Second chapter up at last!
Still not in ownership of Naruto.
Feedback is appreciated.
She really was too young for this shit.
She almost always was. Too young, that is. Too young to join the military, too young to have had so many accidents, too young to be without parents.
According to the news she was too young to die.
As she stared into unfamiliar green eyes she couldn't help but think that she was too young to deal with this.
A 23 year old woman looked into the mirror. 12 year old Sakura Haruno looked back out.
The woman contorted her face into a grimace, the too young face in the mirror mimicking her expression.
In her mind she was cursing her fate for all she was worth, wondering what deity she had managed to piss off to end up in such a situation. She twisted her face in different angles, trying to trick her reflection into revealing that it was false. There was no such luck, and at last she accepted her new place in the world as Sakura.
Perhaps she should have further questioned her situation, searched for hidden camera's or tried to pull out roots from her now-long hair, it just hadn't worked like that.
Reality is only our own perception of the world around us. If my perception is that I'm somehow a ninja then I can't change that without possibly illusioning myself further.
And this is what I get for taking psychology.
A search of the room revealed the well-known red dress, which the girl quickly slipped into. She had never understood the logic of wearing a bright red dress as a ninja, but what could she do but go with it? She made a mental note to get more neutral gear later on, once she graduated. Near as she could tell she was close to graduation, though for what she knew it could be tomorrow or next month. All she could do was wait until the Hokage faces were painted and practice her techniques.
She had actually lucked out, with access to Sakura's memories as well as hers. All she needed to do was skim the material to remember what the pinkette had known before her apparent coma.
Her first day back in class had been an adventure, welcomed back by an abundant amount of concern on the part of one blond, and a more muted, antagonistic amount on another. It hadn't taken long to figure out the basic dynamics of the class, those that she hadn't already known.
Shikamaru, Naruto, Kiba, and Choji sat in the back of the class and got in trouble. Shino and Hinata sat in the front, quiet as church mice. She and Ino fought for the coveted seat next to Sasuke, who preferred to sit in a window seat in the middle row.
Except now she wasn't fighting with Ino and the blonde girl had the chair all to herself.
No, Sakura Haruno now sat between the Aburame and Hyuuga clan heirs, using their quiet to get her studying done. She had a lot to catch up on and a lot still to learn, and not near enough time for it all. She researched chakra, its pathways, how it was effected by outside forces and how it could affect things around it. She searched for information on history, techniques, and past events. The vigor with which she threw herself into her books was almost alarming.
She had caught the nearly concerned looks Ino had begun to throw her way.
It was almost a week since her return to class that Naruto was dragged in, tied up, and all were called up for the review of the graduation exam. It was a good thing there wasn't a written portion to the practice, as she wasn't sure she would be able to pass it.
She had practiced the clone, transformation, and switch out techniques in the time she wasn't reading and was relieved to find that even if she wasn't sure how to this body still remembered how to manipulate chakra, and her mind was quickly understanding as well.
They came easily, so well-practiced they were. All the others in the class passed just as easily. Everyone except Naruto, who got yelled at for his perverted jutsu. The transformation was ridiculous, truly, but, the girl had a hard time not laughing at it. It was simply so generic she couldn't help it.
Sakura returned to her seat between the quietest classmates she had and cracked her book open, eyes sliding to the pages. She had come to many ideas that she wanted to test, but first she had to make sure that they wouldn't end up killing her. For the second time.
The rest of the class passed the same as always, lectures that she only listened to with one ear and the boys getting yelled at. It wasn't until the end of class that Sakura put her book away and stood up, walking out with a mutter of thanks to Iruka, who watched her with worry. People had been doing that often, she was getting used to it.
The graduation test itself was coming up fast, and while she was sure she could pass it there was still a lot to be done.
After class was let out the next day Sakura went off searching for people. She had things needed doing, and now was the most opportune chance. The test had been announced for three days' time, which gave her a golden window of opportunity. Her first stop was with none other than the great, brooding avenger. She had little respect for him, at that moment, but her need to do this outweighed her personal feeling for the person he was at that moment.
The boy glanced up, a scowl on his face when she approached him, sitting on a pier that out looked a small pond. The girl ignored the look, stopping a few feet away. Taking a deep breathed she bowed low, long hair falling to obscure her face, but not her vision. Through strands of pink she saw surprise flicker in black eyes.
"I'm sorry," she blurted, and watched the surprise grow, "My behavior towards you hasn't always been the more respectful, or what I would like you to see of me. I hope that even if we never get to be anything more we can still be friends, eventually."
She straightened up and looked down at the boy, waiting for him to say something. His ever stoic face was broken with his confusion, and after a few minutes he nodded to show he understood what she was saying.
Taking that to be as good as she was going to get she spun on her heel and took off a swift march, bound for her next target. A blonde, this time.
When she opened the door to the flower shop and made her way to the front desk she was met by a familiar man, blue eyes staring down at her. Sakura, hesitated, one hand going behind her to grip the space just above her elbow in an age old habit of shyness.
"Sakura," Inoichi greeted her, "What can I help you with?"
For a moment she wondered how he had known she needed help, before remembering that the Yamanaka clan read people for a living.
"I was wondering if Ino was around? I need to talk to her. It's important…"
A voice called an old nickname, and insult, from off to her side and the pinkette turned to see the blonde girl standing there, holding a small bouquet of various flowers. Cornflower blue eyes met green and a frown appeared.
"What are you doing here, forehead?" she asked, and Sakura pursed her lips. Inoichi took that moment to make his escape.
"I came here because there's something I need to tell you," the girl explained, watching the former friend walk past her and start wrapping up the flowers. She took a quick lungful of air, finding these situations to be stressful. "I give up."
Ino nearly dropped the flowers on the floor.
There was a startled 'what?' and Sakura nodded, meeting Ino's eyes.
"We're almost kunoichi, which means putting our lives on the line and risking everything. I know it probably won't happen for a while, but when we get put in dangerous situations, if something were to happen to you…" blue eyes softened and Ino sighed, putting the bouquet down.
"I get it. So what, you're just giving up on Sasuke then?" Ino asked, preparing the flowers for what Sakura assumed to be a home delivery.
She nodded. "Yeah, you can have him if you still want him. I just want us to stop fighting over Sasuke when there are more important things in life."
"What's gotten into you?" Ino asked, giving her a very odd look. All Sakura could do was shrug.
"I figured some stuff out when I was asleep. I don't know, it just doesn't feel right…Can we be friends again?" she asked, hopefully.
A smile bloomed on Ino's face. "Sure. Now come help me with these!"
By the time she was finished talking to and catching up with Ino it was too late to go to her last stop, so she decided to put it off until there were no longer stars in the sky and she wasn't asleep on her feet. It was a good thing that she was, because then she could go straight to sleep and not have any time to think.
Thinking only lead to remembering all she had lost, an activity she did not feel like doing right then.
There is no pain so great as the memory of joy in present grief.
Aeschylus