Hello everyone! This is my first Borusara story so I'm a bit nervous and excited. This story is actually based on a prompt given to me by a friend on Tumblr. The time period is immediately set after a few days from the ruined Chunin exams and before the iconic Borusara scene on the Hokage mountain. This was supposed to be a one shot but transformed into a multi-chapter fanfiction in my mind!

I hope you enjoy this story!

Apologies in advance for all the grammatical and spelling errors, although I've tried to avoid them.

Disclaimer : Nothing related to the Naruto and Boruto franchise is owned by me!

Summary:"Hey! Hey! Boruto-kun! You have known Sarada-san for the longest time, right?"

"Yeah…so, what about it?"

"Do you think too that she has gotten even more beautiful than before?"

And thanks to the above question Boruto finds himself in a troublesome predicament. What will he do in such a situation when Sarada isn't even talking to him?

Chapter - 1

Admirers of Uchiha Sarada

Boruto groaned in annoyance, forcing Mitsuki to steal a sideways glance at him.

It was supposed to be an ordinary get together of their entire class. Even now when their academy days were over, they still arranged such events every now and then to stay in touch with everyone. But the girls of their class were not here yet so they were allowed to talk about the boy stuff. They were supposed to talk about the upcoming Chunin exams, and also about the previous one which ended in a catastrophic way. They were supposed to talk about their opponents and their jutsus. They were supposed to talk about new video games and movies.

But they were currently talking about the one thing that they were not supposed to talk, or more likely, the one topic that made him extremely uncomfortable. And this is not the first time they were talking of this!

The topic of the current heated discussion among them was-

Girls.

Or more specifically, Uchiha Sarada.

It had all started with an innocent praise from Denki.

"Oh! Did you guys see it? When Sarada-san defeated her opponent with a single punch?"

"Yeah. I'm have to agree that she's quite amazing with her fists." Surprisingly, Iwabee was the first person to agree with him.

Boruto smirked. The girl was a lot better than only her fists and shurikens. They have no idea. But the smirk was wiped off his face when someone up from the crowd spoke up, Boruto noticed that it was Renga-kun, about her.

"She is good. But I wonder if I am the only one who thinks that she's gotten much prettier than before? Like even the genins from other villages were talking about her and some boys were even checking her out."

Boruto almost blanched. Hearing that boys were checking her out made him really want to punch something for some reason he was not able to figure out. An unexplainable anger fogged his senses and the weird sensation only increased when someone exclaimed from the group.

"No dude! You are not the only one who thinks so! She's cute and is getting even more lovely by each passing day. I would really give anything to go on date with her."

His fists clenched tightly on his sides.

Stupid brats! Don't they understand that she does not have time for such silly stuff? She's going to be the future Hokage for God's sake. And Hokages don't have enough time to go on stupid dates!

He stuffed his hands inside his pockets and looked to the other side in annoyance, trying his hardest to block out the conversation going on, when suddenly he was dragged into it.

"Hey! Hey! Boruto-kun! You have known Sarada-san for the longest time, right?"

"Yeah…so, what about it?"

"Do you think too that she has gotten even more beautiful than before?"

Suddenly all eyes were on him waiting for an answer as if they were expecting him to give permission to hold something that was only in his possession. Truthfully speaking, he found it weird and of course, the question was even weirder.

Is Sarada beautiful?

Nah! She's just a peculiar girl who wears glasses and always finds something to pester me about! She is not beautiful.

He almost opened his mouth to answer the question but was startled when an image of a smiling Sarada flashed into his mind. His breath hitched. A genuinely smiling Sarada was like something akin to finding a diamond.

Rare but breathtaking.

Even he could not deny that her smile was…entrancing?

Because when she smiles, to look away from her becomes the hardest thing to do at that moment.

And which is why she, certainly, she cannot be called ugly too!

Boruto didn't know how to answer their question. He was struck in a dilemma. But another thought occurred to him, halting him and his opinions regarding his childhood friend.

But did it matter? If she was beautiful or not? Because she was still the same Sarada he had known his entire life.

The one who scolded him for the tiniest thing but also the one to patch him up if he ever got hurt. The one who had full faith in him and his abilities but never hesitates to rush to his aid if ever needed. The one who could say harsh words to him in the face but also the one who could read him like an open book and make him feel better with a few words.

And of course, one of the only who didn't ever see him just as a Hokage's son but as Uzumaki Boruto.

Overwhelmed by the thoughts and emotions in his head, Boruto decides to take a neutral route.

She is neither beautiful nor ugly. She is still the same. Will always be.

"Sarada? I don't know guys? She looks the same to me...Hm…the only difference is that she has just gotten taller, I suppose?"

"Are you serious? You need glasses, man!"

Boruto narrowed his eyes. "I do not!"

"Hey guys. If Boruto-kun doesn't like Sarada-chan then that means that she is available! I mean we can ask her for dates!"

Wait...what is that supposed to mean?

Excited whispers increased, some louder than the others, every one discussing about how they'll woo Sarada, the sound of which grated on Boruto's nerves. His ire was rising with each passing second and when he couldn't take it anymore, he finally raised his voice-

"Don't bother yourself, guys. Sarada will not go out with you people at all."

"Eh…why?" Several voices spoke in unison.

Boruto smirked. "You said it yourself. I know her. I've known her for almost our entire lives. I know her well enough to be almost sure that you people don't stand a chance. And anyway, when she has something in her mind then it becomes almost impossible to make her loose her focus. That is why she is not interested, it simply would be a waste of your efforts and time."

I can't believe it. These idiots really think that buying her some flowers and chocolates will make her fall in love with them. As if. It might work on ordinary girls but she is nothing like one.

I mean which normal girl of their age would spend her entire free day cooped up in a library? Which normal girl of their age would spend hours talking about and practicing new Jutsus and read history books rather than going out on shopping?

She is weird. And has been for as long as he can remember. But he is sort of glad about that?

Suddenly, one among the group – Sarada's greatest admirer – moved forward as if to confront Boruto.

"Hey! Who are you to decide if we don't stand a chance for Sarada-chan or not?"

"Who am I? I'm her teammate, her childhood friend and her…"

Boruto found himself at a loss of words. Was being her team mate and friend qualified him enough to decide the boys she should go out with? But…he knows, he knows that she will hate to have these lovesick puppies follow her around. It will definitely make her uncomfortable and he didn't want that to happen!

"You are her…?" the boy in front of him taunted, smirking superiorly.

Boruto almost punched him in the face but somehow managed to still his body with great effort. But then, he knew what he wanted to say.

"I am her protector!" He declared, his tone dripping with conviction. He was not backing down from this! She is his teammate and his friend and he will protect her, whether it be from a God, or a horde of smitten male colleagues .

All of the people present there looked at him as if he'd grown two heads. Even the big guy – his opponent – looked unsure. Mitsuki, Shikadai, Inojin, Denki and Iwabee looked at him in shock, some displaying the emotion more than the others. Boruto found his smirk getting wider. He was proud of himself to come up with such a tongue-tying answer.

You asked for it! Hehe!

But before the situation could escalate, Mitsuki, who was standing at the railing of the over bridge they currently occupied, said pointing to a group of girls approaching them.

"They're here."

And of course, there they were, the girls of their class, laughing and talking and being cheerful after a hard day of working for the repairs of the village, caused by the attack of Momoshiki and his follower.

As they reached them, both the groups mingled into one, the sounds of the exchanged greetings filling the air around them when someone spoke-

"Class rep! Where is Sarada-san?"

"E-eh? She is n-not here?" Sumire asked, her eyes wide and her stance making her worry visible over the absence of her friend. "Chocho-chan? Was n-not Sarada-chan with you a m-moment ago?"

The amber eyed girl stuffed her mouth with a handful of potato chips and replied-

"Yeah! She was beside me a moment ago! I don't know where did she disappear to?"

Boruto frowned.

"Looks like your condition has worsened. You are not even aware of your friend's presence anymore. I propose that we immediately take you to Sakura-san." Mitsuki retaliated Chocho's nonchalant reply with his own dry voice.

"Look! She's there!" It was Iwabee who pointed out a figure down below the bridge. And certainly, he cannot miss Sarada even in crowd filled street. Her back was towards them, her shirt proudly showing off the Uchiwa fan. The symbol she inherited from her father.

She was kneeling in front of a crying kid, trying her best to pacify him and then stood offering her hand to take, which the child did, although with an unsure look on his face.

Boruto deduced that the kid must have been separated from his parents. It was not a rare occurrence. Sometimes, even he had to help such children. Sarada turned her head here and there, her onyx eyes scanning crowd as if trying to pinpoint a person and soon enough, they found her eyes pinning on a frantic looking woman who was talking to a police officer with wild gestures. She immediately lifted the child up in her arms and pointed out the woman. It took a few seconds but the child squealed in delight and nodded his head.

As soon as she placed the kid down, he dragged her to the direction where he assumed his mother was. And Boruto found a soft warmth blossoming into his chest. Everyone says that he was good in making friends but he believes that Sarada is the one who's best at solving people's problems. He found that quality admirable.

There was teary reunion between the mother and child and he almost laughed at the discomfort Sarada showed when the woman wrapped her in her arms as a thankful gesture of gratitude for finding her son and bringing him back to her.

And in a few moments, a confused Sarada was left staring at the waving mother-son duo as they exited the scene with a large bag of candies in her hands.

Immediately, Mitsuki stretched out his arm long enough to reach Sarada and tapped her on the shoulder. She grinned and grabbed his offered hand as he easily pulled her on to the bridge, landing her straight in front of Boruto.

Nightly onyx orbs clashed against the sky blue ones.

Before Boruto could utter a single syllable, she averted her eyes and moved past him.

He felt a sharp sting of pain at her gesture but bit back his tongue.

What are you crying for? A mocking voice taunted him from somewhere in the back of his mind.

He turned his head to gaze at her, the pain increasing tenfold, thanks to that voice inside his head which simply reminded him of what he had done to receive this silent treatment from her.

You deserve this. You know that, don't you? You deserve this for breaking her trust.

I would really like to know your views regarding this chapter. Was Boruto too OOC? I wonder if I depicted him as sort of violent and possessive? I mean I simply wanted to present this as him being worried about Sarada with a tinge of jealousy at the same time. He is unsure of his feelings but is completely aware that he wants to protect her.

I have a few ideas for the second chapter in my head but I'm not sure about when I'll write them since I've my exams comping up! Hope you're willing to wait for it.

Well, anyways, please tell me what you think of this piece of work!

Thank you!

See you soon!