What it means…

Chapter 10 - Selfish

That night, at one point, Sakura finds herself stuck in the embrace of her two loving parents. With satisfaction, the girl closes her eyes and inhales deeply. The smell of fresh bread from her father's apron mixes beautifully with the floral scent of her mother's shampoo and this perfect combination completely relaxes her body to the point where her head sinks deeper between her father's arms. A subtle laugh from her mother and a purr from her father's chest makes her crack an eye open. In the eyes of the man, Sakura can decipher all the love that he feels towards the little blonde woman in front of him. When he leans over her to kiss her mother, she closes her eyes again, leaving them some privacy. A few seconds later, a pressure on the top of her head makes her smile. From the depths of her being, the girl knows just how much she is loved.

Suddenly, as she's about to fall asleep, her mother's grip on her forearm closes violently. When Sakura opens her eyes, she notices how watery they are and that she's now standing in front of a woman with brown hair whose features are blurred by the tears constantly flowing on her cheeks. A great fear invades her as the other squeezes her arm even harder, leaving bruises on her whitish skin. The girl then starts struggling as best as she can to escape the hand-shaped claw that slowly approaches her face. At the last moment, she manages to free herself and starts running in the opposite direction. Behind her, hysterical cries burst out, but she doesn't turn her head and accelerates her pace. After a while, the sounds around her seem more and more muffled. She stops and folds in half, panting. Fighting exhaustion, she finally drops on her knees, and then, as her eyelids become heavier, she lays her head on the ground and falls asleep immediately.

Two sea-foam eyes open all of a sudden. In the still dark room, Naruto's characteristic snoring and the singing of birds piercing through the half-open window blend into a pleasant cacophony. A drop of cold sweat slides slowly along the forehead of the pink-haired girl and in a quick movement of the hand, she wipes it off. Following this action, her eyes widen and she sits suddenly in her bed. Observing her hands open and close a few times in front of her face, she then turns her head to one side and the other before getting up, with both arms stretch in the air in sign of victory.

"Sakura! I took possession of the body again! Wow, I don't know how you did to endure the second position for so long. I stayed there for like two days and it was enough for me. Sorry, by the way, I promise you to be careful in the presence of your Sasuke-kun."

After going to the bathroom and putting on her training outfit, Hana jumps through the bedroom window and begins her morning jog.

"Well, I hope we will not have to face Zabuza today, because I'm clearly not able to use our chakra like you do, and it will not be long before someone notices it and suspects something… Not to mention that we'll probably die…"

"…"

"Sakura, are you there? … Hello? Wake up girl, the day has started!"

"…"

"SAAAAKUUURAAA!"

"…"

"Mmm… I guess your will is weaker than mine, not that I'm really surprise though…"

An hour later, as the sun begins to rise in the sky, Hana, Sasuke and Kakashi sit down for a quick breakfast with Tazuna and Tsunami.

"Mah, I think we'll let Naruto sleep this morning. He has really overworked himself last night. Tazuna-san, the rest of us will accompany you to the bridge this morning and act as your bodyguards. We will leave when you're ready."

After a look at the old man, Kakashi turns to his two students and his lone eye closes in a hidden smile. A few minutes later, the three shinobis and their client make their way to the bridge under construction. Hanging out at the back, Hana feels her stomach contract under her anxiety. With her sweaty palms, she mechanically undoes her braided hair and ties it into a high ponytail. The Konoha headband finds its place on her right thigh again, and finally, she pulls once on her red t-shirt and squares her shoulders before catching up with the rest of the group. From the corner of his eyes, Sasuke scrutinizes her and notices the slight changes in her appearance and posture, but doesn't comment. The stop of footsteps in front of him shifts his attention back to what surrounds him. The bridge, now littered with unconscious bodies, is quickly covered with a dense mist.

"Sasuke, Sakura", Kakashi begins, his deep voice breaking the heavy silence. It doesn't take more for the two genins to get into formation, surrounding Tazuna with the help of their sensei, kunai in hand.

With a smirk hidden under their bandages, many clones of Zabuza appear, encircling the group.

"Still cluttered with those brats, Kakashi? Hm. This one is so frightened that he can't help shaking."

Looking subtly on her teammate's side, Hana notices that indeed, Sasuke's hand holding his weapon shakes a lot. However, when her gaze creeps up, she is surprised by the smirk appearing on the boy's face.

"Hm. It's not fear, but excitement."

Locking eyes with his student, Kakashi nods subtly. "You can go".

Following Kakashi's command, Sasuke jumps high in the air and in a few quick movements, defeats all his opponents. Afterwards, the real Zabuza appears in front of them, accompanied by the masked boy.

"I see…", he begins in a deep voice. "This one is not so bad. I found someone for you, Haku." Upon hearing this, the boy's attention falls on Sasuke and he walks a few steps in his direction.

"Yes, Zabuza-san. Don't worry. It will be over soon." His sentence barely finished, Haku disappears to reappear only inches away from his opponent, a senbon aimed at the boy's face blocked by a kunai at the last moment. Hana's eyes widen and her grip on her weapon tightens.

"Your boy is fast, Kakashi. I've never seen anyone be able to dodge Haku's attacks before. But I must warn you, it will not be enough. Get ready to see your precious students die one by one, copycat."

"Hm. I wouldn't count on that, if I were you. Sasuke, here, is the most promising genin of his year and the only survivor of the famous Uchiha clan, and Sakura-chan over there is the smartest kunoichi of her age, not to mention Uzumaki Naruto, the most unpredictable ninja. Don't underestimate them or it will be your downfall."

During the verbal exchange of the two adults, Sasuke and Haku continue their confrontation, exchanging punches and kicks at an impressive speed without either of them getting the upper hand. Then, suddenly, while one of his hands is held by Sasuke, the masked boy takes the opportunity to use the other boy's fingers to his advantage and makes hand signs, which allows him to create a special jutsu. Mirrors of ice appear from nowhere and circle the black-haired boy like a prison under the horrified eyes of the rest of his team. Without further ado, Kakashi runs in his direction, but Zabuza intercepts him, one hand on the handle of his huge sword.

"Your fight is here, Kakashi. I warned you. Haku is stronger. Nobody has ever survived this attack. Say goodbye to your famous Uchiha."

The silver-haired man quickly analyzes the ice prison in front of him and frowns. "A Kekkei Genkai? Who is this boy?" These words echo in the air as he realizes the implications of this. Then he turns his attention back to his opponent and a cry from Sasuke hardens his resolve.

"Sakura. Stay here and protect Tazuna-san. I'll take care of everything, don't worry."

Without waiting for an answer, Kakashi disappears in the mist along with Zabuza. After a deep breath, Hana raises her kunai and steps back a step closer to Tazuna. The ice prison is in front of them, a few meters away, barely perceptible. Eyes narrowed, the girl gets a glimpse of Sasuke being pierced by a multitude of senbons throwing from all directions at once. Between the noise of metal against metal and the indiscernible words of Haku, a cry from the black-haired boy reaches her ears sometimes. Swallowing hard, Hana slowly exhales, and drops her gaze that lands on a kunai on the ground.

"I will try to give him his weapon back. Tazuna-san, stay here." Her voice is hard and determined. The man nods quickly. Not waiting any longer, Hana rushes towards the kunai and throws it with all her strength towards her teammate.

"SASUKE!"

The weapon is heading exactly where she was aiming and she internally thanks Tenten for her lessons. As the boy prepares himself to catch it, his eyes full of hope and gratitude, Haku intercepts it, using a senbon to block the entrance of the prison. After a brief glimpse of the vanishing hope in Sasuke's eyes, Hana swallows her guilt and turns on her heels, returning to Tazuna.

"That's all I could do…", she says, and the old man thinks she doesn't sound really convincing.

When a new scream breaks through the silence, something stirs inside her belly.

"What do you think you're doing? Are you really that heartless?"

"Sakura? You're back?"

"Yes, and you, you will go back there right away. We must help Sasuke-kun, dammit!"

"Sakura, I'm sorry, but I will not do it. You don't think clearly right now. We can't do anything for him. Our mission is to protect Tazuna-san, remember? I know, I'm the one who pushed you to become stronger, but it wasn't in vain. It was for our safety and our usefulness, not for others. I'm not risking our life for someone I barely know and don't even like that much."

"YOU ARE SO SELFISH! NO ONE WILL ATTACK TAZUNA IF THEY ARE BUSY KILLING OUR TEAMMATES! I DON'T CARE IF I DIE, I MUST AT LEAST TRY TO SAVE THEM, THOSE PEOPLE ARE PRECIOUS TO ME, I CAN'T LET THEM SUFFER AND WATCH. IF YOU DON'T MOVE IMMEDIATELY, WELL I WILL DO IT MYSELF!"

"I can't stay here and watch as Sasuke-kun… Sasuke-kun…", her voice breaks and Tazuna turns to her.

Having recovered her body, Sakura stretches quickly before rushing to the prison at high speed. Through her eyes full of tears, she can barely discern the ice walls. As she approaches, they seem bigger and bigger and her shoulders fall in defeat. When she stops a few inches from the smooth and cold surface, her reflection stares at her. She notices her drawn features, her pale skin and wet cheeks, her scar. Her scar… Suddenly closing her eyes, the pinkette focuses on the chakra that runs through her body. Quickly channeling a large amount of it on her right fist, she takes a swing and punches one of the mirrors while letting go of the accumulated chakra. On impact, the ice explodes into a myriad of pieces.

Swiftly, Haku appears in front of her, a senbon in hand. His head leans on one side as he analyzes her from head to toe. "How did you do that, weak little girl?"

Sakura takes a defensive stance. "I am neither little nor weak, so don't underestimated me." Subtly, her gaze diverts to Sasuke, who's curled up on the floor and seems unconscious. "What did you do to him?"

The boy turns his head slightly and glances at the form close to his feet. "Well, it's clear isn't it? I killed him, of course." In a voice devoid of emotions, he continues while also walking quietly towards the girl, his head still leaning on one side in sign of curiosity. "Why? What does he mean to you?"

Sakura's eyes are filled with tears as she glances back at Sasuke. Then, one movement in front of her brings her attention back to Haku and she notices how close he seems to be now. "You're lying. Sasuke-kun is far too powerful, he cannot be defeated." As the boy steps forward, the girl raises her kunai in front of her with her trembling hands. "Stay where you are!"

"I am not a liar. He is indeed dead and you are weak." The next moment, Haku rushes forward, attacking her with his senbon. Sakura, who had seen the blow coming, uses the concentrated chakra at her feet to increase her speed and avoids the weapon aimed at her heart, but still gets cut deeply on one arm.

"You are not fast enough and you have no will. He was probably not that important to you, after all…"

Feeling her blood boiling under the boy's provocation, the pink-haired girl channels the remnant of her chakra in her right fist and rushes in his direction, aiming for his mask. Haku chuckles a bit before avoiding the blow easily. Then he watches as the girl falls to the ground, her punch creating crevasses all around her hand.

"Dammit!", she cries between two sobs.

Footsteps are coming her way so she turns quickly on her back, uncontrollable sobs shaking her from head to toe. "Look at yourself, ready to die to protect him. Now I can see your feelings, I can feel your pain. Now, I understand you. But, unfortunately, I have someone to protect too, little girl, and you are not enough to stop me, just like your precious person."

A rain of senbons then falls on her and as she tries to deflect the most fatal blows, the boy jumps on her and stabs her just above the navel before pulling on one side, thus tearing her shirt and opening her stomach.

"KAKASHI-SENSEI!" The girl's scream is interrupted by a cough as blood begins to flow out of her mouth. Wishing to end her suffering, Haku takes another swing, but is stopped by a hand on his wrist.

"NO! Don't touch her, bastard. Sakura! SAKURA! Stay with me, you hear me?" Sasuke throws the masked boy behind his shoulder and takes a defensive stance in front of his teammate. When she meets the black-haired boy's gaze, she notices that his usual obsidian eyes are now crimson red. "The Sharingan?"

"So…", begins Haku, standing up slowly. "You're still alive. And you are stronger. Tell me, what does she mean to you?" The two boys start their confrontation again, and Sakura tries her best to stay awake, despite the blood flowing from her open wound.

"Sakura-chan…? SAKURA-CHAN!"

Suddenly, Naruto kneels in front of her and takes her face in his hands. As he strokes her cheeks carefully, his eyes turn red. Slowly, his nails sharpen and become long claws. A scream of pain escapes his lips and an orange fog begins to surround his body as he moves away from the girl.

"What was that? Chakra? I don't understand…"

"Sakura… I feel weird..."

"Mmm… Me too… Hey, Hana…"

"…"

"Sorry for yelling at you earlier…"

"Aa… It's all forgiven…Actually, you were right, I am indeed selfish, so…"

"Mhm."

As her eyes start to close in spite of her, Sakura sees Naruto's fight against Haku. Strangely, both appear to know each other and her orange friend seems to be in great pain. "Naruto…" Abruptly, a punch hits the boy's mask and he's propelled several meters backwards against the side of the bridge. After that, Sakura gives up and completely closes her eyes. That's when she finally notices that her back is flush against Sasuke's chest and that a shaking hand is putting pressure on her belly. As she loses consciousness, she hears whispers in her ears.

"Don't you dare die on me, Haruno Sakura. Don't even think about being that selfish."

[AN]

Hope you liked the fight!

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