THINGS WE LOST TO THE FIRE Chapter 4

Things we lost to the flame
Things we'll never see again
All that we've amassed
Sits before us, shattered into ash

These are the things, the things we lost

Years later, living alone in the woods with half a dozen dogs, questionable reading material, and crippling attachment issues, Sakura realizes she turned into her teacher. Agebent Sakura Sensei

Sakura remembered all the best memories at the worst times and all the worst memories at the best times. It was like some sort of self regulating balance mechanism inside of her that wouldn't allow her to fall into either extreme.

Sakura wasn't sure why she was gravitating back to the memories that made her heart pinch in bittersweet joy, but wondered if that was because she was excited to finally be going out on missions again...and in ANBU no less! It was what she wanted so of course she would be happy, and of course she would be remembering something that hurt.

'You're not allowed to be happy,' she thought to herself before knocking back another shot. And then another. And another.

"I'm a little worried about talking to you like this," Genma chuckled, settling into the seat beside her at the bar. He poked the empty shot glasses lined up in front of her.

Sakura snorted and added another. "No, this isn't too bad. They're not that strong. Just strong enough to get me a little buzzed."

"A little buzzed," Genma hummed, repeating her words as if he didn't believe them. "I guess that should be expected from Tsunade's apprentice."

"Among others," Sakura corrected. She waved the bartender down and ordered a light beer, one with flavor she could enjoy. She ignored the looks and sipped her beer. "What brings you out here?"

"Booze."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Aside from the booze."

"I just wanted to come talk to one of my new teammates. I just got a summons." His beer arrived and he held the bottom out for Sakura to hit with her own. At the sound his grin grew. "Welcome back, Hound Dog."

"You just have an unending list of nicknames for me, don't you?" Sakura sighed, bringing her lips to the top of her bottle. "I guess that's pretty fast for the Hokage though. I just left his office."

"I know, I walked in right after you."

"I know. You were with the newbie, how's that?"

"Could you believe I miss working with his cousin?" When Sakura snorted he went on. "I thought you were bad but it really is like working with a ghost. Kid never turns off. Doesn't even want to drink with us in between shifts."

"You're not supposed to."

Now it was his turn to roll his eyes at her. "Look at you. You think a little drink between shifts when you're off for five or four hours is going to matter that much?"

"Are you forgetting the fact that the kid is only thirteen years old? No one else thinks of thirteen year olds as adults. How old are you now? Shame on you for pressuring a minor into drinking."

Genma threw up his hands, palms out. "Hey, I never said I tried to force anything on him, I just wanted the kid to let loose a little and live it up. He doesn't turn off. He's like a machine."

Sakura took a long pull from her bottle. "He's thirteen and he's in the ranks. What did you expect?"

Genma huffed loudly, leaning back on the stool and glancing about the empty shinobi tavern. Regular civilians were not allowed inside so it was a little easier to talk about work without the worry of prying ears and wandering eyes. "Another Shisui, to be honest. Or maybe nothing that bad, maybe a little toned down, but not a machine."

"There is no one else like Shishu. That kid is one of a kind."

"Don't I know it." Genma finished his beer and stared down the length of it. "But I can't complain about their performance. Both kids are steller shinobi. Makes an old guy like me think he needs to up his game a little bit."

He was fishing for encouragement but he was sitting with Sakura so he was fishing in the wrong pond.

She finished her beer and pushed it up alongside the empty shot glasses. "Well, you are getting old, old man."

"And here I was going to buy the next round." He shoved at her playfully. "That teaches me to know better. I forgot how much of a brat you could be when you wanted to."

"They say your memory is one of the first things to go, you know."

"Okay, you're done. You're finished. Get out of here."

Sakura made a playful face and he laughed at her. "Heck no, open mic is in another ten minutes and I wanted to be here to see the grade A entertainment."

"Oh really, that's terribly cruel of you. I should have known better. How about a bet to see if you're willing to dust off those golden pipes of yours?"

If Sakura had been drinking she might have choked. "Hey, quit it. No, no way. I don't care what it is, the answer is no."

Genma looked like he was about to say something more when the front door opened and a pair of new figures stumbled in, or one of them stumbled and the other gallantly goose stepped his way through the bar.

Asuma and Kurenai followed the pair in, secretly smiling to each other about who knew what. It was hard not to snicker about the state Guy dragged Shisui in.

It was pretty easy to see what had happened since she had been in the same situation only weeks ago when Guy dragged her along in much the same state. Shisui was already famous throughout the shinobi world for his body flicker technique, but that required chakra, and without chakra, he was still second best to someone like Guy. It was hard to find someone who could beat Guy in a spar without chakra.

"Ah, my youthful colleges, it is good to see you already here in preparation for the evening's festivities!" Guy boomed.

"Oh, you planned this?" Sakura asked, glancing between Guy and Genma. The latter was grinning like the cat that got the cream.

"Every week we try to assemble for Shinobi open mic at the Thirsty Dragon! It is a new tradition, but not one I see us abandoning any time soon. Look, I even captured a captain to join us tonight!"

"Ah, fun, is Raidō coming?" Genma asked, leaning around Sakura to look at where Asuma and Kurenai were. Both were, once upon a time, on a genin team with Raidō Namiashi.

"Not until later," Kurenai said with a wave of her hand. "He's busy with a girl I think."

"His loss," Asuma laughed.

"Oi, but we have something to celebrate this time," Guy said, shaking Shisui again. Sakura noticed the Uchiha was flushed pink in the face and had refused to meet her eyes once. "Look at the newest captain!"

"Ah, that's right, you did mention something like that," Genma teased. "I guess that's the reason they kicked you off my platoon. I hear someone needs you to deal with those nasty Kiri nin who keep toeing the border like bastards."

Sakura eyed the seal Genma had laid down on the bar and breathed a sigh of relief. Even if it was a shinobi bar, they really shouldn't be talking about their missions so freely.

"I don't know anything about that," Shisui huffed, shaking himself free from Guy's hold. "I just know I got moved off your stupid team finally."

"Oi, oi, your cousin is on my team, you can't call it stupid."

"It's stupid because your face is there."

Genma reached for Sakura and grabbed her by the shoulders, dragging her out in front of him. "Oh, yeah, well if my team sucks so much then how come Sakura got placed with me and your stupid robot cousin?"

Shisui's face started to crumble, his eyes went wide and his mouth hung open, adding fuel to Genma's budding delight. Sakura shook her shoulders and then elbowed Genma in the stomach, making him cough and bend over.

"I'm obviously being reassigned to balance out how much it already sucks without me, duh. Don't tease so much."

"Not fair!" Shisui still whined, looking between Guy and Sakura. "How come it's only after I get my own team that...that...ugh, and Itachi gets to stay? Lucky brat doesn't even get it! Ugh, what a waste."

Behind Guy, Asuma and Kurenai shared a look between them that ended in sly smiles.

It wasn't really a secret how some people felt about others, and Shisui was just one of those characters that was so outgoing and boisterous it was impossible for him to keep it to himself once he developed a crush on someone. It had been pretty much a part of his character up until when Sakura retired. She didn't know why.

"You're getting your own team, captain, so there's really no room for complaint. I feel like I need to work a lot harder at this rate."

Shisui's eyes lit up and he stepped closer to Sakura. "Maybe I could recommend-"

Someone came behind and kicked at the soft spot behind Shisui's knees and he folded like a lawn chair on a strangled cry. Anko stood over him, arms crossed over her chest and grin as wicked as ever.

"Oh sorry, I didn't see you there. I was here for the booze at the bar and you just looked like a stepping stool. Sorry." Her tone was overly sweet and no one believed her.

"Devil woman," Genma whispered behind Sakura.

Asuma pat Guy on the shoulder and then pointed to a table nearby. "Let's pull up seats and order some drinks first."

Genma signaled for two more beers on him and then slid down the bar. He offered one to Sakura but it was Anko who moved in to take the beer.

"Aww, so sweet, you shouldn't have. Thanks, honey." With a laugh she joined the group at the table, leaving the trio at the bar.

"How-how long have you been here already?" Shisui asked, eyeing the neat little row of shot glasses in front of Sakura.

"A half hour, not much longer than that." Sakura waved the bartender and tapped the bar for her bill. "But I should get going soon."

His shoulders slumped. "You're leaving? But I just got here. I didn't know you would be here otherwise I wouldn't have tried to fight Guy on it."

Sakura grinned. "I figured as much. He did the same thing with me the last time I saw you all. It's almost impossible to take him on with a no-chakra handicap."

"You're telling me. It's scary when I think about how much I rely on my chakra for even little things like D rank jutsu."

Sakura absently remembered that his body flicker was a D rank jutsu that used very little chakra, but was difficult to pull off over long distances. With the skill he had he probably elevated the rank of the jutsu to C rank at least. She didn't know many other people who could make illusions stay behind after a successful body flicker.

Sakura pulled her coin purse out of her jacket, nudging Chainsaw a bit before laying the right amount of cash down with enough extra for a good tip. The smallest of her ninken yawned but then nestled into her chest to go back to sleep. When she looked up Shisui's expression reminded her of a kicked puppy.

"Before I leave we should test out our body flicker." Sakura stood from the bar and turned to face Shisui. "I've been pretty bad about practicing it and I would appreciate the opportunity to get humiliated by someone younger than me."

"Eh, for real? You're really being real, ah, being serious I mean?"

Sakura shrugged, dropping her hands into her pockets. "Sure. As long as you're fine with it we can even throw in some pursuit and survival training."

From inside her jacket Chainsaw stirred and yawned even louder.

"I-I'm really free until I think next week when I get the rest of my team assignments. Can I contact you or should you?"

"Oi, captain, when are we leaving on our next mission?" Sakura asked, turning to Genma.

"Next week, around the same time. We're due to get a few more teams back in the village so Hokage will let us out then. You got roughly the same time table, but watch your tone. I am your superior officer now."

"Sure, sure," Sakura huffed. She glanced back over at Shisui and scratched Chainsaw inside her jacket. "I'll contact you some time when I'm free, but I got plans tomorrow and I'm not sure what comes after that."

"Yeah, yeah, okay, that sounds cool. Yeah, great!" He nervously shifted from one foot to the other, biting his bottom lip even as color bloomed across his face.

Sakura really hoped she didn't look as bad when she talked to Iruka.

"Okay, I'm off. See you." Sakura offered a wave over her shoulder.

When she heard the first few notes of Guy singing the Land of Fire's National Anthem. It was ridiculous and impressive all at once.

Sakura didn't know how long she stood outside the Academy, but she knew it was longer than she should have. For whatever reason, after years of war and loss and enemies tearing pieces of her flesh away with their teeth and claws, it was the thin wall that made her freeze.

"A Kiri swordsman would be easier to face than this," she hissed to herself.

She straightened again and rolled the anxiety through her shoulders in an effort to shake it off. It didn't help, but Sakura knew how to live with her fears so she knocked anyway.

Someone called out for her to come in and she frowned, stepping into the staff building that hadn't existed when she was a student. Or maybe it had and she just never noticed it. She had only been in the academy a couple of years.

There was a receptionist desk where a tidy woman worked on someone's files and then a hallway that led to several shared offices where teachers could prepare and prep for their classes.

"Ah, is Iruka sensei in?" Sakura asked in a timid voice. It felt weird to call him a sensei.

"Are you here for parental demonstrations?" the woman asked. She had paused in her work to stare sweetly up at Sakura.

"I'm here for help with one of his classes, but I'm an old friend, not a parent."

Sakura forced out a smile but internally panicked at the same time because she didn't look that old. She was barely eighteen! Was that how old parents were these days? How old had her parents been when she was born?

"Oh, well he mentioned something about asking a few parents to come in for demonstrations but I hadn't heard anything beyond that. You can go see him if you want. He's with a class now but I think they're on break right now. He's at building one with the new entrees."

"Thank you," Sakura murmured, bowing with her eyes down.

She found building one easily enough and spotted several groups of kids scattered about outside and inside, lazing against the windows with food falling out of their mouth. She spotted a couple of familiar faces and ducked her head before heading indoors.

He was at his desk and startled at her entry. "Haruno kun-ah, Sakura," he greeted in surprise. A second later the smile fit easily across his face and he stood. "It's good to see you."

"You too," Sakura lamely replied. She couldn't help but cast her eyes to the side and scan the room. "It seems like your class is on break. Is it okay to talk now?"

"Yeah, I'm actually not supposed to be here when they have their free time, you know how they are about fostering independence. What can I help you with?"

"Ah, I heard you were having parents come in to give demonstrations and that sounded like a good enough excuse to see if you still wanted a first aid demonstration or mini lesson. I'm sorry I didn't contact you sooner."

"Ah, don't worry about it. It's been a busy few first weeks with the kids. I'm still getting used to teaching and I've been asking for all the help I can get in giving these tykes a well rounded education. There is only so much I can expose them to, but I wonder if I'm wasting my time when they can't even master the most basic of basics."

Sakura nodded to his desk where he was looking over papers. "They're still doing written assessments?"

"Of course. It's not war time anymore. We have that luxury."

She smiled wryly. "Must be nice."

His smile was soft and in a moment she remembered a different time when he smiled at her like that even though she had been terrible and hadn't deserved it.

He had always been soft and kind and it had taken her years to understand that Iruka was strong too. Maybe he wasn't ANBU skilled or powerful with flashy jutsu, but in spite of everything he was kind. Sakura didn't know how it was possible for him to smile like that and mean it, but she both envied and admired him for that.

"When are you free for a demonstration?" he asked.

"I'm heading out of the village for a mission and I don't know how long that will take, so I'd like to help out before we leave this weekend. Would that be okay?"

"Could you do a demonstration today?" he eagerly asked. Leaning forward a bit his volume increased.

"T-today?" Sakura glanced about and noticed none of the students seemed interested in listening to them or watching them. "Like after lunch? What would you want me to do? I haven't prepared anything."

She didn't mention anything about already knowing three of his students even though that wouldn't change anything and shouldn't.

"Just something basic and simple. I can make a paper review for them to take after you're done to check for understanding. We have different shinobi come in to talk about their jobs so if that's all you want to do it's fine. I don't have any medics for parents this grade."

Sakura glanced out across the room and then down at her hands. "I guess I could teach them about battle medics or something like that. Is it okay that I'm not an active medic? Technically I'm only qualified for first aid."

He chucked at her worried expression. "If they could manage first aid that would be a miracle. Trust me, to them you'll look like a lead doctor if you can heal a cut."

"Would some of them be able to try and copy a jutsu? A simple one that only has three hand signs." Sakura started to make the hand signs and Iruka watched.

"I think most kids could follow that, but some of them still struggle with the chakra part of it. What does the jutsu do?"

"It works as a disinfectant wipe. You basically use your chakra to clean a cut or burn from infection if you don't have supplies. It's a good and simple one to try, especially if you have rough playing kids."

Iruka snorted. "Like Naruto."

Sakura swallowed nervously at the memory of his personal history of violence as told through his healed injuries.

"It doesn't require a lot of chakra. I think some of them might actually be able to do it, but it'll likely be too uncool to be remembered."

Iruka's smile turned sly in a rare moment of personal pleasure. "Doesn't matter how uncool something is if it shows up on a test."

"Did...you just chuckle about giving these kids a pop quiz."

"It's not a displeasent thing to have power of authority."

He turned from her and leaned over his desk just as a bell somewhere rang. Sakura jumped but Iruka looked as if he had expected it all along. Some of the kids started to head back indoors and when he caught sight of a few stragglers he cupped his hands around his mouth to yell at them to hurry up.

Sakura stepped back and leaned against the wall, one foot propped up and arms crossed in a relaxed pose as she waited for Iruka to finish announcements and afternoon roll. One of the kids was complaining about another one with potato chips and then that started a chain reaction of child blaming child for petter offences.

'Don't lick your classmate's pencil case!'

'He was looking at me funny!'

'I saw him throwing away other people's trash without asking them. You're supposed to ask them, otherwise it's stealing!'

'It's not stealing if it's trash!'

'You're going to be a criminal like that!'

Sakura listened to it all and decided that Iruka really was a saint for doing what she would never be capable of.

Then the kids started dragging their parents into it. A heavy dictionary hit the table with a smack and all the back in the room went straight. The kids set their eyes straight and shut up, waiting for Iruka to speak. He was looking the whole class over with a deep, tugging frown.

"How disappointing. I had thought you were ready to learn something new and cool from an elite member of the shinobi ranks, but it seems you are more interested in what your daddies think of each other. I've never heard of a ninja who talks like that." Iruka looked back over his shoulder at Sakura. "Have you?"

Sakura saw the boys from earlier notice her presence and redded. They wouldn't meet her eyes or Iruka's anymore. On the other side of the room, a little ways away from the rest of the kids, Naruto gasped the moment he noticed her. Sakura watched him start to stand only for Sasuke to yank him back down.

"I've not," she answered smoothly, watching as the chastised children redden further. "But I've heard of ninja who defend their parents often enough. It's not a terrible thing to love your old man, I guess, but there are better ways to show it."

When she looked back over at Iruka he was smiling proudly at her and it made her grateful she had finished speaking, because her heart was doing that stupid thing where it skipped beats and got stuck.

"Well said, shinobi san. Alright, that reminds me of what I'm doing here. I'm a teacher here at the academy because I want all of you to be shining examples of the will of fire entrusted to each and every member of the village. I'm here to be the teacher of excellent shinobi who grow up to protect all their loved ones. Today I have a guest here who I asked to come in and talk to you all. This is Haruno san, she is a Jonin and a veteran from the Third Shinobi War."

A hand went up right away but before the boy could be called on he started talking. "I know what that is cause my dad was one too!"

A few other students agreed and then the conversation shifted between what the difference was between chunin and jonin and genin because only half of them could remember and those that did were getting the ranks all wrong.

"Oi, wait to be called on. I heard someone say something wrong about the rankings."

The students instantly shut up, not wanting to be called on. Iruka looked around the room and then smiled at someone in the back.

"Sasuke kun, do you want to remind the others of the ranks?"

Sakura didn't doubt that Sasuke, being an Uchiha, would know the ranks well enough that he would be a natural pick for such a situation, but when he stood his body shook lightly. Sai said something and Sasuke hissed something back before facing Iruka with new found determination. Flawlessly, he recited the ranks in the correct order with added information. When he sat again some of the kids started whispering about who their guest was.

"Haruno k-uh, Haruno san, would you like to come up to the desk and introduce yourself a bit as well as explain to the students what you do?" Iruka asked her.

Slowly, Sakura nodded and took his spot. "My name is Sakura Haruno, and you already know my rank. I do not have a specialization as a shinobi, as I prefer to be well rounded in every category, but I am best known for my physical strength. I also served as a medic nin during the war because there were so few. One of the things I want to teach you today is a jutsu my master showed me that can help if you are cut or scratched during battle and there is no medic."

Several hands went up and Sakura glanced to Iruka, looking for guidance. 'Should I take some questions first?'

Iruka smiled at her and nodded. "My, it looks like the students are interested in learning a bit more about you first, Haruno san. Would you mind answering a few questions. It is one of their favorite things to do."

Sakura looked back to the class. "Okay, you with the glasses in the third row."

The boy stood. "I have heard your name before. How? My father speaks to me of these things. He said you were splendid but retired. Are you no longer a retired shinobi?"

Sakura could see his notebook where the name Shino Aburame was scrawled. No wonder.

"You are well informed, Shino kun. You will make a splendid shinobi yourself, one day. You are correct, I was retired for a short while to allow me time to heal from injuries, but I am better now."

"I am glad to hear that. Why? Because it does not please me to know my father's friends are unwell. Thank you for answering my question Haruno sensei." He bowed and took his seat again, unphased by the murmurs of children voices around him.

Another boy asked Sakura how old she was and Sakura told him that he was asking dangerous questions before a girl asked if Sakura's hair was really that color. Sakura answered with a clipped, 'yes,' and then took a few more basic questions from the class. She ignored Naruto who waved his hand like crazy and the boy with red marks on his face, shaped like fangs.

"What jutsu will you show us? Will it be flashy?" someone asked.

Instead Sakura pulled back the fabric of her right arm. Her left was always covered from elbow to fingertip to hide the prosthetic, but her right arm was all flesh. Saura cut a thin line with her kuni too fast for them to see. Red beaded soon after and the kids began to panic.

"How many of you know what you should do with an injury like this?" She chose a girl with blue eyes and pale hair.

"You need to put a bandaid on it, quick!"

"True. But you are on the battlefield. You do not have any bandages left. This happens often and many shinobi will try to make bandages on their own out of things like shirts and headbands. This helps, but it makes another problem. Who would like to guess what that problem is?"

When no one got it after a few tries Sakura answered for them, explaining who infection was and how dangerous it was to shinobi. Some students seemed to understand and others still looked lost.

Sakura ran her gloved hand over the cut and it steamed then healed. When she wiped the blood away there was nothing left. The kids sounded amazed.

"Healing a cut is a bit complex, but what I want to teach you today is how to clean a wound with your chakra. I will be distributing fish to groups of three, one for each row. Students may then take turns copying my jutsu that makes their chakra into a cleaning chakra, one that disinfects the wound on the fish. If you are successful I will be able to tell."

Iruka had the kids clean off their desks and Sakura used an old scroll from her training days to summon dead, fish with cuts down their bodies. She had just enough for everyone, including the last group made up of Sasuke, Naruto, and Sai.

"Sakura chan, Sakura chan, Sakura chan," Naruto chanted with a huge grin. "You're so cool."

Sakura flicked his nose. "It's Haruno san or Haruno sensei today, kid. Be respectful."

Naruto laughed and held his nose while Sasuke stared and Sai said nothing.

Back at the front of the room Sakura taught the whole class the hand signs they would need. Iruka and she moved to each group to coach them along and encourage them. Sakura almost avoided a group but settled down in front of Hana's little brother with a twist in her gut.

"Kiba kun?" Sakura guessed. The boy looked up and smiled a big toothy grin that hurt almost too much. He was a lot like his sister but she still reached for him to guide his hands. "Here, it will be easier if you think of your chakra like this…."

Without surprise there were a lot of girls who got it, only because girls tended to listen better to instruction and have a better hold of their chakra at such a young age. Also, students with fire nature chakra-like the Uchiha- seemed more suited to it.

More and more students seemed to get the hang of it once someone in their group could do it though, and Sakura was surprised but delighted at their progress. When they called her sensei and thanked her it almost made her heart do that annoying half jump thing it did when Iruka smiled at her.

Sakura went to the back to sit beside Naruto, who was the only one in his group still struggling, though he refused to give up. Sakura sat behind him and guided his hands, and then the chakra that pooled in his palms. There was so much, too much, that she had to filter most of it out herself.

"You feel that? That's all you need. Try again."

It took two more attempts before he was able to get it. His disinfection was slow, slower than most kids on account of how hard he had to concentrate, but once he found the hang of it he brightened and cheered.

"Thank you Sakura sensei!"

Sakura kept herself from clutching at her chest. "I didn't do that much, kid. You're better at this stuff than you think." She didn't even admonish him for using her first name.

Sasuke scoffed and Sai sighed, seemingly bracing for whatever would come next. Naruto, predictably, ruffled at the sound and snarled at Sasuke.

"Oi, what was that for?"

"You could have gotten it on your own. You didn't need to get help. It's like cheating."

Before Naruto could retort Sakura placed her hands on Sasuke's shoulders and he stilled, glancing up at her as she stood over him. "I don't think so, Sasuke chan. Everyone needs help in the beginning. We are born needing help for the most basic things. Even adults like me need help sometimes. There is nothing wrong with that, even if it sometimes feels like cheating. If you want help on anything I would be willing to do just as much as I had for Naruto. That's why we're all here at the school together. We're here to learn."

Then someone in one of the middle rows started cheering. Sakura heard another kid cry, 'so cool!' and another freak out indiscriminately. They got really excited when they could do it after tying so many times.

She stood to talk to them but a whole new row of kids got up out of their seats to rush across the room. Kids were growing louder and their cheers rose with them. Sakura couldn't help but smile as she listened to them.

"Ohmagod it's so fluffy I'm gonna die!"

Sakura paused, buoyancy fading from her heart. "Eh?"

The kids were up crammed up around the windows and staring out at something. Sakura stood on a chair to see over them and sighed. With a hop she descended and made her way over to the side door to open it and lean out. The kids started to whine, begging her not to scare it off.

"Get in here you two. Where is Dango? He was supposed to be keeping watch."

Sakura held the door open as Mop and Souta trotted in, ears and heads lowered as their tails barely moved from between their legs. When the kids started to cheer Mop began to perk up but Sakura made a noise in her throat the reminded him to be professional.

"Sit, both of you."

The whole class rushed back to their seats and leaned forward. It didn't matter that her command had been for her dogs and not the kids. Iruka gaped at their obedience. A few seconds later Dango came skidding in.

"Sorry, I stepped away for a second and….oh, yes, there are a lot of them. Sorry." He was looking at all the kids and quivered a bit at some of their too eager eyes.

"Sensei, you have dogs!" someone in the classroom cried. Sakura looked up and saw it was Kiba, eyes brighter and smile wider than ever.

Iruka sighed but laughed as Sakura unzipped the front of her jacket and urged the smallest member of her pack awake. Chainsaw yawned cutely and half the class convulsed in delight at the sight.

"How do you have such cute dogs?!"

The girl who cried out was next to another girl who was just barely being held back by a classmate from jumping over the desk and reaching for the dogs. Iruka looked on, mouth a gap.

"I've never seen them this clued in."

It was hard, but Sakura remembered back to when she was that young with her first dogs. She remembered Kakashi's pack, and how she had felt back then, barely contained. It was a rough memory, almost like it wasn't really meant for her anymore, but it was there still.

"Can we pet them?" someone asked.

Dango whined a little, looking up at Sakura in fear. She could only grin. Served him right.

"If you're good and your sensei says it's okay, we can run drills with the dogs. These guys are ninken, their ninja dogs that help me on the front lines, but the also run recovery and first aid across the battlefield." She knelt down beside Dango. "This is Dango, and when we're working he will wear a first aid harness that helps him supply aid to those who are hurt."

Mop and Comrad waited patiently, tails wagging whenever she glanced their way. She scratched the big white dog behind his ears before addressing the rest of the class. "This is Souta and he's the fastest. He can run and relay messages with stamina that would give any other nin a run for their money." She reached for Mop next. "This is Mop and he's a monster. He'll tear apart my enemies for me if I can't."

"And what about the last one!" someone cried.

Sakura rubbed Chainsaw's ears. "This little guy, Chainsaw, is a sensor. He's better than me when he's all the way awake, but he's still a growing boy. He lets me know when I'm in danger or if there are people nearby who might have chakra."

"Why are their names so funny?"

"Why do they look so weird?"

"Where did you get them from?"

"How can that one talk?"

The questions rolled endlessly from their collective voice. Sakura knew they would go on and on with the asking if she didn't cut it short, so she looked to Iruka.

"What sort of game did you have in mind?" Iruka asked, whispering to her behind his hand.

A few minutes later the kids were scattered outside wearing cards on their chest with roles they had to play. Some had to hide, some had to run, some had to try and steal something from Mop's mouth, and others had to use the first aid kit from Dango's first aid kit correctly. Most kids got a turn at two or three different roles before the end of the day drew close enough to make Sakura jittery.

"You have to go soon?" Iruka asked.

Sakura pulled her eyes away from where Kiba crouched in the mud, rolled all over with it to hide his scent. 'Just like Hana.'

Sakura fished something out from under the collar of her shirt. "Yeah, but there is something I think I need to do first."

No on heard it and no one reacted to it except Kiba and her dogs, but when the others turned towards her she signaled them back to the game and headed over to where Kiba was hiding. He was already sitting up and watching her. She motioned with her hand for him to follow her.

"Where are we going?" he asked after a half minute of traveling into the academy's underbrush.

Sakura turned around and crouched down to be at his eye level. "There was something I needed to show you, Kiba kun. Do you know who I am?"

Kiba's smile was wide and eyes full of innocence. "Yeah, you're Sakura sensei, Iruka sensei's friend."

"I guess you wouldn't remember, since you were so young back then. I knew someone in your family very well a while back."

Kiba's wide, innocent smile started to fall off his face. "Oh…" he knew what she was talking about even without her having to say it. "You mean Hana onēsan."

"I'm sorry about what you must be feeling. She and I were teammates and we were very close. She was my best friend and she entrusted me with something precious a few years back. It might be selfish of me to say this, but I wanted to tell you that the gift I was given is doing well."

"What are you-"

Kiba's words caught in his throat as the silent shadow passed over his form and something cold made the hairs on his skinny arms stand all up. He couldn't swallow, but he turned like a stiff doll and looked up, up, up behind him at the wolf looming there like a patch of midnight sky. Then there was the breath, sucked in over his teeth.

Waffles took a half step and then lowered her face, sniffing at the boy she remembered being a baby. A long time ago she was just a pup in a litter raised among the Inuzuka clan. Before she was a pup passed from Hana's hands to Sakura's, the large wolf dog had slept under the same roof as Kiba, and she hadn't forgotten.

With a low whine she leaned in and licked the side of his face, nuzzling there when tears started to stream down. Sakura thought she heard him whisper something but couldn't be sure.

"This is Waffles, but Hana called her Kokuyo. I had to give my dogs weird names after all, otherwise they'd be too much like sensei's pack, or Hana's."

"Hana's pack?" Kiba whispered, looking up from the thick black fur of Waffle's body.

His eyes were a little red in the corners from trying to hide and hold back the tears. Sakura got the sense that he was feeling or remembering things triggered by scent that she was completely unaware of.

Kiba cried a little more and then he thanked her and went back to the fields where he dug his face into the mud to mask the red of his eyes. No one suspected it when they finally found him. Sasuke might have looked at the kid funny, but Sakura thought that was likely because Kiba was a mess and Sasuke was an Uchiha, and Uchiha could be fussy pricks when they wanted to be. (Shisui included.)

She left with a promise to come back if they all did well, maybe for graduation. The kids were over the moon and crying at the thought of saying goodbye to the pack, but Kiba held back, almost like how Sai, Naruto and Sasuke held back. The latter three knew where she lived and where they could find her and her pack, after all. Kiba seemed content for his own reasons.

Somehow, Sakura felt lighter after that. When she departed on her mission at the end of the week with Genma's unit, a fraction of the weight in her heart had chipped off and fallen away.

AN:/ I love Kiba and Shino and they needed a lil attention I think. Sakura has more histories with more of the kids' families than first assumed, a few of which will come back around again.

A fun chapter with a little more of Shisui before Sakura gets to hang out on missions with Itachi. He is such a fun little brat to write about in this story. My version for him here is a little less emotionally stunted (because his dad isn't a huge tool) and a little more sassy for having to put up with Shisui all the time. Sakura gives as good as you get though, so who knows how that will go.
Some of you have guessed that Sasuke might have some sort of attachment to Sakura after she saved his life in such a cool way. Maybe you're right. Maybe later chapters will give you a better answer. Maybe...

So this week is Sakura week, something you might have heard about on tumblr. I'm not writing anything special for it, but I did have this story in mind when reading the prompts way back when. I won't be posting every day, but I'll be a bit more frequent with this story until the event ends.
And before you ask: NO, YOU CAN NOT ASK ME TO UPDATE UTRM HERE. I've gotten it once or twice, but I'm going to ignore anyone who goes to a different story-ignores commenting or reviewing any piece of it- and then just asks me to update something else. I do several different works, but I work on what I want when I have the time and motivation. If I'm not updating something, it's probably a motivation issue.

Sakura's Pack! (A photo post that shows what these guys looks like can be found on my tumblr under the tag #TWLITF )

Mop- Irish Wolfhound He's the teeth of the pack
Souta - Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound) He's the speed of the pack
Dango- Doberman pinscher- He's the voice of the pack
Chainsaw- Jack Russell Terrier He's the sensor of the pack (and the baby)
Waffles- Wolf She's the terror and the stealth of the pack