In the Viz translation he said. "I suppose you could say that". He definitely meant girlfriend so don't be in denial.Well, if you look at Naruto's face and the way he says it, it's kinda obvious that he didn't mean Sakura was her girlfriend in THAT way.
You really think Kishi would make it as unclear as that if he only meant her as a friend? And why say girl who is a friend? why not just friend?
Some NH fans are pathetic AF.