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Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of Kishimoto Masashi.
Chapter One: Before the Light
The cool breeze was welcomed into the small room through the open windows, and so was the pale moonlight which reflected off of a framed picture, highlighting the expressions of the youngsters within.
The room's single occupant lay still under a thick cover that masked her subtle breathing. Her peaceful face was rimmed with petal pink hair that was also spread out on her soft pillow.
She was deeply immersed in her sleep, the result of a long day working at the hospital, and multiple training sessions.
It was then that a single owl's hoot broke the serene silence of the night- and it seemed as though Sakura's peaceful sleep was disturbed along with it. Of course it was the vivid images she now saw that caused her to stir, and not the owl. Her tranquil sleep was clearly disrupted- causing her smooth sleepy expression to become rippled with raw emotion.
Her body also began to react as she squirmed away from an unseen danger, thrashing her pink head from side to side. Next she tried to warn others lest the sinister evils she saw should spill out of her dream world into the real one. She moaned undecipherable words, followed by fearful screams. And then her small frame jolted awake; her slender chest heaving.
She should have begun to relax then, sitting up in her own bed. She should have only needed to survey her innocent surroundings to conclude that she had dreamt the horrors she had witnessed, meaning that she was now safe. But that was not what she did; instead her wide eyes remained fixed onto a targeted spot on the wall, or more specifically, beyond the wall.
These eyes made no attempt to conceal the terror that she was experiencing; her messy hair and the sweat that clung to her body served only to justify the horrified look in her eyes. She was frantically clutching her head with both hands, as if to contain the horrors within, as if to deter them.
As she could no longer scream, she simply swayed in muted pain. Tears spilled from her terrified green eyes as her haggard breathing laboured on.
In one jerky movement, she finally forced herself to look away from that menacing spot on the wall. Quickly, she surveyed her room before pulling herself towards the window. Expecting to see the early signs of dawn she was surprised to find the moon still watching over her.
She collapsed from her bed and, forcing herself into the corner between its base and the wall, she pulled her feet to her chest. Her damp, tangled pink hair covered the expression on her face.
"No."
She muttered it to herself, not managing anything else. Her heart ripped with fear and she knew with every breath she drew in, she drew with it her inevitable fate. She could not explain to anyone- no, no one would believe what she now knew. She herself could not rationalize it, even if her mind struggled to do so.
And that was why she did not go warn the others. But even if she had decided to, she knew that her legs would not allow her- her soul will not permit her the needed strength to get up. And though the back of her mind protested, that same subconscious that had been drilled with countless shinobi principles, no one would fault her for remaining there.
No one would blame her for being satisfied with simply chasing the ominous thoughts in her head. No. There was no plan forming there, just endless questions. Ones she could not answer.
And so she waited for the reality that she knew would engulf her very soon.
She waited for her own death.
A/N Thanks to Litrouke for editing!