Prologue

All of the coutless times that I've fought relentlessly to keep myself and my commrades alive...and now...I'm completely okay with dying. Everything I have ever done was all for them. My entire life...my entire existence...everyone in my village inluding my teamates and my own sensai underestimated my abilities as a Shinobi. I have always been the weak link of team 7, the burden...but...now...yes...maybe, just maybe Sakura Haruno will be recognized as more than just the aspiring shinobi with perfect chakra control. All I've ever wanted was to be able to protect them like they've protected me and now I can die knowing that I did just that. I...Sakura Haruno finally was able to protect the ones I loved the most. Naruto...Saskue...Kakashi Sensai...Kohona...it was all for you.

Chapter 1: Mission Failed

"I can sense their chakra, there's five of them about one hundred meters east of us. They're approaching fast we don't have much time." Neji warned gently setting my broken and bruised body against the nearest tree.

"There's no way we can take on five Akautski, especially with Naruto and Kakashi Sensai still holding off their shadow clones, they will never make it in time to provide us with reinforcements...what a drag."

"Shikamaru we don't have a choice we're out of time they are approach-"

Neji was cut off mid sentence by a hard blow to the back of his head.

"Dammit!" I screamed as I tried to push myself into a standing position. It was no use my left leg was completely shattered and I didn't have enough chakra to heal a paper-cut let alone broken bones. Still, I had to do something, I couldn't just stand by while my comrades were fighting for their lives.

Sakura?! Sakura are you-are you okay? Can-you move yet? Neji winced, still recovering from the blow to the back of his head.

"My leg is shattered, I'm sorry I cant walk." God I sounded pathetic. I tried channeling chakra to my fingertips in attempt to at least subside the pain in my left leg enough for me to stand on it, but it was no use I was completely drained from the unexpected Akatskui shadow clone attack earlier.

"Don't try to force anymore chakra Sakura, or you're going to kill yourself" Neji warned " You have just enough left keeping you conscious."

I already knew that, if there was one thing I didn't need to be lectured on it was chakra control.

"Neji behind you!" Shikimaru threw a kunai knife deflecting the one that was aimed straight for Neji's back. Within seconds Shikimaru was standing back to back with Neji scoping out the enemy and strategizing a plan. From what I could see, these Akatskui members were unrecognizable. I had never seen or heard of any of them before. One thing I knew for sure was that we were outnumbered by five S-Class criminals with no reinforcements and in over our heads.

"Eight trigrams sixty four palms!" the blow from Neji's taijutsu sent two of the Akatskui members slamming into a nearby tree.

Shikamaru was immersed in a taijutsu dance with the remaining two akatskui members. The sound of colliding kunai knifes filled the forest as shikamaru struggled to block the relentless efforts of the two shinobi.

Things were looking bleak and I knew Neji and Shikamaru couldnt handle taking on two akastkui at once much longer, I had to create a diversion somehow. I reached for a kunai in my satchel and sent it flying straight for one of the akatskuis head, effortlessly he deflected it all while continuing to stay immersed in the taijutsu dance with shikimaru.

"Dammit, I should have known better" I mumbled under my breath. We weren't dealing with regular shinobi, these were akatskui members. I k new Neji and Shikimaru didnt plan on fighting to the death. We just needed enough to get out of here alive.

I noticed it then. I counted five Akatskui members in the initial ambush and yet I only seen four and I couldn't sense a fifth chakra signature. Where was the fifth member? I desperately searched for any sign of a fifth akataskui member, my efforts were cut off by searing hot pain in my right shoulder. Neji and Shikimaru's heads snapped in my direction of my blood curdling cry.

"Sakura!" Neji and Shikimaru yelled collectively.

My cries of pain allowed enough time for the akastkui to seize the opportunity that Neji and Shikimaru were distracted. One member sent Shikimaru flying back into a tree trunk with a chakra infused kick to the chest, while the other sent two kunai flying straight into each of shikamru's legs.

Waves of nausea flooded through me sending my body thrusting forward on the forest floor. The searing hot pain in my shoulder was almost unbearable.

I slowly lifted my head to see who my attacker was... jade met crimson.

"Rasengan!" Naruto and his shadow clones all yelled out in unison as they leaped toward the akatskui shadow clones, diminishing them all one by one.

"I think that was the last of them Kakashi Sensai" Naruto panted between breaths.

"I dont sense anymore chakara signatures" he responded while removing his chidori from the last clones chest.

"We have to hurry and catch up with Neji and the others, they may have been ambushed as well. Lets get a move on." Kakashi ordered as he disappeared into the trees; Naruto following behind.

"Kakashi sensai...why are we moving so fast?" Naruto grunted as he pushed off of a tree branch, struggling to keep up.

"I have a bad feeling about all of this" he explained.

"Naruto...why would the akatskui bother sending in a group of shadow clones to attack when they could have ambushed us themselves.? Didn't you find it odd that the shadow clones were specifically using taijutsu only? There had to be at least 50 shadow clones but you and I easily took all of them down. Their objective was not to kill us, it was to distract us. "

"From what?" Naruto asked.

Before Kakashi could respond they were both stopped dead in their tracks by a blood curdling cry of pain.

"That sounded like Sakura!" Naruto yelled as he and Kakashi picked up speed heading towards the sound of her cries.

Another shriek filled the surrounding forest

"Sakura! Sakura hold on we're coming!" Naruto leapt down from the trees, Kakashi following behind.

Student and Sensai both froze at the sight in front of them.

"I...Itachi...Uchia?" Naruto growled.