Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, nor any places, things, characters, or ideas therein. The aforementioned belong to Masashi Kishimoto, Viz Media, Shounen Jump, TV Tokyo, etc. I am writing this fic for entertainment purposes only, not monetary gain.

Summary: Sasuke will do anything to get what he wants. Just ask Hinata. :Sasuke x Hinata: :for renoa-heartilly:

Rating: K+

Warnings: Lots of fluff. Be ready to visit your dentist after this. Seriously. And there's a kiss.

Pairing(s): Sasuke/Hinata

Spoilers: None

Universe: AU

Dedication: To renoa-heartilly, who's really showed me how fun and versatile life on the SasuHina submarine really is. I hope you have an amazing birthday!

Author's Note: A fun little fluffy oneshot for Renoa's birthday. I'm particulary fond of this idea, and I hope you all like it! Thanks for reading!

*~Conflicted~*

.:fyd818:.

"Let's see..." Hyuuga Hinata shifted the handles of her bright red grocery basket to her other hand as she consulted her list again. "I've got the mozzarella, the chicken breasts, heavy cream, everything for the chocolate sabayon with fresh peaches..." She hummed thoughtfully. "Now all I need is two pounds of spinach, the cèpes, sweet white onions, a few tomatoes, garlic, and small new red potatoes."

Then she could go home and get started on her favorite part of the whole process: cooking. Her cousin Neji and his wife would be at her apartment in only six hours, and while she was pushing herself with waiting so long to shop, she liked cooking with fresh ingredients. The fresher the meats and vegetables, the better her dishes tasted.

Committing to memory the final few items on her list, she tucked it back into her purse and turned her steps toward the produce section. Smiling, she hummed happily under her breath as she wound her way through the familiar aisles of her favorite grocery store. She had wonderful memories of shopping with her mother and younger sister; then, later, doing all her own shopping by herself as a proud, independent adult.

The temperature-controlled air coming off the produce coolers made Hinata shiver, and she waited for the misters to shut off before reaching in to pick out only the best spinach, carefully tucking it away in a bag so she wouldn't damage any of the leaves. After carefully tucking the bag next to the basil, she picked up the cèpes and then headed over to the warmer part of the produce section.

She stopped by the big wooden crates holding heads of garlic, potatoes of all shapes and colors, and the onions to pick up what she needed. After adding those purchases to her basket, she turned and stepped across the aisle to the heaping rows of tomatoes in colorful reds, yellows and pinks.

"How many...?" Resting the edge of the basket in her hand against the edge of the tomato display, since it was getting rather heavy to hold, Hinata dug in her purse and pulled out her list again. After checking to make sure she remembered the right number of tomatoes, she returned it to her bag. She stretched to get a plastic bag, then reached for the biggest, ripest, prettiest red tomato of the bunch.

Just as her fingers closed over it, a big, rough hand clamped down around her fingers. Startled, Hinata looked up - and up, and up - into dark, disapproving eyes, set in a pale face framed by ink-black hair.

"Excuse me, but I do believe that's my tomato." The fingers around hers flexed slightly, but not so much that they forced hers to contract around the red fruit and damage it.

Hinata felt her eyebrows crunch down mulishly. "I don't see your name on it. Besides, my cousin and his wife are coming over to my house for dinner in just a few hours, and I need this tomato for the fresh mozzarella, sweet onion, and tomato salad I'm making. They requested it specifically!" And she did not plan on disappointing them. Especially not her very pregnant cousin-in-law, who had the oddest cravings at the oddest times, and whose usually sensible personality had turned into an emotional rollercoaster at the worst times.

Those dark eyes flickered from her, to the tomato (still held by both of them), and back. "Okay, here's an idea." He swayed a little closer to her, so close she could smell his musky, woodsy aftershave, and said, "You can invite me to dinner at your place, too, and we can both benefit from the tomato."

The completely undignified squeak which left her lips made Hinata blush even redder than she would have otherwise. The man (whose big, strong warm hand was still on top of hers!) was definitely handsome, and his black, fathomless eyes were smoldering at her in a way that made her knees suddenly feel like jelly. "B-But I don't even know you!" she protested breathlessly. Which, come to think of it, took quite a bit of effectiveness out of her argument.

His black eyebrows arched, and he smiled - a sexy kind of smirking half-smile that made her go all hot inside like melted butter on fresh-from-the-oven bread. "What better way to get to know each other than over dinner?" he asked casually. "Your cousin and his wife, wasn't it? will even be there to chaparone, so it'll be entirely above-board and safe and sensible."

He made it all seem so logical. But wasn't there a really good reason why it was a bad idea? Oh, yeah, right. Snap out of it, Hinata, and get with the program! Blinking furiously against the power of that devastating smile, she forced her features into a scowl and briskly replied, "I don't even know your name." There. Take that, Mr. Tomato Thief.

The corner of his lips kicked up a little more. "Uchiha Sasuke. A pleasure to meet you...?" He trailed off and arched one eyebrow, which made her notice his eyelashes. It should be a crime for a man to have such full, perfectly shaped eyelashes, especially since she'd spent ten minutes in front of the mirror that morning shaping hers!

"Hyuuga Hinata." She distantly noted he still hadn't let go of her hand, which would have been utterly romantic if not for the fact that they were, for all intents and purposes, having a very quiet argument over a tomato, of all things.

"Okay, Hinata. Here's the deal. I like tomatoes. I mean, I really like tomatoes. When I was four, I got in major trouble because my mother found me in our family's garden picking all the best ones off the vines and eating them, right there. By the time she was finished, my hide was as red as the tomatoes." His smile took on a rather reminiscent quality, which, Hinata dreamily noted, was a good look (seriously, did the man have a bad look?). "My point is, I love tomatoes. If I could, my entire diet would consist of tomatoes, and only tomatoes. And when I see one I want, I get it. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get it. So what do you say, hmm? What'll it take for me to convince you to let me have this perfect, delicious tomato?"

Sasuke's bringing that point up brought her back to reality with a thump. "Nothing!" Gently gripping the tomato, Hinata utilized her martial arts training to twist her hand and slip free from his grip. (Her hand, she noted sadly, felt very cold without his atop it.) "I'm telling you, I have to have this tomato for the salad for my cousin and his wife. Particularly his wife. So find yourself another tomato!" A year ago, she would have meekly let him have his tomato and found another. But she was trying to be more assertive, and there was no time like the present to put all of her practice to good use.

Especially in the face of such a perfectly formed example of the male species... Focus, Hinata!

Crossing his arms over his (very nicely muscled) chest, Sasuke considered her from beneath his eyelids, lowered to half-mast. And his eyes were still smoldering. "Don't want to take me up on the dinner deal, huh?"

"Most certainly not." Though, really. He didn't strike her as the evil type. He didn't have any tattoos or piercings (that she could see), he didn't ooze sleaziness, he didn't leer or stare inappropriately at her... So how bad could he really be?

Then again, wasn't it always the nice ones who were the serial killers? Better safe than sorry. Sniffing, Hinata pointedly slipped the tomato into a plastic bag and smiled her most charming smile. "I'm sorry, Sasuke," she said silkily. "But I'm afraid you're just going to have to find another tomato. This one is mine." Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted two more which would do nicely, and quickly snatched them up and added them to her bag. Then she tied it off and started to put it into her basket-

-And Sasuke was there, hovering just outside her personal space, his delicious aftershave filling her senses again. He was a strong, warm presence nearby, and yet she felt gooseflesh ripple up her arms, across her shoulders, and along her nape. Goodness! She hadn't felt this way since... Since...

Well, ever.

His hand once again closed around hers, and he smiled. Again. "I do believe, Hinata," he said huskily, "that these are, actually, my tomatoes." Lightning quick, he brushed his lips across her forehead, and then he was gone.

Hinata blinked once, twice, rather stupidly. She felt lightheaded and floaty and hot and cold, all at once. Sagging back against the case holding the tomatoes, she smiled as her head lolled to the side, feeling like her knees were just about to give out from beneath her.

And then reality caught up to her with a thump. Muttering a word she wouldn't say under usual circumstances, she looked down to her hand. Her empty hand.

But no, it wasn't empty after all. There was a small, folded up piece of paper between her fingers - when had he put that there?

Opening it, she stared down at the note: I owe you a tomato or five and the phone number scrawled there.

Muttering under her breath, she picked out a few more (less than satisfactory, thank you very much) tomatoes and stomped her way up to the checkout, where there was only one lane open.

Only to find out that Sauske, the infuriating man, had prepaid for all her groceries.

They got married the following spring. Sasuke's attendants wore red ties, and Hinata's red dresses. All the food dishes (save for the cake) were tomato themed.

And atop the beautiful wedding cake, the little plastic bride and groom cradled a bright red, perfect tomato in their cupped hands.

*~The End~*

Author's Ending Notes: Ah, I haven't had this much fun and giggles writing a fic since way back in Coffee Connections! I loved writing sexy!Sasuke and entranced!Hinata. I really hope you all enjoyed reading this cute piece of fluffy SasuHina love, too. Thanks for reading, and once again, happy birthday to the awesome renoa-heartilly!