Tears of Ice
By Hell's Angel
A/N: Aw guys, Thanks! We're almost at 20, so let's see if we can get there! Also, I have a special task for all you guys! Read the A/N at the bottom of the page, please!
Dedicated to:Sunny ver 2.0, Naomipy, Twisted Musalih, MayhemBunny, gabi2801, Tsaeteh, and Ashes.
Thank you so much for being constant reviewers! I couldn't ask for anything better than you guys!
Also- check out my poll. It's about my next story. Thanks.
-TEARS OF ICE-
"Mom, I-"
"Sakura, honey, I know. I'm so sorry I couldn't have told you earlier. I didn't know," her mother said, wrapping Sakura into a hug. Sakura returned the hug gratefully, feeling a sting of pain in her eyes.
When they broke apart, Sakura brushed the tears out of her eyes before they fell. "Thank you," she whispered softly, to the one woman who had always understood. "Thank you so much."
"It's what I'm meant to do," said Mebuki Haruno, her eyes shining with tears. "You've grown so much," she said, her hands on Sakura's shoulders as she looked her up and down.
Sakura smiled softly, and grabbed one of her mother's hands. "You understand why I have to do this, don't you?" She was silently scared of her mother's disapproval.
But her mother never let her down. And she didn't let her down this time, either. "Of course I understand," her mother said, brushing a strand of pink hair out of Sakura's face. She smiled down at her, only slightly taller than her daughter. "I'll always understand."
It was too much for Sakura. "Thank you," she said again, but each time she said it, she meant it even more. She broke down in sobs. "What did I do?" she said to herself. "What did I do to deserve someone who loves me so much?"
Her mother smiled softly, her smile so like Sakura's very own. "And what did I do to deserve such a wonderful daughter?" she said, embracing Sakura.
Sakura laughed, but it sounded like she was crying. "I'm glad you understand," she said. "I'm so glad."
-TEARS OF ICE-
"You're… you're going away?"
Sakura grinned. "Yes, Naruto," she said, no sign of her conversation with her mother just a few moments before.
It was just the two of them, at Ichiraku, sitting side by side on two of the stools that surrounded the table. "But why?!" he cried, anime tears pouring down his face.
"I just need some time," Sakura began. It wasn't a lie, and it wasn't the complete truth, either. "I need some time to figure out…who I am." And figure out who she is, she thought, thinking about Mayonaka.
Naruto looked confused, but grinned anyway. "That's cool, Sakura-chan!" he said, fist punching the air, noodles hanging out of his mouth. "Have fun!"
"Thanks Naruto," she called back, sliding off her seat. "Tell you what," she said, as a second thought. "I'll pay," she said, a little too kindly, slapping a bunch of coins on the table. "I hope this'll cover it."
"Really?!" said Naruto, after a moment recovering from his shock. "You mean it?"
"'Course I do," Sakura said, doubling back to stand next to Naruto. To her astonishment, hr teammate left off his seat and gave her a bear hug. Breath knocked out of her, Sakura chocked a little before wrapping her arms around Naruto.
Naruto let go, and so did she. "Thanks Sakura-chan," he said softly. "And good luck on your trip."
"Thanks!" she called, walking away from the stand. "Bye!"
"Bye," Naruto said, a hand hanging in the air in farewell.
-TEARS OF ICE-
"I'm going on a trip."
Sasuke paused, hand mid-air, in target practice. His hand resumed motion, and so did the rest of his body. "Where?"
"Ame," Sakura said truthfully. She was cautious in telling Sasuke all this information, and tried to keep her answers as short as possible.
Sasuke, being an intellectual genius, figured it out in a heartbeat. "Your clan," he said, eyes never straying from the red dot marked on the tree that he was aiming at. "You're visiting your clan, aren't you."
No question in his tone, he was already positive on what she was doing. "Yes," she said, telling the truth and hating herself for it. "Yes, I am," she said as a confirmation, even Sasuke didn't need it.
Sasuke nodded, eyes darting to Sakura for a second. They stood, in the awkward silence. "So," Sasuke said, pausing in his training, "Good luck."
"Thanks," Sakura said, pleasantly surprised. She stuck out a hand, which Sasuke looked at warily. "Truce?"
Sasuke remained silent, but he looked at her hand, in thought. Finally, he spoke. "Truce," he agreed, shaking her hand.
-TEARS OF ICE-
"Hey, sensei?"
"Yes, Sakura-chan?" They in one of their many training sessions. "What, you worried about tomorrow?"
Sakura sighed. "Yeah," she admitted. "What…there are so many 'what ifs'."
Kakashi smiled, even though he knew Sakura couldn't see it. "Don't worry," he said, a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Even though I'm not coming with you, You'll be fine."
"I'm going with a bunch of ANBU," she said, worry creasing her brow. "And they're just dropping me off at the Yoshino Estate."
"You're going to be an outsider," Kakashi said, not really helping the situation. "But you are family to them."
Sakura sighed. "Yeah, I suppose so." But she didn't feel convinced. "I'm just scared on what they're going to do. Will they teach me their ways? Or will they just want to see me, and see who I am?"
"All clans are clever," Kakashi said. "And the Yoshino is not different from other clans. They are clever, as all clans are, and they also are unique. Of course they want to know who you are," Kakashi said, looking pointedly at Sakura. "I'm sure Mayonaka will want to know what person you are."
"Is that a good thing?" Sakura asked dully, staring at the sinking sun. "I'm leaving tomorrow. Tomorrow." She repeated the word, in horror and in shock.
"I'm scared, sensei. But I'm excited too."
"Hey," Kakashi said, abandoning his sarcastic charisma. "It's okay to be scared. It makes us human."
"I know," said Sakura. And she did know. She was scared all the time. She was scared now. "But…I don't want to be scared."
"I know," Kakashi said. "No one does. But yet we bear the burden of other people's lives, and we bear the burden of being responsible for people's deaths. It all comes in the package, Sakura-chan."
Sakura didn't respond, and instead, she sat down on the soft grass, and stared at the horizon. Kakashi sat next to her and together, they, together, sat and watched the sun go down.
Until the moon rose, and it was a brand-new day.
-TEARS OF ICE-
A/N: Hey guys! I'm doing a double update!
I dunno what time it is where you live, but over here its's Christmas! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL!
Sunny ver 2.0; Thank you so much for your TWO awesome, long reviews! I plan for the relationship to be a positive one, you probably saw hints of that in this chapter. Did you see the 'you've all grown up' part? That was for you!
Okay, to the important stuff. Okay guys, listen up, cause I really need you to. I want you to create a character. For this story, of course. I only have a few little necessities for the character.
-Has to be a Chunin or Jounin. Not an Anbu. Soz.
-Has to come from Amegakure.
-Needs to be a healer. Part-time healer, a bit like Sakura in the Anime, is okay, too.
-Is a Yoshino.
Thanks guys! I look forward to seeing your suggestions for characters! I'm having a double chapter special, so just hit the 'next chapter' button!
Any feedback, likes, suggestions, questions, spelling errors, things you'd like be to change: Hit the Review Button! :)
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