Disclaimer: Naruto, its characters, and its plot belongs to Masashi Kishimoto. I in no way claim any of the characters or canon story, however the new plot this story revolves around solely belongs to me. This is not intended to be copyrighted in anyway, and is only for use of entertainment on fan fiction.

Title: The Crimson Blossom

Author: SakuraBlizzard20

This story should not contain any spoilers that will affect the actual canon storyline, this story is personally developed by me with added features out of personal desire. This story is rated M for romance, violence and sexual scenes, viewer discretion is advised.

A/N: Hey there! Now that we've got all that technical stuff out of the way, I'm going to share my first chapter of the new ItaSaku fanfic I will be working on (: It has been quite a while since I have written fan fiction, so im going to attempt to get back in the flow of it. Hang in there while I break back into the Naruto world and please review, they are truly appreciated. If you are further interested in this story after this chapter, please put it on a watch or favorite list, because the name of the story may change as it progresses.

Enjoy!

The night was dark and eerie. Shadows hid behind every tree and bush, golden eyes pierced through the thick darkness and scurried away when an unknown presence came near. Leaves rustled and sticks broke as both big and small animals ran around her, curious of the yellow and orange flame that danced in the dark, but careful not to get too close in case it was a trap.

She picked up a long stick and poked at the hot fire pit overturning a few logs. Owls hooted in the nearby tree tops, watching her as if they were watching a prey. She ignored them. She was only engulfed in her own inner thoughts and tried to shake off any guilt that may have cloaked itself around her.

She tucked a few strands of pink hair behind her ear and brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. Her emerald eyes stared into the fire as if there were some secret answer within the charcoaled logs that were burning. Was she doing the right thing? Would she regret her choice days from now? Had she truly realized what she had gotten herself into?

If she turned back around, it would not be too late. She could sneak back into the village just as easily as she had snuck out. She could go to her home and slip into bed, awake in the morning, and pretend this never happened. Like it was all a part of some distant dream.

Her friends would soon find out she was missing. Five or six hours from now, they would look for her. They would search frantically, worried something may have happened to her. Then they would notice the signs. No forced entry into her home. Her belongings were gone. They would realize what happened to her.

She voluntarily left them.

She shook her head. She would not allow herself to feel regret for her choice. She had thought long and hard about it, often going back and forth on the pros and cons of the situation she would get herself in. She knew that once she stepped foot outside of those big hidden leaf gates, there would be no going back.

She was going to be labeled a missing-nin in a few hours. She would accept the title willingly, full aware of the choice she had made.

Sakura reached to her backpack that laid next to her in the dirt. She unzipped it and pulled out a thin black blanket, wrapping it around her shoulders. She pulled it to her chin and rubbed her face against it, realizing that she would go through many dark and lonely nights like this. By herself. Alone, without any companions.

She had never truly been alone in the blinding darkness like this. Every time she had spent the night in the woods, Naruto had always been with her. He would look at her with that big, goofy smile and yell, "Goodnight Sakura!" and she would roll her eyes and complain about how obnoxious he was. Then he would toss and turn all night, snoring and drooling, waking her up several times throughout their resting time.

She almost wanted to see him rolling around and snoring right now, but that was another feeling she wouldn't allow herself to have. Not anymore.

You're not allowed to miss him or them. Not anybody. She thought. You're on your own now. Time to be a big girl and make a path of your own.

A small glare caught the corner of her eye as she brought herself out of her thoughts. She turned to see the glare coming from her backpack, it was slightly sticking out. She reached over and grabbed the source, pulling out her headband. The metal hidden leaf symbol reflected the dancing flames in front of her.

She stared at it, memories immediately flooding her mind of her entire life up until this point. Good memories, like the first time team seven was assigned together. How excited she was that she was put on the same team as Sasuke Uchiha, the local heartthrob every girl dreamed of.

The bad memories came pouring after even thinking of Sasukes name. The night he left the village to go to Orochimaru. The frantic training and searching to try and bring him back. The promise Naruto had made to her echoed in her head and how she trusted him to follow his word. But that promise was never fulfilled.

Sasuke was never going to be saved. The moment he left those gates, his fate was decided.

Sakura remembered how it felt when she received the news from Lady Tsunade. How her heart jumped into her throat and her legs gave out. She could still almost taste the vomit in her mouth from that day. She could still hear Narutos violent sobs and curses, his thrashing and violently hitting and kicking anything in his path. The look of the ANBU as they had to physically remove Naruto from her office and sedate him. The look on his face that day would forever remain as an imprint on her memory. The two of them were never the same after that day and they never would be again.

She closed her eyes and gripped the headband in her hands. The smooth metal grinded into her palms and provided discomfort, but her mind was elsewhere. She wanted to curse herself for bringing up that memory now. The saddened look on the Hokages face that day, the thought of Naruto almost physically out of control, her own tears soaking her face until she fell asleep from exhaustion. That was not something she could think of now.

But it reminded her of why she was doing this.

She opened her eyes and stared at the leaf symbol. Forgive me, she thought. Naruto, forgive me for this.

She shoved the headband back in her backpack before she would allow herself to get anymore emotional. She clutched onto the blanket again, surrounding herself with any warmth it might provide her to protect her from the night chill. The fire in front of her was beginning to get low, but she didn't make any movement to try and save the flames. Once it went out, she would have to move on. She knew she could not stay here long, she had to get out of the land of fire before they realized she was gone and would come looking for her.

She could not be forced to go back and she did not want to fight her friends. She would rather them never find her, so she never be forced to see them again. It was the cowards way out, she knew that of course. But it was better this way. It would be better if they would just forget about her someday.

With a large gust of wind, the remaining dim flames blew out, leaving her in utter darkness. She sighed as she quickly shoved the blanket back in her backpack and slipped her arms into the straps. She would not rest until the sun came up. By then, she should be out of Fire country.

She buckled the strap on her backpack around her waist so it would be secure while traveling. She stepped on the fire pit to ensure every flame was out and there was no chance of it coming up again. Sakura then began throwing leaves and sticks over it in attempt to hide the evidence she was there. She would have to cover her tracks to keep Konoha ninja off of her trail until she got far enough away from them.

Once her camp was covered up to her liking, she sprinted up the nearest tree using chakra control on her feet. She ran up until she got midway, then stopped to acknowledge her surroundings. She would continue north. If she stayed on a straight path, she would soon be beyond the border in a few hours.

Crickets chirped in the night along with many other unidentified insects. Their music was a blur to her as she sprinted amongst the tree tops, landing on limbs, and careful of her step in the darkness. Her hair whipped into her face as she ran, which she knew would happen once she took off her headband.

But she would not wear it. It was a disgrace against her former home and she could not bring herself to wear it now.

Forgive me, Naruto, her thoughts echoed in her mind, You will never understand.

She gripped onto her straps and sped up, chakra gathering at her feet. She knew where she would go once she made it across the border. It would take her only a matter of days to reach her destination. She did not care how tired she would be once she made it there. She just had to find him.

I'm forming my own path. I am strong and will prove myself. Her thoughts echoed in her head and heart.

The creatures of the night sang their songs as she ran.

I have to find him.

The stars shone bright and reflected above her with every step.

This is who I am now.

Owls continued to call in the night.

Forgive me, Naruto…

A tear disappeared into the darkness as the full moon above her lit her way through the night.

We will never be the same.

A/N: It's a short chapter, but it's the introduction to the story. The other chapters will be much longer. I throughly hope you enjoyed it and it has peaked your interest.