Chapter Two:

To Enter the Unknown.

It had been a year and yet time made it seem like a cycle that repeated within the limitless bounds of eternity. Each night the same dream came. Each night death came to wake her… taunting her in her sleep wanting…craving for her to submit to its call. And yet, each night she'd refuse…. refuse to see the same darkness that now shrouded her family the day the rain poured an outcry from the heavens. Why? Why was she still stubborn to the call of eternal slumber? Was there still something more…something that her heart still desired? Him? Is that why…? It was true that even now, her love for him has never faltered. But unlike their youthful days she did not cloud him with so much infatuation for she was too busy burying her emptiness in the denial of her pain.

She loved him…and yet…she no longer knew how…

No longer knew how…to…feel.

The day that their lives where taken was the last day that her heart experienced pain…the last day that it had experienced anything at all. The smiles had died and the laughter that used to lift the spirits of the oppressed now seemed like something from a mythical folklore only believed by fools. The cherry blossoms that brought forth the beauty of spring now seemed like nothing…her youth was her torment …her memories, her pain. And yet, she could not bring herself forth to a tranquil release. She longed for this escape and yet was pulled back by an unimaginable will to stay…to stay for a purpose she knew not. Was this what Orochimaru meant? Is he after all, just testing her? Taunting her? Seeing how far she has grown…but why? Why would he do such an atrocious thing? Is it because she was the only one with such vulnerability? That she was the only one to know of a real home to have and hold a real family? A father with unfathomable determination, a mother with a warm smile, a sister with a caring heart…was she being punished? Being placed in the same misery that her comrades have lacked and have experienced throughout the duration of their lives.

Was this... what it was like when they were all alone?

But she was not…she had them after all…she had him after all… and that to her was supposed to be enough… it was supposed to help her heal… was this why she was still here?

She stood from the sheets that had guarded her from the cold…the sun almost amidst the Konoha gates shinning brightly through the dawn sky. Wearily stepping forth onto the balcony she could see the limitless dreams that this village held. Soon the children would awake and carelessly frolic in unspoiled youth not caring when why or how they came to be…for their only worryis held only in what existed for them in the next few seconds that life had given them. Was she ever that innocent as well?

She had chosen after all the life of a Shinobi. The life lived by those not afraid to be kept in isolation from their heart…and yet no matter how many mantras she recited, how many jutsus she developed, how much physical strength and intellectual well-being she honed and harnessed… to live a true life of a shinobi…to live in the state of "never looking back" without regrets…this was something she could never come close to attaining.

Thinking of such things made her leery of her own self and soon she found herself spacing off into the oblivion…thoughts comprised of nothing…eyes where empty…soul was numb…the heat that the sun emitted upon her face could not break the cold wall of ice she had built.

So she stood. Watching the sun make its daily ascension…just pondering.

Today was the day she turned 17.

After what seemed like an eternity of nothing she finally decided to step outside and follow her feet to the bridge that had been the usual meeting place for team Kakashi. Though it was true that they no longer held any obligation to reunite at the said location, throughout the years it had become their weekly tradition of training and sparring with each other. It would be the same old routine…they would arrive at the bridge on the time that was set and wait for about another 2 hours for their Sensei to appear (why they would all show up on time they would never know)…after such She and Naruto would burst an outcry of mutterings at the perverted jounin as he tried in a lazy attempt to conjure a good excuse…to which she and Naruto would object while Sasuke and Sai merely scoffed…. and so after their morning rituals they would proceed to the clearing to train.

But these days no such thing happened.

Sure, Kakashi would still arrive late and Naruto would still complain…but she only looked towards the distance ignoring the spectacle before her. At times even Sai would attempt a clever comeback at Kakashi to get her to at least react to something—anything--- a pout, a smile heck even a scoff…but all proved to be useless, as she would just merely nod her head and directly moved to the training grounds…. as for Sasuke…well…he was still the brooding, vengeful Sasuke…which in an odd way provided her with some sense of being… "At least I know I'm not the only one in pain" the thought was horrid…but it was all she had left to hope for…at least there was someone like her…this at least provided some sense of sanity…. Looking within the depths of his eyes she could see…the love that had sparked in her eons ago…love that was still there…strong…passionate…yet buried underneath the crevice of her tormented memories…she wanted to reach out and touch him…be cuddled and wrapped within his arms…to cry and be kissed and be told that everything would be ok…she wanted to be loved by the one that held her heart…by the one that was still keeping her alive at this moment…and yet, she knew it could never happen…no matter what….she'd always be weak in his eyes…and not being able to salvage the lives of her family only proved and enhanced that fact even more. Even if she wanted to reach out and touch his heart…he'd always give the same response of refusal leaving her empty once again…and so each time she desired to instinctively come to him and just be within his presence…she stepped back with all that she could muster for even if he responded, what could she do? It wasn't as though she would know how to love…she could tell him that she loved him…but deep down she knew that her words were filled with nothing but that desperate longing for anything. Her words would mean nothing for she cannot mould them into reality. Her words may say I love you, but her mind screamed in confusion and her heart would remain numb.

So she would just walk away.

And leave Kakashi, Naruto and Sai wondering if they would ever have her back again…if she could be rescued like Sasuke was once before.

On the other hand training and sparring with her was the equivalent to having a conversation with the dead. Although she was still as sharp as ever…her strength still equivalent the monstrosity of the Godaime's might…she was hollow. Her moves were swift…her strikes deadly…and yet her eyes reflected nothing.

"Yo!" a voice rang in the distance

"Kakashi! Baka! you're late!" accused the blonde-haired kyuubi

"Ah-aaah well you see… I was walking and somehow got lost—"

"ON THE ROAD TO LIFE" the three heated boys said in unison.

"Well if you knew why then why ask?" smirked the jounin as he pulled the infamous orange novel from his pouch… "Yo, Sakura… guess what day it is?"

"It's Monday—" Naruto being abruptly cut by Sai's fist atop his noggin. "Fool don't tell me you forgot…"

"He probably did" smirked Sasuke "what else can we expect from a dobe…"

"Now, now let's not fight on our cherry blossom's birthday. It's bad luck" Kakashi retorted before the battle ensued slowly crinkling his visible eye into a smile.

Sakura could only stare at this.

"So—so Sakura-chan! What do you want to do today!"

"Hmm…"

"Wanna go to the Ramen house! My treat!"

"Dobe…don't you ever go eat anywhere else but that place?"

"What! Why would I when I can have Ramen day in and day out…"

"Your slowly killing yourself with, you know" Sai commented; now entering the conversation… "I can just see it now: Future Hokage…dead by Ramen."

Kakashi laughed, Sasuke scoffed, Sai smirked, Naruto cringed…Sakura only stared.

"Actually…I'm really not in the mood to do anything today…" whispered Sakura, her eyes never straying away from their position.

"But Sakura-Cha—"

"It's ok Naruto…I'm just…feeling a bit tired today…maybe some other time ok?"

With that she a shower of cherry blossoms engulfed her and soon she vanished.

"Sakura…will you ever return to us?" He merely stared at the Kyuubi's frustration marking him with his visible eye… "We're still here for you…just as you have always been there for each of us…" the copy-nin silently thought…It was true that throughout the years team seven had developed into it's own little family of misfits…the man who hid behind the mask…the boy scorned for simply living as a testament to the Yondaime's love…the avenger who isolated his soul for revenge…and the lone wolf who lived without the human norm…and her…the one who thought of herself weak in front of others. True, she was not the strongest among them…however…without her…they would not have survived… "Sakura…the love that kept team seven together…" he sighed… seems like that's all he could do these days…

"DAMNIT!" she screamed slamming her fists upon the table waking a sleeping ton-ton from his thresholds of fantasy.

"Tsunade-sama—"

"The attacks…their attacks are getting more and more heinous…damn Orochimaru! Damn Sound!" she sighed. There was so much chaos around this man and she cursed him for being so much of a nuisance. Missions where given to every available shinobi to protect any village that is threatened by his unwavering hatred. "Damnit…"

Another mission. B-class, objective: safeguard a small farming village near the tea country… "This shouldn't be too much of a hassle…I hope…" she sighed and looked at the list of available teams that could take up the task… "Hmm…I guess I'm going to have to send them…it's been a while…Naruto's been harassing me for a new mission anyway…"

"Shizune!"

"Hai—"

"Call together team seven…I have a task for them."

Oi second chapter is up! Nothing major is happening yet just a few introductions to how things are but next chapter is going into more detail. ooooo Lol first of all I would like to thank Marsgoddess for the lovely comment

I'll try to update as soon as I can

Hope you guys enjoyed this so far