Instinct of Love – A One-shot fanfic by Yondaime-Sensei

Authors Note: Welcome! You have stumbled upon my fanfic! Just to get a few things out of the way before I start:

1. This is a one-shot: Don't expect another chapter or anything.

2. This one-shot takes place a few years in the future. To be exact, Naruto and Sakura are 22 in this time period.

3. Italic writing represents thoughts, not actual speech. This refers to moments when any character is actually thinking. Italic writing may also be used to depict sound effects. It will look like this:

What's going on? Where am I? What happened?

If only a word is Italic, that means the person is emphasizing that word. This is used when someone is trying to say something sarcastically, or trying to point out something. It will look like this:

What the hell are you up to? Why are you snooping around my room?

Without any further distractions, I bring you Instinct of Love. Enjoy!

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The wind blew sharply air, bringing a stinging cold to all exposed. It was getting quite cold outside; winters in Konoha were never very warm, despite the moderate temperatures during the Spring and Summer. The last vestiges of light were fast disappearing as the sun sunk past the rigid, snow capped mountains to the west. Colors stretched across the sky in a display of beauty that was baffling. It could be compared to many of the world's wonders, but all one had to do was pay a bit of attention.

Naruto smiled to himself as he watched, feeling the wind brush through his hair. That had become slightly annoying nowadays: his hair had grown out since his teenage years. Wind would catch his hair and blow it up, not only causing a ridiculous spectacle to behold, but it also got into his eyesight, rendering him almost blind.

Sighing, Naruto pushed his hair down, and turned back to look at Konoha. Columns of smoke were rising into the air; people usually lit fires in their house this time of year. The air was tinged with the slight smell of smoke, but it didn't bother Naruto too much. His sense of smell had always been exceptionally good. Whether Naruto could attribute that to his actual senses, or his Kyuubi influence, he would never know.

He crossed his arms with obvious contentment. Father, I finally see why you gave everything to protect this village. The sights, the forests, the people…

Naruto remembered the day that he had learned the truth. Tsunade had approached him to talk in private. It was right after Jiraiya's death. She was an emotional wreck, he could see that much, and it seemed that her message was urgent. It was then that she revealed his bloodline, and at that moment, Naruto experienced one of the most joyous moments of his life: knowing where he came from, and that his parents were honorable people. He had been convinced most of his young life that his parents abandoned him, but once he was told the truth, Naruto realized just how big of a sacrifice his parents had made.

Somehow, it just seemed so natural. Naruto had seen pictures of Minato before, and had taken a good look at his sculpted face on the mountain. Their faces had always bared an uncanny resemblance; at least, that's what Naruto thought.

Another gust picked up, blowing harder than before. Naruto clutched at his jacket, pulling it closer. To lose his jacket would be a great loss. When he had become the 7th Hokage, they had made just one jacket and robe for him. Other members of the village seemed to have known his family history all along: they made a replica of Minato's jacket, tailored to fit Naruto: he had grown to be about 2 inches taller than his father. The bright red symbols across his back established a connection that Naruto had never been able to feel before. Whenever Naruto made a decision while wearing his jacket, it was almost as if Minato was right there, with his hand on Naruto's shoulder, supporting his decision.

Naruto noticed that he had been thinking a bit too much; the night was fast approaching, and the visibility was dropping quickly. Going to have to make this visit short I guess. I'll make up for it next time.

The sound of leaves crunching from underfoot echoed in the clearing as Naruto approached the memorial. Statues always seemed kind of funny to him; shouldn't a person live on in your memories? However, he had decided to make a memorial for Sasuke with his bare hands: it was his tribute, and his alone.

Naruto looked up and down the cold stone. Depicted was a moment that Naruto, out of all his experiences, would be burned into his head forever. A teenage Naruto was lying on the ground, bleeding. A small chuckle escaped his lips; he had always been careless his whole life, until he decided to protect his own village, and the one person he loved the most.

Standing above him was Sasuke, his arm reared back, with Kusunagi Sword drawn in the other. Sometimes, when Naruto visited the memorial, he could swear that the Chidori in Sasuke's hand was glowing, eerie blue, and that the sound of a thousands birds was whispered through the wind. Whenever Naruto tried to listen, it disappeared.

Sasuke's face was filled with anger, and facing forward with the intention to kill. Before him was Itachi, his form uniform and undisturbed. Naruto had never really understood Itachi; it seemed every single second that Itachi was alive, he refused to feel emotion. Even when he died, there wasn't any sign of emotion on his face. In fact, he seemed almost pleased. Naruto swears to this day that there was a smirk on his face as he said goodbye to Sasuke.

Kneeling down, Naruto placed his hands at his sides, focusing his thoughts. Letting his eyes close, Naruto tried to gather all his thoughts together to say what had to be said. Just as he was about to start, a voice rang clear through the trees.

"Naruto! Naruto! It's time to come back! It's getting dark! Naruto!" The voice itself seemed to be getting closer.

Sakura came walking out of the trees, smiling. Naruto had always loved that little smile of hers. Whenever he saw it, it felt like the entire world had forgotten the anger and pain of people, and only in view has warmth and love. No matter what Naruto was doing, if Sakura would just smile to him, things wouldn't be a problem anymore. At least, not always. Naruto hated when Sakura visited him while he was working: he would forget about all the paperwork that had to be done, and end up waking at the break of dawn to finish all his work before it was required.

Lightly padding along, Sakura came up behind Naruto and wrapped her arms around his neck. Warmth was the best part of being hugged, but not the just the heat, the warmth you feel inside when you know someone really does love you for who you are, and that you love them back with all your heart.

Sakura leaned forward and kissed Naruto on his forehead, leaving a tingling sensation where her lips had met his skin. "I knew you'd be here. Same old routines, never can break them, huh?"

Wrapping his hand around hers, Naruto brought up Sakura's hand and gingerly placed a kiss upon the back. "Yea…Sometimes I just lose my train of thought, and it takes a little longer."

"You've always been the absent-minded baka, Naruto." Sakura could feel Naruto tense under her arms. It was Naruto's instinctive way of showing he was displeased.

"I'm just kidding, silly! I wouldn't have you any other way." Naruto broke out of Sakura's embrace, and brought himself to his feet. He was staring intently at the plaque at the bottom of the memorial. It read:

"In loving memory of the last of the Uchiha, Sasuke, friend of the 7th Hokage. He will be remembered in our hearts for his deeds that will resonate throughout the structure of history. He died protecting our Hokage from his own brother. Though he may have abandoned the village prior to that, his actions will be honored. May this man, Uchiha Sasuke, forever more rest in peace."

Sakura could see right through him; it was his routine to visit the memorial every single day of the year. No matter the weather, Naruto would come out at sunset to pay tribute to Sasuke. Sakura had tried to do the same, but always broke the habit before it truly set in. It did leave a pang of guilt in the back of Sakura's mind, but she felt that her respects to Sasuke would never need to be voiced or expressed: They had been given already.

An awkward silence rose out from the air. Sakura loved Naruto, but sometimes she found talking to him to be difficult, especially when Sasuke was involved. She had not been there personally when Sasuke had died, but Naruto refused to talk about what had transpired that day. It must have been slightly traumatizing; Naruto seemed to have lost a part of himself to that day.

She could still remember the first real date that she went on with him, a few months after Sasuke's death. Naruto was excited and jittery: he had just been told that he was in consideration for being the 7th Hokage. She had never seen Naruto so excited. The amount of energy coming out of him was so intense that it felt like he was going to yell in the middle of the restaurant.

The conversation had been going along just fine until Sakura said, "I wish that Sasuke was still here to hear the good news." As soon as this was brought up, Naruto refused to speak, and the date ended immediately after dinner. No kiss. No hug.

Words coming from Naruto broke the silence. "Would you like to join me in my grace?" He turned his head to look at her, and his eyes burned with a fire that scared Sakura.

Taken aback, Sakura nodded and closed her eyes. Naruto took a deep breath and stood still. Slowly, he began to speak.

"Sasuke…I will never forget all the things you did for me, all the times we argued, all the times we agreed, all the things that went wrong. You changed my life, Sasuke, and created something for me that I couldn't have asked for. My life is the greatest it's ever been, and I only wish that you could still be here, by my side today, so that I could share this happiness with you. I won't forget Sasuke…ever."

It was amazing how far Naruto had come. Sakura could still remember that small, outrageous and loud Genin, who never bothered to get serious or emotional. Truly, Naruto had become a different person, and that realization would never quite sit with Sakura. She loved both aspects of Naruto: The determined side, and the goofy side.

"Let's go get something to eat. Something warm…I got it! Ichiraku!" Naruto's smile seemed almost artificial. He had switched his face so quickly that it almost seemed unnatural. Sakura could tell that he was trying to make her feel relaxed in his presence.

"That sounds fine. Maybe we could go back to my place after…"

"Crap. I just remembered." Naruto crossed his arms, and put on a pouting face. Sakura couldn't help but laugh, even though he had just cut her off. At one point, about a year back, he had interrupted her more than 10 times in a row. It took Naruto 3 days for his head to lose its lumps.

Sakura moved up and tucked Naruto's hand into hers. She could tell that he would love a pair of gloves: his hands felt like they were about to freeze and fall off. "What's the matter Naruto?"

"I have some small things I need to take care of back at the office." He continued to frown, but looked to Sakura for an answer.

"That's it? Don't worry, I can wait a little bit before we eat."

"Really?" Naruto seemed surprised. Sakura wasn't usually the type to be patient. In fact, he had always thought of her being very straightforward, and someone with a very, very, very short temper. She didn't seem to hear him, as Sakura began to walk towards Konoha. Naruto remained still to wait for a response, but suddenly felt his body shift it's weight.

He could feel Sakura pulling him forward. It had gotten to the point where Sakura had her super-human strength all the time; after enough constant use of the technique her body almost did it unconsciously, and even controlled how much strength she would put in based on what she was thinking.

"Why would I lie to you?" Sakura gave him a thumbs up with her free hand. With amazing accuracy, Sakura mimicked Naruto's style of smiling.

I wonder what's gotten into her today? It's a little bit scary, dattebayo!

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Sakura had never really cared for the Hokage's office: a feeling of properness and strict discipline permeated that room every single time she entered. Naruto had done a lot to suppress this feeling. When he had become Hokage, Naruto had redecorated the place to feel a little more comfy, but it didn't help as much as Sakura had hoped. It gave her the shivers as they stepped into room.

The walls were lined with picture, one of the many touches that Naruto had added. All along the walls, pictures of people from Naruto's life were hung, including pictures of himself at various points in life. The room's layout had remained pretty much the same, and a large desk sat towards the middle of the room. Naruto had also gotten tired of throwing his clothes on the floor of the office, so he had a closet installed.

As Naruto approached the closet, Sakura began to look around the room. So many of these pictures reminded her of her own memories. Most of the pictures had been taken from Naruto's time as a Genin to the present day, so Sakura was pretty shown in any group pictures. Browsing across the room, Sakura surveyed the various pictures of Naruto's past; training with Neji, eating noodles with Chouji, everyone cheering at his inauguration as Hokage, the memorial, and several were also paintings, with titles underneath. Sakura noticed the style of art; she didn't even need to see the name of who drew them. Sai had always been a great artist, and after they returned from Orochimaru's hideout, he had actually become quite friendly and bearable.

Sakura laughed slightly and felt herself blush as she came across her favorite painting by Sai. He had wanted to draw something with lots of emotion recently, and Naruto suggested, much to Sakura's dismay, that Sai paint them kissing. She knew that Naruto was just trying to get a little pleasure out of it, so she agreed, reluctantly. What she hadn't predicted was that it would take Sai 3 hours to paint the picture. It was one of the longest 3 hours Sakura had gone through. Under normal circumstances, any other guy would have been a few hundred yards across Konoha, with his face smashed in.

It brought back good feelings. The first of her certain feelings for Naruto, she felt, were expressed in the painting. Sai had done a really good job of capturing the passion and emotion of that kiss.

As far as Sakura could remember before that, she had been concerned about Sasuke, and had thought she loved him. When Sasuke died, Sakura felt confused, mainly due to the fact that her feelings for Naruto became amplified. At first, she blamed it on the fact that she was going through a lot, and just felt that Naruto was the man she loved because he was there. At that moment, that kiss, Sakura was unsure if their newly formed relationship would work out. Afterwards, Sakura knew she would never have any regrets about it.

Though it had taken 10 years to realize it, Naruto had always been the one to support her. All the feelings she had felt were Sasuke were the remnants of a childish love. With all emotions aside, Sakura did love Sasuke for who he was, and what he did, but after Sasuke left, and she trained with Tsunade, Sakura came to the fact that she wasn't as in love with Sasuke as she thought.

Naruto would always be there to comfort her, to love her, to hug her when she was in a bad mood, to sacrifice his own time and hobbies for her. He would do anything to be with her, to share his love with her. If Sakura was happy, then Naruto was happy.

Sakura had thought all of this over after that kiss, and came to the conclusion that it was time to reveal how much she really cared for Naruto. It was the most amazing night that Sakura had ever had, and all the feelings that had taken place then would permanently be etched into her memory.

Dragging herself from her own thoughts, Sakura returned to the present and glanced over at Naruto. He had opened the closet door, and was looking in the mirror, admiring his jacket. Sakura let herself grin slightly, and headed towards the large desk in the center of the room.

No matter who was in charge of the office, the desk always seemed to be the same. Stacks of paperwork clouded the surface of the wood, and through all of it, Naruto's personal belongs were barely visible.

More pictures lined the small work spaced that was clear of paper. It seemed that the most important pictures were placed here, as each one was placed in a wooden frame, carved with intricate patterns. Each frame's carvings depicted a different event in Naruto's life, and the edges of each groove were lined with gold. Yamato must have talked to Naruto for ideas before forming the frames with Mokuton.

There were 4 pictures placed in the frames. First, there was an old picture; it looked as if it had gone through some kind of damage. It was wrinkled and torn in spots, and in some sections, the colors were faded. However, it still portrayed Minato and Kushina very well. Both of them were smiling, and Minato had his hand placed on Kushina's bulging belly. Sakura guessed that Kushina must have been about 6 months pregnant.

The next picture was familiar to Sakura. Kakashi was standing in the back, while Naruto, Sasuke, and herself were in the foreground. It pleased her; the very same picture was sitting on her nightstand. Before going to sleep, she always looked at the picture to remind of all the things that she should be thankful for.

Next to the Team 7 photo, a picture of Jiraiya and Tsunade as teenagers stood, almost out of place. At the bottom, a small note had been written next to each Sannin in red ink, in Naruto's handwriting. Under Jiraiya, it said, "Ero-Sennin", and under Tsunade it said, "Old Lady Tsunade". Sakura had to stop herself from bursting out laughing. These nicknames seemed vaguely familiar, though Sakura didn't approve of "Old Lady Tsunade" herself.

Sakura lightly dropped into the chair placed next to the desk and leaned back. Curious, she looked down at the desk to see what Naruto had been working on.

A paper sat unfinished before Sakura. It looked like a letter. She didn't want to eavesdrop, but just from a small peek, she noticed that it was a letter to Gaara, talking about woman. Despite her conscious saying not to do it, Sakura leaned forward, and studied the letter more. It read:

"Dear Gaara,

I hope everything goes well. I do not have much time to write, but I am glad to hear about your marriage. You can be sure that Sakura and I will attend. As I've told you, Sakura is really treating me well; no insult to your fiancé, but Sakura has to be the most beautiful and understanding woman I've known. She's the one for me.

Anyways, enough about me, Dattebayo! Send a letter back to me when you have the specifics of the wedding figured out.

Best Wishes, my friend,
Uzumaki Naruto"

Words about how much Naruto loved her had been said before, but something about this letter reached down into Sakura. It was a whole different thing to hear Naruto appraise her from his writing about it. By itself, the writing was so simple, and wasn't even that elaborate, but the fact that Naruto had been preaching her to a friend that he had made a strong connection with was sending chills down her spine.

In that moment, Sakura could feel her emotions getting stronger every second. Naruto…you've always been there, always stood up for me, always tried to please me…and now, you say how great I am to one of your closest friends…I…

To Sakura, it almost seemed like every single feeling that Sakura had felt towards Naruto had been brought to attention and condensed into a single thought. Her heart was pumping wildly with excitement, and Sakura felt the blood rush to her cheeks. There was only one thing that Sakura wanted to have at the moment, and she would get it, whether through cooperation or force.

Naruto's love.

Sakura quickly got up from the chair and moved towards Naruto without making a sound. He seemed unaware; Naruto had finally stopped admiring himself in the mirror and he placed the jacket on a hangar. Carefully, Naruto placed the jacket on a rack and turned around, only to see Sakura's face inches from him.

"Sakura…what's goi…." Naruto was interrupted as Sakura brought herself up to lock her lips onto his. She placed both hands on his cheeks, sending tingling all across Naruto's face.

The world blurred. Naruto felt his thoughts slip as Sakura opened her lips slightly, pushing her tongue into his mouth. Following the moment, Naruto wrapped his arms around Sakura, placing his hands towards her rump. He could feel himself begin to get slightly excited; Sakura had voiced her concern to Naruto when they first were together about the size of her bosom and behind. To Naruto, it didn't matter; she would always be the most beautiful woman in Konoha. The most beautiful in the world. Besides that, Naruto loved the way Sakura's backside swayed when she walked.

Sakura's thoughts were going haywire. All she could think about was Naruto. She wanted him right now, tonight. It didn't matter that they were in the Hokage's office. The only thing that mattered was sharing their passion with each other. Arousal began to creep in on Sakura: She could her nipples begin to get slightly hard.

Things were a little more interesting than usual. Naruto had gotten accustomed to being the one to initiate the kiss, especially any kind of kiss with some sexual desire behind it. The first time Naruto had kissed her, the tension was so thick before it you could have cut the air with a knife and spread it on a piece of toast.

The kiss continued to deepen, and Naruto lost himself in the moment. Something was so amazing about this kiss; it felt like it was the first time they had done something along these lines. Suddenly, Sakura began to remove his inner jacket, pulling down the zipper. Without thinking, he let out a small, "Hmm?" into his mouth. It seemed to be going all so fast. Before Naruto could even react, she had already removed his headband, and was moving onto his shirt.

Naruto pulled his head back, breaking from the kiss. Sakura tried to initiate the kiss once again, bringing her head forward. Quickly, Naruto pulled up his hand, and placed his pointer finger on Sakura's lips. He could see that Sakura was slightly angry with this, and felt a small amount of worry welling up in him.

"Naruto…what's wrong?" Sakura's voice was laced with a miniscule amount of anger. Naruto decided it would be best to drop his finger away from her lips.

"Sakura…I…we can't…do this here, or right now. I have some work I need to do and I…" Naruto was cut short again as Sakura took the opportunity to grab him once again, and engage him into another passionate kiss.

Naruto was beginning to get a bit worried. Sakura had never acted like this before, and she wasn't the type to be so aggressive when it came to sex. He wanted to continue with it, and just let himself go, but it just didn't seem right. Plus, he was telling the truth when he said he had too much work to do. Naruto broke the contact a bit more forcefully this time, and Sakura gave Naruto an inquisitive look.

"Look, Sakura. I just can't do this tonight. I need to finish a letter, and some paperwork, and I need to be up early tomor…"

"Naruto." Sakura grabbed Naruto by the cheeks and forced him to look right into her eyes.

"You're going to give me your body tonight. And you're going to like it." A fire was burning behind her eyes, and Naruto could tell that there was no point in arguing; the fierceness in her eyes said it all.

Without another word, Sakura pushed him backwards. Surprised, Naruto felt himself fly backwards slightly, but before he hit the end of the closet, she grabbed him by the shirt collar. Sakura moved into the closet, and closed the door behind her. Panic overcame Naruto; though he would never admit to it, he was claustrophobic to an extent.

As soon as the closet door closed, Naruto could feel Sakura place her hands upon his chest. Something about the dark seemed to elevate her touch; the lack of sight heightened his other senses. Heavy breathing escaped from her mouth, and he could hear her getting closer to him.

After a few seconds, Sakura found his face, and initiated the kiss for the third time. This time around, Naruto felt more comfortable, and let himself slip away. No longer could he feel the floor beneath his feet, or Sakura's hands upon his chest. Rational thought slipped away as he embraced Sakura tightly, placing his hand on the back of her head, pushing her closer to him.

It worked. Sakura tried not to smile as she continue to kiss Naruto. She had known that he would give into his desires if she continued to tempt him. A hand reached down towards her backside, giving her a light squeeze. It wouldn't take much longer of this to move on: Sakura knew she was getting heavily aroused, and judging by the bulge forming in Naruto's pants, he was too.

Taking advantage of this new development, Sakura brought a hand down, lightly dragging it over the bulge in his pants. This movement produced good results, as Naruto immediately clutched Sakura tighter; she could feel his muscles tense up and release continuously.

Naruto knew that Sakura was getting just as excited as he was. His pants constricted him, making it uncomfortable, considering that he was getting extremely hard. It was almost time, he thought, to move on. Slowly, Naruto turned and backed up, continuing to kiss her. Once his back hit the closet door, Naruto brought his hand away from Sakura's backside, and felt around for the doorknob. After a few seconds, he felt the touch of cold steel against his palm, and turned the knob.

Both of them nearly tumbled out of the closet, but Naruto kept his footing. He could feel that Sakura was leading him towards the mat on the floor behind his chair. There were no curtains to cover the large windows facing out towards Konoha, but at this point, Naruto didn't care. The point of his arousal was getting high; the only thing he cared about right now was experiencing this feeling with the girl of his dreams.

Sakura continued to kiss Naruto as she unbuttoned his pants, and undid the buckle on his belt. He had never been very good with pants that required belts; he bought sizes that were too big. She didn't even have to touch them and they dropped to the floor. Naruto kicked off his shoes, and pulled his legs out of the pants.

Both parted from the kiss simultaneously. It almost seemed like they were both thinking the same thing. Without any words between each other, Sakura pulled Naruto's shirt off, stopping to admire his chest. He had kept himself in really good shape, even though most of his time was spent doing paperwork. Soon, he'd probably be assigned to teach a Genin team: that might get him into even better shape. His muscles glistened with a small amount of sweat.

Naruto could barely contain himself as Sakura reach down and removed his boxers. His primal instincts had come into play. No longer were any restrictions going through his mind. The only thing that needed to be done was to make love with the girl in front of him. His love, his life, the person that he had loved since the beginning, and tried to do whatever he could to please.

Naruto smiled and put on a mischievous grin. "You like what you see?" His smile immediately disappeared when Sakura laughed slightly. She noticed Naruto's facial expression, and raised her hand to touch his cheek.

"Of course, you goof. Don't look at me like that." Sakura changed the tone of her voice. Instead of angry, she now sounded sultry, and Naruto had no complaints.

Naruto moved forward, and began to kiss along Sakura's cheek. He started high, and began to work his way down her neck, sucking slightly along the way. It would only be a matter of time before he found it: Sakura loved it when Naruto kissed her on her neck, and it seemed that every day, the spot was somewhere else than the last.

Naruto's efforts were greeted with a soft moan as he reached the crook of her neck. He could feel Sakura's throat vibrate, and it provided an interesting sensation. Slowly, Naruto removed her jacket, dropping it on the floor next to his feet. Next came the shirt, which Naruto threw towards his pants. As he continued to tease that spot, Naruto removed Sakura's skirt.

Sakura's body was tensing, and she could feel herself getting wet. Her mind was getting cloudy, thought was almost gone completely. The spot where Naruto was kissing burned with sensation, with contrasted with the cold air. As soon as Naruto had removed her clothing, Sakura felt cold, but it didn't matter. All she could concentrate on was the intense feeling that she was receiving.

Suddenly, the world seemed to move. Sakura realized that Naruto had picked her up, and now set her down upon the mat, without stopping his stimulation on her crook. Sakura forced herself to open her eyes, and face Naruto. Noticing her gaze, he stopped his kissing, and brought his body over hers, staring down with those bright blue eyes. Sometimes it seemed, to Sakura, that she could get lost in those eyes for days. They were blue like the ocean, and seemed to stare right into you.

His eyes were staring deep into hers. He was searching for something, whatever it was. Sakura knew what he was waiting for. Trying her best, Sakura tried to communicate that she was ready. A moment seemed to pass before Naruto decided to proceed, and he brought himself to his knees, with one knee on each side of Sakura.

Gently, Naruto lifted Sakura. He smiled to himself as he did; those cute green eyes of hers always seemed so innocent, but now, they glistened with emotion, and the familiar expression upon Sakura's face gave away the desire that was pulsing through her.

Carefully, Naruto undid Sakura's bra. She had always asked him if he liked pink underwear, but to Naruto, underwear was just a means of warmth, so why would you care what it looks like? In his mind, what Sakura's underwear looked like was unimportant. What was underneath is what mattered.

Sakura's bare chest was revealed as Naruto tossed the bra aside. He could tell that she had been aroused for a while; both of Sakura's nipples were hard. Lowering Sakura back onto the mat, Naruto leaned forward, bringing his arms outwards. Slowly, he placed a hand onto Sakura's left breast. She tensed slightly at the touch. Working his fingers, Naruto began to caress her breast lightly.

Sakura felt her emotions begin to escalate exponentially. Unable to restrain herself, Sakura let out small moans, gasping between each one. Everywhere Naruto touched, it set her skin on fire. Everything was intoxicating, clouding all thought and emotion except for the immediate sensation. Sakura knew that she was getting close, and she assumed Naruto was as well.

Naruto knew that it was about time for him to move on. Breaking his hand away from Sakura's bosom, Naruto raised his body slightly above Sakura's, providing a small gap of space. Naruto seemed as though he was about to begin, but stopped suddenly. Sakura stared up into Naruto's eyes, prodding for a reason behind the sudden stop. Naruto looked down at this woman underneath him, this person that he had spent almost half his life with.

That very thought sparked something in Naruto's mind. All these experiences that they had shared together meant so much to Naruto. Every second of passion, comfort, warmth, and love had been because of her, and no other. He knew that he didn't want to lose this feeling, this person. Sakura was the girl that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Naruto could tell that Sakura was watching him, waiting patiently for what was to come. He slightly nodded to himself more than to Sakura, and guided himself into Sakura.

Sakura's mind drew a blank as Naruto began to slowly move back and forth. Her entire body was burning with sensation, and all self-restraint began to slip away from Sakura's grasp. She wrapped her arms around Naruto, drawing him closer to her. Nothing was distinguished, and sensations blended together. Sakura could feel the slight prickle of Naruto's hair, soft and smooth, and was engulfed by smell.

The moaning only furthered Naruto's lust, as he began to quicken his pace. Sakura now clutched Naruto tighter, wrapping her legs around tightly around him. Naruto could feel pressure where Sakura was grabbing his back. Each finger was tensed, digging into his back, creating ten small half-crescent dimples. Naruto could hear Sakura moaning out his name, her voice heavy with lust. She was getting very close.

Sakura could feel her release coming. Pulling upon Naruto, Sakura drew Naruto's face down, and latched her lips onto his, moaning with each following second. Her muscles tensed, and her body shuddered, tightening around Naruto. Sakura threw her head back, arching her body and squeezing her eyes shut. Her entire body quaked with pleasure, and nothing else existed in the world at that very moment.

Seeing his partner gripped in the throes of orgasm was too much for Naruto to hold out, combined with Sakura's tightening around him. Naruto felt his pleasure peak, his mind drawing blank, and the world melting away. Naruto kissed Sakura deeply, losing himself to the passion of the moment.

Both began to drop from their peak, and the world's senses began to flood back in. Naruto could feel his limbs ache from exertion, and he let himself stay still for a moment, just trying to regain his breath. His thought was still cloudy, and his eyes only saw blurred colors.

Sakura laid still as she felt a wave of warmth travel from her toes to her face. Naruto laid on top of her, and she still clutched to him tightly. This moment was perfect, in every way. Their first time had been just like this, but something was different this time around. Sakura gasped slightly as she came to her own personal epiphany.

I love Naruto. Through and Through. I'm going to spend my life with him; there's no other man for me. Sakura grinned; it didn't matter if Naruto saw or not. Her heart was beating quickly again. I've found the love of my life.

Finally, Naruto rolled over onto the mat, regaining his breath. Sakura saw this as a chance to relax. Rolling over, Sakura pressed her naked body up against Naruto, and rested her head upon his chest, listening to his breathing, feeling his chest rise up and down. Naruto reached over and grabbed his orange and black jacket. Carefully, Naruto draped it over both of them, providing some heat, which was better than nothing.

Sakura felt Naruto start to get up. Laying still, Sakura watched Naruto as he stood up, padding over to the desk. The sound of sliding wood filled the room as Naruto pulled open a small drawer. Sakura could hear him fiddling around with something. Pulling out a small black box, Naruto closed the drawer, and come back to Sakura. Laying back down, Sakura resumed her position on his chest, staring up into his blue eyes.

Naruto opened his hand in front of Sakura's face. On his palm sat a small black box. With care, Naruto used his other hand to open the box. Inside, the glint of metal and jewel came from a small ring. Naruto watched as Sakura lit up in her face. After a few seconds, Sakura looked up to stare at Naruto, as if he was trying to trick her into some false promise.

Naruto grinned at scratched his head. "Well, I know that I'm a baka, but I think I've realized that every baka needs a good woman to stick with him."

Sakura felt tears well up in the corners of her eyes. It seemed that everything: The moments when she teased Naruto, the Chunnin Exams, Naruto's return, the Heaven and Earth Bridge, Chasing Sasuke, Sasuke's Death, lead to this very moment. This final choice to decide the rest of her life. Sakura knew her answer before she even knew the question.

Sakura leaned up and kissed Naruto, letting him envelop her in his arms. Every single trouble, every single pain, all those memories of mistakes that had been made, melted away, and Sakura let herself lose her train of thought.

Her choice came without even needing to think about it.

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Authors Note: Thanks for reading! I hope it wasn't too long for you. Make sure to drop a review, please! Have a great Holiday season, and I hope you enjoyed this! Smile