Chapter 2

Sakura leapt to the next tree branch without much effort. The rain plastered her pink hair to the sides of her face but it went unnoticed. She and Kaskashi had been traveling for a few hours now, after a late start thanks to the copy-nin of course. They were a days journey out from their assigned village, but none of that was what had the pinkettes mind occupied. Last nights dream was all she could focus on.

She lay there in a peaceful slumber, soft beams of moonlight danced upon the floor through her window, mottled by black spots as raindrops fell. The scant illumination was just enough to make out outlines in the room, including her own bed...and the mirror image of herself sleeping in it. The confused pinkette mouthed, 'what the-' but no sound came. Discovering her innability to speak she waved her hand in front of her face determining that yes in fact she could move and see herself. She drew closer to the bed and knelt down by this ' Sakura' that was already there. She could see her breathing. Sakura furrowed her brows and watched as the sleeping 'Sakura' did as well. Stunned she straightened as if struck. ' That's me!' She thought. Of a sudden she heard a loud crack and opened her eyes facing the spot where she had just been standing a moment before, thunder rolling outside.

She had chalked up the dream to exactly what it was, a strange dream, and forced herself to go back to sleep despite the rainstorm. Now though, as she fingered the stone around her neck which she had fashioned into a pendant the night before, she just couldn't shake the strange feeling it set within her.

Kakashi wondered what had his teamate so sidetracked. He knew Sakura better than to be distracted by trivial things and it wasn't much like her to not even attempt to make light conversation, if even simply about the mission at hand. The silver-haired jonin blinked clearing a raindrop that had managed to aim itself straight for his good eye. He was tired, though his body could keep going like this for hours on end with his nin training there was no denying he hadn't had a fitfull nights sleep in quite some time, made evident by the dark under eye circles that were prevailing. Nightfall would come in an hour or so and though he didn't much look forward to bedding down in the rain he hoped for even a few hours of respite.

Sakura chewed absently on a riceball during first watch. Kakashi lay only a few feet away sleeping like the dead. They had found cover under an overhanging crop of rocks. The rain had finaly thinned out and the pinkette raised her eyes toward the sky, the dark clouds swirling and moving fast, the moon peeking out a cool blue under her scrutiny. Sakura sighed in a light breathe and brushed a hand off on her shorts before standing. Walking out from their cover she let the cool light drops of rain prick her skin softly as they landed. Closing her eyes for a moment she soaked it in as a plant gathering a drink. Opening her emerald orbs she could see the forest floow clearly lit in a shadowy dusked blue hue as she began a walk of the perimeter, there were already traps in place surrounding Kakashi's immediate area.

As she walked she again fingered the pendant stone in thought. She was a good ninja, one of the best of konoha, she had recently passed to Jonin level and she knew that her Taishou and friends were proud of her. Still, at the end of the day after going through training and work, missions, or even spending time out with friends, she came home alone to an empty apartment. It gnawed at her that even though her life was coveted by others standards she felt incomplete.

I will not be weak anymore. The pinkette leaned against the moss of an old tree, her lashes coming together in a kiss as her eyes closed, her brows furrowed she simply breathed against the tree gaining what inner strength she could from it. The stone pulsed unseen and Sakura felt a strange calm infuse her.

Kakashi woke with a start, eyes snapping open. There was the isistant feeling that something was wrong, he stayed still to gauge his surroundings yet felt nothing to be himself with a log he looked down onto their campsite from a nearby tree and waited. He heard the faintest of sounds from the left, Sakura as she returned to their campsite. The clouds had cleared somewhat and the vision of her in the moonlight was ethereal. Her pale pink hair was shook free from it's binds and the pinkettes pale skin had a sheen of blue hue due to the night. Sakura glanced at the Kakashi-log then in all of two seconds later she stared out into the night.

" Kakashi..." The lone word whispered slowly from her lips broke the spell.

" Yo." The silver-haired nin appeared a few feet to her right.

Sakura felt as if it were the first time she had seen Kakashi in a great while, all of him new. His skin, his smell so at home here, his lazy yet alert stance, the way his hair shone, his quiet stare that met hers. The odd luminosity of the pinkette's green eyes were not lost on the copy-nin.

" My watch." Sakura simply nodded and went to lay down upon her makeshift bed. Oddly enough, as Kakashi took his post, he felt as if something had been lost.

Morning dawned, Sakura awoke to a slight mist hanging over the camp, the sun just peaking over the horizon. Kakashi had already scattered any remnants of their camp and as she gathered herself up they left without a trace.

"Sleep well?" It was Kakashi who broke the silence.

Sakura nodded. In fact as she slept it was as if she were still in the forest, still aware of her surroundings, she wasn't sure if she had entered rem at all. In a few hours time a light in the forest ahead signaled they had come upon a clearing, possibly overlooking their target village.

Sooo, yes I understand this is very short, but as It's been about a week so far and I haven't updated I figured I had to put up something, and I had this written already. I may have to do a bi-weekly thing though, my schedule is just hectic recently, looking for a new job. Please enjoy.