Author's Note: I am terribly sorry about the wait! Over 1,000 reviews! Oh my god! That is the most reviews I have ever got on one of my stories! Thank you all so much! Someone just started making one of my other stories into a comic and it's just the most wonderful thing to ever happen to me, so I'm like glowing right now! Haha! Anyway, I just love hearing what you have to say! Let me know what you think! Enjoy!
Dedicated to: Itachi: Thank you so much for your review, it really encouraged me to update quickly on this. I'm so completely flattered that you love my story this much! I hope that I can keep your interest and I definitely won't let you down with finishing it. I kind of have an idea already of how it will end. But it'll take time to get there. Thank you for your encouragement!
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Warnings: Nothing much, maybe language and OOCness.
Word Count: 5,861
Sakura smiles down at Tobirama, keenly aware that her fingers were intertwined in his feathery soft white tresses. They were so soft and wonderfully smooth against her skin, she almost wanted to just run all of her fingers through those soft hairs but she knew that that would be awkward and she's not sure if she knew how to explain that but before she was able to pull her hand away, she felt a presence right next to her. Someone was there now that wasn't there a moment ago. Sakura realized it a split second after Tobirama.
By the time she noticed, he was already moving. He summoned the Raijin to him and struck out, his blade clashing with another blade. The clang filled the empty air and it took Sakura a moment to realize that Tobirama had half stepped between Sakura and the new person.
"Who are you?" Tobirama asks as Sakura straightens up, moving to step around the man to see who had broken into her home. Who managed to sneak up on one of the most powerful sensors in the world.
Sakura's eyes widen in surprise. The blade blocking the legendary Raijin, is none other than a short, cut blade. The man holding it has a blank expression on his face, before his dark eyes flicker over to Sakura and a smile crosses over his lips.
"Hi, Ugly."
"Sai!" Sakura gasps, eyes wide. "H-How? What? How in the world did you get here?"
Sai closes his eyes and gives his broad, fake smile with a touch of genuine feelings lurking under the surface. He's getting better at showing, and even feeling, emotions but this is a complete stranger - in theory - and so he's very protective, especially of his emotions, which are still delicate and raw, Sakura can see. There is something about Sai, though, that is different.
He seems lighter, calmer, more... emotional.
Sai is healing.
"Hey, Ugly," Sai says, making Sakura blanch at the nickname she thought they got over, "why don't you call him off, hm?"
Sakura blinks a few times before putting a hand on Tobirama's shoulder. "It's... um, okay, Tobirama-sama. He's a friend of mine." Tobirama looks over at her from over his shoulder with a skeptical frown on his lips.
"He calls you 'Ugly'," Tobirama says flatly.
"Out of love," Sai says, still smiling. Tobirama glares at him, obviously unimpressed, but there is something about his posture that betrays his unease by Sai. "Isn't that right, Sakura-chan? We're friends, yeah?"
Sakura sighs. "Yes, Sai. Don't worry, Tobirama-sama, he's a friend. A super rude one but a friend nonetheless." She pats his arm a little to calm him down. Tobirama relaxes slowly, pulling his arm back but not sending the Raijin away, just yet.
Sai easily sheathes his half sword onto his back once more. "You must be mad that I was able to get in here, huh?" Sai says, smiling at Tobirama. "Don't worry, there is nothing wrong with you, Lord Tobirama, I'm trained to hide from powerful sensors."
"Sai!" Sakura snaps, reaching over and grabbing his cheek and pinching it tightly between her thumb and pointer finger. He laughs a bit through the pain, pale white cheek already turning red from the harsh treatment. "Show an ounce of respect, would you?"
"My apologies," Sai says, sounding anything but. There is a moment of silence before the door opens and Shikamaru walks in. He looks around at the scene in front of him and letting out a long winded sigh.
"You literally exhaust me," Shikamaru says, pushing his palm into his forehead and rubbing the skin irritably.
"Who?" Sakura asks, glaring at him.
"Me, or her?" Sai asks, smiling over at the shirker.
"Take your pick," Shikamaru sighs, letting his hand drop before looking at Sakura and gesturing toward Sai. "Look what I scrapped off the side of the road on my way back."
"A part of me wishes you would have left it there," Sakura mutters, shaking her head. Sakura runs her hands through her hair for a moment before turning to Tobirama and smiles wanly. "Thank you, Tobirama-sama, for the seals. I appreciate it. Can I talk with you tomorrow?"
Tobirama looks hesitant, eyes flickering between Shikamaru and Sai. He hasn't actually gotten to speak to Shikamaru yet, since the shirker arrived and Said was someone completely new. Sakura immediately understood what the issue was. Tobirama admitted that he was mistrusting by nature and Sakura, Shikamaru and now Sai are three big unknowns that he still has yet to work out and he's being asked to leave them alone to talk.
Sakura doesn't know what to say. They have just reached an understanding, Sakura and Tobirama, only for it to be muddled up now. Sakura doesn't know what to do to make him feel better.
It makes Sakura feel like shit. Her stomach falls to her feet at the look on his face and she can feel her anxiety peak a bit. She doesn't want to make him worried. She doesn't want him to question her or her intentions. He doesn't know this, but she is loyal to the Hidden Leaf, even now, when it's not the Hidden Leaf. And there is a bond he doesn't know about that guarantees her loyalty to the Senju clan.
Her mentor is the First's granddaughter and the heiress, clan leader and last living member of the Senju clan. Tsunade Senju.
Tobirama didn't know that, and Sakura would have been in awe if he did. But after everything she's done and all that they've been through, Sakura didn't want all of it go up in flames because Sai didn't know how to be a real boy and was pushing the future Second Hokage's buttons. Kami, she wanted to kick the shit out of him right now.
While she was over-joyed to have her teammate back into her life - that means that he's safe and sound - but there is something odd going on with him. Maybe it's because Sai is still adjusting with emotions and it's left him feeling a bit rebellious, but thus far, his interaction with Tobirama has been anything but respectful. And while Sai wasn't a respectful person, he was still great at faking at in front of those that mattered.
But not here. Not to the Second Hokage. Why?
Sakura eyes her teammate suspiciously, deciding that she would grill him about it at a better time.
"I'm sorry," Sakura says, reaching out to slowly grab his sleeve, worried she might rattle the lion's cage without meaning to. When he didn't twist around and strike her, Sakura took that as a good sign and grabbed his sleeve more firmly. "Let's talk outside for a moment. Sai, Shikamaru, you two..." Sakura waves her hand around, not knowing what else to say before walking toward the door, giving his sleeve a little tug when the white haired man didn't start following after her right away.
Once they are outside, Sakura closes the door behind herself and looks at Tobirama as the Raijin vanishes in a distinct poof.
"Sakura, who was that man?" Tobirama says, turning toward her, stuffing his hands into his sleeves, frowning at her.
"My teammate. He was Sasuke's replacement in our team when he left. Sai..." Sakura hesitates. After everything that they've been through, despite being rude as all hell, Sai was Sakura's friend. She trusts him with her life and doesn't doubt in some twisted, logically fucked up way, he means well, she just didn't feel right trying to explain him to Tobirama, especially since the man wouldn't understand.
Sai's past was complex and not something that can just be explained away. Sai is acting like this for a reason and while it pisses Sakura off, she knows that she's going to have to figure it out. He's not just doing it to do it. There is something there. She'll just have to ask him about it later. For now, it doesn't feel right to just spill her friend's secrets. Tobirama would probably not be able to understand and Sakura's not certain that she would be able to really do her teammate and tentative friend justice, even if she attempted to explain it.
"Sai has lived a difficult life, up until recently," Sakura says slowly, choosing her words wisely. "He's having a hard time adjusting... and you are a stranger to him. He doesn't trust you..."
"The feeling is mutual," Tobirama says flatly. His red eyes are narrowed dangerous. "I don't like him."
Sakura smiles wanly, not really knowing what to say. "I bet. I'm sorry. Can we talk tomorrow? It'll be our last chance," Sakura says softly.
Tobirama's mistrustful red eyes soften. His eyes lock with her and there's an oddly, unhappy look on his face. "Sakura, are you sure this is what you want? You know that you don't have to go, right?"
Sakura nods. "I know, but this was never permanent," Sakura says, surprising herself with how lonely that made her feel. "When you guys saved me, kami, what feels like forever ago," Sakura sighs, shaking her head before continuing, "I knew one day I would have to leave. I have to find my way back home. I truly do believe in the Will and hope that all of your wishes for this village come true, but my home needs me. Now that I know that there are others out there, I have to try and find them. I have to get home, find out what happened."
Tobirama sighs, turning his intense gaze toward the forest, taking a moment to sense out he area, pausing to see Akamaru trotting through the trees toward them. He stops when he sees Tobirama, tilting his head to the side, curiously.
Sakura whistles sharply and opens the door. Akamaru runs toward her and into her home. She spots Shikamaru and Sai sitting at the table, looking at her, each with their own cup of tea.
"One minute," Sakura says to them before closing the door. She turns back to Tobirama and stares at him, waiting for him to collect his thought patiently.
Tobirama shakes his head slowly, lips moving but no sound coming out. He looks around the darkened trees, making face before his shoulders, which were considerably raised, fall. They stoop in such a way that mimicked defeat that Sakura just couldn't understand. He turns back toward her, darkness obscuring half of his face as he says, softly, "Is there nothing I can say to convince you otherwise?"
Sakura burned. She wanted so badly to ask him why. Why did he want her to stay? Why did he want to try so hard? Why was he asking her now? Why did he wait until she was about to leave before finally admitting everything? Why? Why? Why?
But she couldn't. Something in his face gave her the impression that she would waste her breath on it. He would talk about it when he wanted to talk about it? Which she hoped was tomorrow, because they wouldn't get another chance after that. Sakura was leaving. She was really going to leave her home village, but this time, in it's founding.
Sakura can't lie. She is definitely going to miss it here. She's going to miss the people, the atmosphere, the founders, her students, all of it. She's going to miss it all., but she has to go. This was Konoha, but not her Konoha. She liked this place. She liked the potential that she knew was there, and currently untapped. But her home needed her. Her last fragmented memory of her home was it being under attack. She doesn't know why she doesn't remember, or Shikamaru and probably Sai too, but she knew that they had to get home.
"I'm sorry," Sakura says again, and genuinely means it. "My home needs me. I have to find out what happened to it."
Tobirama shakes his head. "I admire that," he says. "A lot of delegates from clans and the capital have come into the village the last couple of days. We will be busy with meetings all morning and afternoon, don't leave before we talk."
Sakura nods. "We won't."
Tobirama spares her a glance, opening his mouth as if to say something but changes his mind. He turns away and slinks into the darkness without another word. Sakura waits until his broad back is completely blended into the darkness, hiding him from view, before she turns away and heads back into her home, sitting down next to Shikamaru at the table, where she originally was, Sai being in the place that Tobirama once occupied.
Sakura reaches out and pets Akamaru on the top of his head.
"Sai," Shikamaru says, rubbing the heel of his palm into his eyes, "tell us what you remember. Do you remember the war ending?"
"Yes," Sai says easily.
Shikamaru pulls his hand away to stare at the black haired man across from them. "Okay. Do you remember the assault on the Hidden Leaf?"
Sai tilts his head to the side curiously. "I do. I remember everything. Why? Are you two having some problems remembering?"
"Yeah," Shkamaru sighs.
"I'm starting to wonder if it was the fever coupled with the jutsu that brought us back that caused the memory loss," Sakura says, running her fingers through her long pink hair.
"Could be," Shikamaru says. "Ultimately it doesn't matter. What matters is, is that a portion of our memories, including our mission, is completely gone. We need to figure out what to do next."
"But, why is Sai unaffected by this and we are?" Sakura asks, still hanging onto the memory loss and fever for a moment longer, before letting out a long-winded sigh. "Alright, whatever. That's something that we can figure out later. Since you remember, Sai, why are we here?"
Sai smiles at them. The large, closed eyed smile that he use to give them when he was first brought to their team. Sakura looks over at Shikamaru, who's eyebrows were pulled together. His eyes flicker down to her for a moment before looking back over at Sai.
"Well?" Shikamaru asks, propping up his left knee next to him, letting his elbow rest against it as he stares at the pale man in front of him.
"I'm a good ninja," Sai says.
Sakura raises an eyebrow. "Okay..? What the hell does that mean?"
"I didn't ask," Sai says. Sakura and Shikamaru blanch at that.
Shikamaru's eyebrow twitches, annoyed. He lets out a deep sigh, looking like he'd rather be doing just about anything other than this right now. "Okay, what can you tell us, Sai? Kami, this is so troublesome."
Sai's face becomes neutral once more. "I wasn't around much for the entire planning process. By the time I got into the process, everything was already planned out to a degree. When I got to the meeting place, Sasuke and Naruto were already sending people back in time."
Sakura's eyes widen. "Sasuke and Naruto?"
Sai nods. "Yes. They were using Sasuke's Rinnegan and Naruto and Kurama's partnership in order to send people back. Don't ask me how, I don't really know. But by the time I got there, they had already sent both of you back and just kind of shoved me along. So I don't know much."
Sakura and Shikamaru spare each other an exasperated look. "Fantastic," Shikamaru says bitterly. "Do you at least remember who attacked us?"
"We don't know exactly who they are," Sai says easily. "They were a mix of shinobi and samurai and it's... odd."
Sakura tilts her head to the side. "How so?"
Sai frowns, showing some real, genuine unhappiness and confusion. "They were shinobi and they could fight, they were obviously well trained but there was just something strange about it. Shikamaru actually said something that made it make sense," Sai says, glancing over at shirker. "You said, Shikamaru, that it was as if they were anti-shinobi, shinobi."
Shikamaru frowns, looking down at the table, tracing the grains with his eyes. It's obvious that he is trying to recall what brought him to that conclusion. Sakura feels kind of bad for Shikamaru. It's bad and frustrating enough for her to try and remember a piece of her life that she conveniently lost. It must be a living nightmare for a brainiac like Shikamaru. One of his best traits is not only his memory but his near full functioning brain. While it's hampered, he must feel like a part of him is being taken away.
"What does that mean?" Sakura asks, looking over at Sai, knowing Shikamaru wouldn't have the answers for her, much to both of their chagrin. "Anti-shinobi shinobi."
Sai looks over to the dark window next to her. "It's odd. They could do a lot of shinobi skills, but there was something about them and the way that they fight that just didn't seem right. It was like they were taught skills that counteracted average shinobi training. I don't know how to explain it. They were completely unpredictable."
"It's not only that, isn't it?" Shikamaru asks slowly, his eyebrows pulled together tightly as if trying to summon a memory out of an ocean that is heavily bogged down by weights. "It's something... something about the civilians..." He rubs at his temples, looking slightly pained at trying to summon the memories.
"Shikamaru," Sakura says slowly, wanting to tell him to stop. He wasn't back to full health just yet. He still needed to take it easy. He must have sensed the silent warning in her voice for he waved his hand at her dismissively. He looks at Sai, nodding for him to respond. Even though Sakura and Shikamaru were the same age and Sai was a few years older, there was still a chain of command. Shikamaru was still the Commander. He was in charge.
"Yes," Sai says, sparing Sakura a quick glance before looking over at Shikamaru. "They were not attacking any of the civilians outright. Only those that fought back."
"So this wasn't about destroying Konoha," Sakura says, horrified. "This was about taking it over."
"And here we are," Shikamaru says, grimly. "I fear they may have won."
Sakura's heart sank into the floor beneath her. Shikamaru and Sai both bow their heads in silence. No one knew what happened. And if Konoha really was destroyed - or occupied - then they may never be able to return home again.
Akamaru, probably sensing the strained and pained atmosphere in the room, lets out a low, pitiful whine.
The next morning, Sakura sets out early to see Aya and Salma. She gets them together and goes over all the things she taught them, leaving behind scrolls she's spent the last couple of days, especially since she learned she was going to leave before their training was finished, making scrolls for them to learn from. It's nothing too complex, but she hopes that it helps them out somehow in the future.
She gives them some tips and makes sure they really know everything that she taught them before going off to visit a friend.
"Back to work, I see," Sakura says, leaning against a nearby tree trunk.
Kaido Senju pauses in tying off one of the walls for a new building. He looks over at Sakura, smiles and quickly tying off wall, stepping back a moment to make sure that it's up and secure before turning around and walking over to Sakura.
"I'm going to take a break, Han," Kaido tells one of the other Senju.
"It'll only be a minute," Sakura says, smiling over at the Senju before turning her gaze to Kaido. "How are you feeling? How's your arm?"
He rotates his right arm in it's socket. "It's good. It feels better than what I would expect. It's a little numb in certain spots but I'm already used to it."
Sakura nods. "That's good. I'm sorry about not being able to completely fix your problem, but I'm glad that you are able to work around it. It's not hampering you too badly?"
Kaido grins broadly, shaking his head. "After I was burned, I pretty much expected that I was never going to be able to move my arm ever again. I wouldn't be able to be a shinobi anymore, let alone do any sort of decent housework, at least for a while until I found ways around it, but you gave me all of that back. If it's a choice between parts of my arm being numb but still being able to use it, or not being able to use it at all, I think I'll stick with the former."
Sakura smiles. "I'm glad to hear it."
Kaido hesitates for a moment before saying, slowly, "Word through the grapevine is that you're going to be leaving soon?"
Sakura nods. "Today, actually. I'm going to be meeting with Lords Hashirama, Tobirama and Madara before I head out. I'm just making the rounds before I do. I want to make sure I don't leave anything half done." Well, other than Aya and Salma's training. But that is something that she begrudgingly couldn't help. But at least they have a lot more tools now than they did before.
Kaido looks a little sad, offering a little smile. "I'm sorry. I'm glad that you were able to be here. Thank you so much for helping us out. We really appreciate it." Kaido bows low at the waist. "I can never properly thank you, my lady. Thank you."
Sakura smiles. "You are very welcome. Take care of yourself," she says kindly.
"Be safe out there, Sakura-sama," Kaido says, straightening up.
Sakura nods slowly. "Thank you, Kaido. I'll let you go now. Bye!"
Kaido nods again. "You too! Goodbye!"
Sakura makes it halfway to her next patient when she runs into a familiar face. It was Keigo Uchiha. He was walking slowly back toward the Uchiha side of the village, looking bashful about something.
"Hello, Keigo," Sakura says. She didn't mean to surprise him, but he jumps in surprise.
Spinning around to look at Sakura, he looks like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "Sakura-san!" He says, black eyes blown wide. He looks around for a moment, as if waiting for someone else to come springing out from around the corner.
Sakura eyes him suspiciously. "What's up..?" Sakura asks.
Keigo looks down at her, pale face darkening in embarrassment. "I... I'm sorry..."
Sakura raises an eyebrow slowly. "For..?"
"I... I don't know..." He admits, looking completely embarrassed. "I was spacing off when I know I shouldn't have... I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Sakura says. "Everyone spaces out. But you look like something good just happened to you. Was that what caused you to space out? Did something good happen?"
Keigo hesitates, looking deeply embarrassed. For such a tall and obviously talented shinobi, he looks like a bashful young man. "Yes. Something good did happen, but I... I shouldn't have been dwelling on it, I'm suppose to be focusing on patrol." He runs his hands through his short dark hair.
Sakura puts a hand on his shoulder. "I won't beat myself up about it, Keigo. It's okay to be happy, don't worry about it. Besides, I'm sure if it was someone dangerous sneaking up on you, you would have snapped out of it. So don't be too broken up over it."
Keigo bows a bit. "Yes ma'am," Keigo says softly, still looking a little upset with himself. "Is there something I can do to help you, Sakura-san? Do you have some business with the Uchiha?" He nods toward the home of his family.
"Yeah," Sakura says. "I'm actually wondering if you knew if Izuna-sama was home or if he was in the meetings with Madara-sama."
Keigo shakes his head. "I honestly don't know. I'd be happy to escort you, if you'd allow it."
Sakura smiles. "Yes, that would be great."
With Keigo as her escort, Sakura felt a little better. Something didn't feel right about walking through any of the clans - Uchiha, Senju, Akimichi, Yamanaka - cluster of homes without someone from that clan there with her. It's weird. It can't just be Sakura, can it? She didn't know.
They travel in silence all the way to Madara and Izuna's house. Sakura steps up and gives a hardy knock, knowing that Izuna's room is deep in the house and it might be hard for him to hear if she didn't knock loud enough. That, and maybe she was a little nervous with Keigo at her back. Not that she didn't like him or thought there was something wrong with him, it's just that he's still obvious upset over having been caught off guard that his anxiety is crawling up Sakura's spine as it radiates off of him.
A moment later, the door slides open and Izuna appears, looking tired, but healthier than before. It's nice to see him up and about. He's wearing a blue kimono and pants with the top open a bit, showing off his pale chest. He looks like he just crawled out of bed.
"Sakura, Keigo," Izuna says, looking down at Sakura, then squinting a bit at Keigo.
The Uchiha bows respectfully. "My lord. Sakura-san, I will leave you now."
"Thank you, Keigo," Sakura says, tipping her head a bit before turning back to Izuna. "How are you doing, Izuna-sama?"
Izuna steps aside. "Do you want to come in?"
Sakura shakes her head. "I shouldn't. I need to keep moving, but I just wanted to make sure that you were doing okay. How are you? How are you feeling?"
Izuna leans against the doorframe, smiling tiredly. "I am good. Tired, but I feel a lot stronger than I did before. I've been practicing chakra control exorcises to start rebuilding control."
"How do you feel?" Sakura asks, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Like I've five again, trying to learn how to control my chakra," Izuna says, running a hand through his wild dark blue hair. "At least Madara's not a drill sergent like my father was," Izuna sighs, eyes drooping closed. "Doesn't make me want to punch him in the throat any less, though."
Sakura chokes on air, surprised by Izuna's words. "Why's that?" She asks curiously. She can't help herself. He can't just offer up that nugget of information and not elaborate on it. That's just not fair.
Izuna smiles boyishly. "He's overbearing. I know he's looking out for me and I appreciate it, but sometimes he's annoying the hell out of me. I feel like a well poised, swift strike to the throat will show him I'm serious."
Sakura snorts loudly, throwing her hands over her mouth. "Oh Kami. I did not expect to hear this." It's kind of hard to imagine, but is Izuna... kind of a goofball?
Izuna shrugs. "What can I say? They call me the wild brother."
Sakura shakes her head. "I can believe that. But anyway, it's nice to see you up and about and I'm glad that you're feeling better."
"It's thanks to you," Izuna says, sombering up easily. "I can't show my appreciation enough."
"Don't worry about it," Sakura says dismissively. "Just don't push yourself too hard too soon. Know your limits and while he may be a bit annoying about it. I'm sure Madara means well. You might want to listen to him. At least until you're feeling all better."
Izuna nods. "Yeah, I know. I'm just saying."
"Well, get better, Izuna-sama. I'm going to be heading out later tonight and I wanted to make sure that you were doing alright before I do," Sakura says, uncrossing her arms.
Izuna nods. "Yeah, I'm okay. Thank you again, Sakura. If you ever need anything. Just let me know."
Sakura smiles. "Thank you, Izuna-sama. I appreciate it. I'll let you know if I do."
"Good," Izuna smiles, letting out a short jerk of his head awkwardly. "I'll be seeing you."
Sakura nods. "Goodbye."
Sakura waits until the last of the delegates are out of the room before stepping up to the door and knocking. "It's Sakura!" She calls in to the men inside.
"Come in, Sakura-chan!" Hashirama calls.
Sakura opens the door to see the three founders, the Yamanaka clan leader, Akimichi and the Sarutobi clan leaders all sitting around the table inside. They all stop at the sight of her, decked out in her shinobi attire; red shirt, black shorts and boots with her pink battle skirt. But the biggest difference of all in on her head.
"Do you like it?" Sakura asks, teasingly, bringing her hair up to the short pink locks, tugging a bit at the bottom. Now it just barely brushes her collar bones, like before. "Figured I'd be go back to what I'm used to. Salma helped me do it."
"It looks nice," Hashirama says, being the first to speak. Somehow, she's not surprised.
"Thanks," Sakura says, smiling at him. "Well, it looks like a storm is coming so Shikamaru wants to get on the road a little early to try and outrun it so we're going to be leaving early."
Hashirama doesn't look happy about it, his face drawn and slightly pale, but he nods. "That's a good idea. I don't think we can try and convince you to stay for another day, can we?"
Sakura shakes her head. "No, I'm afraid not. I'm not going to take up much more of your time. I know you have another meeting coming up and I wanted to say goodbye before we ran off."
Hashirama easily climbs to his feet and walks around the table, opening his arms out to Sakura. She steps into them, relishing in his warmth.
"Thank you, Sakura-chan, for everything," Hashirama says softly. "You know that if you ever need anything, all you need to do is ask, yes?" Sakura nods, closing her eyes for a moment.
"Yes, my lord," Sakura says softly. "Thank you."
Hashirama gives her a hearty squeeze before pulling back and stepping aside. Madara steps up and for a crazy moment, Sakura thought he was going to hug her too, but instead, he did something she didn't expect. He held his hand out to her and for a moment Sakura couldn't help the swell of pride and respect bubble up in her belly. This was one of the most respectful things a man like Madara could do for her.
She took his hand and shakes it slowly.
"My friend," Madara says easily, not acknowledging anyone else in the room but her. "I wish you safe travels. I hope that we may see each other again soon. And know that you have made life-long allies with my clan and I."
Sakura smiles, bowing a bit. "Thank you, Madara-sama."
Madara nods before stepping back. Tobirama steps forward and offers his hand as well. She is more prepared for this but not any less appreciative of it.
"Thank you again, for the seal, Tobirama-sama," Sakura says, shaking his hand slowly, not wanting to let go just yet.
"You are welcome, Sakura. I hope that we may meet again soon," he says softly, red eyes half hidden under lowered eyelids.
Sakura smiles, feeling a stab of pain in her chest. "Me too," she admits, clenching his hand tighter than she meant to, but he doesn't seem to mind. For a moment, they connected hands just dangle between them, as Sakura and Tobirama just stare at one another. All she could do was stare into his pretty red eyes as the scan her face. Almost as if committing it to memory, but that would be absurd. Why would Tobirama want to do something like that?
"Hey, Sakura," Shikamaru peaks his head in, making Sakura jump.
"Yeah?" She looks over at him with wide green eyes, probably looking guilty for something.
"We'd best go now," he says slowly, before disappearing back outside.
"Thank you," Sakura says to Tobirama again, then to Hashirama and Madara. "Thank you." She finally pulls her hand back from Tobirama's and it makes her sad. She bow to the other clan leaders. "My lords. Farewell."
"Gentlemen," Hashirama says to the other clan leaders, "we will walk our friend to the edge of the village for a final goodbye. We will be back in a moment."
Sakura blushes. "You don't have to," she says, but doesn't stop them from following her outside. She easily slips her shoes back on and walks over to Shikamaru, Sai and Akamaru, who were waiting for her a few feet away.
"Allow us this," Hashirama says softly, looking ten years older. Sakura hopes he'll be able to take a break soon, he looks terrible. "A goodbye to a good friend."
So Sakura, her friends both new and old, walk to the 'edge' of the village which was just a few feet away from the last building before they stop. Nod to each other in a strangely impersonal, but understanding way, before Shikamaru, Sai and Sakura bow lowly to the three founders, Akamaru tipping his head as well, before they race off. At the very least, Sai remembered where they were all going to meet.
The place that would one day be the Valley of the End.
Sakura glances over her shoulder at the three men as she puts distance between them, watching as they get smaller and smaller. They don't move from where they were until Sakura could no longer see them.
This entire thing felt so wrong. Sakura didn't want to leave. She didn't want to be anywhere else but there. It just didn't feel right.
