Kakashi led against the wall just outside the girl's room where the door was open with just a small crack. Enough for him to watch Sakura sitting on the bed with Tobi just holding him close. He could smell the salt of her tears and see her whole body shaking from the quiet sobbing.
Originally, he had come to talk about her kill since he had lost in the bet with Obito, but now didn't feel like the time for that. Instead, he stayed outside her room until she cried herself to sleep before going back to his room.
The next day he saw her hand what looked like a note to the bridge builder.
After completing the training exercise for chakra successfully 10 rounds Sakura stopped for a second to look around. To be honest, Sakura hasn't quite understood why they had to climb the tree using the only chakra. She had been doing that for years. She found it odd that she could only find Naruto and Sasuke and not the older men, they were nowhere to be found. Had their senseis just left them behind?
Sakura quickly coated her chakra leaving the boys to train. Not like they would notice her and Tobi missing. Tobi found the two older men's chakra. She hid behind a tree watching the silver-haired man leaning against a tree while the raven-haired man was walking around in a circle.
"Kakashi, you don't understand Sakura needs guidance" The desperation in Obito-sensei's voice was combined with just as much of a desperate body language. Ayla seemed to walk in circles on the same spot looking everywhere, so they quickly hid behind the tree again.
"I agree that Sakura is a mess in every way possible, we never should have taken her with us," Kakashi-sensei replied sounding bored out of his mind. Flipping a page in his book without ever looking up at the Uchiha. It stung like nothing else to know that even now she would never be enough. Why was nothing she ever did good enough?
"Oy, asshole! you know that's not true" It sounded so unsure and weak even to her ears. Like he didn't know if he truly wanted to believe it.
"Then why are you suddenly acting so different around her now than before?" The silver-haired man asked disinterestedly. Flipping yet another page in his book, Kenzie continued licking her paw as if they weren't having an important conversation about her future. As if it didn't matter what happens to her. Why did people never care about her? What was it that she kept doing wrong?
"Do you not remember what she did to the demon brothers?! It freaks me out how the first thing she did was going for the kill like that. I touched her daemon and trust me she is such a mess! I didn't even know it was possible to be so messed up! She is far worse off than you and Itachi-chan combined! But Kakashi it is now we have the time to change that" Obito pleaded almost panicky, trying to win him over. Both seem to ignore how his voice was breaking multiple times and growing higher pinch the longer he talked. Until the end, that had been said so softly almost like a whisper.
She watched him with his hands in his hair all but ripping it out. She didn't know how to feel about any of this. There were so many thoughts and emotions running through her.
A bitter feeling of betrayal, a lot of hurt, sad acceptance, and a little bit of anger came washing over her, forcing her under. She stood her ground while biting her tongue until it bleeds to prevent herself from making a sound. Tobi's body was a warm lighthouse keeping her from drowning in the dark thoughts once more.
"But I can't keep doing it alone, if you don't start teaching her too, I will have to go to sensei about it, something needs to be done about her now or we might have a second Orochimaru on our hands," Obito said rescind. Like he had already given up on her before she even got a chance to try and change. She felt ill, the mere thought of being like Orochimaru made her want to vomit.
"I don't see the problem with bringing it to the Hokage, really she might just be better off as a civilian like her mother" Kakashi replied casually. Sakura shallowed her feelings a heavyweight in her stomach as she turned around and walked away from them. Leaving before they realized she had ever been there. Maybe that was for the best anyhow.
Sakura just walked with no true destination in mind. She had never been enough to make her parents stay, not even a few hours more, no matter how well behaved she was. She couldn't make her team like her enough to even want her around. Now she probably wasn't skilled enough for them to stay either. As if a civilian-born ninja could ever compare with clan children. They were only good as steppingstones for "the real shinobis" during the war. They would probably leave her once they got back to the village. It left her wondering if she was meant to never be enough for anyone.
Obito looked at Kakashi as if he had been told that Kakashi had murdered Rin himself. It felt so wrong to just give up like that it made him sick, he knew it would eat him alive if he didn't try. What was the point in becoming a sensei if they just turned their back to the kid because it became just hard? When had he lost sight of the person Obito had wanted to become? Rin would be ashamed of him, of them if she saw them now. Not even taking Minato's disappointment into account.
"You have no right to say that. Since day one you haven't tried to get along with her, have you even read her fill?" Obito asked him. All fight leaving as he bitterly accepted that Kakashi was right as always and that the man before him would never truly understand until it was too late.
"Never mind. I forgot you were the type that didn't care until it's too late, might as well begin digging her grave" He bit out before leaving, eyes red in anger. Someone had to watch over the bridge builder after all. Right now, he couldn't stand to look at Kakashi.
Walking the street with Tazuna they talked about the economic benefit, the freedom it would bring to his people. While listening he was trying to forget his poisoned word towards Kakashi, he had known that he had crossed the line even if Obito was right.
Ibiki knew Genma often accused him of being nosey but what T&I employee wasn't? So, he was doing what he did best, find information. It was so very easy to find information that it almost hurt. He truly believed that the girl would shine here in the darkness, but he also knew that he couldn't become her teacher.
Genma and Anko could both use the experience of teaching. It would all depend on who Minato thought would be a better fit.
He stood with the filled application in hand debating if he should be going into the office, feeling that the Uchiha leader also was in there and didn't feel like dealing with his sour ass.
Shaking his head Ibiki knocked on the door before going inside. Both were clearly distressed to the point where Ibiki debated if he should turn around and leave before he got involved in whatever it was.
… On the other hand, he could probably use this to get Sakura. Signing Ibiki closed the door behind him. He could just feel the headache coming.
She had been protecting the bridge builder alone for the last couple of days now and Sakura was bored out of her mind. She knew that she couldn't allow herself not to be giving the watch her all, but her senseis' words were spinning around inside her head on repeat.
It didn't matter since today she wasn't truly alone, Kakashi- sensei had left Pakku with her. The pug simply just sat there watching her in a way that made her feel uneasy like he could see right through her. Sakura had the feeling he didn't like her very much. He didn't talk much to her only answering her questions with one-word answers.
Both she and Tobi sat up at once when the mist came. It was coated in heavy chakra that made a shiver run down her back, they were here again and this time there was only Sakura and Tobi to stop them.
"Go! Find Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura yelled at the lazy pug and watched the smoke it left behind. She would have to stall them until her Senseis would arrive.
She moved to stand by the bridgebuilder with her kunai out. Both girl and feline's bodies tens at the three people landed on the bridge. She swallowed and felt herself beginning to sweat must be the knowledge that she might just die.
The young person that was Zabuza's companion had joined them today it would seem. Frankly, Sakura knew that the boy could defeat her alone without help, so seeing all of them felt a bit overkill.
Shallowing again she tightens her hold on the kunai and forced her body to stop shaking. Water had always been Sakura's closes friend - besides Tobi and plants- it wouldn't leave her to fend for herself now. It wouldn't betray her or Tobi like that. She could feel it running right under the bridge a calming present in this caustic environment, just waiting for her to call upon it eager to please.
Sakura had always known that she could lose her life as a shinobi, but never thought it would be so soon, not even 6 months in and she was already about to die. It didn't matter anymore, she just had to focus on stalling them for long enough no matter the cost.
Zabuza laugher sounded like a mad man, Kisame smirk looked hungry for violence if a bit sad, and the young boy just stood there like a doll, she wasn't even sure he was breathing it was creepy.
Zabuza moved first and the speed shocked her, but at the last second, she ripped the water from the air and turned it into a shield.
It succeeds in stopping the sword from the water focusing on a single point on the sword looking almost like it was hugging it. Frankly, Sakura was just as surprised as him that it had worked at all and was still holding onto it.
She heard metal meeting metal and looked toward it, to see that Tobi had met the boy. The mistake ended up costing her dearly. The next second, she was smashed into the stone bridge. She heard some bones break but weren't sure which ones it was since adrenalin was a wonderful painkiller all she knew was that blood was flowing down into her left eye.
She felt dizzy and everything looked blurry. She got back up once more swaging a bit from side to side before she got her sense back.
She saw a shadow looking down at her and looked up to see the sword being lifted ready to come down on her.
Grinding her teeth Sakura took a deep breath and felt for the seal she had handed to the old man. Feeling her body coming off the ground and stood in front of the alcoholic. Kisame was in her face within the next second. The next thing Sakura knew was the fist in her stomach that made her vomit blood, but she had sent chakra to the stone forcing her to stand her ground. Long enough for her to make the water dragon, making it go for him forcing him back.
Turning to her right Sakura saw Zabuza coming straight for her, there was nothing she could do about it. It felt odd knowing and watching her own death approaching. It felt like time had slowed down and just before he killed her someone moved in front of her.
Kakashi had just been watching the boys trying to perfect the tree walking. It felt him with pride when they succeed but also fun watching them fail all the time.
When Paku had shown up Kakashi had been surprised quickly followed with the feeling of death from the look on his face. At once he stopped the boys sending Naruto and Sky back to the house for Obito while Kakashi and Sasuke ran towards the bridge. While running Obito's words coming back to him with a vengeance, and it left him feeling cold.
The first thing he saw upon arrival was Tobi fighting a boy. Next, he saw Sakura's water dragon. When Kisame moved back Sakura was clearly barely standing. Watching Zabuza moving in for the kill his body moved on its own and he was standing in front of Sakura.
He was so busy fighting he didn't even see her leave.
Looking at the battle she saw the ice cage and ran towards Sasuke and Tobi making it just in time before the cage closed. While standing inside the ice cage beside Sasuke she looked at the mirrors around her. Inside they got their ass kick by the other boy. Both were getting tired, their moment slowing down.
Just seconds before Haku throw the senbon needles again Sakura looked at Sasuke from the corner of her eye.
For a second all she could feel was resentment mixed with sad regret. She saw a young frowning man with long black hair turning his red-red-red eyes towards her. She could all but feel his hate for her. A man that could have been her friend in another life, had they not been born into enemy clans. A man that was her best friend's brother or was it her brother's best friend's brother? The one she killed with her own hands? She could never be sure these days.
Before she knew it, she and Tobi had both moved. Sakura pushed the boy down and Tobi forced the tried bird under him until it was totally covered by the feline. Sakura tried to do the same for the Uchiha kid. He had someone waiting for him back home, Sakura only had Tobi, it was always just the two of them, alone. It felt like she had lived a lifetime alone, with no one to really be able to express her worries too.
The pain was there suddenly, and the loss of blood was making her lightheaded. She looked down at his surprised face and watched as her blood began to drip down on his face. She saw the tears in his red-red-red eyes, she idly thought he shouldn't cry like that, she wasn't worth the tears. She might have said so much, she couldn't be sure, but he looked even worse than seconds before.
"Now we are even Iz-" Was the last thing she said before she coughed blood out and fell on top of him. With half-open eyes, she saw gold dust beginning to float around Tobi. There, Sakura had done some good now, she could only hope that it would be enough. She idly wondered if this were how she would die, ironically not dying alone despite most of her life being so. Then everything turned black.