Disclaimer: We do not own Naruto, just here for the fun of writing about our favorite pairing.

Summary: Sakura has been kicked out of schools so many times for bad behaviour. But it wasn't her fault. The emotions she could feel were not hers. She was able to feel other people's feelings, which inturn, causes her to act for them. For her senior year, she finds herself in a new school, yet again. One more fight, and she would be officially kicked out of the school system.

Ten years later, at the age of 28, Sakura is one of the best lawyers out there, having put many criminals away. Her empathic powers helped her discern who was guilty and who was innocent. Now, forced to work with the police department on a critical case, Sakura meets her old classmate, Sasuke. It was his fault that she had been kicked out school for the final time. The anger he held inside him boiled inside her. She hated him.

Pairing: Sasuke and Sakura

Rating: T+

The Empath

By Tikanis and DreamDevourer

Chapter One

Please, understand. They're not my feelings

Sakura stared outside the window, it was snowing. She loved the snow. It was so calming and beautiful. Her gaze moved left of the window, following the stacks of bookshelves that lined the four corner room. Artwork hung on the walls in between bookshelves. Some were paintings of animals, others of landscapes, some of people she had no idea who they were. There were two white sofas in the room: one she was sitting on, the other her parents occupied. On a black sofa chair sat the supposed psychologist.

"She can't go on like this," her mother continued. "She's only eight years old and she's been kicked out of two schools for fighting with her classmates. The teachers say she has a lot of aggression in her, which I don't understand since she has everything a little girl could ever ask for."

Sakura sat there, with her hands underneath her bottom and her legs crossed at the ankles. Her parents presumed she was crazy, that's why they brought her to see the shrink. But she knew she wasn't crazy. She didn't start those fights on purpose. One of the kids was being bullied during school recess and suddenly she felt anger in her, anger that she couldn't control along with fear. The two kids involved were fully grown fifth graders, so compared to them, she was tiny. That didn't stop her from tackling the bully onto the cement ground and continuously punching him in his face.

She really didn't want to do it. She knew what she was doing was terribly wrong. But the feeling wasn't hers. The crowd amongst her was cheering her on, while others were panicking, and the anger from the bully only added to the boiling pot of her emotions. Suddenly she was pulled off him, and she was still kicking and screaming when they dragged her to the principal's office. It took well over an hour for those feelings to escape her.

That was the first fight; the second was similar to the first, but at a different school.

She tried to explain to her parents that it wasn't her fault, she couldn't control it. Her parents looked scared and confused. She was their only child. They assumed they spoiled her so much when she was a baby that her tantrums now were the after effect.

"Huh?" Sakura mumbled, finally coming to her senses that the shrink was talking to her.

"And how do you feel about what your parents are saying?"

Sakura shrugged as she looked at the shrink's perfect posture. Her hair was perfectly tied back in a bun, her blue blouse fit her body nicely, and her shoes were dark blue and scruff free. Yeah, the shrink looked perfect. She probably had perfect handwriting and a perfect life too. She had no idea what Sakura was dealing with. She wouldn't understand.

Sakura, herself, didn't quite understand what's wrong with herself, but she knew that people like her teachers, her parents, and this perfect shrink would never understand her. They would simply label her crazy and put her away in some mental hospital, at least that's what one of her classmates said to her. "You belong locked up in some mental hospital where all the insane people go!" the sister of the boy she beat up had yelled at her.

"Sakura, honey, please answer her," her father pleaded. Sakura liked her father the most. His feelings were quite simple, and they would appear one at a time, usually he was indifferent to a lot of things, so Sakura found some solitude in staying in his office as he did his work. Unlike her mother who was an emotional wreck, but she guessed all artists were annoyingly emotional.

She shrugged again.

"You see what I mean?" her mother said, as she wiped her eyes with a tissue her father handed to her. "If only she would talk to us, so we can fix whatever problem she has."

The phone at the desk rang, and the shrink apologized for the disturbance and quickly murmured something into the phone and hung up.

Ah, now Sakura knew where that tiny bit of anger was coming from. She assumed it was from her parents. But now she understood that her parents were just worried and sad: it was the shrink. When Sakura had first walked into the office, the shrink had been on the phone and had looked a bit unnerved. She had felt something, but it wasn't strong enough to identify the source.

The weird feeling was slowly building up inside Sakura. Please, not now, she begged. The last thing she wanted to do was appear crazy in front of a person that had the power to put her in a mental hospital. Her father was a lawyer though, so he wouldn't allow that, right? Sadly, no amount of begging was going to stop the emotional buildup.

She wondered how this perfect shrink could have such anger inside her. Being so young, Sakura knew she wasn't aware of feelings outside of anger and happiness and sadness. When she comes across new people, immediately their feelings are categorized into those three, because that's all she was fully aware of. Unfortunately for her, the people she comes across always end up under the anger column.

The phone rang again, and the shrink's emotions were crawling underneath Sakura's skin. She bit down on her bottom lip and held her hands in a tight clasp on her lap.

The ringing stopped, and the shrink apologized once more, her perfect look was starting to fade. Her parents looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

The third time the phone rang, Sakura snapped. She ran to the phone and answered before the shrink could.

"What don't you understand, you son of a bitch!?" Sakura yelled into the phone. "You're a cheating bastard and I want nothing to do with you! One more time you call me and I will call the police!" She was out of breath as she tossed the phone across the room. It smashed against the bookcase.

The shrink gasped in shock. She held her hand to her mouth, startled.

Sakura looked to her parents. Her mother was in a fit of tears and her father stared at her in amazement. Sakura fell down to her knees and started crying. "Please don't send me away, please," she begged the shrink. "I didn't mean it, I really didn't. I couldn't help it. You were so angry and…and it made me angry. Please, I don't want to go to a mental place. I'll be good, I promise. Please, please!"

Suddenly, Sakura felt two arms around her. No one, other than her father, ever embraced her after her tantrums. But this perfect looking shrink did. "It's okay, sweetie, it's okay. There's nothing wrong with you, you're going to be alright."

Nine years later, Sakura was looking through her window and watched as her mother placed her luggage in the trunk of her car. Her father stood off to the side, hands in his pockets. Her mother gave him a hug goodbye, but he didn't return it.

An hour later, Sakura was still by the window, but her mother was long gone. She knew it was her fault her mother left.

The shrink couldn't find a psychological problem with Sakura. She wasn't bipolar, she wasn't schizophrenic, nor did she have any other spilt personality disorders. She was just a girl whom had too much empathy for the people around her. The shrink said it wasn't a set theory, but there were people out in the world, who have the capability to feel what the people around them felt.

Sure, normal people were empathic to others, but some chosen few had ten times more empathy. Children had a stronger feeling of empathy than adults, and by the age of ten, they start to lose those strong feelings, but there were children, like Sakura, whom instead of having less of that feeling, they get more of it.

So yes, in the years past, Sakura's emotional state had gotten worse, not better. It wasn't just the anger this time; it was the sadness that sent her into a fit of tears in the middle of class, it was the happiness that would make her laugh and cause a disturbance, it was the jealously that she felt and would cause her to trip a girl down the stairs at school. None of them were her feelings, though. At this point, she wasn't sure if she had any feelings of her own.

She didn't have any friends. She was labeled as a creep or a loser amongst her peers. Even her teachers didn't much care for her. How could they, when she would randomly curse at them in class?

Sakura was sure, that when she had tripped that girl down the stairs, she would definitely be locked away. But her father was now a renowned judge in court, and he had friends in high places, so he was able to keep his daughter out of the clutches of the doctors.

"Sakura, dinner is ready!" She heard her father yell from the bottom of the stairs. She sighed as she pushed herself from the window and went down stairs.

She immediately embraced her father from behind. "I'm so sorry, Daddy," she murmured against his back. Her father turned off the stove and turned around.

"Ah, Sakura, don't worry your pretty little head about it," he said as he placed two plates on the counter.

Sakura felt the sadness coming from her father. She knew he was trying to appear happy for her, but he couldn't hide his true emotions.

"I'm trying, Daddy, I really am. I'm trying to stay away from people and not cause trouble, and I always have my music on so I don't pay attention to anyone else. I honestly don't do it on purpose! " she said. Her father wiped a tear from her cheek.

"I know, sweetheart. It's not your fault about your mother leaving. She just wants to go on another path and I won't stop her. She will be happy elsewhere and I will be happy here with you."

"Do you really mean it, Daddy? Because I would understand, really, I would understand if you don't want me anymore either."

Her father gave her a warm hug and patted her head. "Munchkin, I know you are worried and scared, but just know, that you are my daughter and I love you."

Sakura smiled lightly, knowing full well her father was telling the truth.

"Now, let's eat up before dinner gets cold."

Halfway done with dinner, her father cleared his throat. "Sakura, I was thinking…"

"Yes, Daddy?"

"Well, how would you feel about moving to a different town? Hmm? Summer is coming to an end, and you will be starting your senior year in high school."

"But what about your job?" Sakura asked as she moved the rice from one side of her plate to the other, piece by piece with her fork. She was trying to understand what her father was feeling. He seemed sincere with his idea.

"I can easily get a court job in another town, sweetie. It's not a big deal. I just feel it's best that you and I can start fresh this year. It's a new opportunity, what do you think?"

"Yeah, that sounds good," Sakura smiled at him. She wasn't too sure about the idea of going to a new town. It took her awhile to get used to the people in this place. Now she would have to get used to new people. But maybe it was a good idea. She can leave her troubles behind her and no one will know of her problems. She can be a normal girl, in a new town, well, at least she can try. "Definitely, a good idea." She added, more assuring.

Three weeks later, Sakura found herself in Konoha.

She had gone for a long afternoon run, and stopped to get some food at a diner near her home.

It was Friday evening, and the diner was packed with kids her age. Already, she was getting nervous as she took a seat towards the very back of the diner. These kids were all wild with their behavior. They were loud and obnoxious, which aggravated the workers, which in turn, aggravated her. She plugged the earphones in her ears and turned up the volume of her Ipod.

She breathed in and out, trying to ease her mind. She kept her mind focused on the music playing as she waited for a someone to serve her. Despite the loud music, she could still hear the bickering of some girls not too far from her. Her gaze went to the waitress that was serving the bratty group of girls.

Sakura narrowed her eyes at them. It seemed like the girls were taunting the young waitress. The dark-haired waitress walked away, nearly in tears. It's not your problem, Sakura, it's not your problem, she told herself. She was able to calm herself down, that is, until the same waitress came to serve her. Oh, no, not you. Stay away from me. But it was too late, the feelings already started inside her. It wasn't just sadness, but hatred as well. The hatred turned into evil thoughts and Sakura tried her best to keep them out of mind.

Focus on the music, focus on the music, she repeated in her head, helplessly. It didn't work. Her ears drowned out the music and her attention was solely on the waitress, whom was waiting for her order. "I'm not ready to order," Sakura blurted out, trying to get the waitress away from her. With a nod, the waitress walked to the counter, picked up a tray of smoothies and walked back to the group of girls.

They don't deserve any happiness. They were spoiled and mean and they shouldn't even be allowed to breathe. If only someone treated them the way they treated me, she thought. Over the years, Sakura was able to discern the difference between someone else's feelings and her own.

She knew those were not her emotions. They were simply brought on by the helpless waitress. And now, she would be the one to act on them. Please, no, she pleaded with some unknown power as she neared the group. Yet, no such power ever came to her aid, she would always find herself acting on other people's emotions.

Sakura grabbed the glass of smoothie and glared down at the girl that was seated at the edge of the booth. The girl had long blonde hair that was tied back in a ponytail, and her blue eyes were so bright.

"What do you want, freak?" the blonde blue-eyed girl asked with annoyance, and that did it. Sakura raised the glass over her head and tipped it over. The strawberry smoothie poured down her face and the girl shrieked.

"Bitch," Sakura said as she slammed the glass on the table and walked off, leaving the waitress and the group of girls in complete shock.

"You fucking bitch!" the girl yelled from her seat. "You will pay for this!"

Sakura urged herself to ignore her as she walked towards the exit. A group of guys in football jacket stood by the door, all snickering and pointing at the blonde girl. They turned their attention to her.

"Yo, Sasuke, she totally just dumped a drink on your girlfriend, what are you going to do about it?" one of the guys teased.

The guy, by the name of Sasuke, stood in front of the exit door, blocking her way. His hands were in his pockets. He looked so emotionless, it surprised her.

"Move," Sakura demanded and shoved the door open. Her arm had briefly scrapped against his forearm, but the small touch left her breathless. All that anger and upset had been clearly wiped from her system. Suddenly, she felt at peace and calm. Not sparing him another look, she ran out.

Sasuke and his friends had just walked into the diner when they saw the girl with pink hair pour a drink over his girlfriend's head. The first thought that came to his mind was: why on earth did the girl have pink hair. The second thought was: who the hell was the girl with the pink hair? The third thought was: damn, now I have to deal with a raging mad girlfriend.

She walked towards them, her hands were clenched into fists and her lips were pressed into a thin. Her body language showed that she was angry, but then her eyes told of a different story. Her emerald eyes held fear. The girl sure was confusing.

Sasuke ignored his friend's comment about his girlfriend and moved aside for the girl to open the door. He watched through the glass door as she ran off onto the street.

To be continued...

On the next chapter...

Sakura tried her best to evade the crowd of crazy teenagers. There was a fight in the middle of the hallway, which was blocking her from going to her class. God, if you really are out there, and if you really care for me, just a tiny bit, then please, please, I beg you, keep me away from this fight, she pleaded as she held her books tightly against her chest. She was feeling the emotions in the air. The adrenaline rushed through her body as the crowd cheered on. She wanted to walk away, but her body was being pulled towards the center of all of this chaos. She dropped her books onto the ground and pushed through the circle.

Just as she made it to the front, her arm was tugged. Confused as to whom would grab her, much less touch her, she turned around to meet the person. Her eyes met his dark ones, and suddenly, it felt like her world was spinning. The agression was leaving her system.

"Stay away from that, it could get dangerous. You better go wait somewhere else until this dies down," Sasuke said. She found herself nodding and following him. "Wait here," he ordered and returned back to the crowd.

Ah! We greatly appreciate you took the time to read! This story will not be a highschool theme. After a few more chapters, they will be adults and have careers.

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