5 : Sakura
By: Kokoro Kakera HP ^^
Disclaimer: Naruto, (Manga, anime, products, etc.), belongs to Kishimoto Masashi
Author's Notes:
For those who reviewed this fanfiction, thank you very, very, very much! I hope I don't disappoint as this fanfiction goes on... You know, how some fanfictions just kinda soar, and everyone watches with awe and stars in their eyes... until it crashes and burns, dying a firey and painfully ridiculous death? I'll try not to do that.
For those people who didn't know this story was shounen-ai, (boy x boy pairing), and read it... well I guess you'll have to direct your attention elsewhere if you can't stand it. Shounen-ai isn't the only type of pairing in here though...
My goodness, I think it's Sakura who's the most OOC character here... Unnoticibly, she angsts like one wouldn't believe, but... I wonder if the angsting is overdone!?
Another morning. Another day. Another mission. Another morning signifying another day, meaning another mission. Sakura wondered if she would be able to handle it today. Hopefully it wouldn't turn into another dangerous run-in like yesterday. It wasn't so much the high death probability that scared her anymore... Of course she didn't want to die yet - but wondering if she would be helpful in any way plagued her ruthlessly in ways that worrying about dying didn't and couldn't. Sure, Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi were there to make sure everything went accordingly, but that didn't change the fact that she was extra baggage.
She really didn't want to go meet them now.
"At least become strong enough to protect yourself." Sakura said quietly as she stared at herself in the mirror. "How can you do that if you don't train?" She unconsciously lifted up her arm to inspect the long red line along it that had begun to scab. 'Sasuke-kun and Naruto wouldn't have gotten hurt like this...' She thought ruefully as she stared at herself. The girl in the mirror didn't smile.
'I don't want to look at this pathetic person anymore.'
Even her inner persona, the stronger part of her, didn't argue.
She turned away from the seemingly mocking glass reflection and went downstairs for breakfast.
"Good morning, Sakura-chan!" Sakura couldn't help but smile. The certain way Naruto said her name by rolling the 'chan' sound in his mouth was adorable. She had been annoyed by it at first, but now it something that cheered her up each morning to hear.
"Morning Naruto. Morning Sasuke-kun." She waved to them.
"Good morning, Sakura." She felt the usual warm thrills slide up her spine at hearing his voice address her and she shifted uncomfortably, wishing Sasuke didn't have such a strong effect on her. 'How will I stop loving him then? At this rate impossible, isn't it...?'
"Is Kakashi-sensei here yet?" She asked, pretty sure she knew the answer to her rather moronic question.
"If you don't know the answer to that, then you must be a disguised enemy." Sasuke commented from the side.
"Kakashi-sensei... will never be on time, will he?" Sakura mummered with dull annoyance. They had been waiting five hours now. She sighed defeatedly. She couldn't make a big deal out of it anymore, having dealt with the same issue for the past four years she'd known Kakashi.
"I don't know why you even bothered to say it." Naruto groaned from the side. "I can't believe I took the effort to rush here!" Sakura sighed.
"...Ya. That was pretty dumb, Naruto. Even for you." She bit her lip. Maybe that'd been a harsh thing to say. Too harsh. She'd been awfully grumpy these past few days and she realized that she should have been more careful with her words. Naruto was annoying, but hurting him purposely was the last thing she wanted to do. She swallowed her pride. "...Sorry, Naruto. I didn't mean it." She said softly. "I'm a little tired."
Instantly, she felt two pairs of incredulous eyes on her.
"SAKURA-CHAN!!!" Naruto's hand was plastered onto her, (many people teased large), forehead within the next second and it took all of Sakura's willpower not to scream in surprise and slap him silly for appearing in front of her so fast.
"What the hell are you doing!?" She demanded, trying to pull away from his hand.
"Are you okay? Do you have a fever? Are you sick?" He babbled on and on and glancing to her left, Sakura noticed that Sasuke looked vaguely surprised as well.
'Oh hell, am I really that bad?' She stopped and passively let Naruto check her temperature again. 'I guess I had this coming...'
When it came to Naruto, Sakura had always acted with an air of arrogance and annoyance. Until the time she'd witnessed Naruto's true nature as a person and ninja, Sakura hadn't given him much regard. How badly she must have made him feel! She regretted how rudely she'd treated him when they first became a team.
Despite her rather nasty treatment of him though, Naruto had always remained faithfully kind and affectionate towards her. Though, the affection now slowly dwindled as the days passed. He couldn't keep that strong crush he had on her forever after all. Four years was too long a time to like someone. She was glad that Naruto was loosing interest in her. She would never return his feelings. Not as long as Sasuke was around.
Bitterness swelled up within her. What a hypocrite she was. Wanting Naruto to forget about someone who wouldn't return his feelings when she wasn't doing the same. Sasuke would never return her feelings. She knew that without a doubt. Her heart wouldn't allow her to let go though.
'I'm a damned masochist.'
"Morning everyone." Kakashi appeared, crouching on a high post above them and looked sickeningly cheerful. "Bad luck and omens awaited me in the morning, so I decided to wait a while before going out."
The excuses only became worse and worse each time... Still, Sakura decided that it was nice, (in a distorted and careless way), of Kakashi to go through the trouble of making them up in the first place.
"KAKASHI-SENSEI!!!" Naruto bellowed. Flames of pent-up irritation crackled and roared in his eyes. He had forgotten about Sakura and was now focusing all his attention on the chronically late man.
Such 'kindness' apparently wasn't nice enough for Naruto though.
Pit pat.
Kakashi's one exposed eye turned to Sakura and rested on her arm. Sakura blinked and followed his gaze, nearly stumbling over with shock when she saw what had caught his attention.
Blood dribbled in many small rivulets from her arm to the creases in her palm. Small crimson beads of liquid had collected and dangled from the tips of her fingers until they were too heavy and rolled off.