Here we are at chapter two and, even after a year of this story, I still don't own Naruto.

I suppose I'll just have to keep dreaming...


Sakura yawned and closed her eyes to the morning sun. It was much too early to be awake, but Sasuke insisted that every morning they be up at the crack of dawn. "How stupid," she mumbled before stomping after Sasuke and grabbing his hand before leaning against him. If she couldn't be asleep then at least she could use the boy as a pillow as she walked.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," she spoke softly, with an obviously tired voice, "What's the point of training so early? Why don't we just go later when we're more well rested?" The now eight-year-old girl asked, knowing that the answer would not be a simple "Okay, Sakura. Let's go home. We can train later!" Because, after all, this was Sasuke. And Sasuke did not waste time doing other things when he could be training. He had to become as good as his brother. He had to be the best, just like every other Uchiha male Sakura had ever come across in her three years of life with Sasuke.

The boy in front of her simply glared back at her in response before sighing. "Are you insane? This is the best time. No one will be there to bother us and if we're lucky they'll have put up some new training dummies. Father just taught me a new jutsu and I need to practice it."

Sakura nodded, knowing exactly which jutsu he was talking about. The boy had been attempting it for days before he finally got it right, and Sakura had been forced to sit on the dock and wait for what felt like forever. It seemed like eternity before Sasuke finally decided that they could go inside for the night.

After a few more minutes of walking, they reached their destination and Sakura went to go sit against one of the dummy-less trees to take a nap. Sasuke may do fine on very little rest, but Sakura needed her beauty sleep. She curled up and was in her dreamworld in seconds.


Blood. Screaming. Fear. Crying. Confusion. Hatred. Death.

"Little brother…"

Itachi?

"…live…"

What's going on?

"…test…"

Huh?

"mom…dad…"

Sasuke-kun?

"Sakura…"

What is it?

"Sakura…"

Huh?

"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled at his pink-haired best friend for what seemed like the thousandth time. She was so hard to wake up sometimes. When she finally opened her eyes he was glaring at her, twirling a kunai on one of his fingers. She gave him the cutest smile she could and hoped he wouldn't be angry with her.

"I'm awake, Sasuke-kun…" the girl said before standing up. Had that really been Sasuke in her dream? So scared. So helpless. What did it mean? Should she tell him?

"Sasuke-"

"We have to go to school," he interrupted before grabbing her arm and walking in the direction of the academy. Maybe it wasn't worth telling him. It had just been a silly dream anyway. And anyone that believed in what happened in their dreams must be completely insane! At least that's what Sasuke would say, anyway...


Sakura moved away from the large, chip-loving boy next to her. He was practically engulfing her small frame with his fat! Sakura did not enjoy this, and as a result, she was moving steadily onto Sasuke's lap; a place where no one in their right mind would ever go.

Excluding Sakura; she was the exception.

And she wasn't the only one who was getting annoyed with the boy. Sasuke wasn't exactly jumping for joy himself. He had never really taken the time to get to know the Akimichi boy (what was his name? Chichi? Choygee?) and now he was certain that he never would. Sasuke was not a person who was well known for his ability to share well with others...

And sharing his imaginary friend was a definate no. Pretty soon he was going to shove the large boy's textbook up his rear end if he didn't stop shoving himself on Sakura. He glared, forgetting to pay attention to the teacher's lesson.

"Sasuke…" Sakura whispered in his ear. "I think we should go right home after school."

No. Training.

Was the answer she was given, written on the side of his math book. When Chouji saw this, he began to wonder if this was the Uchiha everyone said talked to himself.


"Foolish brother, if you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me, and survive in an unsightly way. Run, run and cling to life."

A few days later, Sasuke stopped talking to himself. His rare, but noticably happy smiles disappeared and he began to glare at others even more often. His remarkably high grades soared to the top of the class.

Sakura was gone.

And Sasuke had become an avenger.