Embers of a Burning Sky

Chapter Three

There was a loud knock on the door; two in rapid succession, and it startled the Clone out of his nap.

It takes him a moment to wake up, and he pays for it with the shrill sound of Sakura's voice; "Naruto, open up!" She shouts, banging her fist against the wooden door.

He hears the sound of wood splintering and he can feel a cold sweat breaking out. He's not sure what to do for a precious moment; torn between answering the door and hiding the baby, but Sakura makes the decision for him with a loud insult.

"IDIOT!" She screams, punching the door in.

Splinters fly in all directions and he throws himself over the child on the bed, shielding it from danger. His heart is racing with the stress, and he's hoping against hope that the baby won't start crying.

"Naruto! What are you doing! Put some clothes on!"

He uncurls, finally noticing that he's only in his boxer shorts, and blushes all the way to his hairline.

"Sakura! What're you even doing here!?" He cries, covering himself with his hands. She looks away in red-faced anger.

"Go get dressed! We'll talk when you're done!"

He complies, running for his dresser and pulling out his orange pants and a t-shirt, tripping over himself in his rush to dress.

She smiles slightly at his expense;

"So I heard you have a 'top secret' mission you're supposed to be doing?" She mentions, leaning against the wall near the broken doorway; her eyes closed.
She tries a wider smile.
He scratches his cheek and looks away, unsure of what to tell her."Well, I'm not supposed to tell anyone about it..." He tries, trying to subtly move himself between her prying eyes and the baby still laying quietly on the bed.

Her eyes narrow before she resumes her smiling;
"I understand, I just thought it might be exciting to have a special mission..." She trails off, cheeks turning pink and eyes floating toward the floor.

He feels cheated.

"Sakura, I can't." He mutters; his frown heavy on his features.

She clicks her tongue and flips her short hair away from her face with a huff.

"Whatever," she mumbles under her breath, pushing off the wall and stalking forward aggressively;

"Tsunade sent this for you."

She tosses something onto the table nearby before stomping out of the apartment.

~ ~ ~

Naruto had just finished picking up his groceries, consisting of several packs of instant ramen and a single pint of milk, and he felt surprisingly accomplished. A large, almost obscene grin planted itself on his face as he continued on his way home, humming to himself.

"Oh, Naruto?"

He turns around to see who was addressing him.

"Kiba! What're you doing out here?" He asks, grin becoming more friendly. Kiba jabs his thumb over his right shoulder with a smile;