Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

SasuSaku Festival 2017; Day 2

Prompt: Insecurity

A/N: Heh, I had a lot of fun write this one-shot. As soon as I saw the prompt, this scene from Naruto came to my mind. For those of you wondering: this is Chapter 36 (manga) or episode 21 (anime). I twisted the event a little, but the general idea is the same.

Insecurity and Reassurance

This was supposed to be a happy day. One in which she'd be enthusiastic about and give her best.

This was supposed to be an important day. One that would make her powerful and excited.

It was supposed… but it was not.

Despite the warm sun and the clear skies, Sakura felt like crap. Though, it might have been the understatement of the year. She hadn't slept all night, and the dark circles under her eyes stood proof to that. She leant on the wall. Her body shook violently, and a panful whine escaped her throat. Tears gathered in her eyes, and she hated herself for them. She kneeled on the wooden floor. Lately, this was all she could do.

She was sick of feeling so weak. Even Sasuke had told her that she should try more.

She punched the floor in frustration, and her hand hurt like hell. At this point, she didn't care. Sakura Haruno wanted to crawl back in the back and never see the light again. She was quite the optimistic one, but she couldn't bring herself to smile today.

Maybe I should simply stay home today, she pondered. Sasuke and Naruto will manage without me. The thought made her hear clench. They were both insanely strong. In comparison to them, she was a burden to the team. Sakura groaned. She didn't want to participate in the Chuunin exam this year.

So what if she would wait for it a little more? Like a few years…

She didn't feel ready. Sniffing, she wiped away her tears. The Kunoichi risked a glance in the mirror. She looked pathetic. For once, she couldn't bring herself to care about her appearance. When she looked in the mirror, it wasn't the blood-red eyes that bothered them, not the unruly hair. Not a single detail that made her looks ugly. What disturbed her were the thin and fragile arms, the bruised hand from a single punch, the wobbly feet.

I won't go. I won't go. She repeated, eying the closet.

Sasuke's face came into her mind, and his harsh words cut her open again.

"If you have time to bother after me, you'd better train instead.

He considered her a weakling. The urge to scream out in pain was overwhelming. Sasuke Uchiha was one of the very best he'd never be interested in someone like her. She laughed ironically. And all this time she thought it would be her forehead that would keep him at bay.

Naruto's face appeared in her mind, and his contagious smile almost touched her. He wasn't such a bad guy. In fact, he'd been nothing but sweet to her. Sakura didn't reciprocate his feelings, but she realised that she might have been a little bit too brutal with him.

Finally, her sensei's masked face made itself known in her mind. She imagined he'd be disappointed if she didn't show up. Although he had said the exam wasn't obligatory, she was under the impression that he had faith in her. Kakashi had praised her for the chakra control and was seemingly impressed with their team work.

How she wished she'd share his opinion!

She wanted this to only be in her head, but, in truth, she was intelligent enough to know it was the reality.

"Aa," she exhaled noisily. She bit her lips, eyes still locked on the closed.

Am I making the right decision?

Sasuke closed his eyes, his face still composed. He tried not to appear nervous, but the idiot next to him made the mission quite difficult. The fact that it was an important day in his advancement as a shinobi and his sensei hadn't bothered to appear yet was also unnerving.

There was so much shit he could take.

He might not have appeared like it, but he was excited about this stage. He wanted to have the have the opportunity to fight against that guy from the Sand, Gaara. He was a strong fellow, and the Uchiha orphan wanted to test his forces against a tough opponent. If he planned on fighting Itachi, he had to seek powerful opponents.

"Sakura-chan, you late!" Naruto shouted. This caught Sasuke's attention.

Sakura approached them, the reminiscence of a smile on her lips. She waved at them and saluted both of them. He murmured a response while frowning.

What's up with her?

She acted strange, not like her usual self. He knew that he didn't look like she granted her any attention, but she was his teammate, and as it seemed his number one supporter. Her clingy and persuasive attitude bothered him at times, but he was also… grateful. It was hard to explain, and not even he knew why he felt like this.

He remembered, all of a sudden, the last mission they had had together. He thought he'd die, that day. Although his dream of killing his brother was strong, it was her voice that reached him while falling in the darkness. The realisation of this kept him a few nights awake until he dismissed it as unimportant.

But as she stood there, shoulder slumped and sparkle lost from the green eyes, Sasuke felt the need to… comfort her somehow, to cheer her up. It was odd, to say at least. The first one had become a foreign notion to him since he lived on his own, and the second one wasn't something he was good at.

She fidgeted, but Naruto didn't seem to observe.

Kakashi appeared, murmuring his usual old excused. Sasuke's onyx eyes shifted their focus.

"Yo, sorry I'm late. I got lost on the path of life."

Naruto snorted, Sakura kept quiet, and Sasuke closed his eyes for a brief second. He had to keep his cool; he knew that.

"Glad to see you're all here. This means you can enter the Chuunin exam."

"What? But I thought you said it…" His teammate's reaction startled Sasuke. Had Sakura thought about backing off?

"Well, yeah. Because I didn't want any if you to feel pressured, but only teams of three can enter the exam.

Sakura gulped and Sasuke's eyes narrowed. The movement had been fast, but the Uchiha boy didn't need his Sharingan to be activated to know what he'd seen was true.

Is she afraid? He remembered that he put her down lots of times. Guilt crept into his soul. He had the best intention, back then. He wanted her to be strong for the team, for herself. Maybe I was too harsh?

Living alone made one forget the importance of patient and encouragement.

As they entered the Academy, he took the lead. This insecurity of hers was idiotic in his view. She was a smart girl with some potential. He admired her intelligence and chakra control, as well as her capacity to dispel Genjutsu. There was room for improvement, but it was the same for all of them.

Without even concentrating, he could hear her steps. Her pace tried to conceal her anxiety and uncertainty, but he observed that she seemed to slow down with every step.

They reached the third floor, to guard in front of the door. They wouldn't let anyone pass. They explained their reasoning with smug smirks. Sasuke clicked his tongue. To think they could fool a Sharingan user like this, it was ridiculous. Then, his thought to the depressed pinkette on his team.

I will wipe away your worries, Sakura.

"You will let me pass through," his voice was calm and collected as if he wasn't afraid to start a battle with someone with a higher rank than his as if he hadn't just seen them punch someone already. "And also, remove this surrounding created with Genjutsu."

One of the guards mumbled.

"Sakura, you must have noticed first, right?"

She came back to her senses and looked at him dumbfounded. She had been so lost in thoughts and drown into a depression that she hardly noticed what was going on around her. All she could see were strong shinobis waiting to finish her off. She didn't stand a chance.

Sasuke turned to her, and if she hadn't known better, she could've sworn that he was smiling.

"Your analytical ability and Genjutsu know-how is the most improved in our team."

Her heart warmed instantly. He saw right through her, but instead of being annoyed, she was grateful. This was his way of helping her out, of telling her she shouldn't worry because she could handle herself more or less, that she had a role in the team and she wasn't a burden.

Dare she look further, she would've said it was his way of showing he cared for her.

Sasuke-kun… Thank you.

A soft blush coloured her cheeks. Her eyes looked determined once more, sparkle returned to them. For once since she entered the building, people looked at her. Her composer straightened. She didn't appear like a small, frightened girl anymore.

"Of course, I noticed a while ago. Because this is the second floor."

The corner of Sasuke lip curled up. His black hair covered his eyes, so know what could see his expression. Otherwise, they would have observed that his eyes were full of pride of him as well as her.

You're welcome.