Chapter 2 - The Mission

It was getting late, close to midnight, but neither of them wanted to leave the warmth of one another. He was sitting with his back against a tree, and she had her head in his lap. They both were laying there with their eyes closed, his hands entwined in her pink hair. The sounds of the rushing water and the crickets were all that the two could hear in the night.

Naruto had left the clearing almost an hour ago, giving the pink haired girl and the jounin some time alone. He said something about needing to see ‘the nice man who ran the ramen house’ about a bowl of ramen he was promised when he returned home.

Sakura let out a quiet sigh, but Kakashi was still able to hear the small sound.

“What’s wrong Sakura-Chan?” He asked as he slowly ran his fingers through her pink locks.

“Oh, nothing Kakashi-Sensei. I’m just happy.” She smiled.

Kakashi laid his head back against the tree that was supporting him up. “Please don’t call me sensei, Sakura, you know that it makes me feel old.”

“Hai, I’m sorry sensei.” Sakura froze for a moment. “I mean…Kakashi-Kun.” She smiled. Kakashi-Kun. It was cute, and in a way it fit him well.

Kakashi looked down at her face and a smile came across his covered lips. It was like she had chosen a nick name for the silver haired jounin. It was her name for him, and he liked it. “Thank you Sakura-Chan.”

And in Sakura’s mind that is how it all began.

For weeks Sakura and Kakashi would spend their evenings together, under the stars, looking up at the sky. They would talk to one another about whatever crossed their minds. They talked of her dreams and ambitions, his past, and their team, everything except the feelings that were brewing inside her.

By this time the pink haired girl had grown accustom to calling her former sensei Kakashi-kun, even when they were in the village. At first the villagers were shocked with Sakura’s new name for the silver haired jounin, but eventually the villagers came to accept her nickname for Kakashi.

Sakura was close to all three of her boys. She was there when Sasuke proposed to Ino, she watched as Naruto prepared for his first date with Hinata, and she was the one who dragged a drunken Kakashi home from the village pub. They were her life, and she would do anything for her team. They were her family.

They stuck together, through thick and thin, rain and shine, and it gave Sakura a strong sense of security.

It was close to fall when team seven was given their first S rank mission. It was no where near the difficulty of an A rank mission, but it was still a handful for the team to complete. They were to accompany a business associate from Wind county back home after a meeting with the Hokage. Suzuki Masaru was very wealthy, and wanted to show up at home with Konoha’s elite ninjas as his escorts. It was supposed to be an easy mission.

They were to accompany Masaru in their full ANBU outfits, masks and all. Sakura had also opted for a hood to hide her pink hair. There was really no need for her to stick out.

Several times during the trip to Wind Country with the big shot associate Sakura came close to unleashing her anger on Masaru. He had a big mouth, there was no doubt to that, but Sakura would of survived if Masaru had kept his mouth shut about there being a girl to escort him home.

The trip had started out fine. It was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, and the clouds held no threat to the weather. Naruto and Sasuke walked ahead of Masaru, while Sakura and Kakashi held up the rear. The conversations were light, just enough chatter to keep their minds on the task at hand.

Sakura spoke no more than a few words during the first half of the mission. Just an occasional ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in response to Naruto, who could not keep his mouth shut and his voice down. It wasn’t until Kakashi had finished reading his adult novel, Come Come Paradise that Sakura began to liven up and talk.

The two walked close to each other, their conversation held in whispers.

“How many missions did Tsunade-Sama send you on while we were gone?” Kakashi asked, his full attention on the pink haired kunoichi.

“Other than delivering papers and healing people?” He nodded. “None.”

He looked up to the clouds in the sky, and then back at her. “Well at least you were safe.”

“Why would that matter to you?” She crossed her arms across her chest.

“At least you were not injured while I was away. I would of died if something had happened to you.”

“What do you mean Kakashi-kun?” She cocked her head to the, the way a confused puppy would, and he gave a silent laugh. She was so clueless. So innocent.

“I don’t want to see you hurting.” Kakashi stopped for a moment. “You are special to me Sakura-chan.”

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