Disclaimer: Masashi Kishimoto created and owns Naruto Shippuden. I don't. It is licensed by Shonen Jump and Viz.

On the way back Sakura and Naruto walked alongside one another some of the time while at other times with Sai between them. It was difficult not to want to grab Sakura and shower her with kisses, though it was still another day back to Konoha. Just what form their relationship would continue to take seemed up in the air to her, but definite for the blonde.

Sakura excused herself to 'powder her nose' and slipped into the woods behind a tree. Yamato's hands formed a jutsu as he chanted, "Wood style house jutsu…"

Near the stream she knew that Sai was fishing for dinner at the same time Naruto collected firewood. Yamato would need a bit of rest after forming their shelter for the evening. At least they'd have a decent roof over their head instead of freezing in a lean to.

Leaves and twigs crackled underfoot near Sakura. She had finished her business and whirled around with a kunai in hand just in case. Nothing. Across her face a huge frown crept. Both pale green eyes flickered back and forth for any sight of her stalker.

"Sakura chan…" someone whispered and Sakura's elbow slammed into her attacker's gut before it registered who it was.

"Whoooof!" Naruto yelped, crashing back into the trees.

"What are you doing you idiot!" Sakura hissed, rushing over towards where he landed.

"Owww, Sakura chan, is that any way to say hi?" the blonde groaned, rubbing his stomach.

"If you're going to sneak up on me it's bound to happen," Sakura scolded him, and then extended a hand towards where she had just pegged him. "Now just stay still and let me heal you."

"Geez, you sure know how to make an impact," Naruto began.

"WHAT?" Sakura began to growl but Naruto bent in and kissed her on her forehead. The very body part he thought was kissable that she was dissatisfied with.

"I mean I should uh… know better how to greet a lady," Naruto blurted out.

"That's better," Sakura mumbled, surprised he had taken the time to distract her with a kiss and try and correct his speech blunder. Stupid kiss! It was going to make life VERY difficult.

Once more his lips kissed her on the forehead, lingering more this time. Sakura froze at the unexpected tenderness while her hands glowed green. He wasn't touching her anywhere inappropriately except for the gently kisses he showered down her cheek while she crouched there.

"Oh knock it off," she grumbled half-heartedly. Naruto remembered Sai telling him that sometimes a woman meant the OPPOSITE of what she was saying, except in the case where NO meant NO.

"Aww, can't I at least kiss you when nobody's looking?" Naruto wheedled, wrapping an arm around her. "You can sit in my lap instead of on the dirty ground."

"Honestly you're such a baby," Sakura muttered, but she settled down in his lap because it was less awkward than crouching to continue healing his bruised gut. For now she let the blonde gently kiss her on the cheek and forehead because it did feel good, she didn't want him to stop, and she missed the touch she suddenly came to crave.

"Sakura chan," he rasped in a lower tone that struck a chord inside her. Instantly she felt that tingle of need. Stupid memories. That was the very voice he used when they were about to take things to the next level.

Still the specter of Sasuke hovered over their coupling. She was sure she wouldn't completely get him out of her mind whenever the blonde touched or held her. However it was silently understood between them that she had said she would have him until they brought Sasuke back. Just which one of them was being selfish having this relationship she wasn't sure of? Was it Naruto for insisting that it was all or nothing, or was it her for going along with loving him and only him?

"You're looking at me weird," she mumbled the moment before he raised a hand to her cheek.

"Can I kiss you Sakura chan?" he whispered. "Just for a little bit before we go back to camp?"

Nestled in his lap Sakura relented and mumbled, "Fine, but we shouldn't take forever or…"

Any further protests vanished behind his soft pursed lips covering hers. It was embarrassingly silly but endearing so she closed her eyes and enjoyed the result. One chase touch of the lips blossomed into a deeper kiss the instant she thrust her tongue into his mouth and wrapped her arm around his neck.

Her hand smoothed up and down over his stomach despite the fact she finished healing it. Now Naruto roamed his hands over her shoulders and back but avoided her front and lower down. Releasing her from the kiss to breathe Naruto nuzzled her cheek with his and admired the dazed look that came across her face.

"Hmmmm," Naruto murmured, bending in for another kiss. One hand roamed down over her belly to rub it while he felt her rubbing his muscular chest through the cloth of his orange and black jacket. Now that she had worn it for a bit, it was less likely he'd change to a different outfit.

"Now behave, I don't want to start something we can't finish," she warned him though her hands were playing with the zipper and tugging it down so she could see the blue T shirt underneath.

"Mmm hmmm?" hummed the blonde in answer, amused by what she said and what she did. Sakura swung a leg around so she straddled his lap with her bottom in the triangle of his folded legs.

Trying to keep a frown on her face despite Naruto gently caressing her face and belly she mumbled, "I mean it, Naruto, either it's quick or…"

"I can wait a bit," Naruto murmured while rubbing his hand over her chest the slightest bit. Sakura saw a quick flash of Sasuke's face looking at them in the back of her mind. Instantly she tensed up in Naruto's arms. At once Naruto stopped touching her to focus on wrapping her in a comforting embrace.

He held her the way she always wished Sasuke would. Why was it so hard and why did she feel so torn. Sakura buried her face in Naruto's jacket so she could smell his familiar scent. His blonde hair tickled her cheek and ear in a comfortingly familiar way. Naruto murmured, "I miss Sasuke too, Sakura chan."

"I can't get him out of my mind. He's always there," she confessed, lips tickling his ear.

"He's also there, looking at me, Sakura chan," Naruto rasped, pulling away to cup her cheek. "I know that you're thinking about him when I touch you like this, and I'm ok with that. I just want whatever you can give and share with me. It's enough to get the chance to love you."

Tears shimmered in Sakura's eyes. She snapped, "You idiot! Why are you making it so easy for me?"

Since she gritted her teeth and gave him that scary look Naruto simply tried kissing her. Sakura let out a whimper and leaned into his kiss, digging her hands into his hair.

"So, how's the sex?" asked Sai. Both of them jumped apart to see the ink user standing near them with a curious look on his face.

"SAI! Damn it! Don't you know how dangerous that is?" Sakura yelled.

"You two should be more careful. I could be the enemy," Sai reminded them. "If you're going to have sex in the middle of the w…"

Immediately Sakura's face flushed crimson. "We were NOT having sex!"

Yet again Naruto had to grab Sakura to hold her back from pummeling Sai. "We didn't even have our clothes off for crying out loud!" Naruto grumbled.

"Ahem, I just wanted to be helpful and point out how you need to keep from leaving yourself vulnerable," Sai told them as he watched the blond reach down to help Sakura up.

After that, Sakura and Naruto shied away from sneaking off. Both didn't want their teammate to sneak up on them again, nor incite the critical eye of their team captain in case they let things distract them.

Only a day left before they approached the gates of the village hidden in leaves, Sakura felt a hand brushing hers. She glanced up to see Naruto's hand dangling near hers. Having given up on rendezvous in the woods or even outside of the norm, she had found stolen kisses and smiles were as effective as full body contact.

What scared her was being discovered like earlier.

"Naruto?" she mumbled in a stern tone.

He frowned at her glare, shaking his head so the ends of his headband flopped back and forth. "But you said we could date! And holding hands is part of that."

"I don't think that…" she got out, but saw his crushed look. Turning away, he walked more quickly so he moved ahead of the team. The contrast of orange on black always looked so striking on his handsome figure. One she had seen every square inch of, around and inside her. Deep inside her in fact. She blushed at the memory.

"Then you didn't really mean it, Sakura chan?" he asked sadly. His words triggered a memory of what had happened just before their trip. He had been in the clinic and sneaked up behind her that day.

Next to her she could sense Sai creeping. He held a book in his hand and pointed to a passage. "Ahem, but a woman playing with a man's heart is a delicate matter."

The pinkette rolled her eyes. "Sai, come on."

His fingers flipped pages in the book that he shoved in front of her face. "Here it says that sometimes when women are indecisive about where their feelings lie, some events can trigger an over the top response."

Sakura's ample forehead wrinkled in a scowl. Narrowing her pale green eyes she struggled to read the smaller script. Yet another one of Sai's books that he insisted on consulting for how to fit in with his teammates. Someone without emotions found it difficult to relate, but at least she gave him credit for trying. "What are you getting at, Sai?"

"Well not to be indelicate, but Naruto DID tell me about that time in the hospital before you came on this trip?"

A fierce blush covered Sakura's face as she whirled around on him. "He WHAT?" she yelped.

"Well… I did ask him why you two were very quiet towards one another at first," murmured Sai. "And I had him fill out a little questionnaire in one of the books to give advice."

Blood boiling Sakura grabbed Sai by the front of his jacket. Both her eyes seemed to turn white with anger as she yelled, "You did a QUESTIONARE? On my private business?"

Immediately branches sprung up from the ground and wrapped around her arms to hold them in place. Other limbs twisted around Sai, pulling him away from her grip. Startled and stunned Sakura blinked into the stern scary face of their captain.

"Haruno is there something wrong?" he asked in a scary whisper.

"N… no, Taicho!" she stammered out as before. Sai shook his head no. Naruto had spun around, mouth ready to spew out something but he too trembled in his sandals. All three team members nodded in the affirmative.

Yamato nodded in satisfaction at their answers. With a gesture he cancelled his wood jutsu from around Sakura and Sai's wrists. "Good, now let's get going. Voices low, and tempers even. That's the key, right?"

Rubbing her wrists Sakura nodded. The former member of ROOT did as well, resuming their march after Naruto and Yamato. A few minutes of silence later, Sakura mumbled, "What did he tell you, Sai?"

The ink user glanced back into the book before he recounted. "He mentioned he was joking around, and you overreacted."

"Well if you had been in my shoes…" she began.

"Your unique perspective would be welcome before I make a full judgment and give advice according to the book," Sai agreed.

Inside the hospital, Sakura had been helping to perform routine exams on shinobi. There the blonde had sneaked in and grinned at her back. Naruto stepped behind Sakura, nosing into the pinkette's hair. Feeling his hot breath on her neck Sakura paused for a moment. She felt his arms locking around her waist and his nose inhaling at the junction of shoulder and neck.

"Uzumaki Naruto, what the hell are you doing?" Sakura growled.

"Smelling you," Naruto whispered one moment. The next she felt his absence and spun around, seeing him standing back across the exam room

"Have you lost your mind?" Sakura demanded, crossing the room to seize him by his jacket front.

"Well I knew you'd hit me so that's why I'm standing over here," he chuckled.

"You just assaulted me to smell me?" she cried out.

"You don't let anyone close to you, Sakura chan, unless it's on your terms," he sullenly mumbled. "And I stopped the second I felt you tense."

Sakura glared at him and dragged him forward. Her lips crashed forcefully into his and she ravaged his mouth with her tongue. Both hands gripped his shoulders and she dragged him down so their chests rubbed. Naruto's hands wrapped around her and she felt his tongue darting into her mouth teasingly.

"See how you like it," Sakura panted, parting for breath.

"I did, Sakura chan," the blonde confessed, keeping his hands on neutral territory. "Cause it's you kissing me…"

"You are even more stupid than I thought," Sakura grumbled, leaping up to see what he would do. Naruto grasped her hips and pulled her into his body to steady her so neither of them fell. Both his arms looped around her torso to hold her securely.

"Sakura chan?" he murmured in confusion, still holding her out of nervousness of what she would do next. He didn't dare drop her and putting her down would mean risking touching parts of her body accidentally.

She still licked her lips from his kiss. Naruto's eyes darkened in confusion and she took the moment to steal another. Prying his mouth open she thrust her tongue into his mouth again and ravaged him. Naruto's breath hissed through his nose and he didn't falter holding her there effortlessly. Why did he have to be so good at kissing?

"Sit down there," she whispered, head reeling from the kiss.

"Are you sure… Sakura chan? I dunno what you think you're doing but…" Naruto stammered.

"Just sit down over there," she snapped, secretly relishing a very startled Naruto. He backed over to the exam table and then sat on it. Sakura tightened her grip around his waist and settled on his lap.

"Sakura chan… Just what's going on here?" Naruto asked, frowning. "You feeling ok?"

"Your lap is more comfortable than the floor," she said seriously.

Another protest vanished with her fierce kiss, hands tunneling in his hair. He responded with a soft kiss that melted her and relaxed her grip. He then pulled back with a serious scowl on his face.

"Sakura chan, you should stop teasing me," Naruto warned. "It's not nice if you don't mean it."

"You sniffed me first," she countered. Naruto then let go of her and looked down to the side.

"Stop it Sakura chan, unless you really mean it. Please…" Naruto said through a clenched jaw. Sakura immediately got off his lap and felt the sting of tears. She had gone overboard showing him a lesson, and had hurt him.

"I… I'm sorry Naruto," she stammered, squeezing her hands tightly.

"Your fists don't hurt as much as that does," he mumbled, letting his feet drop to the floor.

That look in his eyes caused her heart to ache in shame. Coming close to him she called out, "Naruto I owe you an apology. I only seem to be good at hurting you…"

He turned around with that same hurt puppy expression, and rested his hand on hers that touched his arm. "I forgive you Sakura chan."

Flabbergasted she demanded, "So easily? But why?"

Just as easily he moved it away and said, "Because you're Sakura chan."

He turned to exit the room but felt her hand seize his arm. "Take me for ramen. I mean it."

"I… Think it's better if I left. I bugged you enough," Naruto said, shaking his head no. "I don't want you to come cause you feel sorry for me. See ya later, Sakura chan."

Understanding dawned like a blossom opening in her head. It was out of pity and her desire to apologize for a rash decision. Yet she had hurt him, and now the line she had drawn was blurred due to confusion.

Sakura then went on to tell Sai how for the next day or so they had avoided one another. Neither spoke aloud of the event and she assumed he was giving her the benefit of the doubt. So when they had gotten their orders for the mission they were now finishing, it was as if nothing had happened. Except he seemed more attentive and protective of her.

"So that's what happened," murmured Sakura.

Sai gave her one of his patented smiles she wasn't sure was fake or just to calm things in the face of agitation. "You were playing a game then. Playing with his heart to retaliate."

"Now wait a minute, I was just giving him a taste of the same, not…"

"Are you quite sure? Take a good look at him now. Aren't you falling into the same place now that you've been together with him?" asked Sai, nodding at their teammate.

Now to see him walking a few steps ahead of her she felt the same guilt. He had entrusted her with his heart and it could smash into pieces if she wasn't careful. All her actions had consequences, just like in fairy tales. They were not for children, not the sanitized ones handed down through word of mouth. Not fluffy but dangerous and wild. Fairy-tales were for real, but not in the way she would have thought as a genin.

Seeing Sai's warning, she bit her lip. "I… wasn't playing... Sai."

"Are you sure hag?" Sai asked, earning a glare for using his pet name automatically. Luckly for the ink ninja Sakura didn't hit him. Instead she nodded and picked up her pace.

Walking alongside Naruto she let her hand brush against his. Four strong rough fingers wrapped around her hand warmly.

It was such a simple thing but it caused a big smile that lit up his face like a sunrise after a dark night. He grinned from ear to ear at her with the full joy she blushed from. More than just a trophy she felt like a new gift he wanted to show off to the whole world. Great. So much for keeping it secret. Since Sai caught them a few days ago in the woods they wouldn't hear the end of it.

Hand in hand they continued the walk home. Even through the gates of the village they still strode for the entire world to see. Not ready necessarily to answer all the questioning looks they would get. Yet she did want to be intimate with him again.