Topic: Path of thorns
Chapter Four
Indecent proposal
Despite of the cold weather, Sakura’s training sessions with her sensei continued. Tsunade once said that she’s prioritizing the said bet more than her current sensei, which Sakura highly denied. She’s dead serious of being a professional medic someday. And that she appreciates every help she gets from her. The said bet with Kakashi’s a one time thing. Once she gets what she wants, she’ll focus more on Tsunade’s teachings again.
“Game over, go home.” Kakashi brushed passed her as he headed on the path towards the headquarters, as usual.
“Can’t argue with that…” Sakura helplessly fell down on her knees, heavily breathing. Kakashi wore her out today and all she wanted right now was to go home and hit the sack. There’s always tomorrow. I will win this bet, you’ll see! From her peripheral vision, she noticed him turning his head towards her. But before he could actually open his mouth, Sakura beat him up to it. “I know what you’re going to ask… and the answer is NO.”
Kakashi innocently blinked, “I was going to offer you free ramen.” He shrugged his shoulders, “Since you refused, I guess the offer goes to Naruto instead.”
“Right.” Sakura stood up with difficulty. She used a lot of charka and now her knees were failing her somehow.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you home?” Kakashi asked out of concern.
“I’m fine.” Sakura persisted, “Go before Tsunade spit fire on you.” She’s fully aware how awful Tsunade can be when she’s pissed. Tsunade’s worse than a fire breathing dragon.
“Alright.”
“Hai.” As she watched him leave, Sakura herself turned towards the opposite direction where home’s situated.
It was a fifteen minute walk until she reached her home, “Tadaima.” Taking her shoes off, she went into the living room, barely noticing the person sitting in from of her father.
Her eyes then widened in realization she recognized who the person was. “Sasuke-kun?”
“Ah, Sakura-chan!” her mother said, “Come sit here, quick! We need to talk…”
Sasuke turned his head and gave her a small smile of acknowledgement.
Things are getting weirder and weirder… Sakura thought as her father ushered her to sit on the available couch next to Sasuke. She sat there stiffly, not knowing what do. She hesitantly glanced over to the Uchiha prodigy with mild curiosity.
“You’re just in time.”
Sakura frowned again, “For what?”
Her father smiled, “Congratulations.”
“For what?” she repeated. A little quite frustrated to know whatever her parents are talking about.
“Sasuke-kun here came to ask for your hand in marriage.” Her mother lightly informed her.
Sakura blinked twice, “What…” again, realization kicked in, “did you just say—”
“You’re getting married, Sakura-chan.” Her father incredibly nailed the point.
As the words registered inside the kunoichi’s head, her face blanched.
“Oh.” And then she fainted.
**
Banging the door behind her, Sakura planted her hands on her hips and threateningly glared on the man standing before her. Uchiha or not, she’ll definitely demand the answers she wanted to hear from him. The moment she heard that she’s about to get married, Sakura dragged her former team-mate outside with all intentions of demanding what the hell is going on.
The usual smirk you see on the Uchiha’s prodigy cracked his face, annoying the hell out of Sakura all the more. “Do you want me to repeat everything your mother said to you?” he might be smug, but his tone was a lot more hesitant and calculating.
“You got that right!” Sakura snapped, “Explain this to me…” Sakura was livid. Who wouldn’t be? It’s not everyday you walk into your home and find out that you’re getting married. And to an UCHIHA no less! She’d been aiming for his heart before. Why the sudden interest now? Now that she’s finally over him…
Sasuke’s eyes narrowed as he crossed his arms. Sighing, he replied, “We both know that I’m the last heir of my clan—”
Sakura averted her eyes and grunted, “You’re not.”
A scowl crossed the Uchiha prodigy, “What did you say?”
Sakura turned her head and glared back, “Itachi’s—”
“—non-existent.” Sasuke grimly supplied. The least thing he wanted to discuss right now was Itachi. “You will speak no more of him, do you understand?” he finished with a glare.
Intimidated, Sakura replied a soft, “Hai…”
Sasuke felt triumphant over the control he has on her. Obedience is something I’m looking for in a woman… Engrossed with his own thoughts, Sasuke barely notice the look Sakura was sending him. She looked really pissed off, shifting her weight from one leg to another. “Well?” she asked, giving him a meaningful look.
“Well, what?” Sasuke retorted.
Rolling her eyes, Sakura replied, “Your explanation please?”
Sasuke gave out a deep throated chuckle after noting how cute Sakura looked when she’s upset. Maybe this is the reason why Naruto loves annoying the shit out of her.
Sakura scowled, “Is there something funny?”
Sasuke stopped laughing and ended up grinning as he said, “Sakura, I want to marry you.” He said as if it’s the simplest thing to say in the world.
Sakura snorted, “Mom just told me, Sasuke. What I want to know is—WHY?”
“Should there be any reason?” Sasuke asked back, his brows arching in amusement.
“Sasuke!” Sakura held her head and grumbled, “Dammit… you’re driving me insane…”
“I need an heir, Sakura. And I need you to help me…”
Her eyes went wide, “An heir? That’s the reason why you want to marry me?”
“Are you deaf?”
Sakura could not believe this. “Sasuke, do you know what you’re talking about?” she incredulously questioned.
“Yes.” He simply answered.
“We CAN’T marry because you want me to bear your child.”
“Why not?” Sasuke challengingly asked.
The pink-haired kunoichi furiously shook her head, “Two people marry because of LOVE! Not because of child-bearing or anything concerning one’s clan!” slowly, she looked into Sasuke’s eyes, almost imploringly as she went on, “We obviously DON’T love each other, Sasuke…”
But I thought you do… Sasuke furrowed his brows, “That’s not necessary.”
“To me, it does!” Sakura pointed a finger on her chest, “I can’t do this… you’re my friend and I swear I DO care about you but—but I-I can’t marry you… I just—can’t.” she looked into those onyx eyes and felt disappointed to find anger within them. Uchiha Sasuke was obviously not pleased with her answer.
I’m not taking a NO for an answer, Haruno… Sasuke stood away from the wall he’s leaning at and growled, “Too late. You will marry me in five days whether you like it or not.”
“What?” Sakura looked confused. “Don’t tell me you—”
Sasuke nodded with a smug smile on his face, “I already told the Hokage, Sakura. And by tomorrow, I’m sure she’s going to announce it.” His smile turned into an awful sneer, “You don’t want to embarrass me and your family now, do you?”
How could you… Sakura never thought Sasuke was capable of doing this to her. How was this possible? How can he easily control everything around him? How can he easily control her family and her future? What was she supposed to do now?
She was so confused.
Her hands clenched and unclenched on her sides, Sasuke… how could you do this to me? Sakura wanted to cry in frustration. She wanted to kick something (or someone) desperately.
“Five days, Sakura. Be the most beautiful bride by then…” and with that, Sasuke turned and walked away.
Sakura watched him leave and tiredly fell on the door behind her.
Five days…
In five days she has to marry Sasuke.
The thought alone upsets her.
**
Sakura recoiled painfully on the ground, gripping her stomach as she rolled over to her side, coughing. Luckily, there was no blood. Her eyes held shut, her teeth gritted to prevent herself from crying out, refusing to show any form of weakness in front of him.
As if on cue, Kakashi dropped noiselessly a few feet away from her. “I win. Give it up.”
“Not—yet!” The pink haired kunoichi used her undamaged arm to pull herself up from the ground. With much great effort, Sakura managed to move herself in a sitting position. Panting, Sakura looked over to her sensei and still managed to flash a smile, “Good hit, sensei. I didn’t see it coming.”
Kakashi shrugged his shoulders, “As well as the earlier ones. Come on, Sakura. The sun’s down, don’t you want to go home?” it’s not that he didn’t enjoy this challenge/training Sakura initiated. It’s just that they’ve been doing it all day. By barely had the time to notice her standing on her feet again and apparently charging at him in full speed. The older jounin side-stepped to avoid her upcoming blow then moved to grip the leg that was about hit his side. Sakura lost her balance and almost toppled down on the ground. But thankfully, an arm snaked its way around her waist, while the other gripped her captured leg, preventing her from falling. As an initial reaction, Sakura threw her arms around Kakashi’s neck, letting out an embarrassing shriek.
“Well, how are you supposed to defeat me if you can’t even maintain your balance?” Kakashi teased his exposed eye crinkling.
Sakura scowled and smirked back.
Before the white-haired jounin could ask, Sakura’s other leg kneed him hard on the abdomen, causing her ex-sensei to double over from the undeniably hard blow. His grip on Sakura loosened and she fell ungracefully down on her butt. With a wince, Sakura quickly jumped back and as what was expected, he used smoke bombs to conceal himself.
Smoke filled the surroundings, preventing her from detecting where Kakashi is.
“You tricked me.” A voice said somewhere from the clouds of smoke, probably Kakashi’s.
The pink-haired kunoichi grinned, “Its part of winning, Kakashi-sensei.” She tauntingly replied, green eyes vigilant from any unexpected assaults. And that’s exactly what happened. Kunai knife’s appeared out of no where and directed to her direction. Sakura managed to evade most of them but one knife managed to gash her leg. It wasn’t that painful, though it’s quite shame that it would leave a mark on her porcelain-like skin. Don’t mind that now, Sakura! Concentrate… find him… don’t get distracted… another batch of Kunai knife’s appeared and luckily she managed to evade them again.
Finally the smoke’s dissipating though before it vanishes, arms of her sensei appeared from behind and grabbed her arms, locking them against his. Sakura struggled for freedom, trying as much to retrieve her arms back. “Let go!” she yelled, still thrashing against him despite of the fact that her strength’s nothing compared to Kakashi’s. He’s much powerful, much experienced, and much older than her. Then why challenge him if you think you’re no match for him? She asked herself while still trying to free herself. This is not the time to ask questions, Sakura! Get away from him first then ask questions! She had to find a way to loosen his grip on her. Kicking him again would be impossible since he’s standing behind her, jabbing him in the torso would be unworkable too since both of her arms were held captive against his. What to do?
“Yield!” he said next to her ear, trying as much to stop her from struggling. Her movements are very, very distracting, especially for the fact that she’s recklessly moving against him.
He was distracted since this morning when they decided to meet up on the bridge to begin the challenge she started. As usual, she came exactly on time. And as for Kakashi, well, he was late again, receiving an amount of rants from his ex-student. As he arrived there, he instantly noticed something he had never noticed on her before. Actually he blamed it all to the sunlight illuminating her face like that.
She looked… different. The soft light of morning lightened her face perfectly. And all Kakashi could think was… beautiful and that she obviously grown into a woman… a full grown woman. All these time he had only seen her as the same twelve-year old genin he trained seven years ago. But today was different. He realized that Haruno Sakura’s no longer a child. And that she had filled out quite good on some places and turned out to be one of Konoha’s desirable women. Her pink hair never lost its beautiful luster and fell like a pink waterfall down her shoulders. Then he started wondering what it would feel like to run his fingers through them, or how her skin would feel like against his. When his thoughts started running through unimaginable things, Kakashi immediately stopped himself from going further and told Sakura to start their training.
They proceeded to Area 4. The same place where Jiraiya used to train Naruto. Kakashi stood there as Sakura stood on the opposite side, preparing for the long day training/challenge. The moment Sakura initiated the first attack; every inappropriate thought about her vanished as Kakashi blocked her moves and enjoyed the usual session.
It went perfectly fine, she doing various ninjutsus as he did all the blocking and throwing attacks as well. Not so long, Kakashi delivered a hard blow on her stomach that made her recoil painfully on the ground. For a second there he suddenly felt worried, wondering if he inflicted damage too much. Sakura’s ability and stamina impressed him that he seemed to forget the fact that she’s still a woman and that he’s much stronger than her.
He watched her, noticing her struggle not to cry out in pain. His worries disappeared when she managed to raise herself off of the ground and smile at him. Seeing that smile was enough to calm him down. Kakashi shook the thoughts away and said that the challenge is over. He did quite expect her to refuse and this brought him musing back to his thoughts, which was a mistake.
Within split second before her fist hits his face, Kakashi managed to block it and grab the leg that was about to kick his side. She lost her balance and he immediately grabbed her by the waist, gripped her leg and pulled her tightly against him. As if that wasn’t enough she threw her arms around his neck and buried her face against his chest. It took him some time to register what was happening for he was so distracted on the woman in his arms and the position they were in. involuntarily he buried his nose against her bubblegum hair, smelling the wonderful scent of her shampoo as his arms tightened their grip on her. What is wrong with you? This is Sakura… it seems “Come Come Paradise” influenced his mind too much. Now he’s thinking things involving Sakura and his bed, which was really a bad, bad idea! Bad Kakashi! He argued to himself.
Again, not concentrating was a mistake. He teased her and saw her scowl. Then she smirked and the next thing he knew, he was doubling over, his hands loosening his grip on her and felt her jumping away from him. To protect himself, he threw smoke bombs. Then he threw kunais to distract her as he slowly moved behind.
The smoke vanished and he found himself gripping her against him… again. Of course, she struggled to escape. Her squirming sent unusual prickles down his spine, which made him shudder. His finger tips continuously brushing against her skin, making him wonder of what it would feel like to touch the rest of her.
“Yield!” he said again. He desperately wanted to end this training and be off to their respective homes. If this continues further, Kakashi knew something awful will happen. Something that will truly ruin the friendship they built for the past seven years. Heck, he didn’t even know what’s going on with his body and his sudden fascination towards this certain pink-haired kunoichi.
“Never!” she yelled back and still continued struggling against his hold.
Kakashi feared that answer. “Yield!”
“Never!” Sakura gasped when she felt him grab her shoulders and spun her around. Now she was face to face with her sensei. She was standing too close to him, his hand still gripping her arm while the other went to his headband. She narrowed her eyes and watched his hand touch the edge of his headband, slowly taking it off to expose his Sharingan. I-is he going to use that on me? Sakura suddenly felt nervous. Yes, she expected the challenge would be quite hard since Hatake Kakashi’s infamous mask is at stake and so as the answer he refuses to give her. It never came to her that he’s actually going to use his Sharingan against her. Sakura hated to admit it but she feared the eye and the things it may do to her.
Kakashi saw a flicker of panic cross Sakura’s eyes. “Don’t make me use this.”
Sakura scowled. “Fine!” she forcefully shrugged his hand away and started walking off.
The older jounin let out a sigh. He arranged back his headband and followed her.
“This is not over, Kakashi.” She said and then stopped, “I’m still after your answer and mask, remember that.” She turned to send him a withering glare.
Kakashi only smiled back and lightly shrugged, “I know.” He was relieved that this tiring day was over.
Both sat by the river then, sharing a companionable silence. Sakura washed her face as Kakashi took the liberty to lie back down on the lush grass, observing the skies above and not the look of pleasure on Sakura’s face when the cool water hit her face.
“Are you alright, Sakura?” he absent-mindedly asked.
She looked over to where he lay and cocked her head on the side, “Hm?”
“You’re getting married…” he mumbled softly as his eyes lazily followed the cloud’s movement.
Sakura’s eyes flew wide and then her cheeks flushed. “So, you’ve heard…” and then she pettily frowned, “But you’ve just returned from a mission. How did you—?”
Kakashi chuckled, “I’ve been gone for only three days. The news’ still fresh around here up until now.” His eyes then trailed away from the clouds to Sakura who now sat beside him. “Blame Genma if you want.”
A sigh surpassed the kunoichi’s mouth as she reached to pinch the bridge of her nose, “He’s right… I’ll never be able to say no to this…” she muttered under her breath.
“Did you say something?” Kakashi then asked.
Sakura ignored his question. Instead, she raised her head and looked up into the sky, “Ironic, isn’t it?”
“Hm?” Kakashi closed his eyes, meaning to listen to her voice alone just because of the calming effect its causing.
“Getting married to the man I thought I was finally over with…”
Kakashi slowly opened his eyes and stared. The night she told him that her infatuation over the Uchiha prodigy was finally gone was still fresh in his mind. It confuses him of why Sakura agreed on this said marriage. She said she doesn’t love him anymore… but then, why did she accept? The moment he heard this news from Genma, Kakashi felt utterly doubtful. None of them knew Sakura as much as he does. Seven years of friendship reassured him that. “Why didn’t you say no?” Before he came here to have his usual training with her, he had been meaning to ask her that question. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to since—well, he’s obviously distracted the moment he saw her bathed in the sunlight that morning.
Sakura tiredly sighed, “I know… but I couldn’t.”
His eyes curiously glanced at her. By the looks of it, she’s fairly upset with this so-called marriage. She’s visibly not into it. Perhaps she was threatened by Sasuke. But then… why would Sasuke do that?
Suddenly, anger rose within him. Kakashi knew he had no right to neither interfere nor get angry. But seeing his ex-student moping like that makes him want to go and confront Sasuke. Ever since he came back, Uchiha Sasuke had been acting quite—weird. More importantly, why was he so upset?
Is it possible that he’s jealous?
No I’m not… he told himself after that mental question. Why would he be jealous? His relationship with Sakura was platonic, nothing more, nothing less.
Or is it.
Shut up… he berated with his inner self and tried to ignore its further taunts.
Sensing that Sakura had no plans of sharing more, Kakashi rose from and stood up. “C’mon, it’s getting late.” He said and offered a hand towards her who was still sitting on the ground.
Sakura stared at his hand for a moment and then took it with hers. She stood up and smiled in gratitude. When Kakashi smiled back, she suddenly felt really weird and queasy. Oh my God, don’t tell me I’m blushing… Sakura quickly looked away and almost squeaked, “See you tomorrow.” She said, “And be on time!”
He laughed not before asking the inevitable question, “Do you want me to walk you home?”
She shook her head and waved goodbye.
Kakashi watched her disappear from his sight with a small smile. He wished she didn’t notice his unusual behaviour and how frequently he blushed whenever their skin made contact. With a shook of his head, he headed towards the headquarters.
TBC