The next few days were spent letting her parents' friends know about the Harunos' second funeral in the span of one week. Just like for her aunt and uncle, it hadn't hit Sakura that she would never see her father again; it simply felt like he was away on business out of town, and just like before their previous funeral, the Harunos spent the days reminiscing and celebrating Kizashi's life.

The weather could not have been more different for Kizashi's funeral than it had been for his brother's; the sun was shining, there wasn't a single cloud in the sky and there was no wind whatsoever. It almost felt like there was no life on earth when Sakura thought about it.

The biggest difference with Kizashi's funeral was that the Hokage didn't deliver a eulogy for civilians. The eulogy was usually reserved for those close to the deceased which fell onto Mebuki's shoulders.

The walk to the funeral had been odd to say the least. Her mother was acting very strange and reserved and Sakura didn't know why. Her mother was quietly mumbling to herself and taking deep breaths and slowing down randomly then speeding up.

"She's not good at speaking in front of people." Takeshi told Sakura. "She's the brains of the business and Kizashi was the one to make the deals and barter with the buyers and sellers. She knows the price of everything and what's a good product to buy or sell but she can't make a good deal. She usually freezes up or gets a panic attack."

"Does that mean you'll do the talking now?" Sakura asked curiously. She really didn't know much about her family's business but she hoped to help them out if ever it was needed now that… Sakura frowned at the thought of her mother not having her father's support anymore.

"I'll have to try my best." Takeshi chuckled half-heartedly.

As they got closer to their destination, Sakura was happy that they were the first ones there; she wasn't too keen on having hundreds of eyes watching her that day. She walked around with her mother and Takeshi and noticed that the floral arrangement was almost exactly the same as her aunt and uncle's funeral - peonies, sweet peas, bluebells and cherry blossoms - the main difference being the quantity of each flower.

She also realized that all three of them had all died protecting her in some way - though her father probably didn't consciously protect her since he most likely didn't know the weapons were coming towards them until it was too late. Her heart ached at the thought that the people she loved died because of her.

Sakura avoided looking at the picture of her father that was placed at the makeshift altar where she would later put flowers down to pay her respects. She was already feeling emotional and she was tired of crying. She had cried almost every night for the past six weeks and it was exhausting.

They walked around, looking at the display of flowers until others started arriving then they made their way to the front of the clearing. It wasn't long before the ceremony started - it didn't feel as formal as a shinobi funeral since the Hokage wasn't there.

Her mother was speaking softly, trying her best to keep her emotions at bay while delivering the eulogy. Sakura avoided looking at the crowd and instead slowly made her way to look at her father's picture. She barely registered the fact that people started lining up to pay their respects to the deceased as she said her final goodbye to her father.

"... Papa, I know how much you love Mama, but you'll have to wait a long time before you can see her again, okay? We need her more than you do so she has to stay with us." Sakura finished with tears running down her cheeks.

She turned around to see that everyone had gathered close enough to hear her final words - it was a good thing her face was already flushed from all the crying, at least this way her embarrassment wasn't too noticeable. She found Takeshi quickly enough and hobbled over to him a bit too quickly and she fell when she put too much weight on her leg.

Strangely enough she never hit the ground, instead she stared up at very familiar eyes that where brimming with tears. Sakura was not expecting Shisui to show up to her father's funeral - she berated herself for not sensing or seeing him at all - but she was glad he was there. She realized that Shisui gave her so much strength and confidence and she wished she could be the same when he wasn't around.

He helped her stand on her own two feet and held her hand as they walked towards Takeshi and her mother.

"Can we go home soon, Mama?" Sakura asked when her mother was finished speaking to a friend.

"Yes honey we can leave, a friend will stay here for us. Shisui, did you want to come with us, you look like you could use a break from everything."

Shisui's shoulders relaxed noticeably and he squeezed Sakura's hand and nodded.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing and trying not to think of life's hardships. Sakura could see both her mother and Shisui retreating in on themselves and zone out from time to time. She sought out Takeshi and planned for a way to distract the other two as best as possible.

Though Sakura was grieving, she so badly wanted to bring joy to everyone which is why she had suggested to Takeshi that they act out silly stories in front of her mother and Shisui.

Her plan was a success. They even managed to get Shisui to join their improvised storytelling and Sakura couldn't stop laughing. Shisui was a riot. His mind was sharp, he was quick to react and he even made her mother cry tears of laughter. Eventually they roped in her mother to join for a few stories and by the end of the night, everyone was in much better spirits.

Sakura was falling asleep on the couch sitting next to Shisui when she felt him tense up minutely. She turned her head to look at him, slightly arching an eyebrow as if asking 'what's wrong' and he struggled to give her a genuine smile.

"I should be going home to sleep." He quietly said, having understood her silent question.

"Mama, can Shisui sleep here tonight?" Sakura asked. She knew that Shisui lived alone since his parents were both dead and she could tell he didn't want to go home.

"That's not a problem. Shisui, you can take your pick between Sakura's room, Takeshi's room and the couch. Those two will be sleeping with me tonight."

It had become a habit for the Harunos to sleep in the same bed during emotional times and Sakura told Shisui just that when he seemed confused by what her mother had said.

Sakura smiled at Shisui, trying her best to convince him to stay and after a few long moments she noticed a smile creep up on his face.

"If it's not a bother, I'll sleep on the couch."

Sakura clearly had a different intention and stood up, pulling on his sleeve to for him to follow her.

"He'll sleep in my room Mama, the couch isn't good enough for Shisui. Come on, I'll give you a tour of my room. You can even sleep with my Wolfie!" Sakura decided for everyone.

"I don't need your Wolfie to sleep, I'm too old for that." Shisui chuckled and tried his best to hide the redness on his face.

"Of course you are." Sakura absently agreed in a dismissive tone.

Once they were inside Sakura's room, she turned to him and tried to give him her best serious face.

"What's wrong?" She asked, slightly startling Shisui.

When Shisui didn't answer, Sakura made him sit down on her bed and sat beside him.

"You're not happy since you came back from your mission. I don't like seeing you sad." She admitted.

"I'll be ok, Princess. Just some clan stuff and ANBU stuff. It'll all blow over soon." Shisui ruffled her hair and she felt relieved. He sounded more tired than anything at this point so she got off the bed and handed him her Wolfie. He sat there petting her wolf for a few minutes before Sakura yawned and bid him good night.

When Sakura woke up, she carefully got out of bed without waking her mother or Takeshi and quietly walked over to her room. She stood outside and felt Shisui's chakra; it was very calm so she figured he was still asleep.

Avoiding the creaky boards in the hallway, she made her way to the kitchen to start making breakfast. The simplest breakfast she could think of that would be enough for everyone was pancakes so she set about gathering the necessary ingredients for her task.

If anyone asked Takeshi or her mother, they would always say that Sakura's very thoughtful and loved to spoil her family with food. The only problem was that it would be best if she got the food from a bakery or from someone who had at least some form of talent in the kitchen. Most of the surprises she made in the kitchen were not edible and would be safest if thrown out.

Sakura was also aware that she wasn't the greatest cook but her father had always told her that practice makes perfect so in her mind all she had to do was keep practicing and cooking would become second nature to her.

Takeshi joined her downstairs just as she cracked the eggs into the mixing bowl. He waited until she was turned around to remove the small pieces of eggshell that she missed. He managed to take control of the baking by letting Sakura dictate what he had to do. She knew all the necessary steps but she lacked the skills to do it correctly.

Just as the last pancake was finished, her mother joined them. She reveled in the smell of fresh pancakes and the ripe fruits that were all cut up and ready to be eaten.

"Where's Shisui?" She asked the two children.

"Still sleeping I guess. I can go wake him up!" Sakura exclaimed and hobbled towards the stairs with her hand against the wall.

She cracked her bedroom door open and saw that Shisui was still sleeping so she quietly walked towards him. She felt his chakra change and she knew he was awake.

"I made breakfast for everyone!" She yelled quietly and jumped on her bed. She took the time to look at Shisui and noticed that he looked less tired.

"That sounds great Princess."

"Did you sleep good? Isn't my bed the most comfiest bed ever?"

"Well." He corrected her. "Did I sleep well? And yeah, I haven't slept this much in years."

Sakura sat there beaming her brightest smile at Shisui. He seemed to be happy and Sakura considered that a success.

When they entered the kitchen a few minutes later, Shisui couldn't help but notice the state it was in. There was flour and batter everywhere - how it was possible to get batter on the ceiling was a beyond him - but the finished product looked delicious.

Sakura hurried to the table and started stacking pancakes on her plate.

"Sakura-chan, one at a time." Her mother chuckled as Sakura reached for a fourth pancake.

With a dejected look, Sakura put back two pancakes and topped the ones on her plate with fruits. She looked around the table and noticed everyone enjoying the food she had prepared - with a bit of help from Takeshi.

Later that day after Shisui had left - he had said something about 'stupid clan meetings ruining everyone's day' - the three Harunos spent the day shopping and stocking the house up with non-perishable food for Sakura. Their best plan was for her to have backup food that she could simply heat up in case she couldn't cook anything that day.

Seeing as she was able to walk up and down the stairs fairly easily - with the help of the banister of course - they didn't bother relocating her room to the first floor. They also cleared out the room that was initially supposed to be for guests but had become a sort of storage room for Shisui if he stayed the night.

They had discussed it and it was determined that Sakura would be going to the academy the following week to give her a few more days to be with her family before they left for Suna.

The days flew by and next thing she knew, Sakura was walking with her mother and Takeshi towards the Academy. Today was her first day at school - and everyone else's third week - and she was scared that no one would talk to her or like her. She kept remembering all the kids at the playground who would insult her and throw things at her and even push her to the ground and she subconsciously slowed her pace.

"If you walk any slower you'll miss this week too" her mother teased her. Sakura tried her best to smile at her mother but it fell flat and she stopped walking altogether.

"Maybe I should wait a bit longer…" Sakura trailed off; her heart was beating fast and she was getting more worried by the second. Takeshi squeezed her hand and gave her a big hug.

"It's okay to be scared, Kura-chan, doing something for the first time is always scary, but you'll do fine at school."

Takeshi thrived in social situations and never felt awkward or uncomfortable even if he was the only person younger than 20 years old talking to a bunch of merchants about their wares. She was quite the opposite, she knew people could be mean and she didn't like it when it was aimed at her. She knew she was able to stand up to bullies when they picked on someone else, but for some reason she lacked courage when she was the target. It was as if she froze when she didn't have anyone to protect or keep safe. She had never really done anything for herself, it was always for others and that made her happy.

"I'm scared that bullies will pick on me and no one will want to be my friend." Sakura admitted hesitantly.

"If they don't want to get to know you, well it's their loss really." Takeshi smiled and ruffled her hair.

Her mother crouched down beside the two kids and made Sakura face her. Sakura looked at her mother with wide eyes, unsure of what was happening.

"You are an absolutely amazing person Sakura-chan and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Kids can be cruel, but it's not worth it taking their teasing or insults to heart. You know who you are deep down, and you should be proud of that. I know your father, Hiroki and Natsuko were. Takeshi and I will always be there for you." Her mother reached out and placed her hand on Sakura's chest where her heart was beating rapidly.

Sakura tried to hold back her tears and someone managed to do it. She had never heard her mother say such heartfelt words but Sakura thoroughly enjoyed them, it gave her courage to start moving towards the Academy again.

She spent a few minutes with her mother and Takeshi outside the Academy taking a few deep breaths. They made sure to get there early so Sakura could meet the teachers and go inside before the other children entered since she was using her crutches and it would be easier if no kids were running around.

Sakura gave her mother and Takeshi a final hug and went inside to meet her teacher Iruka-sensei.

Ino loved the Academy. She wasn't thrilled about the learning aspect, but she really liked talking to all the kids. She had grown up and was friends with Shikamaru and Choji but she had always wanted to have more friends and the Academy was the perfect place for that. In her three weeks of attending her first year, she had made dozens of friends but there was one person she had yet to see; Sakura.

Ino had chased bullies away from a girl who had the loveliest hair colour she had ever seen. She didn't think it was physically possible to have pink hair, but there was a girl who looked to be her age at the park one day and Ino knew she had to go say hello. When she was halfway to the pink haired girl, four kids who were slightly older surrounded her future friend and pushed her around. They had started throwing sand in her hair and face when Ino ran to the rescue. Granted Ino merely yelled at them, they all dispersed and she took the time to see if the other girl was alright.

Her new friend was very timid around people but Ino was determined to get her out of her shell. It took days for Sakura to stop being so shy around her when they were alone but as soon as someone else was nearby, Sakura would quieten down considerably.

Ino had found out that Sakura was going to attend the Academy and be in the same year as her and the two friends made plans to see find each other if they weren't in the same class - she was told that there were so many enrollments that the first year class would be separated in two.

So Ino had tried to find Sakura every chance they were let outside but to no avail. She even asked Shikamaru and Choji, who were in the other first year class, if they had noticed a pink haired girl in their class. Unfortunately no one at the Academy had ever seen a girl with pink hair which worried Ino. Was Sakura okay? Did Sakura abandon her? Did Sakura not like her anymore?

Ino wanted to go see Sakura and ask her why she wasn't at school when she promised she would be but she had no idea where her friend lived so she was stuck waiting and hoping that she would see her again.

After three weeks of no Sakura, Ino was slightly broken hearted but more angry than anything and she didn't hold back when complaining to Shikamaru and Choji. It was strange when one day when everyone was let outside in the morning, Shikamaru and Choji walked up to her with secretive smiles - oh how she hated it when people kept secrets from her - and told her to go walk to the gate in the fence towards the Academy's entrance.

As soon as she was close enough to notice a little girl with pink hair sitting on a bench she stopped in her tracks. She hadn't noticed that Shikamaru and Choji had followed her until they encouraged her to go see the girl. The only problem was that Ino didn't know what to say to Sakura. Her instincts told her to yell at the girl for abandoning her for three weeks but a part of her was so glad to see her finally.

Ino took a few breaths and hardened her eyes as she walked towards Sakura. By the time she reaches the girl, she was seething with anger.

"Why would you abandon me like that for three weeks? You didn't even bother to come see me when you know where I live? Do you not want to be friends anymore?" Ino was so preoccupied with yelling at Sakura that she didn't notice her bandaged leg until she stood up with crutches.

Ino then took a few deep breaths and assessed the situation. First of all, something had happened to her friend's leg. Second of all, her friend had tears in her eyes and her hurt expression immediately let Ino know that she never meant to abandon her. Third of all, Sakura looked so tired and Ino didn't know why. Her first thought was that Sakura seemed to have gone to hell and back so she shut up and just stared until Sakura took a step forward and hugged Ino.

All her anger dissipated and was replaced with guilt when she felt Sakura's trembling arms wrap around her. She should have known Sakura wouldn't abandon her but Ino had always acted before thinking. Her father always tried to get her to count to ten before rushing into a situation but clearly she hadn't learned to do that quite yet.

Ino locked eyes with Choji and Shikamaru and motioned for them to get closer.

"This is Shikamaru and Choji, our parents grew up together and since you weren't in my class, you should be in theirs." Ino stated animatedly.

"She wasn't in our class either this morning, Ino." Chouji said between handfuls of chips.

That did not make sense to Ino. If Sakura wasn't in her class or Chouji and Shikamaru's class, then what class was she in. She refused to believe that Sakura would be in second year since she was a civilian and hadn't done any form of training to become a shinobi.

"I didn't go to class this morning. I sat out here telling myself to go in. I'm still trying to have enough courage to go inside. I even came here early this morning to go see Iruka-sensei, but I ran outside when I saw someone inside." Sakura said quietly as her face flushed from embarrassment.

It was apparent that Sakura and Ino were completely different. While Ino was outgoing and talked with everyone she saw, Sakura was reserved and hesitated when having to talk to someone. Ino had noticed that Sakura always wanted to meet new people but froze up or decided against it if she had to make the first move.

"That's just silly. We'll help you right now before we have to go back to class. Iruka-sensei is Shikamaru and Choji's teacher so you're in their class" at that Ino stood up and gave Sakura her most confident smile "let's go find him!"

Ino took a few steps towards the Academy before looking back to make sure Sakura was following her and was happy to note that Shikamaru and Choji were also following behind. She had seen Shikamaru talking with Iruka-sensei once and remembered him because he had a scar across his nose and she dearly hoped she would never get such an ugly scar on her face or her body - she would rather lose a limb because that could be covered up easier.

They found Iruka-sensei sitting in his classroom preparing a new assignment for his class. Ino pushed Shikamaru and Choji none too gently towards their teacher to initiate contact.

"Ummm, Iruka-sensei, do you have a minute?" Choji stammered out.

"Of course Choji-kun, what is it?" the man looked at his students and smiled happily as he walked towards them.

Ino saw Choji hesitate - he had never been comfortable talking to adults - and knew Shikamaru wasn't going to say anything when she saw him put his hands in his pockets and turn to look out the window.

"This is Sakura-chan, she's your student." Ino informed the chunin.

Iruka-sensei looked at her with slightly widened eyes, not quite used to having a child inform him of what was what. He turned his attention to Sakura who was quietly leaning on her crutches and gave her a warm smile.

"Sakura-chan!" he greeted the girl. "Welcome to the first year in the Academy, I was wondering why you weren't in class but I can see you had a little mishap." he said, pointing at her leg.

"I hope I can still attend even if I missed a few weeks." Sakura said meekly and looking at the ground.

"Of course you can, you may just have to work a bit harder to catch up to everyone. Why don't you three take a seat, the bell is about to ring and Ino-chan, you can go to your classroom." Just as Iruka-sensei finished talking, the bell rang and Ino could hear the students' hurried footsteps running back to class. She bid her friends farewell and skipped towards her classroom, content that Sakura hadn't abandoned her.