Hey everyone! this is the Sequel of "A Silent Promise" and i hope that you will enjoy it!

I do not own Naruto

Another mission nearing its end…

Sakura sighed as she sat on the bank of the river, taking off her sandals. When she dipped her feet into the cool water, she let out a small moan of satisfaction and relief. It was a simple C-rank mission, escorting the son of a feudal lord who barely reaches 3 years of age and until now; the mission has been running smoothly…well, if you don't count the constant crying of the kid that has been driving the boys in her team insane.

"Ugh! I can't take this anymore!" Naruto screamed as he gripped his hair angrily.

The young boy, Hiroku, seemed to be frightened from the dark and no amount of soothing coming from Kakashi could calm him down. Sasuke was leaning against a tree, his eyes closed, although one cannot help but notice the slight twitching of his eyebrows. Kakashi was rubbing his head, puzzled by the strange behavior of Hiroku and trying to find a plan to make him calm down or else an enemy can locate their position any second now. Naruto…well, let's say that his sensitive hearing is both a blessing AND a curse. Sakura has finally has enough of all this and silently made her way to Hiroku to calm him down. Once she made her presence known to everyone, the boy seemed to quiet down and look at her with a tearful face. She smiled down at him and ruffled his brown hair, staring at him with gentle, warm eyes.

"Hiroku-chan, please be quiet. Once you sleep, time will pass by faster and you will be able to see your parents very soon. That's what you want right?"

Her gentle, soothing voice managed to calm down the boy, if only a little, surprising her teammates. She took his small, fragile hand and led him to his own blanket. She started stroking his hair, singing a soft lullaby that instantly made Hiroku relaxed.

Hush now, my baby
Be still love, don't cry
Sleep like you're rocked by the stream
Sleep and remember
My lullaby
And I'll be with you when you dream

Naruto was looking at her with wide eyes, astonished by her soft, tender voice. As for Sasuke, his motionless stance did not change, but one can see that his tense form slightly drooped, listening to the lullaby Sakura's mother used to sing for her when she was a child. It brought back memories he never wanted to remember.

Drift on a river
That flows through my arms
Drift as I'm singing to you
I see you smiling
So peaceful and calm
And holding you, I'm smiling, too
Here in my arms
Safe from all harm
Holding you, I'm smiling, too

Kakashi casted a small smile. Sakura was the best at this job and he let out a sigh of relief when the child's wails were reduced to mere whimpers and small sobs. He signaled to Sasuke that he would be scouting the area and keeping watch. When he was sure that his student received his signal, he disappeared, leaving trails of leaves behind.

Hush now, my baby
Be still love, don't cry
Sleep like you're rocked by the stream
Sleep and remember
My lullaby
And I'll be with you when you dream

Sakura finished the song and glanced at Hiroku nestling on her lap. She gave out a sigh of relief as she scooting him into his blanket and covered him well. She went to get her own blanket to doze off, since she hasn't had any decent sleep for over 3 days now. Once she glanced at her teammates, she directly knew that something was wrong. Naruto was trying to ignore them and Sasuke was staring at the fire intently and absentmindedly, as if he was engaged in deep thinking.

Huh!?

She didn't get it. What happened? Deciding to shrug it off, she muttered a good night to both her teammates and huddled into her thick warm blanket. The problem was…nobody wished her a good night back…

Emerald eyes drooped to a darker shade as she couldn't sleep the whole night.

Did I do something wrong?

The mission ended the next day, since Team 7 woke up extra early before waking the boy from his deep slumber. Kakashi stayed with the feudal Lord to finish an S-Rank mission and told them to continue on their way to Konoha. When Team 7 were strolling through the thick forest, Sakura noticed that Naruto was unusually silent.

When the hours of darkness came, Sakura went to collect some fallen branches for the fire while her boys went to hunt for some fish that would fill their growling stomach. It was a huge relief to be alone for a few minutes after that thick, heavy tension and Sakura was thankful. This would give her some time to reminisce back and find out what did she do to make her boys act so strangely.

Sometime later, a frustrated looking pink-haired kunoichi arrived at the clearing in the forest where she found her teammates working on the fish. She didn't say a single word to them as she readied the fire for Sasuke. Later, Sakura couldn't take the silence anymore. She knew exactly the reason why Naruto and Sasuke were trying to avoid her and once she made sure her temper was in control, she stood up, grabbing both the boys' attention.

"What!?" she yelled before wincing inwardly. So much for being patient her inner Sakura replied.

"Is it me? Is it because I have parents that I am considered different than you?" she couldn't help it. Her voice was getting higher and she didn't give a damn if an enemy found their location.

"I'm sorry for being born in a normal family ok? Ever since I joined your team, I always wanted to blend in and try to understand what you feel every single day of your life. And DON'T--" she raised a single hand towards Sasuke's side and cut him off "tell me I could never know how you feel CAUSE I KNOW I COULD NEVER!" she lay on the ground, really upset and exhausted from all the thinking and trying to get into a conclusion.

"I am your teammate! You're both my boys! And I…I…" she looked at both their shocked faces with tearful eyes "I just…love you both so much"

Naruto's eyes widened as he looked at her with disbelief. Did his Sakura-chan just say that she loved him? That couldn't be true…could it? Sasuke just stared at her with his emotionless onyx eyes, but Sakura knew Sasuke for far too long to know that he was affected by her speech.

"I just…can't stand it. I can't stand the idea that you are both so far away from me! I can't stand the idea of being an outsider anymore" she ended her statement with a shrug and left the clearing to contemplate on what she just said. They've been on a team together for a whole year now and the only people getting closer on this team were Naruto and Sasuke. Even Kakashi has been training them more than her. It's just not fair.

Sakura didn't know how much time has passed with her roaming around the forest. Of course, she kept her guards up for any enemies nearby. When she finally settled for sitting on a small cliff, she sighed. After trying so hard to gain back her friendship with her teammates, she just had to lose her temper and blurt everything out, putting her efforts into the dustbin. She held her bleeding fist she used to punch down several trees and winced when she touched the tender area. She didn't even feel like healing herself because she was too miserable to do so.

I'm such an idiot. I could never understand what they are going through.

Two familiar figures then decided to sit by her side, making Sakura startled and confused. Without another word shared, Sasuke held Sakura's bleeding fist gently and sighed, but stayed silent as he took out some bandages and tended to her wound. Sakura just stared at him, bewildered and was about to ask them the reason for their presence until…

"I lived all my life hated by the people of my own village" Naruto's voice rang through the chilling air, making Sakura just simply…stare. "I used to hate everyone because I believed they had no reason to treat me like I am some dirt. The first one who ever treated me like a person was Iruka-sensei…"

That was how the night passed; with Naruto filling in the silence with what went on with his life and Sakura listening attentively, almost forgetting that Sasuke was tending to her wounds. Her eyes glittered with hope and determination to make his life worth living it. After what seemed like minutes, when it was in fact hours, Naruto finished his story and stared at Sakura with a small, sad grin. Sakura couldn't help but place a soothing hand on his head and rub it softly, afraid that he might shatter just any moment after what he's gone through.

"5 years ago—"they heard a voice to their right say, making them turn around to the source "—my entire clan was wiped out by my very own brother, Uchiha Itachi. He killed everyone but me because he wanted to know his potential" Sasuke spat, but his eyes soon softened when he looked at the two people who somehow managed to make everyday worthwhile. He looked up at the stars and reminisce his past, but this time, with his teammates. After he finished his story, he looked at both of them with calm onyx eyes before looking back at the stars.

Sakura couldn't help but smile. This was everything she ever wanted, sitting with her boys and just plain talking. She gazed at the stars and whispered to them "No matter how dark the night is, dawn will always be on the way" At that time, dawn arrived and the sun started rising right in front of them. It felt as though the sun was able to brighten up their path and warm their frozen hearts.

The very next day, team 7 finally arrived to Konohagaru, each carrying an aura of peace and relief. Sakura walked in the middle of her two boys, satisfied and filled with happiness. Step one of the phase has been successful. She was able to break their tough barrier and learn about so much from each of them. She will work hard to pull them out of the darkness they have been forced to fall in in their years. They are her most precious people and she would sacrifice every piece of herself to keep the light inside them, no matter how small or weak it may be.

No matter how dark the night is, dawn will always be on the way… yes…Sakura believes that with all her heart.

Well. There it is. Thank you for whoever read this story.

I will be awaiting any of your reviews.