Chapter Text
The steam rising from Ichiraku’s pots thickened the air like early morning fog, carrying with it the tang of broth and grilled pork. Lanterns swayed against the dusk breeze, their light trembling over the worn counter where two familiar faces sat side by side. Naruto leaned forward, chopsticks poised in both hands, eyes fixed on his bowl with the reverence of a man about to meet destiny.
“Wow. Is it just me or does this stuff get better every time?”
Across from him, Sakura smiled into her bowl, the faint sheen of the lanterns touching her hair with copper. She twirled her noodles once, the movement small and deliberate, before lifting her gaze to him.
He took a tantalizing whiff of the bowl before him. “Heh… maybe it just tastes better because we can finally sit here in peace for once. No wars, no missions, no chasing after anyone.”
Sakura's lips curved in a half-smirk that carried a spark of old teasing. “Or maybe you’re just starving as usual, Naruto.”
Her eyes lingered on him longer than the words required. Beneath the light, her features softened — the old lines of worry retreating into something fragile and unfamiliar. “Still… it’s nice, you know? Just… normal again.”
The chopsticks clacked faintly as Naruto plunged them into the bowl.
“You can say that again. No Orochimaru. No Akatsuki. No Madara. And best of all, Sasuke is finally back!”
Sakura’s hand froze mid-motion. Her eyes lowered; the steam between them blurred her reflection in the broth.
“Yeah…” she murmured. “He’s back.”
She stared past the curtain, to the street beyond, where laughter drifted like dust in sunlight. The village had rebuilt itself — bright and loud and alive — yet her voice carried the weight of a place still haunted by ghosts. “I still can’t believe it sometimes. After everything that happened out there… after all the things he did…” Her gaze rose again, faintly trembling, before she found his face. “You never gave up on him. Even when everyone else had. Guess that’s just who you are, huh?”
Naruto's grin came like sunlight breaking through smoke. He raised his thumb in that familiar, unbreakable pose. “You bet. Don't tell me you forgot my nindo!”
Sakura’s laugh spilled out before she could restrain it, the sound easing the heaviness around them. As she was about to reply, a soft gasp rippled from behind them.
“Oh my gosh! It’s really him!”
Naruto turned just as a trio of young villagers—two men and a woman, each carrying paper bags of groceries—approached the stand. The woman in front clasped her hands together, eyes wide with the kind of gleam Naruto usually only saw when someone mentioned free food.
“Naruto Uzumaki!” she said breathlessly. “The hero of the Fourth Great Ninja War!”
To which the young jinchuriki blinked. “Uh… yeah, that’s me.”
Her two companions were already fumbling with a small camera. “Would you mind if we, uh, took a picture?” one asked, his tone reverent.
Naruto grinned, scratching the back of his head. “Sure, why not?” He stood quickly, nearly knocking his stool backward. “But make it quick before my ramen gets cold!”
Sakura sighed, setting her cup down with a quiet clink.
The fans crowded in, taking turns snapping photos with Naruto—one after another, beaming as if standing next to him might grant them a fraction of his luck. Naruto laughed through it all, the same open, boyish sound that used to echo across the rooftops and hokage monument years ago.
Then came the last fan—the woman who had spoken first. She lingered after the others stepped back, her umbrella still tilted awkwardly against the stand.
“You know,” she said with a shy tilt of her head, “you’re even cuter in person.”
Naruto blinked. “Huh?”
She giggled, leaning forward slightly. “I said… cuter.”
“Oh! Uh, thanks!” Naruto rubbed the back of his neck, flashing his usual wide grin. “People usually just call me ‘loud.’”
Her smile deepened. “Maybe you just haven’t met the right people yet.”
Sakura’s chopsticks paused mid-air. She looked up slowly, her green eyes narrowing a fraction as she set them neatly on the counter.
The woman twirled a strand of hair around her finger. “So… Naruto,” she said, drawing out his name as though tasting it, “I was wondering if maybe—just maybe—you’d want to grab lunch sometime? You know, somewhere less public.”
Naruto blinked again, utterly unbothered by the implication. “Lunch? But we’re already eating lunch!” He pointed at his half-finished bowl as if it were irrefutable evidence of logic.
Sakura’s smile thinned, her hand tightening around her adjacent tea cup.
The fan laughed, brushing a hand against her neck. “I meant another time,” she said, lowering her voice slightly. “Just the two of us.”
To which the knucklehead shinobi tilted his head, confused. “Two of us? Oh, you mean like a mission briefing?”
Sakura cleared her throat—loudly enough to make even Teuchi glance over.
The flirtatious woman flinched, her confidence faltering. “Oh, um—never mind! I should really get going!” She bowed quickly, cheeks flushed, and hurried off with the other two fans trailing behind her.
Naruto scratched his cheek, watching them disappear down the street. “Weird. Wonder what that was about?”
Sakura forced a smile, though her tone carried a sharpness that Teuchi pretended not to notice. “I’m sure she just remembered she had somewhere else to be.”
Naruto shrugged and sat back down. “Guess so. Anyway, where were we? Oh yeah—extra pork, right?”
He dug back into his ramen with gusto, oblivious to the faint crease between Sakura’s brows or the quiet exhale she gave before turning away.
Naruto slurped in a loud and almost obnoxious manner, grinning. “Man, nothing beats ramen with a friend!”
Sakura’s fingers tightened just once around her teacup. “Yeah,” she said quietly. “A friend.”
After letting out another sigh, she leaned her chin into her palm, studying the face adjacent to her — the whisker marks, the bright defiance in his blue eyes, the unshakable cheer that refused to dim. As she gazed at him long enough, a small smile curved its way back onto her lips. “Obnoxious fans aside … everyone’s been calling you a hero nonstop. The villagers, the kids, even the elders. But when I look at you like this… you really haven’t changed at all. You’d think the ‘Hero of the Fourth Great Ninja War’ could at least chew his food once or twice.”
But her teasing faded into something more tender. Her hands came to rest on the counter, fingers tracing the faint grooves left by years of diners.
“Still… I’m glad you’re okay, Naruto. I really am. There were times during that last battle where I didn't know what was going to happen to you.”
Her eyes lifted, green meeting blue. The air between them grew still.
Naruto’s grin wavered. The image of her face during a key moment during a war — that relentless focus as she pumped his heart with her bare hand, the tremor in her voice when his heartbeat faltered and her desperate CPR maneuver— flashed behind his eyes like lightning behind clouds. She hadn't the slightest idea he knew the efforts she went through to keep him alive when all hope had seemed lost; he had no intention of telling her.
Instead, the young jinchuriki forced the old smile back into place. “No need to worry Sakura! It'll take more than a little war to slow me down. I still have to become the Hokage after all!!”
Sakura blinked, the heaviness broken by a small, breathless laugh.
“There it is. The same line you’ve been saying since we were in the academy.”
He pushed his bowl forward, stood, and stretched with a satisfied groan. “Man am I stuffed!”
Sakura rose too, laughter slipping through her lips as she laid her chopsticks down neatly.
“Stuffed, huh? That’s what happens when you eat like a bottomless pit.”
Outside, the lanterns cast long pools of amber across the cobblestones. The village exhaled around them — murmuring voices, the rhythm of sandals over stone, the faint perfume of grilled meat from a distant stall.
“So what now, ‘Future Hokage’? You heading straight home to sleep off that food coma, or are you planning to wander the village until someone recognizes you and wants your picture again?”
Naruto tucked his hands behind his head, his grin broad beneath the night sky. “I figured I’d walk you home at least. It’s the least big time heroes like me can do!”
Sakura tilted her head, feigning unimpressed but unable to hide the flicker of warmth that softened her expression.
“Oh? So the great Naruto Uzumaki is offering to walk me home? How lucky am I.”
They moved together down the street, their steps echoing softly as the sun went finally went down. Lanternlight caught the edges of Sakura’s hair, turning each strand into a stroke of rose-gold.
“You know, it’s kind of weird,” she said, eyes wandering over the familiar rooftops. “After everything… walking through the village with you like this feels almost unreal. Peaceful, I guess. I could get used to it.”
Naruto nodded, though something behind his grin flickered — a quiet unease that pressed against the edges of his thoughts. “Hmm.”
Sakura noticed it immediately. She stopped under the glow of a paper lantern, watching his face. Her voice carried a teasing rhythm, but the worry beneath it was unmistakable. “It’s not like you to go quiet on me. What’s going on in that head of yours?”
He rubbed the back of his neck and let out a laugh that felt like pristine armor. “It’s nothing. By the way, Sasuke isn’t gonna be behind bars forever. Kakashi sensei assured me. You two got any plans once he gets out?”
Her brow creased, the shift in tone too sudden to ignore. Still, she humored him, her smile tempered by thought.
“Plans? I don’t know, honestly. It’s… complicated.”
Her eyes turned distant. “Part of me still wants to believe we can start over — that he can find a way to live in this village again, not as a criminal, but as… Sasuke. The person we used to know.”
Her hands came together in front of her, thumbs brushing absently.
“But another part of me knows that kind of peace doesn’t come easy. He’s got a lot of demons to face… and not all of them are going to stay locked up when he’s free.”
Her voice faded almost to a whisper. “I just hope I can be there to help him through it — if he’ll let me.”
Naruto chuckled, though his eyes flicked elsewhere. “Yeah. He can be pretty hard headed.”
Sakura’s laugh carried across the empty street. “You’re one to talk, Naruto. Between you and Sasuke, I’m not sure who’s worse. Honestly, I should get a medal just for putting up with the two most stubborn shinobi in Konoha.”
Her teasing softened as they reached her steps. “Still… I’m grateful. You never gave up on him — or on any of us. Even when things seemed hopeless. That’s something I’ll never forget.”
She stopped, the light brushing her hair in gold. “Thanks for walking me home, Naruto.”
Naruto raised his thumb, that same unwavering smile anchoring his face. “You bet, Sakura!”
He turned, the sound of his sandals fading into the murmur of the street. The night had cooled, the air crisp. When he rounded the next corner, a figure leaned against the wall — arms crossed, eyes unreadable.
“Someone’s staying out late,” Naruto said, slowing his stride.
Sai stepped forward, his pale gaze cutting through the gloom. “Curiosity for the most part, Naruto.”
Naruto stopped, one eyebrow raised, hands sinking into his pockets. “Curiosity, huh? Eh. That usually means you’ve been thinking too much again.”
He tilted his head, smirking. “What about? Sakura? Or maybe… you’re wondering what it’s like to be out here eating ramen instead of sketching weird pictures in your notebook all night?”
Sai’s stare didn’t waver. “The war’s over, you brought Sasuke back as promised and you still haven't told her how you feel, have you?”
Naruto’s grin faltered. The silence stretched long enough for the sound of the wind to slip between them.
“You really don’t pull any punches, do you, Sai?”
He scratched the back of his head, the motion restless. “It’s not that simple. Sakura… she’s been through a lot because of me — because of us. She doesn’t need me dumping my feelings on her when she’s still trying to sort everything out.”
He sighed, voice turning flat. “Besides, it’s not like I’ve got time for that kind of thing right now. Gotta focus on becoming Hokage, remember?”
Sai’s expression shifted only slightly — a flicker of resolve — before he stepped closer and struck Naruto across the face. The sound cracked the night like a thrown stone.
Naruto stumbled back, a hand rising to his cheek. His eyes hardened. “What the—?! What was that for, Sai?!”
Sai flexed his stinging hand, eyes narrowing. “As I recall, the last time I asked you that question, your excuse was ‘How can I? I can’t even keep my own promises.’ Well now you've kept your promise, Naruto. Are you just going to keep coming up with excuses for why you can never let Sakura know how you really feel? I told her last time, but after the way you acted in the Land of Iron when she had given you a false confession, she is convinced I was merely reading too much into things.”
Naruto’s jaw tensed. His eyes dimmed under the lantern light. “You… you really don’t know when to quit, do you, Sai?”
He drew a slow breath. “Yeah, I remember what I said back then. And yeah, I made that promise to bring Sasuke back… and I kept it. But that doesn’t mean everything just goes back to the way it used to be.”
The knucklehead shinobi glanced away. “Sakura’s been through hell because of us — me, Sasuke, the war. She deserves peace, not more confusion.”
Then his grin returned, sharp but brittle. “Besides, you’re one to talk. Since when did you start playing matchmaker instead of artist, huh?”
Sai’s reply came level, unblinking. “I'll admit this isn't my area of expertise and I only ended up making a mess of things last time, but I cannot allow a friend of mine to continue to needlessly sabotage his own happiness.”
Naruto’s expression softened with reluctant humor. “You really are something else, Sai. Used to be you didn’t even understand what ‘friendship’ meant, and now you’re out here trying to play therapist. Guess we’ve all come a long way, huh?”
He rubbed the back of his neck, his gaze lowering. “It’s not that I want to sabotage anything. It’s just… what if she’s better off without me? It's Sasuke she wanted the whole time. I'm just the guy who brought him back, heh”
His eyes lifted again, steady but uncertain. “You ever think maybe it’s not about what I want, but about what she deserves?”
Sai’s stare sharpened. “All I hear is excuses, Naruto. This isn’t like you. It’s almost as if… you’re afraid.”
Naruto seized him by the collar, the fabric bunching in his fist. His eyes burned, bright and raw. “Watch it, Sai.”
The wind stirred dust between them. Lanterns flickered. For a moment, neither moved.
“You think I’m afraid? You think after everything I’ve been through — I’m scared of something like this?”
He shoved Sai back, his hand trembling as he ran it through his hair. “You don’t get it… it’s not fear. It’s—” The words died in his throat. “You wouldn’t understand.”
Sai adjusted his collar, tone unchanging. “So that’s it then? You’re just going to let her walk away. What happened to the man who said he hated people who lied to themselves?”
Naruto turned away, the lines of his shoulders heavy. The street stretched before him, long and quiet beneath the hanging lights.
“You done, Sai?” His voice came soft, measured. “I’m not lying to myself. I know exactly how I feel. I just don’t think saying it changes anything right now. Sakura’s already carrying enough without me adding to it.”
The young jinchuriki took a step forward, then another. “You said you wanted to help your friend. Then let it go. Sometimes doing nothing hurts less than doing the wrong thing.”
At the corner, he glanced back once. “Good night, Sai.”
And then he was gone — swallowed by the vast, sleeping village, his footsteps fading into the rustle of the leaves. Sai remained under the dim lantern glow, the light trembling faintly as if unsure which of them it should follow.
. . . Oh my god. I was just teasing you. There IS something going on between you two, isn’t there? . . .
As the following day came, the noon sun burned gently through Konoha’s cloud-hazed sky, bright enough to bleach the rooftops and send the scent of late-blooming chrysanthemums through the market square. Sakura stepped out from the hospital’s sliding doors after having just changed back into her civilian attire, the sound of her sandals sharp against the cobblestone. Her shoulders sagged with the fatigue of a long morning — charts, bandages, a dozen patients insisting she take the head physician’s chair. She had refused again, smiling politely even as the request pressed into her ribs like an unwanted weight.
As she crossed the avenue, the scent of damp soil drew her attention toward a storefront draped in vines. The Yamanaka Flower Shop stood open, its door framed by dangling baskets of lilies and wild irises. Ino was out front, trimming a set of daisies and pretending not to notice her approach.
When she finally looked up, her grin came bright as a thrown kunai.
“How’s my favorite billboard brow this afternoon?”
Sakura groaned, though the corner of her mouth betrayed a reluctant lift. She walked up, folding her arms.
“You’d think after all these years, you’d come up with a new nickname, Ino.”
Ino’s grin widened. Sakura bent slightly, eyeing the row of flowers with idle focus — a distraction more than an interest. The petals were soft, their perfume grounding, yet even their calm could not soften the taut edge of her nerves.
Seemingly in accordance to a would-be daily routine, the two female shinobi made their way to their favorite coffee shop. Both women being shop regulars, this was apparently time they implicitly registered at their favorite booth to relieve stress, keep in touch despite increasingly busy lives and trade gossip.
“Work’s been busy,” Sakura remarked while setting her coffee cup down mid conversation. “They’re still trying to convince me to take that head physician position. I told them no, of course. Not ready to be chained to an office yet.”
She looked back up, smirking faintly. “What about you? Still making the village smell like a perfume commercial?”
“At least I wear perfume,” Ino shot back while taking a sip from her cup. “Just the smell alone is enticing. Even Sasuke won’t be able to resist.”
Sakura blinked once, caught off guard, her composure slipping a fraction before she managed to scowl.
“Oh, please. Sasuke’s not the type to notice something like that. You could douse yourself in an entire bottle and he’d still act like you were invisible.”
The cherry blossom haired girl's tone steadied, but her eyes drifted somewhere far beyond her own cup.
“He’s… different now, Ino. I can’t tell if it’s guilt, or peace, or something else, but when I visit him, it feels like he’s a million miles away.”
Sakura caught herself, straightening, the air tightening between them. Then she smiled, masking the unease with teasing defiance.
“Besides, even if perfume did work, you’d have to get past me first.”
“As if!” Ino’s laughter rang bright across the street. “All I hear is jealousy. You wish you came up with a plan like that. Maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll let you be my bridesmaid.”
Sakura tilted her head back, exhaling through her nose. “Bridesmaid? Oh please, Ino — the only way I’m showing up to that wedding is if it’s to stop you from passing out mid-vows when Sasuke doesn’t even remember your name.”
The medical ninja took another breath, steadying herself. “Besides, I don’t need some over-the-top plan to get his attention. I’ve already got something you don’t.”
Ino shot her an incredulous look. “And what’s that?”
Sakura tapped her temple, smirking. “History. Years of it. You can’t compete with that.”
The tension eased; the two girls shared the smallest echo of laughter, an old rhythm they’d never quite lost.
“Though… if you somehow did pull it off, I’d pay good money to see how that poor guy handles you,” Sakura added.
“History, eh?” Ino said, her tone shifting into mock contemplation. Her smile turned sharp. “A shame that isn’t going to amount to bumpkus. Word on the street is that you’ve been seeing Naruto on the side. Tenten saw you two on a hot date at Ichiraku’s yesterday. He even walked you home.”
Sakura’s head snapped up, eyes wide. “A— a hot date?! Ino, it was ramen! Ramen! Naruto and I have been eating there since we were twelve!”
She flailed for composure, waving a hand. “We were just catching up, that’s all! He wanted to talk about… uh, Hokage stuff! Yeah, that’s it! Hokage stuff!”
Her arms crossed, cheeks tinted red. “Honestly, leave it to you to turn a friendly dinner into some kind of soap opera. There’s nothing going on between me and Naruto.”
Sakura hesitated, her voice dipping lower, almost to herself.
“…besides, he’d probably be too dense to notice even if there was.”
Ino’s eyes widened with mock innocence. “Oh my god. I was just teasing you. There IS something going on between you two, isn’t there?”
“W-what?! N-no, Ino! You’re imagining things again!” Sakura’s face went crimson. “Naruto and I are just… friends. Teammates. We’ve been through a lot together, that’s all. It’s normal to… to care about each other after everything that happened!”
She paused, fuming. “It’s not that I’m defensive, okay? It’s just… Naruto’s always been there for me. For everyone. He deserves better than to be turned into gossip fuel.”
The medical ninja straightened, her voice quieter but steady. “He’s… special, that’s all. And that’s not something I’m going to cheapen just because my best friend can’t keep her big mouth shut. Now are you done psychoanalyzing me, or do I have to start charging therapy rates?”
Ino took a sip of her drink, eyes glinting with mischief. “Yeah yeah yeah. Guess there’s no sense in talking about it; as far as I’m concerned, it just means that much less competition for who gets Sasuke once he gets out of jail.”
Sakura’s eyebrow twitched once, then twice.
“Oh really? You're actually serious? You really think you’ve got a chance with Sasuke after all these years, huh?”
The cherry blosson haired girl leaned across the table, chin resting on clasped hands, her smile measured and sharp.
“Tell you what, Ino — when he gets out, why don’t you go ahead and try your little ‘sweet old Ino’ routine on him? I’ll even stand right there beside you. That way, when he gives you that his usual indifferent nod and walks away, I can personally buy you the first round afterward.”
Sakura sat back, taking a sip of her coffee as if basking in her friend's inevitable failure. “Besides, you’d never last. Sasuke likes quiet. You? You can’t even drink your coffee without endlessly running that mouth of yours.”
“Right, I get yah. Sasuke likes quiet, but you prefer loud mouth buffoons who want to be Hokage. Makes sense.” Ino winked.
Sakura stared, unmoving, expression blank save for the faint twitch in her jaw.
“…You really enjoy living dangerously, don’t you?”
“Huh, speaking of competition,” Ino said, tapping her chin theatrically. “Oh my dear gosh. Didn’t peg you as being totally heartless, billboard brow. Does this mean you’re actually competing with sweet little Hinata?”
Sakura’s chair scraped the floor. “W–WHAT?! Competing with Hinata?! Are you insane?! Hinata’s—Hinata! She’s—sweet, quiet, perfectly nice Hinata! There’s nothing to compete over! And don’t you dare twist that into something it’s not. I’m not trying to ‘steal’ anything from anyone. You’re the one turning this into a competition that doesn’t exist.”
Ino blinked, then burst into laughter that doubled her over. “Too funny!”
Sakura thudded her forehead against the table. “Why do I even try talking to you? You’re soooo infuriating. Absolutely hopeless.”
Ino continued to laugh. “Naruto and Sakura sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G!”
Sakura’s head shot up, eyes blazing. “INOOOOO!” Her fists slammed the table, rattling the cups and drawing stares from nearby patrons. “You are such a child! What are you, twelve?! Say that one more time, Ino, and I swear you’ll be watering your flowers with your own tears.”
Their back and forth banter lingered as the afternoon light began to slant across the café’s windows. When they finally stepped outside, Sakura was still scowling at something Ino had whispered under her breath. Ino only grinned wider and waved her hand. “See you later, lovebird.”
Sakura turned to snap back — and collided with a familiar chest.
She froze, heat rushing up her neck. Naruto blinked down at her, a confused smile spreading across his face. Ino was already walking away, laughing so hard she had to wipe tears from her eyes.
“Sorry, Naruto,” Sakura stammered, stepping back, forcing composure she didn’t feel. “Didn’t see you there.”
Naruto rubbed the back of his head, grinning. “Heh, no worries, Sakura. You sure you’re okay? You kinda ran into me like you were trying to tackle me or something.”
He glanced past her, spotting Ino down the street still laughing. “…Lemme guess. Ino giving you a hard time again? She looked way too happy for someone who just had coffee.”
He folded his arms. “What was she teasing you about this time? Don’t tell me she’s still on that ‘Sasuke’s dream wife crap.’”
Sakura forced a brittle laugh, rubbing the back of her head. “Oh you know her. Always scheming.”
She took a breath, her tone turning lighter. “What brings you around here?”
Naruto shrugged, glancing toward the rooftops as if the answer might be waiting there. “Ah, nothing major. Just finished talking with Kakashi-sensei about a few mission reports. He said I should, y’know, ‘try to relax’ for once.”
He gestured vaguely, still smiling. “Figured I’d grab something to eat, maybe walk around a bit.”
He paused, hand rubbing the back of his neck. “Guess I didn’t expect to literally bump into you, though. You heading home from the hospital?”
Sakura smiled, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. “I was, but if you're gonna grab something to eat anyway, maybe we can—”
Her words caught. Down the street, two familiar figures approached — Kiba, laughing with Akamaru bounding at his side, and Hinata trailing close behind, her eyes warm and bright the moment they landed on Naruto.
Sakura’s throat tightened.
“Oi, Naruto!” Kiba called. “There you are! Took us forever to find you, man. You promised ramen, remember? Akamaru’s been drooling the whole way here.”
Akamaru barked once in agreement.
Hinata smiled shyly, folding her hands together. “W-we didn’t mean to interrupt, Sakura. Naruto said we could all… um… get lunch together since it’s been so long.”
Naruto scratched the back of his head. “Heh, yeah… uh, I might’ve mentioned that earlier. Guess word got around faster than I thought.”
He turned toward Sakura. “But hey — the more, the merrier, right? You’re coming too, Sakura? Wouldn’t be the same without you.”
Kiba nudged him with a grin. “‘Wouldn’t be the same,’ huh? Heh, sure, buddy. Whatever you say.”
“Kiba!” Hinata hissed, her cheeks pink. “Don’t tease him like that!”
She turned to Sakura, her tone sincere. “We’d really like it if you joined us, Sakura. It’s been a while since Team 7 and Team 8 did anything together.”
Naruto chuckled, oblivious to the tension humming under the words.
Sakura’s gaze drifted to Hinata — the shy way she looked at Naruto, the glint of unspoken affection in her eyes. It was a look Sakura knew well, one she had once worn herself. Something in her chest pulled tight, a hollow ache blooming just beneath her ribs.
She masked it behind a quick, polite smile. “You guys go ahead. I just remembered I had this thing I had to do. Y-yeah, that’s it! Hahaha, maybe some other time.”
Naruto blinked. “Huh? A thing? What kinda thing? You sure you’re okay, Sakura? You look—”
Kiba cut him off with a grin. “Heh, sounds like someone’s dodging us, Naruto. Guess she’s got better plans, huh?”
“Kiba!” Hinata scolded, then smiled softly at Sakura. “It’s okay, Sakura. Maybe next time, right?”
Naruto scratched his head, looking a little lost. “Yeah… sure. If you’ve got stuff to take care of, don’t push yourself. Just don’t forget to eat, okay?”
He smiled — bright, kind, and utterly unaware of what that smile stirred. “Guess it’s ramen for three, then! Let’s go, guys!”
The trio’s voices faded as they walked off down the road, laughter trailing behind them like windchimes in the distance. Hinata glanced back once, eyes soft.
Sakura watched until they turned a corner and the street grew quiet again. Only then did she exhale, her shoulders sinking as if something invisible had been pressing down on them.
She looked up at the sky, pale blue and uncomfortably vast, and whispered to no one, “Some other time.”