn't have a chance to reach down and reload. "What are you doing?!"

"Standard procedure when capturing an opponent; make certain they don't have a chance to get to a weapon," he replied, grinning at the angry growl that came from her as she began struggling again. "While we're at it... should I pat you down or are you going to empty your pockets for me?"

"You're such a jerk," she snarled, pushing away from him angrily. Kakashi let her go this time, laughing as she gave him a shove... which felt oddly wet. Looking down confirmed that not only had she emptied her pockets but that she'd emptied them right on his shirt.

He looked up, arching a brow at the smirk on her face before shaking his head. "I knew you still had some left."

"Yeah, but you didn't think I'd do that, did you?" Sakura demanded as a wide grin broke across her face.

"No... no, I can honestly say I wasn't expecting that. You do know I'm now obliged to get revenge, right?"

"Ha! With what? You dropped your last three over there!"

"How do you know they were the last?"

A look of smug satisfaction came over her as she cocked one hip to the side and crossed her arms over her chest. "Because I made it a point to check your supply while you were holding me just a little while ago." She stuck her tongue out at him, her brilliant green eyes glittering with excitement.

Kakashi could only stare at her in surprise. She'd actually used the opportunity to check his own paintball supply? Nice... very nice. Tsunade had taught her well. Apparently, he was going to have to stop taking her so lightly when it came to this game. Chuckling while he shook his head in disbelief, he murmured, "Next time you grope me, would you mind telling me beforehand? Because I totally missed out on that one."

"Pervert! I wasn't groping you, I was checking for balls!"

Oh... the many, many ways he could take that comment out of context! Instead, he settled for arching a brow and staring at her until she realized just how wrong her choice of words was. Sakura's hand slapped tightly over her mouth and her eyes widened considerably in horror while her skin turned a darker shade. Even in the thin light of the moon, he could see the change and knew she was blushing fiercely.

Sighing, Kakashi walked over to her, prompting her to flinch as he took hold of her wrist and pulled her hand away from her mouth. "Good thinking to check," he said, opting for that over the hundreds of other responses he would have preferred instead. There was a time and place for that sort of joking, and right then wasn't it. He knew his instincts were correct by the surprised look on her face followed by the grateful little smile that curved her lips.

"Think so?" she muttered while staring very pointedly at her feet.

Kakashi angled her chin upward with one finger, forcing her to meet his gaze. The blush returned, but it wasn't because she was embarrassed. He knew very well what that faint spark in her eyes meant and paused to silently congratulate his self on succeeding in the first stage of his plan. "It's something I would have done had our roles been reversed. Now, hold still."

Sakura jerked away when he began to reach for her hair, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. "You better not have a-,"

"You checked, remember? I'm out. I was just getting some of the paint out of your hair."

"Oh...right."

Kakashi very carefully kept the amusement off his face as he began combing his fingers back through her hair lightly, pausing to pick out the pieces of wax that had once been paintball casings every so often. Sakura remained very still in front of him, and he was beginning to think the blush on her cheeks was going to stain her skin permanently. Not that it was a bad thing. She was especially pretty when she was blushing, which was why he suspected so many people liked to do it.

She continued to stare at his chest the entire time, her fingers twisting together nervously. Satisfied that a more tender mood had been reestablished, Kakashi tucked a few of the more wild pieces of hair behind her ear, smiling before he found a clean section on his sleeve and used that to wipe some of the paint off her face. "There. That's a bit better, isn't it?" he asked softly.

"I wouldn't know. I can't exactly see what I look like right now," she muttered back.

"Well, I think you look fine, especially for having been through a paintball battle. Maybe a little more glow-in-the-dark than you were before..."

Sakura smiled and gave him a playful shove. "You're pretty shiny yourself, you know."

"Shiny is something I've never been called before. I don't know how I feel about that."

She laughed at his comment, her arms wrapping around to hug her stomach. "Wait until I tell Gai-sensei-,"

"Don't you even joke about that," he threatened, only half joking now. The last thing he needed was Maito Gai giving him a one piece spandex suit with sequins on it. There wasn’t enough porn in the world to counteract that type of wrapping choice.

Biting her lower lip and looking like the very embodiment of mischief, Sakura began moving away from him slowly. "He's probably still in Konoha, right? Yes... Tenten said they weren't leaving until tomorrow morning, soooo..."

Kakashi caught her before she'd so much as run three paces, spinning her back around again just as he had before. This time though, Sakura wasn't fighting back. How could she when she was near breathless with laughter. "I don't think so," he growled in mock anger. "If you do, my revenge will be a hundred times worse!"

"Okay, okay," she yielded, still giggling despite the occasional hiccup that interrupted her. "And stop that, it tickles!"

Chuckling wickedly, Kakashi poked her sides again, which very nearly resulted in her head butting him as she squirmed. "Oooh... you shouldn't have told me that. Never reveal your weakness to the enemy." And, to drive that point home, he soon had her shrieking and writhing to get away from his quick hands.


_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Shizune smiled as she left the administration building when she caught sight of Genma leaning against the side of the, waiting for her. "Hey, there," she called, walking to meet him half way as he pushed off the wall. She teasingly plucked the senbon from his mouth before leaning in to kiss him lightly He was smiling against her lips before groaning softly as her fingers slid down his chest to hook into his belt. Shizune pulled back slowly, her heart speeding up at the flare of lust that flashed through his dark eyes.

He opened his mouth when she held the senbon out again, a slow, flirtatious smile curving his lips as he bit back down on it. "I'll have to thank whatever patient got you all hot and bothered later," he murmured while settling his hands on her hips.

Looping an arm around his neck, Shizune gave a dreamy little hum, as if remembering the non-existent patient he'd mentioned. "I love my job," she sighed, smiling when his hands squeezed a little more firmly on her hips.

"Right... now I want this bastard's name so I can beat his ass," Genma replied, feigning jealousy.

Laughing, she tugged him down for another quick kiss to the side of his mouth before saying, "You have a mission, don't you?"

"Mm... yeah. I leave tomorrow afternoon," he answered, removing the senbon once again as he leaned that slight inch downward to meet her. The next kiss that came had a lot more heat to it and just the barest amount of his tongue tracing her lips, causing her to shiver lightly.

"Take out?"

"Already ordered and waiting for us to pick it up. Ready to go?" He pulled back and replaced the senbon where it belonged between his lips.

Shizune nodded, smiling as she wrapped one arm around his waist, which prompted him to drop his arm over her shoulder. She leaned her head against his shoulder, sighing contentedly as they began walking back home together. It made her a little sad to think that he was leaving barely a day after she herself had returned, but that was the life of a ninja. She was certain he felt the same way any time she had to leave. That was why they made it a point to send the other off with enough pleasant memories to make certain they came home safely.

"So, are you allowed to talk about the mission or is it strictly classified?" she asked, snuggling into the curve of his body more securely.

"Eh, it's just some S-classed punk who's been running crazy through Fire Country," Genma explained, his features scrunching into a look of disdain. "According to the reports, he's nothing much to talk about. Rape, murder, highway robbery, sometimes a combo of the three. That sort of thing."

"Well, he has to be something of a formidable ninja if he's S-class."

"I'll be out with Raidou, Edorai and Saito, so it should be fine. Unless that freakin' idiot Saito gets all groany and weepy. Then we might have to kill him and split the profit three ways. The good of the many outweighs the good of the one, right?"

Shizune laughed and bumped his hip lightly with hers. "Be nice. Saito's not that bad."

"Are you kidding me?" Genma exclaimed, staring at her with an incredulous look on his face. "The guy is one step away from being crowned Emo King of Konoha!"

"He is not! Just because he's very serious-,"

"Serious? Shizune, you're being too kind. When you ask him how he's doing and all you get is some crap about how life really has no meaning and that he's-,"

"Hey... isn't that Kakashi down there?" Shizune paused, causing Genma to stop walking as well as she frowned down at the mess of silver hair she would have recognized anywhere. Her frown intensified when she also caught sight of familiar pink hair, though under the moonlight it appeared almost lavender. "And that's Sakura with him."

"Ah... so it is," Genma replied slowly. The way he said that made her whip around to look at him curiously. It was hard for him to tell what exactly she was thinking right then, whether it was surprise or a growing need to castrate a certain copy ninja. While the relationship that Shizune and Sakura had was mostly professional, Shizune did have a habit of watching out for the younger girl. A habit that had seen a few chuunin and jounin enter the infirmary for check ups and leave with bruises than they came in with and ringing ears.

"Genma?" Shizune questioned, pulling away from him as a hardness began to creep over her features. "Is there something I should know about this?"

"I don't suppose you'd buy that they were training?" he tried. The arch to her brow and the way her head angled a little to the side told him she sure as hell wouldn't... and that his ass was on thin ice.

Sighing, Genma took another road and began rubbing her arms gently, his expression slipping into one of absolute seriousness. "Okay, here it goes... That there? That's a date. It's this thing where two people usually of the opposite sex, which is a negotiable factor, go out for an evening of fun because they like each other in a more than platonic sense." His lips began to quirk upward despite his best efforts to maintain a serious facade.

Shizune ran her tongue along her teeth, a habit of hers that came out when she was equal parts mad and amused with Genma. He was the only man she knew of who could infuriate and make her laugh at the same time. "Is that what that is?" she mused, fighting the smile that wanted to break free.

"Yeah. Which is, coincidentally, what I'm trying to take you on," Genma continued, one corner of his mouth lifting upward crookedly. "That is, if you can keep from sticking Kakashi full of needles until tomorrow. If you'd rather kill him now though and skip them take out food and sex..." He shrugged, indicating silently it would be her loss.

Hatake Kakashi and Haruno Sakura... on a date. Shizune couldn't say she was completely happy about that, considering Sakura was rather dear to her in a sisterly sense, but she supposed it could have been worse. Kakashi wasn't completely slap-worthy on most occasions. Besides, perhaps this was a sign the younger girl was finally getting over her infatuation with Uchiha Sasuke. If that was the case... she would be forever grateful to Kakashi. She had never met the Uchiha boy, but she'd heard enough about him to know he would have made Sakura incredibly heartbroken.

Shizune's eyes narrowed as she once again looked at the couple sitting on a boulder and pointing randomly at the sky. While she wasn't close enough to be certain, it looked as if Sakura was smiling. If Sakura was happy, then she certainly couldn't object to it. And besides... it really wasn't any of her business to begin with. She knew from her talks with Kurenai how frustrating it could be when all of Konoha was prying into the bedroom. It was one of the reasons Kurenai and Asuma kept their relationship as quiet as possible.

Letting out a low breath, Shizune poked Genma playfully in the stomach, smiling up at his confused stare. "What did you order?" she asked, a grin and a small laugh breaking out when his shoulder sagged with relief.

"Whew! I thought for sure there was going to be blood tonight!" he laughed before pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Dumplings, that duck crap you like, miso soup and lots of wine."

"Jasmine wine?"

Genma rolled his eyes and settled his arm around her shoulders again to guide her away from the training grounds. "Yes, yes," he groaned dramatically. "As if you'd let me get anything else!" He had no idea why the fragrant wine appealed to her so much since she could never drink very much of anything without getting loopy from it. But, if it made her happy... he'd sacrifice his sake for her wine any day.

Laughing, Shizune wrapped her arm around his waist again and gave him a hug. "And Tsunade-sama wonders why I love you."

Snorting, Genma muttered, "It's because she bet you'd end up with Raidou instead, that's why. Sucks for you, huh?"

Shizune elbowed him sharply but met his grin with one of her own. "You really are terribly, Genma!"

"Maybe, but you seem to keep coming back for more."


_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


"No, look! It really does look like a bird," Sakura argued, using her finger to trace the pattern she saw in the stars for Kakashi. After the round of paintball (which was actually more fun than she'd anticipated), she'd opened the travel pack to pull out the blankets and a thermos of hot chocolate she'd made off of a recipe Hinata had given to her. The 'prize' for winning was actually a container of cookies she'd made the night before... or what was left of them after Ino had gotten her hands on them. Kakashi had declined both (she wasn't really surprised there), which was fine by her. That just meant more for herself!

Kakashi squinted with his visible eye, which still had specks of glowing green paint on the area around it, and said, "Mm... nope, still not seeing it." He was stretched out on his back, his hands behind his head and ankles crossed, looking incredibly comfortable on their rock perch.

Sakura flashed him an annoyed look and stuck her tongue out. "You've gotta be blind not to see that! Here, follow my finger-,"

"You've traced over it seven times now. I don't think an eighth will make the fact that I don't see a bird change," he complained. "Maybe if you were lying down as well..."

She shifted where she sat and glanced at the space between their bodies. On the one hand, the idea of stretching out next to him made the queasy feeling surge to the surface, one that felt like a much more extreme case of nerves to her. On the other... why did it make her heart beat faster at the idea of snuggling with him? Just because they'd been rather... intimately pressed together earlier that evening didn't mean she should be wondering what it'd be like to settle her head on his chest or shoulder.

Laughing and very aware that the sound had a nervous ring to it, Sakura said, "That's okay. I can see fine from here."

Kakashi's sigh made her look back at him just as he pushed himself up on his elbows to level an almost bored look at her. "Sakura... why are you here?"

She blinked in surprise at his question, swiveling around to face him a little more directly. "Why am I here? Because... well... it's a date, right? I mean, it'd be silly to make a date and not go on it!"

"If this is a date, then why are you acting like I‘m carrying an infectious disease?"

Oh... shit! Oh, shit, oh, shit, oh, SHIT! She had to think of something quick, something convincing. Sakura's fingers picked at one of the blankets spread out on the rock, her lower lip caught between her teeth anxiously as she looked anywhere but at him. He'd know right away if she lied and said she wasn't uncomfortable. If she lied now, he would know something else was up and then it'd be a short jump from there to Tsunade-sama's stupid order to take his books.

Sighing, Sakura ventured a glance to where he was patiently waiting for an answer and wrinkled her nose a little. "It's not that I'm uncomfortable," she began slowly. "It's just... well… This is kinda new territory for me. I mean, I've not really had a chance to date anyone before, not to mention curl up with someone else. Well, except for Ino. She gets really snuggly when she's been sneaking Tsunade-sama's sake and doesn't go to sleep unless-,"

"Sakura?" he interrupted, an unreadable expression on what she could see of his face.

"Huh?"

"Just lie down, okay?" There was a spark to his eye that told her he was more amused than annoyed by her rambling.

Swallowing hard, she nodded and slowly stretched out on her back next to him, leaving a good sized gap between them. She fought not to blush when his gaze swept over her, his eyebrow arching in disbelief. Shoulders slumping and head shaking slightly, Kakashi laid back down... but closed the distance between them pointedly. "Pick your head up," he instructed almost tersely.

"Why?"

"Because it'll give me a better angle to bite your neck," he teased, smiling as she rolled her eyes and glared at him.

"You're a real creep sometimes, you know that?" she muttered, but she did what he requested anyway, ignoring the way her stomach churned fiercely. God... she hoped he wasn't going to do anything perverted! What if he tried to molest her or something? For the sake of her mission (as well as avoiding a year of midnight shifts), she should be okay with that. However, from a more personal stand point... she wasn't sure. Oh, she knew for a fact that she'd punch him into next week if he tried anything funny, but for some reason it made her skin warm just thinking about it. Huh.

She knew why he'd wanted her to pick her head up when he shifted next to her and settled his arm around her, tucking her against his side so that her head was now resting on his shoulder while his fingers rubbed lightly along her shoulder and neck. Whenever they brushed along her neck, pushing her hair back gently, it sent a different sort of butterflies dancing through her stomach. It felt... nice. Was that weird of her to actually like it? She wasn't sure, but she couldn't help admitting it was rather pleasant cuddling up with him.

"Now then," Kakashi murmured, his breath blowing lightly across the top of her head. "Point out that bird to me again."

Still shivering from the light play of his fingers along her skin, Sakura extended her arm upward and traced the pattern with her finger once more. "See, those are the wings. And that's the tail fanning out there."

"Ah... now I get it! See, wasn't it a good idea for you to lie down?" he teased, his arm squeezing her briefly in a way that made her skin start to go warm again.

Sakura smiled hesitantly, her lower lip between her teeth as she let her arm drop. Sneaking a peek at him out of the corner of her eye, she cautiously reached out and settled her hand on his chest. Some strange sensation raced down her spine when she did that, like a chill except she knew it wasn't. She could feel his heart beating steadily under her palm, feel the incredibly solid muscles covering his pectorals stretch and retract with each even breath. Between the warmth of his body pressed to hers and the gentle stroking of his hand along her shoulder and neck, she was starting to feel relaxed. Weird...

"Hey, I found one," Kakashi stated, pointing with his free hand to a small cluster of stars. "Look, if you follow the curve down that way and up again, you get-,"

"Oh, I see! It looks like a bull!"

"Um... actually, it looks like a slug. But a bull was close."

Sakura lifted her head enough to regard him with a narrowed, suspicious glare. When she caught the mischievous twinkle to his eye, she giggled and settled down next to him again. "Ha ha. You're just sooo funny," she replied dryly, earning her a creased eye in return. This wasn't so bad, really. He was behaving himself (for now at least) and his shoulder did make a better pillow than the rock. It was actually a lot like curling up with a drunken Ino, except his chest was a good deal flatter than hers and he wasn't drooling in her hair.

"Glad someone besides me thinks so," he chuckled back. The hand he'd used to point out the questionable dragon settled along the arm she had curved to his chest. For a moment, she was afraid that her earlier observation about him behaving was about to change, but when all he did was rub her arm through the fabric of her shirt, she began to relax again. Geeze... How stupid of her to think that Kakashi would act like a pig. True, he was a pervert but he was a fairly tame one when compared with some of the idiots who stumbled into the hospital. She should have known better than to think that'd change just because she had to date him now.

Sakura's eyes began to droop a little as he slid the hand that had been rubbing her arm down to stroke her hand on his chest. Between the physical activity, the hot chocolate and the surprisingly relaxed state she was in, she was starting to get a little tired. She hadn't had a chance to catch a break after her shift at the hospital, so it was only natural that she'd be exhausted before hand. Though it was late and she was tired, a part of her really didn't feel like moving any time soon. Snuggling with Kakashi was actually much nicer than she'd expected.

She wasn't aware that she'd actually fallen asleep until Kakashi shaking her lightly made her jerk her head off his shoulder to blink sleepily. "Ready to head back?" he asked, partially turning on his side to face her.

"Hmm? Oh... yeah. Prob'ly a good idea," she mumbled, stretching as she sat up and let out a yawn. Slowly, she pushed to her feet and ruffled her hair with her fingers before giving herself a shake to help wake up a little more.

Kakashi laughed under his breath as he began folding the blankets again and stuffing them into her bag. "Tsunade worked you to death today, did she?"

"No, today was a hospital shift," she corrected, arching her back to work out any stiffness in her muscles. "Every other day is training with Tsunade-sama. That's the new schedule for now."

"Oh? When did she change your schedule?" he queried, his voice carrying only mild curiosity for the topic.

"Just a few days ago, so it's taking some getting used to still." Sakura smiled as he hefted the bag to his own shoulders and leapt down from the rock to wait for her. She followed him down and didn't tense up as much when he automatically took her hand. They began walking back to the main area of Konoha side by side, neither of them really looking at each other as they went. She spared a glance up at the Hokage's tower as they passed it, smiling a little when she noticed the light in Tsunade's office was still on. It looked like her mentor was still working... or drinking. She'd find out in the morning which one it was.

"Any reason for why she did that?"

Sakura opened her mouth to answer him and then froze in order to study his profile intently. His expression was blank as he watched the path ahead. Almost too blank, actually. Did he suspect something? Maybe. She couldn't be sure, but she still had to be careful about what she said. Shrugging and affecting an indifferent tone to her voice, she said, "Who knows? Tsunade will do whatever she feels like, whenever she feels like. Maybe she knows she's pushed me really hard recently and is giving me a break? I'm not gonna complain about it!"

Kakashi smiled next to her and readjusted the bag on his back. "No, definitely don't question it. Tsunade isn't known to be merciful that often."

Sakura snorted and rolled her eyes. If he only knew what an understatement that was. Tsunade's 'act of mercy' was for purely selfish reasons, but that didn't mean she wouldn't take advantage of it when she could. Sleeping in a little longer was a luxury she hadn't experienced in a long time. She sighed and looked around to see where they were going next before frowning when she recognized the street she lived on.

"Hey... do you know where we are?" she demanded, turning to face him as they kept walking.

"Hmm?" Kakashi asked, his eyebrow lifting questioningly. "I was just following you. Why, don't you know?"

Sakura mentally kicked herself for not paying closer attention to things before unzipping the pocket on her pants that held her house key. "Remember last time how you offered to walk me home?" she joked sardonically as she pulled the key out.

"Yeah?"

"Well, it looks like I took you up on that offer tonight. This is my building here." She indicated the small, well tended apartment building with her thumb, smiling as he took it in with an approving nod.

"Nice," he commented as he released her hand and passed the bag back to her. "Better off than mine, actually."

Feigning wide, innocent eyes, Sakura said in a sweet voice, "But I thought you had a fireplace." A grin broke out as he rolled his eye. She couldn't be certain due to the dim light of the street lamp just to one side of the steps, but she almost swore she saw a smile form under the tight black material covering the lower half of his face.

"True... but I don't have a balcony. Or flower boxes outside my window for that matter," he explained as he took a step closer to her.

Sakura's breath held in her throat when her breasts came into contact with his chest just the barest bit, her eyes widening as his fingers toyed with hers idly. "So, is a third date out of the question?" he asked, his eye locking with hers steadily. There was something in his gaze that she didn't recognize. It was hard to pinpoint exactly what it was, but the closest she could come to describing it was warmth. It was the same sort of warmth she saw in the eyes of some of the more forward patients, the ones who told her how pretty she was before Shizune invariably sent her out of the room. Whoa... did that mean the plan was seriously working? Ino was going to be so pissed!

Swallowing down the voice in her mind crowing with triumph, Sakura shook her head and smiled. "No, I don't think so." Her gaze dropped toward the ground, but instead of spotting pavement and her feet she caught sight of his hands holding hers. Her skin was getting warm again, her fingers actually tingling a little from the way he was playing with them teasingly.

"No, you don't want to do this again or no, a third date isn't unthinkable?"

"The second, you jerk."

Kakashi nodded once and said, "Good answer, minus the jerk part. I'll let you know tomorrow what the plan is."

"Okay... sure. Um... goodnight?"

She froze despite her determination not to do that as he leaned in closer to her and freed one hand to comb back through her hair very much like he had done before. The movement made her look up at him, her breath catching as his eye scanned her face, as if to memorize her features. It sent a shiver down her spine and made her throat tighten a little in nervous anticipation. Was he going to kiss her? It sure looked like it. What should she do? Would it be wrong of her to pull away? Or what about redirecting it to the cheek instead?

Without much warning, Kakashi suddenly ruffled her hair and stepped away, grinning smugly at her as she scowled back with her hair strewn across her face. "G'night!" he called before turning and walking away.

Sakura didn't know which was stronger, the urge to punch him for messing her hair up further or the relief that he hadn't kissed her. And why did it feel like she was disappointed? What did she have to feel disappointed about? Sighing heavily, she made her way inside the apartment building, waving to the elderly shinobi now serving as a security guard. He smiled and waved back, a knowing look on his face that made her cheeks burn up. Tomorrow, she'd have to talk to Ino about what to do now. This was getting waaaay more complicated than she'd thought it would be!

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Author Rant Session: Oh. My. God. No one will believe the absolute HELL it was getting this chapter around! I had it all typed and pretty, ready for posting… and then freakin’ Vista went and killed my lap top. Seriously, I had to go and replace the hard drive. And THEN it was a total bitch trying to find this chapter, only realizing AFTER I found it that I needed to download a converter program for it to run on my new writing software… Yeah, needless to say I hate this chapter.

And that is the rant session for today. Thank you. –curtsies-