Hey guys! Are you all still reading my story? Sorry for being MIA for a couple of months, real life issues needed to be dealt with first. Thank you to everyone who still left me nice reviews despite my absence. I hope you'll enjoy this new chapter! Please tell me what you think! Leave a review :) I promise a longer chapter next time but I had to release some of the angst in this chapter to continue with the flow of the story, I hope you understand. Oh and kindly excuse my sloppy writing. I'm trying to get my mojo back!

PS. everyone please keep safe during this difficult time! Corona is a bi***

There are so many things in Sakura's life she knows she regrets and wishes to change. Things like how she could have stopped Sasuke from leaving the village, or how she could have not given Naruto such a heavy burden to carry alone, and maybe bigger breasts if the Kami decides to be generous to her.

Although, if anyone asks her (most especially Ino) if she regrets kissing Naruto... the answer is unexpectedly no. She might pretend that kiss never happened or deny it until the day she dies. If that doesn't work, she will insist that she was placed on some kind of genjutsu or that it is not her that kissed him but the other way around, if anyone pries her for information – if anyone was actually there to see it happened at all. But...

Running away is not part of the plan. She is the Fifth Hokage's apprentice for Kami's sake! She defeated an Akatsuki member, Sasori of the Red Sand, she possesses amazing chakra control, and she is a very skilled medic, second only to none other than Senju Tsunade, herself. However, none of these distinguished attributes can change the fact that she kissed Uzumaki Naruto full on the lips and ran away after the damage has been done, and to further add insult to the injury that was in fact her first kiss! That is if she can even count it as such.

"Oh, my god!" She exclaims to herself as soon as the coast is clear and there is no sign of Naruto. She does not know where that sudden burst of boldness came from. The adrenaline rushing through her veins as she planted a kiss on his lips is akin to the way she feels whenever her fists create massive fissures on the earth or whenever she hears bones cracking or feels muscles tearing as she delivers a strong blow to her enemies.

Sakura pauses under a shade of a tree and places both gloved hands on her chest, willing her heart to stop beating so loudly and erratically after what she has done. She closes her eyes and tries to take slow, deep breaths but she can feel the panic increasing inside her because she knows running away from Naruto might make things worse.

She does not know why she kissed him, all she knows is that kiss may forever change everything. That innocent, little kiss might create a whole lot of tension, awkwardness, and possibly form many questions between them... questions that are much better left unanswered. It can cause a shift in the balance of their friendship and ignite something else... something much more.

And Sakura realizes she is fine with that and that terrifies her so much.

"Sakura-chan! You can't just go around kissing people, then run away like that!"

Naruto's familiar voice snaps her out of her reverie, the only difference she notices is that he has never sounded so angry calling her name until now.

She takes a deep breath and pink lashes carefully flutter open to look at him. Not even a few minutes have passed and he was already able to find her.

She can feel his chakra, distinct and separate from the Ninetail's own. A faint but volatile energy, swirling with his pent up emotions and ready to explode at any minute. His blue eyes pierced back at her, ice cold like glaciers that know no warmth. When someone looks at you like that, eyes holding complete anger, it hurts. Although, it is the accompanied pain in his eyes that shatters her heart so, she looks away.

"Do you think it's funny?" Naruto spits the words at her. His features darken and he gazes onto the ground for he has never been upset at Sakura and he does not know how to feel about this.

His question surprises her.

"What are you talking about?" She frowns at him and asks, a little defensively.

He glances back up at Sakura. "Why did you kiss me?" His voice is loud though, it sounded more pained than anything. "Is this some sort of game for you?" He spitefully lashes at her.

Is this the kind of person Naruto thinks she is? That she would mess with his feelings and would go out of her way to humiliate him in the worst possible way?

She looks at him questionably. Her arms start shaking and she tries very hard to stop the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. His words sting and she knows she does not deserve this.

"Think want you want, Naruto," she hisses at him. She knows it's unfair.

She is the one that kissed him. She is the one messing up their friendship. She is the one sending mixed signals. But she is also tired, so very tired because she has had enough of revengeful bastards, dense idiots, and emotionally constipated morons.

"But, we both know none of that was fake."