A/N: So here's something for you all to enjoy. Please tell me what you think. Thank you.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto no no no. I am sad to say I don't even own the original idea. So no sue.
Warning: This is an AU. DIS IS A ONE-SHOT!
Enjoy may you please review. I love you all!
One Thousand Cherry Blossoms
underlined words - Sakura's inner thoughts telling the story
Slanted words - Sakura's inner voice
(Sakura's P.O.V)
On my 7th birthday, I had a dream. There was nothing really impressive about it. It was dark except for the spot light I was standing in. I wasn't alone strangely enough. A man dressed in an expensive suit appeared before me. It upset me that I couldn't see his face.
Bowing to me he pulled out a sheet of paper, and showed me how to make paper cherry blossoms. He reached his hand out to give it to me. He told me that if I made one thousand cherry blossoms ... My greatest wish would be granted.
I woke up to a heavy weight on my chest. Lifting my head I saw it was only my orange cat, 'Naruto'. Memories of my dream came back to me, and as I got up to walk to my desk next to my bed I spoke, "Come on, Naruto." pulling my chair out I sat down. "I want to show you something." Reaching into the draw I pulled out a sheet of paper some scissors and a pen. My cat jumped on my lap to watch. As I finished I placed it in an empty jar.
I didn't really believe in wishes, but I liked making the paper cherry blossoms. I decided to make one every time I felt sad, or lonely, or lost. And write down why I made that blossom. I still remember sitting in my bed crying and making them. I don't know why it help, but it did.
(Sakura age 10) :Normal P.O.V:
Sakura sat in the middle of her elementary schools court-yard. Pulling out her sandwich she looked around noticing she was the only one who sat alone. Two boys to her right were laughing and telling jokes. 'What's it like to tell a joke and laugh with someone?' she thought.
To her left a group of girls were whispering. Sakura could only make out parts of the conversation. "Pink ... Ugly ... Why is she here?" She knew what or who they were talking about though. As she looked down she felt warm tears fall down her cheeks.
She felt lonely, she made another cherry blossom.
(Sakura age 12) :Normal P.O.V:
Her assigned seat was in the back corner next to the window. As the teacher began roll call she ended up skipping her name, again. The sad thing is, Sakura was use to this, she kept track of it to pass the time.
When the teacher asked for everyone to do group projects, Sakura was always alone. The desk was set up in pairs, the seat next to her was always empty. Sakura made prefect scores, but even that wasn't enough to at least have others read her name.
She felt invisible, she made another cherry blossom.
(Sakura age 14) :Normal P.O.V:
Today was the day, today she'll at least say 'hi' to someone, anyone. Clutching her books she ran up to a group of people. Reaching her hand out to tap them on the shoulder she froze. Her hand stopped and the words she wanted so bad to say wouldn't come out.
So instead she stood still and watched them walk away. Clinging to her books tighter she cried. She knew she was standing in the middle of the hall crying her eyes out, but it didn't matter. People never saw her anyway.
She felt lost, she made another cherry blossom.
(Sakura age 16) :Normal P.O.V:
She sat at her desk without anything to do. No plans, nothing to do. Recently her parents got her a phone. Pulling it out she went to her contact list. She gave a hollow smile as she read what was on the screen. 'Empty ... Add New'
She felt alone, she made another cherry blossom.
(Sakura age 18) :Normal P.O.V:
Sakura sat on her bed holding back tears and failing. In her hand she had her jar of paper cherry blossoms. Under her breath she whispered painfully to her-self, "Happy birthday to me." It was suffocating. "Happy birthday to me."
Her head turned to her nightstand. On it was a cup cake holding a single lit candle, the only light in the room. A note laid next to it, "Happy 18th birthday sweetie! Working late, be home at 11. Love Mum." It said.
It wasn't the first time it happened she was use to it, but it still hurt. It was her last year living with the only two people who had at least a little looked at her.
She was sad, she made another cherry blossom.
(Sakura age 21) :Sakura's P.O.V:
I opened up the door to my balcony and placed the jar on the railing. Raising my hand up I began to make my last cherry blossom.
Then one night, I finally made one thousand cherry blossoms.
Feeling like I had accomplished something I held it up."What do you mean accomplished something?" a voice in my head asked me. I brought the jar down so it was in the front of my chest. "Do you know what it means? Do you know why you made these paper cherry blossoms?" I pulled the jar into a tight hug as meaning was beginning to sink in. Tears held at bay by my tightly closed eyes. "For every cherry blossom in there, for one thousand times in you life ... you were sad, or lonely, or lost." And I cried.
I couldn't stop these tears like the others. It seemed that crying was a habit of mine. The longer I cried the more I couldn't breath. But somewhere in my mind another voice more silent when it spoke told me, "Could it hurt to make a wish? I wouldn't hurt would it?" I began to swallow sobs as I paid attention to the new voice. "Make a wish." it said. And I did.
What happened next was a blur to me. The man from my dream stood in front of me. This time I was able to see his face, he was taller than me, black blueish hair that stuck up in the back. Onyx eyes that seemed endless. "Hello," his voice is smooth.
"I'm here to grant your wish." He reached a hand out, the same one that held the paper cherry blossom in my dream. "Come with me, and you can leave behind the life that makes you so unhappy."
I found my-self thinking back to what made me so unhappy. "You wish for a life where you are no longer alone, or sad..." Unwillingly those painful events that left wounds replayed in my head. "Or invisible. Is that not so?"
Thinking back on it I moved my head to say 'no'. Twisting my body to the side I held out a hand to lead him though the open balcony door and inside my apartment. As we made are way over I sat down on the couch and made room for him. We talked and somewhere along the way I ended up saying, "I don't want to run away from my problems. And I don't need a white knight to rescue me." I looked up at him seeing no need for me to continue he understood. Turning my head to look at the paper cherry blossoms, I finally realized what it's like to be happy.
All I ever wished for ... Was a friend.
THE END
A/N: Thank you for reading. I actually teared up writing this but that's just me. This is a one-shot.
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