Author's Note

I wanted to put this note in the beginning as opposed to the end. If this is the last chapter you read from me, I wanted to make sure you knew I appreciate the insane amount of support from all of you. I see the favorites, follows, and reviews come in and it makes my black heart feel golden again, awakening something long buried from within me - that being my love of writing and storytelling. I am sure it sounds cheesy, but this community has truly changed me, even three chapters in. NaruSaku is a ship that has increasingly started to mean more and more to me, and I am so glad I am able to provide a story that not only *I* love, but that others are finding enjoyment in, as well. I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review/favorite/follow and let me know what you think!
~ Azurelyy

Chapter III

Team Kakashi had a small window of time before they had to begin their escort, and Sakura graciously took the opportunity to freshen up in the bathroom. She could feel the buildup of grime on her hands, the thin layer of dirt that coated her fingers and face that mixed with the sweat and dirt from the humid, summer days. She mentally noted that she would be taking a journey to the bathhouse after this mission as she swiftly closed and locked the door of the bathroom behind her.

She examined herself in the mirror - analyzing her pink hair, fixing the stray baby hairs that stood up on top of her head, and splashing water over her face in an effort to hide the dark circles that formed under her eyes from lack of sleep the night prior. She had changed a lot from the girl she was back when she first joined Team Seven. Her eyes were more tired, her hips and chest fuller, her skin slightly less iridescent than it had been in her youth. Her hair stayed much shorter as well, the attempt to cut it in the moment was due to survival, but the length suited her and she kept it, insisting it made her feel more like a proper ninja. She hated the feeling of helplessness that had surrounded her ever since that day in the forest. She felt just as helpless on Tenchi Bridge with their fight with Orochimaru and Kabuto as she watched Naruto transform, unable to hold back the power of the Nine Tailed Fox. She thought of how she wanted to reach for him and soothe him back to consciousness, only to ultimately end up on the ground, needing to be saved as always.

No matter how hard she trained, how desperately she clung to the idea of helping others, she couldn't keep up with her teammates. Not Naruto, and certainly not Sasuke. Sasuke.

Sakura remembered the boy she had loved all those years ago. How she confessed her love to him in a pathetic attempt at keeping him close, at saving him, only for him to dismiss her like she was just another schoolgirl crush, as though they hadn't spent countless hours training together. She knew him, Sasuke and Naruto both; it was a bond that can only be formed through late nights and bruises after training since dawn, through dinners between friends that extended to walks around town in order to stay together for a little longer, through long conversations while waiting on Kakashi about everything and nothing all at once.

She reflected on the memory of the day the teams were announced. All she had wanted was to be on a team with Sasuke. She had no idea what that would mean, the undeniable comradery that comes with forming a ninja team - she only knew she wanted to be near him. Then, she did not realize that would mean her and Sasuke could be friends, wishing only that they could be lovers, the naivety of youth keeping the realities of life locked deep away in a vault that can only be opened with the key of knowledge only aging can grant you. Despite her efforts to avoid Naruto, her utter exasperation by his presence, the disdain she felt when she heard his name escape Iruka's mouth, she formed a connection with the blonde, too. She listened to his bad jokes, felt his joy when his eyes connected to hers, felt his sorrow when he learned of Sasuke's departure, saw his determination when he made his promise to bring Sasuke back, a determination that burned so strongly that, even when he returned and Sasuke did not, she bursted into tears. Naruto had believed it was because his promise was broken and continued to suffocate her with assurances of getting Sasuke back, not realizing she was crying due to the pain Naruto had suffered in his efforts, thinking about what it would be like to not look into his blue eyes again, to not have him ask her on a date again, to not be able to hold him close again…

She remembered how close she and Naruto were when they found Sasuke, how her hand reached out towards his instinctively, needing to know he was still by her side, trying to reassure her best friend she had in the only way she knew how. Sasuke stood overhead of them like a hawk waiting to swoop down upon its prey, his dark eyes never connecting to her own. He was upon Naruto in a flash, the force making Sakura's hand disconnect from Naruto's as he moved his hands to brace himself for the impact. She watched, helplessly, as the two fought, as her friends fought, and she realized she had failed. She had failed as a ninja, her training disappearing into nothing as she, once again, foolishly tried to get back the raven-haired boy who had never cast her so much as a backwards glance.

Sakura's pulse quickened as the knocking on the bathroom door echoed off the walls around her, pulling her back into reality. She watched as the handle rustled and heard Naruto's familiar voice, "I'm going to come in, I'm serious!" She unlocked the door without thinking, and was greeted by Naruto's surprised shout as he tumbled into the bathroom with her, nearly losing his footing, and then slowly raising his head up inches away from her face as he smiled his signature smile.

Sakura's face relaxed as her eyes connected to his and gave him a soft smile. "Sorry about that, I guess I was lost in thought." She felt uncomfortable being this close to him, so she cast her eyes away from his shyly and instead focused on his mouth. "How long were you knocking?"

"Like 10 seconds." His smile grew wider, which Sakura didn't know was even possible. "I thought maybe you fell in or something!" He laughed as she pushed his face away.

"Ugh, Naruto! You're so gross." But she was laughing with him.

"Anyway," Naruto put his hands behind his head, "I was serious, so if you don't mind…" He glanced towards the door and Sakura got the drift.

"Oh, right," She awkwardly shuffled around him in the small room and felt him give her a peck on the cheek swiftly before he closed the door in her face, luckily for him, too quickly for her to react.

"NARUTO!" Sakura's fist connected to the door, the loud BOOM that followed was shrouded in Naruto's giggles from behind the door. Sakura was thankful she hadn't put full force into the punch or she would undoubtedly be paying off The Water Temple for a replacement door.

It was another unbearably hot day. Sakura could feel the sweat dripping down her face as she trailed behind Kakashi. She wiped it away with the back of her hand and sighed, looking up towards the cloudless sky and wishing for some relief from the torture of this day.

Akira's giggles had been endless since they left the Water Temple. Sakura had known Naruto for a long time, and he was not that funny. Still, the girl laughed. And laughed. And laughed some more. Through this, Sakura unfortunately learned that Naruto had the same arsenal of jokes for every new girl he met. She knew this because they were the same jokes he told her back in their genin days. Sakura thought he had matured away from the childlike comedy, but it turns out that he had just used all his material on her back in the day, and was finally able to "play the hits" with the new girl.

"Yup, and that's how I became Konoha's Number One Sexy Ninja." Naruto sighed, really playing up the emphasis on his joke by feigning boredom from all his supposed admirers back home. Sakura couldn't resist. "Now that you mention it, Naruto," his name came out like venom from her mouth as she spun around to face the pair, "I guess with Sasuke gone, it did make some room for new admirers for you, with all of Konoha's eligible bachelorettes now lacking a male heartthrob and all. Sasuke was always the ladies favorite, but you're alright too, I guess." She shrugged as she watched Naruto's face turn bright red, knowing it wasn't from the heat, a wicked laugh escaping her lips. Naruto looked towards Akira and lightly tapped his nose as he replied, "Ah, don't worry about Sakura. The heat really gets to her this time of year and she's just jealous of all the attention I've been getting." Akira giggled again and said, "Oh! I love summertime, it's so beautiful." Sakura narrowed her eyes and folded her hands over her chest. Did Akira even hear her? The girl had hardly taken her eyes off Naruto for the past six hours, and the first time Sakura said more than two words to them throughout the whole trip, she didn't even bother to acknowledge her? Sakura turned around with a huff, pushing her nose up towards the sky again and let out a loud, "Argh!"

"Oh," Akira finally responded, her voice light and aloof, "Is something the matter?"

Sakura didn't bother turning her head around to them again as she quipped, "Never been better!"

There was only a brief moment of silence before Naruto said, "Yeah! Summer is the best. I really love to go swimming."

"Yes, me too!" Akira's voice was shrill to Sakura's ears, "Does Konoha have many good swimming spots? I have never been able to travel there… but I would really love to someday." Sakura heard the anticipation in the girl's voice and could picture the way she had fluttered her eyelashes at Naruto, hoping he got the hint.

"Kakashi-sensei," It came out in a groan, but she didn't care, "Can we please switch spots?" Kakashi stopped abruptly, causing Sakura to ram into him. "Ow!"

"Sorry, Sakura," Kakashi murmured, "Hold on for a minute, everyone." The group grew quiet as they watched Kakashi stand perfectly still, listening to the sounds of the forest. When his shoulders relaxed, the air around the group released the suffocating hold it had over them as Kakashi turned around and smiled through his mask. "All clear. Let's keep moving."

The next two days were incredibly dull and filled with what Sakura could only describe as torture, listening to Naruto and Akira flirt back and forth throughout the journey. Not only did she have to listen, but she had to watch them flirt as well. The way he insisted on walking behind the group, saying it made the most sense but actually knowing it meant Akira would slow her pace to walk next to him. The way he would grab Akira's wrist to encourage her it was "just a little further" towards the end of the day. The way his face flushed at night when Akira would insist on gathering the firewood with him. Sakura was sick of all of it.

It was another Naruto-less night at camp as he and Akira were off gathering firewood together, again, and Sakura was left to do nothing but watch Kakashi read his dumb book.

"How much longer until we reach The Great Naruto Bridge?" Sakura's sigh was loud and exasperated. She saw Kakashi's eye flash with a hint of mischief and she braced herself for a snarky response.

"Why do you keep asking me that?" His voice was nonchalant and playful. She hated it.

"I just want to make sure we take this mission as seriously as possible, Sensei."

Kakashi chucked. "We're half a day's journey away. We can sleep in a bit tomorrow and we'll still have plenty of time to spare before the hand off at the rendezvous."

"Do we know why we're escorting her?" Sakura tried to sound disinterested, but her curiosity shone through. The girl had been nothing but bothersome to her the past few days, and she needed a reason as to why she had to endure this psychological torment.

"Nope, and we don't care." With that, Kakashi swiftly closed his book and placed it into the pocket of his vest without another word. Sakura rolled her eyes. Always so secretive. "However…" Sakura saw the mischievous glint in his eye twinkle again and she clutched her hands to her knees tightly, embracing for the impact his words would surely have on her, "Perhaps Naruto knows?" She heard Kakashi hum lowly as he turned and walked towards the unstarted fire pit and Sakura felt the suppressed anger bubble within her once again.

"NARUTO!" Sakura and Kakashi shared a quick glance before they rushed toward the sound of Akira's shout. Sakura felt her lungs begin to burn as she sprinted, keeping up with Kakashi's bolt-like pace. There were no other sounds coming from Akira's direction and the silence overwhelmed Sakura with anxiety. She rounded the trees and caught sight of Akira, her arm outstretched and pointing towards the North trees. Sakura gracefully knelt beside her and said, "Akira, are you alright? Where's Naruto?" Sakura was looking where Akira was pointing, but she saw no sign of Naruto's orange tracksuit in the distance. It was sunset now, a magenta hue slowly cascading down throughout the forest, leaving the most distant parts black as a starless sky.

"Sakura, stay with her." Kakashi's voice was stern. Sakura watched him dash through the trees in the direction of Akira's pointed finger.

"Right!" Sakura turned her attention to the girl now, noticing that she was trembling, her lips slightly glossy, her hair disheveled, and her face flush. Sakura bit her lip as realization struck her, electrifying her whole body with hot fury. She pushed the thought from her mind, piercing the girl's eyes with her own.

"Akira," Sakura's voice was steely, "Are you alright?"

Akira locked eyes with Sakura as she ran her hand through her hair, fixing the messy strands that were sticking up. She nodded, and Sakura averted her gaze as she heard Akira shuffling and fixing her appearance.

"N-Naruto, he… He pushed me down here." Sakura examined the area around the girl now and noticed a kunai that had connected into the tree behind her, perfectly encased in the bark. Sakura sighed, feeling ashamed, and grabbed Akira's hand to help her up.

"I see." Sakura saw the way the bark had cracked around the weapon, how it laid within the depths of the tree trunk, and noticed there was no angle to it at all. It was perfectly straight. That's odd, Sakura thought. For a kunai to be thrown from far enough away to be noticed only within the last few moments before connecting, then it should have implanted crookedly into the tree. This looked as though it was thrown as a distraction, intending for it to miss the target.

Sakura heard a faint crunch from above, her gaze slowly moving up and locking upon ice blue eyes, sending a shiver running up her spine. She pushed Akira forward by instinct as a body emerged from the tree tops, descending upon Sakura with a kunai outstretched towards her face. Sakura spun left, the kunai grazing passed her cheek and leaving behind a stinging sensation as she swung her right arm around, her fist connecting with her enemy's ribcage. The foe flew into the tree with a smash as Sakura smirked. People usually underestimated her due to her looks, so it was easy for her to get the first hit in combat situations and this was no different. Such ignorance.

Sakura frowned slightly when she took in her enemy's appearance in more detail, noticing she was a girl only a few years older than herself. Her face was hardened, her clothes were filthy, caked in a thick layer of grunge that can only build up through weeks of travel, with greasy, platinum blonde hair that was clinging to her cheeks due to the humidity and heat of the mid-September days. The girl stood up now, a curved smile forming on one half of her face as she rubbed her side and stated, "You really shouldn't have done that."