All her life, Haruno Sakura never had a goal. She went to the Academy because her parents told her too. She studied because she wanted her parents to be proud. She became a kunoichi because that was what people told her to do.

Sakura knew what she wanted to do in the future. Become a ninja- a job with prestige and high pension- get married, have a child, and die happy. She wanted to live normally. She was happy when her allowance came in, she was grumpy when her makeup didn't feel on point. She lived day to day with vague thoughts about future.

Then she became a Team with Naruto and Sasuke. Team 7, the Trouble Magnet as Kakashi-sensei called them, was indeed in constant trouble. The last Uchiha and Jinchuuriki in her team assured it so.

If she was honest, she felt a bit miffed. The teammates were so special with a main-character like backstory. They had such a clear goal: Sasuke wanting to avenge his family and Naruto wanting to become a Hokage. Standing next to them, Sakura felt like a washed-out figure. She didn't have a kekkai genkai like Sasuke, she didn't have some "god-mode" cheat power like Naruto, she didn't have… swagger like Kakashi-sensei.

Looking at the very extra teammates, Sakura felt her worst trait rear its ugly head. Competitiveness. The trait that spilt her friendship with Ino, her once best friend. Looking at Naruto, once the bottom of the class becoming a better ninja than her made her mad. Not because Naruto was becoming better, but because Sakura wasn't becoming better like him. Sasuke and Naruto was growing in monstrous rates, but Sakura felt stagnant.

Contrary to what some people assumed, Sakura wasn't stupid. She could tell there was a clear difference of class in Sasuke and her skill level. She could clearly see when Naruto got serious, he was miles above her.

But you know what? She was Haruno Sakura. She was the first in Team 7 to complete tree walking. She was the one with most control of her chakra.

It was an easy road from there. "Kakashi-sensei, what's the best job using chakra control?" "A medic-nin, I suppose."

Medic-nin. It reminded her of Haku with his healing balms and herbs. She wondered If she would ever be as good as Haku in healing. She remembered how good Haku was at his needles, deadly accurate with keen understanding of the human body which even fooled Kakashi-sensei of Zabuza's death. Becoming like Haku seemed interesting, as if she was honouring his death. It was hard to forget Haku's peaceful and happy face as he came between Kakashi-sensei and Zabuza and the feeling of cold realization to see someone dead. Feeling the nagging sensation wondering if Haku could've been alive if Sakura was just a little faster, just a little stronger.

And that was why she was standing in the medicine section of the library, signing out books about basic anatomy and healing jutsu.

With a flash of her ninja ID card, she was on her way home, juggling the dozen books. Walking home, Sakura tried to think the last time she did something this voluntary.

It was a sobering thought to realise that this was the first time she checked out of book because she wanted to. Back when she attended the academy, she visited the library frequently checking out books for references. But ever since she became the official ninja of Konoha, the thoughts of library have fallen out of her head, replaced by death drills of Kakashi-sensei and stopping the two boys in her team from killing each other.

She was so caught up with following the boys, doing what they were doing that she didn't even consider doing the thing she most excelled at. Reading books, memorizing and studying.

Wow that sounds boring.

Why couldn't she be cool like Sasuke and her best trait to be amazing red eyes and fire breathing techniques? Why did her strength had to lie on studying and chakra control? Sakura lamented while opening the familiar front door.

"I'm home." She called out.

Her mother came around the corner wearing an apron. "Dinner's just about to be ready, set the cutle- Sakura what are all those books?"

Sakura smiled at her. "I'm going to become a medic-nin."