Three days later making it four since the start of their new training Naruto and Sasuke had definitely improved, though neither boy could keep up with all five lessons at the same time so took it much slower.
For Naruto he went with lessons one and five and Sasuke he could keep up with lessons one, two and five, but it was just as well and she wasn't expecting them to be perfect since she'd been practicing for several years and had an advantage on her side.
At that current moment though they were walking around the village using the back streets of course to avoid large masses of crowds "You know since the lessons I think I've started picking up on the light vibrations you make when you walk" Sasuke pointed out.
It was easy feeling them with his chakra actually now that his senses were slightly more sharper "Mhm, just don't go telling all my secrets Sasuke, I'd like to keep my nickname as ghost of the forest you know" Sakura snickered quietly.
On the other side of her the shortest member of their team as it turns out "We promise Sakura-chan besides I don't want anyone else figuring out all we're capable of either" Naruto burst out wisely.
Sasuke slapped his adopted brother on the back in pride "Growing up a little I see, having Sakura around has been a good influence on you Do..Naruto" the raven haired boy smirked, glad for the light break, it was an hour before lunch, then they'd get right back to training.
Naruto flashed a whiskered grin "That is because Hyo-kun taught me to be patient and I guess it rubs off on you huh Naruto" the pinkette smiled looping her arms through theirs prepared to drag them forward when someone dropped down in front of them.
"Hey what are you doing here Shisui" the blonde frowned seeing as the Uchiha was blocking their way so that they couldn't continue exploring, Shisui sighed and focused his ebony iris on the lone girl in their girl.
With a long suffering sigh she released their arms "Don't worry it's not those Hyuga's again or Danzo, we have a very special guest here, apparently word got out about you in the world finally, so she's come here for curiosity sake, Tsunade Senju" Shisui explained taking her elbow.
Gave the two boys a salute and body flickered to the Hokage Tower, climbed the stairs carefully and ushered the young teenage girl down the halls to the office "Brought her just as you asked Tsunade-sama" the ebony haired male nudged her forward gently.
Upon entering two women turned the conversation cutting off between them and the Hokage "Poor girl you really are blind" the raven haired woman frowned feeling pity well up in her and yet despite that the girl was determined to be a ninja.
Her mentor however had a different reaction "Foolish is more like it, there's never been a blind shinobi and I bet my money on her dying before the end of the Chunin Exams" the honey eyed blonde snorted harshly.
Missing the irritated expression forming on the young girls face as she grit her teeth she was so sick and tired of everyone telling her she couldn't do it "And you know what Ma'am I don't care what you say cause I bet that I can do it, with everything I have" the fuscia haired girl snapped.
Before rounding on the other woman "And I don't need your pity, I've managed just fine all this time without it" she spat furiously, without waiting for a dismissal or Shisui stomped her way from the office, down the halls and out of the Hokage Tower.
"That could have gone worse" Hiruzen sighed "I hate to say it but you shouldn't have antagonized her Tsunade, Sakura-san has been through enough without you making things worse" he scolded his old student who was into her fifties and should know better than to pick a fight with a child.
Off to the side the Uchiha nodded "Quite and as you can see Tsunade-sama she has quite a bit of a temper when it comes to people talking down to her and telling her she can't do things" Shisui grimaced, spreading out his senses, he couldn't even feel her.
It gave him a sense of foreboding and he itched to go out and find her to make sure she wasn't crying, the blonde woman harrumphed and crossed her arms over her rather large chest "Just a brat is all she is, either way I don't care what happens to her" Tsunade grumbled.
Rising from the chair, sent her attendant a look "We'll probably be staying for awhile" Shizune guessed then both women were out the door and down the street's to a hotel as she'd predicted, where they rented a room and locked themselves within.
Meanwhile at the nod of dismissal Shisui had flown from the office searching everywhere he could think to find Sakura before going back to the Compound, that's where he found Naruto and Sasuke "Is Sakura with you" he asked in a panicky voice.
"Er no, she found us awhile ago, told us she wasn't hungry and that we could practice on our for once then vanished into the cave with those Jaguar's" Sasuke huffed aggravated, obviously not knowing that something was going on.
Shisui groaned loudly in response "Wait a second did that Tsunade person say something mean to Sakura-chan" Naruto was quick on the uptake for once and Sasuke paused mid run, swerved around the tree he'd almost run into and spun to face them ripping off his blind fold.
"Kind of you know that Sakura's a bit touchy when people tell her she can't do something well Tsunade-sama told her that she would die before the end of the Chunin Exams" Shisui rubbed a heavy hand over his face.
Perfect this was exactly what they needed not as he headed for the caves and peeked in "Lower in the cave systems Shisui-san" Hyo's voice came from off to the right, where he and Kajiya were sharing a deer between them.
On the other side of the cave Tora and Muimina were doing the same "Care to tell us why exactly Sakura was so upset" Tora set his emerald orbs on the Uchiha who'd gotten close to his human sister and prowled forward.
The Uchiha held up his hands to stay off the attack "A woman told her that she couldn't be a blind shinobi and basically bet that Sakura-chan would die before the Chunin Exams" the raven haired male explained quickly.
Hyo growled under his breath took one last bite, then was gone after his human cub "Might as well sit Shisui-san, cook up a rabbit or two for Sakura, it's gonna be a bit" Kajiya told him and knowing better than to argue did as suggested.
Started up a fire, unsealed a few rabbits from one of the scrolls, skinned them, gutted them, picked out the bones threw the mess of innards to the hungry and pregnant jaguar, who was delighted to have a bit extra, slathered some herbs onto the rabbits, speared them and set them up over the fire.
"Why is everyone determined to upset Sak..Sakura so much an..anyway and t..tell her s..sh..she can't do things" Muimina finished in the next moment and asked a question that was bugging her or had been bugging her for a little while now.
A lone onyx eye shifted in her direction "Because there's never been a blind ninja before and people are incredibly biased towards new things and won't accept it until it's been literally beat into their brains that it's possible" Shisui sighed quietly.
Muimina shook her head "How about you what do you think" Tora was quick to jump in jade irises focused on the Uchiha, who was annoying yet incredibly kind, though they still didn't know him very well as he was gone more often than not.
'Talk about tricky questions' he thought inwardly "I believe that Sakura-chan can do it regardless of what anyone else says" the Uchiha stated easily, ebony iris flashing off to the right as he spied a glint of pink peeking around the corner at them.
No doubt eavesdropping, but he wouldn't comment on it, so long as it got her to come out and not hole herself away like before "You can come out now Sakura" Kajiya had no such feelings, smelling the salt of the girls tears.
The pinkette walked stiffly out from her hiding place, silent tears running down her cheeks, Shisui held out his arm and she flopped down against his side "Shisui-san you really think that" she said after several minutes in which they were waiting for their rabbits to finish.
"Yes of course Sakura-chan, now dry your tears, eat up, go find Naruto, Sasuke and explore the village, take a break until it's time for work k" Shisui rubbed her arm reassuringly, she was quite the cuddle bug it had come as a surprise to many.
Her hands came up and wiped her tears away before grabbing the stick of cooked rabbit in front of her before biting down "Thank you Shisui-san and I'm not going to let anyone tell me that I can't do something ever again" Sakura chimed in once she'd eaten every last bite of her rabbit.
"Just remember Sakura-chan you aren't alone in your endeavors, we're bound and determined to make sure your able to accomplish your dream as well, now off you go, tell those brainiacs to take a break and have fun" he nudged her forward.
Earning a small smile before she was gone off to find her teammates, Shisui leaned heavily against the cave wall looking relieved and exhausted all in one go "Very sorry that she's a handful" Hyo returned, having been waiting for her to run into the cave systems again.
Shisui waved his apology off "Nah Hyo-san she's a good kid, just needs someone to help keep her spirits lifted" the Uchiha chuckled straightening himself out and heading from the cave himself intent on getting in a good nap before the next big mission.
During this time Sakura had indeed found Naruto and Sasuke, and had just convinced both of them to take a few hours off at the very least until she'd gone off to work, it was when they'd reached the gates that led out into the village.
That Itachi appeared before them "Gonna have to borrow Sasuke for a moment, you two go on ahead he'll catch up in a few" Itachi grabbed his brother by the shoulders and drug him off to the left while Naruto and Sakura continued forward.
"Is there a reason I have to stay behind for a few minutes" Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest raising an ebony brow at his older brother, Itachi looked left, then right before the most serious expression formed on his face.
And then came whatever was bothering Itachi "Genin from other villages have started arriving, some of them are less than pleasant, while going around in the village watch out for the Sand Shinobi, there was a red head, who leaked killing intent" the eighteen year old warned.
Sasuke frowned deeply "Ni-san you couldn't have told all three of us together, now somethings bound to happen to those two" the second Uchiha Heir grumbled getting a lock on his teammates chakra and flying down the streets after him.
To his relief neither Naruto or Sakura had gone far and were chattering back and forth about one thing or another "So what did Itachi want to tell you Teme" Naruto turned sensing his adoptive brothers chakra just as he jumped down next to them.
"Never mind about that let's get to exploring" Sakura looped her arms through theirs and dragged the two boys along after her as they started walking down the streets, using the main ones this time but avoiding big crowds.
It took a couple minutes before both boys managed to right themselves and keep pace with their teammate "By the way Itachi-ni said that other genin have started arriving today, but we should be especially wary of the Sand Genin" Sasuke answered Naruto's earlier question.
"Does it have anything to do with the killing intent leaking into the air all over the village" the pinkette was the one to catch on rather quickly of course only because her senses were so highly advanced that neither of them could ever hope to reach her level without years of training to solely rely on their other senses.
The Uchiha on the team nodded seriously "Creepy let's avoid going anywhere near them then" the blonde shuddered, Sasuke grimaced but nodded in agreement, but it was like luck was never on their side when they needed it most.
Because inevitably coming face to face with the Sand Genin was exactly what happened in the next moment "Oi isn't that the Hokage's grandson" the ebony haired boy on the team commented suddenly as the little boy ducked around a corner.
Only for the air to fill with a loud cry "Konohamaru hang on buddy we're coming for you" Naruto was off like a projectile weapon, his teammates on his heels and lo and behold who would be in the alley two Sand Shinobi.
Could their luck get any worse apparently"Great more brats damn this is so annoying, having to deal with little punks running around completely clueless of the truth of this world ahhhh" the teenager from Sand grumbled in an irritated tone.
"You let him go you freak how dare you hurt Konohamaru" Naruto went to charge forward, when Sakura felt the flicker of chakra on the ground and snagged his shirt collar "Whats the matter Sakura-chan" he frowned.
She shook her head "We can end this confrontation much more peacefully without the use of violence Naruto or petty little tricks like chakra strings, let Konohamaru-san go and we won't report you to Hokage-sama for threatening to harm his grandson" Sakura stated simply.
The older pair of genin shared a confused look and Konohamaru was dropped to the ground in which he scrambled towards his savior "How did you know I was using chakra" now the older boy was curious.
"Her senses are more advanced than the average genin" Sasuke called from where he'd taken up roost in a tree to watch the confrontation, waiting for any one of them to make a move against his teammate's/adopted brother.
A brown brow twitched in response "Interesting kid aren't you girly, the names Kankuro" Kankuro introduced himself to the younger girl holding out his hand, trying to act the part of allies, even though they were planning a coup on the Leaf Village.
Sasuke grit his teeth as she went forward and shook the teenagers hand "I'm Sakura Haruno, I know it's difficult right now without knowing many people, I'm pretty much in the same boat still, but the Leaf Village is pretty great" the pinkette smiled brightly.
Keeping her eyes closed for the moment before revealing her dull jade eyes, Kankuro jerked back in response, his own eyes wide and full of shock "Well now we know why you could feel Kankuro's chakra despite him suppressing it, I'm Temari by the way" an older kunoichi said off to the side.
And the girl turned in her direction opened her mouth to say something only to turn sharply in the opposite direction as a new presence filled her senses "What's going on here" a gravely voice rumbled washing over them like his killing intent.
"Just introducing ourselves that's all but we'll be going now, nice meeting you Kankuro-san, Temari-san, come on Naruto, Sasuke, Konohamaru-san, I won't be late for work" Sakura backed up carefully and quickly removed the lot of them from the area.
Temari blinked her teal eyes disbelieving that a girl, who was blind could move that quickly "Is what she said the truth" Gaara joined his siblings, pale green irises narrowed waiting for the excuses, but none came.
"Yeah she's pretty interesting though, that girl with the pink hair, blind but has better senses than even I" Kankuro snorted well at least he hadn't done anything stupid to jeopardize the mission thanks to that girl anyway.
Gaara narrowed his eyes on his sister next who nodded "Makes me wonder how it is even possible for a blind person to be a shinobi" Temari mused as they left the alley they were all crowded in, glad that they hadn't gotten in trouble.
In the meantime, Sakura had drug all three boys down the streets to get far away from the Sand Genin before flopping down on a bench "You okay Sakura" Sasuke was concerned that the older boy had done something to his teammate.
"Fine, just wanted to get away from that boy, there's something not right about him, a second, darker chakra is taking him over all it would take was one little push over the edge for that boy and we probably would have all been killed" the pinkette grimaced.
Making them realize how dangerous the red head who'd been in the tree actually was "Well thanks for getting us out of that situation without any violence Sakura-chan" Naruto flopped down next to his teammate to rest for a bit.
Until it was time for dinner, they ate out for once at Ichiraku "Right then good luck Sakura, Naruto and I are going to train more" the ebony haired boy on the team paid for their meal, before they split ways.
"Also don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it cause your kicking ass already Sakura-chan" the blonde flashed her one of his patented whiskered grins though she could see it, then she was gone headed for the hospital.
The first seven hour shift actually and with a smile thanks to her boosted confidence courtesy of her teammates, Shisui and her feline companions, Sakura squared her shoulders and marched down the streets to the hospital a little ahead of time.
Only to ram face first into someone "We meet again I see" an iron tight grip wrapped around her arm and Sakura flinched in response hearing that Hyuga boy's voice, before a scowl overtook her lips and she jerked herself free.
"My Uncle was rather furious with you, you know" came that arrogant, demeaning tone, Sakura scowled further, tapping her foot impatiently waiting for this boy to take a hint and leave her the hell alone already so she wasn't late.
"I don't see how it matter's what your uncle thinks of me, now excuse me but I have work" the fuscia haired girl huffed went to step around the Hyuga only to be stopped and swung around to face him once more.
Neji grit his teeth at the disobedient girl "No one disobeys my Uncle and I won't be ignored, one way or another you will come to us begging for those eyes, to see the world, stop resisting so much and your life will be much smoother here" he snapped.
Her hands clenched into fists "Let me make one thing clear, Leave Me The Hell Alone Hyuga-san you and your uncle" Sakura spat, spun on her heel and stalked off quickening her pace so that she wouldn't be late, leaving behind a stunned boy.
She only breathed a sigh of relief once she'd signed in at the hospital and got started on work "What may I ask is she doing here" only to encounter more problems, in the form of the woman from hours earlier.
With an aggravated sigh and wishing so badly that she could glare at the woman, Sakura ignored Tsunade and disappeared around the corner to pediatrics, and began healing children left and right, emptying the rooms faster than anyone thought possible.
Including Tsunade, who was moderately impressed the girl had such a talent in the medical arts and the glimpses she caught, the brightest green chakra she'd ever witnessed in her entire life that was excluding herself.
Perhaps she'd been wrong about the girl, so when Sakura's shift was over and she was winding down for the night prepared to head off Tsunade stepped in her way "Yes" Sakura waiting as patiently for the woman to say whatever it was she wanted to say so she could leave.
"I realize I was a bit hasty in brushing you off, you have talent brat, so I'd like to make a little bet with you, if you make it through to the final round of the Chunin Exams, I'll take you on as my apprentice how does that sound" Tsunade offered.
Such a pity she couldn't see what the girl was feeling when dull jade raised to meet her honey colored ones, Sakura frowned lightly trying to feel out the woman's chakra to see if she was being messed with "Okay, I'm holding that to you then" the pinkette finally said.
Then they headed for the lobby, Tsunade was surprised when upon immediately signing out Sakura trudged tiredly towards the Uchiha Heir and practically rammed head first into the teen, to which he simply responded by lifting her onto his back and hurrying from the hospital.
"A bit wary about going outside by herself at nighttime, don't blame the poor dear in the least so Itachi-san and Shisui-san trade off on picking her up" Chiyu explained as she passed by just glad that she had such a hard worker in her hospital.
Tsunade snorted lightly and returned to the hotel thinking about all she'd witnessed in the span of seven hours, Sakura Haruno, a blind girl with bright pink hair, could navigate herself by use of her remaining senses and was a medic, quite the conundrum, but it was a puzzle to figure out later as she slipped off into sleep, like the rest of the village.
Until the next morning and after breakfast like the last five days, Naruto and Sasuke trained relying on their other senses, while Sakura watched, that morning though Kakashi joined them "Good Morning hard at work I see" Kakashi chuckled.
Glad that they were all getting along and not fighting like they use to, Sakura had really mellowed both boys out "Morning Kakashi-sensei, hey I was wondering if it's possible to find out what chakra nature I have and learn a few jutsu's" Sakura rounded on him immediately at his appearance.
Kakashi blinked, scratched his cheek in thought before finally nodding "Course Sakura-chan, hmm give me a second" the silver haired nin searched his pouches before emerging triumphantly with what he sought before handing it to his cute little female student.
"Paper Kakashi-sensei, how will paper help me find out what my nature is" the pinkette frowned lightly, but waited patiently for the explanation sure she was jumping the gun quite a bit and that the paper would help her quite a bit.
This earned a chuckle "Focus a bit of chakra into it Sakura-chan and that will help you find out what chakra nature you have" Kakashi instructed lightly ruffling her permanently messed up pink locks, though they always seemed clean.
Sakura took a deep breath, focused her chakra into the piece of paper in her hand, then felt it immediately get wet only to crumble "Water and Earth right Kakashi-sensei" Sakura tilted her head to the side in consideration.
Having those natures weren't to big of a surprise considering how she was raised "Right, those are good natures to have though Sakura-chan, so for the first jutsu I'll teach you hmm Suiton: Raging Waves, these are the hand signs" the Copy Ninja stood behind his little stood.
Lifting her hands and directing them into each hand sign slowly, Dragon, Tiger, Hare, each time they went through the hand signs he pulled more and more away until she was doing them completely by herself with no help.
"Can I try the jutsu now Kakashi-sensei" the fuscia haired girl asked still running through the hand signs carefully to memorize them, he patted her gently on the head in response "Okay then Suiton: Raging Waves" she inhaled, then exhaled a powerful wave of water.
Molding her chakra just right that had it crashing into a hastily created earth wall courtesy of her sensei to avoid destroying any of the tree's "Nice, I daresay that element suits you better than fire would" Sasuke eyed the damage and threw out a compliment.
That had her smiling brightly and practically bouncing up and down in excitement for the next jutsu "We are totally gonna rock the Chunin Exams" Naruto grinned ducking under a tree branch and around the tree, over a rock, circling back around to his original position.
Or what he thought was his original position until rammed into by Sasuke, who was going to fast and couldn't stop himself in time, they both went down and slammed to the ground harshly, Kakashi chuckled in response.
And Sakura giggled behind her hand "Even if I can't see I can still make pictures in my head and that's a visual I'm going to see for the rest of my life" she snickered trying to get serious again, but it was hard because the two boys engaged in a shoving contest.
In which they rolled across the ground trying to get the upper hand on each other only to be evenly matched, Kakashi shook his head "Ready for that earth jutsu Sakura-chan" the silver haired Jonin cleared his throat ignoring the immature boys.
She nodded eagerly "Next jutsu is Doton: Mud Wall Jutsu and these are the hand signs" he instructed carefully once more leading her hands into the newest set of hand signs which consisted of Tiger, Hare, Boar and Dog "Try it once you think you have them down" he suggested.
Ever so slowly he pulled away like he had before letting her practice on her own for a moment until she added chakra to the jutsu and pressed her hands to the earth "Doton: Mud Wall" she called quietly, feeling the earth rise.
Courtesy of the vibrations it made, then Sakura rose properly and reached out feeling out the height of her mud wall, it was about chest height to her, not bad for her first try "I think I'm better with water" the pinkette giggled lightly.
"Perhaps, does that mean you wish to learn another water jutsu" Kakashi offered, knowing that she was inquisitive and was a quick study, she nodded her head eagerly "Hmm how about Suiton: Water Wall" came the next jutsu.
Another defensive technique and so once again he stood behind his little student directing her into the hand signs of Tiger, Snake, Rat, Snake and then Tiger once more "Okay here we go, Suiton: Water Wall" Sakura blew out a wave of water much like the raging waves jutsu.
Only it surrounded her on all sides before dropping uselessly "Mm perhaps a bit more chakra next time Sakura" Sasuke suggested having sensed that she hadn't used near as much chakra in that jutsu as she had in the first.
"Good idea, though I'll practice it later so I don't drain myself of chakra, plus I still have to work tonight remember" the fuscia haired girl reminded climbing a near by tree and perching herself on a thick branch still in charge of their own training.
Even if she had been distracted for several minutes by learning an offensive and two defensive jutsu, though water wall could be used as an offensive jutsu as well, "Ugh I think my brain is scrambled from how many tree's I've run into, in the last five days" Naruto groaned suddenly.
Running head first into another tree, he'd gotten better sure, but he and Sasuke still had a long ways to go, as funny as it sounded running into tree's wasn't fun so neither Sakura or Sasuke laughed because they both knew the pain he was feeling.
A few hours later they were heading from the compound to get lunch "That's the girl we were telling you about Baki-sensei" immediately the trio of little genin were sighted by the Sand Genin and Temari couldn't resist pointing out the girl to her sensei.
Baki turned following the trio with his only visible ebony iris, the other part hidden behind his turban headgear "I would like to speak with her" he finally decided trailing after the trio, his genin following him as they followed after the Leaf Genin.
Into a local tea shop "Don't think their going to appreciate our presence any" Kankuro snorted but they went right to the booth the Leaf Genin were sitting in, Sasuke's eyes widened, Naruto went pale and Sakura froze then pasted an easy going smile on her lips.
Turned her head in their direction and waited patiently for whatever it was they wanted from them, silence "May we help you with something" Sakura asked in a polite tone when no one spoke, Baki furrowed his brow in response not having expected her to be so polite.
"How is it you can navigate yourself while being blind" that gravelly tone from the other day rumbled out and Sakura turned her head in his direction keeping her expression even and smile firmly in place.
Even as she wanted to run far away "Was taught at a very young age to rely on my four remaining senses, so it's easy to feel, hear, smell and sense everything around me" the pinkette answered in a light tone of voice.
Proud of that fact "Can you fight though that's the main question here, because I don't think there's ever been a blind ninja before, pardon my manners I am Baki, Temari, Kankuro and Gaara's official sensei" Baki introduced himself.
"Oh Sakura-chan can fight alright, it's kind of scary actually" Naruto shuddered, Sasuke snorted and Sakura shook her head in amusement which caused him to flush and laugh sheepishly in embarrassment.
Sakura laughed lightly in response to his own laughter "Are you four going to sit down and order something" came the waitress's voice as she brought the previously ordered meal, immediately the four Sand Shinobi joined the Leaf Genin at their booth.
And Sasuke felt horrible for his teammate, who was sandwiched between the red head and his sensei, with Kankuro on the other side of Baki and Temari on the other side of him, and Naruto, who was sat right next to the red head they now knew as Gaara.
Not a pretty sight and he was certain Sakura was extremely uncomfortable with the situation "We'll just have what they got as well" Temari ordered for the lot of them not wanting to take to long on the orders so they could eat quicker.
Kankuro shrugged in response "Good enough for me I guess" Kankuro said leaning his head on his hand as the waitress scurried off to put in another order for the new customers "So I bet your sensei decided not to enter you in the Chunin Exams" he turned his head to the two boys.
"Actually Kankuro-san, our sensei did nominate us and we've decided to give it our very best go, besides I have a bet to win against Tsunade-sama and there's absolutely no way I'm going to lose" Sakura exclaimed.
The two boys shared a look one word going through their head 'Uh-oh' was the collective thought between them "You know Sakura-chan you don't have to go that far, whatever the bet was" Naruto tried he really did to be considerate of her feelings.
But he got the feeling she was irritated with him nonetheless as the smile dropped "What the Dope means Sakura is that regardless of the bet we would have done our absolute best anyway" Sasuke cleared his throat kicking his adopted brother in the shin.
Sakura considered this before nodding, shoulders losing their tension "Not to be rude or anything, but how is it you'll pass any of the tests if your blind" Temari was horribly confused, this wasn't something anyone had ever encountered before.
"Indomitable perseverance Temari-san, the will to never give up and my dream will push me forward to be the world's first best blind ninja" the pinkette announced, the man seated on her left shot her a weird look that was completely missed.
Not the fluctuation of his chakra though that told he was surprised about something, what that something was she didn't know "Foolish dream you mean, a blind ninja what a joke" came that Hyuga's voice again.
Her hackles were instantly raised "Show's how much you know in a forest you wouldn't be able to find me, I'm a ghost, the ghost of the forest, I could be hiding in a tree less than three meters from you and you would never even know I was there" Sakura stated bluntly.
Sick and tired of his bullshit and harping on her because she was blind "My byakugan would give you away" he argued back determined to make the girl see she was being foolish and that she would never amount to anything.
"What about a bet then, you test your byakugan against her and see if you can find her" Gaara rumbled out wanting to see the girl in action as well, Baki would have applauded the boy for giving them a chance to see what the girl was capable of if they weren't in front of others.
Sasuke and Naruto sniggered under their breaths "Your in for it now Hyuga, no one not even Inuzuka's mom could find her" Sasuke couldn't resist taunting, hating how arrogant the boy was being, because he certainly didn't want his teammate to hide away from the world again.
The blonde on his left nodded "Just how much are you willing to bet though" Naruto grinned, Neji opened his mouth but a hand slamming on the booth table distracted him and all eyes turned to Sakura, who looked not happy.
"No one is going to be betting any money, the stakes are Hyuga-san leaves me alone and quits bugging me about refusing his uncle or I give in if I don't manage to evade his eyes" Sakura stated, Naruto slunk down in his seat, Mikoto was going to be angry if Sakura ever mentioned this.
"Very well after you finish eating we'll go to the forest in the Uchiha Compound and test your skills" Neji relented choosing a booth next to theirs to wait until they were finished eating and then with the Sand Shinobi in tow.
Cause Gaara was the one to suggest the bet, went straight to the Uchiha Compound and into the forest that had been grown for Sakura and the Jaguar's "Get ready to lose Haruno-san" the Hyuga crossed his arms over his chest activating his byakugan.
Her lips curved upwards into a smug smile "The joke's on you Hyuga-san" the pinkette said suppressing her chakra, erasing herself from existence, and then was gone as if she was never there to begin with.
The Hyuga swung around dojutsu activated searching the tree's, a short distance away, nothing, not even a flicker of her chakra, the smug smile dropped from his lips "Do you give up yet Hyuga" the second Uchiha Heir sniggered unsympathetically.
Neji grit his teeth growing furious "She's cheating, she must have body flicker….who the hell threw that rock" he snapped angrily when a pebble bounced off his forehead, no one was laughing not even the Uchiha.
As Sakura dropped down in front of them "Cheating my ass you jerk, I've been in that damn tree for the last five minutes, get the hell off your high horse and stop thinking your better than everyone else" Sakura spat furiously.
Lavender irises widened in surprise at the anger he was being subjected to "And there it is Sakura-chan's temper, you just had to keep pushing it didn't you Neji" the blue eyed blonde in the group shook his head in disappointment.
Realizing that he had in fact lost the bet, Neji turned on his heel and stalked off "Amazing I couldn't even sense you either and I'm a jonin" Baki whistled impressed, clearly there were perks to being blind.
Her anger faded away at the awe in his tone "How long have you been able to do that" the red head questioned from in front of her suddenly and she felt his closeness, even his siblings were shocked, their little brother was practically nose to nose with the girl.
"Uh…um well I've been training since I was 3-4 and it took me until I was 10-11 to master that" Sakura stuttered floundering for a moment then carried on in an unwavering tone, it was honestly a surprised how she was able to keep her wits about her with this person around.
What was more shocking was what happened next a rough hand was suddenly pressed to her cheek and a thumb rubbed over her eyelid that she had to quickly close, her heart beat rapidly within her chest, and fear had nothing to do with her accelerated heart rate.
"Your chakra is soothing why is that" Gaara drew away in the next moment not sure what had possessed him to do such a thing, or why it was that his sand hadn't rose to prevent him from touching someone else.
Sakura jolted in response "I'm a medic, medic nin's have naturally soothing chakra and I've been practicing medical ninjutsu for four years now" she answered dutifully hands glowing green to show that she wasn't lying.
Just then a branch to the right broke "Never mind about that what the hell was that noise" Kankuro grabbed a kunai, Sakura tilted her head in the direction that the noise had come from and instantly relaxed, so did Naruto and Sasuke.
"The one who taught me how to rely on my four remaining senses, what is it Hyo-kun" the fuscia haired girl called out to her ever present companion, but he didn't show himself, choosing to keep hidden for the most part.
But he did speak "We are in need of your assistance Sakura my child, Yasei returned a day early with Yori in tow, they bring an injured cub with them, abandoned and blind in one eye" came Hyo's voice from their right.
"Okay Naruto, Sasuke time to get back to training for both of you, I'm going to get check over the baby jaguar" Sakura instructed turned on her heel and vanished with nary a sound, Baki couldn't really believe it how quickly she could disappear from all senses.
It didn't seem like the Sand Shinobi were inclined to leave either, so despite their presence Naruto and Sasuke tied blindfolds around their heads and got to training, when it occurred to the teal eyed blonde what Sakura had said "Excuse me baby jaguar" Temari choked out.
Sasuke paused since he understood a little more than his adopted brother "Yeah a whole pack of them live here in the compound, a cave that way, there's six of them, now seven of them with more on the way since two females are pregnant with cubs" he nodded and got started again.
Leaping high, ducking low, twisting right, left, reaching out to swing himself around a tree, scale the next, do a roll, flip and hit the dirt as he missed a tree root with his senses, a matching thud filled his ears "Ouch that still hurts" Naruto whined as he rammed into a tree.
"Aren't you worried these Jaguar will come after you and kill you" Baki couldn't believe his ears, a pack of Jaguar was a physical improbability, because one jaguar were solitary creatures, two mated and pregnant females couldn't stand each other.
Three once mated the pair never stayed together "Nope not in the least their protective of Sakura-chan sure, but overall their happy here in this forest, it was grown for them and her you see" Naruto answered the question.
Baki narrowed his eye in response and looked around, now that he thought about it, it was strange to have a forest inside a compound, the Uchiha Compound to be precise "Don't tell me she lives outdoors" Kankuro grimaced.
"Exactly, she's only been here a month, but Sakura is still adjusting to our way of life, since she was raised by that Jaguar, Hyo, took her in and taught her everything about his way of life" Sasuke stated sitting down to meditate.
That always helped them connect with the earth a little better, speaking of Sakura, she returned in the next moment in her arms were two jaguar cubs giving truth to the repeated statements of her teammates "They alright Sakura-chan" the Uzumaki on the team questioned.
"Mm their malnourished and Mita is blind in one eye, a little sick cause they were abandoned but with plenty of care, they blossom, the little guy is Tokei" Sakura chattered keeping the cubs wrapped up in bear fur to give them the warmth they needed.
Gaara rested his pale green eyes on them and the ease and comfortableness in which she handled very dangerous creatures "Are you going to raise them yourself" he rumbled out another question and dull jade eyes shot in his direction.
Before Sakura nodded "Well not all by myself, I'll have help from the others, it will be good practice for Yasei-chan and Muimina-chan, who are going to have cubs of their own in a couple of months, give or take a few days or a week" the pinkette rattled off.
Now things were beyond weird which signaled the departure of the sand shinobi thank kami for that, Naruto and Sasuke spent the next hour or two training before they headed off for an early dinner at his before Sakura went to the hospital.
During that time Sakura left Mita and Tokei with Mikoto, who'd fallen head over heels for the newest cubs and so despite how tired she was that night Sakura didn't fall asleep the minute Shisui appeared to take her back.
Instead following him to the house "Here they are Sakura-chan, all fed up and sleeping like babies" Mikoto returned the two cubs to the young girl, who were still wrapped up snugly in the bear fur wrap that had been made.
"Thanks Mikoto-chan" Sakura took them gently in her arms, hugged Mikoto super quick and hurried to the caves unaware of the pale green eyes watching her every move from above as he followed her using his sand to keep out of sight or senses.
Until she vanished within a cave just as they'd been told "Glad your back Sakura-chan, Muimina-chan has been having some problems with digesting her food today as well" Tora very nearly pounced on his human sister but stopped himself just in time.
"I can try to find something or ask Hana-san at the vet clinic tomorrow what would be suitable to give you Muimina-chan, but right now I can barely think straight" the pinkette yawned lowering the cubs and herself to the ground of the cave.
"That's more than I can ask for thank you S..Sakura-chan and I promise to try and not be so picky as well" Muimina purred from her spot against Tora, having learned quite a bit of new words in the last six days.
Where she and them were surrounded on all sides by the others "Yori and Yasei went back out to try and get a couple of catches before returning tomorrow morning" Kajiya explained just in case Sakura commented on their absence.
"Ah I see thanks Kajiya-chan for telling me, goodnight everyone, goodnight Mita-chan, Tokei-kun sweet dreams" Sakura hummed softly letting out waves of soothing chakra and letting the warmth of the others lure her into a dreamless sleep.
"Goodnight my Sakura may your dreams be just as kind as you have been to us all these years" Hyo rumbled out a soothing purr prompting the others to do the same, the purrs rumbled all the way to her very core and soon enough the lot of them were knocked out snoozing the rest of the night away.