AN: This is going to be a short story and I won't guarantee a happy ending but knowing myself, I'd probably give it one. This fic is more serious than the one I'm currently writing, 'Keeping It Low', which would probably take a long time to finish. Some people, like Sasuke, may be a bit OOC and I will put in two OCs in this story. If you do not like a depressed Sakura or a Sasuke that secretly loves Sakrua then don't read lol. Sakura's generation at this time is 16. Itachi is 21 but he won't be in the story until later.

Introduction

"Wow, you're nothing like your sister. You should work more with your taijutsu." one of them said.

"Yeah, even my little sister can beat you." another snickered.

"You should be nice like Saki and stop ignoring people." one stated.

"Wow, your sister is so much prettier than you are. What a large forehead!" two teens gave each other a high five.

Sakura just kept quiet and tried to quell the rage within. Every single day they would compare her to her twin sister, Saki. Either because of how skillful she was, how pretty she looked, and even her posture; they wouldn't leave her alone.

Saki got all the attention. So what if she didn't have her curves, her techniques, her strength. Sakura was Sakura, Suki was Suki. But that didn't stop their complaints and comparisons so Sakura learned to just keep it in and be quiet. She learned to ignore the taunts and to do her own thing.

Her sister had it all; the spotlight, the looks, the skill. And Sakura? Sure, she had exotic pink hair but so did her sister. She had the top grades but her sister always managed to be a point ahead. She trained under the Hokage but so did her sister, and she got more fame than she ever did. Sakrua had a great figure but Saki's was better. The only thing she had was her perfect chakra control but her sister's had her own powerful jutsus, making her more formidable. So what did she have that was better than her sister?

Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Even if she was a doctor at the age of 15, all the other people her age went to her sister and some don't even acknowledge her.

'Just like Sasuke-kun.' she thought dejectedly.

She looked up only to see Sasuke jog up to her sister and give her a small smirk. She saw her sister smile in reply and together they walked over to Sakura's house.

'You promised. You said that you would be with Itachi and that I can be with Sasuke.' Sakura thought bitterly.

"Ne, ne, Sakura-chan! I'm gonna marry Itachi and you're gonna marry Sasuke and we'll be together forever!"

The memory was still fresh in Sakura's mind and she was just a child. She had not known better so she just smiled and believed. She would not know that only a couple years later, her live would go downhill.

Sakura Haruno was only 16 and already living a miserable life. With no friends, no love, and no family, she walked on, not wanting to go home yet.

'Mom and dad talk to her all the time. They never ask me anything and it's as if I'm not even there.'

The lonliness and offensive comments were getting to her, so she started to do things that no girl should do at her age.

She walked all the way to the Hokage monument and sat down, knowing that no one would be there. She took out her pack of cigarettes and started smoking. She also took out her beer and drank. She hid it in the 'grocery bag' from when she was shopping earlier. This was a routine and she always brought perfume and mints to hide it. Today, however, she decided she would stop and not bother to clean herself up.

'Not like they would care.' she thought resentfully.

"A girl like you shouldn't be smoking. You're too young." She heard a deep voice from behind. She turned calmly without a care; she didn't care about anything anymore nowadays. She recognized the Akatsuki attire but made no move. She looked at him blankly before turning back. The boy was mildly surprised that she hadn't screamed but then, he had been watching her and figured that she didn't give a shit anymore.

"They shouldn't treat you like that." He said softly before sitting next to her. "Everyone is their own person."

"Doesn't matter, it's gone too deep. They wouldn't care if I died at all." Sakura stated emotionlessly, looking at the smoke rise in the air.

"You don't deserve this, no one does."

"Why are you here?"

"Why haven't you alerted the guards?"

"Cause I don't give a shit about this village anymore. No one is here for me, so I won't be here for them."

"Point taken."

"What do you want?" she asked questioningly. "Usually Akatsuki would kill silently or make a huge commotion. Which is it?"

He kept quiet before saying, "None."

She stared at him and he let out a nervous laugh.

"Well, I have been watching you for a while. No one notices your true potential and they just shut you down."

"Get to the point."

"I saw that you are capable of being one of the strongest ninja alive so I asked our leader if I could recruit you. He trusted me enough to accept."

Sakura looked at him in shock, her mouth slightly open.

"Well, you see. You have so much potential and it's being wasted here." he started and waved his hand at the village. "No one here truly knows what you're capable of, and we can change that."

"That's true, and it's a really tempting offer." He looked at her in surprise and she looked at him with her expressionless eyes.

"Give me two years and I'll leave. I'll give this stupid village a chance. If not, I'm gone." Sakura stated. "But knowing them, things would probably be the same."

He looked at her before smiling. He took out his hand and she shook it.

"Deal." She looked at him a bit nervously before asking, "In the meantime, do you think you can train me for the two years? I want to give them a big surprise before I leave."

He looked at her in shock yet again and took her can of beer away, taking a sip. He gave her a smirk.

"Sure thing."

She glared at him before taking the cup back.

"Thank you."

They sat in silence before he gave her a questioning glance and she asked what was wrong.

"Do you love that Uchiha kid?" Sakura froze at this. She froze and let out a shaky breath. This topic had always been sensitive.

"How can I not? I have a feeling that I will always love him." she managed out. "But if he gets in the way, I won't hesitate to kill him because with the two years chance I'm giving the village, I'm also giving him."

"Okay." He smiled at her. "I don't want you to think I'm putting moves on you; I do have a girl back at HQ."

They both laughed at this and finished the beer. After a while, Sakura felt comfortable with him and they talked about anything. That night, Sakura felt like she gained a friend that would last for her entire life.

Later, Sakura saw that it was midnight and bed him goodbye. He waved before disappearing in a puff of smoke and she started her walk towards 'home'.

'Che. Probably won't care that I smell like shit.' she thought bitterly.

'They won't ever care. Never in a million years.'