DISCLAIMER:

Naruto is copyrighted to the creator, Masashi Kimimoto. This story is purely fan-made and is in no way associated with the anime company or the artist who created it.


I was starting to like this place more and more every day.

I was lying in an open grass field at the top of a hill, with delicate blue flowers growing sporadically across the open plane. From here I could see the walls of Konoha. Or at least I could, if I weren't lying down. But I was too comfortable in that lush green grass, and I don't think I could have sat up even if I had wanted to. The sun was shining brightly, and even though my eyes were closed, the sunshine still leaked in. The grass swayed slightly, being rocked delicately by the soft wind. The sun's rays continued to beat down on me though, keeping me warm despite the chilly autumn breeze.

The grass was tender and soft, like the delicate feathers in my pillow back home. In fact, I had even slept on this hilltop before. It was familiar now, but I remember the first time I found this place…

It was about a year ago… I was fourteen at the time. Call it young, call it whatever you want. But don't think for a second that I was too young to realize what was going on. I might not have understood the details, but I always understood this one thing; Mommy and Daddy were fighting. They started arguing when I was ten, but by the time I was fourteen it had escalated to crying, screaming, and sometimes even beating.

One night in particular, my father was upset… more upset than I had ever seen him.

"GOD DAMMIT I AM SICK AND TIRED OF THIS!" Even with the pillow over my head, I could still hear the screaming. I was lying in my bed, hiding under the covers with the lights off. To most kids, the darkness was a place to be feared. But not to me. In my eyes, the darkness was the only place I was safe; the only place where they couldn't find me; where I could just disappear and pretend that the sounds I heard weren't real. Slowly, tears started rolling down my cheeks. I knew I was too old for this. Fourteen year old kunoichi shouldn't be crying; they should be strong. But I just couldn't do it. I tried to hold the tears back, but they continued to fall, staining my chic pink pillowcase.

Crash A loud sound reached my ears, pulling me from my trance. It sounded like… the shattering of glass.

"You BITCH!" My father shouted, his voice quaking with anger. "Oh, now you're gonna pay…" Slow footsteps, weeping, and then; Thud. I didn't have to see it to know what was happening. My mother was being beaten.

I heard her wince as my father's foot collided with her ribcage, and then there was a sickening snap. She screamed.

Clutching my pillow for dear life, I sobbed uncontrollably, trying desperately to hold myself together. I could hear my mother weeping, and I could just picture the pleading look in her eyes. I buried my face in my pillow, trying to stifle my cries. I couldn't let him hear me…

Suddenly, my bedroom door flew open, and light flooded in. My father burst in, storming over to my bed. I held my breath, but it was too late. He had heard me. In one quick movement, he ripped the blankets from my bed, exposing the vulnerable girl hidden beneath them. I kept my head down, not daring to look him in the eyes.

"What are you crying about huh?" He demanded, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look him in the eyes. I tried to avert my gaze, but he wouldn't allow it. "HUH?!?" He screamed, inches from my ear.

In his other hand, he seized both of my wrists, holding them up in front of me. "STOP CRYING! STOP IT!" He roared, tossing my fragile body aside. My head collided with the wall, and for a moment, I couldn't see. I heard footsteps as my father left the room, and slowly my vision came back to me. Panic overwhelmed me, and I knew I had to get out. Carefully, I crawled to the edge of my bed and slowly placed my feet on the cold hard-wood floor, testing my balance. When I stood, the room before me spun a little, but that soon faded. Quietly, I tiptoed over to my window and lifted it up, providing a space just big enough for me to escape.

As soon as I was out the window, I took off, sprinting down the street. I didn't know where I was going, but it didn't really matter. I just had to get away. My house is only about a ten minute's walk from the gates of Konoha, and since I was running I made it there even faster. The guard men recognized me, and opened the gate, not bothering to ask where I was going at one o'clock in the morning.

Once outside of the city, I calmed down a little bit, slowing my pace to a slow walk. I was mentally and physically exhausted, and I needed a place to rest. Looking around, all I saw were dirty paths and dying brush, and my bare feet were already being cut open by various rocks and goat-heads. One path I saw looked particularly clean, so I decided it was as good as any.

The path ran uphill, which made it that much harder to keep going, but there weren't very many rocks which was good. I trudged up the hill for what seemed like an eternity, when suddenly, I was at the top. I couldn't believe my eyes.

It was a beautiful meadow, with wild, untamed grass growing at least a foot tall. Dainty blue flowers were growing artlessly around the field, adding a touch of color to the already glorious grassland. I smiled, unable to contain myself. In one fluid motion, I held out my arms horizontally, and just let myself fall back into the plush lawn. I was asleep before I hit the ground.

That was the first time I discovered my beautiful meadow, and since then, this field has been my refuge; my place of comfort. My "happy place."

So now, a year later, my parents are still fighting, but they're in counseling, so things are a lot better. The beatings are very rare now, which is nice. Still, I wish they would go away completely.

The sun was starting to get pretty high in the sky, and I groaned, knowing that I was supposed to go meet my team. I groaned because I had to leave my comfortable meadow, but despite that I was still pretty happy. Because meeting me team also met meeting... Sasuke.

To me, Sasuke was more than a crush; he was an obsession. I knew everything about him, and to make things even better, I was on his ninja squad! If there was anything to keep me going in the day, it was Sasuke.

So, not wanting to waste a minute, I jumped up and sprinted down the old hill, headed straight for the entrance to Konoha.

10 minutes later, I was standing on that oh-so-familiar bridge where Kakashi always met us. Due to my haste, I forgot to check my watch before coming here, and realized a little too late that I was about 20 minutes early. Sighing, I leaned lazily against the railing, staring up at the clouds. It was a very clear day, and there was only one tiny cloud in the sky. It was all alone as I watched it bravely cross the sky, slowly but surely.

"Hey Sakura!"

Startled, I jerked my head to where the sound came from. As I expected, I saw Naruto running over to me, waving. Relaxing a bit, I sighed, raising my hand up to wave back.

"Hi Naruto." I said as he neared, peeling myself off of the railing so I could stand up straight.

"So Sakura, how did you sleep last night?" Naruto inquired, trying to make conversation.

Any other girl would have been taken aback by Naruto's question, but I was used to it by now. It was no secret that Naruto had a crush on me, but I just didn't feel that way about him. Still, I tried to be friendly.

"Oh, good." I replied, averting my gaze. That wasn't entirely true. Last night, my mother and father had gotten into a fight again. This time, it ended in another bruise, which was why I had slept on the meadow once again. Instinctively, I reached for my shoulder where my skin was beginning to turn a deep purplish color.

Naruto might be annoying and he might be an idiot, but he's still a ninja, and he can tell when someone's lying.

"Sakura," he said quietly, voice full of concern. "What happened?"

God, I hate it when he gives me that look. No one knew about my abusive father, and I wasn't about to tell anyone now.

"Nothing Naruto. I'm fine." I said harshly, dropping my hand to my side. True, I tried to be friendly. But I couldn't be weak when it came to this subject. No one could know what my father did. I know it's wrong, but he was getting help, and it's nothing that concerns Naruto. Frankly, it's none of his business. On top of that, the last thing I wanted was for my team to be worrying about me and treating me like an injured puppy.

"Okay… Sakura…" He replied weakly, letting it drop.

An awkward silence followed, but I didn't really mind. As long as we weren't talking about last night, I was happy. I felt bad about being so harsh on Naruto, but I completely forgot about him as soon as I saw that one person approaching that could always put a smile on my face… Sasuke.

"Good morning Sasuke!" I called, waving enthusiastically.

As expected, he didn't reply, or even respond. He just continued walking that proud walk of his… that walk I loved. He was so confident… so sure of himself. It was exactly what I wanted to be.

When he reached the bridge, he nodded in my direction, and then to Naruto, acknowledging out presence, but not quite.

Surprisingly, we were only forced to wait a few minutes for Kakashi-sensei. I was glad too, because the silence was becoming unbearable. We were still Genin, so our missions were always somewhat easy. Apparently, today was a slow day, and we didn't have any missions. So instead, Kakashi decided to schedule some training.

…x…X…x…

After a grueling training session, Kakashi decided that we had worked hard enough for one day and dismissed us before disappearing to tend to duties of his own.

We all seemed to linger for a moment, and I took a deep breath before turning to face Sasuke.

"Hey Sasuke. Good job today." I said, trying to be positive.

"Hn." He mumbled, turning his back to me and walking away. For a moment, my face fell, but I plastered on another smile and waved to him, even though his back was turned.

"See you tomorrow Sasuke!" I called, still waving. This time he didn't even bother to respond.

Now that he was out of earshot, I sighed, turning slowly around and mentally preparing myself to return to that hell-hole I called home. But something was in my way. It was Naruto. Surprised, I looked up, meeting his troubled gaze. What was he still doing hanging out here? I thought he left…

"Sakura… are you sure you're okay?"

I was shocked. I never really expected this kind of behavior from Naruto. Had he always been so… compassionate? Shaking my head, I brought myself back to reality.

"Yes Naruto, I'm fine." I stated bluntly, pushing past him.

"Sakura wait!" He shouted, whipping around and seizing my shoulder.

The moment he grabbed my shoulder, a horrible pain ran through my body, centering on the point where he had touched me. I winced, gripping my shoulder harshly where he held it. He pulled his hand back, shock bleeding through his face. My breathing was strained, and my hands clutched at my shoulder, trying desperately to relieve the pain. Because when Naruto grabbed my shoulder, he grabbed the exact place where I had been bruised last night.

"S-Sakura?" he stuttered, unmistakable fear in his voice. "What happened to you?"

I was silent, unwilling to answer him.

"Sakura please…" he begged. "Just talk to me."

Still clutching my shoulder, I shook my head again and again, refusing to tell him anything. I didn't want him worrying about me. It wasn't his responsibility. And yet… he was my team mate. If I was going to tell anyone, it might as well be someone I was… close to, in a way. And suddenly, against my will, I began to cry.

Naruto, who was still behind me, carefully gripped my arms and turned me around to face him. Slowly, he placed his hand under my chin and lifted my head, bringing his gaze to mine.

"Sakura, what happened?" He asked, staring intently into my eyes, as if I was a book and he could read my entire life story through my eyes.

I lowered my gaze, unable to look him in the eyes.

"I'm sorry Naruto, but I just can't tell you." I whispered, sparing myself the pain of an explanation. "I just… can't."

With that I turned and ran; ran to the only place I could go, the only place I could feel comfort… my meadow.


Okay, I hope everyone enjoyed it! Please review, any feedback helps, good or bad. And I really love hearing from my readers!!

I'll try and update as soon as possible.

Much Luv, Suna.Tenma