She'd done it, finished all the medical pouches for each genin team that were going to be participating in the new Chunin exams that she and Shikamaru had, had a great big hand in shaping into something completely different.
There were five days left before the start of it, and tomorrow they'd be leaving for Sand, so that they would all have one day to rest and prepare the genin, Sakura took a deep breath and leaned back on her couch.
Running a hand through her pink locks, that reached the lower part of her shoulder blades, the pinkette was undecided on whether or not she wanted to cut it again, or just let it grow out "Did you get done" Obito peered around the corner of the hall to the living room and spied the girl.
It had taken some getting use to, living with Obito and Rin, along with everyone else, but she was certain that things were going to be much smoother from now on "Yep" Sakura popped up, mentally counting out each pouch again, just to be sure, before nodding.
"Good, I've got something to show ya kid" the older Uchiha beckoned her with his hand and she moved towards the doorway to peek around into the hall in the direction of the foyer, Obito rolled his eyes and gestured to the cherry oak door "It's behind the door" he stated.
Sakura sighed in exasperation, 'Males' she thought in mild amusement, slipping around the corner and padding forward to the door, to open it, only for her jaw to drop in honest surprise "What is this Obito-san" the pinkette asked, voice a soft whisper, to afraid to be loud just in case.
Obito chuckled having expected her reaction somewhat, Kakashi had told them that Sakura had a soft spot for outdoorsy things, and after struggling to adjust to living with the girl and everyone else, he and Rin had gone out and bought it.
"What do you think it is brat, I know you have a thing for the couch there in the front room, don't deny it" he said, stalling her protests as she went to do the very thing he'd told her not to "So Rin and I bought it as sort of an apology/thank you gift" Obito finished.
A soft squeal filled the air and Sakura was half a step away from bouncing all over the place, this meant that she could finally put the couch she had shared with Haku in her room "You realize no one else will ever sit on my couch again right" the pinkette whirled.
He nodded "So we've noticed, now do you need any help getting that in here" Obito asked lightly, Sakura turned to face her new living room couch, before shaking her head and pulling out an empty storage scroll.
"Nope but thanks for the offer" the pinkette grinned skipping past him as she entered the house, the door shutting behind her lightly, Obito snorted and followed after the young girl his friend had adopted alongside her older brother.
Making sure she wasn't struggling as she unsealed the new couch and moved the old one, the one she favored above all out of the way, to replace it with the new one, Sakura didn't even break a sweat as she finished her task and sealed the one she treasured away.
His brow raised as the pinkette glanced over every inch of the living room, before a glint appeared within the lavender depths "You plan on rearranging don't you" Obito inquired knowingly and Sakura flashed him a grin.
"Yep, as soon as I put this downstairs" she held up the scroll with the old couch and bounced down the steps to her room, in a matter of minutes her couch was set up and Sakura hurried back up stairs, cracking her knuckles in anticipation.
Before she could even begin, a soft pop and a plume of smoke disrupted her vision, then Sakura found herself in someones arms and they were swinging her around "Sakura-chan" a familiar voice called, just as she was crushed to that person's chest.
"Shisui-san can't breath" the pinkette gasped as her vision went darker as her face was literally pressed into the familiar dark shirt, a moment later, Sakura was placed gently on her feet and she inhaled to catch her breath, looking up at the new Uchiha in her house.
There was this huge grin on his lips and just a couple feet behind him was Itachi "Pardon us for the intrusion Sakura-san" the Uchiha heir nodded politely, giving his friend an exasperated look, his antics drove everyone crazy sometimes.
"But we just couldn't wait to tell you, Hokage-sama let slip earlier that you'll have a bigger part in the exams than you think, alongside Kushina-san you'll be making breakfast, lunch and dinner for everyone and a few others will be helping" Shisui burst out, the reason for his excitement.
Itachi shook his head "That's not all Sakura-san, you'll also be helping with patrol, we've been assigned a squad together, so that means you, myself and Shisui-san will be responsible for stopping any and all attempts to ruin the exams" he concluded.
Her shock was visible on her face as Sakura stood dumbfounded before the three Uchiha, before the pinkette shook it off and smoothed her expression into understanding "I'm glad" she said, lavender eyes portraying her determination in making sure nothing happened.
"You're way to responsible Sakura-chan" Shisui suddenly pouted, to get rid of the tension that was slowly building in the air, the pinkette got worked up more than any other preteen they'd ever met and that was saying something because Sasuke had a temper.
Sakura snorted, but none of the Uchiha could tell if it was in amusement or disgust at the statement "I wish I wasn't and could just be a normal kid" she said facing away from the duo that had become close friends.
Once again he felt for the small girl, who had a lot of responsibilities on her lithe shoulders, Itachi frowned inwardly "Look on the bright side Sakura-san, people will recognize you're talent in not just fighting but cooking as well" he threw out there suddenly.
The pinkette craned her neck around to meet his ebony eyes, "Pfffftttt" bubbled from between her lips as Sakura bent over, hands on her knee's, laughing like a hyena, Obito and Shisui eyed her warily but there was a veiled understanding in Itachi's obsidian orbs.
"Well we need to get going, by the way you should take those to Lady Tsunade" Shisui noticed the time, if they didn't hurry they wouldn't have enough time to pack up their belongings, Sakura nodded finally calming down.
And waved at the two Uchiha "See you Itachi-san, Shisui-san" she said before they vanished in a puff of smoke, Sakura grabbed up an empty scroll and sealed the medical pouches within for each genin team prepared to take them to the hospital.
"Do you mind if I walk with you, I'd like to see Rin" Obito cleared his throat sheepishly as the pinkette turned preparing to head to the hospital and drop off the scroll in her Shishou's capable hands, for her to distribute evenly between the teams.
She paused briefly and nodded "Sure Obito-san" Sakura flashed him a quick smile, bent to strap her sandals onto her feet, waiting until the Uchiha did the same before leading the way down the streets to finish her job.
It was a quiet walk, with no one interrupting them along the way and they reached Leaf's General Hospital in no time at all, the medics milling about nodded politely at the young chunin as she walked down the halls to Tsunade's office.
A moment after knocking, the door was opened to reveal Shizune "Sakura-san" she greeted softly, before gazing over the pinkette's shoulder at Obito, who fidgeted and vanished down the hall after giving the reason he was there, both females giggled at his antics before Sakura entered the office.
"Tsunade-shishou, I finished the medical pouches" the pinkette exclaimed proudly, placing the scroll down on the honey eyed blondes desk, Tsunade paused in writing down her name on some paperwork and looked up leveling a look at her apprentice.
Then glanced down at the scroll "About damn time brat" she snorted finally, hiding her surprise the girl had actually managed to complete all the pouches ahead of time, 'Damn' Tsunade cursed inwardly realizing she'd lost the bet with Minato, who had said Sakura would finish them before the exams.
Sakura blinked her lavender eyes "Right so how did the classes go" she inquired lightly, stalling for a little bit, every Leaf Genin participating in the exams had, had to go through a class to know how to use the pouches, but she hadn't been a part of the lessons.
"Fine, to be expected actually" Tsunade groaned, while Shizune hid her smile behind her hand and avoided looking at her mentor, Sakura winced "It took a couple of extra days to teach those brats how to use the items" the blonde grumbled.
And the pinkette rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly "Shino Aburame and Sasuke Uchiha were surprisingly the ones who had the highest marks on the test, Tayuya-san was next after that, followed by others" the raven haired woman said.
"I could have guessed that much, Shino did pay more attention, while Sasuke no doubt learned just for the sake of knowing how" Sakura nodded, though it made her feel a little better about this whole mess, kami couldn't anything be simple without someone trying to make it complicated.
Honey brown eyes narrowed "Just know that once these exams are over, training will start in again with me" Tsunade said nonchalantly and excitement sparked in Sakura's lavender eyes, just before they flickered emerald, like they were prone to doing when she was overall happy.
Shizune smiled as Sakura's hands clasped together "Really" the girl bounced up and down in her spot on the balls of her feet, looking at Tsunade with all the excitement a young girl could muster, it was really surprising considering who she'd been trained by.
"Yes, now go away brat" Tsunade snorted waving the pinkette off, who bowed at the both of them before shooting from the room like a projectile weapon, Shizune smiled at the young pinkette, who had a lot of troubles.
The minute her feet hit the pavement outside the hospital, Sakura dashed to the right, heading in the direction of her shop, it had opened up a couple days before and Kushina had made good on her promise of helping out, when she was busy.
"Kushina-chan" Sakura exclaimed spotting the redhead behind the counter, hastily taking off her shoes, the Uzumaki looked up from where she was helping a customer pick out a few herbs to take away the pain in his shoulders.
Kushina blinked her violet eyes "Ah Sakura-chan, just in time, we were debating between Willow Bark or Yarrow for numbing the pain" she showed off the two anesthetic herbs that were sat carefully on the counter.
Sakura paused in her trek towards the bathroom to wash her hands "Yarrow, take it in pill form, that would be easiest" she rattled off quickly, before hurrying past the line of customers, who were all waiting to be helped.
Her hands were clean a moment later and the pinkette rushed to help Kushina at the counter, of course Kimimaro and even Kakashi were partial fixtures sometimes in the store, since it was a family thing.
"Boy am I glad you came when you did Sakura-chan, that had been a little difficult to choose between" Kushina breathed a little easier when all the customers were gone and the store was empty, each one of them getting a customary check up as per one of the store's policies.
She nodded "Yeah I completely understand, are you excited to go to Sand tomorrow" the pinkette asked looking to the red head, she herself still had to pack, but that was easy enough considering she knew how to be conservative.
"You have no idea, it's not often I get to leave the Leaf Village, but surely it will be something interesting" Kushina grinned, "You're going to be famous though" she laughed causing Sakura to blush and smile sheepishly.
A second later the pinkette froze "What do you mean famous" Sakura blinked in confusion not quite understanding what Kushina meant by that, the red haired woman gave her a weird look, before realizing.
Kushina smiled sheepishly "Well your like a prodigy you know, and being a chunin and guarding with an anbu and a jonin, your gonna be famous, not to mention when people find out that you're one of the ones who came up with the new exams, protocol and rules" the Uzumaki took a deep breath.
"Well that will be enough to get you attention right there and when they realize you were in charge of supplying and organizing all those medical pouches, along with the classes, like I said you'll be famous Sakura-chan" Kushina snickered.
None of that really appealed to her "I just want to be known for doing good deeds" Sakura shrugged looking to the ceiling of her shop, the red head standing next to her gave her a quick hug as another customer entered the store.
The Uzumaki woman was at the ready "Welcome to Kaguya Salubrity, I'm Kushina! May I help you with anything?" Kushina bowed violet eyes sparkling with glee, this was the most fun she'd had in forever.
Sakura let a smile curve her lips upwards as the man wandered over to the counter "Just looking for some good fever reducing herbs, heard this was the best shop to purchase such things" he mumbled in a gruff tone.
Eager to help, Kushina grabbed several cases "If your looking for fever reducing herbs these herbs such as Blessed Thistle and Catnip, but if your going for a really steep herb Peppermint will do or even Calendula" she rattled off showing the four herbs to the man.
He looked them each over closer "How much for a bundle of Peppermint" a few minutes later he chose "And what would you recommend, my little one is sick and this was the only thing I could think of" apparently the guy was desperate to find a remedy.
Kushina's brow creased in concern "You should have brought her" she pouted shocking the guy "Right for a bundle of peppermint that's 150 ryo as it's one of our popular remedies, and boiling it to drink will help" she smiled remembering every little detail about the herb in question.
The money was placed down, he was given a quick but thorough check up while the peppermint was wrapped together and placed in a small sack and finally after twenty minutes the desperate father left Kaguya Salubrity.
Sakura spent thirty minutes longer in the shop before deciding to head home and pack "Well I'm heading off now Kushina-chan, you good to manage for the last couple of hours" the pinkette asked looking to the red head.
Who nodded "Yep go on Sakura-chan, I'll be fine" the Uzumaki woman waved her off and after strapping her sandals onto her feet once more Sakura was on her way back to the house, feeling excitement fill her at the thought of seeing her friends again.
This time Kimimaro, Tayuya and Jugo were at the house "Imouto-san" the only other Kaguya in existence greeted her with a small side hug, looking for his hair clip "Have you seen my other tie" he asked only after a moment.
"Over there on the table Kimi-nii" Sakura pointed remembering her earlier thoughts of rearranging, perhaps she'd do it when they all got back from Sand, Kimimaro flashed her a grateful smile that at least one of them was able to remain calm.
It was kind of amusing as she headed down the stairs to pack her belongings for the month long stay in the Hidden Sand Village, when she returned, Jugo was the only one in the living room "Do you think I'll be able to keep up with them Sakura-san" he looked conflicted.
Her lavender eyes widened "Of course Jugo-san, because you've been right there training with them, practicing everything possible" she patted him on the back gently sitting down on the couch, her pack in hand along with her medical bag stuffed full of everything imaginable.
Jugo sighed softly "You really are a kind hearted person" he murmured relaxing as Moroso leaped into his lap, it was then that he noticed "Did we get a new couch" he blinked orange-red eyes at the piece of furniture he was sitting on.
"Yep, Obito-san and Rin-san bought it, so the one I brought when I moved in here is now down in my room" Sakura nodded smoothing her hand down the soft material watching as Reitoko joined the fennec fox in the orange haired teens lap.
And of course Nagetsuke didn't like to be left out so he came from his room and snuffled his nose at her until she ran her hand through his still brown fur, "Come to think of it, what are we going to do about these three while we're gone" Jugo peered at the three animals.
She already had a solution "Shizune-sempai who is staying here in the village will come by to check on them and no Nagetsuke you can not traumatize her" Sakura turned her lavender eyes on the bear, who looked as if he was pouting.
From behind them catching the tail end of the order, Tayuya let out a short bark of laughter "Kami that is the most hilarious thing I've ever seen" she shook her head, pack hanging off her shoulders and preparing to leave it in the hall.
"Quite but it's something I've grown accustomed to" Neji appeared in the doorway of the front room eyeing those already within, soaked through and before anyone could ask "Lee kicked me into the river" he stated flipping his brown hair over his shoulder and striding into the room.
Bypassing all to get to his room disappearing within for a few moments before heading into his bathroom just as Kimimaro climbed down the ladder to his attic room "I still can't believe we might actually become chunin" the Kaguya commented sitting down in a chair.
Kakashi popped into the room at that moment "You better believe, because we jonin just got briefed on the new Chunin Exams and lets just say they won't be easy" he glanced in Sakura's direction, lone onyx eye full of amusement.
Causing the pinkette to blush "What I had a chance to change things around so I did it" she huffed avoiding his knowing gaze "If they came out a little more challenging that's a good thing because Chunin should know those things" Sakura fidgeted.
Until her father chuckled "I'm sure everyone will appreciate yours and Shikamaru-san's foresight in helping them become Chunin Sakura-chan" Kakashi pat her on the head "You'll all be debriefed the day before the exams" he told the others when they stared at him and Sakura curiously.
Then headed for the door that connected his house to his daughters and disappeared to the other side of the hall, it wasn't but three minutes after he'd left that Sakura jumped up feeling the looks "Gonna go check on something" she mumbled hastily under her breath and fled.
Jugo, Tayuya and Kimimaro shook their heads and Neji was confused when he returned to the living room only to find the pinkette missing, the trio wouldn't tell him, so the Hyuga merely shrugged and headed into his room to pack.
Outside and wandering the village now, Sakura relaxed it had been hard keeping the details of the exam secret, 'Just a few more days' she thought inwardly not paying attention and in one of the rare moments of not using her honed senses, someone slammed into her.
This person turned out to be Shino "Sakura" he blinked at her from behind his sunglasses, neither of them had fallen but it was the shock of actually bumping into her that got him because it didn't usually happen "I thought you'd be at home, why so that you can prepare" he spoke.
Sakura blinked her lavender eyes "Ah already packed, just avoiding the curious looks, Tou-san said that the jonin were briefed today on the exams, and I'm still not allowed to tell what's going to happen" she rattled off.
Shino chuckled quietly "Then could I perhaps interest you in a small walk to the Hokage Mountain" he inquired knowing that the place was somewhere the pinkette went to relax after a long day of missions.
Her eyes lit up and flickered green like usual "Course Shino" Sakura smiled taking her place at his side and then they were walking in a familiar direction "Are you excited to go to another village" she asked after several seconds of silence.
"Not just me, why because our other teammate is just as eager to see what it's like in a different village not of our own" Shino pushed his sunglasses further up his nose hiding his eyes from sight of the sun like usual.
A smile formed on her lips "I've only been to Mist, Leaf and Sand, but they are vastly different, take the Sand Village for instance, nothing but sand and heat, but once you get use to it, it's wonderful, not to mention the herbs" she let out.
Of course it would be the mention of herbs that would get her excited, Shino thought to himself taking in his pink haired teammate, she'd never been of the norm "I'm sure Kiba and I will manage, they decided to put Tenten-san on our team" he commented.
"Really that's good, she's good with weapons, and though she's not a tracker, she does have other skills necessary" Sakura ticked off her fingers, knowing that it was difficult to be put on a team with someone you didn't really know all that way.
Grateful that there was something to go on, Shino nodded as they began climbing the steps of the Hokage Mountain, remembering the time of the treaty festival and the first time he'd caught sight of Kubikiribocho that had been a shock to the system "Good to know" he said.
Pleased for the moment, conversation stalled for a few minutes, neither one of them were inclined to break the peaceful silence until they reached the top of the mountain and jumped to the second hokage's head like usual.
It was as they were looking out over the village that she spoke again "I know Hokage-sama plans on briefing you about this, but I wanted to warn you ahead of time, Orochimaru that bastard is sending Yakushi and a team again to mess up the Chunin Exams" her hands clenched into fists.
He turned his head to face her, it hadn't been hard to figure out she was tense, "We won't let anything happen should we cross Team Seven, why because they are Leaf Shinobi and we protect our own" Shino stated.
Lavender met with his hazel, full of fire and hatred "I know, but the thought that he would go that far pisses me off" Sakura seethed to herself sitting down on the Head they were standing on and staring out over the Leaf Village, the place she'd chosen for herself and made home.
Shino's gaze softened imperceptibly, he felt the same way, but the pinkette had a much more personal reason to hate the snake sannin "Every precaution is being taken I presume, why because Hokage-sama is smart like that" he sat as well.
Sakura sighed softly "Tell Kiba as well, I'll be patrolling around with Itachi-san and Shisui-san and probably won't get to talk to you guys much on the trip over" she looked at the Aburame relieved he believed her, come to think of it, Shino always had to some extent.
He nodded carefully "Of course, we'll make sure to alert the others as well, why because they deserve to know" Shino said, Sakura smiled and the duo allowed silence to settle around them once more until it was time to return home.
When Sakura entered the house, she was met with the sight of Obito and Rin returning from their own duties "Where have you been all this time" the Uchiha blinked at her with his one onyx eye, always reminding her of Kakashi.
At her fiance's voice, Rin turned "Don't hound her Obito-kun, she probably wanted to spend time in the village before she's stuck in Sand for a month with us" the brunette scolded bumping her hip against Obito's passing him on her way to the living room.
Obito rolled his eyes "Just out, talked to Shino for a bit" Sakura shrugged hurrying into the kitchen to make dinner for the lot of them, after putting her pack and medical bag on the hook in the foyer so she'd remember to grab it in the morning.
Thirty minutes later everyone was crowded around the much more open nook, courtesy of Tenzo, who was noticeably absent that even, "You all ready for a few days from now" Kakashi looked around and especially at his two adopted children.
"I, for one won't fail at these exams" Tayuya speared a piece of chicken on to her fork "Anko-sensei would just beat us into the ground if we did" she grimaced once she'd finished chewing her food.
Jugo nodded red-orange eyes wide "Exactly and despite being advanced for our ages, Anko-sensei is quite brutal" he shuddered after taking a sip of his chamomile tea, Sakura had suggested it to everyone so they would all be able to get rest that night.
"There are no doubts in my mind Jugo-san, Tayuya-san that we'll pass these exams, like Otou-san said earlier so long as we believe" Kimimaro commented flashing a smile to his imouto, who returned it with a small one of her own.
Neji snorted quietly "Assuming that nothing goes wrong" he stated eyeing the pinkette from the corner of his eye, who tensed just enough to be noticeable, before she relaxed confirming his suspicions that something was going to happen like before.
"If anything does, we'll be there to stop it" Obito said "I have no desire to have my head cleaved off by a ginormous sword anytime soon" he gazed at Sakura, who grinned innocently, while Rin let out a bunch of giggles.
"Kami Obito-kun your still on about that, give Sakura-chan a break" she slapped him on the arm none to gently and Kakashi chuckled under his breath, listening to the conversations going on around him until dinner was polished off.
As soon as all the dishes were done, Sakura stood "I'm going to get an early night, so goodnight Otou-san, Kimi-nii, Tayuya-san, Neji, and Jugo-san" she waved and headed down the steps to the basement and after showering and dressing in her nightclothes climbed onto the couch.
It was the only thing that was guaranteed to help her have a full nights sleep and after throwing a blanket around her shoulders, Sakura yawned so widely that her jaw cracked, allowing her eyes to flutter shut in a matter of moments she was sound asleep.
Minutes after her departure, Kakashi, Rin and Obito went to their part of the house, while Kimimaro and Neji went into their rooms, Tayuya and Jugo doing the same, none of them wanted to be tired after all and soon the entire house was sleeping.
The next morning at exactly 5, Sakura sat straight up on the couch and slapped her hand down on her alarm clock that was blaring annoyingly in her ears, she rubbed her eyes from the sleep crust, then stood ready to face the day.
Everyone was still asleep giving her plenty of time to dress in a light green knee length yukata and grab a much thicker one for the nights of Wind Country, check on her animals to make sure they had what they needed and start on breakfast.
Neji was the first one to wake to the smell of tomatoes wafting through the house and sat down at the nook, it was only 5:24 in the morning, he flared his chakra to alert her of his presence before speaking "How long have you been awake Sakura" the brunette asked.
"Just since five, I know that the trip to Sand isn't going to be easy, so I'm making a large pot of tomato soup, along with several bowls of salad to last us until we reach the Village, plus breakfast" floated over her shoulder.
She was so focused on her task that she missed the amused smile forming on the Hyuga's lips or that he stood and was now standing behind her, until Sakura turned around and found herself nose to chest with Neji, her lavender eyes widened and her heart quickened within her chest.
Cheeks becoming warm as he stared down at her from his height, this was the closest she'd ever been to him the pinkette swallowed thickly as Neji put his arms on either side of her and leaned forward pressing her into the counter.
He didn't know why he was suddenly being so bold towards the girl, but before he knew what was happening, his lips were connected to her cheek "Let me help with the breakfast" Neji pulled back in the next moment.
Heart thumping against her ribs, Sakura gave the Hyuga a shaky nod "Wh..whatever you want Neji" she stuttered facing the counter again feeling conflicted, did he like her, what was that all about, why did he do it, kami why wouldn't her blush go away.
Neji watched her closely and smirked inwardly, he'd definitely made her extremely flustered it seemed as Sakura rushed around checking on the tomatoes boiling away in a pot, this went on for a couple more minutes until he started scrambling eggs and popping more bacon in the oven.
Along with sausage links, grating potatoes with Sakura's help, for hash-browns and many other things, so when 5:47, hit breakfast was ready, as was the salad which was sealed in a scroll so it didn't wilt, and BLT's hopefully enough for everyone.
The only thing not done was the tomato soup, the tomatoes still hadn't quite boiled down, at six o'clock, Sakura and Neji were joined by "Tenzo-san" the brunette eyed the older brown haired male, it had been awhile.
"Hello Neji-san, Sakura-san" he waved rooting through the fridge, since the one in his was empty "Can't stay long, just grabbing a bag of almonds" Tenzo said, moving things out of his way, he knew there was one in here, just couldn't find it.
Sakura watched the man struggle for a couple of minutes before "Freezer Tenzo-san" she giggled, he gave her a small smile, grabbed the bag of almonds and practically melted into the floor with his wood jutsu.
Fifteen minutes after his departure, Kimimaro climbed down the ladder to his room dressed in heavy layers, it was Neji that told him "I'm not trying to sound commanding Kimimaro-san, but you might want to wear just one layer until night time hits" he said.
Kimimaro tilted his head, then looked down at his clothes, "Is there a specific reason" he asked not quite understanding, both Chunin in the house nodded and the Kaguya turned his to look at his little sister with vivid green eyes "Imouto-san" he lifted a pale brow.
"Wind Country is very humid during the day, you'll get heatstroke in that amount of clothes, also bring lots of water and warm clothes for the night because nights get cold" Sakura explained checking on the tomato soup again and adding the cream cheese along with herbs.
Glad that there was a valid reason why wearing all the multiple layers of his outfit was bad, Kimimaro disappeared up the ladder for a moment, stripping himself to his under yukata and just pants, folding the other clothes and sealing them away before going back down the ladder.
Once he was sitting at the table, Neji joined him, it wasn't even twenty minutes later that Tayuya and Jugo came into the kitchen, looking well rested and wearing tons of clothes, so that his sister didn't have to Kimimaro told them.
Wanting everyone to be prepared "I didn't know that about Wind Country" Tayuya admitted quietly proving she was still pretty naive to the rest of the world, having only been in Sound, Leaf and of course the Land of Waves in water country that one time.
"Me either and we thank you greatly Kimimaro for warning us of this fact" Jugo nodded relaxing at the table watching the pinkette in the house seal away that massive pot of tomato soup, he wandered what she intended on doing with it but was distracted from asking.
The Kaguya shook his head "You should thank Imouto-san and Neji-san, for they were the ones to inform me of this and that we should bring lots of water" Kimimaro said carefully, both of his own teammates turned to his little sister and thanked her and the Hyuga profusely.
At almost seven o'clock, they were joined by Kakashi, Obito and Rin "Kami how long have you lot been up" Obito choked seeing how much food there was and feeling his stomach rumbling in hunger despite going to bed full last night.
Rin dug her elbow into his ribs "Their probably excited you baka, besides I'm not complaining thank you Sakura-chan" she smiled at the little girl, the only other female in the house to be precise and sat down.
With Kakashi doing the same in his usual spot "So how long have you been awake" he was eyeing his adopted daughter with a knowing look and she smiled sheepishly proving his suspicions that she had been awake for awhile, she looked much to alert after all.
"I've been awake since five on the dot exactly I set my alarm at that time so that we wouldn't be rushing around trying to grab everything this morning" Sakura said, gesturing to the food "And Neji helped with breakfast" she grinned.
All eyes turned to the Hyuga, and Neji nodded "I've only been awake since 5:24, Tenzo-san came by at 5:47 looking for almonds of all things" he chuckled with a shrug, so he was ready to get the new exams underway.
Laughter at the missing brunette's expense was quickly dished out "At 6:04 I woke up from my alarm clock as well" Kimimaro cut in, shooting his little sister an odd look, she really was a strange one, but he loved her all the same.
"We hadn't been awake long until you guys joined us" Tayuya rolled her shoulders as anticipation built up in the muscles, while digging into her very delicious breakfast, no matter what was made it always tasted ten times better than anything that was made at the base in Sound.
Now that he had his chance "What do you plan on doing with that large pot of tomato soup" Jugo inquired drawing attention onto Sakura once more, Neji smiled in amusement as she mumbled out an answer about not wanting anyone to go hungry.
Rin saved her from further embarrassment "Well either way this is some good food Sakura-chan, Neji-san" the brunette female giggled lightly, crunching on the piece of bacon she'd gotten before the boys had attacked it leaving only crumbs.
"Exactly kid" Obito nodded, chewing on a piece of sausage, more chatter flowed between them until food was polished off, the dishes were cleaned and everyone had grabbed their things in preparation of the trip.
They were all stood in the foyer putting on their sandals, it was 7:43 in the morning, the entire house wide awake and rearing to go and Sakura would have followed the others out the door, if Kakashi hadn't put his hand on her shoulder "Tou-san" she looked up into his onyx eye.
He seemed worried, then she remembered "I just wanted to let you know about the threat Sakura, Orochimaru intends on sending another team of Sound Shinobi and Kabuto Yakushi" Kakashi said and she nodded tersely.
Making it seem like she hadn't already known "Thanks for telling me Tou-san" Sakura smiled as best she could while situating her pack on her shoulders, her medical bag resting against her hip, scroll for Kubikiribocho nestled in her storage pouch and Executioners Blade attached to her back.
Looking decidedly dangerous and adorable all at the same time, together they left the house and walked down the streets after the rest of the occupants of the house to the village gates and already found a sizable group in front of them.
Sakura vanished into the ground, flashing her brother a quick smile on her way towards Kiba, Shino and Tenten "Sakura" the Inuzuka caught sight of her "Can you believe it, in just a few days we'll be taking the exams" he was excited and Akamaru yipped on his head in agreement.
"Except the unexpected, why because anything could happen" Shino crossed his arms over his chest staring down the path and feeling as ready as he felt he could be, they would become chunin and join their teammate, they had to.
Tenten perked up at the sight of the pinkette "Hey is Neji giving you any troubles" the bun haired girl asked searching through the crowd for her teammate, one of the few that had been promoted Chunin, kind of sucked but he wouldn't be alone for long.
She became extremely interested when Sakura's cheeks turned a soft red color and she looked to the ground remembering the kiss to the cheek "Oh um no in fact he's been pretty cool since moving back into the house, anyway I just wanted to wish you guys luck" then sped away.
Kiba and Shino eyed their teammate in slight amusement as she headed in Team Ten's direction, where Lee was looking as excited as they felt "Hey look who it is, you know I actually thought you'd be the first person here Sakura" Ino snorted when the pinkette was in hearing distance.
Earning an exasperated smile "Come on Sakura-san isn't that bad" Choji looked between his teammate and the girl who had once grated on the blondes nerves, until everything went to hell in a hand basket during the last chunin exams.
"Neji-kun said the beautiful cherry blossoms doesn't get up at the crack of a youthful new day anymore" Lee contributed to the conversation, feeling out of place with the duo he had been placed on a team with, despite training with them for a little bit, they were still out of sync.
Sakura smiled "I had to cook breakfast, and actually Lee-san this was one of those rare days I was, but no Ino, I wouldn't have left the house without anyone knowing it, anyway I came to wish you luck, so good luck" she looked their attires over, shrugged, there was little she could do.
Waved and headed towards Team Seven, where she was immediately enveloped in a bone crushing hug courtesy her second blonde friend "Sakura-chan can you believe it, we'll be in Sand in just a few days you know" he shouted in her ear.
Until Sasuke dragged Naruto away by his shirt collar "Dope are you trying to break her ear drum and make Kaguya go deaf" he scuffed his teammate over the back of the head even as the blonde sulked and pouted like usual "Don't mind him, we're all a little eager to get this underway" Sasuke said.
"T..that's ri..right because we've all been training ext..extremely hard" Hinata burst out, nerves making her stutter more than usual, and Sakura gave the Hyuga Heiress a hug and just to appease Naruto, gave him one more hug.
It was then that she spotted Itachi and Shisui "Right well good luck, I don't think I'll be able to walk with you guys, so be careful and drink lots of water" the pinkette smiled heading towards the duo of older Uchiha.
Shisui greeted her first "Thought you were going to spend a little more time talking to those heathens" he snorted giving Sakura his customary hug, sue him, he cared about the kid, especially after everything she'd been through.
By his side Itachi rolled his eyes "He's just sore that Sasuke actually managed to knock his tantou out of his hand during yesterday's training session and that all three of them ganged up on him this morning when Naruto-san and Hinata-san showed up to collect otouto" his lips curved upwards in amusement.
Especially as Sakura let out loud peals of laughter causing the older of the duo to pout much like Naruto had been earlier "And here I thought the walk to Sand wasn't going to be interesting, shame on me" she grinned widely settling between Itachi and Shisui.
As Minato and Kushina followed by countless anbu and the other jonin appeared at the front of the group "Okay everyone listen up, we will now begin the journey to Hidden Sand for the new Chunin Exams, stay together and no wandering off is that clear" the blonde Hokage ordered.
Gaining unanimous nods from everyone, Sakura clenched the straps of her pack and looked out the gates as the red headed Uzumaki woman joined Mikoto, who was coming along, and they all started forward to Wind Country.
The first several hours weren't to bad as they traversed down the path, full of tree's and foliage, until plant-life became sparse and they crossed into Wind territory, then came the multiple complaints from those who hadn't expected it to be so hot.
"You'd think they were children not shinobi" Shikamaru snorted nearly four hours later, after they'd stopped for lunch and had delicious tomato soup, BLT's, and salad or ramen courtesy of Sakura and Kushina, who'd made the meals in preparation of the trip.
Sakura nodded her head "Yep that's what happens when you don't research what other countries do to survive" she quipped, "First lesson I learned from Zabuza always be prepared" she smiled watching as Kiba who was ahead of them was practically dragging his feet.
Sweat pouring off of him in rivers until he finally took of his jacket and tied it around his waist and took several sips of his water, poor Akamaru wasn't faring any better with his thick fur, his tongue hanging out and drool dripping from the end of it from the heat.
It made her worried until Kiba offered his ninken some water to cool himself off with, "Relax Sakura, we'll be fine and make it to Sand just fine" Neji assured from behind them, scouting just in case someone tried to sneak up on them.
Just to be sure, she spread out her senses in every direction, searching for several minutes and coming up empty, no one was following them this time, her byakugan deactivated drawing Shisui's curious gaze, but he didn't ask.
Overall besides the various complaints of being to hot and trudging through the day, the lot of them were mostly quiet until Minato declared that it was time to stop, dinner was dished out, large fires were made and blankets were passed around.
Which was meant with weird looks until they were told that nights in the dessert were cold and they all should bundle up, Neji took the initiative on that one, then once they'd all eaten, they huddled together and tried to get some sleep.
For two more days things repeated itself, wake up, eat breakfast, pack up, travel and then finally they were at the entrance of the Hidden Cloud Village "I'm never, ever going anywhere in so many clothes again" Naruto's voice complained from the front of the group next to his father.
Minato chuckled, knowing how his son felt "Now, now Naruto, if you had simply asked Sakura-chan, you wouldn't be so hot" Kushina wasn't as sympathetic of her child, causing the blonde to pout at her as they were let into the village.
Baki was waiting for them in the Kazekage Tower, greetings and words were exchanged before the lot of them were showed to the hotel they'd all be staying at, seeing as they had the rest of the day free, Sakura slipped off after alerting Kakashi of where she'd be.
Gaara found her first, or his sand did like last time and brought her all the way to the mountain, he looked her over with his pale green eyes "You are well" he asked in his gravely tone of voice, wanting to find out what had happened.
"I am, and don't worry Rin-san and Obito-san have settled down, especially when they found out their teammate was my Tou-san" Sakura grinned flopping down tiredly, the trip had been much more exhausting than usual, probably due to the large group of people.
The red head mimicked her "Good" he eyed the blade attached to her back "It's been awhile since I've seen that sword of yours" Gaara reached out and ran a hand down the ginormous sword, wondering where she'd gotten it.
"Yeah no kidding, I couldn't exactly bring it out in front of nobles, my Kubikiribocho, the sword I inherited from my master I'm his mistress now" Sakura sighed softly, reaching back to stroke her own hand down the massive blade.
Blood lust wafted from the Executioners Blade seeking blood like usual and with a roll of her eyes, Sakura sliced her palm and pressed it to the sword, the iron was soaked in like usual, healing any nicks or scratches, before the pinkette healed her hand.
Gaara watched her closely "I don't think I've ever seen a sword do that before, why do you call it him" he prodded curiously, a question that she was asked several times, but this time she was all to happy to explain.
"Cause Kubikiribocho absorbs the iron that's in blood, he's sentient, he can feel, and my blood or rather anyone's blood can heal him, the blood in your sand did a marvelous job of that, the one time during your match with Lee-san" Sakura smiled staring out over the sand village.
As if to test the truth in her words, sand rose from his gourd and encased the ginormous sword that was now sitting in Sakura's lap, he could literally feel the blood being removed from his sand and when he returned it to his gourd.
Kubikiribocho looked brand new, without a single scratch or chip in the blade "He was quite hungry" Gaara commented wondering if that always happened, she giggled pulling out supplies to give her sword a rub down to make him all shiny and polished.
"He's like that all the time" the pinkette snorted softly, being meticulous "But I trust him to get through a fight no matter what" Sakura smiled fondly lavender eyes alert and full of life, this was the only physical thing she had to remind her of her time as Zabuza's tool.
Now, now she was the Leaf Village's until her life came to an end, she'd fight to protect her village, a little sigh fell from her lips drawing Gaara's attention "You seem a little tense" he commented lightly.
Sakura nodded carefully "Orochimaru that bastard" she inhaled deeply "Plans on ruining all our carefully thought out plans again" she stated glaring off into the distance "Somewhere in this village is Kabuto Yakushi and a team of Sound Shinobi waiting to fuck up everything" she said.
Gaara's eyes widened not just at the curse words, but the new information "Does your Hokage know, what about everyone else" he stared out over the village, how dare that snake do this after everything he'd done to them.
"Hokage-sama knows, that's the reason for the high security, plus he plans on telling the others tomorrow and equipping the teams with a flare should anything happen" she passed a hand through her lower shoulder blade length hair.
Drawing attention to the pink locks "You look nice with long hair, you should let it grow out" Gaara spoke suddenly and Sakura blinked at him before a smile curved her lips upwards, before a bug flew in her face.
"I'll take that into consideration Gaara, but now I'm being summoned by Shino, so I'll see you later" she stood dusted her light green yukata off, and walked carefully down the cliff, Kikaichu beetle leading her straight to her teammate.
The Aburame was alone, well not quite across the street from where Shino stood was Kiba and Kankuro "They've been at it for awhile" Shino explained, feeling a little agitated, honestly why couldn't the Inuzuka behave.
Rolling her shoulders Sakura marched forward lavender eyes gleaming with a determined glint "Okay that's enough Kiba, we aren't here to fight with the Sand Shinobi anymore and Kankuro-san if you call me kitten…." she trailed off in warning.
Both males paled "Got it Sakura" Kiba made a hasty retreat with Akamaru on his heels and vanished down the street, while the older teen grimaced clearly not having expected her to show up out of the blue like she had.
"Understood Sakura-san" he waved then made a mad dash in the opposite direction the Inuzuka and his ninken had gone, leaving the pinkette and Shino alone, the former of the two rolling her eyes at the ridiculousness of the entire situation.
Shino hid his smile behind his high coat collar "I understand why Kiba would run, why because of that first spar, but I guess you were very ah impressionable to Kankuro-san, why because of that huge sword of yours no doubt" he said.
Even if she really wanted to sigh, Sakura smiled "Can't help the first one, the second one I really don't like him calling me that horrible nickname" she snorted trailing down the street of the Sand Village her teammate walking with her.
It was amazing all that she had accomplished since coming to the Leaf Village "Do you ever wonder what it might be like if you hadn't come to the village" he held his breath after saying his question, wanting to hear what she said.
That wasn't a question she expected "Sometimes, I'd either be a wanderer or a traveling medic to make money, but I'd be alone without anyone, my heart would still hurt and I probably wouldn't be able to go on for very long" Sakura sighed softly.
He frowned not liking the thought that she'd put in his head, but no more questions were forthcoming as they went to the hotel and found the others "Sakura-chan" Mikoto latched onto the pinkette upon spotting her "We three will be making food together" the Uchiha Matriarch grinned.
"Taking turns Mikoto-chan, cause Sakura-chan has to patrol with Ita-chan and Shisui" Kushina reminded uselessly because the raven haired woman already knew popping up on the other side of the girl blocking her off from everyone else.
To the others chagrin "I know what I'm making and what Kushina-chan is making but what you making Mikoto-san" Sakura blinked her lavender eyes at the Uchiha woman, since they hadn't really had a chance to talk until now.
Since she'd been stuck walking with Itachi, Shisui and the other two chunin "Dango, to give the teams something sweet to snack on" Mikoto announced with a clap of her hands before frowning "And please call me Mikoto-chan" she pouted.
Kushina grinned knowing that it was especially difficult to break Sakura out of her polite tendencies "Good luck getting her to Mikoto-chan, took me helping her out at her shop to have her call me Kushina-chan" the red head put a hand on her hip.
Her cheeks warmed "Okay, okay Mikoto-chan" she huffed slightly, then saw a hand beckoning her in their direction out of the corner of her eye, Sakura turned her head fully and saw Temari "See you later" she zipped in the blondes direction.
"Pinky" Temari laughed seeing the girl "Boy am I glad your here, just heard from Baki that, that freaking snake has done it again" she scowled and Sakura nodded "Did you already know" she asked knowing the hate the pinkette had towards the snake sannin.
"Otou-san told me before we left, the others will be informed tomorrow, along with the rules and how the new exams will be" she nodded greeting the blonde with a quick hug, she still didn't have many female friends, but that was okay.
Relieved that her friend had already been informed "Still can't believe everything that's going to happen is something you and that Nara thought up" Temari shook her head in amusement and Sakura snickered.
"Well, the Chunin Exams are supposed to be challenging, we just made it that way to show everyone exactly what it's like, if they can't handle that, they aren't fit to be Chunin" she was callous, but with kind intentions.
Temari snorted in laughter "Blunt as usual huh Pinky anyway have you seen Gaara yet" she inquired wiping away her tears of mirth, at her question Sakura's lavender eyes flickered green, it was still amazing to see that and she nodded eagerly.
"Mhm, he found me or rather his sand did was all concerned and everything, but really Obito-san and Rin-san have turned around completely" Sakura spotted the duo standing around with Kakashi, "That's only because of Tou-san and Hokage-sama though" she smiled.
A blonde brow was lifted, but Temari didn't ask, she had this uncanny feeling she really didn't want to know "It was nice seeing you again despite the circumstances, not to mention Gaara and I really enjoyed the letters, see you around Sakura" the blonde waved heading off to do whatever.
Sakura smiled happily and skipped towards her brother "Imouto-san" Kimimaro looked down once she was stood at his side looking content despite the danger "I take it your enjoying your free time" he asked.
"Oh I am very much Kimi-nii, you guys ready for tomorrow" Sakura nodded rocking on her heels vivid emerald eyes glittering with glee, if that Yakushi dared showed his face, she was going to give him a smack down he'll never forget.
Kimimaro could guess what she was thinking "We are Sakura-imouto, and should we run across them, you'll be the first to know, Tayuya can flare her chakra pretty far" he said nodding to his teammate, who seemed eager for the exams.
Jugo gave a small smile "We'll become Chunin" he was decided, no matter what happened "Because the Leaf has taken us in, we will use our abilities to it's advantage" Jugo stated looking to his female teammate.
Even Tayuya was grateful of the village "You bet your sweet ass we'll be Chunin, if we don't, Anko-sensei won't be very kind" she snorted and Sakura grinned widely, anticipation was building slowly within her.
Later on after dinner and talking to as many people as she could, Sakura crawled into the hotel bed, it having been decided she'd share with Hinata, Ino and Tayuya, while the others were divided four to a room, and closed her eyes to get some shut eye.
The next morning after a very large breakfast in the hotel cafeteria and everyone had equipped themselves with their weapons or belongings that they were going to take with them on the rounds of the exams, the genin were gathered before Minato.
"As you know we have decided to once again host the Chunin Exams with the Hidden Sand Village as our sponsor this time, like before these exams will have three rounds, along with one preliminary round" the blonde began.
"For the first round we once again have the Written Exams, you'll go in one at a time, for forty five minutes each, for an hour and a half, for the last fifteen minutes, if you don't pass and need one question to go through the next round" Minato continued.
"You'll have one chance to choose a question that your teammates missed and answer it, the second round will consist of a survival round that will last for a week, we will still have the Heaven and Earth scroll part, but you won't be given one at the start like last time" he read off.
"This time you will be given a map of the area, which will have five booths, you'll have to gather intelligence to find both scrolls which are hidden in the desert and only three passwords are right, along with five clues and need I remind you, should two teams engage each other, the fight will be overseen by a jonin in charge of the area" was said next.
"Next for the preliminary round, you will go through five obstacles, these obstacles will remain a mystery for now, can't give away all the details, and you'll have three weeks to train and grow accustomed to the Hidden Sand Village before the final round" Minato stated.
"Which will consist of the standard spars like before, but it is split in two parts, one part to show the necessary skills needed to become a chunin, and second just pure brute strength, also the first and final round will have a point system implemented" the blue eyed blonde sighed.
"65 points are needed to pass the Written Exams, while 50 for the first part of the final round and 30 for the second part, also each team is being equipped with a flare, Orochimaru has made another threat to us, now if you are ready the Chunin Exams will begin" Minato finished.
All the genin looked around at each other, eyes wide in horror, excited and conflicted all at the same time as they thought about everything they'd just been told 'What kind of hell is this' was the collective thought going their all of their heads as they were led to the building designated for the Written Exams.
