Run. Run. Run. Faster. Don't get caught,Sakura thought.

Her feet made splashing sounds against the wet concrete, alerting her pursuers of her presence. She had no idea why these older girls were chasing her; usually it was only the group of academy girls in her class. However, today was different because when she had last looked over her shoulder there had been at least four academy graduates with forehead protectors chasing after her.

There, she thought, behind the dango stand there's a hole in the fence I can use to escape.

She flung herself around the corner only to find that her escape route had recently been patched. Her breath quickened when she heard the steps stop behind her.

"Hey, forehead girl! My sister Ami said you pushed her over yesterday for no reason. You gotta pay for making her favorite dress dirty," the obvious leader of the group yelled.

"I-I… she-she was the one," Sakura tried to get out. She hadn't wanted to hurt anyone, but Ami and her friends had pushed her down yesterday and started kicking her because she had talked to Sasuke. She had just wanted the pain to stop and had started kicking out with her legs.

The group of girls stepped closer and Sakura's knees gave out in fear. After all, she thought, if Ami and her friends can hurt me imagine what a graduate can do. She scrambled backwards awkwardly until her back hit the fence.

Ami's sister and her friends laughed, "She's so scared and there isn't even any killing intent."

"Your sister was right," another girl tittered, "She really doesn't deserve to be a ninja."

"I am a shinobi," Sakura squeaked out through her fear.

The girls looked at her then sneered as if her appearance disgusted them and Sakura curled into a ball.

"No sweetheart, you're just at girl whose forehead is too big to be able to find herself a civilian husband."

Ami's sister laughed nastily. "Oh good one Fuki, but you know," she started slyly, "She may be good for one thing."

Fuki held her hand to her mouth in false surprise, "Really? You think she can be useful as something?"

She took out a kunai, "Target practice."

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the sting of steel and the thwack of the kunai hitting the fence behind her or worse the thwack of the kunai hitting her. Fortunately for Sakura the sounds she expected never occurred. Instead there was the ring of steel against steel and the clatter of kunai to the ground.

"What do yall think you're doing?! You're shinobi, you're meant to protect the weak not bully them. Four gennins against an academy student," a scoff, "How shameful."

"Look lady!" Ami's sister started. There was a soft swish of something being thrown and then, "You cut my face."

"Get out of here girlie, there's no place in the shinobi world for cowards like you."

Sakura couldn't tell what happened next, but soon there was the sound of four pairs of retreating footsteps.

Sakura peaked through her lashes at her savior. The woman had black hair and mesh body suit covered by a trench coat with her forehead protector proudly displayed. One fist was raised in the air and shaking at the receding girls her other holding a bag of dango.

"That's right ya pipsqueaks you better run!" she called out then did an about face to look at Sakura.

Sakura flinched. The woman sighed and moved to crouch in front of her. She pulled napkin out of her bag and began to wipe dirty water from Sakura's face then handed her a stick of her precious dango.

"Here. What's your name kid?"

Sakura held the dango stick between her forefinger and thumb keeping it far from her as if it was poisonous and looked at the woman with distrust. "Sakura Haruno, ma'am."

"Anko Mitarashi." Anko pushed herself up to stand, "Next time something like that happens try not to go to a secluded place. Pick someplace busy and find an adult, kay?"

Sakura nodded mechanically.

"Good," the older woman turned on heel and began walking away.

Sakura scrambled after her savior, this was her chance to become strong, "Wait onee-san! Please teach me!"

Her savior looked over her shoulder confused, "Eh?"

"Please teach me to be strong like you. I don't want to be a weak anymore, please," the young girl begged.

"Look kid, I know I was all nice and gave you dango and stuff, but trust me I'm no sensei."

"But you're strong. You made those girls go away," Sakura pleaded.

Anko sighed, "I'm definitely not role model material, kid. In fact if my colleagues ever saw me with a kid they'd probably restrain me for fear I was corrupting young ones."

Sakura bowed deeply, her entire face towards the ground, "Please teach me."

"Fine! Get up, you're freaking me out."

Sakura got up.

"Good. Now if you want me to be you're teacher, then you're going to have to do whatever I say."

Sakura nodded.

"Ask no questions, train till you can't feel your limbs, train till your limbs are on fire, get me dango, do my paper work and most importantly," she paused for dramatic effect, "you'll have to meet my boss, Ibiki Morino, head of Torture and Interrogation. Can you accept?"

Sakura stood unflinching. She was determined to change herself, today's run in had shown her that even though her grades at the academy were good Ami's sister had been right: she was no shinobi, "Yes, Anko-Sensei."

"Good! Now eat that dango," she caught Sakura's confused expression, "Eating that dango is agreeing to my terms. Like a contract." She watched the young girl bite viciously into the dumplings and smiled. "Call me Anko. Don't call me sensei, I am not that old. No chan or san either."

She started walking and smiled when Sakura followed her without prompting. When I'm done with you, Blossom, you're going to be just as dark as me.