Chapter 5: Stupid Mistletoe

Sasuke and Naruto were waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs in the hallway. As far as they figured, they should make their grand entrance together. Really, it would be grand. Sasuke and Naruto were actually dressed properly for the event, and both had smiles on their faces (yes, even Sasuke!), even though they were still slightly upset about the fact Sakura had been sleeping on Itachi, and vice versa.

Naruto was wearing a satin orange colored dress shirt (which Sakura still found to be hysterical. Even when such events like these, he couldn't drop the orange), a dark gray vest, and the usual black tuxedo, with a black tie. Sasuke's own outfit was similar, but instead of the orange dress shirt, it was a dark, midnight blue.

"Presenting, Sakura Haruno!" Ino cheered hysterically from the top of the stairs, attracting the attention of not only Sasuke and Naruto, but a few passerby-ers who had been searching for a bathroom, along with Itachi. (He was pretty much wearing the exact same thing as Naruto and Sasuke, but the dress shirt was crimson red)

So when Sakura approached Ino, much too many eyes were on her for her comfort. She became flustered, turned red, and looked down in embarrassment.

"Come on Sakura, look, you even attracted Itachi's attention." This made Sakura look up, spot him, and blush even more. Ino sighed. "I'll walk you down." Ino took her arm and wrapped her own around it, and slowly they descended down the stairs, where even Sasuke and Naruto were blushing.

"Zugoi Sakura-chan, Ino!" Naruto exclaimed loudly. "You two look amazing!"

Ino giggled lightly. "Thanks, Naruto." Once they reached the bottom steps, Ino handed Sakura to Naruto, while she took Sasuke's (mainly because he was there, she didn't want to look like a fool, and he looked irresistible), and the four of them walked off to the living room, where the party had already begun.

Sure, both Ino and Sakura made quite an impact to the party, but things settled down shortly afterwards.

Like always, Ino was off with some other guy, though this time it didn't see like she was trying to catch someone. She was actually with Hinata, Kiba, and Shikamaru, discussing about who knows what.

And, as always, Sakura was sitting on a chair at some random table, bored out of her head. She was being surrounded by guys she knew nothing about (besides their names), nor wanted anything to do with.

Soon enough, music started, and many couples and non-couples got off their butts for some romantic dancing. She noticed Naruto offeedr his hand to Hinata, which nearly made her squeal in delight. Really, it wasn't everyday Naruto decided to be romantic after all.

"Would you like to dance, Sakura-san?" the boy she believed to be Sora asked her with a kind an eager smile. Sakura returned the smile, but with less enthusiasm.

"Sorry, I'm not a very good dancer…" Sakura replied, her smile faltering.

"I'll teach you." It was not Sora, but some other guy she did not know who jumped in eagerly.

"No, I'll teach Sakura-san how to dance!" another bellowed.

"Umm… uhh, no, it's quite alright everybody." Sakura was beginning to feel cluster phobic. They just kept stacking up…!

"No, me!"

Someone cleared their throat, and the mob immediately disappeared.

Sakura looked up to see her savior. "Itachi?" she was both shocked and embarrassed.

Itachi gave a curt nod. "Would you like to dance?"

Sakura's blush deepened. "I really wasn't joking when I said I couldn't dance." Sakura muttered under hear breath, looking to the side in embarrassment.

"I'll teach you." He insisted, as he grabbed Sakura's hand, pulled her up, and then slowly brought her to what had become the dance floor before Sakura even had a chance to protest.

"Don't worry, Kaa-san saw your predicament and insisted I save you." He muttered under his breath as they began walking away.

"Ohh…" Okay, this made much more sense. Itachi didn't just offer someone a dance… especially not when it was he who would be dancing, after all. (Offering for his little brother, on the other hand, was something he quite enjoyed to do, especially when he was offering his hand to one of his devoted fan girls). "Alright" Sakura nodded after her train of thought. She expected Itachi to lead her through the dance floor and into the kitchen or something, where he would let her go, but he instead dragged her to the middle of the dance floor and then faced her.

"Umm, Itachi… w-"

"Relax" He smirked. "You taught me how to take care of an infant, it's only fair I return the favor." His skillful hands and arms grabbed her own, and made one grab his shoulder, while the other held his to the side of them. After he placed her hand on his shoulder, it skillfully held her on the waist.

Sakura tried not to blush from the contact, but she knew she was doing a horrible job at it. Still, curiosity ended up getting the best of her.

"And how exactly do you of all people know how to dance?" Sakura couldn't help but ask. After all, this was Itachi... technically, he shouldn't be able to dance.

Itachi gave a slight shrug. "Essentials for noble clans." He replied. "It may not seem so, but Sasuke can as well, though he tends to hide it." Itachi confirmed, as the two twirled around on the dance floor.

"Interesting" Sakura gave a contemplative look. "So Mikoto made you learn it?" she summed up.

Itachi sighed slightly, but smirked nonetheless "Pretty much, though I was only half joking about the previous statement."

She guessed it was possible. Surely having such a high title (A.K.A. Uchiha main household, and in his case, heir) meant they had to know proper etiquette, and such. Surely being the heir and all, he'd be forced to ask other woman to dance, while also being asked by others. Over all, it was a skill he most likely used often, when it royal parties and such.

"So how are you enjoying yourself so far?" Sakura changed the subject.

"Until know it was rather dull." He admitted.

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "And what made it change?" she questioned, not realizing that had been a compliment on his part.

"Well, for one, you are a very intellectual being." He stated. "Easy to communicate with, and not detestable." He smirked.

"Gee, thanks for saying I'm not annoying." Sakura rolled her eyes, but laughed slightly nonetheless.

While their conversation was still going on, they were still dancing and moving to the rhythm of the music. Sakura didn't even notice she was twirling, and spinning, and being brought up off her feet as Itachi grabbed onto her hips and lifted her up, twirling for a few seconds, and then putting her down gently, continuing the regular dance. She was happy most of everyone was too preoccupied either dancing, conversing, or getting hammered to notice.

Once she did realize it though (it had taken her about the second jump), she blushed furiously, even though she had to admit she was amazed at the fluent and swift movements her body seemed to be making from their own accord, without her permission. She had to admit, she was actually enjoying this…

The song did not end, but the beat completely changed, turning into a slow dance. Many people left the dance floor, and a few joined in (which she noted were mostly couples), but Itachi hardly even gave her time to process this, for their paces slowed, and the mood (at least in her mind) completely changed.

"I have to admit, you're pretty good." Sakura muttered, embarrassed.

Itachi's lips quirked upwards to form a smirk. "You're not bad yourself."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "I don't even know what I'm doing. I'm just following your lead." She admitted truthfully. Maybe it wasn't that her body knew exactly what to do, but Itachi, who knew exactly what to tell her body to do.

"But part of the art of dancing is being able to become one with your partner, and move in perfect sync." Itachi replied.

'Become one with your partner…' Itachi's words lingered in her mind.

Her mind was in a haze. In fact, she didn't even notice it when her hands had wrapped themselves around Itachi's neck, and his on her petite waist.

'What the hell? When did that get there?' Sakura blushed furiously, even though Itachi didn't seem aware of it (oh, but he was). Her heart was beating a thousand beats per minute, and she was sure her skin was pinker than her hair.

How could he stay so calm and composed while she was about to have a heart attack?

Because he had been trained to be so since he was probably nine

Because he had already taken several girls dancing before (surely because he was forced to)

Because, to him, this was probably just to please his mother

Definitely not because he liked Sakura or wanted to get to know her better

'Surely not…' Sakura frowned slightly and looked down, her eyebrows scrunched together. Should she really be taking pleasure in this? Surely, whatever she was feeling right now would just go away as soon as the holidays passed, and she moved back to her own house, and never saw or heard of Itachi ever again, besides the occasions where she'd eat dinner with the Uchihas' once or twice a month, or saw him at the hospital after an S-ranked mission and needed a little patching up.

"Sakura?" Itachi said her name, as if asking what was wrong.

Startled slightly, Sakura looked back up and gave a fake smile "It's nothing."

Itachi didn't look convinced.

Sakura didn't blame him; she looked unsure, and she was sure it was obvious she was lying.

The song ended shortly afterwards, much to Sakura's relief. "I… umm, I'm going to get something to drink…" she muttered slowly, releasing her grip from Itachi's neck.

Itachi's arms didn't let go of her for several seconds (which she questioned profoundly), but he let go eventually, and she quickly made her escape to the kitchen, which was deserted and dark, mainly because everything you could possibly need was already in the living room.

She grabbed a cup, filled it with water, and gulped it down quickly, her cheeks red with anger and humiliation.

Was that really the only reason Itachi had stayed with her? Could it be any more humiliating that she wanted to be with him when it was all the same to him? I mean, it didn't seem like he was remotely interested in being with her, while whenever he approached her or said her name, she couldn't help but blush.

Sakura sighed out miserably. "It isn't fair!" she complained out loud, groaning.

"What isn't fair?"

Sakura turned around and saw Ino there.

Sakura sighed as Ino approached her and patted her hair lovingly, as if she were her daughter.

"Itachi asked me to dance, which I felt all happy about on the inside, but then he said Mikoto made him, because she saw how I was about to be devoured by boys, and now I realize maybe he's not even interested in being with me, as in company-wise, considering he makes it seem so casual to dance with a girl so intimately, mind you, a girl he's barely met." Her rant came out very quickly, Ino had to listen intently to not lose track of her words.

"I… see…" she said slowly, still trying to process her words. "Wait, you say Mikoto told him to?" Ino questioned, her eyebrows creased.

"Yeah" Sakura took another gulp of water.

"That's strange…" Ino muttered under her breath, putting her perfectly manicured thumb in her mouth, biting her nail lightly as she thought. "But I could have sworn…" Due to Ino's low voice and Sakura's distraction, she didn't hear Ino. "What did he say after you, let me guess, frowned, furrowed your eyebrows, and looked down?" Ino guessed correctly. Yes, she knew her best friend well, and she tended to do just that when she was upset.

"He merely called my name in question." Sakura replied, blushing slightly. Was she really that easily to read? Apparently she was, because Ino wasn't the only one who could read her like an open book, but Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, Tsunade, and hell, even Itachi could.

"Do you honestly think he doesn't care about you if he genuinely asked if you were okay? Seriously Forehead, you need to stop doubting yourself."

Sakura seemed unconvinced, though a little light did shine down on her.

Ino, deciding to change the subject, smiled and rolled her eyes. "Hey, you look beautiful, and it's Christmas. You have no time to be here in the kitchen bursting your bladder and worrying about the feelings Itachi may or may not have for you." Ino quickly took Sakura's glass (which Sakura was quick to pout about), poured out the remaining water in the sink, and then set it down on the marble counter. "Let's go have some fun."

Ino had been right, once again.

As she resumed celebrating and partying (it was Christmas, and by God, she was going to be happy, with or without Itachi), she became happier, and all thoughts of Itachi and her misfortune when it came to love where thrown out the window as she danced with Sasuke (Itachi was right, he was a good dancer), Naruto, Kakashi, Ino, and even Tsunade (even though none were as good a dancer as Itachi). To say the least, Itachi taught her a few things so she didn't look that ridiculous while dancing with any of them (though she did step on some toes every now and then, particularly Naruto, who had two left feet, and Kakashi, who wasn't much of a dancer anyway).

"I never thought this could be so much fun!" Sakura admitted, dancing goofily with Ino. In her defense, she only had one glass of sake; not substantial enough to cause her to do much of anything she would regret later on that night or in the morning. She was still though, not tolerant to alcoholic beverages, unlike Tsunade, so she did feel a little giggly… err… gigglier than usual…

"Oh, most youthful Sakura, would you please have this dance with me!"

"Sorry Ino, but I gotta go now!" Sakura laughed and ran away from the dance floor. Unfortunately, she was never mastered heels, and her dress was just so long. Halfway out the dance floor she stepped on her own dress and stumbled forward, only to be caught by the shoulders by someone before she could actually fall.

'Please don't be Lee. Please don't be Lee. Please don't be Lee.' She kept repeating the mantra over and over inside her head. She looked up slightly. 'YES! No green jumpsuit under a tuxedo in sight!' she thought happily, until she saw her savior.

"Itachi?"

"It seems like we keep running into each other." He smirked.

"Haha, very funny." She scowled. Now that was just plain mean right there. Sure, she was a little… off-balanced, but he didn't need to make fun of her for it.

"Sakura-chan!" Lee called out again, rapidly approaching her.

Sakura jumped slightly, accidently hitting her nose with her hand.

Okay… maybe he had a good reason for making fun of her…

But it still gave him no right.

Sakura's hands quickly latched onto his neck and it came all too natural to both Sakura and Itachi to start dancing.

Okay… maybe now he had the right to make fun of her…

"My most youthful Sakura-chan, would you please honor me with this dance?" Lee went on one knee, as if proposing.

Sakura looked up at Itachi with puppy eyes.

"Sorry Lee, Sakura and I are not finished with our own dance." He replied after a few seconds of eyeing her, as if saying 'haha, I have complete power over you as of now.'

Lee looked beyond devastated.

"Sorry Lee, maybe after I'm done dancing with Itachi." Sakura didn't want to be completely mean. I mean, it was Christmas after all…

His devastated look turned back into one of happiness. "Great! I'll see you then cherry blossom!" and so he walked away looking accomplished.

"And what do you plan to do after we do indeed finish our dance?" Itachi asked her curiously as they began moving.

"Well, I'll stay with you for about five minutes, and then get the hell out of here, and if I do get approached by Lee again, I'll jump onto the next available body around." Sakura smiled gingerly. Itachi smirked at her response.

Soon enough, Sakura was entranced by not only the music, but by Itachi and his very presence as well. She finally managed to get to her senses when the song ended, and Itachi had his hand pressed against the small of her back, and she was dipping down low backwards, Itachi supporting her back with his hand, while the other hung in the air beside him, one of her legs up in the air.

'When the hell did I get like this?' A blushed crept up on her face as she became deadly aware of the gleam in Itachi's eyes, and just how many people might be staring at them… But then Itachi slowly pulled her back up and steadied her after they were chest to chest, and then she could hardly care about the other occupants in the room. She was panting heavily and looking up at him with an accomplished and incredulous smile, and Itachi was looking down at her, smirking.

"You're becoming a natural." His compliment snapped her out of her trance once again

"I, ughh… thanks... for umm… dancing with me… I mean, saving me… from Lee, that is" Sakura stuttered out as she parted, giving them each more space. Sakura was beginning to feel like she would turn into goop by his intense, smoldering, sexy stare. Her thoughts became jumbled and all she wanted to do was just lie there in his arms once more.

"The pleasure was all mine, Sakura." He gave her a curt nod, his eyes never leaving hers, before he walked away smoothly.

'Damn that's a fine man' inner couldn't help but remind her.

'I know inner… I know…'

Around the time it hit 10:00, most of all the villagers that came (all villagers were invited, though the real party began after they left at 10:00, with all of Sakura's real friends, namely, shinobi) left, and the room cut down by more than half the people.

Mainly, it was the Rookie Nine with their respective sensei', along with Team Gai, Tsunade, Shizune, some of the medical staff, Genma, and some ANBU, along with the Uchiha Clan namely Shisui and some of the Uchihas' who were actually close to the main household (though Shisui and his parents mainly summed it up).

And yes, that had been when the real party began. Now that there were less people, it was easier to find everyone, and it was not as loud (not that anyone minded). And that was when they began passing out presents. They had rearranged everything, now that everyone was gone, so that all possible couches surrounded the tree, and everyone lounged around them, either laying on them, sitting on someone, on the floor next to the feet, or behind the couches, enjoying the small talk and such.

Usually it would be Mikoto who would pass out all the presents, but for some strange reason, (not really, Mikoto was just extremely glad to see both of her sons actually attend the Christmas Party) it had been Sasuke to pass out presents. She would have made Itachi do it to, but she knew he wasn't much of a talker. Plus, if she ever wanted him to attend something, she knew she'd just have to ask; he was just such a giving son like that. But unlike Itachi, Sasuke would fret, pout, sulk, glower, scowl, and then glare, before accepting –if he did in the end anyway.

So yes, it was more of a miracle that Sasuke attended –let alone had fun, rather than Itachi, even though she did see Itachi did… entertain himself for a while.

"First present…" Sasuke wasn't really quite sure how to start things off, so he picked up the first present he saw. "From Shizune to Sakura"

Wow, curse her luck for getting the first present; Sakura never really liked that. Still, Sasuke walked up to her and handed her the present, which she eagerly opened. It had been a pajama spaghetti strap tank top along with the shorts that came with it. The shirt was gray with thick black stripes, and it gray letters, it say "Dangerous Kunoichi". The stripes and letters seemed slightly faded, giving it an edgy look to top it off. The shorts were gray with a black strap to adjust it, and had small black kunai everywhere.

Sakura squealed in delight. She loved looking like a badass… even in her sleep. "Thank you Shizune!" she pounced on Shizune, who merely laughed heartily and welcomed the hug.

"Okay… moving on…" Sasuke really needed to be more enthusiastic in Sakura's opinion, but she didn't voice out her thoughts. She was lucky to have him here, so she'd settle with that miracle. "This one's to Kaa-san from Tou-san."

"Aww, how sweet." Tsunade chirped in, already slightly buzzed.

All stares turned to Fugaku, this being one of the only times you would ever catch him blushing. The present was a small box, which immediately indicated it was jewelry, more specifically, it was a pearl necklace.

"My birthstone, you remembered Fuga-kun!" she squealed adorably.

(A/N: Yes, that is her real birthstone: June 1st ;D)

His blush deepened the slightest bit as Mikoto jumped on him and kissed him uncontrollably.

"Eww, Kaa-san!" Sasuke looked disgusted by the sight, blushing and turning to the side. Seriously, if there was another Itachi-like baby nine months from now…

Sasuke shivered at the thought, and quickly continued on with the next gift before he got mental images. 'Eww another Itachi!'

"From Sakura and Hinata, to… Naruto." He grimaced. He had hoped he'd pick that one last; the blonde had been annoying him all throughout the party about how he had the most wonderful dance with Hinata, and he hadn't dared to even look at a girl (besides Sakura and Ino when they were descending the stairs, that was).

"Yes!" Naruto exclaimed in delight as he snatched the present from Sasuke's hands before he could even think about throwing it into the fireplace.

Sakura laughed. She had been mad at Naruto at the time she bought it, so she made it embarrassing.

"Cool! Ramen boxers!" He held them up. They were orange on the outside and blue on the inside, with cute ramen bowls all around it, the chopstick sticking out of the bowl.

"Custom made Naruto." She chuckled, as well as everyone around her who heard the comment. "That's not all Naruto, look closely." Sakura stated. Did he really believe that was all she would get him for Christmas of all holidays?

"There's more?" Naruto questioned, as he turned the box upside down and slowly but surely, a small card and piece of paper fell out of it. He picked it up the paper and the card, and then read the paper aloud. "This here card permits you to have free ramen at Icharaku's all year long. Use it wisely, and don't you dare lose and or break it. With much love and kisses, Sakura -and Hinata, even though she's too shy to admit it!

Naruto nearly hyperventilated, gasping for air and having to lean against a couch to catch his breath. "Oh my Ramen!" (Naruto had brought it within himself to start saying that for the past year). "This is the best Christmas present ever!" Maybe Naruto, for once, wasn't exaggerating.

"Yeah it better be, that cost us a fortune." Sakura smiled gingerly.

Naruto then proceeded to tackle Sakura, and then hug Hinata profoundly. In fact, he didn't let go of her for 10 whole minutes.

"Okay… next…" Sasuke murmured, searching the gifts for one that pleased him. 'Ahh, there it is.' In fact, he had only been looking for his. "From Sakura, to me…" He smirked, more like smiled, giddily.

Sakura rolled her eyes. Of course he'd be searching for that one. He opened it up, and saw a scroll. He was already intrigued. Before he opened it, Sakura stopped him, just to give him a little description.

"That scroll contains some of the most advanced Fire Jutsu's known to the Fire Nation." She explained. His eyes immediately sparked with fire (as in the intent to practice these, master them, and then kick Itachi's ass). "You'd be amazed how long I've been searching for that scroll." She frowned slightly.

He didn't mind admitting it now. "I love you Sakura" he smiled graciously, hugging her.

Sakura giggled and returned his hug lovingly. 'Asking Itachi to partake in Christmas festivities was the best thing I could ever do.' It was now a known fact.

"Next, to TenTen from Lee" And so, the gift passing out resumed.

One by one, the presents were all passed out and given away, with the pause every now and then when Sakura's fabulous presents came up, and people either cried, squealed, or hugged the hell out of her.

And then there were only 2 presents left. One, she could distinguish as the one she had gotten Itachi, and the other, she didn't quite recognize, but it was long but not big, which she could instantly tell was another jewelry box, maybe a bracelet or necklace.

"To Itachi from… Sakura?" The room went silent. Sasuke went paler than usual. He immediately semi-threw it at Itachi, expecting his own Christmas present to be extended and for it to be a bomb, indicated to blow up the second Itachi opened up. But of course, he knew that was just him denying the fact Sakura had been too kind and had went out of her way to get his older brother something.

Itachi raised an eyebrow. So far, the only presents he had gotten had been from Shisui, which had been a prank present (a black shirt that said "I [insert red heart here] my girl friend" in white letters, which was meant to remind him he was now single for twenty-two and a half years straight now. Naruto and Sasuke had gotten quite a laugh from it, and Sasuke reminded himself to put in his agenda to get Shisui an awesome birthday present in the future) and Mikoto, who had gotten him reading glasses (which although he'd never admit out loud about, he and his mother knew he was extremely thankful for, for his eyes had been bothering him a lot lately).

It was a jewelry box

Sasuke began snickering along with Naruto and Kiba, and anyone who dared make fun of Sakura's present. Sasuke was now beginning to think maybe it was an extended present for him, and maybe even Naruto, as if she were calling him a chick (or perhaps gay) because he hadn't had a girlfriend in, as Shisui estimated it, twenty-two and a half years.

Itachi raised his eyebrows and searched for Sakura around the room, who was beaming brightly at him, as if egging him to open it. Well… he doubted Sakura had schemed with his pesky little brother to make him seem any less the gender he really was so…

He opened it.

It was a dark platinum ring, thick and perfectly round, and as it reached the place where a diamond or some form of jewelry should be located, standing in all its perfect glory, was the Uchiha Clan symbol. It was in a light silver platinum color, but the thin line separating the different parts of the symbol seemed to have been burned, so it was surrounded in a thin layer of black, which made the clan symbol pop out. It looked edgy and cool, and definitely not meant for a woman.

Itachi was silent.

Sakura was extremely nervous. Did he not like his gift…?

"Pass it here, 'Tachi-kun." Mikoto insisted. He did as he was told, and Mikoto and Fugaku (who had Mikoto on top of him, sitting on his lap now), inspected the ring.

"My…" Mikoto gasped in admiration. All those who surrounded them nodded their heads in approval.

"It certainly is spectacular…" Neji commented from the sidelines. He, who took honor from being a Hyuga, would have loved the ring as a present (of course, if you replaced the Uchiha symbol with that of the Hyuga Clan, that is), even if it was a ring, hence forth, feminine.

"Why does everyone expect it to be so feminine for a guy to wear a ring?" Ino rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I find it pretty nice. It's not feminine at all." Shizune nodded in agreement.

Sakura seemed nervous all the while. Sure, everyone said they liked it, but the one person it was meant for hadn't even voiced his opinion yet… and his mattered most…!

The ring was given back to Itachi shortly afterwards, and he took it out of the case and put it on his left, middle finger, and admired how well it fit.

'I'm so glad… I took my guess off of Sasuke's finger size.' She mentally sighed in relief. Nevertheless, he hadn't still stated his opinion about the ring. 'Maybe he's not into jewelry…?'

Itachi smirked and nodded at Sakura. "The gift is much appreciated, Sakura." The smirk turned into a small smile (which no one but Sakura, Mikoto, and Fugaku could really notice), and her hesitant frown turned into a bright smile.

"I'm so glad you like it Itachi!"

'Yes! Mission 'Get Itachi a Perfect Present' Success!' she was so happy, even her inner busted up in excitement (though most of anyone would have, after that smile).

"And now…" Sasuke picked up the final present. "To Sakura, from Sasuke-"

This made Sakura's jaw drop in surprise

"-and Itachi"

She nearly passed out.

"W-What?" she stuttered out in amazement, and shock.

Sasuke was blushing (surely from embarrassment, and maybe anticipation to see if Sakura liked her present) as he handed her the thin box.

It took Sakura several seconds to mentally prepare for the present, and what better way to do that than to joke around? "And you're positive this won't in any way, shape, or form, pop out of the box and attack me, and is not some form of weapon, right?" Sakura quirked an eyebrow at Sasuke. She knew it didn't, mainly because Itachi had also gotten the present (and Itachi so far had been a gentleman) but had it been only Sasuke's present, she'd probably ask Naruto to open it for her.

"It will." Sasuke smirked. Sakura didn't quite know what he meant.

Still, Sakura was a girl who loved receiving presents…

So she tore the wrapping paper right up, and opened the box after just the slightest hesitation.

And her jaw dropped

It had been a bracelet, like Sakura had predicted, but it was much prettier than expected.

It was like a charm bracelet made from silver chains, with pink jewels, combining some of the several things she enjoyed and loved. The thing that stuck out to her the most was the Sakura tree, it was big compared to the other charms, but was smaller than an inch. It showed intricate carvings on the branches, and the pink jewels just further added to the charm. She also saw a ramen bowl, obviously standing for her favorite place on earth (mainly because it had the homey smell she had gotten accustomed to over the years, and because she knew if she were there, she wasn't too far from Naruto.) There was also a simple Konoha insignia, and next to it, the Uchiha (prideful Uchihas' always have to put their own take some way or another, but she loved them nonetheless) emblem. There was also a vaccine shot, which obviously stood for the hospital, hearts, which she thought maybe stood for how much love she had for everyone (it seemed to fit), a kunai, a fox, slug, and little serpent all closely hunched up together. That must have obviously stood for Naruto, herself, and Sasuke, as inseparable as they were today.

(A/N: In this story, Sasuke was nowhere remotely near Orochimaru, but he did get the serpents from Anko o:)

There were so many wonderful, beautiful, intricate designs, Sakura's wouldn't be able to name them all right now. So, she settled for the next best thing.

She tackled Sasuke and Itachi (who were, lucky for her, standing next to each other now) down to the ground, and held them there in place in a death lock. All thoughts of it being Itachi (she sure as hell didn't care now, considering he got her such a fabulous present, and what the hell, she slept on him for Kami's sake!) out the window.

"I love you guys." It was mostly directed to Sasuke, just because she could actually honestly say she loved him...as a brother, of course. As for Itachi, well, she was starting to strongly like him more and more.

Sasuke, slowly and hesitantly, returned the hug, smiling slightly, while Itachi just smirked.

"Goodbye, Take care!" Sakura waved off the last bunch, consisting of Tsunade, Shizune, Kakashi, and an ANBU, all if which had to escort Tsunade home, for she had gotten too drunk at the party. "We should really cut sake off the menu next year." Sakura muttered, rolling her eyes. She shut the door and walked a few steps, where Mikoto was standing.

"Oh, but you have to admit Tsunade-sama brings on quite a lot of laughs when drunk." Mikoto giggled.

Sakura shrugged. "True"

It was 11:30, probably, maybe more. The party was officially over, but everyone had to clean up, though Sakura insisted Mikoto and Fugaku go early, considering one, Mikoto had worked so hard for the past 48 hours, and two, it was just impolite to ask Fugaku to clean. And with a little persuasion from Itachi, they finally got through to Mikoto.

"I leave you in charge, Sakura dear." Mikoto sighed in dismay.

"Right…" Sakura nodded. Once Fugaku and Mikoto retired to their rooms, Sakura turned back to the remaining males in the room.

"Naruto, you and Sasuke gather up all the dishes and start washing. Itachi and I will take care of the trash." It was a large amount, considering there was just so, so many drinkers at this time of the year. And considering it was Christmas, Tsunade had gotten extra hammered… if that were even possible.

Sakura and Itachi gathered up all the empty bottles in silence, and then went outside to throw them out. Had Sakura been a little smarter, she would have remembered to bring a jacket of some kind. So as soon as she opened the door, a cold gust of wind hit her in the face, and she yelped. Sakura turned around quickly, deciding that putting on a jacket would be best, but then she came face to face with Itachi, who was smirking down at her, his coat already in his hand for her.

"Don't," she cut him off, "say a word." She seethed, grabbing his coat harshly and throwing it on, welcoming the warmth it brought to her. Itachi merely smirked at her reaction. They both exited the screen door and walked the twenty or so steps it took to reach the trashcan, and then hurried back (on Sakura's part anyway, her legs were still cold).

It had taken them several rounds, but they finally cleaned up every inch of trash there was. Once they got back from their last round, they noticed Sasuke and Naruto were nowhere to be found. Most likely, they ended up using the bunshin to finish twice as fast (Sakura was furious she hadn't thought of that herself), and then finished.

"Well, I guess we're all done here." Sakura sighed in relief.

Itachi nodded absent-mindedly. "Headed to bed, I presume?" Itachi asked.

"Yeah I'm just… gonna grab a quick drink." Sakura muttered, entering the kitchen. "Oh, and before I forget, can you help me turn off all the Christmas lights outside? There are a couple of switches out there that turn everything off." Sakura explained.

Itachi nodded, and as soon as Sakura finished her drink, they set off to turn it off.

Sakura shivered under the cool ice. Come on, she was tired, her feet hurt, and it was hard enough to walk on ice as it was! She almost fell (once again) as she climbed up the small porch, but (once again) Itachi caught her, this time by the elbow. Man, and she had been so close to the door too. She could have made it, she was literally like right under it!

"Sakura?"

"Mhmm?" Sakura was just praying he wouldn't make fun of her.

"What's that?" He looked upwards. Sakura followed his gaze.

"Oh!" she perked up. "I know what it is" she smiled. "It's called a mistletoe. When two people get together under it they're supposed to k-" Sakura froze, pausing for a few seconds to rethink her answer. Alas, it was too late to stop now... "Kiss…" she repeated again, this time slower. She looked up once more. Yes, that indeed was right beneath the two…

She looked at Itachi, her face flushed.

He stared at her with a smirk.

"No, I couldn't Itachi…" She shook her head sourly.

"Completely understandable, Sakura." He nodded.

Sakura parted her lips, closed them, then opened them once more. "I've never not followed through with tradition though…" Sakura frowned. Hell, she had even kissed Lee when she got caught under this the previous year. Of course, it had only been in the cheek though…

"Well, it wouldn't be right if you stopped now, would it, Sakura?" He cocked his head at an angle, teasing her, daring her.

"You're asking for it Uchiha." She glared at him.

And he was.

No, you don't understand.

He literally was

"Afraid?" he teased her.

"Of what?" she scoffed.

He inclined his head towards her, in which she replied by pushing hers backwards.

"I rest my case." He smirked, returning back to standing up straight.

Sakura glared at Itachi. 'He thinks he can make fun of me and my Christmas traditions? Oh. Hell. No.'

'That's right. Prove him wrommfff-'

Inner was silenced when Sakura tip toed and crashed her lips onto his. At first, she was angry, but then she realized… she didn't need to crash her lips on his. A simple peck would have done… But then again, she wouldn't have proved her point had it been a meek kiss.

'That's right… it was to prove my point…'

"Hey Sakura, what are you d- EWW GROSS!" Naruto appeared from the hallway and instantly grew red.

Meanwhile, Itachi had been startled by Sakura's abrupt attack to his lips, and a few seconds afterwards, her lips were off his own. Sakura scoffed. "You see, I'm not afraid of mistletoes, and I'm definitely not afraid of you, Itachi Uchiha." She frowned at being caught, but whispered it to Itachi nonetheless.

"Hn" he smirked as Sakura pushed past him and went inside, glaring all the way there.

Itachi looked up and stared at the mistletoe, and then turned around to go back.

"Teme! Your brother was raping Sakura-chan!" Naruto whined loudly.

"Pipe down Naruto. You're going to wake up Mikoto and Fugaku-san." Sakura punched him on the head, her face still dark red from embarrassment.

Sasuke came out of the hallway shortly afterwards, wearing a long blue shirt and black boxers.

"What happened?" he had been finishing up brushing his teeth when Naruto had yelled.

"Itachi was kissing Sakura! I told you something was going on when they were sleeping together!" Naruto sounded enraged.

Sakura, if possible, got even redder. "God Naruto! You're making it sound so, so wrong!" she shook her head in embarrassment. "And Sasuke! You're not even decent!" she shook her head in dismay. Sure this wasn't the first time she's seen him like this (her men in boxers and briefs had become a normal thing for her now), but still… she didn't need Itachi's kiss, Naruto's loud complaints, and Sasuke half naked all at once. Did they know they were driving her crazy?

"You what?" Sasuke was enraged. Itachi looked uninterested.

"Is it any of your business what Sakura does while away from you two?" Itachi questioned.

"Absolutely" they answered in unison without missing a heartbeat.

"Teme, I say you go for the face and I go for the legs." Naruto already started making murder plans, cracking his knuckles.

"It would be my pleasure. Next time he'll think twice about sneaking up on Sakura like that…" he grumbled incoherently. "Thinks he can do whatever he wants just cuz we're not watching over her…" he snorted.

Whoa, since when did Sasuke openly admit he was protective of Sakura? That was surely a first.

Itachi sighed and walked up to Sakura. "Sakura?"

She looked up innocently, and before she had time to register anything, his lips were on hers once again. Sakura turned scarlet, but she didn't push him away. It was a simple, chaste kiss. Nothing more, nothing less.

When they pulled apart (she could swear it was longer than 5 seconds), Naruto and Sasuke were crimson red.

"As you can see, hiding what happened was not my intention." He tried not to roll his eyes. "And to clarify, it had been Sakura, who, as you put it, "raped me". He smirked.

"Sakura, how could you!" Naruto looked appalled.

"Not just once, but twice." Sasuke looked green.

Sakura glared. "It was a mistletoe. Get over it." She sighed, her face finally turning back to how it usually was. "Now I suggest you two go back to bed before I beat you two shitless."

The threat seemed scary enough for them to back down and return to their own rooms.

Once they were clearly out of ear shot and out of vision, Sakura sighed and massaged her temples, feeling a migraine coming on. "Itachi, before you leave can you please help me carry all my boxes up to my room?" she asked, not even looking at him. Frankly, if she did, she might just pass out.

"Hn" both of them made their way to the only boxes left. Sakura took about three, and Itachi was kind enough to take the rest.

"Thanks… you can just drop them in the corner by the bed." Sakura instructed as she placed her own there, and then sat on her bed, taking of the shoes. Man, her feet were killing her. He did as he was told, and placed them down gently.

"Thanks for the present Itachi, I really liked it." Sakura commented out of nowhere.

He looked up. "Likewise, Sakura"

"Oh, so you really liked it?" she smiled eagerly.

He nodded. "First present I've received that wasn't Kaa-san's that I will be fond of." He admitted.

Sakura laughed. "It wasn't that hard for me to think of that…" Sakura's eyebrows furrowed as she looked up.

"You seem to be one of the more capable at picking out good gifts." Itachi acknowledged.

Sakura rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess I do have a talent for that. By the way, was this possibly made by Takaharu-san?"

"It was indeed." Itachi smirked.

"I knew it! I could identify his work in a heartbeat. It really is magnificent." Sakura nodded. "How on earth did you know I liked Takaharu-san's work so much though?" she questioned.

"Sasuke" he nodded.

"Oh…" Sakura smiled. Maybe Sasuke really did pay attention to her when she would ramble on about unimportant girl related stuff, when he specifically said he didn't care and acted as if he weren't paying attention…

"Well, I guess you should go now." Sakura snapped up from her train of thought and walked Itachi to her door.

"Hn" he exited, but then turned around expectantly shortly afterwards.

"Did you forget something?" she cocked her head to the side in confusion.

"As a matter of fact, I did." He confirmed.

"What is this? Let Itachi kiss Sakura Day?" she growled in anger loudly. Third kiss that day. Hell, that was her third kiss in the past hour; more action than she had had the whole year, prior to today.

From the hallway, Itachi heard her, and chuckled.

'Naïve kunoichi'

Okay, maybe now he'd admit he liked her. After all, the way her lips had felt on his…

He thought it was just the frozen tingle of her lips he got at first. But he wasn't sure, so he needed to confirm it. When he did it in front of Sasuke he felt it again, so it surely wasn't the snow, but maybe it was the tingle of victory, knowing he was making Naruto and Sasuke –mainly Sasuke, very jealous.

So again, he needed to confirm it.

And he did.

Itachi Uchiha liked Sakura Haruno

And he would not stop until he made that noticeable and crystal clear.

And so the story goes, Sakura woke up the next day to a few surprises.

First and foremost, the first person she was greeted by that day was Itachi, not Naruto, surprisingly enough.

Sakura had thanked Mikoto for telling Itachi to ask her to dance when she was about to be raped, but she laughed and said she had told Itachi no such thing.

Itachi seemed more interested to be near Sakura, and less and less interested about bugging Sasuke.

Oh, and Mikoto was throwing a New Year's party, which she would still be there for.

Oh dear…

End of Chapter

Well, this chapter was longer than expected xD Still, I got it done, and in record time as well! :D Yay, let's all do a happy dance.

And look, this is my first completed story ever! YAY

Now, for a thnx for updating so quickly (and maybe as a Christmas present) will you all press the review button and tell me what you thought about the story? :D

Oh, and if you guys want a one-shot sequel (obviously being the New Year's Party), which may or may not be updated before New Years (depends on my creative flow xD)

So that's about all I have to say…

Look out for a new chapter of:

New Sakura within a week or two!

-Marzy-chan~~! :))