Another Test
A/N: This is my first story, so please tell me what you think and/or how to improve.
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.
Upon entering the chunin exams Sakura could feel the butterflies in her stomach take flight. After opening the doors everyone instantly looked at them. All of those eyes staring. All of those eyes sizing team seven up and tearing them apart. She felt like she wanted to melt. An annoying voice yelled "Sasuke, where've you been?" immediately snapping Sakura out of her trance. Sakura felt like she wanted to punch Ino, the owner of that irksome voice. Her anger only rose when Ino decided to throw herself at Sasuke. It was common knowledge that she disliked Ino, but there was more reasoning behind it than everyone believed. It wasn't just because of Sasuke. It had never been only about him, but she didn't expect anyone else to believe that.
After their little reunion with the rookie nine and hearing the exam rules, Sakura found herself gazing at her test. She was staring at it and couldn't seem to wrap her mind around how difficult it was. Sakura had always prided herself on her test taking abilities and she knew she could get by just fine, but it wasn't herself she was worrying about. She knew Naruto didn't have a chance at figuring out the answers. "Calm down, calm down," she kept repeating. To try and comfort herself she thought about the other genin. Surely some of them had to be in the same boat.
She allowed a smile to grace her face. "Ino must be completely clueless about this," she mused to herself. She knew it was somewhat mean to think that, but she needed something else to think about. Besides, it was pretty truthful. When they were friends she always respected Ino, but Sakura knew Ino's test scores were pretty pathetic. Ino had never been good at taking tests; it was one of her weaknesses. "Well, at least we won't be the only team out of the rookie nine not to pass the first part of the chunnin exams," she thought, trying to make herself feel better.
Her thoughts drifted away from the completed test in front of her and back to her and Ino's friendship. Sakura was honestly grateful that Ino helped her when every other girl taunted her about her huge forehead, but ever since that day she was always thought of as Ino's shadow. That wasn't any way for her to live her life. Constantly she was being compared to Ino and she always lost. Perhaps that was why she always studied and aced any test given to her; it was the one thing she could win against Ino.
Sakura continued to gaze at the test paper, while getting more and more lost in her memories. "I didn't want it to end," Sakura thought. Contrary to what most believed she honestly missed talking with her once best friend. Yes, she had been the one to end the friendship saying that since they both liked Sasuke they couldn't be friends, but that was just an excuse. She had wanted Ino to fight for her. She wanted Ino to say they could work through this, that Sasuke wasn't as important as their friendship, but Ino never once said a word.
That entire conversation establishing they were rivals was all a test. Sakura was testing Ino to see if she thought more of her or of a boy she never even talked to. It was the very moment after she spoke that she realized what a horrible test taker Ino was. When she left Ino sitting on the bench, a tear rolled down her cheek. A bittersweet look settled into Sakura's eyes as she remembered the result of that test. That conversation was a test of friendship and the outcome was like many tests Ino took, she failed.