Anthology

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Naruto had never held much stock in the whole, love/soulmate at first sight and smell. 

Despite multiple theories on why some people just inherently smelled better that others, (most of which he developed with his friend Sakura over the course of countless nights and ramen bowls) Naruto still firmly believed that the myth of Soulmates with complete bullshit. Sakura technically agreed but still loved the myth and legends behind so much that the topic sorta always burned in the back his brain like an itch he couldn't quite scratch. 

It didn't help that the scientific community was all the time publishing studies on the science of attraction measuring pupil dilation and heart rates and endorphins and crazy crap that usually just confused him. They had, in a-round-about sort of way confirmed the idea of scents guiding you towards romantically compatible people. 

Sakura's scent was what she was named for, cherry blossoms. The blonde thought it smelled sweet, but overly so. Like being trapped in a room of flowers until the nose wasn't able smell anything but flowers. When he asked her about his own scent, she wrinkled her nose making fun of him with a smile. 

"You smell like, summer grass. Fresh, and bright." She said honestly, with a soft smile as she looked the window out the harshness of the desert. "It reminds me of home."  Naruto didn't have anything to say to that. Wasn't sure what to say to that at the very least. "Have you thought about going back?" She asked, hesitantly. "Im sure that they all miss you." 

"Yeah." Naruto mumbled. "But they also miss you ya know." Sakura nodded, brushing her pale pink hair over her shoulder. 

"I know that, but if i go back I leave my soulmate behind." Naruto frowned. That didn't often talk about Sasuke. It was one of the reasons Naruto had left Konoha City behind. 

Sakura understood and that was why she knew where to find him. Knew to look to the away from the thick greenery that flourished where they came from. He had only just arrived in Open harsh town of Suna a week back, and contacted Sakura about the move. She enjoyed visiting with Naruto in between the constant moving with Sasuke. 

Regardless the blonde enjoyed talking to her, even if it was about Soulmates and scents. 

After a week being holed up in his new and sparsely decorated apartment the blonde grabbed his wallet and headed towards to grocery store, in search of ramen and various other foods.  The

Blonde walked in and wandered around the store idly picking up what he needed and sometimes what he didn't only to stop mid-step to as he nose caught the scent of something blissful. 

The air seemed to swirled around the blonde tempting him with the promise of something wonderful, better than ramen. It turned his stomach over similar to the anticipation of a fight. His heart started pounding in his chest and Naruto looked wildly around the store wondering if anyone else could smell that. No seemed to notice and the blonde swallowed feeling his palms get sweaty as he began to weave around the tall shelves, dodging people as went in search of the source of the scent. A voice in the back of his mind told him that he was close to finding someone important.

He turned the corner only to slam into someone carrying a large box. It fell the ground with a clatter and thud. Naruto knelt to the ground intent on helping the redhead he slammed into pick up the countless cacti that had been inside the box. 

"Damn, im sorry." Naruto said, before freezing as he realized he had found the source of the scent. 

"Apologies, are unneeded." The unnamed redhead replied, and the blonde felt a shiver run up his spine at the low rough voice he had. Naruto had a wild thought, 'how do i smell to him?'  Followed swiftly by another realization,  'holy fuck its him.' Naruto thought, as he gazed at the splendid face of the man in front of him. Red hair, jade green eyes, a tattoo on his forehead and dark circles around his eyes. 

"Im Naruto." The blonde said, holding out his hand.

"Gaara." The other replied, and the blonde felt a little thrill at the name. 'So my Soulmates name is Gaara.' He thought. 'Why hasn't he said anything? Is there such a thing as a one-side soulmate thing or-' he started to think before the sound of a sniffle pulled him out of his mind. Naruto blinked, as Gaara's nose started to run. 

"Um, are you feeling alright?"

"Yes. Im suffering from a mild cold. I am unable small anything. It is why i said no apologies were needed." 

"Oh. Uh, okay." 

"If you will excuse me." Gaara said, taking the box and leaving. 

So yes, Naruto had never held much stock in the whole, love slash soulmate at first sight and smell. That was before he smelled Gaara, his soulmate, who was unaware of it because he had a runny nose and couldn't smell anything. 

"Fuck." Naruto mumbled.