ENJOY!
...
Sakura stared at the door, her palms sweaty and her heart beating nervously agaisnt her chest as she stood in front of the Hokage's door, ready to beg him to take him as her student. Kakashi had stolen Naruto and Sasuke for some training without a warning, leaving a lonely Sakura in need of a sensei for the final phase of the exams, which was coming in a matter of weeks. Sakura exhaled sharply and raised her hand to knock on the door, and she gently tapped agaisnt the hard wooden surface.
"Come in" a gruff voice said. Sakura gripped her knuckles, this was for her own good and she had a lingering feeling that the Hokage might be the person she was going to reveal her secret to, much to the beast's dismay, who had a certain dislike towards the wise man. Sakura twisted the door knob and entered the room, thankful that it was just her and the Hokage-who looked rather surprised at her rare visit but pleased anyway. He had heard rumours that she had used a rare eye technique, and as he stared at the young girl approach him, he noticed the hesitation in her actions. Sakura closed her eyes, this was for her own good, she needed to train and meditate and she badly needed to tell somebody about her dark secret that even Naruto, her closest friend, didn't know about, and she had grown up with him. Sakura opened her eyes and she fell on her knees, bowing to the floor so low her forehead touched the cold ground.
"Please let me be your student!" Sakura said quickly. The Hokage raised a brow, and he felt sympathy for the girl, realizing that Kakashi had choosen to train Naruto and Sasuke and had obviously neglected the female one, who lay bowing to him. The Hokage rose from his seat and kenlt down in front of Sakura, who raised her head with tears running down her cheeks. The Hokage's eyes widened at her actions and watched patiently as Sakura wiped her tears hastily.
"Kakashi-sensei has chosen to train my male comrades...and he left me..." Sakura trailed off, a far away look on her face. The Hokage sighed at Kakashi's actions and gently patted the girl's head, memories of him finding a young Sakura, abondened under a shady tree surfaced through his mind. Screw the paperwork, he thought as he glanced at the massive stack, somebody else could do it. The Hokage stood up, extending his hand. Sakura smiled at him and took his hand, standing on her two feet and waiting for the Hokage's reply. Instead, he sat back down and Sakura closed her eyes, ready for the decline, and how sorry he was that he did not have-
"I will be honoured to teach you. Come, we must go to the training fields" the Hokage said, smiling kindly. Sakura felt happy tears threatening to fall and she wiped them away, standing up straighter. I'll show Kakashi I didn't need him, I'll show him, Sakura thought determindly as she raised her chin, proud that the Hokage himself was going to train her personally. For a moment, Sakura felt special and she smiled at the foreign feeling as she trailed after the Hokage, who had gotten rid of his robes and was wearing a simple Jounin outfit without the green jacket on. They reached the training fields and they began to train until dusk appeared, making the sky turn pink and golden.
Sakura panted at the harsh excersice and sat under the shady tree, calmly eating her rice ball she made. The Hokage sat cross legged next to her, staring at the beautiful sky that had shade of pink, lavender and gold, creating a beautiful scenary for both of the exhausted people to enjoy. As the secret training countinued, Sakura saw less and less of her teammates and more and more of the Hokage, giving her all with dedication and passion. The day before the chuunin exams, Sakura had woken up at 3:00 am in the morning and was about to return home when she realized it was already late, that she realized this was the perfect time to tell him.
"Hokage-sama! Wait!" Sakura yelled. The Hokage turned around to see a running Sakura, breathless and exhausted from their intense training. He saw her tense as she slowly lifted her gaze to his, her lips trembling as she leaned in to whisper in his ear. The leaves rustled gently as a soft breeze came past, and the moon shone brightly, illuminating Sakura and the Hokage's face, shadowing their cheekbones.
...Tell him and I'll rip your insides...
Sakura gulped and closed her eyes. She opened them again and plastered on a fake grin, trying so hard to look happy and thankful.
"Thank you so much for training me!" Sakura said, and she ran away sobbing. I'm such a coward, Sakura thought as she fell to her bed, crying herself to sleep. That night, she dreamt of herself killing somebody, her sword deep inside the person's heart, laughing insanely, her eyes red and full of passionate need for blood and pain.
That person turned out to be the Hokage.
Sakura woke up, the sheets tangled around her skinny frame as her sweat and tears mingled together. She gasped and stood up, running to the shower to forget the heartache in her chest as the memories surfaced through her mind, replaying it over and over again. I'm a coward, Sakura thought bitterly as she changed into a metal fishnet top, a short red skirt with slits in the side, black shorts and knee high boots. Sakura brushed her hair, staring at her reflection with disgust before placing a heavy axe with a red leather handle on her back. She was not effected by the weight, nor the stares she received as she slowly made her way to the building where the remaning participants were being registered for their appearance, because she was too busy drowning herself in bittersweet self pity and disgust as the beast chanted over her mind, saying cruel things about the kind Hokage who had wasted his time to train her.
...Use my chakra, together we will show the world our true identity...
Fuck off, Sakura thought as she sat down on a cold bench, crossing her legs as she placed her heavy weapon next to her. Sakura ignored the stares from the Shukaku vessel and placed her black gloves on with a cocky smirk. I can defeat all these retards, Sakura thought as she placed a hard metal ring on each finger, before hiding it with her gloves. Beast, I shall use your chakra and use my Yin seal, I don't care anymore, Sakura thought as she brushed away her hair.
...Yes, we shall defeat the poor brute who dare attacks us...
Sakura was happy to see Naruto, and punched him lightly on the shoulder when he gave her weapon a frightened look. Soon, they were ushered inside the massive arena, full of excited people standing up to cheer on the genin. Sakura saw Ino in the ground, giving her a scared look before turning away and Sakura immediatly felt guilty for causing Ino pain, even though she hardly knew the girl. Sasuke's not here, Sakura thought and she realized that they were going to make a grand appearance and smirked, shaking her head. So like Kakashi-sensei, she thought again as she watched the first match with mild interest. Soon, it was Naruto and he walked down the arena, ignoring the hissing and the booing, which made Sakura angry. It's not his fault! Sakura thought, screaming in her head.
"Go on Naruto! Do it for Hinata!" Sakura yelled, making Naruto grin at her and Hinata blush in the crowd. Sakura grinned and swung the heavy axe around her body, watching in delight as Naruto beat up the I-am-so-fucking-awesome stuck up Neji, watching as the Hyuuga's pride being stripped from him harshly, and as Naruto landed a final blow on Neji-the crowd stood up and cheered for him, even the ones that were previously booing at him. Naruto-being the kind of person he is-ran around for his fifteen minutes of fame, air kissing the crowd before punching the sky. He ran to Sakura, grinning widely.
"I did it Sakura-chan!" he yelled triumphantly. Sakura laughed and slapped his back in a sisterly fashion, shaking her head at his antics. The next match was between Shikamaru and Temari, which Sakura watched closely. The Hokage had advised her to watch the kid's match, saying the Nara boy might give her some ideas on how to outsmart her next opponent. Sakura glanced at the Hokage, who was eyeing the match with delight. In the end, Temari had lost and was fuming, standing next to her brother with the facepaint glaring daggers at the amused Nara boy. Sakura politely complimented him, in which he yawned and shrugged. That's a Nara for you, Sakura thought amusingly, and then Sasuke appeared beside her, scaring her nearly half to death.
"Teme! You should've seen me, I beat up Neji!" Naruto yelled. Sasuke's brow lifted and he smirked, noticing Sakura's different appearance and her gigantic axe. Sakura was rather surprised Sasuke didn't make a famous grand entrance, but that's Uchihas for you, always surprising you whether it be the most tiniest or biggest situations.
"Haruno Sakura and Amaya Fujika, step into the arena!" Genma said clearly. Sakura grinned, hearing the dark laughter of the beast and stepped into the middle to confront an Amegakure ninja, with short purple hair and light brown eyes. Sakura took a big step back and her eyes turned a sapphire hue, grinning like the insane person she was.
The match began and vines appeared from the ground, in which Sakura ran up them, suddenly leaping in the air and raising her axe to swiftly cut them, grinning. Her fist connected to the ground and it shook violently, causing a mini-earthquake to rapture from the ground. Sakura rose from the dust, her sapphire eyes turning a shade darker as the vines came from the ground, circling around her. Sakura jumped to the ground, laughing darkly as black chakra formed around her sword.
...Show that bitch what you're made of...
Sakura grinned and lunged in, swiftly cutting the vines that came towards her, often trying to plunge itself inside her chest. Sakura suddenly dissappeared, and her hand shot from the ground dragging the girl so deep inside the ground, nobody could hear her cries. Sakura appeared, and there was silence before vines shot up from the ground, creating a barrier around her. Sakura grinned inside the barrier and gathered up the beast's chakra, and the barrier was ripped apart, revealing a laughing Sakura, dark chakra swirling around her. The people gasped in awe as the black chakra formed wings, and three tiny black dots appeared underneath each eye.
...Beautiful, chop her head and raise it to the sky...
Sakura realized that most of the vines were coming from the back of her neck, and she knew that was her opponent's fragile place. Sakura lunged in, making a clone of herself with a swirling black ball in their hands. The real Sakura vanished, making the fake Sakura ready to chop the girl in half with her axe, when the fake one dissappeared and the real Sakura stood behind Amaya, her kunai plunged deep inside her neck. Amaya gasped and fell on the floor, and Sakura took her kunai and wiped it agaisnt her red skirt, the black wings and the three dots slowly dissappearing. Oh dear, look at the mess I made, Sakura thought in dismay. She quickly did a jutsu, and the rocks rose from the ground, returning back into their places and soon, the place was neat and clean, apart from the broken trees. The arena was quiet as they did a hesitant applause as Sakura swung the axe around her, returning back into the dark wings where she would see the next match. She saw Naruto's face full of fear and Sakura felt disgusted with herself, her knees shaking as she approached the bathroom where she threw up, crying and sobbing. I'm a monster, Sakura thought as she stared at her pale face, clenching her fist so tight blood trickled down her knuckles.
...You are the Child of Darkness, it is expected of you to do such things...
That made Sakura cry even harder. What happened to the Sakura who vowed to choose her own path? What ever happened to her, Sakura thought as she collapsed on the ground. The door opened and Kakashi came in, ignoring the fact that it was the girl's bathroom and he crouched next to the crying Sakura, who covered her face with her hands.
"It's natural to be scared of your first kill" Kakashi whispered. Sakura bitterly laughed, she wanted to say to his face that it wasn't her first kill, and that she was a monster, she was a demon, a killer and a dark person-but seeing the pained expression in his face made her wince.
"I'm becoming a monster, sensei" Sakura whispered, tears running down her cheeks freely.
XXXX
Sakura had managed to calm herself down and went back to watch Sasuke's fight agaisnt Gaara. She flinched everytime Gaara landed a blow on him, and as she saw Gaara's bloodlust increase violently, his sand making a storm, Sakura wondered if she looked like that. I'll do something in return for my horrible actions, Sakura thought as she stared down at her lap. Suddenly, in the corner of her eye, she saw the Kazekage nervously fan himself and her eyes narrowed until they turned a sapphire blue. It's Orochimaru! Sakura thought, suddenly alarmed as she gathered in the new information. Suna's planning an invasion, she thought and gritted her teeth, deciding that if she killed Orochimaru, maybe people won't view her as a monster. Just as Gaara was about to wrap his sand around Sasuke, Sakura ran in inhuman speed and grabbed the collar of the fake Kazekage, throwing him to ground causing his hat to fall off. The Hokage gasped and the fight stopped as Sakura undid the transformation jutsu, and there stood Orochimaru in his full glory.
"Sakura, we meet again" he whispered. Suddenly, Gaara ran away with his siblings, causing Sasuke to chase after him with a strong urge to kill the powerful Shukaku vessel, who was boiling with rage. The arena fell quiet and the people were asleep, war broke out and there Sakura stood, falling on her knees and clutching her head. Kakashi approached her and nudged her shoulder, causing her to scramble on her feet.
"Go wake Naruto and the others" Kakashi ordered and returned to his fight with the mighty Gai, flashing his shiny teeth. Sakura ran over to the sleeping forms of Shikamaru, Naruto and Shino, shaking them awake. With Naruto, she hit him around the head since he did not wake up after she had shaked him awake for the fifth time. Sakura lead them to where Sasuke and Gaara where fighting, trying to explain as best as she could to the constant nagging of the males.
"Suna is invading Konoha with the help of Orochimaru. We need to protect Sasuke from Gaara!" Sakura said as she speed past the trees, ignoring the protests of the other people saying they couldn't keep up. They paused when they saw Temari, holding her fan up in the air, glaring at Shikamaru.
"I can't let you come after them!" Temari yelled. Sakura gritted her teeth in annoyance, if only that girl would not piss her off, because Sakura was in a very bad mood. He saved our lives, I need to protect his now, Sakura thought as she glanced at Shikamaru, who took a step back, his expression exasperated.
"No! I know what your-"
"Shikamaru Nara! Just fight her!" Sakura hollered, losing her patience. The Nara boy sighed, and the remaining three set out to find Sasuke. Sakura's mind was racing, her thoughts strictly on Sasuke only as she sped past the trees in a great hurry, Naruto beside her with a grim expression. They were confronted with Kankuro, which Shino gladly took the offer of fighting agaisnt him. Soon it was just the remaining Team 7, ready to pick up the pieces Sasuke broke on the way. They were just heading to their destination when they saw an enraged Gaara, when Sakura grabbed Naruto's collar and pulled him to a hug. Her arms were shaky as she wrapped it around a confused and blushing Naruto.
"Please don't think I'm a monster" Sakura whispered, tears running down her cheeks. Naruto's eyes widened and memories of himself as a child, being ruthlessly bullied and abused, surfaced his mind and his expression softened as he leaned his forehead agaisnt Sakura, who stared at him with her glassy eyes.
"I would never call you that, now come on! Let's go save Sasuke!" Naruto cried, punching his hands in the air. Sakura's eyes widened as she stared at him slowly made his way into the battlefield, and a huge smiled was plastered on her face. Naruto will save me from the darkness, Sakura thought as she stood by Sasuke, holding his hand as she squeezed it. Sasuke's face became gentle and he gripped it back, vowing to protect both of his teammates whether they liked it or not. As Team 7 held their hands together and lunged towards Gaara, and as Sakura let go of her grip on Sasuke's hand and leaped to the air, her axe rising above her-she didn't feel killing intent anymore, instead she felt happy that she was in the good person's shoes, for once.
Sakura raised her axe and went down to chop his face in half when a sand barrier came in, blocking her from attacking. Gaara stared at her with his jade eyes, gripping her collar with his hands as he dug his hands inside her flesh. Sakura hissed in pain and kicked him in the stomach, allowing him to yelp in pain and release her. Sakura took a step back, her axe suddenly heavy in her skinny arms and her neck throbbing with pain. Naruto came to her side almost immediatly.
"Sakura, are you okay?" Naruto asked, his fingers brushing gently agaisnt the swollen bruise on her neck. Sakura nodded, ignoring the pain and charged, letting out an inhuman cry as she leapt in the air, swinging backwards from Gaara with her axe raised, ready to strike that sand container. Her axe was inches apart from it, but sand encircled her waist and she screamed in pain, the axe slipping from her fingers and falling to the ground. Sakura's arms trembled as she took out a kunai, stabbing it at the sand helplessly, to no avail.
"Let her go!" Sasuke hollered, lunging towards Gaara with inhuman speed, the Cursed Seal already covering half of his body. The sand gripped her tighter and Sakura screamed, closing her eyes in pain as she wriggled in the grasp. Her eyes turned a dark shade of sapphire as she stared at Gaara's eyes, and slowly the sand around her body fell to the ground. Sakura leapt to a branch and started to heal her wounds, ignoring the fact that the beast within her was begging her to use his chakra. But Sakura had to protect her teammates without the black chakra, she had to make sure they were safe without using the demon's chakra. Sakura lunged towards Gaara, her fists filled with her own chakra, her eyes a vicious colour of sapphire as she raised her fist that connected to the ground, causing an earthquake to rapture through the ground, making rocks and dust swirl around the air. Sakura lunged in to attack, she knew Gaara was blind with rage to get his hands on her, so when she rose from the ashes, his sand immediatly shot up and Sakura grinned as she lunged forward, her face inches apart from Gaara's shocked face. But she was caught off guard as she did her jutsu, when the sand slapped her away causing her to fall to the ground with a loud crash.
Her vision was clouded with dust and grit, and she watched with her blurry vision as Naruto and Sasuke charged, only to be tossed aside by the angry Gaara. Sakura slowly got up, ignoring the immense pain and charged with her teammates, raising in the air as her fist connected with Gaara's back, causing him to scream in pain. Sand swirling around her and gripped her ankles, tossed her aside causing her to land on her back. With shaky hands, Sakura got on her knees and raised her chin as she saw the sand coming towards her, in the shape of a sphere. If she would die, she would die honoroubly protecting the village in these horrid moments of war, and as Sakura rose her chin and grinned, she knew she had to face death with a smile. The sphere was so close to her stomach now, and as Sakura closed her eyes, waiting for that pain in her stomach and her collapsing on the ground-but it never came. Sakura opened her eyes and her eyes widened as she saw Naruto in front of her, with Sasuke with front of him, the sand sphere going right through their stomachs. Gaara laughed darkly and took the sand sphere back, causing for Naruto and Sasuke to collapse on the ground in front of her. Sakura was shaking violently now, with rage and anger as her hands placed both of her teammates around her arms, hugging them as they stained her with blood. I was meant to protect you, she thought as she hugged their dying bodies. Sasuke and Naruto meet her gaze, giving her a half-hearted smile, before their heads fell on her lap.
...Use my chakra Sakura, it will heal them...
I don't give two shits anymore, Sakura retorted back as she closed her eyes, tears streaming down her cheeks. Black chakra surronded her as she hugged her teammates, and the chakra crawled towards the wounds of her male comrades, healing them slowly. Sakura closed her eyes, feeling the dark chakra become stronger as it suddenly shot up from her body and connected to the sky, and suddenly, black swirling balls of chakra fell to the ground, striking towards Gaara as it fell in inhuman speed from the sky. The deep scars within her teammates dissappeared, and Gaara collapsed on the floor with exhaustion as one of the last chakra balls fell on him, creating a massive explosion. Naruto blinked, and then his wide cerulean eyes went wide as he touched the wound in his stomach, which had dissappeared without a trace. Sasuke followed, his shocked expression never slipping from his face as he stared down at his stomach, and both males stared at their female teammate, weak and fragile as it was her turn to collapse on the ground, with a relieved smile on her face that she had saved her teammates.
XXXX
Sakura woke up to find herself on a hospital bed, much to her distaste. She hated hospitals, who they stinked with death and everywhere you looked was white, it made her feel light headed and dizy, the feeling she loathed. Sakura saw her teammates beside her, Sasuke on her right and Naruto on her left, still fast asleep with the machine beeping their heart rate in a steady rhythm. She clutched her head and groaned, falling to her bed again as she stared at the ceiling, feeling dizzy and fragile. A nurse came in, gasped as she found Sakura awake and shouted something from the door, and three Jounin medics came in, asking Sakura endless questions on how she felt.
"I'm fine! How about my teammates?" Sakura snapped, losing her temper. The medics exchanged glances at her outburst and one of them wrote down on the clipboard-probably, has bad temper after fights, Sakura thought dryly as she glared daggers at the ceiling. It didn't matter about her, what was important was her teammates, which she strived to protect yet ended getting hurt in the process-and it was all her goddamn fault.
"Uzumaki-san and Uchiha-san are fine, no bruises or anything. They're just sleeping of exhaustion" the medic said, sounding rather bewildered at the state of her teammates. Thanks demon, Sakura thought to herself as she remembered the demon's chakra healing her teammates. But she still didn't trust him, regardless if he saved her comrade's life or not. He was a demon, Sakura didn't make bargains or trusted demons, because they would turn the tables and suddenly, it would be all your fault and you would wonder why you ever trusted him. But Sakura knew one day she would have to trust him, control him and make her chakra mould onto his, but this was the Ten Tailed beast we were talking about, he was stubborn and refused any help. Soon, the medics left and Kakashi visited moments later, his expression grim and sad.
"The Hokage has died" he whispered. Sakura tensed, tears streaming down her face as her mouth opened to speak, but no words came out-except for cries and sobs. Damn you Orochimaru! she thought, gripping the blankets as she shut her eyes, memories of the Hokage came one by one, flickering past her mind. At least I didn't kill him, Sakura thought bitterly as she ran her fingers through her tangled locks. The Hokage had been there when Kakashi wasn't, he was the one who was her sensei, he was the one who did not seem to mind wasting his time to teach a neglected Sakura. Kakashi was rather shocked by expression, wondering if there was some kind of bond between his female student and the Hokage. To Kakashi and Sakura, they didn't know Naruto was listening to every word they had said, and he rose from his bed and clenched his fist.
"Who killed him?" Naruto said in a hoarse voice. Kakashi looked startled, but Sakura didn't even glance at his way, she already knew he was awake, and as she looked the other way, indicating for Kakashi to answer his question. Her sensei gave her a pained look, but Sakura ignored him as she chewed her bottom lip so hard, blood trickled down her jaw line and done her neck. As she heard Kakashi answer his question, there was such an intense silence before Naruto stood up and punched the wall, creating damage agaisnt the wall. Sakura felt her heart ache as she saw Naruto so pained, and she wished she had it worse than him, so she could see his energetic smile and laughter. But Naruto had been raised by the Hokage, his only parent and guardian (also Iruka-sensei) and as Sakura stared at his shaky shoulders, and watched him collapse on the bed, running his fingers through her locks, she stood up and sat next to him, her arms wrapped around his shoulders.
"Remember when we were young...and Hokage used to tell us stories?" Sakura croaked, her forehead touching Naruto's. Tears ran down Naruto's cheek as he wrapped her arms around Sakura's body tightly, memories of the younger and more innocent Sakura an Naruto, giggling and laughing as the Hokage used to tell them silly stories. Those were the moments Naruto felt most complete, with a father figure and his best friend, he felt like it was his only family, and it grew bigger and bigger, allowing Sasuke and Kakashi enter their little family. And it was ripped away from him, and as the vacancy in Naruto's heart grew bigger as he sobbed at Sakura's shoulder. Moments later, Sakura let go of his grasp and brushed the tears from his cheeks, not caring in the world if she was also the one crying. Sasuke woke up, his gaze lingering towards his two teammates, with Sakura on Naruto's bed, her forehead touching his. Sasuke felt a pang of pain as Kakashi told him the death of the Hokage, and he watched Sakura and Naruto-who had been raised by the Hokage, comfort eachother as the minutes passed. Sasuke closed his eyes, and he remembered the day after the massacre, the Hokage had hugged him, telling him how sorry he was. Though Sasuke was sick the fact that everybody gave him fake comfort of hugs and tears, the Hokage's sympathy was real, and it on that day that he meet Sakura and Naruto, both orphans yet loved dearly by the Hokage. He could still remember as he saw Sakura for the first time, though he didn't see him as she played in the sand pit with a grinning Naruto.
How far they had come.
"Sasuke, your awake" Sakura said, walking towards his direction. Sasuke was in no mood to protest as Sakura brushed the bangs from his face and sighed, sitting back in her bed and sighing. It was too much to sink in, the wars, Gaara of the Sand and finally, the biggest blow of them all-the Hokage dying in front of the smiling Orochimaru. Sakura gagged at the memory of Orochimaru's face and she sighed, covering her face with her hands. In a way, it was all their fault-if only they had listened to her when she told them Kabuto, apprentince of Orochimaru was here, maybe the war could never happen, maybe the pain would go away. But they had thought of her as a silly girl, and now they'd come to the realization that she'd been right-always been right. Now some Yamanaka was going to slip inside her mind, collect the information they needed and leave her alone, feeling used. Sakura gripped the bedsheets and shut her eyes, the funeral was taking place tomorrow, she and her teammates were going to be discharged within fifteen minutes and as Sakura stared at the clock, hoping the fifteen minutes would end so she could go under the blankets in her bed and curl up in a ball for the next three years. Because I'm a fucking coward, Sakura thought bitterly, as she stared down at her hands with self disgust.
...You are not a coward, you are a monster...
That was it. Sakura screamed and cried, on the verge to losing her sanity as the Jounins tried to pin her down on her bed, putting metal straps around her ankles and wrists. She screamed and broke it without a second thought, kicking the Jounins so hard they slammed agaisnt the wall and created so much damage and destruction. Sakura screamed again, tears running down her cheeks now as she thrashed wildly in Sasuke and Naruto's embrace, before she went limp and sobbed in their shoulders. Sakura clutched her head and sobbed, breaking the embrace and curling up in a ball in the hospital bed, before the ANBU came and took her away-much to the displeasure of Sasuke and Naruto, who were shouting now. It was a blurr, so much shouts and screams, sweat mingling with blood and tears, her body going limp for tenth time as they punished her, before throwing her outside the torturing building, leaving her broken and empty outside the streets of Konoha. Sasuke and Naruto came immediatly by her side, cursing and throwing so much insults towards the torturing building before they carried a broken Sakura to her apartment, where she begged them to stay longer or else she'll lose her humanity.
"I'm a monster..." Sakura whispered, trailing off. It pained Sasuke to see her in this much pain, he hadn't seen her so fragile ever since the Forest of Death, and he was actually scared at her when she killed her opponent in the final stage of the Chuunin exams. It was not Sakura he saw fight the opponent, it was somebody else, somebody else taking control of her body and soul and he was so frightened for a second, that the Sakura Haruno he and Naruto knew was long gone. But she had returned when fighting Gaara, and had saved his and Naruto's lives by healing them, causing that scar in Sasuke's stomach to dissappear completely.
"Your not a monster" Naruto said kindly, brushing the sweat from Sakura's forehead. Sakura shivered agaisnt his touch and clutched the bed sheets, her head throbbing with pain as a massive headache came crashing into her mind. Sasuke entwined his fingers with hers, and Sakura remembered that moment in the Forest of Death, where she woke up sore to find her hands holding Sasuke's, and she had been so scared that both of her teammates were dead, and she did nothing but be useless and be the bait. Sakura shut her eyes tightly, tears running down her cheeks and she wiped them away hastily as she stood up, opening the window to let cool, damp air come in. She was still wearing her hospital robes, with Naruto's orange jacket around her shoulders, a warm gesture that did not do anything to erase the cold inside her veins but she thanked him nonetheless.
Sakura exhaled the warm air and sighed, feeling light headed as she took off the orange jacket and tossed it back to Naruto. She needed to sew herself, she needed to collect the broken pieces of her life and make a fresh new start. She had longed for a family, for love, for that vacancy in her heart to dissappear, and now she had something worth fighting for-Team 7. It was her only family, and every member of her family was broken, all orphans including Kakashi. Naruto, the Kyuubi vessel, herself another vessel with no past, Sasuke with his massacred family and thirst for revenge and Kakashi, who had plunged his own chidori into his own female comrade.
One heck of a fucking family, if you ask Sakura.
And now, she wanted nothing more than to protect them. She had something worth fighting for, worth dying for and there was no way in hell were Sasuke and Naruto were going to die in front of her eyes again. They had been so close to enter the gates of the second life, but she had grasped them at the last minute and bought them back to life. Sakura turned around and hugged her teammates, much to their surprisement.
"Thanks for protecting me" Sakura murmured, loud enough so they were the only ones to hear. Sasuke's eyes widened, and slowly yet hesitantly he placed his arms around her and clutched her shirt. Sasuke and Naruto vowed to eachother they'd keep an eye at Sakura, and it pained both of them to see her so empty, so lifeless as if she was a puppet, and that somebody else was pulling the strings. Sakura was so delicate if used roughly, yet so strong when she fought as if she had an incredible amount of endless chakra. That's why the Jounins and the medics found it fascinating, observing her every move as if she was something to be mended carefully with.
It made Sasuke and Naruto disgusted by their antics.
But the true reason why Sakura was so quiet, so lifeless and allowed herself to be tossed around was the deep heart ache that burned her stomach and soul. She knew, by the seemingly sorry looks Sasuke sent her way that he was leaving. It had pained her, she finally had a family and one of them was going to slip through her fingers at night, where the moon truly shone in all it's glory. For once, there was silence in Sakura's head as she sat down on the bench, closing her eyes as she savoured each moment that Sasuke was still in this village.
Until a dark shadow appeared.
Quick poll relating to this chapter!
What episode and season did Orochimaru fight the Hokage?
Naruto Season 3: Episode 71, 72, 73 Naruto Season 3: Episode 27, 28, 29 Naruto Season 1: Episode 3, 4, 5
The prize will be that somebody can have a oneshot fanfiction story of any pairing. No lesbian or gay pairings please.