A few things I will say going forward and then you can do what you came here to do and read a chapter. XD
Edit 3/23/18:
Since so many people had issues with me calling out a troll, I'm just gonna take it down and say that being concerned that someone calls them out and not upset that a troll is being a troll is the main reason they get away with what they do. :) Some food for thought.
Although some things are different in the most recent chapter, Tobirama's harsh behavior in ch. 2 is something I view as absolutely IC. I don't know why were uncomfortable because he was rough with Sakura. He's an amazing character imo because he's technically a good guy but he has questionable morality. It is what it is. If IC Tobirama bothers you you may not like his portrayal in this fic.
i still get questions concerning this so I will leave in the note that explains THIS STORY IS POLYANDRY. I'm not sure if people literally are not reading or what but when people are asking me constantly who Sakura will be with it's annoying. Please look up polyandry. It's not exactly the same as a reverse harem. It's Sakura ending up with more than one man. Pretty cut and dry imo. No need to overthink that.
Lastly, I was under the impression that the Mystic Palm (the main healing technique with the glowing-green-hand commonly employed by Sakura and Tsunade), was something that certain members of the Senju clan, such as Tobirama and Hashirama, basically came up with. I literally always saw the Senju as the healing technique clan, but then a friend pointed out that really, Tsunade is the only Senju in the series shown to be adept at healing ninjutsu. So I guess even though I've read the entirety of Naruto and seen the majority of the anime, I read so many fanfics where Tobirama and Hashirama and their clan could do medical ninjutsu, I just took that headcanon as canon…because it makes sense. All the amazing things they can do-Tobirama literally has nearly every chakra type known to exist and Hashirama makes forests from thin air and incredible regenerative abilities—I have no problems believing they know medical ninjutsu. So I will be keeping that headcanon alive in this story.
Sakura really wasn't sure how to feel when the sight of the familiar gate came into view. Tobirama let her get down as they approached the two sentries on duty. The minute they recognized the white-haired shinobi they bowed in the utmost respect and opened the path into the village. Of course they gave the unfamiliar pink-haired female at his side curious glances, but neither questioned the Senju's second-in-command.
Stepping inside along with the would-be Nidaime, Sakura really didn't need to fake her sense of awe. The village was vibrant and bustling with activity, in many ways just as she remembered it from her own time. However, it was still in its early stages, and so there were key differences. Some buildings were still under construction, for example. There was no Hokage monument in place yet. No Ichiraku ramen on the corner. And the most notable difference, no familiar faces. That thought caused Sakura to whither inside. Was this really even still her home? In a way it was but in another way it wouldn't be the Konoha she knew and loved for many, many years. Still, seeing the village in its infancy with her own eyes was pretty amazing.
Doing her best to ignore all the stares—of course there would be stares, she was walking side by side with the respected brother of the village's leader—Sakura followed Tobirama to the Hokage mansion. She tried to steel her courage, and prepare herself for what she would tell the Hokage. Obviously, the same story she'd told Tobirama. Anything else would make the man more suspicious of her than he already was. She just hoped she could confidently and effectively make a case for herself. Hopefully the First was a reasonable man…
"You seem at a loss." Tobirama said suddenly. Sakura was honestly surprised he'd even bothered to comment on it.
"Well yes…" Sakura replied slowly. "I'm about to speak to the most powerful man in the nation aside from the daimyo, right? And he'll be the one that decides if I can settle here or not." Truthfully she hadn't even thought of a plan for what she'd do if she was turned away. Maybe sit pitifully outside Konoha's gates like a pink-haired vagabond until she was either let in or chased off? Everything really was riding on this.
"Unnerving from your perspective, I'm sure." He said thoughtfully. They were now standing outside the Hokage's office door. Tobirama knocked swiftly without giving her any more time to prepare.
"Enter!" a voice called back. Sakura thought it sounded fairly cheerful. She mentally bemoaned Tsunade for never having spoken more about her grandfather. Details about what the man was like off the battlefield would have been helpful at the moment!
Tobirama stepped in first with Sakura at his back. She tried standing as close as possible without touching him. She wasn't sure why she was so nervous. This was her home. It was almost like she was coming back…except the home she knew wasn't the way she'd left it, and someone new was living there.
So maybe not exactly like coming home, but close enough. She was forever a Konoha kunoichi in her heart, no matter where or when she found herself, and no one would ever take that sense of pride or the lifetime of memories away.
"Brother!" a loud voice boomed jovially. Wait, what? Was this really the man she'd read about, called a "God of Shinobi"? He sounded almost childishly excited. "You're back from your solo training earlier than expected—you left in such a huff…was it boring? I could have come with you." Sakura could just barely see around Tobirama. Should she step forward, or wait to be introduced?
Tobirama scoffed, folding his arms across his chest. The pink-haired kunoichi imagined he had on a petulant expression to go with his body language. "You know you can no longer leave to train whenever you wish. You have new duties, a village to run, requests from clans coming in every day." Tobirama chastised. "And," he added with a grumble. "The point of me training alone is to alleviate some of the burden of wrangling you into line every day. Having you there defeats the purpose."
'Whoa, who exactly is the older brother here?' Sakura was half surprised by their relationship and half amused.
"That isn't very nice, brother…" the Hokage mumbled sulkily.
'Poor guy,' Sakura thought sympathetically. 'The Nidaime sounds like a regular drill sergeant.'
"I am your advisor as well as your brother. I can't always be nice; you'll take advantage and get carried away." Tobirama insisted firmly. "Besides, scolding you isn't why I came." And there it was, the moment of truth! Sakura stood at attention, putting on her bravest face.
Tobirama stepped aside, and the Hokage and Sakura met eyes for the first time. 'That he knows of.' She reminded herself. And really, meeting this man in the flesh wasn't exactly the same as meeting him on the battlefield briefly as a reanimated undead.
"Oh," Hashirama leaned forward, studying her in honest surprise. His tanned skin had a healthy glow and was in perfect contrast to Tobirama's pale complexion, and she could see the warmth behind the curiosity in his brown eyes. Instead of the armor she'd seen him wearing before, he was dressed in the Kage robes the Sandaime had always worn. Right down to the haori. But instead of the Hokage's hat, he had a simple red headband.
Sakura knew the man sitting behind the desk was incredibly powerful; after seeing him fight for herself she knew the legends about his power weren't exaggerated. However, unlike Tobirama, he didn't have the same intimidating aura, and it helped to put her slightly at ease.
"Hello there!" he greeted, smiling kindly. "I'm not sure if Tobirama's mentioned, but I'm his brother, Hashirama Senju." He tilted his head as he took her in, seeming particularly interested in her hair. To be certain he'd probably never seen anyone with a more unusual hair color, Sakura guessed. "I don't think I've ever seen you around the village." Suddenly, his eyes lit up and the two other shinobi in the room could almost see the animated lightbulb over his head. Sakura thought it was laughable and had to hide her smile. "Unless…when you said you wanted to be alone to train you really meant…" Hashirama's grin became sly as he looked back and forth between the too. "I suppose it would happen eventually. Congratulations, brother! I'm very excited for—"
"You fool!" Tobirama roared indignantly. "Why would you assume something so—with her of all…!" He was clearly frustrated, and when Sakura looked up into his face she could see the barest traces of pink on his cheeks. But whether that was from embarrassment or annoyance she didn't know him well enough to say. What she did know, was she was highly offended at his almost violent dismissal of her as if seeing her in a romantic light was beneath him.
Sure, she understood she barely knew the man, and that yes, she was probably damp, bruised and filthy (she had literally just been in a war, she was entitled to look a little rough, damnit!), looking less than desirable, and honestly, why did she even care?
For the most part, her vanity had lessened considerably over the years and she no longer put daydreaming about boys or making sure her hair was the shiniest in the village above more important matters, like training to keep up with her prodigy teammates—yes, even Naruto's level of growth in such a short period was unprecedented, Jinchuriki or no.
But she had also never forgotten she was a woman and, in her opinion she wasn't that ugly. She'd grown into forehead and everything! So Tobirama had wounded a bit of her feminine pride and a part of her almost wanted to demand he apologize.
She tamped that down though, and watched the white-haired shinobi struggle to regain his composure with far more glee than she should have had. She was vindicated in seeing that the Hokage seemed just as amused by Tobirama's ordeal as she was, and when she met his eyes again, they were twinkling.
"She and I are not…that." he ground out. "In fact hardly know this woman. I was training as I said I'd be when she suddenly came floating down the river, appearing nearly dead. I was able to revive her, and she claimed she hails from a family known as Haruno, mostly civilians, save herself and her mother, who brought her up as a shinobi. She wants to join the village and claims she was headed here, but recalls nothing about how she ended up facedown floating downstream."
Hashirama listened intently with wide eyes to his brother's explanation, turning to Sakura when it was clear Tobirama had no more to say.
"That's quite an incredible story." he said, addressing her for the first time. "I admit, you don't dress like any kunoichi in these parts, and you do look like you've been through quite the ordeal," His brows knit with concern as he took in her tattered, dirty clothes and bruised face.
Again, Sakura was hit by a wave of self-consciousness as she imagined how she must look to him. She supposed she really couldn't be too mad at Tobirama—though she would continue to hold that offense over him anyway—because she certainly didn't look like she'd stepped from anyone's fantasy. Treating her wounded comrades had come before seeing to her own needs, which was why she hadn't bothered healing herself. Then when the fighting had called for her to step up and assist Sasuke and Naruto in taking on Kaguya, then briefly Madara, she had pushed herself to her limits, even with her newly found seal.
She was sure she had various bruises beneath her clothing, and every muscle in her body screamed in pain, now that she bothered to notice. It was amazing she hadn't collapsed already, really. Only the tough training Tsunade had drilled into her and pure determination kept her upright. Slowly, Sakura gripped one arm nervously, bowing her head slightly. "It was a long journey…" she said, "not really one I'd want to repeat anytime soon."
"And you made the journey by yourself? Are you from the Land of Fire originally?" Hashirama questioned.
"Yes to both, Lord Hokage." Sakura found it much easier to be respectful of this man, who didn't push her buttons like Tobirama, and who, while clearly possessing a very boisterous personality, also was capable of compassion and seriousness when the situation called for it.
She was pleased he truly was as reasonable as she'd hoped. It was no wonder why history sang his praises as a good leader of the Leaf. "My family is gone…we never were really all that big anyway, and it was only my mother and I to defend everyone. She…said if we were separated or she fell in battle I should head for Konoha myself and try to start over here." Sakura didn't consider herself much of an actress but she did everything she could to make her voice and face appear as earnest as possible.
She didn't want to lie, but even to her ears she knew how the truth would sound. Ridiculous. A kunoichi from Konoha, living in the distant future that had participated in the Fourth Shinobi World War when the first war hadn't even happened yet? All that did was paint her as a suspicious individual…it was bad enough she couldn't tell them how she'd ended up in the river since she really didn't know. Better to make her story as believable as she could on all the other fronts.
'Please believe me!' she begged. Fending for herself indefinitely outside the protection of the village didn't sound at all appealing. She had never had to live that way, and she wasn't all that confident in how she'd survive in the Sengoku Jidai era when she was already beat down and bordering on chakra exhaustion.
Luckily for her, the Hokage's eyes were full of sympathy and understanding. He didn't look inclined to throw her out. "That's…you haven't had it easy, have you?" he asked gently.
"Yes, that's if her story is to even be believed at all." Tobirama mumbled. Sakura wanted to sigh. She was beginning to see how this worked. Tobirama served as the caution and voice of reason Hashirama seemed to inherently lack. Or strongly suppress constantly…
"Tobirama," The Hokage sighed. "I think this woman's been through enough without you questioning her motives. Look at her," Hashirama motioned to her with a hand. "Does she truly look like she's in any state to do harm?"
"Not currently." Tobirama conceded. "But once she's back to full health, it'll be too late. All I'm asking you to do is the same thing I ask you every time a situation like this presents itself—use caution and good judgement."
Hashirama nodded slowly, "And I believe, as I do every time, that I am." He turned his attention back to Sakura, "I'm sorry for my brother's…wariness. It's become ingrained into him to question the motives of almost everyone he meets I'm afraid. But if you say that you'd like to make the village your new home, and you truly don't have any bad intentions…I believe you." Sakura blinked.
'Just like that?! No interrogation? No seal on my tongue to make sure I can't give any secrets away? No…no…ugh, swallowing a senbon?'
She was both relieved and a little concerned that gaining admission into the newly formed Hidden Leaf Village seemed so simple. In her time, she knew that there was a rather lengthy process for anyone that wished to immigrate.
A process that could take months sometimes and typically included proper vetting papers, a summary of the immigrating party or parties' intentions, a report in good standing that they hadn't left their village for any unsavory reasons, signed by their Kage or whoever served as village head, along with Tsunade, and reviewed by the council, and much more.
Of course every situation was handled differently, but Sakura had never paid too much attention because Konoha had always been her home since birth and she never had any intentions of living elsewhere. The Leaf was where she'd blossomed into the person she was today, where her friends and family were. She was proud to be Sakura Haruno of the Hidden Leaf.
"I know Tobirama said that your surname was Haruno, but would you mind telling me your first name? I make it a point to try and learn everyone's names in the village." Hashirama continued.
"It's Sakura," she was able to say with more confidence than she had previously.
"Sakura?" The Hokage repeated. Then his eyes flew to her hair and he grinned brightly. "Ah, Sakura! I see!" he chuckled. "How fitting."
"Hmph…" Tobirama grunted, clearly not finding it anywhere near as fascinating as his brother.
"Don't be like that, brother." Hashirama chided lightly. "If you've got the time to spare why don't you show Sakura-san the village and to her living quarters." The brown-haired man rubbed his neck. "I'm afraid the homes don't have much in the way of furnishing but we can have someone help you with that as well."
Sakura bowed graciously. "Thank you, Hokage-sama. It's more than I could have asked for." She meant it.
Hashirama sheepishly waved off her bow, looking uncomfortable. "Oh nonsense, Sakura-san. You're going to be a part of the village and we're, well, I like to think of the village as one big family!" he smiled goofily, and Sakura found her heart warming to this man, who in that moment reminded her of her blonde teammate.
And as soon as her heart warmed, it sank, thinking about Naruto and everyone else she'd left behind. They probably thought she was dead. Her parents would be devastated when she didn't come home with everyone else. 'No, I can't dwell on that now. Not in front of them!' Sakura quickly shook herself out of it before her thoughts took a turn for the gloomy.
"I hope that won't be a problem," she told Tobirama, trying to be at least civil.
Tobirama didn't answer. He turned to leave his brother's office. "Follow me."
Sakura bristled but then told herself to relax and go with the flow. She'd just have to get use to this curt man.
Sakura looked over her shoulder and Hashirama waved, his eyes closed as he smiled. "Welcome to the Leaf!" he called after her.
In her mind she added emptily, 'Welcome home.'
A slightly longer chapter than the others, where Sakura meets the goofy but ever-lovable Shodai Hokage, deals with the prickly Tobirama who may not be easy to win over, and begins adjusting to a village that's familiar but not home. But will it become home soon? And will Sakura find out how she ended up in the past? Will she ever get home? What are her friends doing in her own time? The answers to all these questions next time on A Stitch in Time! XD Don't forget to drop a few lines in a review, I'd really appreciate it. Now I'm off to update some other stories that I really need to stop putting off updating.
Sakura meets more "dead" people next chapter. :D
