Day Ten: 300+ words of practice (~500 words, Team Seven)
“Can you help me with the zipper?”
“Hmm?”
“Or, you can help me strap shuriken to my thighs?”
--Zip.
“Thanks. Ok, you have the map?”
He tapped the side of his head as she slid a few more shuriken into the holster that wrapped snugly around her upper leg.
“Is my make-up even?”
“Yes.” Kakashi hadn’t even spared her a glance.
He offered up a mirror when she gave him a disbelieving frown.
“Hair?”
“Looks done.”
Another frown.
Up came the mirror again, and this time he sighed and looked at the door longingly.
Sakura patted down the skirt of her elegant, flowing dress, pulling her shawl across her shoulders, then adjusted the fitted, strapless top, trying to shift the senbon she’d tucked into her cleavage more comfortably.
Finally, she looked up at her partner with a cautious, optimistic, compliment-seeking raise of her shapely eyebrows.
“Well…. How do I look?”
His mouth went dry.
Beautiful.
Alluring.
Sinful.
“Fine,” he decided, and pulled at the collar of his uncomfortable, tailor-fitted shirt. Why couldn’t he have been chosen for the bus-boy, covert infiltration this time? Oh right, Sai and Naruto had taken that job, while Sasuke was guarding their client. Which normally wasn’t an issue, but tonight…
Sakura’s face fell slightly at his sigh, and he immediately regretted his mind wandering when he saw her paste on a fake smile.
“We better go,” she picked up her purse and dropped her room key inside, snapping it shut before she walked out, not waiting for him.
Alone now in the quiet room, Kakashi huffed irritably. For what seemed like the hundredth time in recent missions, he’d said something to upset her. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why she’d been so sensitive to his criticism lately. It was baffling - and was bordering on affecting their team interactions and professionalism, at this point.
So he hadn’t fallen to pieces praising her, like Naruto would have; he hadn’t insulted her blandly the way Sai would have; he hadn’t nodded curtly in approval while his eyes would have widened slightly in surprise, the way even Sasuke would have.
He’d said she looked fine! What had he done wrong? It wasn’t like his opinion mattered to the mission.
That was where his thoughts ran aground.
Well…
And then, he reconsidered. Actually, it did this time, as he was the team lead and they had to ensure they would fit in with their surroundings, and Sakura had always been anxious about playing her ‘princess’-role as she called it, on missions like this…
With an internal groan, the jounin’s shoulders slumped and he went to find the ‘lady’ he was ‘escorting’ to visit her ‘distant relatives’.
As he strode down the hallway to the elevator, he considered his options-apologies-for the moment when he’d catch up to Sakura. He may still be able to salvage this interaction, and their roles. Now, if he could just figure out a tactful way of apologizing and not insulting his former student’s femininity all over again….
He winced.
With his track record in this particular area, though?....
Kakashi checked his wallet and debated slipping Sasuke a few hundred ryo to switch places, just in case.
“Hmm?”
“Or, you can help me strap shuriken to my thighs?”
--Zip.
“Thanks. Ok, you have the map?”
He tapped the side of his head as she slid a few more shuriken into the holster that wrapped snugly around her upper leg.
“Is my make-up even?”
“Yes.” Kakashi hadn’t even spared her a glance.
He offered up a mirror when she gave him a disbelieving frown.
“Hair?”
“Looks done.”
Another frown.
Up came the mirror again, and this time he sighed and looked at the door longingly.
Sakura patted down the skirt of her elegant, flowing dress, pulling her shawl across her shoulders, then adjusted the fitted, strapless top, trying to shift the senbon she’d tucked into her cleavage more comfortably.
Finally, she looked up at her partner with a cautious, optimistic, compliment-seeking raise of her shapely eyebrows.
“Well…. How do I look?”
His mouth went dry.
Beautiful.
Alluring.
Sinful.
“Fine,” he decided, and pulled at the collar of his uncomfortable, tailor-fitted shirt. Why couldn’t he have been chosen for the bus-boy, covert infiltration this time? Oh right, Sai and Naruto had taken that job, while Sasuke was guarding their client. Which normally wasn’t an issue, but tonight…
Sakura’s face fell slightly at his sigh, and he immediately regretted his mind wandering when he saw her paste on a fake smile.
“We better go,” she picked up her purse and dropped her room key inside, snapping it shut before she walked out, not waiting for him.
Alone now in the quiet room, Kakashi huffed irritably. For what seemed like the hundredth time in recent missions, he’d said something to upset her. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out why she’d been so sensitive to his criticism lately. It was baffling - and was bordering on affecting their team interactions and professionalism, at this point.
So he hadn’t fallen to pieces praising her, like Naruto would have; he hadn’t insulted her blandly the way Sai would have; he hadn’t nodded curtly in approval while his eyes would have widened slightly in surprise, the way even Sasuke would have.
He’d said she looked fine! What had he done wrong? It wasn’t like his opinion mattered to the mission.
That was where his thoughts ran aground.
Well…
And then, he reconsidered. Actually, it did this time, as he was the team lead and they had to ensure they would fit in with their surroundings, and Sakura had always been anxious about playing her ‘princess’-role as she called it, on missions like this…
With an internal groan, the jounin’s shoulders slumped and he went to find the ‘lady’ he was ‘escorting’ to visit her ‘distant relatives’.
As he strode down the hallway to the elevator, he considered his options-apologies-for the moment when he’d catch up to Sakura. He may still be able to salvage this interaction, and their roles. Now, if he could just figure out a tactful way of apologizing and not insulting his former student’s femininity all over again….
He winced.
With his track record in this particular area, though?....
Kakashi checked his wallet and debated slipping Sasuke a few hundred ryo to switch places, just in case.