Onigiri-ya
Author's Notes: "Musubi" refers to handmade balls of rice that have been wrapped in nori, which is seaweed. I will use the term "Onigiri" when speaking of rice balls that are not wrapped and have no filling.
Summer creeps slowly over the streets of Konoha, arriving in the form of sunlight and open carts that belong to merchants selling musubi. Haruno Sakura buys five of the rice cakes; two filled with umeboshi and wrapped in nori, and the other three, simple balls with no filling.
She knows that Kakashi will always enjoy something sweet on occasion, and that she herself has an affinity for sugary treats. She also knows that sugar is the last thing Naruto needs—and the last thing Sai wants—so she buys their onigiri plain.
The three men appreciate her efforts once the treats have been delivered.
With both musubi and two onigiri out of the way, only one onigiri remains. She takes this final rice ball home without the intention of eating it later.
The final rice ball she leaves on the counter for a few moments while she packs that day's groceries away into the cabinets. She almost forgets that it is there, and goes into her living room to curl up with a magazine that will make her feel an exaggerated sense of loneliness.
Remembering a time when loneliness was a touchy topic among the rookie nine, she frowns lightly.
Total isolation… it's not the same as when your parents yell at you.
"But, Sasuke-kun…"
You're annoying.
Laughing a bittersweet laugh, she tosses the magazine to the floor and returns to the kitchen, scouting for the final onigiri. Making sure that it is still there on the counter, she opens one of the kitchen drawers to pull out a silk furoshiki. This, she uses to wrap the final onigiri.
She also rips a sheet of sticky-backed paper from a pad lying by the fridge, using pen to mark the name 'Sasuke' on it. The paper is tied with the furoshiki as a label.
"There, Sasuke-kun… I even bought yours without added sugar this time." She sighs, placing the small parcel into the refrigerator, "If you don't hurry, your rice will get hard."
Sakura has done this many times before. It is her self-assigned duty to bring something for the team to munch on each morning, and she continues to buy for members who are not there.
Every day, after coming home to put Sasuke's onigiri away, she returns to the training grounds. And every day, she comes home later to find it still in the fridge.
Today, the first day of Summer, when she returns home her fridge is empty.
Notes: Guess Sasuke was hungry...all those nights away in Otogakure can run a man down. As a terribly unfunny pun, "Onigiri-ya" is a shop that sells pre-wrapped and ready-to-go rice balls.