At night she would dream of tomorrow. In the morning she wakes, go about her routine, and tries to shrug of a nagging feeling of déjà vu. At least, she tries... up until she crashes onto a quite boy with a wan smile, heralding a life of secrets, court politics, unnecessary distant relations, and a chance to end everything before it starts.
Here's to timetravel of a different sort. Somewhat AU
Edited: March 20. 2014
"Yuck! My mouth is rotting!"
"So today we'll be creating three-man teams and each team will have a Jounin sensei." "
You have a large charming forehead. Makes me want to kiss it."
"Naruto doesn't have parents. He's all alone. Lucky. No one tells him off so he likes to be brash like that. If I ever act like he does my mother would ground me for a month! He can do whatever he wants."
"All alone. The feeling of having parents angry at you…it's no where near that."
"I'm not getting involved in any of this."
"Like a Jounin would fall for that kind of trick."
"Hmm…how can I say this? My first impression of you? I don't like you guys."
RIIIIIIIIIING!
Soft morning glow filtered through curtains illuminating a plain but well kept room. No tools were littered. No drawers were ajar. The occupant still snuggled under covers hoping to banish the rest of the day away.
It took a screeching ring for an alarm clock to rouse the young girl from under the covers. Eyes, still shying away from the creeping light, blinked as images from the night faded back into the well of time. The land that is present was calling.
The alarm rang again. Yep. Land of the Living. Calling: NOW.
Sakura got up from bed and went about her morning absolutions. She was on auto pilot: underwear, dark tights, cheongsam, holster to the left -no, the right. Sandals. Where were her sandals?
The dream she woke from was distracting her. Snatches of conversations and events that were quickly slipping away from her conscious mind. Try as she might, the tide of sensations that had accompanied the moon in her sleep was receding. What little she can catch were disjointed voices and flashes of color; a few images were still clear at least. There was a brilliant sunset from atop one of the gardens overlooked by the Jounin headquarters. A masked man and a lot of waiting. Precious goals and ambitions. Sasuke. A kiss? On a bench, was it? No. It was in the classroom. Naruto and…oh. Team selections!
Excitement wove through Sakura's veins. The elation rushed her though a quick breakfast of eggs and toast much to her mother's bemusement.
"Dear Shodai, you better get along with your gennin cell with that expectant look on your face," Mebuki said with a sigh.
"I'm sure we will." Sakura smiled over her food as thoughts of smutty orange books, sunny blonde hair and dark brooding scowls ran around in her head.
As soon as she was out the door, Sakura took in her surroundings with an inexplicable glee.
Outside the bustling village of Konoha was beginning to stir. The smell of baked bread from a nearby shop wafted at her nose. A morning call from a lark greeted the sun's first rays. An easy momentum was starting to take hold of the street. Vendors opened shop, women lined for the day's wares and sales. Men came and went about to work. A head of blond hair was sashaying over-
"FOREHEAD GIRL!"
Ino-pig. Sakura tried to hold on her quickly rising temper. Could she not have walked to school in peace? Last time, they'd end up sniping and trying to one up the other all the way to the academy, earning stares and startling civilians. So childish…wait.
Last time, the budding blonde bombshell was parading her ninjutsu skills in the creative and selective use of henge. Ino had most of the girls in class fawning over her hair as it changed into several colours of neon and was nowhere near a verbal spat with the rosette. Minus a jab at Sakura's precious pink.
Now where did that previous thought even come from? Sakura paused. Several retorts immediately perished at the tip of her tongue. The next thing she knew, Ino was front and centre poking her;
"Oi, forehead. You better snap out of it, or I'll bag Sasuke-kun first kiss before you know it!" And with that she skipped in triumphant glee leaving Sakura stumped and still collecting composure.
Whati
"Hey, pig!" Sakura ran after the quickly disappearing blonde. Two corners out and Ino had already blended with the morning crowd.
Like hell she's going to get there first! I intend to be Sasuke-kun's first kiss! Instinctively, Sakura went for a higher vantage point to see her rival's progress. She leapt off a few crates and on to a store's sign board. She soon found the Yamanaka's tell tale ponytail and set off after the girl from the roofs.
Cha! I'll catch up with you in no time, pig.
Sakura ducked, rolled and ran over tiles, clothing lines, hanging gardens and decorative terraces. Wind swept across her face. The movement calmed her and sent her mind back to the curious dream she had earlier.
More feelings of excitement and surprise rushed in. Her team. They were going to be the best, she was sure of it! She, Naruto and Sasuke were going to live up to a legacy that was the-wait, Naruto? The orphan boy had nearly cause a village-wide manhunt after defacing the Hokage monument the other day! And Sasuke-kun… thinking about the dark haired prodigy did not bring in the usual flush and flutter. Instead, a strange weight crawled down her throat and settled in her chest.
Perplexity soon caught on. Why was she feeling like this?
Sasuke was top of the class. He's of the Uchiha clan. Even girls from the upper years would flock over and giggle at him. Teachers commended him. The Boys always sought to challenge him. Sasuke, in conclusion, is a source of pride and admiration of their class. There is nothing to worry about. There is nothing to be concerned of. Save perhaps Ino getting his attention. That unpleasant image banished all prior musings from Sakura. Ino had run off to Sasuke. She needed to catch up.
It wasn't until she was in the middle on a particularly long jump in between a balcony and a water shed that Sakura had realized what exactly it was her body was doing. Her brain had been so absorbed elsewhere. Kami, she was roof hopping! The thought short-circuited the rest of her system; she had never actually done this before!
"AAAAAAAHHH!"
There was a resounding crash. The moment of hesitation had sent her cantering off the side of a water tank she was supposed to land on. Sakura fell on the hard concrete the tank stood on before rolling onto a ledge that insufficiently guarded the rest of the roof. Her momentum, however, had been too fast to be stopped by the low wall and she soon found herself getting a wonderful view of the street from five stories up.
Shit!
Hands grabbed hold of the edge she was about to roll off from. Chakra flooded her arms as she tried to steady and pull herself up. Sending chakra to her feet, Sakura managed to righten her body and step back onto the roof with a relieved sigh.
What in the world just happened?
The rosette groaned in pain. She tried to get up but was forced right on her back. She took note of the bruising that was sure to crop up her arms and legs from the near fall she'd just had.
Once again she sent chakra through her limbs, this time intent to soothe the sore muscles as she rubbed her hands over them absentmindedly. What was going on with her? Her body had just run off without her thinking. Even now -Sakura took note of the flow of her chakra. Her pathways ran with a different kind of energy that was quickly diminishing her stores. But the skin on her forearms was lightening up and quickly turning black and blue, and then a pasty yellow. It was a process which normally takes a day or two without a slave to help.
Sakura had read on more than one occasion that medical ninja moulded their chakra in a different manner from the norm. The main thought process was to heal and build up. Much like how an elemental jutsu is executed by kniting chakra together with one's surroundings, the same process can be applied to the body but in an evasive manner. An acute knowledge of anatomy and physiology allows them to streamline their chakra through muscles and organs without damage, stimulating them into repair. Her right deltoid and triceps definitely took a blow. The tendons on her left arm were strained. Though at least she didn't have to worry about any concussions or fractures. Her psyche may be another matter altogether.
What was she thinking, going off like that? It was reckless and dangerous. Roof hoping was for shinobi!
And what do you think you are? Sakura thought to herself unimpressed.
Such recklessness will only impede her chances of survival in the field... let alone impress anyone outside of research and archiving. Would she rather take a desk job after all this? Would she be able to settle being a paper approved shinobi with hardly a glimpse of the world?
Would you have your team fail or die because you couldn't remove yourself from what is safe?
A bridge, mist and blood snuck into her consciousness. Patches of a broken dream.
"Argh! Stupid dream! Stupid Naruto. Stupid Sasuke. Stupid Kakashi -whoever he is!"
Sakura huffed and tried to reach a moment of clam. Or distraction.
Take it one step at a time. Today is today. Now is not the time to think about what ever her subconscious is throwing up at her. She made a quick survey of her surroundings and realized the building she had landed on was just across her destination.
And she was going to be late.
Ino would've already made it to class. The blond would be a total pain, gloating at Sakura, while surely claiming a seat next to Sasuke. It was with a defeated sigh that the rosette trudged down a nearby fire escape and walked through the halls of the academy.
Iruka had just left the faculty room when Sakura entered the classroom. The chuunin's face took a surprised expression at seeing the rosette from the end of the corridor.
Kami, she was late. LATE.
Sakura glanced balefully at Ino. The blonde held a smug smile on her face as she inclined her head to the boy beside her.
Everything felt out of place.
Sasuke for some reason seemed like the only person in his proper place. Naruto sat a row down and was glaring at the handsome boy behind him. He immediately spotted Sakura and waved a cheerful hello, motioning to the still empty seat beside him. Several other boys and girls were shuffled about in places. And they didn't look like they belong there. To Sakura at least. But why?
She was getting a headache.
Sakura politely acknowledged Naruto's greeting but moved to the opposite direction of the orange clad boy and picked a seat near the person least likely to take notice or disturb her; beside the lazy Nara.
Shikamaru, as the fates would have it, took the opportunity to prove her wrong. "You're not yourself today."
"Don't you dare start." She grumbled.
The early morning light illuminated dust particles surrounding the stale air inside the room. Figures moved about in a blur of line and colour. This was not supposed to happen. She was the one supposed to be sitting beside Sasuke-kun. Not Ino. Assertive and pretty Ino.
The pineapple head, at least, shrugged and went back to his nap despite their sensei following just behind Sakura. Iruka then began explaining about gennin team assignments. Sakura drifted off as teams were being called.
The familiarity of the situation had left stones at the pit of her stomach. Sakura reflected on the last hour. It had been a haze. Unreal. And felt so similar and different at the same time.
"Team 7…" The voice up front nearly caught Sakura's attention. But her eyes were still glassy. Transfixed and yet looking past what was before her. The girl mumbled the names of her team in time with her sensei. And then;
"Iruka-sensei! Why does an outstanding shinobi like me have to be in the same team as that prick over there?"
"Iruka-sensei! Why does an outstanding shinobi like me have to be in the same team as that prick over there?" Naruto burst out.
Unbeknownst to Sakura, her seatmate had snuck a glance at her startled expression, having clearly heard what she had unintentionally said.
In another time and place, war was being waged.
A/N: After nearly a decade lurking in this site... Ta-dah!
Well, here's to some manga spoilers on the 4th Shinobi War. I've just gone and twisted a few things to my convenience. Time-travel here isn't an easy excuse to re-do the series. There is a tale of woe behind the 'dreams of the future'... among other things. So please stick around.