WHATEVER.
The Decision.
Sakura gasped as the first message was washed away, replaced by a new one. It read:
I still love you, you know.
"Sasuke…" Sakura whispered, putting her fingertips against the window on her side, and sliding them against the words that were vanishing slowly against the pouring rain. She sighed, maybe it was an illusion… a pattern the raindrops were creating on her window. Shrugging, Sakura turned away from the window, and dropped down onto her bed, but this time, not crying. Her gaze hardened, until it became as cold as ice, and was stripped of all emotions. There she sat, staring at the floor with an expression-less face, and she felt her skin grow cold.
Grabbing a kunai that was lying on her bed-side table, and with a flash, her long hair turned chin-short, uneven and rough. The cut-off pink hair was lying on her knees, stray hairs littering the carpet. Standing up curtly, Sakura let the pink locks fall to the ground as she went to her closet. Ripping off the red skirt, she stuffed on a random shelf in her closet, put on some dark training shorts. Walking over to the bed-side table, and grabbing her kunai by the handle, Sakura shot the window a cold glance, before opening it wide, and starting to walk away. When she reached the door, she suddenly turned on her heels, and sped towards the open window and jumped right through it, gasping as the cold rain hit her uncovered skin, soaking her hair and clothing with freezing water.
She landed on her feet lightly. Noticing her reflection in the window of the opposite house, but looked away, the terrifying image of herself imprinted in her mind permanently. Her pink hair was sticking to her neck and cheeks, as her clothing was sticking to her own pale skin. Her once dashing eyes were bloodshot and dull, and the blush on her cheeks had vanished completely, turning the skin on her cheeks as pale as every other part of her body. Inside her, rage boiled and flamed like a wildfire, spreading and heating every part of her body with a madness never seen on her face.
You. She thought, closing her eyes sharply. You made me like you. And her now lit-up eyes were frozen in one spot, fixated, the feeling was dreadfully imbedding itself in her soul and heart. The intent to kill.
She jumped from roof to roof with incredible speed, just a flash to that kid who was peering out the window, and was soon where she wanted to be. The training grounds where Kakashi used to take them. The blood was bubbling in her veins, roaring in her ears, and pumping into her quickly beating heart as she halted abruptly, her knees buckling at the force. She raised the kunai which was shut tightly in her wet hand, the cold skin now turning blue from the freezing rain, and stabbed it into the ground. Slowly, but determinedly, Sakura started to scrape words into the wet soil. A stick, an arch and words formed from the tip of her weapon.
When she finished, her lifeless eyes gazed up into the sky, ignoring the raindrops that blurred her vision.
"I hope you can read these words, Sasuke," She whispered through gritted teeth. "'Cause if you do… you would know…" Sakura knew that he would see these words imprinted in the earth, the upturned grass roots decorating and kind of giving it a graffiti look. "You would… know…" She poked at the words with her finger, still glaring up at the gray, stormy skies. "That… I hate you."
The words… those terrible words… she meant them; her whole heart was set on those deathly words.
Leave me alone.
SIX YEARS LATER
A swirling blue shape lay between her fingers, the perfect round surface untainted by the rolling sweat that left lines down her forehead, cheeks and neck. The bark crumbled from the force of the swirling mass of icy chakra, and as she pushed harder into the core of the tree trunk, the wood chips stripped her skin into small scratches upon her arms and legs. Soon the tree gave away as she pushed the ball harshly into the bark, breaking at its central point of gravity, cracking in half and falling onto the ground with a loud crash.
Her arms went limp, and she panted softly, her eyes shining with triumphant. Surrounding her in a spread-out circle, were about ten fallen trees, and the user of this strange jutsu sighed, her lips opening only a little bit, and still she could taste the tangy, salty taste of her own sweat. Behind her, applause exploded into the air, and the tension and tiredness broke, the buzzing noise in her ears faded as she turned to face her own cheer-leader.
"Good job, Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled loudly, his hands clapping together energetically. Sakura brushed her pink hair out of her eyes, and straightened her back, smiling widely at her friend. This was Uzumaki Naruto, a friend who had never left her side since Sasuke's death. The once young blonde boy of twelve-years, with an endless supply of never-ending energy now turned into a mature young man of twenty-two years. His wide grin was replaced by a sophisticated smile, but his electric blue eyes still shone brilliantly. The simple crush he had on his former team-mate had now grown into the undying love that he showed through acts of training with Sakura, helping her through tough times. Though those tough times never happened, he was still there, by her side.
Though Sakura still didn't think of him in that way, and when she was still dating Sasuke, Naruto would always go out on nights when Sasuke had a mission or two, staying over at her house when she didn't want to be alone, but not making a move. And even now, six years later, six long years after the Uchiha's death, Naruto still didn't move farther than the friends point, waiting until Sakura was ready and respected him in a way that was much more than friendship. He would ask her how she was feeling sometimes, looking deep into her eyes, and saying that he loved her, but seeing the hidden pain and sorrow made him want to kill himself. Sakura knew, it reflected in his eyes… everything she was feeling deep inside her heart.
Sakura embraced Naruto in a hug, giggling softly as he hugged her back.
"Thanks so much, Naruto-san!" She whispered into his ear. "This is the best seventeenth birthday present ever!" She heard Naruto chuckle.
"Yes, considering that it took you almost five years to master the Rasengan completely, it's the perfect birthday present."
"Shut up, dobe."
"No."
"Oh, yeah?" Sakura leaned out of the hug slightly, her hands still wrapped neatly around his neck. There was something strained about her smirk, and her emerald eyes, which had lost their wonderful shine almost six years ago, dulled in the shadows of leaning willows, blossoming slender, green leaves.
"Yeah," Naruto replied, glaring at the pink-haired kunoichi before him. "You got a problem with it?"
"Is that a challenge?"
"Maybe it is."
"Then, I accept…" Her smirk widened, and there something like an evil glint in her dull eyes. No… not and evil glint. A sparkle. The intent to kill. The feeling that seemed to fill her up to the top everyday, every night, every nightmare and every little thing that would happen to her everyday. It was a simple routine. Train for hours at a time without rest, then rest, eat something, and then train again. After going to sleep at about 11 pm., she would wake up at six am, get ready and go train again. But… if a challenge is proposed, it must be accepted… out of respect, really.
Sakura swiftly let go of Naruto's neck, backed up a step, and stood there, her arms limp at her side, though the hand at the side of her kunai holster kept twitching slightly. She wore that same black t-shirt, and those same dark blue training shorts. On that day when she had finally made a decision that she kept through six years of struggle, hard work, and endless pain. It was a promise she made to herself… a promise she would never break… unless he came back. She didn't even dare to say his name aloud, or even announce it in her own thoughts. She now knew him as he.
Naruto stood there watching her with an attentive expression, facing her own practiced blank one.
"Let's begin."
N/A thingy...: Yeah... that's an interesting twist, I might say! Sorry for updating so late, I was babysitting today, so it took me a while. The girl fell asleep, and when she woke up... she started crying and saying that she wanted her mommy... I wouldn't say that's unusual... she's only 5. xD Anyways... I hope you liked it! READ AND REVIEW OR FEEL THE WRATH OF my DULL BUTCHER'S KNIFE OF DOOm.. (it alway scares the shit outta people... xD)