Chapter Six

Complications are a part of life,

Whether you choose to overcome them or not...

Is up to you.

"You've been distracted this entire time," Yamato states with certainty when Sakura, once again, fails to create a wooden dome. "I'm not your Academy assigned sensei, but I'm still your sensei in this case. Do you want to talk about it?" The sincerity in his voice is what stops the denial on Sakura's lips.

Instead, she turns to face him with an almost defeated look. "One of my friends - ex-friend? rival? - and I spoke a few days ago and the conversation didn't go the way I planned, sensei - "

Ino stares at Sakura expectantly, pale blue eyes narrowing in on Sakura when she shifts on her feet, key still firmly gripped in her hand. "Forehead girl, answer me!"

Sometimes, Sakura forgets how demanding Ino can be. Time away from her does not help the situation. In fact, Sakura feels very annoyed that Ino would demand an answer. Ino has not been privy to information about Sakura since she renounced their friendship over no longer wanting to be in Ino's shadow. There were some Sasuke related feelings involved, but not nearly as much as Ino believes.

"You don't always get your way, Ino." Sakura turns away. "I live here." She hears Ino approach quickly.

"Why? You're not an orphan."

Sakura rolls her left shoulder in an attempt to alleviate the stress building up there. "No, I'm not. I just thought some independence would do me some good. Maybe you should try it sometime?" With that, Sakura places her key in the lock, twists it, and opens the door.

"These apartments are owned by the Nara clan. How could you have possibly managed to land an apartment here?"

"I happen to know Shikaku-san," Sakura replies. "You're not privy to any other information, Ino." She sighs. "Look, I'm really tired and I have to be up super early in the morning. We have less than one weeks before the chunin exams and Kakashi-sensei is training us to the bone." Sakura looks over her shoulder. "Just don't worry about and don't go bothering Shikamaru."

She sees Ino shift. "You've changed." It's a very simple statement that has a lot more impact than Sakura appreciates.

"Experiences change us, Ino. Good night."

" - and we haven't been able to speak about it yet. With the exams in a few days and the tight schedule Kakashi-sensei set up, it's not a priority."

Pushy. Pushy Pushy.

"Perhaps, it should be." Sakura blinks, surprised. "You're distracted and this is worrisome because you cannot allow yourself to be distracted during the exams. It could very well cause you to be disqualified. Or worse. I encourage you to resolve it within the next few days. Now," he moves away. "I want you to clear your head of all conflict and only focus on completing this jutsu. Easier said than done but I know you're capable."

Sakura inhales, exhales, and straightens her back. "Yes, sensei."

Yamato smiles kindly. "Do you need me to repeat the hand signs?"

She shakes her head. "No, sensei."

He claps his hands a few times. "Okay. I want you to make a dome at least half the size of the tree behind me. Remember the breathing exercises we practiced. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sensei."

"I want you to complete the hand signs at a pace you are comfortable with, Sakura. You may begin."

The hand signs are not difficult. It took her merely two times of observing to get them down. Her only problem involves releasing too much chakra into the jutsu. Wood release is hard to master. The level of focus and skill that goes into it is somewhat intimidating. Yamato mentioned briefly in the past that she is lucky to have the affinities for it ahead of time and that her grasp of chakra is close to perfection. Sakura never commented on the faraway look that entered his eyes during their first conversation.

Yamato is almost as puzzlingly as Kakashi, only much more open about his emotions. Friendly, but not overly so.

Kneeling on the ground on one knee, Sakura forms the signs quickly and keeps the last sign formed pressed against her chest as she gazes - with the utmost determination - at the ground between her and Yamato. Slowly, every so slowly, the ground starts to ripple until a mound starts to appear and grows. It continues to grow at a slow pace until it's above Yamato's head and continues onward. It's much too slow for Sakura's tastes but she did want to learn wood release before the exams.

Something trails down her face and she quickly deduces it to be sweat.

"Good, good." She can barely hear Yamato's praise.

The wood-related figure is tall enough within a few minutes but it needs to expand much more horizontally. Sakura steadily focuses on doing just that. For roughly five minutes, she widens the dome until she deems it acceptable and releases the sign. There's a thin line of sweat running down the sides of her face but Sakura feels proud.

Her dome is nowhere near as perfect as the one Yamato showed her earlier in the day, but she managed. Despite that -

"Excellent!"

- "It's so ugly."

She laughs.

"You merely need more practice. It's almost unfortunate you're entering this summer's chunin exams." He sighs.

"Why?" Sakura tilts her head. She doesn't know how she feels about his statement.

"Because if you were to wait until next year's exam, I believe it would be enough time for you to master wood release. Nevertheless," he shrugs with a grin, "we'll get in what we get in. I have faith in you, Sakura."

Sakura grins.

"I have faith in you, Sakura," Kakashi tells her as she cuts him out of her vines. In the background, she can hear Naruto's booming laughter clear from the other side of Ground 3. "You'll do your team proud."

"Thank you, sensei."

"Thank you, sensei."

Yamato glances down at his wrist. "We have roughly another hour before we switch and I," Yamato sighs, "take on Naruto and Sasuke." Sakura giggles. She's heard plenty of interesting stories about Naruto and Sasuke from Yamato these last few days. "How about we spar?"

Sakura stands up. "Okay."

"I won't hold back, Sakura."

She drops into a fighting stance. "I would be insulted if you did, sensei."


Sakura follows after Yamato at a slower pace, a subtle limp accompanying her. She fiddles with her long hair hanging in a loose, messy braid over her shoulder. Her spars with Yamato, like always, end with her beat down but happy. Very happy. Yamato doesn't hold back in any form and she deeply appreciates it. She cannot improve if her opponents go easy on her.

"Maybe I did overdo it," she hears him quietly just ahead of her.

"Don't worry about it," Sakura replies as Yamato stops to allow her to catch up to him. "You're above my level in many, if not all, forms." Then she adds cheekily, "Sensei."

Yamato merely rolls his eyes good-naturedly. "If you say so." He grins. "My young pupil."

Sakura stifles a light giggle behind her hand. "What will you be teaching Naruto today?"

"I'll be teaching him how to not force so much chakra into one area of his body." He pinches the bridge of his nose. "Senpai really shouldn't have waited until just before the exams to ask me about this."

"Oh," Sakura replies. She doesn't know what to say to that.

"I don't mind. Truly. Your sensei has always been like that in one way or another."

Sakura hums thoughtfully. "How long have you known Kakashi-sensei, Yamato-sensei? At least a decade?"

Yamato chuckles. "I'm two years younger than your sensei, Sakura. We meet when I was 15 and he was 17. Not quite a decade has passed."

"How did you meet?" They steer off the main road and head into the fields towards Ground Three.

She hears a sigh. "I was placed on his squad."

"Oh," she's surprised. "This is something you can't talk about, right? Classified? Confidential?"

"Unfortunately, yes. But," Yamato grins a little mischievously, "if you pester him enough, you may get something out of him." She blinks and he shrugs. "It worked for me. Or you could just call him 'senpai' and see where that takes you."

Sakura laughs. "He doesn't like being called 'senpai' I take it?"

"He hates it."

"Who hates what?"

Sakura takes pride in not jumping when Kakashi flash-steps in front of them. There's a thin layer of sweat visible on the right side of his face and his silver hair is far more wild than usual. Behind him, Sakura can hear the shuffles and groans of her male teammates. She even hears a familiar whimper come from Naruto and tries not to wince at the sight of them when they stop next to Kakashi.

Sasuke has a nasty bruise forming around his left temple and his hands are twitching like mad. She's not sure, but she thinks she sees minor burn marks on the tips of his fingers. Naruto, on the other hand, it filthy. There's mud in his hair and dirt on his face and large portions of his loud jumpsuit are covered by grass stains and dirt. He, like Sasuke, is sporting some bruising around his left temple.

"Did you collide?" Sakura steps forward, concern clear on her face. "Do you need to go to a hospital?"

Before either Naruto and Sasuke could speak, Kakashi places a hand on one shoulder each. "Nay, Sakura-chan. The boys just fell into an argument and decided to work out their frustration. It ended when Sasuke pushed Naruto down the hill after he head-butted him."

Sakura stares at Kakashi and then Naruto and then Sasuke. She sends a look to Yamato...and completely loses it. Laughter spills from her lips in loud, hearty noises and she has to clutch her stomach just to keep herself from falling over.

"Mah mah, Sakura-chan. It really hurts!"

"I-I'm sorry, Naru-ruto! But you and S-Sasuke-kun are hilarious!" Sakura calms down a bit and wipes the laughter tears away. "I mean, look at you. You're cute like toddlers. You fight like toddlers. You're just so funny." She ends up leaning on Yamato and gestures to her scowling teammates. "This is my life, Yamato-sensei. Kakashi-sensei and I look after toddlers~!"

Kakashi lifts his hand from Sasuke's shoulder and strokes his covered chin. "Hm, that's a good comparison. Good job, Sakura-chan."

She giggles before stepping forward, hand already digging into her pouch for her small jar of healing balm. "I'm sorry." She pulls out the jar and twists it open. "May I?" This is directed at Sasuke. At his jerky nod, she gently applies a little bit to his temple and bites her lip to keep herself from cooing at the soft sigh of relief that escapes Sasuke's mouth. "And you, Naruto." Sakura turns away from Sasuke and repeats the action with the same tenderness.

"Thank you, Sakura-chan."

She nods, puts the jar away, and places her hands on her hips. "It's time for us to switch and I expect you both to be on your best behavior while training under Yamato-sensei today. Am I clear?" She cocks an eyebrow at Sasuke's immediately scoff. "I was planning on bringing my lemon water tomorrow but with your attitude, maybe I won't."

Naruto's jaw drops. "B-But Sakura-chan!"

Sakura sends him an unimpressed look that sends Naruto moving around Kakashi to shake Sasuke. "Oi! Asshole! We gotta' be good today!" It takes Sasuke a few moments to break out of Naruto's hold.

"Whatever."

She reaches forward and pats both of them on the cheek. "Please let me know if they misbehavior, Yamato-sensei."

"Of course."

Sakura can clearly hear the mirth in his voice. "Alrighty! Have fun." She moves around them to stand next to Kakashi and smiles brightly. Naruto and Sasuke follow Yamato while grumbling under their breath.

"Well, sensei," Sakura looks up. "What's on today's menu?"

Kakashi chuckles and pats her head. "You'll see."


"But my close combat really lacks, Kakashi-sensei."

"It's not as bad as you believe it to be, Sakura-chan."

"Compared to Sasuke-kun and Naruto, I suck at close combat, Kakashi-sensei."

"When will you stop comparing yourself to the boys, Sakura-chan."

"When I catch up to them in terms of skill and strength, Kakashi-sensei." When he doesn't reply, Sakura looks away while biting her lip. "I'm not a fool, Kakashi-sensei. I'm the weak link of Team Seven. I - "

" - You have nearly perfect chakra control which means you more easily adapt to higher leveled jutsu when given the time to practice. You're a natural genjutsu type and, if that skill is honed, could eventually lead you to become a master and that, in and of its self, is rare. Within the last month, your taijutsu has improved tremendously. Your weapon training is on par with Sasuke. You can easily keep up with the boys now." There's an odd aura around him now. "You have three chakra affinities, Sakura-chan. That's incredibly rare and you're excelling in two of them and now you're on your way to learning wood release."

Clenching her first, Sakura looks him in the eye. "I don't want to be the reason Team Seven fails the chunin exams."

"None of you will fail."

"How can you be so sure, sensei?"

He pulls a scroll and hands it to her. "Because I know how capable you three are." Sakura opens it and then promptly stares at it. "I had a feeling you three would be doubting yourselves so close to the exam."

"It's blank, Kakashi-sensei."

He chuckles. "I know." A second later, he produces a pen. "I want you to spend a moment and write why you choose this career and what keeps you grounded when you doubt your abilities. Can you do that for me, Sakura-chan?"

"I," Sakura feels her throat tighten for some reason. "Yes. Of course."

"Good. Once you're done," he pulls out his book, "we'll begin."


Sakura looks at her bruised and bleeding knuckles with satisfaction. She and Kakashi had, up until about two minutes, been sparing via hand-to-hand combat and it was exciting. Thrilling. And she had fun. The moment she finished writing in the scroll, Kakashi ordered her to seal it and hand it back over, stating that it would not be open until the end of the exams.

After that, they went all out.

Well, she went all out.

Kakashi, of course, held back because he's a jounin with way too much experience behind him and he would have pulverized her within seconds if he went all out.

But still, she managed to land a few good hits on him.

She, Haruno Sakura, of a civilian family, with no real skill until recently, managed to land not one - not two - but three hard hits on Kakashi; the lasting one causing her knuckles to burst open and bleed. And the look on his face had been well worth it.

"Neither Sasuke nor Naruto managed a single hit, Sakura-chan, and I spared with them in the same fashion." There's some akin to pride in his visible eye. "You're well on your way to becoming a great shinobi. I'm proud of you."

Four simple words and the pain in her knuckles fade to a dull ache and tears burn the corners of her eyes.

I'm proud of you.

Sakura smiles sincerely at Kakashi while the images of her blood parents flash across her mind.

He's proud of me while you two only ever tried to keep me from succeeding.

"Thank you, sensei."

His words outweigh yours.


When she and Kakashi meet up with Yamato and the boys, Sakura smiles at them. Sasuke seems relaxed, satisfied even. Naruto has an easy-going grin on his face. They're both incredibly dirty from head to toe but appear okay. Yamato is a few paces behind them. When their eyes meet, Sakura inclines her head towards them, one eyebrow raised in a questioning expression.

He smiles and nods.

Satisfied, Sakura greets the three of them with a grin. "How was training, boys?"

"Amazing!" Naruto stops next to Sakura and throws up a peace sign. "I have a better grasp of the amount of chakra I should use when performing a jutsu. It's not perfect, but I'm getting there."

"That's great, Naruto!" She smiles when Naruto's cheeks turn red before turning to Sasuke. "And you, Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke's posture, surprisingly enough, is bordering on lazy. "I'm close to perfecting a fire-based jutsu that originates from my family."

"Oh," Sakura tilts her head. "Can I ask about it?"

He shrugs easily. "I want to be able to create a fire dragon. It's a complicated procedure that drains my chakra far too quickly for my liking, but I'll manage. I don't intend to use it during the exam."

Sakura's eyes widen. "That's amazing, Sasuke-kun - "

" - What happened to your hands, Sakura-chan?!"

She blinks, confused, when Naruto gently takes one of her bandaged hands in his and trails over the bandages briefly, bright blue eyes gazing worriedly at her. Sakura bites her lip, somewhat surprised by his reaction.

"Kakashi-sensei and I fought hand-to-hand combat, Naruto. I got a few hits in but this is the result." Then, in a much softer voice, "I'm okay. I promise."

He bites his lip, but nods and releases his hold. Though, he and Sasuke take up space on her sides. A quick touch to her wrist, fleeting, draws her attention to Sasuke who, unlike Naruto, doesn't voice his concern. Her smile eases the tension in his shoulders.

"So, three more days," Yamato begins. "Do you think you're ready?"

Naruto pumps a fist in the air. "Hell yeah, sensei! We're going to kick ass."

Sakura shares in Naruto's enthusiasm by wrapping an arm around his shoulders and Sasuke's. "We'll make it." She bumps Sasuke's hip with her own and grins widely when he nods. She flashes the peace sign to Kakashi before sending a more reserved smile. They did speak throughout their spar and, with Kakashi's reassurance, she feels better.

"Alright. We'll break for dinner and meet back up in one hour. Tonight, we're going to end early but I want to see you three spar each other."

"Aw, why?!" Naruto wraps an arm around Sakura's waist - not that she minds - and stomps his foot.

Kakashi regards him seriously. "We need to be realistic, Naruto. There's a chance you'll be facing Sasuke or Sakura at some point and you need to learn to play to each other's weaknesses and strengths. Sparring helps with this. In this case, at least you all gain an advantage on each other."

Sakura feels Naruto tense and breaks away.

"And neither of you better go easy on me!" She ends this with hands on her hips. "Am I clear?"

Sasuke and Naruto share a look, one of unease, before quickly turning to her with grim, but determined nods. She smiles. "Good. Now, let's go eat. I'll treat tonight."

Naruto's eyes widen, his posture full of excitement. "Ramen?"

Her eyes flicker to Sasuke who offers a subtle shrug. She grins. "Ramen."

Letting out a big "woohoo," Naruto turns and sprits for the ramen restaurant. "Race you!" Sasuke is gone in a second.

"Thank you for your hard work, Yamato-sensei!" Sakura bows before chasing after the boys. "See you later, Kakashi-sensei," she calls over her shoulder.


"They're going to do well, senpai." He chuckles when Kakashi sighs.

"Don't call me that, but I know. They've grown a lot in the last month." He pulls out his orange book. "I'm proud them."

Yamato shoves his hands in his pockets. "Asuma-san mentioned a betting pool? I may enter in on that."

"My kids will succeed," Kakashi replies casually. Confidently. "And I'll walk away with enough money to buy the next five volumes."

"You already have the money to buy the next five volumes, senpai."

He only receives an eye smile.


She bites back a groan when her back collides with the ground, Naruto ends up sprawled several feet away from her.

"Did you have to hit me so hard, Sakura-chan?" Naruto wails. "My bruises have bruises and my cuts have cuts and my - "

Sakura sits up slowly. "You almost snapped my wrist, dummy!" Her wrist is aching from where he grabbed it in a poor attempt to twist it behind her back. That failed miserably when she jerked her head backward and hit Naruto square in the forehead. "You're lucky I didn't give you a black eye!"

"Sakura-chan wins~"

"Wha - "

A chuckle sounds across the clearing. "Sakura-chan landed 30 hits on you Naruto. Remember what I said before we started? The first to 30 wins."

"You only managed to hit her 19 times." Silence. "Dope."

Naruto is on his feet in an instant. "I'm going to kick your ass! Get over here!"

"It is your turn, Sasuke. Maybe you should take him up on it?"

Sakura rolls to her stomach and pushes herself to her feet. "Kick his ass, Sasuke-kun!"

"Wha - ! Sakura-chan, come on!" Naruto whines.

She pivots on the spot and flashes him a toothy grin. "You deserve it," she sing-songs while walking over to Kakashi as Naruto and Sasuke get into position.

"Begin," Kakashi calls out. They clash in a flurry of strikes and blocks. "You did very well tonight, Sakura-chan. Much better than you expected?"

Sakura nods. "Way better than I expected. I can't believe I won."

Kakashi hums. "What was your thought process while you were sparring Naruto?"

Watching as Naruto manages to land a terrific blow on Sasuke's right side, Sakura thinks about her spar with Naruto. What was her thought process? She only had a few basic ideas she wanted to work with but - "Naruto relies too heavily on his shadow clones. If he focused less on them and more on my attacks, he probably would have won."

She receives a nod. "And you left him an opening as well."

"Twice, sensei. And he either didn't notice or decided to go easy on me. Either way, he didn't win."

"He didn't win," Kakashi confirms while reaching over to pat her on the head. "I forgot to ask, but how did training with Yamato-san go today?"

"I can make an okay wood dome," Sakura shrugs. "I probably should have waited until after the exams to try and learn wood release. It's a difficult concept, Kakashi-sensei. I long for the day where I can just do it without thinking."

Kakashi chuckles. "I'm sure many share the same thought, but I'm proud of you for sticking it out as long as you are."

She flashes him the peace sign. "I'm not giving up, sensei."

He hums. "He is also teaching you earth style jutsu."

"Still angry about the vines, sensei?"

"I was never angry, just surprised. The level of concentration that is required to perform it accurately is high. You've improved so greatly in such a short amount of team...I have high hopes for you. All three of you."

For the next hour or so, they watch Naruto and Sasuke spar with a high intensity until Sasuke lands a devastating blow on Naruto's gut and sends him to the ground with a grunt. Naruto sits up and stares at Sasuke in something like awe or amazement. Sasuke, on the other hand, walks the few feet to Naruto and offers his hand.

Sakura is grinning incredibly wide when Naruto takes it without hesitation and allows Sasuke to haul him to his feet.

"You guys did great!" She moves towards them. "Good job!"

Naruto scratches his cheek sheepishly. "Thank you, Sakura-chan."

"Looks like it's Sasuke and Sakura's turn," Kakashi calls off from the side. "Get into position."

"Promise to not go easy on me, Sasuke-kun," Sakura states while Naruto walks over to sit under the tree Kakashi is leaning against.

"Tch."

"Sasuke-kun." There's a warning in her voice.

Sigh. "Promise."

Sakura grins. "Okie dokie!" She turns to Kakashi. "We're ready!"

Naruto shoots her a thumbs up. "Kick his ass, Sakura-chan!"

"Begin."


Sakura walks to her apartment with a slight limp. Sasuke promised not to go easy on her and kept his promise. Although, Sakura grins to herself, she did manage 18 to his 30 and that speaks a lot to her improvement. Even Kakashi mentioned it. When they were finished and Kakashi dismissed them for the night, Sasuke offered to walk her home. Naruto, upon hearing Sasuke's offer, jumps in on the idea.

She was quick to shut it down.

"I appreciate it, guys, but I can manage on my own." She lifts her arms and flexes. "These aren't just for show."

Naruto's blushes while Sasuke rolls his eyes good-naturedly.

"Whatever you say."

Naruto lives near the Hokage Tower and Sasuke lives on the other side of the clan district so she doesn't have to worry about bumping into him - unless Sasuke decides to take a late night trip to the market.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow morning and I'll bring my lemon water, okay?"

Naruto pumps a fist into the air. "Hell yeah! See ya' tomorrow, Sakura-chan!"

Sasuke offers her the tiniest, barely there, wave.

When she sees her apartment, Sakura picks up her pace. She longs for a shower and a nice cup of hot tea and she might read one of the books she borrowed from the library a few days previous. Upon getting closer, Sakura feels her heart skip a beat. Familiar pale blonde hair, followed by a casual outfit (green in color), and one bag held in her hand, Ino stands with her back to the rail outside of Sakura's apartment.

When she doesn't turn, Sakura assumes she can't sense her and decides to take the easy way up to her apartment. With a jump - and two, and three - she lands in front of her door and grins when she hears Ino's startled gasp.

"Here to interrogate me again?" Sakura asks while she fishes out her key. "I'm a little tired so you might not have much luck." She unlocks her door, walks in, and leaves the door wide open as an invitation. Once inside, Sakura toes off her sandals and heads directly for the cabinet next to her fridge. "Tea?"

"Yes. Jasmine with - "

" - three sugars and light cream. Yes, I remember."

She only receives a hum in reply.

"Nice place you got." Sakura hears the light scrap of one of the dining table's chairs. "How long have you been here?"

Sakura thinks about the clothes scattered all over her couch and the two hoodies draped over a chair at the dining table. She thinks about the strands of pink hair sticking to her sink and the half ate apple resting on the counter next to the sink. She's not normally a messy person, but with Kakashi's training schedule she has been somewhat lazy.

"Roughly a month."

"Right after your mission in Wave? That's...interesting."

Sakura drops three sugars into Ino's tea, stirs, adds a dash of cream, stirs, and presents it to her rival - friend? - with a small smile. After that, she proceeds to gather up her clothes and drop them in her room to clean up after Ino leaves.

"How is that interesting?" Sakura asks as he discards the rotting apple.

"It's just...your mission in Wave was a troubling experience, right? I thought you'd want to be home with your parents."

Sakura barely conceals a flinch. "My parents and I got to talking and I just rather have a place to myself. They worry too much, ya' know?" That causes Ino to crack a tiny smile and Sakura almost sighs in relief.

"My dad says a parent never worries too much - "

" - only that they worry too little," Sakura finishes. "Remember the time we decided to build an immunity to poison? Your mom hovered for hours!"

Ino snorts. "My dad grounded me for weeks! I wasn't allowed to help my mom in the flower shop!"

Sakura grins. "But it worked."

"But it worked," Ino concludes. They sit there in silence, reminiscing the old days, while Sakura makes her tea. When she's finished, she takes a seat across from Ino.

"What's in the bag?" Sakura nods towards the bag Ino discarded on the table. "Something you wanna' share with me?"

Ino places her mug on the table and slides the bag towards Sakura without a word. Curious, Sakura takes the bag and opens it and stares. Mildly confused, she pulls the object out of the bag and sets it on the table. It's a white teddy bear with pale green eyes and a red ribbon around its neck. Sakura recognizes the ribbon almost immediately.

She strokes the tips of her fingers over the incredibly soft fur. "Why?" Sakura asks, refusing to meet Ino's sharp gaze. She hears Ino shift in her seat.

"You could have died on the Wave mission and the last thing I said to you before you left, back in the Academy, related to Sasuke-kun. Can you imagine the impact that would have had on me? I wouldn't have been able to live with myself, Sakura."

Her gaze snaps to Ino. It's been years since Ino referred to her by her given name.

"You're not obligated to worry about me, Ino."

Ino huffs. "That's not the point. The point is that we allowed a boy to come between our friendship!"

Sakura starts fiddling with the red ribbon. "I didn't give this back to you because of Sasuke-kun. I gave this back to you because I wanted to stand on my own two feet and I couldn't do that if I was following your lead every single time we were together. I want to become a great kunoichi in my own right." She pulls the bear into her lap and smiles a little. "Besides, my feelings for Sasuke-kun are far less romantic and much more platonic, family-based now."

"Really?" Ino doesn't sound condescending, just intrigued.

"Everything has changed since my team and I returned from Wave." Sakura squeezes the bear tightly. "For the better, I think."

Ino nods slowly. "You're different, but not in a bad way."

A chuckle passes through Sakura's laugh. "I would hope so. Kakashi-sensei has had us on a strict training schedule for the last month."

"I hope we face each other in the chunin exams," Ino replies after a moment of silence. "I want to see how much you've improved."

Sakura shoots her a toothy grin. "The feeling is mutual."


I hope you guys are looking forward to the next chapter because I honestly look forward to writing it. So, things between Sakura and Ino have settled more and I received quite a number of requests for more ShikaSaku moments so expect that in the future chapters. Feel free to send requests for moments between characters. I'll try to incorporate some. If you have the time, please review.

~i-just-really-like-sakura

P.S. If you want me to reply to your review, put an asterisk (*) at the beginning or end of your review.