Finding the Real Me
By: screamingcrazyproctorlady
Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I wouldn't be wasting my time on this site! But to be specific, I DO NOT own Naruto or any of its characters! Enjoy the fic and please R & R
Chapter One: Another mission
"MITARASHI!" bellowed a voice from the other side of Konoha. Anko Mitarashi groaned, loudly, as she put her last rice dumpling in her mouth. Should have known Tsunade-sama would do this, she always did after a mission.
"I shouldn't keep her waiting any longer," Anko said as she laid her money down on the table. Then, she ran out of the restaurant, and hurried as fast as she could to Tsunade-sama's office.
When she arrived at the door of the Fifth Hokage's office, she saw a pink haired kunoichi sitting in one of the waiting chairs.
"Mitarashi-sama," said Sakura, nodding her head politely.
"Haruno," replied Anko. It took all of her will power not to call the girl a maggot; since Sakura was close to Tsunade-sama, she didn't dare.
Sakura seemed sad. Then again, that wasn't surprising. Her entire clan had been wiped out by mist ninja a few months ago. Like the Uchiha clan, there was only one person left-Sakura. Now, the once cheerful and up-beat ninja, walked around looking sorrowful; her jade green eyes haunted with the memory of the massacre.
"MITARASHI! GET IN HERE NOW!" yelled Tsunade-sama, sounding as if she'd had a little too much sake…again. The anbu-black op reluctantly walked through the door, apologetically closing it behind her.
"Report, now," Tsunade-sama said menacingly, her blonde pony tails spiking with electricity. She had been waiting for years to hear news of the S-rank wanted ninja, and she wasn't going to wait a minute longer.
"By the time my team got there, Itachi had beaten us to him," Anko responded, grimacing at the gruesome sight she had witnessed. She could still hear the cruel sound of Itachi's laugh as he watched his last remaining relative fall, lifeless, to the ground. She could still see the cold hatred that remained in Itachi's sharingan eyes. Luckily, Itachi was too distracted by his manic victory to notice her…or had he?
"So, Sasuke Uchiha is finally dead," said Tsunade-sama in an emotionless tone. They heard a gasp from behind the door, and the sound of running foot steps. Sakura had been listening behind the door. She had known about the mission, but hadn't expected it to be a success.
"I should have told her not to listen!" Anko said, anxiously awaiting Tsunade-sama's reaction.
"I was hoping they wouldn't find out the outcome, what ever it may have been, until it was disclosed to the rest of the village," Tsunade-sama said in a worried tone. She said they, because she knew that Sakura would surely tell Naruto. She also considered Sakura the daughter she never had, and she was always trying to protect her.
"They would have found out any way," said Anko, pointing out of the window. Tsunade-sama turned around to see a shocked looking Naruto staring back at her. "Maggot," Anko muttered.
Anko went over to the window to let Naruto in.
"So he…he's dead," said Naruto in shock. After all, Sasuke had been his teammate. "After all this time…I didn't think it would hurt this much. I know he was evil, but I can't help but remember the Sasuke I once knew."
"The Sasuke you knew has long since been gone. The only difference between the old Sasuke and the new Sasuke now is that the old one has nothing to mark his grave," said Tsunade-sama sadly. "Anko, are you ready for another mission?"
"Somehow, I just knew you were going to say that," said Anko, relishing the chance to be able to hunt down the Uchiha that had caused all hell to break loose.
"Well I'm coming too," said Naruto fiercely, "Sasuke wanted to kill him before he died. I'm going to honor his memory."
"Very well, you will join the team," said Tsunade-sama in a resigned voice.
"I think Sakura should come with us too," said Naruto slowly.
"Okay, but she will need some persuading. Now, I am sure that Kakashi will be here any second, late as usual-"
"Maggot," Anko muttered.
"and will want to join the team so hear is the official team: Kakashi, Sakura-maybe, Naruto, and you Anko. Do not let me down." said Tsunade-sama.
Just then Kakashi walked through the door a look of surprise on his face.
"Nice of you to finally join us, Maggot," said Anko, clearly annoyed by the time of his arrival.
"Glad you were part of the welcoming party, Mitarashi," said Kakashi sarcastically.
"Is it true? Is he really dead?" asked Kakashi, getting back to business.
"Yes, and I know you will not like this, but I am glad that he is. Now the only Uchiha we have to worry about is his fool of a brother Itachi."
"I will be happy to join you on the hunt," said Kakashi, a gleam of hatred in his eye. "Will Sakura be joining us?"
"That's the problem. We need her, but we're going to have to persuade her," said Anko.
"No time like the present," Kakashi replied, subtly volunteering to try and persuade her.
"Maggot," Anko muttered a hint of a smile on her lips.
Sakura was on the couch in Kakashi's apartment, still processing the news of Sasuke's death.
He's gone. I'll never see him again. Sakura thought sadly to herself.
You'll see him in your dreams, said a nasty voice inside of her head. It was true; she would see him in her dreams. He would always haunt her through her dreams; laughing and taunting her-hurting her. But, she would always carry the evil part of him with her because she could hardly remember the Sasuke he used to be.
Sakura sobbed into the pillow. She didn't know what to feel. Should she feel glad that Sasuke was dead and could no longer kill people; or should she feel sad, because it might have been possible for him to change?
Just then, Kakashi walked through the door. Sakura looked up, her jade green eyes looking pleadingly at her old sensei, begging him to help her escape from this lost feeling.
Kakashi felt overpowering sympathy for Sakura. She had been most affected by his absence from Konoha as she had been the one to see him leave. Maybe she thought she could have helped Sasuke come back. If so, Kakashi felt even more sympathetic for her because no one could have saved Sasuke Uchiha-no one.
"Sakura, I know what you must be feeling," Kakashi said, staring into those lost, helpless green eyes.
"No you don't," Sakura sobbed, "Every one thinks they know how I feel, but they don't. They don't know how haunted I feel about the death of my clan and now the death of Sasuke!"
"Sakura I…"
"No! Every time I close my eyes, I see Mom and Dad lying dead in the street. Every time I dream I see Sasuke's cold eyes reaching out to me! I can't take it!" said Sakura, on the point of hysteria.
"Sakura, don't think for a moment that you are all alone in your grief! Do you honestly think that I am happy that Sasuke is dead? If so, you are drastically mistaken," said Kakashi, not unkindly. "But we have a chance to avenge Sasuke's death," he went on, "we have the chance to track down his killer!"
"What?" Sakura said shakily. She trembled. They had a chance to kill Itachi!
"Yes, Sakura, we can track down Sasuke's older brother, and make sure he can hurt us no more!" Kakashi said his voice full of passion for the cause of which he was speaking. "Come with us on the mission."
"Okay," Sakura said tentatively, "I'll come."
A/NWell that was the end of chapter one! I really hope you enjoyed it! Well, if you did, please review and tell me so, and if you didn't like it, review and tell me what I should fix! I really do want your opinion! Well, I got to go, so, see ya!
screamingcrazyproctorlady