Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Baka Masashi-sensei owns all rights.
Author's Notes: Masashi is pissing me off. That is all. The recent chapter releases have been less than satisfactory. I'll end my banter here because just thinking about it is making me want to krump angrily.
Summary: The pressure to be a strong kunoichi was immense, thus it was important that one retains a goal to remain focused. With this in mind, a certain pink-haired girl decides to bring into existence a new kekkei genkai. (Sakura • Kekkei Genkai Challenge)
Chapter Brief: Sakura learns to accept her rowdy blond teammate. She also decides to put an end to her childish crush on Sasuke. After putting much thought into her goals for the future, a rather unbelievable aspiration introduces itself...

CROSSING THE RUBICON
—PROLOGUE—
Acceptance
"Intelligence without ambition is a bird without wings."
- Salvador Dali

The three admission requirements of the Ninja Academy were as follows:

1.) Love the village and hope to help preserve peace and prosperity.
2.) Have a mind that will not yield, able to endure hard training and work.
3.) Be healthy in mind and body.

In hindsight, Sakura had absolutely nothing to worry about. With an undeniable love for her village, a foolish yearning for world peace, and an intelligent mentality, the pink-haired girl concluded that she had this whole ninja business in the bag.

Boy, was she wrong.

Born into a clan filled with almost nothing but civilians and merchants, Sakura therefore had very low chakra reserves. It was clear that she was unique—and this was not at all in a good way. In fact, Sakura wasn't even meant to be a kunoichi in the first place, for it had taken her months to convince her clan elders otherwise. Her parents supported her decision, albeit hesitantly. No matter how supportive they were, they just couldn't bring themselves to swiftly accept the possibility that their daughter could die at any mission she received. The life of a ninja was after all short, due to their high-risk lifestyle. They experienced it first-hand after all.

Haruno Kizashi and Mebuki were ninjas once, although not renowned. Despite being hardworking and ambitious, they had no choice but to retire when Kizashi was perpetually paralyzed due to a lightning-based jutsu in a mission gone wrong. Mebuki, on the other hand, chose to retire after the death of her brother-in-law, whom was the then-Head of the Haruno clan. She became the temporary CEO of the Haruno clan's business, whilst her husband was free to do anything to his liking, which was not much, considering his predicament. Granted, this was frowned upon by the elders due to Mebuki's eligibility, or lack thereof. This was why Sakura's choice to become a kunoichi was disapproved of. She was the heir apparent, and the elders desperately needed her to take on the role.

It was unfortunate that Sakura was not at all interested. She would much rather "throw knives and become a murderer," in the words of her grandaunt, than become a shipping and trading magnate.

"I'll prove you wrong," Sakura said to her relatives once, "You'll see! I will become one of the strongest kunoichi this world has ever seen. I will be a legend, and you'll all be sorry for calling me a fool!"

It took Sakura five years to eat her words.

"You're annoying," Uchiha Sasuke had snarled at her, on that day.

Hearing those words from the one she admired most, she was surely downtrodden. Graduating as one of the Top 10 of her year made her arrogant and close-minded. She recalled the abusive words she'd bombard Naruto with, and her chest constricted with guilt. It was painful, but she knew deep down that she was afraid; anxious; skeptical. And her twisted way of mending her fear was to bully the only person out there who was more incompetent than herself.

Now that she thought long and hard about it in the confines of her bedroom, she realized that Naruto was physically adept. If it weren't for the fact that he had the attention span of a goldfish and that he had trouble staying awake during lectures, he would've easily been amongst the Top 5. With his ninjutsu and genjutsu being nonexistent, Sakura determined that he had issues with his chakra control. Although Sakura doubted that Naruto having low chakra reserves was the reason why. She remembered a few weeks back when the blond had created twenty deformed clones during an assessment. Aside from chakra manipulation, his taijutsu was unorthodox, though it was most certainly, impressive.

Sakura was smart and strategic, and she once believed that this was enough to be a powerful ninja. Sakura prospered where Naruto failed. With her above average chakra manipulation, she prided herself as the best of her class in this field. Again, due to this, she believed she had the right to ostracize her blond teammate. It was concluded by the teachers that the pink-haired girl would excel in all the E-rank nin and gen techniques that Academy students were permitted to perform.

They were right to assume so.

The Kawarimi and Bunshin being one of those two admissible jutsus. Sakura despite her relatively low chakra reservoir, managed to create ten clones. Iruka-sensei himself had stated that her chakra control was so precise that the slightest amount of chakra extracted from her system was able to create all ten illusionary clones.

Sakura wished that her teachers had not treated her so special. It made her too proud; too sure. And now that she's fallen, she cannot find a way back out of her self-loathing.

She stared at her reflection in the mirror. She looked nothing like the legendary kunoichis she oh-so admired. Pakura of the Scorch Style, Chiyo the Puppeteer, Terumī Mei...Tsunade of the Sannin. They were all incredible kunoichi even among the shinobi.

Sakura, due to her love for books, knew that eras before theirs, or more specifically Senju Hashirama's pre-inauguration, there were no such thing as kunoichi. Women's sole reason for existing were to bear children and raise them until they were of age. The only woman from this era whose name was known throughout Konohagakure was Uzumaki Mito, the wife of the Shodaime Hokage.

"Uzumaki Mito..." Sakura murmured. After she realized the surname of both Mito and Naruto, Sakura had rushed to the library in search for answers.

Where did their surname originate?

Uzushio; The Land of Whirlpools.

Sakura had trouble looking for the country's records. Although, what Sakura managed to find were also interesting. According to one of the history books, Uzushiogakure was an ally of Konohagakure. Most likely, it was due to the blood relation of the Uzumaki and Senju clan—although it trails back to thousands of years. Their close ties were additionally greatly illustrated by the Konoha ninja's flak jackets because on them, is the eddy symbol.

Uzushio ninja were also well-known for their sealing techniques, and all citizens, shinobi or not, were notorious for their long lives. Due to this, their epithet "The Village of Longevity" was befitting. Aside from this fact, Sakura managed to find other interesting facts about them.

Moreover...one question clouded the pink-haired girl's mind.

Despite being a member of a ninja clan, how did Naruto end up becoming an orphan?

The roseate came up with nothing. It was almost like the Uzumaki clan disappeared off the face of the Earth.

Sakura vowed to find her answers from the blond himself, even if it meant having to befriend the dolt.

Sakura shook her head, her thoughts back to what Sasuke had called her. "Annoying," She muttered, chuckling bitterly, before staring at her beige popcorn ceiling. Sakura accepted the fact that she was weak, and she hid this with her intelligence. She reminisced about one trip her class had to the training grounds. There, Iruka and Mizuki (she wondered about his whereabouts, but she immediately dismissed the thought) gave them an exercise. They were given a pairing of opposing capabilities, and thus, Sakura was paired with Ino, which she admittedly thought was not a surprise. The pairings had to have some balance, and Sakura was unfortunately the weaker one compared to Ino. Her ex-best friend was at the top of the class. Sasuke was acknowledged more by teachers, students, and hell even the village, but due to his horrible cooperation and class participation skills, his average was in par with that of Aburame Shino's.

Ino's grade average was much greater than Sasuke's.

"Sasuke..." Sakura uttered almost incoherently. She wondered when she started to call him that without the usual suffix, "-kun." Maybe she finally begrudgingly accepted that Sasuke was never going to be interested in her, or any other girls at that, until he killed...that certain man. She shivered at the killing intent that oozed through Sasuke's skin.

If anyone was the personification of hatred, it was her dark-haired teammate. Due to Sakura's superlative chakra control, she was also sensitive to other's own energy, so if someone like Naruto was able to sense Sasuke's malignant emotions, she suffocated because of it. She remembered feeling like an arm had dug deep into her chest and grabbed hold of her heart, squeezing it until the life in her green eyes slowly disappeared. The imagery made her cringe. She's been talking to Sasuke with caution ever since that day.

She had read once that ninjas could refine their sensory skills, though most failed due to their feeble chakra manipulation. She herself regarded this as a chance to enhance her sensory skills, but the whole Sasuke-introduction episode scared the shit out of her. Having read about many shinobi legends, Sakura knew that there exists a society of ninjas with psychopathic tendencies, and Sasuke's killing intent would pale in comparison. Sasuke was a babe next to them.

Imagine her encountering one of those nutcases. She'd be reduced to tears or even insanity.

She forced herself to brush aside such thoughts, and she engrossed herself with ambitious speculations.

When Kakashi had asked her what she wanted to be for the future, she had shamelessly looked at Sasuke with hopeful eyes. Sakura wanted to hit herself over the head for her disgusting little crush-slash-obsession. Taking Kakashi's inquiry into consideration, she finally recognized the reason why Sasuke was the best of her class.

It was because he had a goal to achieve. He had a clear path ahead of him, and he was heading towards it with such certainty that it made her jealous. Nothing and nobody distracted him from his aspirations. Yet again, realization dawned on Sakura.

He himself was that very distraction. Her superficial views made him the perfect idol to worship. She was so distracted by her crush on him that she's never even thought about her dreams as a kunoichi. She growled in annoyance. She knew that she had to make things right. She refused to turn into an emotionless shell like Sasuke. She also refused to be an attention-seeking idiot like Naruto.

Strangely enough, despite her teammates' unstable mindsets, they were strong.

Hell, she could tell that Naruto was catching up to Sasuke, and fast. It was almost astounding.

With this in mind, Sakura thought that she might as well join the bandwagon.

Opening the book that she begged Naruto to borrow—yes, borrow, nay steal—from the sealed section of the library, she began her research on kekkei genkai and kekkei tōta.

Kakashi had looked at her with incredulity when she'd announced that she wanted to one day establish a ninja clan with its very own kekkei genkai or kekkei tōta. Insane wasn't even close to describing it. Nevertheless, Kakashi appreciated the newfound interest and determination in the girl, and silently thanked the gods up there for her fangirl ways were coming to an end. Surprisingly, Sakura was the reason why Sasuke and Naruto have been staying at the training grounds longer to train (although she was unaware of this). Her dedication even made him rethink his training methods and he admitted that his laziness was a huge variable for their own, and it was a waste of their potential. Due to this, he planned on giving them chakra papers to find their nature affinity.

This would also help Sakura get closer to her goal.

Sakura had already known that her parents' nature affinities were water and earth, thus hers would end up being one or the other. She silently hoped that she'd get a different element for the sake of being different and starting anew, although the chances were nil.

"Shinobi with advanced chakra manipulation are able to mold multiple elements. Sarutobi Hiruzen, Sandaime Hokage, is capable of managing all five nature affinities," Sakura looked amazed, as she read the huge book Naruto had stolen for her, "simultaneously?!" She finished. Her respect and admiration for the current Hokage increased.

Theories ran through her mind, and she knew that learning was one of her many elements.

Sighing, she realized that she's never been content with herself.

But now, she was finally walking on the right path.

Training Ground 7

"Alright, my minions," Kakashi had announced, ignoring the look of shock on his students' faces. He couldn't blame them, really. He was earlier than usual (ten minutes late, to be exact) and he was willing to teach them something, "Today, we will learn of your nature affinities. As I have mentioned yesterday during one of your D-rank missions, I will be showing you the ropes on how to progressively become an expert of your element."

"Ne, ne, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto started, tilting his head to the side, further making him look like a fox, "I'd like to learn about fūinjutsu!"

This effectively stunned Kakashi, who had to recollect his thoughts. "That's a very admirable thing to say, Naruto, but it's important that you learn only one thing at a time," he paused, trying to think of a reason why the blond suddenly found interest in sealing techniques. Was Sakura really this inspirational? "Why do you suddenly want to learn such a complex method?"

Naruto scratched his head, before he said, "Well, Sakura-chan was doing some research on my clan, and she said that they apparently were experts in sealing jutsus! Ne, ne, sensei, do you think Hokage-jiji knows something about them? He has to, right? I mean, they were the main clan of Uzushiogakure and Uzushio is—was—an ally to the Leaf!" A sad tint was visible in his cerulean eyes, and to Kakashi's surprise yet again, Sasuke placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, seemingly consoling him.

What in the world, Kakashi's breath hitched in his throat. This was a...development he had not expected.

Naruto, of course, flushed at the worried looks his teammates gave him. Never had anyone ever made him feel this welcomed and wanted, and he fought the urge to bawl like a moron. Instead, he gave them a shaky "thank you," before grinning.

"Stop worrying about me, guys! I'm fine," the blond knucklehead grinned from ear to ear to further prove this. His attention was back to Kakashi whom was eyeing them all warily, "Anyways, Kakashi-sensei, can I learn fūinjutsu and my element at the same time?"

Kakashi snapped out of his reverie, once again. His team was full of surprises today, and he couldn't very well say no to Naruto's indomitable will to learn his family's legacy. Perhaps, he could convince the Hokage to tell Naruto who his parents were once and for all. It would certainly make things easier for Naruto, for money would no longer be an issue, considering the fact that Minato was wealthy. Although, it would surely bring danger to Naruto because word would spread, inadvertently leading him being sought for by Minato's enemies. "I wouldn't say that it's an ideal choice, but it's also not impossible—"It is you, after all."—You do have to put a lot more effort."

Naruto simply grinned. "I'll work harder than usual, believe it." The determination in his eyes were resolute, and Kakashi's pride rose further when his teammates agreed to do the same.

He smiled, before passing around the chakra paper to his students, whom excitedly held onto it, examining it with fascination.

"The process is quite easy, so don't worry," Kakashi grabbed one for himself, and as an example, he focused his chakra onto the hand holding unto the paper. The paper wrinkled upon recognizing the weight of Team 7's sensei, signifying Kakashi's affiliation for lightning. "Do you all remember the side effects of all elements when used on chakra paper?"

Sakura spoke up, her love for reading clearly illustrated by the perfectly memorized information. "The chakra reactions are as follows: those who are affiliated with fire, will have an ignited chakra paper that eventually turns to ash, while those who have wind as their affinity will have a paper that rips into two—"

Sasuke immediately followed thereafter. "Lightning, as you have demonstrated will wrinkle, while earth will turn to dirt and crumble."

Naruto grinned, going next. "And the paper will dampen if you're a water user!"

Kakashi eye-smiled. It looks like he had Sakura to thank for constantly babbling out shinobi information once in a while during their missions. She took it upon herself, as the smartest, to pass along assets to her teammates, who were lacking in many categories. It ended up being incredibly helpful seeing as how Naruto's chakra control improved exponentially, and Sasuke was seeing them in a new light. He no longer only depended on himself, and trusted his teammates to help him out.

Truth be told, the reason why Kakashi was absent for a few hours, was so they could find a comfortable training method for themselves to follow everyday. He was glad to see that they realized his motives; they had looked underneath the underneath.

At 7 o'clock, his team would work on their reflexes by using each other as targets. One of them would set up an obstacle course filled with traps the night before. It was Naruto who unsurprisingly made the most creative and difficult traps, due to his old hobby of pulling pranks.

After an hour of honing their reflexes, at exactly 8 o'clock, they'd spar. Naruto would usually spar with both of them using his Kage Bunshin, which improves their agility and stamina, due to his unpredictable katas and unending chakra reserves. His technique was so "hellish", according to Sakura, that she dubbed it Jigoku Kata, which to this day, the Hokage still found amusing.

From 9 o'clock to 10 o'clock, his three dedicated pupils would train on their own techniques.

Sasuke chose to study the scrolls that he along with Naruto and Sakura had found in one of the Uchiha storage basements. The scrolls were sealed and Sasuke confessed that only Naruto had the knowledge to unlock the contents. The Uchiha's reaction after opening the scrolls were hysterical. He had been openly gaping at the highly-ranked jutsus and katas that were written on the ancient sheets of paper. From C-rank to A-rank, Sasuke probably had to live three lifetimes in order to learn them all. Of course, being a prodigy among prodigies, the loner had already learned seven fire techniques in two months alone, and was close to perfecting them.

Naruto opted with a more complex training course. After watching Sakura perform the Kawarimi countless times during their 8'oclock spars, he had come up with a brilliant idea. By discreetly dispatching clones to several locations, he would then Henge them to blend into their surroundings. The idea was that his clones would become destinations for teleportation. It was similar to his father's Hiraishin technique.

"The only thing I have to do is draw seals on my clones...which would take forever," Naruto announced.

It was Sasuke who had suggested, "Get the seal tattooed on your person. This way, it's permanent and your clones would automatically sport them."

Naruto had immediately taken a liking to the suggestion, and had begun making templates that didn't look too conspicuous if he were to get it tattooed on his being. Sakura's interest was also piqued and she had asked Naruto if she could also get a tattoo of his seal. The blond approved whole-heartedly, and even Kakashi saw reason in why she should get it, seeing as it would be good for emergencies during missions. Kakashi had even contemplated getting it, but thought that perhaps his student sneaking up on him was annoying. If only he was the one who'd established such a jutsu. Alas, he was no sealing master. Kakashi and Sasuke were apparently on the same wavelength, seeing as Sasuke also refused to get the seal tattooed on him. No surprises there.

Aside from Naruto and Sasuke, Sakura surprised him with several forbidden scrolls about clans and their bloodlines. She explained that it was necessary for her research, and that she had Naruto to thank for teaching her how to remove the locks on A-rank seals. Kakashi decided to ignore her illegal pilfering inside the library, trying to convince himself that if she was able to successfully steal them without getting caught, then it was alright.

After all...there was something to be said about being risque and insane, seeing as the most powerful ninjas were nutcases. He'd only hoped that his precious students were the good kind of crazy.