❝ my family was never the touchy-feely type. ❞ - from sasuke
it had taken awhile for them to reach this point. To shake away the mires of martyred obsessions to save a friend who didn’t need to be saved, to live instead of being wrenched back to the place responsible for his family’s death in the first place. Being away from Konoha helped, Sakura knew. Especially after the Uchiha Massacre had been exposed once and for all, it gave them some room to finally breathe. Miles away from Konoha, Sakura had taken to traveling with Sasuke and Team Taka for a spell. With his own want to see the world with his new family, it was in the ruins of Uzushiogakure that Karin had insisted on stopping in for the summer, a project of hers that had been germinating for months. Already, fragmentary Uzumaki descendants filtered in from across the world, making something of a home for themselves after losing it decades before.
Karin never looked so in her element, and with Sakura there to teach medical ninjutsu to those who had expressed interest, summer was promising to be better than she’d believed. Hell, even grumpy Sasuke was teaching some kids kenjutsu, the man having a softer spot for kids than he liked to admit, she was sure. Karin and Suigetsu got a laugh out of it, at least.
So, when those involved wound down for the evening with dinner over a bonfire, Sakura had been a little surprised when she felt a weight on her shoulder, a little amused to see her friend having passed out, let alone in a way that compromised his unyielding, cool facade. Feeling as though he wouldn’t want to be exposed like that, a few pokes to his cheek later roused the Uchiha, Sakura having to stifle a laugh.
❝ my family was never the touchy-feely type. ❞
At that, Sakura’s expression fell momentarily before a smile worked its way back, threatening on a grin as she gently poked his side, then the side of his cheek. “You mean like this? Because if not, we can be your new family. Annoying pokes all around. Right, Karin?” Sakura said with a goading smile to Karin, the bespectacled woman stifling a laugh.
Gods knew that if anyone deserved it, it was him.