Sakura looked around as she entered the Yamanaka Compound, a friendly Clan Guard besides her to prove that she's a guest. Her surroundings appeared to be the same, just as she remembered all those years ago, and some people even greeted her with her name. The rosette smiled back at them and greeted them back, but she unfortunately couldn't remember how they were called. She guesses that the pink hair must have made her quite memorable, back when she was visiting Ino's house almost every day.

"You haven't been here in a while, Sakura-chan." The guard, Inoki, noted as he walked her into the direction she was already familiar with.

The nostalgia she felt was suddenly very prominent.

"Yes," She gave him a close-lipped smile, the awkwardness of the movement becoming quite noticeable. "It's been... a long time." She finished lamely.

Inoki chuckled, his light blue eyes glancing away from her. "Well, Ino has been vividly telling the family a few of your adventures."

She hummed in acknowledgement, but she couldn't help but wonder what those adventures were about. She wasn't particularly a troublemaker back at the Academy, the exact opposite really, so she doesn't completely understand what he meant by that. Was Ino trying to paint her in a bad light to her relatives?

"Nothing she said was true," She said wryly.

The older man started chuckling. "I guess that's half-true. My niece indeed tends to exaggerate."

"More like melodramatize everything." She sniffed, feeling defensive on her own behalf.

This time he truly laughed in amusement, and Sakura saw how a heavy weight lifted from his shoulders as they came across the Yamanaka's Head Family home. Everywhere you looked was filled with flowers — pink, yellow and purple — but the garden was meticulously organised in a very aesthetically pleasing way. That had to be Mrs. Yamanaka's work caused by her miracle fingers, as the woman once joked with her and Ino.

"Just knock the door, Inoichi and Sayuri would be delighted to see you again." Inoki grinned down at her, and she squealed quietly when he ruffled playfully her hair.

"Alright, thank you for escorting me, Inoki-san!" She waved at him pleasantly, watching his back as he turned and walked away. After a few seconds, Sakura looked back the building where she used to hang out a lot during her childhood — which seemed a lifetime ago, if sje was being honest to herself — and gulped down her trepidation.

Her knuckles knocked three times the mahogany wooden door and she waited with a baited breath. She licked her suddenly dry lips, willing herself to calm down a bit, and blinked when the door was opened ajar a few seconds after.

"Forehead?" The surprised voice of her rival greeted her ears, and the rosette gave her a close-eyed smile along with a wave. It must have been the wrong move however because Ino took this as mockery, if the way her surprised expression turned into a irritating sneer.

"Why are you here?" She raised her eyebrow, leaning against the doorframe. If Sakura was anyone else, she would have considered this as an act of rudeness, but they were rivals and rudeness might as well be a hidden language for petty and playful banter.

"I need to talk to you... and your parents, if that's possible." Sakura requested, sighing when Ino tensed and straightened up.

"That... sounds ominous. Is everything alright?"

Sakura hesitated, before she shook her head.

Ino's bravado escaped her and she quietly let the rosette inside the warm house. It brought Sakura back memories of laughter and doll games, to which she inwardly smiled at. At least this visit doesn't appear to be too bad.

"My Dad is in his study, I'll go get him. My Mom is in the kitchen, I trust you remember the way there?" Ino asked, and seeing her nod she immediately turned and headed upstairs.

Sakura slipped off her shoes and padded towards the kitchen, looking a little around the corridor that's been decorated with more pictures over the years. Most of them were of Ino, but a couple of them were with herself and their classmates, and some were only with Nara Shikamaru and Akimichi Chōji. Ino appeared always grumpy at those snapshots, and that won a amused giggle out of her.

As she saw the doorframe of the kitchen, Sakura halted her steps. She watched as the brunette woman looked up from whatever she was cooking — chicken soup, if the scent said anything by it — and noticed how her dark eyes lit up when she realised who it was.

"Sakura-chan! What a pleasant surprise, oh!" Sayuri-san let the ladle down on the counter and basically darted towards her. "Look at you, you've gotten so big! How could I miss that? Have you forgotten our existence, young lady? You haven't even paid us any visit!"

Sakura only blinked up at her as the woman proceeded to nag her, just like old times, scolding her for not coming over sooner and radiating big Aunt energy. The rosette smiled up at her and laughed, patting her hands reassuringly.

"My apologies, Aunt Sayuri. I promise I will visit the flower shop regularly from now on."

"Oh, don't be so formal with me!" The woman pursed her lips. "Now, where is that daughter of mine?"

Before Sakura could say anything, footsteps sounded from behind her, and Ino along with Inoichi made their appearance. Sayuri blinked, before she glanced between the two younger girls.

"Darling?" She voiced her confusion, her lips pulling down to a frown.

"It seems Sakura has something to tell us." Inoichi gave her a small smile as he took a seat to the dining table, Ino following after him and looking quite nervous; her fidgeting betraying her real emotions.

When Sayuri and Sakura took a seat as well, the rosette found out that she wasn't feeling as anxious as she thought she would be. Maybe it was because she was familiar with those people, or maybe it was because of Sayuri's warm welcome, but whatever it was she was thankful for the equanimity during this very moment.

"It depends on what you consider serious or not, but I discovered something this week that also involves Ino in some aspect," Sakura said, fiddling her thumbs on her lap. "When Ino and I were younger, we communicated through a coded sign language," She glanced at the girl in question, and noticed how the blonde suddenly remembered.

"Sign language?" Inoichi raised an eyebrow, looking almost exactly like his daughter did before in the entrance. "Please, continue."

She cleared her throat. "Well, the sign language was taught to me by a close family friend, and I passed those lessons down to Ino..." She took a deep breath. "However, it seems that those signs are used only within the ANBU ranks."

Inoichi went rigid, and his eyes darkened when Ino gasped after hearing what she had to say, after she came to the same realisation Sakura had back in the bridge. Sayuri's eyes widened and her porcelain complexion paled even more to the point where she looked almost sick.

"That's prohibited information!" He exclaimed, more in outrage than anything else. "Who would taught you these secret signs?" Inoichi demanded. "Who would teach them to a kid?"

"I... don't think it's very wise to disclose names, in my opinion," Sakura said, never taking her eyes away from the tables surface. "I can just tell you he's a family friend, and I think you know what he was before too..."

Inoichi did, so he nodded for her to continue. It was clearly obviously that this friend was clearly a ANBU Agent.

"I was never informed about the... vulnerability of this knowledge, so Ino and I had been using them constantly out in public when we were still Academy students," Sakura slumped back to the chair, suddenly looking ten years older, something that lurched on Inoichi's heartstrings. "I have no idea if someone realized what those signs were, or if they were listening to us when I taught them to Ino. What really is important in this situation however, is that this can be considered a leak of information, and I believe you know what's the punishment those too loose-tongued Shinobi have to face..."

"Constant supervision for suspicion of treachery, suspension of the individual's rank and duties until further investigation, and banishment penalty depending on the severity of the situation." Inoichi recited, rubbing his face. Konoha's Court may appear kinder to their case, he acknowledges that, but it doesn't erase the fact of the circumstances. Most of all, if Sakura doesn't want to snitch on to the original troublemaker, she might as well take the whole impact herself first before they find the source.

"...Kakashi-sensei knows everything about this," The rosette added quietly. "I'm, I'm really sorry for the trouble, Inoichi-san."

He nodded. "Good, that's good. Have you informed the Hokage yet?"

"Kakashi-sensei and my Father should be in the Hokage Tower by now," Sakura took a deep breath, feeling nauseous when Inoichi didn't even acknowledge her sincere apology. What did she expect, really? Despite the fact that he doesn't blame her, he made it quite clear in the beginning of the conversation, she still endangered his daughter.

(You're overthinking it, a voice echoed in the back of her mind. He's troubled...)

(But I didn't meant to, Sakura thought inwardly, desperately. I don't want him to hate me...)

(It's not your fault!)

(But It is!)

(You, we were a mere child! Naive, ignorant, and trusted to easily! It's not your fault!)

(Yes! It's not your fault!)

(It's his...)

(It's that fucking old man...)

(It's HIS fault! HIS, HIS, HIS!)

"...Sakura-san," Inoichi dropped the softness of his voice, and Sakura wanted to curl into a ball with the way Aunt Sayuri and Ino were silent, yet venomously glaring at the Head of the Yamanaka Clan. If only glares could kill, he would have been dead ten times over by now. "I would ask you to keep my daughter out of this."

"Inoichi-"

"-Not now, Sayuri!" He quickly interrupted her. "Sakura, do not meddle Ino into this. If the friendship between you two means anything-"

"-DAD, NO! What are you doing?!" Ino cried, shooting up from her seat.

"-then don't let anyone trace any string back to her."

Hardened aqua eyes met with steely emerald ones, and Sakura knew from now on that she was no longer welcomed in the Yamanaka Household. Not in the way she was previously, and she might never be again.

(IT'S HIS FAULT!)

(MIYAMOTO ATSUYA!)