It All Started With A Smell

One Shot - Why's There Cake?

Naruto's POV:

She held her breath as the pounding on the door finally stopped. Slowly creeping towards it, her hand hovering over her weapon's pouch, she waited for the door to rattle. Her heart was pounding in her throat. Her body screamed for her to run but also to stay perfectly still. The voice had to have been a trick. The only time people came to her door on this day was when they were drunk and filled with too much anger. This one must have been a ninja that was either still good at transformations whilst drunk or was her first ever sober 'guest' to haunt her day.

When the door sat harmlessly and quietly in its frame she released the air that had been pressing painfully into her lungs. Naruto was used to people hammering on her door throughout this day, and although they would get distracted or bored when she didn't open the door, she still kept her weapon's pouch close and full.

With silence ringing through the apartment Naruto slowly made her way back to her bedroom where her abandoned book waiting. She had barely read three lines before she heard a noise. Pausing to listen closely, she tensed, ready to jump up. There was a grunt, a thud, and then a swear. Fear coursed through her veins as she realised the noise was coming from the balcony connected to her bedroom. Turning her head slowly she spied a silhouette through her curtains. Throwing herself off the bed she pulled a kunai out, getting ready to face whoever it was on the other side of the door. Her mind screamed at her to run, but she had nowhere to go. The moment she exited her apartment she would be targeted.

The balcony door rattled before she heard the distinct sound of a key sliding into a slot. Her eyes widened and she wondered why he would betray her like that. She had thought he was better than Varric. Taking a deep breath, Naruto listened as the glass door was slid open, the curtains fluttering at the breeze. The fabric was ripped aside violently, making Naruto squeak.

"Idiot, why wouldn't you answer the door?" The figure snapped. "And Kakashi-Sensei told you to give one of us your house key, not your porch key."

Naruto swallowed thickly, trying to registered that she was not, in fact, being attacked. Sasuke stood in front of her, looking exasperated as he held a box in one hand by the string tied around it. He seemed to realised something was wrong with his teammate because his expression softened. Walking slowly closer he lifted his hand, gently pushing Naruto's hand down and taking the kunai from her grasp.

"Are you alright?" Sasuke asked softly, frowning as he looked into Naruto's eyes.

"Um, yeah, I just wasn't expecting a visitor," Naruto lied, trying to force a smile. "What brings you here?"

Sasuke raised an eyebrow in that mocking way that he knew annoyed Naruto. "It's your birthday, Teme."

Naruto rolled her eyes. "That doesn't answer my question, idiot. Why are you here?"

The Uchiha frowned. "To give you a birthday present, obviously."

Cocking her head to the side, Naruto stared at the boy as though he was speaking another language. "Why would you give me a present just cause it's my birthday? Is it a Uchiha thing?"

"No, it's no... um, yeah, it is." Sasuke smiled. "But if you don't want your present, I can leave."

He dangled the box in front of her nose by its string before moving it out of her reach. The blonde huffed, crossing her arms. With a laugh Sasuke handed her the box, warning her to put it down before opening it. She led him into the kitchen, putting the box on her kitchen table before pulling at the string. When she opened the lid of the box she couldn't help but stare in confusion. There was a large, white lump in the box with blue, messy squiggles. She couldn't tell if it was the fact that she wasn't particularly good at reading or if the words were just scribbles, but there were indecipherable words in orange over the white lump.