Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

The Past: A Load of Mud

Sakura dipped her fingers into a tin of jade-colored healing salve. The pleasant smell of mint wafted into her nose. She mentally thanked her heavily scarred superior, as he had been the one to give it to her. Actually, Ibiki had thrown the tin at her as he left to go do whatever it was that Ibiki did on a daily basis at T&I.

After accomplishing the kill drills that had been her punishment for underperforming against Minoru, she knew her body was spent. Not only was she tired from a lack of sleep and a grueling month of training, now she was close to crossing the limit of what her body could endure. She had bruises everywhere and at all stages of healing. Her muscles would twitch randomly, too. Hopefully, the salve would numb her to it. She massaged it over her tender skin. She even dabbed a bit on her bruised face, hoping to speed up the healing if only by a little.

She glanced at her small watch laying by her packed belongings in a corner. There were still three hours before she had to be standing by her door—three hours before she knew which new face from unit ten would be a constant in her life.

Although she didn't know any of the other recruits well, she didn't think that she would want to be paired up with Minoru, Tsubasa, or Zenjiro. They reminded her too much of her former team.

She put an abrupt stop to that line of thought and looked back down to her watch. There was an opportunity to take a nap, and she was going to take advantage of that. She crawled to the corner of her bunk where she kept her unrolled futon and scrunched her body into a ball. Her limbs felt like jelly and her eyelids felt like led. As soon as she closed her eyes, she was pulled into a deep slumber.

Only that . . .

Something kept disturbing her. A niggling feeling crept at the edge of consciousness. Something she had felt more frequently after the invasion. It was like a tickle in the back of her mind, and a whisper that buzzed around much like a mosquito. It was the feeling of having forgotten something only for it to creep back into recognition.

Unexpectedly, she heard a sound. It was a steady echo that reverberated through the atmosphere. It was lighter than a solid tap but heavier than the wind running amuck. She opened her eyes and found herself standing on the surface of a lotus pond. Around her were lotus flowers in all stages of blooming and many forms of color. Confusion coursed through her. This was not where she had last been. Disoriented, she looked around. The sound that had captured her attention from before was the fluid sound of water dripping from the many lotus petals onto the surface of the pond.

It was quite pretty.

In fact, if she wasn't distressed as to how she had gotten there, she would have been happy to simply admire the scenery.

In the distance, she saw a yellow kite with blue designs flying in the pitch-black sky. Her legs began to carry her forward. She took note that the surface of the pond felt fresh and smooth under her bare feet as if she were walking on marble floors.

She walked and walked.

However, she felt as if little progress was being made as she was still quite a distance from the kite. In her negligence, she failed to notice when the pond's surface had changed as she had kept her focus on the kite, but when she looked down, she was no longer standing on water. Instead, her feet walked on scorching thick blood that clung to the soles of her feet. The smell of copper took away any doubt of what the substance was, and she felt her stomach grow queasy.

The onslaught of screaming was sudden and shrill. It was the clamor of many people. It was the sound of terror. She choked on her panic, and in the fright of it all, she raised her hands to cover her ears.

Kami, please make it stop!

Trails of sweat slid down her neck.

She startled awake. The pounding in her chest startled her as much as it grounded her. She inhaled deeply before letting it out. Her sweat clung to her like a veil, cooling in the freshness of the room. The thumping in her chest quieted down gradually, but the screams still rang clear in her ears, and the pond of blood seared into her mind.

"It was only a dream," she whispered to the room, but what a strange one it had been. Still, the niggling at the edge of her mind persisted.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

By the end of the day, everyone was lined up by their doors, packs in hand, waiting for a faceless instructor. Instead, Ibiki appeared.

"Listen up; teams will now be announced. Grey team: Gin and Kita. White team: Tsubasa and Harue. Green team: Botan and Zenjiro. Red team: Tenten and Sakura. Blue team: Hiroshi and Minoru. You have a week of rest before coming back to the training rooms to familiarize yourself with your new partners." With that said, he left them. Everyone looked around before going to their respective partners.

Twin buns came into her field of vision, and suddenly she felt apprehensive—and a little excited. While all of unit ten were formidable in their own way, she felt a sliver of ease at being paired with Tenten. Although not old enough, or experienced enough, to officially be titled a weapon's mistress, she recognized that Tenten was well on the path to becoming one. The older girl had also been a genin for a year longer and therefore had more field experience. Sakura felt as if there was much to be learned from the brunette.

However, that easiness clashed greatly with the anxiety of being linked to anybody from Team Guy. She couldn't get rid of the image of Lee's broken smile—one that she had seen after his hospitalization when he was trying to hide his own fear and turmoil.

She felt uncomfortable.

Lee's teammate. Now her teammate. An occurrence only made possible by his death and the absence of her team. Suddenly, she felt the life debt that she owed Lee heavy on her shoulders and the resentment that she held for her old team shrouding her like a veil.

Tenten bowed towards her, a pleasantly neutral expression in place.

"Hello, I'm Tenten."

"Haruno, Sakura."

She felt the other girl observe her, much like the Godaime had.

It felt as if everyone were looking for her weak spots these days. A savage part of her was satisfied by the fact that in this instance, she wasn't the only one with fresh scars on their metaphorical armor. She mirrored Tenten's stance. There were changes in the older girl.

Where before she had had eyes that shone fiercely. Her gaze was more subdued, now. Death sobered up even the most unrelenting people, she figured. She knew that the older girl had not focused much on her appearance in the past, but regardless had always shown to be very presentable. Her bangs had always been kept at a manageable length and there was never a hair, too out of place—she resembled her other teammate, Neji, in that regard. But, it was a different story now.

Her hair was longer and choppy, and her buns looked like she had rushed to put them up. One of them even looked lopsided. Her face was pallid with a sickly tint, a deep contrast to her natural skin tone that was more prone to looking sun-kissed. Her body, once defined by subtle muscles, looked wispy. Grief had taken ahold of her and had changed her into a sickly-looking creature.

She wondered what Tenten saw in her own scrutiny. Did she notice the darkness under her eyes, or how her face seemed permanently stuck in a dull or lost expression? (Something her mother and her posse seemed to always pick at because 'a lady should always have an air of confidence around her'.) Did she see how her green eyes had changed a shade darker, or how her pastel hair was no longer shiny or silky? Did she think the ghastly bruises on her face matched the feeble impression that everyone had of her? Was she the one who actually looked like the sickly creature?

She knew that it was all so superficial to be curious about, but that was the girl that she had been raised to be. It was hard to let old habits die—especially with her upbringing.

Long before her parents had settled down in the ninja village of Konohagakure, their respective scholarly lineages had reached the high courts of nobility in a land far, far away. Her father had been born a second son—a spare—and her mother a third daughter to the main wife of her household—better than being born to one of the concubines. Their lives had been filled with luxury and comfort. Of course, this also meant that their lives were not their own, but of their family and the titles that they held. Regardless, being born into privilege gave them a direct pathway to power, but underneath all the beauty, political turmoil simmered. Multiple parties plotted and schemed. By the time both houses had joined through marriage, peace balanced on a thin thread of serendipity and propriety. Sakura was born during a time of tension. Due to this, she had been taught earlier and more rigorously how to act like a proper dignified lady, as to later find a solid match into one of the more powerful families, in the hopes that it would save her from the turmoil around them.

It was not to be, though. Political tensions rose enough to cause blood to spill, and once the first drop hit the ground, a torrent followed. By the time Sakura had turned five, her parents had dragged her out of bed in the middle of the night. They fled their homeland. From then on, they were no longer people of high status, but instead a family that was struggling to find their place in the world. They wandered around for months, and amidst it all, they found a way to survive. Due to her parents' quick wit and sharp tongues, and the fact that they had smuggled out a few items of precious jewelry, they were able to start a merchant business, which led them to settle down in the Land of Fire, so far from where they had originated.

A dying part of her still worried about keeping up appearances, though. At one point in her life, she had been indoctrinated to act and think a certain way because that would've been the only way for her to survive. Even after losing her original home, which she barely remembered, or cared for, she was still pressured into acting in accordance with the status quo, but this had always grated on her nerves—pretending to hate what she loved and love what she hated.

Before Naruto had left, she woke up one day and gave up on trying to please her parents and the status quo. That day she had eaten all of the fatty foods that she could find, much to the chagrin of her mother. She had dressed in loose dark clothing. She had walked around the village without any shoes, and she had waded in a small stream to escape the day's heat.

That had been when Naruto had found her. He hadn't commented on her lack of decorum and instead had joined her. They even reverted back to being children as they started to splash at each other and wage a water fight. It had been a lighthearted evening that had ended with them going to Ichiraku's for dinner.

Their relationship had changed after that day.

They were less shy around each other and fewer words were exchanged, but they felt closer. She realized now, that the only time she had truly tried to be herself was when Naruto and she were left to repair the brokenness of team seven. An impossible task, and yet during those moments, she had realized that a lie had not once left her lips. She had bared the truth of her pain, the regret of her foolishness, and the happiness of the comradery that she found with Naruto.

But . . .

When she was left alone, she raged at herself for becoming too comfortable in such a vulnerable position—one her parents had taught her would only lead to her downfall. 'The truth is gold' they had said. That was true in the cutthroat world of nobility, as well as in the shinobi world. A 'nobody' like herself couldn't go around showing people the depths of her soul. After all, if she were only going to be discarded, she might as well not give others anymore of an upper hand—don't kick somebody who is already down. (She tried to not direct those bitter feelings towards Naruto. It wasn't his fault. Whose fault was it? Kakashi's? Sasuke's? Hers?)

She was brought back to her surroundings when Tenten moved to take her right hand in hers—a sign that she wouldn't reject her on first impressions. They stayed like that for a moment, both clinging onto the warmth of the other, accept each other's superficial flaws. Sakura hoped they could both be able to successfully move forward. What other choice did they have, after all?

From now on, they could only rely on each other while in the field. Their original teams had been broken, and nothing could save them from the harsh world that they had chosen to live in.

"Looks like we're a team, then."

Sakura nodded her head, dazed at their predicament.

"Yes, let's do our best," she replied to the brunette.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Everyone parted ways to go to their respective homes. After walking from sector four to sector nine, which was about a forty-minute walk, she drew nearer to her home. She took in the familiar neighborhood and was thankful that the invasion had not touched it—at least not superficially. As she approached her house, she found that the lights were still on. She sighed before straightening up her appearance. There wasn't much that she could do for her hair. She tied it up, hoping to convey a well put together exterior. She suddenly remembered the bruises marring her face and body. An exasperated groan left her before heading inside.

She found her parents in the parlor area. Her father was reading a newspaper, while her mother worked on crafting beaded necklaces—a hobby she had picked up long ago. She bowed deeply to her parents.

"Otou-sama. Okaa-sama. Tadaima."

Her father let out a baritone hum but did not look up from his paper. Her mother was still stringing together precious stones but spoke towards her.

"Child, you missed Mrs. Narada's soirée. She so dearly wanted to see you! I had to tell her you were away on ninja business. Meanwhile, she told me that her plain-faced daughter is getting married to Ken Kawakami. Kawakami! They're wealthy, and have connections to the Fire Daimyo." Her mother huffed before continuing, "The cow! She was rubbing it in my face."

Finally, her mother looked up at her and let out a small shriek, which caused her father to look away from his paper. Both pairs of eyes boring into her.

"Sakura! What has been done to your face?"

She swallowed nervously. "It's nothing, okaa-sama. It'll heal soon. It's just that I have been training very hard."

"Well, you can't come to Aiko Narada's engagement party like that!"

"Hai, okaa-sama. Please give them my deepest apologies. Tell them, I bestow upon them my warmest wishes. Should I get them a gift? Pearls? A nice flower arrangement?"

Her mother waved away the idea, likely already having bought a gift for them in her stead. A frown settled on her mother's face, amplifying the small wrinkles that she was beginning to form from her age.

"Sakura, when will you stop with this ninja business?"

Her heart burned and a flush rose to her cheeks, making her face an ugly spectacle of colors.

"Just a little bit more, okaa-san. They won't let me quit after the recent attack on the village."

A lie to appease her mother.

Her mother let out a mournful sound. "Poor, Ms. Ito. I just can't stop thinking about her death. I send up a prayer every time I walk by her house. How tragic. Don't you think so Kizashi?"

Her father hummed in acknowledgment, having long gone back to his paper.

"Okaa-sama. Otou-sama. I will retire for the night." Her mother hummed in acknowledgment before waving her off.

Her spirit was heavy as she walked towards her room, and heavier still, as her back touched her bed. She vaguely wondered if sleep would bring her gory images and haunting wails? Her worries were wasted, though. She didn't dream that night. Instead, she stayed awake for a while staring at the shadows that danced across her vision in the darkness of her room.

She felt restless.

She wondered how Naruto was doing? Was he mastering the super cool jutsu he had been excited to learn? Was he eating properly? Did he miss her? Did Sasuke regret his actions? Was he adjusting to his new life? Was he being treated well? Where was Kakashi? Where did team seven find themselves at that moment in time?

She sighed heavily. She needed to worry about herself. She had her own path to follow. Her thoughts drifted to Tenten.

She remembered how inspiring and slightly menacing she had thought her to be when the older girl had fought in the preliminary rounds against the sand-nin. Even though Tenten had lost, she had been in such awe at the various weapons the brunette could handle. She had never met such a young weapon's expert. If she were being honest, she felt intimidated by the slightly older girl. In fact, all of the people in unit ten intimidated her. They were all older and were uniquely strong. Meanwhile, her only merit was being a genjutsu type with above average chakra control.

She rolled over and let out another sigh. She would just have to wait and see how things would progress from here on out. Ibiki's warning still rang clear in her ears.

"I want power, too," she whispered to the night. Finally, she had dared to confide this. She promised herself that she would gain strength, and she wouldn't need a Snake Sanin to help.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Her eyes held manic excitement, and a savage grin rested on her face. She did it! A replica of herself stared back at her. She had made a water clone of herself, and it had been tedious work. (More like trial and error times a hundred.)

After she had gotten to the point of effortlessly making a water globe, she practiced expanding it with her chakra. It had come undone on her many times and she was left soaked to the bone by the end of those days, but after getting the hang of it, she decided that she was ready to move on into the hand signs. It took her two entire days to get something that resembled a humanoid and less a massive blob. After, she had worked on the details. It was midday into the last day that Ibiki had given them off when finally, she was successful.

It had taken her one week. She knew that wasn't standard, but much of her success she owed Snow. There had been a scroll, which she had voraciously read as soon as she spotted it, and in it, equations and explanations that stated that every jutsu had a 'sweet spot'. In other words, every jutsu had a perfect frequency of chakra that allowed the user to easily perform it.

She attributed a number to her overall chakra reserves, estimated values for her yin and yang energy (Because she had an affinity for water and earth, her yin energy produced twice as fast as her yang energy. Thus, depending on the jutsu she would have to focus on cycling her yang faster, so as to overcome the yin energy.) Afterward, it was like a puzzle piece of numbers. And, what a headache that had been. She adjusted, though.

Now that she had found the right amount of chakra frequency, she was confident that she could recreate it.

She dispelled her water clone and tried again. The same result. Yes!

She quelled her excitement as she began to wonder how many she could make with her chakra reserves, and how long would she be able to make them last.

With that new training goal in mind, she began to mold her chakra.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

It was time to head back to T&I, and like the first time she had walked into the building, the smell of antiseptic was present. It permeated the entire building, strong and numbing to her nose. She could even smell it in the training rooms, despite the blood, sweat, and tears she was sure many had shed there. It was slightly irritating.

Even more irritating was Tenten.

She had donned on a no-nonsense attitude, which didn't bother Sakura, but she had also assumed the position of team leader, which also didn't bother her much. Logically, Tenten was slightly older and had more experience. It was only natural she should take up the position. Sakura was not at all used to being seen as a leader, but there was something irritating about the assumption that she would instantly follow the strongest, no questions asked.

She was quick to hide her displeasure, though, so as to not cause problems with Tenten. Conflict within her new teammate was the last thing that she wanted. Thus, she reasoned with herself that they were only training, and despite her feelings, Tenten was efficient in her self-appointed role. (There was a savage part of her that was sure that it would become a problem in the future if she didn't quell it now, but she rarely listened to her more vicious instincts.)

They worked their way down a list of exercises in order to parse their skill level. Although they were well rounded due to their month of rigorous training with the faceless instructors, they cemented the fact that their talents lay in different areas.

Sakura excelled at casting and dispelling genjutsu. She decided to not disclose her ability to enhance her body with the aid of her chakra. She didn't think it was worth any attention, as many shinobi picked it up along the lifespan of their careers. Tenten probably knew how to do it, in fact.

She found that along with being excellent at handling weapons. Tenten was proficient at fuinjutsu and had a wind affinity—just like Naruto. It was rare for Leaf shinobi to have an affinity for wind element. It was also intriguing that the brunette had taken to using two black fans. They reminded her of mini-versions that the sand-nin had used against Tenten in the preliminaries.

They both refrained from much mindless chatter. Every once in a while, they commented on a good spot to buy certain types of gear and weapons. They vehemently stayed away from anything related to their old teams.

It was during their third day together that they discovered that not only had they been taught to perfect the basic academy katas, but they had been led into different taijutsu styles that better suited their natural instincts. As they did research on the scrolls that held their katas, they found that Tenten fought using, Fuyu no kaze (winter's wind), a style that had emerged during the warring state's period. Although it was an older well-established style, it was no longer commonly used among Leaf shinobi.

Sakura mused that modern times, although marked with longer periods of peace, called for more brutal tactics and fighting styles. Fuyu no kaze was a mostly defensive style that was characterized by the use of circular motions, tall stances, and acrobatic high kicks. She had once read that it was one of the most beautiful styles of taijutsu, and she could see why. It was like a graceful dance.

Nagareru kawa (flowing river), her style of taijutsu, emerged during the first shinobi war. It centered on redirecting the movements of an opponent and striking at pressure points to weaken the said opponent. It wasn't as graceful as Fuyu no kaze but it did center on her ability to be precise. One miscalculation and an opponent could easily overpower her with how close in proximity she was required to work in.

Training with Tenten was strange.

It felt like the first time she learned how to throw a kunai. Being a kid from a civilian background meant that the academy was the first place she had ever gotten a hold of a kunai. When she first threw one, it didn't even make it close to the target. It was only about one hundred tries later that she managed to hit a target. (One of the outer rings to her delight and frustration.) Training with Tenten felt like that—unfamiliar, frustratingly, and new. It was hard work that only improved with practice.

By the end of their two weeks that Ibiki had allotted each team, they had basic formations and maneuvers that incorporated their certain skill sets. (Okay, so they only had three formations, but they made sure that they could do them well.) Hopefully, they could get through the survival test that Ibiki had planned for them.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

There was mud everywhere: on her clothes, under her clothes, in her hair, on her face, under her nails, between her toes. She was sure she had even tasted it on her tongue at one point. Her clothes were damp and her body cold to the touch. Food was a distant memory, and water a brief luxury. It was a miserable existence. It was survival training.

They had been blindfolded and subsequently taken to a random part of the forbidden forest with Ibiki's parting words being, 'survive two weeks.' She felt her ire rise at the memory. It wouldn't have been that bad if he had chosen a different month. Instead, it was the beginning of a brief rainy season Konoha experienced annually before a cold front would begin to settle in, giving way to autumn. They hadn't even been allowed to bring any weapons or tools. She would have screamed if she wasn't so miserable.

Though, the cherry on top of such a disdainful situation came in the form of a purple-haired menace. Not even seconds after being left alone she appeared. Sakura recognized her as a proctor from the chunin exams. Her name still slipped her mind, though. (It was some sugary name, wasn't it?)

The menace had abruptly appeared on a tree branch above them and informed them that they were going to be attacked. Then she proceeded said attack. (At least she had given them a three-second warning.) She had used flash bombs and chili bombs to disorient them. Despite the rain, they still packed quite a punch. Sakura was embarrassed to admit that that had been enough to send her sprawling to the muddy ground.

The smoke had had her close to choking, and she remembered hearing coughing and gagging sounds coming from somewhere to her right. Tenten hadn't faired any better.

They both ran to get clear of the attack, but then blunt shuriken and kunai had begun to rain down on them with cruel precision. Despite the weapons being blunt, some managed to break skin. The ones that didn't, left large spots that were sure to bruise. They had hunkered down behind a large tree trunk, terrified at what the purple terror would do next. Their worries had been for naught, though.

She had chosen to depart with a causal wave and a too cheerful, 'I'll be back later, ladies!'

Relief had coursed through them. After catching their breaths, both realized that they would have to endure another round of abuse, many more in fact.

Tenten had been the first to sober up after the attack, she had said that they were in relatively unknown territory and it was almost too dark to go parading about. They had searched the area for any of the weapons that they had been attacked with, but to their surprise, the menace had somehow taken them with her. Pity.

Regardless, they still needed to build a shelter.

Sakura had followed as she found that she was completely out of her element. Of course, she remembered what the academy had drilled into them, but implementing all those lessons felt foreign to her. They had ended up finding a spot with thick foliage and shrubs. Ferns were abundant and a few large trees rested on the ground from disease, weather, or whatever had felled them. Tenten had ordered her to collect twice the amount of kindling regularly used to start a fire because rain or no rain, they were going to get one started. Diligently, she had quickly set about looking for as many small twigs as possible and a few large pieces of wood. As she had done this, Tenten had built a shelter from branches and ferns. It wasn't extravagant or pretty to look at, but it would keep them somewhat dry.

Sakura had used the metal from her shinobi headband to scrape shavings from thicker pieces of wood—assiduous in making sure it would not get wet from the rain. Tenten had hummed in approval. With a dry flintstone that the brunette had found and Sakura's headband, they started a spark, which they tediously built into a fire.

"I'll take first watch," Tenten had said at some point. Sakura had hummed in agreement, and that had been the last thing that they had said to each other that day. Before nodding off—which she found strange that it came so easily to her there and not in the comfort of her own home—she took a couple of ferns and wiped off as much mud as she could.

Hours later when she had been nudged awake, a vivid yellow kite with blue designs echoed in her mind from her dreams. Her heart had hammered away in her tight chest, but if Tenten had noticed her distress, she chose to not comment on it. Instead, she'd added what little kindling they had left before rolling over on her side with her back towards Sakura.

The purple-haired terror didn't come back during her watch, which Sakura was thankful for. She didn't think she had the energy to run. Her stomach grumbled and her throat felt parched. Although she had tried her best to wipe off any mud, it clung to her like a second skin, just like her damp bodysuit. So, this was actual survival training, huh? (Kakashi really hadn't prepared her for anything.)

By the time Tenten woke up, the fire had gone out, but the rain had stopped. For how long, though? Regardless Tenten gave the order to head out. In the light of the cloudy day, the forest was thick and vast like they remembered it being from their exams. Neither commented on this, though. They still didn't waste their words on small talk to fill the silence that lingered between them. They talked only to relay information, or simply signaled phrases to each other.

Tenten was adamant that water was their priority now. With all that it had rained the day before, it was ironic that they had yet to quell their parched throats.

Without her scrolls or weapons, Tenten felt bare and vulnerable. She found it harder to maintain a calm and pleasant demeanor, often snapping at Sakura to hurry up or stay focused.

"I am! I'm looking for something useful," she had retorted.

"What we need to do is find a water source," Tenten had grumbled sourly.

"Agreed. But, we need food too. There are bound to be edible plants in the forest."

"Then, where are they?"

"I'm looking." Irritation thick in her voice. Not even an entire week in, and they already had cracks in the foundation of their team. Sakura forced herself to inhale deeply through her nose. One. Two. Three. Exhale.

"Do you know how to tree climb with chakra?"

Tenten gave her an unimpressed look before answering, "Of course. Don't you?"

She chose to ignore the passive aggression.

"The tree to your four o'clock looks taller than the rest. Comb through the place from up there. Look for a break in the foliage. It might be a clearing with a stream. Meanwhile, I'll stay close and continue looking for something edible."

From the slump of her shoulders, it seemed as if Tenten's anger deflated. The logic had made sense to her as well. In fact, she felt silly for not thinking more clearly—really the loss of her weapons left her feeling too vulnerable. The brunette nodded hesitantly before leaping up onto the long trunk of the tree.

Sakura watched her until she was more than halfway up, making sure that she would not fall, such as Naruto had done once. (Truly, those boys had made her more mindful of safety measures than was normal for a shinobi.)

As she was combing through the terrain she found a group of shrubs with small, fluffy looking masses. She checked the leaves surrounding them. Their color was light, and they were oval in shape. Bingo.

By the time Tenten came down, Sakura had gathered as much of the little fluffy bulbs as she could carry.

"There's a break to the southwest, about one kilometer from here."

"Good. We can start heading there. Look, I found something to eat."

Tenten gave her a startled stare.

"Sakura, those are poisonous!"

"No, they aren't. You're thinking of Concubine's Poison. These are Peasant Berries. I've read they taste like candy floss! They should give us an energy boost, while we look for something more sustainable to eat."

Tenten's expression settled, but she still seemed unconvinced.

"I'll eat one to prove it to you." A scared expression crossed the brunette's face, and before she could protest, Sakura had popped two Peasant Berries into her mouth. A soft sigh escaped her as she savored the sweetness from the bulbs. Definitely, not poison.

Concubine's Poison was instantaneous in its effect over the body. Its victim would first show instant signs of muscle spasms, and their skin would quickly become jaundice. After half an hour, vomiting and seizures would begin, followed by death. It was a poison that had been discovered during the Waring State's period and mass-produced/cultivated during the First Shinobi War. By the Second Shinobi War, almost every nation had an instant antidote against it, and it faded as one of the most lethal tools that shinobi utilized, but that was a different story within the civilian world. It became a popular poison for the noble courts to use. Hence its name.

"See? I feel fine. No muscle spasms," Sakura said after a few minutes had passed, but she was caught off guard by Tenten's expression. The brunette looked furious. (Seriously, there was no pleasing her.)

"Don't risk your life like that, again."

Sakura couldn't wrap her mind around that statement. As shinobi not risking one's life was a paradox.

"I didn't."

Tenten huffed angrily as she grabbed a few of the sweet treats from her hands.

"Whatever, let's go."

As soon as they entered the clearing, they found a steady stream that had their hearts jumping for joy. Only steps away from getting the much-needed water, when they were thrown back several meters away. She landed harshly on her side and her elbow oozed blood. Her left ear was left ringing from the explosion, but she could faintly make out a manic cackle in the distance.

"I'm back ladies! Ready for round two?"

For several moments, all they could do was dodge the, now slight sharpened, weapons. A quick frustrated glance at each other and they both agreed that enough was enough. Tenten began plucking kunai from midflight and shot them back at the menace. She, on the other hand, opted for grabbing two kunai from the ground before deflecting most of the weapons headed for both of them. The attack lasted for a while, but with Sakura on defense and Tenten on offense, they mitigated much of the potential danger.

Even when the weapons stopped coming towards them, they didn't let their guards down. Their bodies tense for whatever the menace came up with.

"See you later, girls!"

They waited in case she was tricking them. When they saw a group of faceless instructors emerging from the tree line, they shifted their stances, ready to ward them off.

One of them put their hands up.

"Relax, we're cleaning up after Anko."

"That's Anko-sama, to you!" The menace's disembodied voice carried out from deep within the woods.

"Yes, Anko-sama!" (They both held on tightly to the kunai in their hands. There wasn't a chance that they were letting their only weapons go.)

When they were finally left alone, they ran to the edge of the stream and greedily drank to their heart's desire. When logic finally caught up to her, Sakura managed to spear a nice juicy fish. Both girls salivated at the smell of it roasting over their makeshift fire pit.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

After the attack by the stream, Sakura and Tenten thought of a strategy to keep Anko at bay, or at least to keep from getting more damage on their battered bodies. Sakura employed the use of her water clone jutsu by cloning both of them. Due to all of the rain, her jutsu never ran out of supply. It only depended on her chakra reserves, which weren't strained from using it after becoming so familiar with the jutsu. She also cast a continuous disillusionment genjutsu around their actual selves. Any surprise attacks would go through the clones first, and that would alert them to prepare a counter-attack or find a better hiding spot. Tenten had used a kunai that they had held on to, to carve wooden shields and sharp projectiles. Although the wood wouldn't fare well against metal, it would slow down Anko's attacks. Sakura could tell that the brunette felt more at ease now that she had her hands on some form of weaponry.

They continued to stay close to the stream, but they moved around more often so as to not be easy targets. Sakura found many leafy greens that could supplement their diet along with the fish that they would catch. Tenten seemed to trust her knowledge of what was edible and what wasn't halfway through their first week. It made her feel proud of her competence. She wasn't as useless as she had once been.

By the end of the first week, Anko had been evaded twice, but when they couldn't hide, they held up against her alright. They still departed each attack with minor injuries, but considering she no longer used blunt weapons, they considered it a win.

It wasn't until halfway through the second week that they had to confront another problem. After a skirmish with Anko, Tenten had injured her right leg enough that she could not walk on it for long. It left them pretty vulnerable as now they had limited mobility—meaning that Anko would crush them the next chance that she got. It also meant that Sakura now had to do most of Tenten's labor, which tired her out enough that she would sometimes feel her concentration on her genjutsu slip every once in a while.

It was during Sakura's night watch that she sensed that they were being watched. She taught that maybe she was being paranoid, but that feeling continued to make the hairs on her arms stand. When she was completely sure, she cursed as she quickly nudged Tenten awake. She signed that they were being watched, to which Tenten quickly armed herself with her weapons. Anko would probably appear in the next few minutes—strangely this would be the first time that they would be attacked at night.

Both girls cast substitutions of themselves and under the guise of Sakura's disillusionment genjutsu, they quietly slipped away further from their campsite. When they were meters away they crouched behind large shrubs and hoped for the best.

A bulky silhouette appeared. It wasn't Anko. It was Ibiki. They were screwed. There was no way they could handle an attack from him.

"Red Team, you have two days to make it to the tower at the center of the forest."

As swiftly as he came, he left.

"It took us five days to get there, last time. How are we going to do it in two? My leg isn't any better," there was a slight shrill panic to Tenten's voice. What gave Sakura pause wasn't the fact that her confident demeanor was absent, but that she had referenced the past—when her team was whole and alive.

She swallowed thickly and crouched down to the brunette's level.

"We are going to make it. Last time, we had to find scrolls and fight other teams. This time, it's just us. Last time, we started out from the gates. This time, we have a relative idea of where we are. If we were to only travel by daylight, we're three and a half days away—at most. We're going to have to travel at night as well. We'll get there." The resolution echoed in Sakura's voice. There would be no other outcome.

"I'm going to slow us down."

"No, you won't."

Sakura turned around, her body still crouched.

"Get on."

"Sakura . . ."

"Hurry. I want to stop by the camp to get some of the Peasant Berries."

"Okay." She could hear the thickness of tears in the brunette's voice but chose to remain quiet on the matter. It was most likely stress.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

Carrying Tenten wasn't too difficult, Sakura had always had a decent amount of raw strength. What she did find difficult was navigating the terrain in the dark. She had Tenten hold out a long stick in front of them so that she didn't run into trees. It helped, but she would still stumble over roots and unleveled ground. It was frustrating, and she knew that they were wasting precious time.

"Let's take a break."

Tenten hummed in agreement before plopping down on the ground. A sigh escaped her lips.

"Just leave me behind."

Sakura ignored her. She was too busy trying to find a solution to their problem. She pursed her lips.

What if . . .

"Think! You know what they're trying to simulate." Still, she ignored Tenten.

An idea popped into her head. She had never tried it before, but she still had a little over half of her chakra reserves. Yes, she could try to . . .

"If I get injured behind enemy lines," Tenten swallowed thickly, "You take my weapons pouch and my headband, anything that ties me back to the village. And, you leave me behind."

Sakura's head snapped up. She could barely make out the brunette's silhouette, but she made sure to lean in as close as she could get.

She could feel Tenten's breaths coming out in short puffs. Her leg must have been causing her a lot of pain.

"Shut up," the pinkette hissed. "Who cares if it's a test? You're injured, and I know for sure that there are medical rooms stocked with things you need in that tower."

"And if this were to happen on a real mission? What then, Sakura?" Her voice was shrill again.

"I'm not leaving you." It was as simple as that. Why didn't Tenten understand? "Now, quiet. I'm trying to think."

She could try to push her chakra out in small waves. A shinobi version of echolocation. She closed her eyes in concentration. Inhale. One. Two. Three. Exhale. Pulse. Pulse. Pulse.

It was like looking at a foggy morning. There was an awareness of solid objects but no clarity. She tried connecting the chakra being sent out instead of sending out independent waves with clear beginnings and ends. Slowly, she could feel clarity seeping into her awareness.

Wow.

Every living thing held chakra—the trees (from root to stem to the tips of their leaves), the grass, the insects, the sleeping birds. She could feel them. She didn't have a large range, but it was enough to guide them through the night. Maybe, she could simultaneously cycle chakra to her legs to make up for lost time? It was worth a try.

"Hop on. Keep the stick in front, just in case."

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

By the time it was midmorning (she could only guess it was midmorning), Sakura let herself take a break. Her chakra was low, and her muscles burned from over use. Her lungs burned, too. Despite her morning runs, she had never pushed herself for so many hours on end. She carefully set, a sleeping, Tenten down under thick shrubbery to keep her from the brunt of the rain that continued to fall—there wasn't any time to build a shelter.

Sometime during first light, which was when the rain began to fall, she had felt Tenten's grip on her go slack. It had almost sent them tumbling to the ground at high speeds, but she managed to save them by crashing on her knees. She had actually been very thankful for the mud, then.

She chewed on the last of their leafy greens and Peasant Berries as she collected rainwater in a large leaf. She would have to coax it down Tenten's throat.

She rested the older girl's head on her lap as she poured the water into her mouth. She was careful to not give her too much at a time. She messaged her throat to make sure it went down. For the first time in a while, she thought of the day when she watched over Naruto and Sasuke as they lay beaten, bloody, and unconscious at her feet. Strangely enough, the most vivid sensation that she could remember from then was the chill in her bones. In retrospect, she knew it was the shock and terror coursing through her body that caused her to feel a chill that she couldn't quite get rid of.

She had blocked out the event after the attack, but here she was again in the Forbidden Forest watching over an ill person with the same lingering chill in her bones. She felt just as tired as she had then. Her eyes were beginning to droop shut, but a soft whisper escaped Tenten's lips. It caught her attention enough to focus on what she was trying to say.

"Lee."

Sakura stiffened and her throat felt too narrow. A soft cry came from the brunette. It tugged at Sakura's heartstrings. Unconsciously, her hand raised to stroke the brunette's hair. She was surprised when she realized it, but she gave in to the instinct of her softer side.

"Sh. Sh."

The rain masked both of their tears.

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

She ran as fast as she could with the aid of her chakra. Tenten had yet to wake up, and this worried her. The older girl needed medical attention. Sakura knew she was close to the tower, but it had been a while since she had last scoped from the treetops. She knew that she was at a point where she couldn't waste time or chakra climbing up the trees to check. All she knew is that she was going in the right direction. The rain had stopped, but the daylight glowing from the grey clouds was fading faster by the minute. They were in the middle of twilight, and soon night would set in.

She was panicking, now.

She knew that she was scraping the bottom of her chakra reserves, and if they were caught after nightfall, she wouldn't be able to echolocate their way to the tower. Tenten would only get worse.

A pessimistic and morbid curiosity asked if there was a chance that Tenten could die? Damn it! She was supposed to look out for the older girl, for Lee.

No, she could make it. She had to make it.

Her heart hammered painfully in her chest, and there was a heaviness that not only clung to her body but to her soul. She could feel a strange pattern settle in her breathing. Oh no! She could not have any form of an anxiety attack right now.

A deeper chill settled into her bones that caused her fingers and toes to go numb. She wheezed for air; it was like breathing in through a straw. Her mind became foggy, but her instincts pumped more chakra to her legs. Just a little further, please.

But, her body gave out.

She just couldn't go on anymore.

Her knees crashed into the mud. The cuts on her legs stung.

Her arms and shoulders shook with exertion. Tenten felt like a boulder on her back.

No, she must continue. She owed it to Lee to take care of his teammate. She just had to get her breathing to even out, but it was so hard to get enough oxygen to her lungs, into her brain.

Black spots clouded her vision, and she was so angry at herself! So angry, that fat hot tears rolled off her cheeks.

As Sakura battled with herself and her body, she didn't notice that the weight on her shoulders had been lifted and a lighter one rested on her head.

"Breathe, Haruno." The deep timber in his voice caught her attention enough to look up.

She stared wide-eyed into a dark sharp gaze. Ibiki.

He was crouched in front of her with his right hand on her head. His index finger tapped lightly on her in increments that mimicked a normal breathing pattern. She forced her breath to match it.

When he saw that she was coherent enough, he stood. As she became lucid enough to look around, she noticed that she was kneeling in front of the tower. A crazed and hollow giggle left her throat.

"Good work, Haruno. You made it here with five hours to spare."

She kneeled over.

A/N: Hello, lovely readers! I just wanted to say: Gomen'nasai! Seriously. I went over the first few chapters. Like, really proofread it and wow. It was a drunken mess! *sobs internally* I fixed many major issues, but there are probably a few around. Thank you for reading, though.

P.s. I want this story to have a little romance in it. The pairing is still undecided as of yet, but what do you think? Sakukaka? Sakuneji?SakuHina? TenTam? TenNaru? TenGenma?