Chapter 5: Sakura's Upset! Battle of the Kunoichis!

Senko sat alone on a rooftop gazing up at the bright morning sky. A couple of days ago, as promised, Jiraiya and the Godaime Hokage, Tsunade, gave the girl a place to stay near Naruto's own apartment. Senko has adapted quite well to her new home, and was slowly easing into the life of a Konoha villager. For perhaps the first time in a while, Senko felt safe and at ease. She lifts her hand to caress her forehead protector plate, which she had flipped back over to its smooth empty side. She suddenly hears a noise and looks down to see her noisy neighbor Naruto run off in one direction. Curious, Senko leaps off the roof and follows the blonde genin.

At a red bridge standing above a small river, Naruto runs onto the wooden planks to find his teammate and friend Sasuke leaning on the railing nonchalantly. The number one ninja in surprising people scans the bridge to find that his other teammate was nowhere to be found.

"Omaesan! Omaesan! Sasuke!" cried out Naruto. "Where's Sakura-chan?"

Before the Uchiha boy could reply, Kakashi appears overhead on a bridge post.

"Ohayou," he greets his subordinates. He notices one of them was missing. "Where's Sakura?"

"She's home sick," answers Sasuke finally.

"Oh no; my dear Sakura-chan is ill?" exclaims Naruto. "I must do something."

"It's just some coughing and sniffling," said Sasuke. "There's nothing to worry about. She'll be fine by tomorrow."

"Well, that's good to hear," says Kakashi. "However, our mission today might be a bit troublesome without our fourth teammate."

"We'll be fine," assures Sasuke.

Just then, Senko appears on a bridge post above them.

"Ohayou," she greets them with a smile. "What are you guys up to today?"

"Ah, Senko," spoke up Kakashi with an idea in mind. "Are you doing anything today?"

"Nope," replies the kunoichi. "Why do you ask?"

"I was wondering if you would like to join us on a mission," offers the silver-haired jounin.

"A mission?" repeats Senko. "But I'm not an official Konoha ninja. Would that still be okay?"

"As long as you're living in Konoha, you're an official Konoha ninja, even if you don't have the Hidden Village of Leaf's symbol on your forehead protector," says Kakashi. "How about it? You might as well start earning your keep."

Senko turns her eyes to the ground below her as she contemplates on Kakashi's offer. She looks at the three before her and smiles.

"Allright then," she answers.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sakura was lying in bed sniffling and coughing the day away. It was already far into the afternoon and the poor girl wasn't getting any better. She groans as she got up out of her bed to look at her mirror.

"Oi, I look like a zombie," she mutters, staring at her reflection.

Sakura turns her head to her room window, which was closed to prevent any chilly air from entering her humble abode. It also made her room stuffy to the point she couldn't stand it any longer. Sakura grabs her jacket and heads out the door to the outside world beyond her home.

"Sakura!" cries out her mother. "What are you doing?"

"Just getting some fresh air, kaasan!" replies the pink-haired kunoichi as she left the germ-free security of her home.

Sakura took a deep breath once outside in the warm sunny air. She was glad to be out of her room, which she's starting to swear that it was what made her sick. She suddenly hears a bout of laughter and turns to find a familiar ninja team coming towards her as well as an extra member with whom she has yet to feel comfortable with.

"Nani!" screams out Inner Sakura. "Why is Senko hanging out with my team?"

Naruto notices his fellow teammate and waves at her with a shout.

"Sakura-chan!" he cries out. "How are you feeling?"

"I think I'm feeling better," answers Sakura.

She aims a threatening glare at Senko who seems to be standing a little too close to her precious Sasuke-kun.

"That's good to hear," commented Kakashi. "By the way Senko, I am impressed by your Katon Faiawooru no Jutsu (Fire Release: Firewall Techinique). That's an amazing technique."

"Thank you," responds the black-haired kunoichi. "It's a technique that's been in my family for decades."

"Mmm, a Bloodline Limit technique," notes Kakashi.

"Bloodline Limit technique," repeats Naruto. "Sort of like Sasuke's Sharingan, right?"

"That's right," answers the Uchiha boy proudly.

"Heh, my Katon: Faiawooru no Jutsu pales in comparison with your Sharingan, Sasuke," chuckles Senko.

"I disagree," argues Sasuke. "Like Kakashi said, your Katon: Faiawooru no Jutsu is most impressive. You're more of an equal to me than Naruto here."

"Oi! Oi!" exclaims Naruto upsettingly. "Are you asking for a fight?"

"Yeah," answers Sasuke. "But if you're the one who wants to do battle with me, then it won't be much of a fight now would it?"

Naruto was going to punch his teammate's lights out until Senko stops him.

"Now, now," she assures calmingly. "Naruto's not too bad of a fighter once you've battled him. Speaking of which, when am I going to get the chance to fight you, Sasuke? I'm eager to see how my tora no youkai will do against your Sharingan."

"We'll find out soon enough," assures Sasuke with a smirk.

Sakura's blood began to boil seeing Sasuke speak to Senko.

"Sasuke's interested in her because she's a strong ninja!" screams Inner Sakura. "How am I supposed to compete with that?"

"Um, hey," spoke up Sakura. "I'm starting to feel better now so I should be able to go back to doing missions tomorrow."

"All's well that ends well I guess," clichés Senko. She turns to the two boys with a smile. "Thanks for inviting me to do a mission with you guys. It was quite fun."

"Heh, if we ever need a fifth ninja, you're first on our list," assures Naruto, crossing his hands behind his head.

"Aiee," scoffs Sakura. "Even Naruto likes her."

"Ja ne," Senko bids the group goodbye before heading back to her apartment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next afternoon Senko went exploring all over Konoha, investigating every nook and cranny of the village she could find. She manages to come upon the village hot springs, where she concentrates her Chakra into the soles of her feet in order to literally walk on the extreme temperature water. She hears someone shout her name and turns her head to find Sakura standing near the edge of the water.

"Konnichiwa Sakura!" she greets the Konoha ninja with a smile.

"Konnichiwa, Senko," Sakura greets back hesitantly.

Still standing on the water, Senko turns around to face the girl.

"What's up?" she asks her.

"Uhm," utters Sakura. "Senko… I want to… I want to fight you."

"Nande?" exclaims Senko in surprise. "Why?"

"Because," replies Sakura. "I want to see how strong you are."

"I'm strong enough to take on Naruto and Sasuke all by myself," retorts Senko. "You've known them and their strength longer than me so you should be able to compare your strength to theirs pretty easily. There's no need to fight."

"What's wrong?" asks Sakura. "Afraid you don't stand a chance against me?"

Senko creases her eyes and looks at the girl curiously.

"Are you challenging me?" she wonders.

"Hai," answers Sakura firmly.

"In that case," began Senko. "I accept."

The two kunoichis head over to the genin training grounds where months ago Sakura and her team were fighting to snatch two bells from their superior, Kakashi. They face each other as a cool breeze blows by, caressing the leaves of the trees nearby. Sakura confidently takes off her headband and ties it around her forehead, her own way of saying she's serious about fighting.

"Are you sure about this?" Senko asks her.

"Are you afraid I'll beat you?" retorts Sakura.

"Humph," scoffs Senko. "In your dreams. I'll beat you with just taijutsu."

Sakura growls in response as she ran towards the girl. She aims her first kunai for Senko's head but finds it being deflected by the girl's quick hand.

"Bushin no Jutsu!" she cries out. "Clone Technique!"

In seconds, a squad of Sakura's surrounds the ninja from Kouen. Senko simply closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Sensing the real Sakura, she attacks in that direction with a direct punch. The original Sakura falls to the ground on her back while her clones disappear as if they were nothing, which is close to the truth. She wipes a drivel of blood from the corner of her mouth as Senko turns to face her.

"Is that all you've got?" wonders Senko. With a growl, Sakura runs towards the girl with hands armed with kunais. She throws them at Senko, who immediately deflects them with her kodachis with ease. Suddenly, she hears a cry from behind as she turns to find Sakura flying towards her.

What the…? thought Senko. How'd she get behind me? She must've used the Henge no Jutsu (Transformation Technique) to change into a kunai when I wasn't looking and then used Kawarimi no Jutsu (Replacement Technique) to switch with one of the kunais she threw at me. Heh, she's clever, but not clever enough.

The black-haired girl merely spun around quickly to deliver a blow from below.

"Senpuu Keru!" she cries out. "Whirlwind Kick!"

The attack makes direct contact with Sakura's face and sends the girl flying into the ground below her. Groaning in pain, Sakura tries to get up but is too beaten to move.

"Looks like you can't fight anymore," notes Senko. "Guess that means I win this fight."

She walks over to Sakura to offer her hand. Surprised, Sakura takes it and Senko helps her up.

"Tell me," says Senko. "Why did you challenge me to a fight? You're not like Naruto and Sasuke who have the determination and the will to back up their challenges."

Sakura looks down at the ground for an answer, but none came to mind.

"You should really work on your jutsus a lot more," suggests Senko. "If you have the time to think about Sasuke, then you should have the time to train yourself more."

Sakura's eyes open wide as Senko's words trigger an event from the past…

-Flashback-

It was the Second Part of the Chuunin Exam. Sakura was the only one conscious in the dangerous Forest of Death. Sasuke and Naruto were both out of commission. It was up to her to protect her teammates from their enemies. But she soon discovers that despite her determination, she was not strong enough to hold back the ninjas from the Hidden Village of Sound. She grimaces in defeat as the ninja known as Kin keeps a strong grip on the Konoha kunoichi's pink hair.

"If you have the time to take care of your hair, then you should spend it training more," said the Sound ninja.

-End of flashback-

Senko notices the strange look on Sakura's face and sighs.

"You don't seem to be taking your job as seriously as Naruto and Sasuke," she noted. "I always see them train at least once a day while you're off doing who knows what."

Sakura knows this is true. She's never even once thought of getting stronger though she does work on improving on her ninja skills.

"It makes me wonder," said Senko. "If you even want to be a ninja in the first place."

Sakura shows no reaction to her words but Senko knows they struck a chord in the girl's mind.

"Don't be a ninja for someone else," advises Senko. "Be a ninja for yourself. It's your life. You should do what makes you happy."

"But," utters Sakura. "I really do want to be a ninja. I'm happy to be a ninja."

"You sure don't show it," retorts Senko. "If you want to continue being a ninja then I suggest you should act like it. Your skills are basic at most and you're not even strong enough to take my weakest attack, Senpuu Keru (Whirlwind Kick). If we were enemies, I could take you down in less than a minute without any hesitation."

Sakura became silent as the harsh reality sinks in. There's no excuse for not training as much as she should. She knows for a fact that were not for Sasuke and Naruto's strength, she would've been done for a long time ago.

Senko puts Sakura's arm around her neck and holds onto Sakura's waist to support the girl. She then leaps up with a thrust of her legs onto a roof. From there she makes her way to the Konoha hospital. One the way over, she talks to Sakura some more.

"Maybe if you trained more and became stronger, Sasuke just might be interested in you," says Senko with a small smile.

Sakura looks up at the girl with surprised eyes.

"I know you only fought me because Sasuke took an interest in me," explains Senko. "If you really want to attract Sasuke, get stronger."

"But I…" mumbles Sakura.

"Don't think about it; just do it," says Senko. "If you really want Sasuke to notice you, you've got to get stronger. Or at least improve your ninja skills."

Sakura continues to look up at the girl.

"Do you…" she began.

"Do I what?" asks Senko. "Do I like Sasuke?"

Sakura turns her eyes away in embarassment.

"I like him as a friend and a fellow strong ninja," answers Senko. "I generally won't like someone until I get to know him or her better. Maybe if I grew up with Sasuke, I might like him. But right now, I just like him as a friend, nothing more."

She feels Sakura's body relax as she hops from rooftop to rooftop.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: Katon: Faiawooru no Jutsu (Fire Release: Firewall Technique) and Senpuu Keru (Whirlwind Kick) are jutsus I made up, the latter based off of the Streetfighter character Chun Li's attack. If they appear in Naruto later, it's strictly coincidental. All Naruto techniques referenced from Wikipedia search for Naruto jutsu.