Sakura in full Bloom
Lightning and thunder rampaged the sky. The sounds of battle echoed everywhere.
The bodies of the injured scattered the ground, but still the two best friends kept on fighting.
And one girl sat there tears streaming down her face in a state of shock.
They were her teammates, her best friends but they were fighting each other. One ready to kill and the other trying to save the first.
Sakura sat there not knowing what to do. They had always protected her. All she was, was a weakling who couldn't do anything right. How was she supposed to stop them? Her knowledge was immense. She knew everything there was to know about being a Ninja. Yet she couldn't do a thing in true battle. It was just brain knowledge not strength.
Her friends had always had the courage to carry on. Ready to die to save those they cared about and their determination so strong it kept them going when they should have been lying on the floor dead.
And now they all were dead, well practically. They were severely injured and could not move a muscle anymore, no one on the battlefield could.
Each of them had been willing to give up their lives to stop Sakura's two best friends. Her two team mates.
But they didn't realise it. They didn't know what was going on around them. They were in their own little bubble fighting over something pointless.
As she looked around her at all the damage that had been caused and then again at her two best friends Sakura made up her mind. She two would do anything to stop them. Even if it meant giving up her life!
They had always been the ones to protect her. Always getting in the way when someone attacked her, still fighting on to protect her even when they were half dead.
Now it was her turn. Her turn to prove that she was a powerful ninja. Her turn to put her life on the line for them.
If they wouldn't listen to the truth she'd make them listen. Make them understand what they had done. Make them look at all the damage they had caused.
She knew they thought of each other as brothers. That neither would be able to survive the pain they would feel if the other died.
Sasuke had lost his entire family and Sakura understood that he was afraid to admit how strong the bond was between him and Naruto. Afraid that if he cared again then he would just feel the same pain again when Naruto died.
And Anna understood the pain Naruto felt. The pain in his heart because Sasuke wouldn't understand, and the lingering pain of when he was hated. She understood that Naruto was now living only to bring Sam home. Only to save him.
It was true that she had not suffered as they had; it was true she had not experienced a life of bitter loneliness as they had but, she felt their pain too. After 3 years she had felt the pain of losing loved ones, she knew what it was to suffer in the heart.
They were like her own brothers and she knew that their deaths would be like stab wounds in her heart.
At that moment Sakura knew if the only way to make them see what they had done was to die herself, then that was what she was prepared to do.
With tears running down her face Sakura shouted to her two best friends, "Stop! Both of you just stop!"
And they did for a short while to see what she had to say. "Don't you see what you're doing; can't you tell what you're becoming, won't you understand what your hearts are telling you? Each of you thinks of the other as a brother. You work so well together and you'd die before you let the other face death. Everyone saw this when you thought Haku and his ice mirrors in our first mission. Sauske you jumped right in to save Naruto that time, we all thought you really were dead. Naruto, when you thought Garra you gained ultimate strength because you could not let us die. Even when you could not move anymore you were still fighting to protect us. Both of you are in the wrong here, both of you have lost your way. Sasuke you are so caught up in a revenge that doesn't even make sense that you have forgotten what's important. Naruto you want to save him so much that you are willing to kill him. But how is that going to help anyone, when you give up your dream and die with him? The village needs you, both of you. Sasuke you want revenge against the village but they didn't even know what was going on, the few who did are already dead. Plus, your brother did it more for you than the village, because he didn't want you to grow up in a war ridden world as he had. Your revenge doesn't even make sense anymore! If you want revenge then you should place the blame on Madara, he started this whole chain of events. You two are fighting each other because you're afraid of losing each other, of being alone again. But you're attacks are becoming more and more violent. If you don't stop you're both going to kill each other! And I couldn't live through that. I have been trained as a medical ninja, to take death head on. But you are like brothers too me to. Each of your deaths would be like a stab wound in my heart. Just look around you, at all the damage that has been caused by this battle. All our friends have been injured, some incurably, trying to stop you, trying to protect you. You two have a bond that can never be severed even through death, no matter how much you try to do so Sasuke. You're connected in a way nobody else is. You two are rivals, yes. But even truer than that you are brothers. You understand each other in a way nobody else ever has or ever will. You've suffered the same pain and felt the same hatred. You're strength and determination to carry on even when you're half dead comes from the love you hold within your hearts to protect those you care for, not the hatred for the one attacking. You would do anything for each other and you so blatantly seek each other's approval. Please, I beg of you, don't let your fear of losing each other be the very thing that causes you to. Please stop before this ends in tragedy!"
Sakura's tears were flowing so fast now she could say no more. Only hope she had gotten through to them.
Sasuke and Naruto looked at each other. Then they used their strongest jutsu, completely ignoring what Sakura had said because they were afraid to admit what lied in the deepest parts of their hearts.
They rushed at each other knowing this would be the final attack. Knowing the battle would end here.
But they had no idea of knowing the outcome of their last attack, until it hit.
Sakura rushed towards them screaming at the top of her voice, "Please, STOP!"
She rushed right into the middle, Right where the two attacks met.
And they hit her head on.
And her body fell to the ground in what seemed like slow motion.
And though they were so quiet they should have been inaudible, in the complete silence her last words echoed around the crater that had been made.
"Please, Stop!"
And her body clattered to the ground. Her arm stretched out towards the friends she tried to stop. Her face a plea for their battle to end.
The two brothers collapsed to the ground. What had they done?
There was blood gushing like a waterfall from the whole they had made in her abdomenem.
Sakura's face was a mask of pain as she rolled over onto her back, moaning.
Sasuke and Naruto looked up, hoping against hope that she was alive.
They could see that she was trying to heal herself but was failing as she was so weak.
The two boys were terrified, what should they do?
At that moment Ino came dragging her broken leg behind her. She was covered in bruises and panting heavily, obviously at had taken a lot of energy just to cross the short distance from where she lay to them.
Hinata, TenTen and Temari were hot on her heels. They were also extremely bruised and Hinata looked like she had dislocated her shoulder.
"Hinata, tell me her full condition, now" Ino snapped. Hinata used her Byakugan to do so.
Meanwhile Temari and TenTen grabbed medical supplies for Ino to do her work.
Ino winced in pain as she lowered herself to the ground to do her work.
She placed her hands over the gaping hole and immediately a blue light started emanating from her hands. She moved her glowing hands to the places Hinata directed her, trying to heal all the damage.
Once she was done she took the sewing needle and thread from Temari's hand and started to sew up the hole.
An ear-splitting scream that woke every unconscious person pierced the air. It came from Sakura. Her eyes were wide open in agony as Ino continued to sew.
The boys were horrified; if that was the pain she felt from the needle, what must it have been like to have a hole gouged out of her. They were so regretful now that it was pitiful.
Ino was growing paler and paler the more she worked to heal Sakura. It was hours before she finished the last touch of bandaging her. This was after she healed tendons and regenerated new cells and organs for the half dead girl.
As soon as she was done she turned to the boys and shouted, "What are you? Idiots? She warned you didn't she, of a tragedy? I pity you, I really do. Reflect on what you've done because our Sakura just bloomed to save your butts!"
After that she fainted, with TenTen and Temari catching her.
Everyone was up and slowly making their way to the group by then. Sasuke and Naruto took one look at each other and then bowed to everyone gathered to ask for forgiveness.
The people smiled, knowing that their friends had returned to them finally. Life would move on in a happier way from here on out, as they worked together to take down Madara!
It was a month later when Sakura finally woke up.
Both Sasuke and Naruto were by her bedside when she opened her eyes. She smiled softly, happy to know they weren't dead.
When they saw her open her eyes they both immediately started to ask forgiveness.
Sakura just smiled; to her there was nothing to forgive.
Another month passed before she could leave the hospital, and everyday Sasuke and Naruto were there to make sure she healed okay.
Everyone had healed up just fine and Sakura was the last to be released. She had got off with the worst injuries and if it hadn't been for Ino she would have died.
She walked slowly back to her house, all the while smiling softly as Sasuke and Naruto chatted about nothing important.
She remembered what Ino had said when she came to visit. The village was now thinking of her as the Sakura who bloomed after her courageous acts. She was reminded of this as she passed some kids playing a game they were calling Sakura Blooming. They were fighting over who got to play her and this made her happy. Apparently she was a hero as she had stopped Sasuke and Naruto from destroying everything.
Of course she didn't think she had done anything special, she just wanted to save their lives.
All this happiness did not make her forget though; Madara still had to be stopped.
But for now she was happy, she had her friends back and everything was peaceful.
It was spring and she felt like a Sakura in full bloom!