So as of yesterday, I'm officially done with my sophomore year. What else is great about that? I'm a junior! I passed English on a B for the year (that should be an A, but I had to dumb myself down like twenty levels to be on the level of the class), and the English we're in determines our grade level except in extenuating circumstances. So yeah, I'm free until September, so expect a few more chapters. Also, in one of my reviews, I was asked if the Sakura I was using is post-time skip Sakura. The Sakura I'm currently using is pre-time skip Sakura. As the story progresses, she'll get stronger and eventually progress to the post-time skip level. (: At any rate, here's chapter two!
Roses and Cherry Blossoms
Chapter 2 – Ambush of an Ally
Sakura sighed as she began setting up camp. Despite the fact that she had left Konoha in the middle of the afternoon, she hadn't gotten very far away. The sun had started to set about an hour ago, and now the sky was starting to get darker. There was a loud rustle in the trees, causing Sakura to jump up from setting up her tent and take out a kunai.
"Who's there?" Sakura asked. She was looking around the open space she had chosen for her camp cautiously. The rustling had stopped, making Sakura breathe a sigh of relief.
'Maybe it was just an animal or something. If it was another person, they probably would've come out,' Sakura thought as she resumed setting up her tent. She was beginning to regret doing this on her own now. She had no idea what she was up against. Sure, she had been on a C-ranked mission with Kakashi, Naruto, and Sasuke to the Land of Waves, but she hadn't really done much. She wasn't much help there. Sakura was the one who had protected Tazuna for the most part.
Then, there were the Chunnin exams, the tests that determined if you were eligible to become a Chunnin that year. Sakura had done very well in the first part of the exam. When her team was in the Forest of Death, she had done a decent job in defending and protecting Sasuke and Naruto while they were down, even going to the length of cutting her own hair to get herself free from one of their enemies. Then, there were the individual battles. During Sakura's battle, she was placed up against her long time rival, Ino Yamanaka. Their battle had ended in a tie, resulting in both girls to be knocked out of the competition.
Sakura sighed again as she finished setting up her tent. She sat down and relaxed in front of her tent, staring up at the night sky. The moon was half full tonight, so it made the night sky look beautiful. Sighing, she sat up and crawled into her tent, ready to go to bed.
/\/\/\/\/\/\
"Sakura… Sakura, help me," Sasuke called.
"Sasuke, I'm coming! Just… just stop moving!" Sakura cried. She was running towards Sasuke, but with each step she took, he just kept getting farther and farther away.
"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled.
"Sasuke!" Sakura cried. Sasuke kept getting farther and farther away until all Sakura saw was darkness.
/\/\/\/\/\/\
The following morning, Sakura jolted up right; she was sweating bullets.
"Sasuke… he needs me," Sakura said softly. "He needs me to help him."
There was a loud crash outside of Sakura's tent. Cautiously, she picked up a kunai and peered outside of her tent. Outside of her tent was a blonde girl who wore the Konoha headband around her waist.
"Ino? What are you doing here?" Sakura asked.
"Looking for you, of course! I figured out what you were doing when I went to your house yesterday. Lady Hokage wouldn't have sent you out on a mission on your own," Ino explained. Sakura slowly exited her tent; she still appeared half asleep.
"Okay… so why were you looking for me?" Sakura asked as she rubbed the sleepiness out of her eyes.
"I want to help you find Sasuke," Ino stated. Sakura yawned as she looked at Ino with wide eyes.
"W-what?" Sakura asked, shocked.
"I want to help you find Sasuke," Ino repeated.
"Why?" Sakura asked. Ino simply shrugged.
"Because there's no way you can do this on your own. You're going to need some help, and I'm obviously the best candidate. If you don't let me help, I can always go back to Konoha and have Kakashi come looking for you," Ino replied. Sakura sighed; she was in a bit of a hole now. If she told Ino she couldn't come, then Tsunade would send Kakashi out after her. If that happened, then she would never get to Sasuke. She would never be able to save him. On the other hand, if Sakura did allow Ino to tag along, it would be one more person to worry about.
"Okay, okay, fine. You can tag along," Sakura said reluctantly. Ino smiled as Sakura began packing her things. Once Sakura finished packing everything, the two girls set off through the forest outside of Konoha. Sakura hoped that they would get farther than she did yesterday. Sasuke was calling out to her and she needed to help him. She planned to help him even if she died trying.