Author's Notes (READ THIS, IT'LL ONLY WASTE 15 SECONDS OF YOUR LIFE): Thanks so far, I really appreciate the support some of you have given me! I'll be writing the chapter in French or Japanese, or whatever language I can think of, because I want to, even though I'm not any of those. I'm only Filipino…hehehe… (lol). I hope some of you will like this chapter. I re-edited the whole thing to make it sound better. There's possible ItaSaku in the future chapters, maybe, I don't know. I'll just see where inspiration leads me…and if you guys want ItaSakuSasu or NejiSakuSasu just say so, and I'll see what I can do. PS: Although this is only re-edited, you have to read it because more than ¾ of it has been changed, the beginning wasn't changed though. ALSO YOU NEED TO READ THIS CHAPTER SINCE I'VE CHANGED IT A LITTLE.
Thanks Reviewers!
shinobi-Sakura: Thanks for the first review! I really had to watch the whole episode again on a CD and type out all the lines and actions…really frustrating since it won't play in the computer so I had to use the TV and VCD player and stuff, then go back to the computer to type it out…I'll check out your fics soon, don't worry!
neu chi no nai u: Thanks!
susakuru: Thanks, sure here's the update!
neu chi no nai u: Thanks, I didn't think it would be good…but I hope the re-edited version is nice enough…thanks for the review!
els1321: Okay, I'll let you read this…thanks for the review!
Huntere: Haha…thanks!
sweet cherryblossom1: Thanks for enjoying it!
susakuru: Thanks!
kok: Thanks, I'll try keeping it up.
Fiona McKinnon: I know…that's why I'm re-editing it…
ms-thang: Groovy? First time I heard someone review me like that…thanks for the review!
ChErRyBlOsSoMs-FlOwErOfDeAtH: Thanks! Here's the update!
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"Chapter One: Trouvez"
Seven years after that very incident, a lot of things have changed, seriously, a lot. For one thing, since Sasuke left, it has been found out that Ino had feeling for Shikamaru and was only pretending to like Sasuke to make him jealous, but this failed to all her efforts. They have only become a couple a year ago when Ino had finally admitted this to him, and now, they're a very happy married couple.
Another amazing incident, during the earlier years, Sakura has never given her heart to Naruto, who by the way, finally opened his eyes to a female Byakugan user, Hyuuga Hinata. They went out for a few years, and eventually, also became a happily married couple. Neji on the other hand, amazingly didn't end up with Tenten; he chose a different path as well, becoming an ANBU captain. Lee became an amazing jounin, but something unexpected did happen, he ended up with Tenten, but the both of them are still boyfriend and girlfriend.
As for Sakura…training with Tsunade, defeating an Akatsuki member, all of this happened so fast. Now, ate the age of 20, she has become an ANBU member. She has chosen the path to become stronger, in her own way of course. She has prioritized her training and ninja skills more now, although…he still remained in her mind even until now. But she didn't let that bother her, for all she knew…he was as good as dead now.
Orochimaru's Body Transfer technique…this can only be done every three years. Their mission five years ago, along with Sai and Yamato, had been a complete failure. More than three years have already passed, for all she knew Sasuke's body is being used by Orochimaru in different ways. She has already accepted the fact that, he's gone, for good. Yet…to see him one more time, would be like her only fantasy right now. As much as she wishes this, fantasies will always remain fantasies, no matter how hard you wish for them to come true.
And so the tale begins…
Sakura was running through a dark forest, her breathing was hard and sweat ran down her temples. Her hot saliva burned her mouth as her legs carried her as far as they could. She was tired, dizzy, but she needed to catch up…she needed to catch up to him.
"Sasuke-kun!" she yelled to the figure walking far away from her "Sasuke-kun! Please! Don't go!"
A pair of blood red eyes appeared; she stopped running and stared into those bloody red eyes which stared back at her. She felt frightened, she tried to reach for a kunai, but held shuriken holster disappeared from behind her. The figure moved closer, and closer. She moved as far as she could, but her legs wouldn't allow her. The moonlight shone upon the dark figure, the face of the man who left her years ago, was staring back at her. A smirk came from his lips, he looked hurt, depressed, distraught, and his smirk slowly disappeared. He tried telling her something, but no words came out.
"Sasuke-kun…!" she tried reaching out for him, but he seemed to be moving further and further away, until behind him, a giant snake wrapped around Sasuke and swallowed him alive, ignoring his painful screams. Sakura watched the awful scene, her scream was silent…
Ring!
Sakura slowly opened her eyes, the rays of the morning sun descended upon her drowsy eyes.
"Ugh…" she grumbled as she stood from her bed, she felt sweat drops on her forehead and wiped them away. She walked towards her mirror and saw herself, some of her pink hair was sticking to her forehead.
"That dream…" she said to herself I've been having that dream for almost a month now…why won't it stop? For all I know, Sasuke-kun is already dead.
She looked at herself one more time in the mirror, she had grown more mature over the years. Her hair had grown to its original length, and she seemed to have grown into her abnormally large forehead. Her body has also matured, her once flat chest had grown a little, and there were curves around her. This attracted many suitors, but although she knew Sasuke's dead, she never answered any of them, not even one. For today, she had nothing to do, she and Ino promised to spend the day together anyway.
"What should I wear…" she said rummaging through her closet, she chose a white shirt combined with a red jacket and a dark blue skirt to top it all off. She tied her hair in a near ponytail as she went down to have some breakfast.
"What to eat, what to eat…" she cooked some pancakes, ate them and left.
"Ino-chan! Are you in here?" she said looking into the Yamanaka Flower Shop.
"I'm coming!" Ino's voice rang from upstairs. She came down after two minutes dressed in a purple spaghetti-sleeved shirt with blue jeans. Her blonde hair has also grown, but she still kept it in a high ponytail "Ohayo, Sakura-chan"
"Ohayo Ino-chan" said Sakura "You look beautiful today"
"Same for you" she said "Now, shall we?"
"Right" the two friends went out and were mostly just shopping around the village.
"Sakura-chan, you know you should really try answering one of your suitors" said Ino "I mean, I'm sure one of them has to be worth it"
"Ha, right…I'm an ANBU member now. I don't have time for such a thing" she said while looking through some shirts "Plus…I don't want to be in a relationship right now"
"You're just saying that" said Ino "Someday you'll find yourself falling head over heels for some guy out there. And what do you mean you don't have time for such a thing? Look at me, I'm a jounin instructor and I still have time for Shika-kun"
"You have an easier job, I have to always guard Tsunade with all of my power when I'm not on a day off" she said "And, I still have a part time at the hospital"
"Yeah, yeah…" Ino turned serious now "Sakura…I know you still care for Sasuke"
Sakura froze.
"I understand how you feel, but he's dead for all I know" she said "You should move and try looking for someone suitable for you. Naruto was a good start, but now he's learned to move on and married Hinata. Lee tried his best to win you, but in the end he ended up with Tenten…Sasuke isn't worth it Sakura…Open your eyes! Sasuke never even considered how you felt to be important!"
"What the hell do you know about how I feel?" she said coldly "Stop bugging me, because it's none of your business!"
Sakura walked away from Ino, frustrated and angry. Ino smacked her head and muttered to herself "I'll have to learn to keep my mouth shut next time…" she said But, what I said was true. Sakura deserves better…I hate to see my best friend feeling this way all because some hot guy dissed her like that.
Sakura stomped her way through the crowds as she looked for a place to cool her head off.
That Ino-pig, who does she think she is? She has no right to butt into my business saying what's right or wrong for me! I mean, I never said anything bad about her relationship Shikamaru or her freaking life! Her walk slowed down as she calmed down a little But…she is right…I know I should move on, but even though it has been such a long time after that day, I still feel the same for him. Nobody can ever replace that…I think…Sasuke-kun…if only you hadn't left…if only you stayed with me…I meant it when I said I'd do anything for you…and I still would…if only you were here. Because, I still believe…somewhere, somehow…you're still alive…
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In the hideout of Orochimaru, a bloody battle had just occurred. Sasuke has avoided becoming a container for Orochimaru for so long, he made different reasons for him not to become one, because he knew he could grow even stronger, and Orochimaru knew this and let it be. Sasuke has obtained many different levels of Sharingan, and has even mysteriously mastered Magenkyou Sharingan. This fight has been continuing for five days straight. And finally, after whimpering under Orochimaru, the time has come to be released from the curse.
"Sasuke…!" Orochimaru's cry echoed throughout the whole hideout "I gave you power…and this is how you've repaid me!"
"Hmph, as I said before, I never cared for you or what you could've done to me" Sasuke smirked out of the darkness "Did you really think, you could defeat an advanced Sharingan user?"
"I'll get you back…" Orochimaru did a bunch of hand seals and quickly tried doing the Body Transfer Technique.
"Too slow…" Sasuke quickly read this and cancelled it with the help of Sharingan. His final move "Magenkyou Sharingan!"
Orochimaru gasped, life was slowly being strained away from him. For now Sasuke was as strong as Itachi, the only person Orochimaru failed to defeat. He felt metal enter his body, blood was spat out from his mouth. The tang taste of it sent a message through his mind I can't die…I worked too hard to obtain eternal life…I won't die like this!
Too late…Sasuke's Kage Shuriken had sliced through Orochimaru's bare neck. For once in his life, he has been defeated, completely. The expert snake user, and the one who had invented the forbidden technique, has fallen. For now, the avenger has yet to finish his life long mission, to kill his only sibling.
But first…he thought A little visit.
(AN: Okay, you can flame me for this part if you want to)
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Sakura opened the door to her house and slammed it shut behind her. She took off her jacket and went up to her room to lie on her bed. She got a pillow and placed it on top of her face, she breathed in the dust left by the pillow, yet ignored it. She took it off her face and looked up at her ceiling. The feeling of regret and guilt crept upon her, she had just scowled at her best friend, all because she let her emotions take over her, again. She lay on her side as she watched her clock move each second.
If the second hand stopped…does that mean time has stopped for me? If time could only go back…she though to herself as the memories of Sasuke started haunting her once again Sasuke-kun…why am I so weak…?
Flashback…
"I understand how you feel, but he's dead for all I know" she said "You should move and try looking for someone suitable for you. Naruto was a good start, but now he's learned to move on and married Hinata. Lee tried his best to win you, but in the end he ended up with Tenten…Sasuke isn't worth it Sakura…Open your eyes! Sasuke never even considered how you felt to be important!"
End of flashback.
"Ino-chan…" she felt dumb and stupid She's right…Sasuke-kun could really be dead by now…I know deep in my heart I want to move on…but the other part still wants Sasuke so badly…If Sasuke-kun didn't go, what would have become of me? Would I still be that weak and helpless girl he hated so much?...It's no use thinking about what could've happened, its been done. Maybe Ino's right…maybe I should move on…But, do I still have the eyes to open to someone else?
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Four days later…
Nothing out of the ordinary has happened in Konohagakure, yet. Sakura continued her missions, protected Tsunade, worked at the hospital, and visited her friends once in a while. The sun went up and down, the moon left and gone, the clouds appeared and moved, nothing wrong has been done. She was wearing her ANBU outfit, clad in black, sleeveless, and the ANBU tattoo on her right arm, and her hair was tied in a neat ponytail. She entered the Yamanaka Flower Shop, she took off her mask revealing her face. She found her friend waiting behind the counter in front. She approached her looking embarrassed to becoming to a store dressed like that.
"Ino-chan…I'm sorry for screaming at you like that the other day…" said Sakura as she apologized to her friend who was working in the flower shop "I lost control of myself, I'm really sorry"
"Its okay Sakura, nothing to worry about" said Ino "It was my fault for dictating you in the first place, I should've known better than to tell you what to do and what not to"
"No it's my fault…I wouldn't listen to reason…" said Sakura "I've decided, I'm going to move on and forget about what happened to Sasuke and I, he's not worth it"
"Sakura…"
"You were right…chasing after someone who is no longer here is really stupid" she said.
"Who're you gonna fall for then?"
"I don't know, I've only decided this few days ago" she laughed.
"Oh yeah, I have some really great news" said Ino slightly smirking "Guess what…Shika-kun is going to be a father soon…"
"You mean…?"
"Yup, I'm pregnant" said Ino "I only found out yesterday"
"Omigosh! This is big news!" said Sakura "Ino-chan, I'm so happy for you!"
"Thanks! I can't wait to find out if it's a boy or a girl!" the two friends hugged each other.
"Oi, what's all the noise down there?" a lazy jounin came down the stairs with his pinky finger in his ear "I hate a great nap you know…"
"Sorry Shika-kun…" the two friends let go of each other "I just told Sakura-chan about our baby!"
"Four days and she started babbling about it already…" said Shikamaru.
"I wish I could stay longer" said Sakura "But, I gotta go, see ya later"
"Bye!" said Ino.
"Yeah" replied Shikamaru lazily.
"Jaa nee" she left the flower shop and headed towards the Hokage's office.
(Jaa Nee: See ya)
She jumped from house to house on her way to her destination. She stopped for a while and stood in front of the Uchiha Manor. She looked at the yellow "Do Not Cross" ribbons tied to the front of the gate. She looked at it carefully and finally understood what Sasuke had said…
"We will all lead different paths…" she mumbled to herself Sasuke-kun…I understand now. All these years the only man I ever wanted was you. I slowly understood, it was your choice to follow Orochimaru, and no one else's…I chose to follow Tsunade-shishou, the same way Naruto decided to follow Jiraiya-sama, the same way you followed Orochimaru. If we ever meet in the future, I know you won't be the same Sasuke I knew so many years ago…he's gone, far away…
She stared for a while longer at what she dreamed to be her future home when Sasuke would marry her, of course this could happened only in her dreams. She looked down and finally realized her longing for Sasuke, it was useless and a completely worthless wish. She has been wishing for the same thing for more than seven years, but no good has come out of it. She thought she could've become stronger with Sasuke, and thought that the reason she has become stronger all these years was because of him. But the truth is, she did it all herself. What were all those years of longing? What were all those years of flowing tears for? What use did these feelings have if all they did was make her a distant woman to all the love surrounding her? He never even loved her back, not even a bit…It was time to move on, for a better chance at life. Sun shone from the sky as she looked up to the sky no longer haunted by her past, a brighter future was there for her…or was there?
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Sakura quickly went inside the Hokage's office, she had been summoned by the Hokage for a special mission as she had heard. She didn't think it was anything special, maybe they were to find someone, assassinate, nothing that could surprise her. Being the ANBU member she was, she knocked on the Hokage's door and said "Tsunade-shishou, it's me"
"Come in Sakura" said a voice from the other side of the door. She opened it and went inside; she closed the door behind her and found three other ANBU members in front of her, Aburame Shino, Hyuuga Neji, and Hyuuga Hinata.
"Sorry I'm late…" Sakura said smiling.
"It's alright Sakura" said Tsunade looking very serious "Now that the four of you are here, I have something very important to tell all of you"
The four made serious faces this time, if Tsunade was acting this serious, then something important might have just come up. Tsunade closed her eyes and opened them again, Shizune looked down as she held Tonton in her arms, she had the same expression as Tsunade.
"We have received urgent news from a Sound Nin…" she looked the four Anbus' expressions become alert "…but this group is not one of Orochimaru's, it is a rebellion against him who have lost someone important to them because of Orochimaru. They have sent us a message saying that Orochimaru, has died"
Those words struck the Anbu members hard. Orochimaru, dead? How…why…who? These were the main questions going through their minds at the moment. If someone did kill him, who could be powerful enough to do such a thing…?
"Also, it was received that when they found Orochimaru's body, he was brutally decapitated and badly wounded. He had kunai and shuriken all over his body. We have successfully captured all his subordinates, except for two, Uchiha Sasuke and Kabuto"
"No traces of them were found, and we have no clue where they are. Sasuke was no where to be found, I'm going to dispatch you four to find Uchiha Sasuke"
"Wait, don't you usually ask Naruto to come whenever there's a mission connected to Sasuke?" asked Neji.
"I would've considered Naruto for this mission; unfortunately he is away on another mission in Sunagakure" she said "Neji, since you're Anbu captain I'll assign you team leader"
"Hai" he replied.
(Hai-yes)
"I have heard that Uchiha Sasuke has been seen somewhere around the Hidden Mist. It's a start but we have to make sure. Bring Uchiha Sasuke back, alive. Fight if you must but bring him back here alive" she said "Anbu, disperse!"
"Hai!" the four disappeared out of the office and began their mission.
"Tsunade-sama…" said Shizune "Why did you use Anbu to find him? Simple jounins could've been used, why go this far?"
"Based from skills, our Anbu squad are some of the strongest from the jounins here. Plus…" she clenched her fists "If Uchiha Sasuke really did kill Orochimaru, then we'll need the best to capture him"
"Tsunade-sama, I understand…but…why did you put Sakura-san in the team?" asked Shizune.
"Why not?"
"I see…you also want Sakura to see Sasuke don't you?"
"It's like you can read my mind Shizune…" she said Sakura…I'm giving you this one chance…
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The four Anbu members dispatched from Konoha and began to hurry their way towards the Hidden Mist. They traveled on foot at first; they were to head to the docks to ride a boat going there since they needed to cross a sea to get there. They hurried as they jumped from tree to tree. Sakura's mind was confused, she had thousands of thought rummaging through her mind at the moment.
This is strange…Tsunade-shishou could've used jounin to find Sasuke-kun, wait why am I still calling him Sasuke-kun…? I guess it turned into a habit…I guess she thought that if Sasuke-kun really did kill Orochimaru, then he might've been extremely strong at the time. So she assigned the strongest she had left in Konoha she thought If I do Sasuke-kun…it won't be the same…I won't run into his arms or cry…he won't feel anything for me anyway. But…I don't want to fight him…I don't have the heart to do it. If he was just another face then maybe I could fight him as much as all the people he was ever fought. Hopefully this'll successfully end, without a bloody ending…
"Everyone…" Sakura came back from her trance when she heard Neji's voice "We're getting close to the docks, remember not to familiarize too much"
"Got it" they replied.
They leapt from tree to tree. Sakura's soul was now confused...is she excited or annoyed with this mission? What would happen if they see Sasuke? Would he still look the same? Will be the same person she met so many years ago? Will the Sasuke she knew even exist?
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IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ!
Okay, I've had a really, really hard time deciding on this. First off, I wanted to do a love triangle in this, it's either ItaSakuSasu or NejiSakuSasu…you have to vote to tell which love triangle you love the most. Please send it to me as fast as you can, because this is very crucial, the whole story plot depends on your votes. There are different stories for each love triangle, please I really need your votes! Voting ends when Chapter 3 is up and when the votes are tallied!
PS: This is the reason why this chapter is so short...well for me. Because usually each chapter of my fan fics on Microsoft Word should be at least 15 pages long at minimum...I dunno where I got this habit but because of this problem I had to cut it short to only 9 pages...it hurts...
Please vote for your fave love triangle, each love triangle has a different story. PLEASE I NEED IT! I CAN'T CHOOSE!
Vote for either…
Itachi x Sakura x Sasuke
Or…
Neji x Sakura x Sasuke
Send me as much votes as you can. Whichever way you want to, but I'd like it if it's a review…remember why I did this…I CAN'T FREAKIN' CHOOSE! T.T
Signing out
KLiC 015