A/N: Welcome! Since, this is a prologue it is quite short. But it's just a taste and backstory of what is to come. :)
Prologue
The day Sasuke left had obviously broken Sakura. The effects were immediate like a sledgehammer breaking a window. It was clear and the pain had obvious and clear source, betrayal. The day Naruto left was a small crack in the glass. As if a pebble had been flicked into her. It's easy to brush off a small chip, especially when it is clearly overshadowed by shattered glass everywhere. The thing about small chips is that under the right amount of pressure, they spider. Such as the pressure of unmeasurable loneliness. And then suddenly, at a time far from the initial incident there is shattered glass everywhere.
The shattering happened as Sakura trained in a field midday. Tsunade, naturally, was busy and unable to attend to her training. After nearly six months of training, Sakura was best left to her own devices anyway. She knew her goals and what her next accomplishments should be. And accomplish she did.
Her fist collided with the ground and for the first time of many, the entire training field shattered. Trees uprooted and the creatures which lived below scurried out and into the depths of the woods. And Sakura collapsed, presumably of exhaustion and cried, presumably of joy. After all, that's what a person does when they accomplish a goal they had been working toward for months.
Alas, it was not of exhaustion and certainly not joy. It was of grief and terrible realization. It was not as if she and Kakashi spoke often. The man had become recluse on a several solo-missions. Tsunade was on a diplomatic journey and was always too busy for idle chatter. And Ino was in the middle of training for T&I, not to be heard from for nearly three weeks. Not that Ino bothered to talk with her anyway lately, Sakura was considered too depressing.
And god knows Naruto and Sasuke were miles and miles away. Refining their skills, maybe even battling each other. Maybe happily having dinner together. Who knows because Sasuke had left her on a bench in the middle of the night and Naruto never bothered to write. And she was so dreadfully alone that the urge to vomit was growing.
Sakura shut her eyes and coughed out the last few sobs and squeezed the last few tears free. She watched them land on her skirt and she stared out at the ground broken in front of her. This was her breaking point and, she resolved, her starting point. She wasn't going to be an average kunoichi. She was already a damn good medic, and was undergoing diplomat training.
Those were lovely, and dainty. And expected of a kunoichi. But, poisons were not. Poisoning and shattering earth was not expected of pink-haired young woman.
That evening she admitted her application for ANBU. And in the months it would take it get considered, she would hone her poison skills because by god she was going to be anything, but average
A/N: So I started this because Sakura was done an awful disservice in canon. There are moments where she shines, yes, but alas she is often pummeled and shafted. I also think her reaction to being left behind by her teammates was unnatural and that's how this was born. It's AU, obviously. It will differ greatly from canon, as you'll see in the next chapters.
Again, it's a prologue so it's quite short. But, it gives you a taste so let me know what you think! Also, possibly wanting a beta for this story, so if you liked it enough and would like it beta for me, let me know!
Reviews are greatly appreciated! Thank you for reading!
