Chapter 23: Sakura Seeks Answers.
AN: This took a fair bit longer then I would have liked but I think I have got this to a place that I'm happy with. This is where Sakura starts turning from just his teammate to a friend. What she may become later on is still unclear but she'll be looking even deeper into her teammate.
Almost as soon as Naruto had made his way back home and reentered he made a beeline for his bedroom and locked the door. He was in no mood for visitors though he expected his teammate Sakura to be making a visit. A very loud and angry visit. He wasn't sure what he could say that would appease the pinkett on his team but until she made her presence known he would cry. He knew how to do that quite well at least.
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Sakura was really pissed. Her teammate had seemingly up and left her for no reason at all. She knew she and her teammate Sasuke hadn't been the nicest of people to him but still what he had done was rude, to say the least. Luckily for her, Kakashi had told her where he now lived and so here she was outside his door. Her hand already formed into a fist ready to knock upon the wooden door.
"Knock"
"Knock"
"Knock"
She waited for a reply from her sun-kissed faced teammate. When no such reply was given she renewed her knocking. Only this time with a bit more force than was really necessary.
"Knock"
"Knock"
"Knock"
Yet again she received no reply. By this point, Sakura was seeing red and was about ready to kick the door down and beat her teammate black and blue. At least she would have if it wasn't for one yellow-haired man with blue eyes.
"Miniko-sama what are you doing here"? Sakura asked the man. Miniko only eyed the closed door. For a few seconds, it seemed he was going to say something before closing his mouth and turning to face the young girl.
"Go home...now. You'll do no good here. I'll see to Naruto". Miniko said before lightly pushing Sakura down the street towards the gate. Seeing that she wasn't going to see Naruto at least for today Sakura made her way home. As she did so her mind was racing what on earth had made him leave her without a word. Surely he had a reason for ditching her at the hospital but what that reason was she had no clue but she fully intended to find out what it was.
-
The next day Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stood in training ground seven as they awaited for their ever late sensei Kakashi. Miniko had spoken to his grandson and what he was told had made the man rage at the idiocy of the populist that called the village their home. He was clearly not the damn fox and yet even thirteen years on they were unable or unwilling to see past their pain of that dark night. A part of him of course understood but still this senseless hate needed to stop lest the world know the terrifying might of one Miniko Namikaze. The man who had butchered thousands of ninja during the second great ninja war. As the trio waited he could see Sakura shoot glances at Naruto even now and again. He guessed she wanted to talk about the other day but didn't seem willing to do so right now. He wasn't sure how to take that but at least she wasn't belittling him anymore and for that he was happy. As for Sasuke, he was busy doing his warmups some distance away. It was clear the boy didn't view his teammates as anything besides as a hindrance to his goal of killing somebody. Miniko had a feeling who that someone was and while the mere idea of him doing anything to his elder brother was laughable at best he had to at least respect the boy's tenacity. An hour later Kakashi finally entered the training ground and give them all an eye smile.
"Sorry for being late". Kakashi said lightly as his team all gave him looks of annoyance and irritation at his lateness. Kakashi, however, didn't seem to notice nor care as he handed them all their next mission.
"Good news guys. You get to walk Ms. Himari's dogs today". Kakashi said as the trio left the area with looks of anger. They hated the dogs seeing as they were all oversized and wild things that were hard to control even on the best of days. By the end of the day, Naruto had cuts and scratches up and down his arms and legs. Sakura had red paint staining her clothes, and Sasuke had that same fuck off attitude that Miniko was beginning to feel was all the boy knew how to feel. But at least it would give Sakura time to talk to Naruto.
"Naruto". Sakura said as she watched as the boy slowly turned her way. Bit's of dirt and rock still being picked out of his hair after the walk with the damn dogs.
"Yeah what is it, Sakura-chan"? He asked deciding that he would wait until he got back home to wash off the rest of the dirt and whatever else found it's new home inside his hair.
"I...I want to know why you left. Why you ditched me at the hospital". Sakura said with a tone of anger as well as pain. Naruto could tell that his leaving had hurt her feeling and for that, he was upset at the stupid doctor and the village as a whole.
"It wasn't by choice, Sakura-chan. I had to go. I would've stayed if I could but I couldn't". Naruto answered hoping she would accept his answer and leave it at that. She would, of course, not and pushed him on why he had to go all the more.
"The village hates me, Sakura-chan. They always have". Naruto said making the girl frown at the answer.
"What for your stupid pranks Naruto. Of course, some would. You were a pain in the ass sometimes it only makes sense some would hate you for it". Sakura said lightly not noticing how her dismissal only seemed to make the boy more upset.
"No not for that Sakura-chan. Look it's best if you don't know. Better for everybody in fact". He said before jumping onto the rooftops and disappearing from view leaving her alone in the training ground. Now even more confused then she was before. But at the same time more determined to learn more about the enigma that was her sun-kissed of a teammate
