Summary: Once upon a time in the ninja world, a sickly baby girl was born… her guardian deity saved her, but she ended up inheriting the goddess' attraction pheromone… For better or worse. Slightly AU, Saku/Almost Everyone

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Rating: T

Story Genre: General/Humor/Action-Adventure/Slight Romance, Horror, Spiritual, Angst

Chapter Genre: Action/Humor

Warnings: Some boring stuff

Page Count: 13

Word Count: 5641

Musical Inspiration: Music by Perfume, Naruto OST,

Notes: I figured I write this now sooner than later. New artwork, by the way.

.-.

kakurenbo

-Hide and Seek-

:Bell Fight:

(Konoha, Haruno City Gates, June 17th, 6:24AM)

CRRCHK-BANG!

The expansive gates closing off the Haruno compound glided closed, sealing away one young girl's home behind its metallic confines. Sakura waved lightly to the guards posted at said structure, gracing them with a small smile before pivoting on her foot. Her face once again hid in her large collar, masking her mushroom sigh.

"Another day with Team 7," she mumbled more to herself than Kurokami. The goddess snorted in response.

'Give up,' she suggested, twirling a dainty pipe in her hand. 'We'll just have to put up with it until we can gain some kind of symbiotic relationship with them.' Kurokami blew out a haze of purple smoke. Shuddering, Sakura walked forward towards the determined meeting point. The group was scheduled to meet at the red bridge connecting the Haruno land to the rest of the Leaf Village.

That's right; The Haruno land includes an island of sorts of land. Long rivers connected by many waterfalls surrounded the land, creating a many ringed moat. A great expanse of ground is contained within such a moat—so great that the Haruno compound is classified as a City. Long ago it was classified the capital of the Fire Nation before the hidden villages began piloting a stronger village-based system. Most of the Haruno family lived in this city while others chose to station themselves in other villages to keep tabs on possible threats to anything concerning Fire or the Haruno clan.

Sakura lived in the largest building of all—the Shadow Palace. True to its name, the large house stood taller than the Hokage Tower and stretched farther than one could see, enshrouded by darkness.

The girl sighed somewhat, remembering that she would one day have to face bringing her team to the palace; her parents (and the priestesses at the temple) would want to evaluate them. That wasn't going to be fun. Kurokami nodded her head in agreement.

(Konoha, First Crimson Bridge, June 17th, 8:40AM)

Sakura stood still behind the protection of an oak tree as Naruto ran around in circles, screaming like an idiot. Kakashi was at least an hour or two late, which really got on Naruto's nerves. The self-proclaimed future Hokage yelled obscenities to the heavens, hoping whoever was up there would bring divine punishment upon Kakashi's badly groomed head.

Kurokami snickered, 'obviously he doesn't know that Amaterasu takes every other Saturday off.' Sakura sweatdropped, gripping onto the bark a little more tightly. He had… so much energy!

"H-he'll come s-soon, N-N-Naruto-san…" the pinkette offered quietly, raising her eyebrows slightly and creasing her eyes. Sasuke had been perched in the tree Sakura had been hiding in, noticing early that he could see down her collar and at her face. Inner Sasuke made a short appearance to squeal quite loudly and to blush like a schoolgirl before disappearing once more into Sasuke's mind. A wry smile tore into his face in reaction.

"He's soooooooooo-ooooh late!" complained the blonde, nearly ripping out his hair. Sakura openly stared at the boy, wondering if this would fry his brain into little crisps. Surely it didn't affect him that much…

But when Sakura saw Naruto crying tears and biting his own sleeve, she thought now would be a good time for her sensei to arrive. (She didn't want to have to explain why Naruto wasn't functioning like a human being, since she knew Sasuke wouldn't care about Naruto ever.)

Kurokami rolled her eyes when said sensei appeared in a poof of smoke. That was either very good timing or their luck. Probably a mixture of both, she decided, and slid back to watch Sakura's day unfurl.

"Good morning!" he sang quite chirpily, considering that Naruto was foaming at the mouth at Kakashi's feet. The scarecrow ninja kicked the boy away swiftly, not wanting to risk being exposed to Naruto's insanity.

Naruto, in response, muttered something like, "late, late, late," over and over. Sakura did want to check on him; really, she did! She was just… wary of the odd fizz seeping out of his mouth. It didn't look healthy!

The remaining Uchiha grunted and decided to be the 'man' of the situation, strolling over to kick Naruto's skull. Slowly he cocked his leg backward. Kurokami chortled, awaiting the strike; Sakura did not, and winced away when the absurdly loud THUNK sounded throughout the area. Naruto screamed loudly, jolting up to cradle his head.

A lone bird flew into the sky, disturbed and petrified from the animalistic screech.

"GOOD LORD, SASUKE!" Naruto screamed out, almost tearing from pain. Sasuke held up his hands defensively, haughtily looking down at Naruto.

"No need to call me "lord," Naruto," he remarked, shaking his head. "We all know I am very awesome and can kick your butt any day." Sakura could only watch in amazement as Naruto rebounded from the kick with lightning fast reflexes to seemingly strangle the other boy to the ground. Hesitantly, she stepped away from the tree to grab onto Naruto's jacket and pull. It was much to the males' surprise when Naruto was torn away and tossed aside quite easily. Kurokami sighed and rolled her eyes; she knew that any person that came around fragile Sakura wouldn't expect such strength. What losers.

"I-I-I-I!" Sakura stuttered loudly, fretting over which boy to look over—Sasuke, whose neck wasn't the healthiest shade of black, blue, and red or Naruto, who seemed to be in shock and was lying on his back some feet away. Kakashi stared listlessly. The little girl had bite.

Definitely. Some serious bite.

Coughing to not only clear his head but to also pick up his students' attentions, he announced, "Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakuranbo-chan…" His voice was stern and loud. Sakura rushed over, quickly followed by Sasuke and Naruto. Kakashi noticed a small change in their positions.

Sakura wasn't too much different, though she looked very guilty (probably for accidentally imploding Naruto's brain).

Sasuke looked like he was in heaven and kept trying to get closer to Sakura. In response she shirked away.

Naruto was fighting with himself seemingly, trying to figure out if Sakura being able to throw him so easily was a good thing or a bad one.

"Er," the jounin began nervously, reaching into his pocket, "I will explain to you the rules of this test, the Bell Test. The goal is to take these two bells from me by lunch time… The two with bells get lunch, the other doesn't." On cue, the two boys' stomachs growled loudly. Sakura squirmed in place when they all stared at her silent tummy.

"I ate b-breakf-fast," Sakura explained demurely. "Why… why would K-Kakashi-sen-sensei not want us t-to eat? Well, other than p-planning some tri-ick." Kakashi smiled proudly. She wasn't a stupid one! Sasuke grumbled and crossed his arms; he should've been keener like his future wife! Naruto was completely stricken with love and amazement. Not only was she strong and pretty, Sakura was smart too! Sakura looked from the corner of her eyes as Naruto began swooning in her direction.

"Even though you disobeyed my orders," Kakashi scolded, leering at his cute student playfully, "I guess I can give you Brownie points for being smarter than these two blockheads. Anyway, on top of not getting lunch, the person who lacks a bell by the end of this test will not continue to gennin rank and will take an additional year at the academy!" The way he shouted it made this penalty sound like a prize. The three graduates gulped… they would not, could not lose! "This timer will ring once the time is up, kids," Kakashi said, placing a white timer on a rock behind him coupled with three bento boxes. "Start now!"

'All right!' Kurokami exclaimed loudly as Sakura leapt away faster than the eye could see in the opposite direction of Sasuke. 'Finally! Some action! How I've longed for some fighting!' Sakura minded her savior carefully.

'Watch yourself, Kurokami,' she gently advised, turning to watch Kakashi and Naruto, neither of whom had moved. It didn't surprise her very much, since Naruto was known for his idiotic tactics. 'Though you may be a goddess, your roots still remain in demonic territory. I can't have you lose yourself here and now.' The black haired goddess twisted her pinky finger in her ear in mock annoyance.

'No worries,' the woman chirped, smiling widely. 'I've survived without human tribute for centuries! There is no way that I could be is instigated by this cute little "fight".' Sakura sighed.

"I'm not using weapons," Kakashi announced, still standing boredly. Naruto was confused, but figured that any advantage he could get would help. The blonde reached into his pocket and Kakashi's response was to reach into his own.

Naruto squawked and held a kunai out defensively. "You said no weapons!" Kakashi chuckled and whipped out a bright orange book. Just by seeing the large, red restricted circle Sakura knew what that book was about. Well, not completely—she just knew it was adult-oriented. Kurokami explained it very loosely, trying not to destroy her host's innocence.

"A book is not a weapon," justified Kakashi. Naruto growled and charged forward, attempting to slash Kakashi with his kunai. Sakura watched Kakashi's moves closely, knowing full well she'd have a small chance unless she could, A) collect information on his fighting style, B) get help from Kurokami, or C) seriously hurt Kakashi. She had no intention on doing that, even if the grown man had nearly killed her yesterday.

'Just watch closely!' Kurokami commanded, paying her own attention to Kakashi. 'This guy has high chakra levels, which means he can deal out an array of large jutsu. He's a seasoned ninja, obviously. Though he won't stand a chance against a goddess and goddess-to-be, I don't think you want to take him down using such conventional methods.'

Sakura smiled for a split second and blushed. 'I thank you for your help, but I want to fight on my own. And,' Sakura toned down slightly, even though she was speaking telepathically and could not be heard outside, 'I can't have people knowing you reside in me. Mother already explained what would happen to us…' She gasped slightly when Naruto was caught by Kakashi from behind.

The silver haired man smirked haughtily. He was crouched from behind Naruto, and held up his hands in a seal. Both Sasuke and Sakura realize the seal was the Tiger seal, a handsign used for stronger fire techniques.

"Watch out, Naruto!" Sasuke yelled, revealing himself from his hiding spot. "He's going to…"

"My most powerful attack!" Kakashi yelled loudly, poising his hands right behind Naruto. "ULTIMATE TECHNIQUE: THOUSAND YEARS OF PAIN!"

Time seemed to stop for everyone there. Sasuke and Sakura openly gaped, Kurokami almost wet herself, and Naruto held a pain stricken, confused, and violated expression. Kakashi's fingers in his butt were not comfortable.

With power no one had been expecting, Naruto flew off and into the water nearby. Time restarted for the other two adolescents with Sasuke realizing he just gave his location away for an extremely deadly ass-poke. He leapt away promptly. Sakura hid her face in her hands. This was the most horrifying thing she'd ever experienced in her life. How could such a technique exist?!

Kurokami continued to suffocate from laughter—Sakura worried that the goddess would die.

"THAT HURT!" Naruto screamed, jumping out from the water with a group of shadow clones. Sakura inhaled sharply. Kakashi wasn't expecting such a move from Naruto! By using a taijutsu-strict attack pattern, Naruto was able to catch Kakashi in a sleeper hold. Right when Naruto boasted his win, the Kakashi transformed into another Naruto, sending the small flurry of Uzumaki's into an all-or-nothing brawl. Kakashi had disappeared, Sakura knew, when every clone was destroyed. Only a battered Naruto was left.

The blonde groaned and rubbed his bruised face. Kakashi had pulled an extremely dirty trick on him. "Unfair!" he complained to himself, walking over to a tree to steady himself. He gasped happily upon reaching that tree; there was a bell lying in the grass, right for him to take!

'Super lucky!' he sang to himself, reaching for the golden chime. Sakura's keen eyes saw the trap immediately. Without thinking she ran forward, pleading for the boy to stop. Kurokami sighed an wiped a tear from her eye, only to fall over once more when Naruto, not hearing Sakura's caution, reached down to pluck the bell and ended up hanging from a trick wire. Kakashi appeared not so long afterward to obtain his bell. Sakura instinctively jumped and clutched onto a tree.

'What's he going to do to him?!' Sakura wondered frantically, staring with wide eyes. Kakashi descended gracefully, smiling evilly. Producing an ice cube from Kurokami-knows-where, he slipped it down Naruto's jacket. The boy could do nothing, as he was tied up.

"Penalty for being a total idiot; ice cube down the shirt!" Naruto squealed like a pig, withering to and fro. Sakura merely rested her forehead against the bark of the tree. This… everything was just completely hopeless. Kakashi poofed off once more and after a minute of watching Naruto squirm, Sakura ran out of hiding. She dragged her hand across a shadowed section of the tree, scraping out a kunai made of a blacker substance than a standard kunai. She flicked it at the rope captivating Naruto and squeaking pitifully as the boy fell with a loud crash.

"N-Naruto-san!" she cried apologetically, holding out her hands. The boy was up quickly, clutching the back of his head with a gritted grin. "I didn't mean f-for th-that to happen!" Naruto laughed loudly, suddenly overcome by a dark and vengeful aura. Sakura nearly fainted right then and there. Her face exploded into tomato red and she jumped back to protect herself. What was going on?!

"Kaaaa-kaaaa-shiiiiii…" Naruto threateningly drawled lowly, glaring out at the forest. He dashed forward in an unexpected move, screaming, "I'LL KILL YOU AND THEN DISMEMBER YOU AND KILL YOU AGAIN!" His screaming faded as he ran farther from the small clearing Sakura was in. The pinkette was walking the thin line of unconsciousness and fright by this time. Naruto quickly turned into a brand of frightful demon in her mental view, roaring and clawing at a small doll of Kakashi.

Kurokami stared as well, trying to name the mental states of the ninja in present time. 'Just keep walking Sakura. Just… keep walking.' The goddess sighed, 'We've wasted enough time as it is. No more watching, okay? Those bells need to be in our hands soon.'

Sakura nodded, taking large steps despite her shy exterior. If there was anything she could say about herself that wasn't shy, it was her stride. Thanks to her long legs and strong muscles, the Haruno could walk quickly (a useful tool for escaping embarrassing situations). 'But, Kurokami, haven't you noticed?' The questioned being turned her ears toward Sakura, eyeing her descendant with strikingly bright, blood red eyes.

'Is it about the fact there are only two bells?'

'Y-yeah… I just can't, well… I don't believe he can seriously base our skills on this kind of exercise.'

Kurokami regarded the girl with speculating eyes. 'Explain.'

'Think about it;' Sakura quietly suggested, peering around a tree to see if Kakashi or anyone else was nearby, 'that test we took in the academy days ago was our physical exam… What's the point of having another one? Especially now that he's pitting us against each other, I question him. We're in a cell of three, not operating as single units.' Kurokami rolled this idea in her mind for a moment.

'You're right. We should be working together, not against each other. The goal of this test isn't for strength... It's teamwork. That's why there is a bell missing.' Kurokami smiled like the Cheshire cat. 'He wants to see if any of us can actually figure out the meaning of this exercise.'

Sakura gasped to herself. 'Naruto is much too simple-minded to realize this! Sasuke, though strong, is very unreasonable in group work!' She didn't even realize that she had insulted both her teammates.

(Konoha, Unknown Location in Morning's Forest, June 17th, 10:15AM)

Naruto sneezed randomly. At the back of his mind he wondered what that had come from. Quickly, the feeling that he had just been offended somewhere else rose up his spine.

'That was weird,' Naruto mumbled. He growled angrily, 'It was probably that stupid Sasuke! Just wait, Sasuke… I'll get you, become Hokage, and marry Sakura-chan!'

(Konoha, Unknown Location in Morning's Forest, June 17th, 10:16AM)

Sasuke was running quickly, trying to locate his teacher, when suddenly he sneezed violently. Confusion swept over his body—he knew that when someone sneezed, they were being thought about somewhere else. Smirking, he automatically fantasized it being Sakura, wishing for his well-being and strength. With new courage and determination he jumped to the next tree.

'I'll fight for you everyday, Sakura-chan!' he promised to himself, resisting the urge to yell loudly and raise his fist into the air valiantly. (He was SASUKE; he couldn't just do those things!)

(Konoha, Unknown Location in Morning's Forest, June 17th, 10:32AM)

Sakura sighed, stopping on a tree to catch her breath and calm her heart. She had been running around for countless minutes, trying to ascertain her sensei's whereabouts. She had refused using celestial detection as Kurokami had offered.

Earlier, after the conclusion of the test's true meaning, Sakura gave up all hope on passing. Sasuke would never give his pride and work with her and Naruto and Naruto would definitely refuse working with Sasuke. Though she knew Naruto wouldn't mind cooperating with her, Sakura refused the prospect. He lacked the skill of standing still and having brains that she needed for this to work.

'Kakashi's probably just letting me run in circles,' Sakura guessed, frowning in defeat. 'He has more than enough talent to hide from me.'

'Then use what I gave you and find him!' Kurokami whined. She really wanted for Sakura to experience battle at least once today! Sakura refused once more, jumping down from her tree.

She supposed it was fitting irony that Kakashi appear behind her at that exact moment.

Shivers ran down her spine due to the closeness of her teacher's body to hers; when he bent down to whisper something in her ear she nearly died.

"Aren't you going to try and get a bell?" he muttered, dangling a single trinket in font of her face. "You haven't fought me yet."

"T-t-t-t-t-t-there's n-no p-p-po-po-point!" Sakura struggled to say. Kakashi made an inquiring sound and urged her to continue. The pinkette screwed her eyes closed and tried her best to ignore her elder. "The b-bells are distractions," she began slowly, "to m-make us for-forget the true purpose o-of this test. We are grouped in-into three m-man groups f-for a reason—to w-work together to accomplish our g-goal. The m-missing bell creates stress in these t-ties, K-Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi had known from his records of his students that Sakura was a smart girl that shown talent in many areas, but he hadn't expected her to actually unveil his trick. Originally, he had imagined her to be like every other ninja and go for the bells like ordered and deal with the repercussions afterward, but she proved him wrong and analyzed the meaning of the test.

Now, he only had one more thing to judge her on. Her fighting skills.

And he had the perfect set up for it.

"So, you broke the code," Kakashi praised lowly, moving away from Sakura. "Nice job. But, you know, Sasuke wasn't as lucky." Sakura opened her eyes quickly and turned to look at him. Unluckily for her she was a centimeter from his face, so when she turned, she nearly bumped noses with him. The older man disappeared without much delay, and Sakura swore she saw a line of red under his one eye.

'OH MY GOD, I WAS SO CLOSE TO SAKURA!!!' Kakashi screamed mentally as he appeared in the clearing with Sasuke's head just poking out of the ground. The boy growled angrily, to which Kakashi held a finger to his masked lips. "Hush, I'm waiting for Sakuranbo-chan." Sasuke squawked in an unsightly manner at the thought of Kakashi fighting with Sakura.

"He has Sasuke!" Sakura gasped, turning in the direction she had traced Kakashi to. She had noticed his chakra signature quickly and memorized it—it wasn't leading very far away. Kurokami humph-ed and ushered the girl to run. She would promise to protect Sakura's heart if the girl ran as fast as she could. "Okay," she whispered, leaning to prepare herself for the initial push. An onlooker who was not seasoned ninja could not see Sakura's strong dash forward. The girl propelled herself with as much strength as necessary.

'I don't think he would do too much to Sasuke,' Kurokami muttered as she watched the greenery around her fly past. Sakura nodded in agreement, pivoting flawlessly to change direction left. It only took her a minute to skid into the clearing Sasuke was trapped in and Kakashi was waiting. The man had hid himself and his chakra, so Sakura wasn't completely sure he was there. When she spotted Sasuke neither Sakura nor Kurokami laughed or looked strangely… Actually, Sakura did, a little, but she quickly shook the feeling away. Sasuke's head needed rescuing.

"S-Sasuke, are y-you okay?" the heiress asked meekly, digging a little around the boy's neck with her white hands. The Uchiha was speechless for a moment, inwardly floating on Cloud 9.

"I'm fine," he bit out aggressively, looking away to the side. Sakura winced at the harsh voice and faltered in her work, but regained composure. The black-haired teen winced as well, but not as visibly; he did not mean to sound so cruel. If he intended to make her his loving wife, then he couldn't treat he like that!

Inner Sasuke shook his fist, muttering curses at the façade he was forced to put up with.

"Sakura…" Sasuke began, intending to apologize for his rude behavior. What his next words were defied his intentions by far, "…watch out!" Sakura looked like a deer in headlights. "Behind you!"

Kakashi had jumped out from the tree behind them and was aiming a strike at Sakura's back. The young girl barely dodged in time, turning to the left. Kakashi's fist crashed into the ground right in front of Sasuke's face. Sakura prepared herself as best she could. She tried her hardest to stand tall, but she couldn't help but cringe. Kurokami growled at the man for using a dirty move.

"You have proved your intelligence, Sakura!" Kakashi bellowed, standing in a fighting position. "Figuring out my plan is commendable… now show me you can fight to back it up!" Sakura squeaked and jumped back to avoid a jab from her teacher.

'Oh,' Sakura moaned. Kurokami didn't reply as she was too focused on the girl's heart.

'Fight him,' the goddess ordered. There was no emotion in her voice. 'I'll watch your heart. He wants you to prove yourself, so go ahead and do it!' Even though Sakura put all her trust in Kurokami, she still had weak knees. Try against Kakashi of all people?

"Sakura…" Sasuke whispered and stared wide eyed at the girl who seemed to only remain on the defensive. He had never seen her in action before, so watching her dodge at lightning fast speeds amazed him. "Come on, Sakura!" The girl looked at him, hearing his small cry with her delicate ears. So, even Sasuke would root for her? Sakura had no time to dwell on that fact as she just missed Kakashi's foot in her stomach.

'I need to go on the defensive,' she realized. Defense wouldn't win her any battle, no matter how fruitless and forced it was. 'Okay then, I know that Kakashi-sensei favors his right hand when punching, so it must be his stronger hand.' Get rid of the hand, get a better chance, she supposed. She waited for Kakashi to swing once more and didn't have to wait long. As Kakashi's hand sailed toward her, Sakura showed her amazing acrobatic talent and bent backward, dragging her hand through her own shadow to produce those dark kunai. Kakashi stilled for a moment, at Sakura's nearly impossible move—a very costly accident on his part.

"Don't stop!" Sakura whispered out fearfully, the momentum of her body turning propelling the weapons toward Kakashi. Two missed and one hit its mark of Kakashi's right arm. The man hissed in pain as the kunai ran through his arm, leaving a large cut. He was confused though, when the stinging persisted and a black smear covered most of the wound.

"What?" the broom-head ninja questioned, trying to keep an eye on the wound and Sakura. The girl leapt back.

"It's c-called Black Kunai," she answered, kicking at the ground behind her. From her shadow five more kunai emerged, having enough air-time to give Sakura a chance to catch them in her hands. "It's made f-from the shadows and a Haruno technique." Sasuke stared, open mouthed. Sakura had enough strength to hurt Kakashi?! He had not even been able to scratch the jounin! Sakura sighed and apologized. "S-sorry, but the stinging will l-last until I w-wish it to." Kakashi smirked.

"I forgot about your family," he muttered, eyeing the girl. Sakura looked away and weakened her stance. Kakashi took this chance and dashed forward to sweep Sakura's feet from under her. The girl hadn't been expecting this move and was sent falling to the ground. Thankfully for her, the sun was shifting and the shadows were being cast longer. Sakura was able to twist herself enough to touch a nearby shadow, which was all she needed.

Sasuke scrutinized this change in her fall, and realized that she was planning to do something similar to yesterday. Kakashi didn't know about this did he? Apparently not, for when Sakura disappeared by seemingly being "eaten" by the shadow, Kakashi faltered. The black circle that Sakura was represented by flew behind the Hatake. Sasuke watched it carefully and opened his eyes wide in shock when Sakura's arms lifted out from the ground and clasped Kakashi's ankles. The grown man sputtered and was dragged into the ground. His predicament was eerily similar to Sasuke's.

Sakura leapt from the ground quickly. To continue the never ending parade of surprises, she held up the bells, one in each hand. Kakashi chuckled.

"You're definitely strong," he admitted, playfully glaring at Sakura. "Too bad you didn't notice this!" The trapped Kakashi disappeared in a plume of smoke, systematically followed by the bells. Sakura's motionless face melted into tiredness and upset. She missed his illusion…

"That…" Sasuke breathed out, staring admirably at his future bride, "was amazing." Though his compliment was completely outlandish for him to say, Sakura accepted it nervously. She was panting quite hard by the time she had unearthed Sasuke and had to rely on his shoulder for support.

'You did well,' Kurokami admitted, though she held some disappointment in her voice. 'You should've noticed that illusion though. We're going to work on your genjutsu.' Sakura sighed emptily, feeling as if she completely deserved the training. 'Don't worry, though. You managed to show you teacher that you can hold your own.'

'But still,' she returned, 'I could've done better… and I'm really tired.' Sakura counted her heartbeat, paranoid. Kurokami ensured that it was fine. Sakura lost count as the ringer for the end of the test rang out loudly.

"We couldn't even get a bell," Sasuke growled out. He didn't realize the meaning of the test either, Sakura noted thought she had already known Sasuke wouldn't figure it out. "Let's go," Sasuke offered, speeding up his pace.

(Konoha, Center of Morning's Forest, June 17th, 12:05PM)

Sakura didn't really expect Naruto to be tied on a log when she and Sasuke had entered the clearing. The blonde squiggled and struggled fruitlessly against his restraints. Kakashi sat comfortably on the rock with the timer and bento, watching as Sasuke gently set Sakura down. Naruto seemed like he would kill Sasuke at any moment. Sakura simply rested.

"As you can see, Naruto cheated," Kakashi explained, holding up a single bento. "And I have some news. You all…" The three graduates looked up at the man expectantly. "Fail!" Kurokami and Naruto both yelled out loudly (though Kurokami's vulgar comment was unheard of by most of the people there). Sasuke stood up angrily and threw a punch at Kakashi. The older male easily subdued the boy by crossing his arms over his back and pushing his head into the ground with a foot.

"You can't be serious!" Naruto complained. Sakura remained silent and thought over this information.

"Sakura was the only one out of you three that actually took the time to think about the test," Kakashi angrily explained. "This test was not about getting two stupid bells… It was to test your ability with teamwork! Teamwork is what gets a squad through missions! For example…" Kakashi took out a kunai and held it at Sasuke. "Sakura, kill Naruto or I'll murder Sasuke!" Sakura jumped back, back straight as wood. Sasuke stared at the girl as did Naruto. Her face reddened deeply. Kakashi sighed and returned his weapon to its holster.

"There is always a chance of this happening during a mission," Kakashi informed. "One of you may even be forced to leave the others to get your mission finished. But for the coward that runs from his teammates is worse than trash!" Kakashi released Sasuke. The boy scrambled back to his pole. The teacher eyed the lone Uchiha carefully. "This stone behind me is the Memorial Stone. Great ninja's names are inscribed on this rock…"

"My name will be there one day!" Naruto yelled out, taken by the fact strong ninja were written down on that rock. Kakashi stilled.

"The ninja on here were either killed in action or went missing." Naruto shut up quite quickly and looked away. Sakura placed her hands in a quick prayer. Kakashi breathed a few times and continued speaking.

"Sasuke! You can't refuse help! Nothing will be accomplished if all you do is turn people down. Learn to work with other people." Sasuke looked away with an unknown expression on his face.

"Naruto! You have an issue with charging forward and not thinking beforehand! If you don't stop to think about situations carefully, you'll never become Hokage!" Naruto furrowed his eyebrows and looked at the ground.

"S-Sakura," Kakashi pitifully began. He could not keep an angry resolve when Sakura held such large, glistening ruby eyes. "Even though you might've been able to figure out this test was on teamwork, you shouldn't have just given up hope like that. You need to believe in yourself more!" Sakura twiddled her fingers pathetically. Kakashi sighed. "How about this… I'll give you and Sasuke your lunches and we'll try again later. Naruto must not be given anything to eat! If you do, I'll send you to the academy permanently." With a cheerful smile the man disappeared. Sakura was speechless, turning to stare at the broken hearted Naruto.

"I… I don't need it!" declared the Uzumaki bravely. His stomach made it clear that the boy was lying. Sakura frowned and looked meekly from Sasuke to Naruto. Was she going to have to do it?

Sasuke pushed his food in front of Naruto's face indifferently. "You need to eat, idiot. We're going to need your strength if Kakashi's going to put us through another test." Naruto looked like he was going to cry his face was so pained. Sakura gently pushed Sasuke's food back to him and held a sample of hers to Naruto. Naruto was really going to cry now.

"I ate b-breakfast," Sakura stated once more. "I c-can handle n-not eating a little." Naruto's eyes exploded into hearts and he opened his mouth so that Sakura could give him the food. Right as the chopsticks were to enter his mouth, Kakashi appeared with a dark countenance and stormy weather. Lightning flashed behind him.

"YOU DARE GIVE NARUTO FOOD WHEN I SAID NOT TO?!" Kakashi shouted deeply. The three stood very still. "If that is the case… Then…" Pausing for dramatic effect, he finished, "you pass!" The three were silent.

Sakura seemed half dead and was clutching to her pole as a means of support. Naruto was going to wet himself. Sasuke held his face in his hands. The two boys finally let it settle in. Naruto tried jumping in happiness, shouting and crying joyfully. Sasuke smirked and crossed his arms. The only girl of the group tried smiling, but it came out broken.

"Let's go get some lunch," Kakashi sang, beginning to walk away. Sasuke got up to follow him and helped Sakura stand. Naruto yelled distressed words when he realized they forgot to untie him.

"Hey, guys! GUYS! HELP ME!!"

.-.

-laughs hollowly- It's here and finished. I'm so tired.

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