The morning mist lay thick in the woods of the nearby village. Sakura hummed softly to herself as she lightly plucked several stems of lavender for the Konoha hospital. She shook the dew off the leaves before putting them in the basket beside her. The basket was full of herbs she had been gathering all morning. Tsunade had run low on many of the vital herbs of healing, as the hospital had been busy; with more high-rank missions coming into Konoha, there were more injuries and nins to heal. Even lower-ranked nins were being put on B-rank and A-rank missions. And Naruto was one of them.
Sakura smiled to herself as she thought about the blonde knucklehead. He had been gone for almost a month now. He had been sent with Neji, Ino, Kiba, Kakashi, and Jiraiya on a mission to track a wanted criminal. She would have liked to go as well, but she knew that they were in good hands with Ino around. Not only that, but with so many missions and nins returning with injuries, she was more needed here than with them.
It had been a long month, but they were due to come home tomorrow.
Sakura plucked another few stems of lavender then stood, stretching her arms. The morning mist was beginning to disperse, and the afternoon sun was starting to beat down on her. She knew that the activity back at the hospital would pick up as the day continued. And so, knowing that she would need to help out, she grabbed her basket and headed back to the village.
--
Throughout the day she worked diligently, healing the nins that came in; both the seriously injured, and those in fair health. She treated both patients with care and speed, working through her lunch break.
As the sun began to sink in the sky, the hospital started to calm down. This was usual, as many of the returning nins traveled, and therefore arrived, from morning to mid-afternoon.
Sakura leaned against the outside wall of the hospital, catching a breath of fresh air for the first time since the morning. She slid to the ground, raising her head to the darkening sky. She was exhausted and her stomach rumbled with hunger. She closed her eyes, letting her mind wander to Naruto.
She hadn't really ever realized how much she liked his company until he was gone. But she was happy to know that around noon the next day, he'd be back. Smiling, and laughing about things that never were really all that funny. But just to hear his voice…
"You miss him, don't you?" Sakura lifted her head and opened her eyes to see Tsunade standing beside her. Tsunade was studying the sunset, her hands on her hips. Slightly embarrassed being caught taking a break, Sakura smiled sheepishly.
"Yeah, but he'll be back tomorrow… It'll just be good to see him again." Tsunade's face seemed to fall for a second, but she quickly replaced it with a smile. "Why don't you take the rest of tonight off? You'll have another long day tomorrow, and you should be well-rested when he comes home."
"But-" Tsunade held up her hand. "Don't argue, just be thankful that you'll have time off tomorrow." Sakura nodded. "I'll meet him at the gates tomorrow."
Tsunade hesitated again before replying. "Alright Sakura-chan. Go home and get some rest. You'll need it." Sakura thanked Tsunade and disappeared into the hospital, before reappearing with her bag. Bidding her Sensei farewell, she left for her home, hoping to grab a bite to eat, and relax for the rest of the evening.
As she walked, she noticed clouds were beginning to build in the sky. The clouds, dark and ominous, were spreading across the clear night, blocking the view of the stars. A few times, Sakura caught a quick glimpse of the moon before it was blanketed again with the heavy rain clouds. She marveled at its blood-red coloration… wasn't it a bad omen?
She shook her head and unlocked the door to her apartment. There was no use letting a little superstition dampen her spirits. She greeted her mom and dad, closing the door behind her before locking it. Realizing how exhausted she was, Sakura trudged up the stairs to her room, dropping her bag on the floor as she entered. She flopped onto her bed, letting out a relieved sigh as she closed her eyes.
After a few moments of silence, she sat up and reached for a picture on her bedside table. She studied the three faces smiling at her (and the one trying to smile, but not quite achieving the look he was going for.) She ran her fingers over the cold glass, smiling lightly as she reached the blonde.
His cerulean blue eyes looked back at her with their normal gleam of excitement, while a goofy smile slapped on his face distorted the whisker birth marks that reached across his cheeks. She chuckled softly to herself then replaced the picture, picking up another one in its stead; the older one of Team 7.
In this one, Naruto was much younger, and his whisker marks were distorted by an angry sneer, glaring unhappily at the Uchiha that stood on the other side of Sakura.
You've changed so much, Naruto… Sakura blinked back tears. "And I…. I really like you…" Sakura spoke to herself in a soft voice. A growing rumble of thunder brought her back to her room. She stood, laying the picture on the bed behind her. Rain was now pattering lightly on the window pane, and Sakura headed down to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat.
--
The next morning, Sakura awoke to a loud alarm ringing obnoxiously in her ear. At first, she tried to block it out with her pillow, but the ringing still penetrated through the layers of feathers. Irritated, she reached over to her bedside table, smashing the clock until the ringing ceased abruptly.
Through sleep-blurred eyes, Sakura pushed herself off the warm mattress to look at the time. As the fog cleared from her mind, she rubbed her eyes, trying to think. Wasn't that her second alarm noise…? Which meant….
Sakura looked at the clock, then leapt out of bed, panicked. Tsunade would have her head! Quickly, she dressed and, running into the wall several times, stumbled into the kitchen, grabbing her lunch which she had packed the night before, and staggering to the front door. Sakura wrenched it open, then slammed it closed before she ran to the hospital, freezing as she saw Tsunade leaning next to the door, waiting for her pupil.
"Tsunade-sama, I'm sorry… I just…" Sakura tried to explain, her brain still fogged by sleep. "I just…" She paused, sighing. "I overslept." Tsunade smiled, letting out a small chuckle. "Don't worry about it. You've worked hard recently, so you deserve a rest." Sakura looked up in confusion at her sensei. Usually the Godaime would have punished her on the spot…. Why was she being so generous?
"Have you forgotten who's coming home today?" Sakura blinked. What was Tsunade talking about…. Oh! Sakura smiled, remembering the blonde knucklehead was due to arrive this afternoon.
Tsunade grinned and walked her into the hospital. "I'm letting you go at eleven today- Naruto and company will be arriving at about noon, so you'll have an hour before hand. I'll meet you by the gates, and we'll wait for Naruto. You're not the only one anxious to see him again."
The hours seemed to creep by as Sakura treated the patients that came to be healed, and business was slower than usual. However, it seemed to her that the cases coming in were more serious and life-threatening than before.
When the hour hand finally struck eleven and the clock chimed through Sakura's room, she threw off her gloves and smiled triumphantly. Though the day had gone on for what seemed like forever, she was finally done.
Quickly grabbing her bag, she dashed out of the hospital to go to her house- hoping to shower and get a snack for while she awaited his return. Sakura hurried down the main road until she reached her apartment. Unlocking the door, she dashed for the shower, stripping as she got into the bathroom.
After showering, she wrapped a towel around her body and dashed into her room, ripping her neatly folded clothes in her dresser searching for a nice outfit. She wanted to look good when he returned.
Finding a nice blue cotton shirt and khaki skirt to go along, Sakura rapidly dressed and flew down the stairs into the kitchen. She glanced at the clock mounted on the wall as she rummaged through the cabinets for a snack to bring along. She had fifteen minutes until he would come home.
Not being able to see in one of the higher cabinets, she reached and blindly felt for something, anything that would suffice. Her fingers barely touched a box, and she worked it closer to her, pulling it down. Granola bars. She reached in the box and found one left. It looked old, but Sakura, feeling her time limit shrugged and stashed it in her pocket. It would do. And, if she got food poisoning, she'd know what it was from.
Taking one last glance at the clock- five minutes- Sakura scooted out the door, dragging her bag behind her.
As she reached the gate, she found the two guards, Kotetsu and Izumo infatuated with a game of hangman. She came in mid-conversation.
"Ha! You'll never get it!" Teased Izumo, sticking his tongue out tauntingly at Kotetsu, who scratched his head. "Hold on… I'll figure it out…"
Sakura stared down the road that led out of the village- nobody was here yet. Sighing, she decided to keep herself amused by chatting with Izumo and Kotetsu. She wasn't all that fond of them- they were idiots, for one thing, and never really did what they were supposed to do. They were always either too engaged in a child's game, or were sleeping, depending on their mood.
Kotetsu and Izumo paid no mind to Sakura as she wandered over to their stand, studying the paper the two men were staring at.
"Kunoichi." She said flatly. The men looked up. "What?" Kotetsu questioned.
"The answer is Kunoichi." Izumo shot her an irritated glance, and Kotetsu's face lit up. "You're right!" Sakura rolled her eyes. "It wasn't that difficult… k-u-blank-blank-i-c-h-i. It was pretty much all written out." Kotetsu stuck his tongue out rudely. Izumo just leaned back in his chair. "So, what brings you here?"
"My friends are returning from a month-long mission. I decided I'd meet them when they came home."
"Oh, Naruto, right?" Izumo said, pulling a toothpick out and shoving it in his mouth. Sakura nodded and sighed.
"They're due here at about-"
"-At about one." Sakura jumped, turning to see her sensei standing right behind her. "Tsunade-sama!" The kunoichi smiled at her pupil and turned to the toe gate-guards. "You two goofing off as usual?"
The two men straightened up in their seats. "N-no Hokage-sama! Never!" Izumo shook his head. "Of course not!" Sakura covered a smile, and rolled her eyes again. They were such fools.
After a bit, things quieted down, and Sakura sat herself on the ground. It was past one, almost two, and there had been no sign of them. Tsunade began talking to her student, trying to distract Sakura's thoughts of them being late. It worked for a while, but by the time three rolled around, it was obvious Sakura's mind was not focused on the conversation.
Through worry-fogged eyes, Sakura looked up at Tsunade. "Do you think they're ok…?" Tsunade nodded "We would have heard something if not…. Wait!" Tsunade pointed to a group of dots, what looked like several nins trudging down the path in the distance.
"That's them!" Sakura leapt up excitedly and waved. None of them waved back. Guessing they just couldn't make her out, she waited happily until they drew near. However, she was too excited to wait any longer. She ran out the gates before either the gate guards or Tsunade could stop her, and met them halfway.
In front, Neji stood solemnly, and behind him Kiba and Akamaru, more subdued than normally. Kakashi stood in the back, keeping his eye on the path below him. And finally Sakura noticed Ino, in the back her pale blue eyes brimmed with tears.
"Hey guys!" None of them responded and Sakura studied their expressions. "What's wrong?" And upon noticing two of the members were missing, "Where are Jiraiya and Naruto?" Silence. Then finally, "We were ambushed." Neji looked at Sakura, who laughed nervously.
"What kind of trouble has Naruto gotten himself into now?" Ino couldn't take it anymore. She burst into tears, sobbing as Kiba wrapped his arms around her and muttered something into her ear.
"Where's Naruto?" Sakura demanded, taken aback by Ino's sudden outburst. Neji's eyes narrowed with sadness.
"Naruto's dead."
--
Tsunade watched as her pupil collapsed. Kakashi, having anticipated such a reaction was now squatting next to the hysterical kunoichi, trying to calm her. Tsunade eyed him suspiciously as she hurried over, and took Sakura's hand, squatting next to her.
She scanned the group. No Naruto. No Jiraiya. And then suddenly she knew, and she felt her stomach lurch. He… was dead.
--
Heya guys!
I need…..sleep…. Haha, it's now 3:02 AM. I should really go to bed.. XP I hop you guys like this story. I'm not going to post it until this afternoon, however. I'm currently posting the next installment of Resurrection. XP
Anyways, hope you guys enjoy the new story! Feedback is always welcomed- I can't improve without critique/comments! Hehe, thanks guys!
Inuluvr