Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto - that's enough.

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It really was such a shame that Haruno Sakura had to leave. In spite of everything, the girl had the potential to become one of the best medic-nins she had laid eyes on. She had a good personality, and it had been nice working along side of her. Besides, Tsunade-sama seemed to have somewhat of a soft spot for her.

Shizune set the mission reports she had been checking off to the side. She sighed as she picked up another enormous stack that the new Godaime apparently "forgot" – for the fifth time this week. Moreover, it was only a Monday. Tsunade-sama really needed to work on her sense of responsibility.

However, Shizune supposed she would let this slip by just once. They were going through tough times after all. Problems with the reconstruction of Konoha were still ongoing, and funding was at a dead time low. A supply of able bodies was dwindling, and the numbers of shinobi had thinned out from constantly being sent on missions.

The stress was evident in everybody; even the occasional outbreaks of violence had been reported. Not to mention, the news of the once proud nation's openness had leaked out through the borders. Konoha was therefore prone to attack without a strong retaliation. The land obviously reached its limit, and that stress had found its way to the land's leader, the Hokage.

It all seemed downhill from here, and Sakura's leaving only added to that. Shizune checked through her task list. She noted that only one box was left unmarked, only one mind-boring chore left. She simply needed to update the bingo book. As in, it was time to mark changes in ranks, missions, and alert of new missing-nins. Missing-nins like Haruno Sakura.

However hard it was to believe, the pink-haired, empathetic, kindly, seemingly harmless girl was now a declared enemy of Konoha. She had exiled herself from Konoha; therefore, she was considered a threat to their existence. It really was hard to believe. Sakura. Missing-nin. They just didn't fit, but here sat the proof. On her desk, lay the information to be inserted into Sakura's profile in the data book.

She was an impending A-class missing-nin, suspected of most likely siding with Sound. Her motivations were obviously to rejoin her beloved crush, Sasuke. A corrupted boy he was, if you asked Shizune. Moreover, who corrupted him? Who was the cause of all this misery? That snake bastard, Orochimaru. He was not their only concern at the time, but he and his "ambitions" were responsible for most of their current situation.

Two weeks ago

It had been a tough day of training, and Sakura was definitely ready for a well-deserved break. Gathering up her gear and such into her bag, Sakura made her way in the direction of home. As she walked along the nearly empty streets, she recommenced on her plans that were to be executed in the following days. Everything was nearly in order, so the only thing she had to do was get herself ready for departure.

It was going to be difficult to let go of her bonds here in Konoha, and Sakura felt that emotional preparation was in order. It'd be a lie to say she wasn't going to miss anybody, but some things just took more priority at the moment. Like him.

Sakura's eyes lowered and her lips started to quiver as she remembered why she was doing this all. She missed him so much; it was too hard to put it into words. Right now, he was all she could think about. Like in her earlier bouts, she had realized that she craved him beyond reason. She knew what she felt was abnormal, and it put even her beyond comprehension.

Yet at the same time, she loathed his being with her whole self. How could he put everything behind him just for simple power? Why was it that important? How could he abandon his teammates and comrades for such a craving? Sakura pondered over these things, and than snickered. Wasn't irony so nice to the ones on the verge of mental breakdowns?

It was his very actions that were causing her to do this. It was almost like a chain reaction, causing one person to take drastic actions one after another. It was he who had made her so…..so desperate. Yes, that was the word. She was desperate and a fool. A desperate fool for the one she cared for.

Walking into her now quiet abode, Sakura wondered of the irony of it all.

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Things were almost ready. The bitter kunoichi had all her things packed, and it was nearly time to leave Konoha. She found it hard to believe that the day had finally arrived. Today was the day when her world would change drastically, and she would become a "traitor" to Konoha.

It was the dead of night and the perfect time to escape. She had checked the schedules earlier that day. Luckily, border control was to be kept to a minimum that night. All was ideal as Sakura crept out and into the eerie streets of nighttime Konoha that were all to familiar.

She didn't live that far from the edge of the large village, so the trek to the protective watchtowers did not take as long as expected. She glanced up at the soaring tower before her, bag slung over her back. There were a few shinobi keeping guard, but it shouldn't be too hard to slip through the shadows.

And this she did as she gingerly pushed through the great doors of the East Gate. This gate brought back memories to the escaping Sakura. Like the mission to Wave Country where they fought against Haku and showed their first signs of teamwork. It was Team 7's first true mission. It certainly was eye opening to the meaning of the word shinobi. It also taught Sakura a personal lesson: never show your emotions.

This was something that was becoming more difficult with each passing day as she tried to suppress her raging emotions. Twisted though it was, it almost felt good that she was finally doing something about them. Curiously, Sakura mentally inquired about how others would react to her leaving. She was thinking primarily of Ino and Naruto.

They were some of the first people in her life to actually acknowledge her as somebody with potential. She reminisced of when Ino would encourage her and of Naruto's constant pestering, annoying as they may be. They were both extremely close to her, and she knew she would miss them.

How would others respond though? What about Tsunade-sama and Kakashi-sensei? And everybody else? Would they pity or hate her? Sakura imagined mixed emotions, and she found it hard to comprehend. Was it better to leave here and start afresh? She shook her head, telling herself yes, and regained control of her main motive.

She was slightly worried about hunter-nins, but nobody probably took her that seriously. Sakura cast off the last of her doubt, attempting to relax herself in the process. The girl curved around and took what was probably her last comforting glance of Konoha. It looked somewhat majestic and welcoming in the dying night, but Sakura knew better.

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I'm sorry that I haven't updated in a while, but things have gotten kind of crazy where I am. So, this is really the first time I got a chance to submit the chapter.

Also, thanks for all the reviews for all the reviews I've gotten so far. I honestly wasn't expecting any.

The chapters in this one are going to be a bit short, but I'll try to update regularly. I might rewrite it later on...