The war was over.
Naruto and Sasuke had once again saved the day.
Saved it when I couldn't.
I hadn't even gotten past the inner security before I was stabbed and thrown out the window to the battlefield below.
Who knew what I had broken on the landing, but that didn't really matter now. Broken ribs weren't going to kill me. The stab wound in my gut was.
Closing my eyes, I knew I would just be one of hundreds of casualties. I would be following Lee into the afterlife.
I sighed. Lee… the big oaf. He had died in my arms, with my name on his lips. It seemed he really had loved me, and I, in return, had ignored him.
But that was long past, and perhaps I could make amends in death.
Opening my eyes, I looked around at the battlefield, blinking black spots out of my eyes.
So many corpses. If I had lived through this war, I would have been plagued by nightmares for the rest of my life.
But since it seemed as though I wouldn't be living much longer, I suppose I don't have to worry about nightmares.
I began to wonder if people would remember me.
Would they remember me as a heroine? As a whiner? As the girl who held back the two heroes of this generation?
Or would they forget about me completely? Just another casualty of the Sound War…
I doubted I would be remembered as a whiner, because I had quit complaining about life years ago. And as for holding back the two heroes… I doubted anyone would even connect me with those two.
Yes, I was a good fighter, and one of the most powerful healers of our village, but I was a small candle compared to their blazing inferno.
But still, being remembered as a heroine wouldn't be bad. After all, I had tried to kill Orochimaru, hadn't I? Was a legend too much to ask for in return?
Then again, perhaps I would be forgotten in the rush to write down the legends of Sasuke and Naruto.
If I had wanted to be remembered as an incredible heroine, then I was definitely born at the wrong time. Perhaps earlier in time I would have been incredible. But in the time of the amazing Fox-spirit Naruto and Sasuke Uchiha, I was nothing special.
The black spots returned to my vision, except they weren't spots, they were a wave of blackness that was gradually lapping at my vision, narrowing it with every second.
A thought came to mind, as the cold rushed throughout my body.
Maybe I would be remembered.
Remembered as the girl who had cried over Sasuke when she thought Haku had killed him. Remembered as the girl who always secretly believed in Naruto. As the girl who had perfected ki control at such a young age. As the girl who had defended her comrades when all the odds were against her. As the girl who had not shattered when her greatest love and her greatest friend left her. The girl who had healed, and killed, for her village.
Now that was something to be remembered as.
I smiled, or, at least, smiled as much as I could, given the circumstances.
And then I fell into unconsciousness so fast that I didn't even hear the voice calling my name.
L+A+T+E+R+
I heard sounds.
Was I in heaven? Or maybe hell?
Kakashi's voice rang through my consciousness.
"If you two will stop arguing, I think she's up."
Up? Was I alive then? But how?
Only one way to find out.
I opened my eyes slowly, and was nearly blinded by the bright whiteness of the hospital room.
I quickly shut my eyes again.
I must have made a sound of discomfort as well, because the blinds were suddenly being closed.
"Sakura?" a hesitant voice asked.
Opening my eyes, I looked in the direction of the voice.
It came from a blond haired young man with deep blue eyes and marks on his face.
I smiled, "Hey Naruto. It's been a while."
A grin beamed on his face, and I turned to look at the rest of the people in the room.
Kakashi, and Sasuke.
Team Seven was all here.
I could see that Kakashi was smiling under the mask, but Sasuke, as always, was unreadable.
"So tell me, how am I still alive?" I whispered, because at the moment it was all I could manage.
"Kakashi found you, while we were up gloating over our victory in the tower," Naruto said, sounded disgusted with himself.
"You were almost too far gone," Kakashi murmured, "but I managed to get you to one of the medics in time."
I blinked slowly, staring at the dimmed ceiling above me.
"I thought I was dead," I voiced softly.
"So did we."
I turned to stare at the Uchiha clan member.
"And would you have cared?"
Silence.
"Of course we would have!" Naruto yelled indignantly, but Kakashi looked at him seriously.
"I don't think she's talking to us Naruto," he said gently. "Otherwise she wouldn't have needed to ask."
He was right. They weren't the ones who left me for Orochimaru.
I kept my gaze on Sasuke. I needed to know if he was willing to stay with me this time.
"Yes. I would have," he stated.
Those words were spoken stoically, but in the ten seconds it took him to say them, he let down his guard.
And for those few seconds I saw a flicker of deep emotion in his eyes.
It wasn't love and adoration, but it was caring nonetheless.
Smiling softly, I looked away from the Uchiha.
Within the two other pairs of eyes, I saw that same caring as well.
The caring you hold for a friend.
And perhaps, someday, I would mean more then a friend then to Sasuke.
But it seemed that I could wait for that day, being as I was still alive and all.
"The war is over," I murmured, feeling sleepy again. "So let's get some rest, and catch up in the morning."
As I began to slip into sleep, she heard Kakashi whisper, "We'll be here Sakura."
And in that moment, I knew I would be remembered.
Even if the scribes and historians forgot all about Sakura Haruno, I had made a mark upon the three heroes of her generation.
And they would always remember me.
