Facet of Future

3

Chapter 2

A beautiful woman with long pink hair tied back into a ponytail gently looked through a set of clothes in a store. She wore a long dress of red edged in white under a long white coat, and carried a black lady's bag with one hand.

Every male in the room stared wide-eyed and slack-jawed at the screen, unable to keep their eyes off the beautiful woman. Not that they didn't recognize her, of course. The pink hair was a dead giveaway, to say nothing of her green eyes. And while she might have blossomed into full womanhood, her face was still recognizably that of their fellow ninja of the Hidden Leaf.

"Damn," Kiba breathed. "Naruto is one lucky son of a bitch."

"…I'm so jealous." Ino mournfully wailed. "Married life and motherhood suits Sakura so well."

Neither Naruto nor Sakura said a thing, the two of them fidgeting on their feet with reddened cheeks, unable to look at each other in embarrassment. Their fellow ninjas weren't so constrained though, and both Kiba and Ino's statements met with a chorus of agreement.

"Mommy, mommy!"

Sakura Uzumaki turned at the voice, and smiled while sinking down to come face to face with a nine-year old girl running towards her. The little girl slowed to a halt, and then spun on her feet a couple of times to show off the kimono she was wearing. "It's pretty, isn't it?" she asked with a beaming smile, and Sakura smiled wider.

"Yes, it really is." She said while patting her daughter on the head. "That said, don't run around in the store, Hanami. You might break something."

Hanami Uzumaki nodded as Sakura stood up, and grinned while making a mock salute. "Okay, mommy." She said. "I've got it, dattebane!"

The girls in the room gushed at the sight of the little girl. "Aww!" Ino cooed along with Tenten. "She looks just like Sakura did at that age!"

"Except for the smile." Tenten added. "It's pure Naruto. And don't get me started on the way she talks."

"Hanami…" Sakura murmured thoughtfully.

"…it's a good name…" Naruto murmured next and just as thoughtfully next to her.

"…yeah, it is." Sakura agreed with a small smile. "It fits her."

"She's your daughter, after all." Naruto added, and Sakura smiled wider while looking down.

"…yeah," she eventually said. "She is…yours too…"

Naruto laughed weakly, rubbing the back of his head before looking back at the screen.

Hanami was led back to the fitting room by an attendant, while Sakura resumed looking through the store's collection. A few minutes later and Hanami emerged from the fitting room, now dressed in an ordinary shirt of green over a pair of dark blue shorts. "Mommy, I'm finished." She said.

"Yes, yes," Sakura said, walking over to gently take her daughter by a shoulder before heading for the counter. "Don't be rude now."

"Okay."

Hanami hummed a tune to herself while bouncing on the balls of her feet, busying herself while her mother spoke with the cashier. Sakura was handing over the payment when the seamstress emerged from a door behind the counter. "Alright, Missus Uzumaki." The greying woman said. "I just need to make a few cosmetic alterations, but you should be able to pick it up by four in the afternoon."

"More than enough time to get ready for the evening festival." Sakura said with a nod. "Thanks, Madam Hiyori."

"Oh it's no problem at all, Missus Uzumaki."