He never ceased to amaze her. Naruto, that is. She was sure, so very sure that it'd be a slow and torturing process, their daily studying sessions but things had gone as smoothly as they could, considering their circumstances.

Green eyes scanned the paper tests, once, twice and by the third time she checked them, Sakura decided that what she was seeing was real and that her efforts had paid off in the end.

She had Shikamaru to thank for this miracle because she wasn't as conceited to think that she could have succeeded alone. However, the person who should be given the most credit was the Uzumaki goofball himself.

He learned in a month what others learned in years.

"Sakura-chaan, just tell me already. The suspense is killing me." Naruto loudly complained from where he was sitting cross-legged on his bedroom floor, rubbing a bump on the head from when he had tried looking over her shoulder.

She gave him the test papers and a wide smile. "You are ready to graduate, Naruto." she exclaimed, watching him closely to see his reaction.

Nevertheless to say, her smile slowly shifted into a frown when no bright blur of orange tackled her into a hug.

"What's wrong? I know you didn't get a perfect score but we both agreed that shinobi rules get broken all the time out in the field."

Just because her past self used to know them by heart that didn't mean, even for one second, that Sakura agreed with them so, she hadn't pushed Naruto to learn those.

"I know, dattebayo. I'm just...confused. You used to hate me before. Now you are helping me, AND spending time with me more than with anyone else. Why? What changed, Sakura-chan?"

It had been easy, so easy for her to fall back into old habits, to act as though she had been his friend since forever because in a way, to her, that's how it felt like. Almost every memory worth remembering had Naruto smiling brightly at her, promising one thing or another. It was hard for her to acknowledge that things hadn't always been that way, that she truly started to care for him only after Sasuke had left the village.

It was back then that she started needing him like the lungs needed oxygen; she had needed him to fill the void their teammate left. And Naruto who suffered the same loss, who felt that same pain, didn't question her whenever she couldn't sleep and woke him up in the middle of the night to keep her company.

He didn't question the hand she had started placing on his shoulder, or the signficant drop in strength whenever she punched him. Naruto didn't make any remarks. It was almost like he never even noticed. He simply welcomed her with open arms, radiating kindness and warmth.

It occurred later to Sakura that he had needed her as much as she had needed him. Because they were alone. Every day they were surrounded by people who judged and insulted Sasuke, as if they knew him. She and Naruto had been the only ones willing to move mountains. Anything. They would have done anything to bring him back.

They were the only ones who refused to accept any other outcome than the one where they came out victorious. They were alone in their grief and nobody could have understood them like they had understood each other.

Now, now Sakura had to stop and think. Sasuke's betrayal was the catalyst of their friendship, of their bond. What had they been a year before it happened?

Classmates.

Strangers, because we knew nothing about each other. Passions, fears, dislikes, weaknesses, dreams, strengths...Nothing.

She was back to square one and while Sakura knew it was a good thing, that she could stop tragedies and dark events, it was moments like these when she wanted her old life back.

She wanted her Naruto back, the one who didn't look at her suspiciously. She wanted her Ino back, the girl who wouldn't glare at her for something they had long pushed behind them. The people surrounding her now were merely fragments of the ones she had once fought besides, laughed with, and put her life on the line for.

Is this what you have always felt Naruto, Sasuke?

Alone, in a crowd full of human beings?

Sakura tightened her hold on the material of her red dress, swarmed by regrets. She regretted not being wiser, better; for thinking she had the whole world figured out when not even the surface had been clear to her.

Upon noticing the silence that heavily lay around, she realized Naruto was still waiting for an answer.

"I did." the pink-haired girl looked up to meet his eyes. "I changed and ever since I realized some things, I've been trying to make up for them. I know it's not enough but..."

"Say no more, Sakura-chan! I was stupid to think you have an ulterior motive. Ano, it's just...most people don't like me, you know? I have no idea why though but, it doesn't matter. Having you, jii-chan and Iruka-sensei is enough for me. So, thanks Sakura-chan, I couldn't have done this without your help!"

A powerful wave of anger hit her, seemingly out of nowhere. She knew the villagers were blaming Naruto for the Kyuubi Incident. She wondered just how bad the situation was. Sakura made a mental note to find out.

"Baka, you did the right thing. A ninja should be observant and never let their guard down. With a henge, everyone can look like me so, always be prepared. " she tried to hide the relief and joy she felt on the inside when Naruto stopped giving her that confused and mistrustful look. He forgave her. She had his forgiveness.

He nodded, closing his fist against his chest. "Of course I remember! I will be able to make the difference between your chakra and everybody's else in no time, believe it!"

If my theory is correct, then Naruto has the potential of becoming a chakra sensor like...that Sound girl, Karin.

"There is only so much information books can give us, Naruto. The best sensors in Konoha are the Yamanaka, so..."

Before she could have hoped to finish her sentence, Naruto made a face, as if he had already connected some unpleasant dots. "You mean, we have to ask Ino to teach me?" he asked as if that had been the worst life sentence given to men.

However, Sakura must praise his progress in analytical thinking and speed of deduction. "No. What I meant is that you, will be the one asking Ino-buta."

She knew the Yamanaka clan heiress was nowhere near her full potential at this point in time, but learning the basics was better than nothing.

Naruto had surpassed Jiraya-sama when he added wind chakra to the Rasengan. He can figure things out if he is given a few tips.

"Sakura-chan, Ino would skin me alive! Didn't you and her use to be friends or something?" he asked, scratching the back of his neck as if he was searching through his memories.

Used to. Past tense.

"We are rivals now." Some part of Sakura felt obliged to say it because that's how things were now, weren't they? As far as everyone was aware of, their friendship was nothing but a chapter in their past and even though she has been ignoring Sasuke, avoiding him even, people couldn't just forget years of fangirl behaviour.

She supposed it was the Universe's way of laughing at her. Had she gone back further in time, say before she entered The Academy, she would have made sure Haruno Sakura was never found in the dictionary under that dreaded word.

Unfortunately, she was a second chance long after her reputation had formed. Thus, her less brighter years would forever be there; a black stain in a file that Sakura swore to ink drown with accomplishments.

I guess it can't be helped.

"No offence Sakura-chan, but can't you two be rivals and friends at the same time?"

Naruto posed a good question. Unfortunately, she and Ino weren't him and Sasuke. There wasn't any emotional pain or understanding depth that bound them together as one. Truth be told, Sakura knew she and only she, had been responsible for their fallout.

This...regret. I forgot how it feels like, having Ino and I stand on opposite sides. Can I change this?

"I don't know. I made a mistake and said some things."

"Have you tried?"

Did I?

"No..."

The Uzumaki goofball gave her a pointed look. "You shouldn't give up so easily, Sakura-chan! Seriously now dattebayo, how can you know if you don't even try? "

That's right Naruto and besides, I am here to change the past not watch as everything unfolds the same as before!

"I think...I have something to fix. Thanks Naruto! I will see you tomorrow at graduation!" the pinkette rose from the floor quickly enough that she ended up knocking off a flower vase.

The son of The Yellow Flash caught it just before it hit the ground, yelling. "See you, Sakura-chan!"

Finding Ino proved to be more difficult than she had anticipated. The first place she searched for had been her family's flower shop. When she found Yamanaka Inoichi instead, Sakura got the same notch in her belly that she had when Shikaku got mentioned, only worse.

It was one thing to hear of a dead person. Having that person stand right in front of you, was quite another. Sakura took a deep breath and untangled the metaphorical notch, greeting him and asked about her hopefully soon to be friend.

The answer she got, however, had been annoyingly ague. She fought the urge to roll her eyes when Inoichi, head of The Analysis Team in the village's Intelligence Division, scratched the back of his neck like a confused child and chuckled nervously, rambling about stuff Sakura didn't want to know.

Suffice to say, Inoichi had no idea where Ino was. The fact that she was with Shikamaru and Chouji gave her a few ideas.

Surprisingly or not, she found them in the last place she had thought of looking: the park. Despite the emptiness of the area, the trio didn't seem to have noticed her yet. They occupied the swings. Chouji was busy eating and though Shikamaru stood with his eyes closed, head inclined towards the sky, she knew him well enough not to be fooled by that lazy-at-first-glance poise. His mind was restless, even if his body didn't look it.

He slept during all of our classes and still got top scores.

Then Sakura's eyes fell upon Ino, confident in what she said and in how she looked, talking their ears off about something important if their reactions was any indication.

Chouji froze mid-bite while Shikamaru cracked both of his eyes open, sitting upright. Unfortunately, their masks got back in place as quickly as they had fallen.

To an outsider, that would have meant nothing but Sakura, who had watched many teams in the past, including theirs, recognised the behavior.

The desire to flee and ignore the harsh reality, the realization that tomorrow will be the beginning of something both great and dangerous. That their childhood is...ending.

Had the outsider lingered for awhile, he wouldn't have failed to see Chouji and Shikamaru placing their hands on top of Ino's. A promise. The start of a bond that would transcend lifetimes. Three souls, one body. Team. Family. That was the Ino-Shika-Cho.

I wonder, Naruto, Sasuke...will we ever be like them?

It was a fool's dream and nobody knew it better than she did but for a split second, she indulged herself. Sakura adverted her eyes from the emotional scene. She couldn't help but feel as though she were intruding upon something intimate that should be sheltered from witnesses.

She didn't get far very far.

"Oi, Sakura."

Even without turning around the owner of the voice had been unmistakable. Of course Shikamaru would notice her right when she wanted to leave. Smiling nervously, Sakura joined them on the swings.

"Hi guys. Ano, I can leave if…"

"It's fine Sakura, don't worry about it." Chouji cut her off, not unkindly. He thrust out his bag of chips; a silent offer she politely declined. The pink-haired girl bit her tongue as not to scold him for eating so much junk food.

She searched for Ino. The blonde was uncharacteristically quiet for once, probably too busy glaring if Sakura judged correctly the angle of her head and the stiffness of her back.

Shifting her gaze to Shikamaru who had his eyes closed once more, she jabbed a finger into his ribs, gently enough so, it wouldn't leave a bruise but hard enough that he'd snap one eye open to look at her.

"I wanted to thank you for helping me out. Naruto will pass tomorrow with flying colours."

The annoyance of being disturbed vanished gradually as he allowed her words to sink in. He smirked. If you were to ask Sakura, she'd say Shikamaru was proud of Naruto himself.

"Good. Listening to his whinning would have been a drag."

Sakura let out a small chuckle. "You bet."

Silence followed her statement. She didn't know what else to say or how to approach Ino for that matter. Hot tempered she herself was, but the young Yamanaka took the cake as far as emotional unpredictability went.

Shikamaru, contraire to popular belief, noticed more than he showed. Figuring out the real reason behind Sakura's search for them had been easy.

Spoiler alert. She hadn't come all the way here to thank him. Not to say that she wouldn't have done it all, but it wasn't something important that either of them specifically cared about. The friendship she and Ino had once shared, though? That was important.

If Sakura wanted to make amends, he wasn't going to stick around. A fight could break out and that'd be troublesome. Say it didn't; the two ended up crying and hugging...that would be even more troublesome; He didn't know how to comfort girls and leaving them alone once they started crying would be a dick move.

Leaving before that? It was the move of a genius and Shikamaru just happened to be one.

"Oi, Chouji." he called out. The red-haired boy turned his head to face him. Good, he had his best friend's attention. "Remember the forest behind my house? I found something there yesterday. You could also come, Ino, but it'd probably disgust you."

Shikamaru's lazy voice echoed around the park, just like a saving grace would. It took Sakura aproximately five seconds to realize that not only had he figured out the struggle she was in, but he also just offered to help.

He and Chouji must have shared a telepathic link because the latter gave her a sympathetic look before taking his leave, the Nara heir right behind him. They only rose after Ino said she wasn't interested in something that would disgust her. There was a time when Sakura would have agreed, but those times were long gone. She had seen so much that little would be able to disgust her now.

"What do you want, Forehead?"

Straight to the subject. I shouldn't have expected anything else.

"Wait until I finish talking before you cut me off, alright, Ino-Pig? Five minutes. That's all I need."

"Good because that's all that you were getting anyways."

Don't kill her. You don't kill future friends.

The pink-haired girl had to remind herself as she clenched and unclenched one her fists. Sakura loved Ino to death but sometimes she was too much. And yet, she wouldn't change a thing about her.

"I want us to be friends again. I was wrong to end our friendship. It was a stupid reason. It was stupid then and it's stupid now. I mean, has Sasuke-kun paid any attention to us? What did he do to make us think we'd have a chance anyway? I'm sorry Ino, for putting him first and I'm sorry for not telling you this sooner. I'm not asking for your forgiveness, but tomorrow we are officially ninjas. I'd hate to hear to hear you died on a mission without having us talk things through."

"You are wasting your breath, Sakura. We made our choice, hadn't we? Going back on it, is cowardice. How can I even trust you? A broken mirror even repaired will never be the same again."

She couldn't blame her for saying that.

Seeing Sakura look down at the ground, Ino decided that was all the confirmation she needed. She rose gracefully and started walking only to stop mid-step. "I don't know what game you are playing at, but I'm no fool. Eventually, Sasuke-kun will make his choice. When that time comes, I would have made sure I won. Good luck with Naruto though. He isn't a bad catch." she paused here. "If you can look past his intelligence and baggy clothes, that is."

Sakura had taken insults before, although it has been awhile, but Naruto? He has had enough of those to last him a lifetime.

"Say what you will about me, Ino-Pig, but don't you dare involve him. That, picking on loved ones rather than on your enemy, is cowardice."

Sakura, who was equally tired and angry, stormed off the playground, passing Ino. Things can't always be easy. She thought remorsefully.

Despite the arguments he had carried out in his own head, Shikamaru chose to stay behind, near the park. His stationary point was strategically speaking very well chosen because it let him know how the conversation had unfolded. The sight of Ino's angry walking and tear smudged eye-liner caused him to sigh.

A disaster then.

He fought the urge to flee in the opposite direction, mentally complaining. This is such a drag. Why did I willingly place myself right in the middle of pandemonium?

Shikamaru couldn't find any logical explication and chose to blame, weirdly enough, the Will of Fire, convincing himself that just about any Leaf shinobi would have offered support to his comrades.

I did not just think that.

He grimaced. His justification had so many holes that it was embarrassing.

"Discovered something my ass. I should have known you are too lazy to search for things." Ino startled him out if his self-scolding. The place he had chosen to hide in wasn't as good when the object of observation stood outside the park.

For what Shikamaru wanted, however, it had worked just fine. "I could have stumbled across it." he drawled lazily.

The Nara had a feeling that wasn't the best way to counter.

"Even worse! You are graduating tomorrow Shikamaru. Shinobi don't stumble!" Ino put her hands on her hips.

Called it.

No matter how much he had tried ignoring Ino's nagging, his attempts proved to be as effective as when he had applied them around his mother. In true Nara fashion, Shikamaru stopped trying after awhile. He knew not to fight a losing battle. I could as well try to tone out an entire crowd.

"Why didn't you accept Sakura's apology?" There. Beating around the bush wasn't their thing.

Ino gave him a look, her briliant and puffy blue eyes piercing him like she wanted to know why. Why was he taking Sakura's side instead of hers?

"Because she didn't deserve it. It's that simple, Shika." the way his nickname rolled off her tongue...softened him.

It always did.

"Troublesome woman." he complained.

He could handle happy Ino, scared Ino, angry Ino, hell, even crazy Ino better than her sad version.

"You are taking her side." she accused him.

Analysis: spot on.

"I'm not, but I'm not taking yours either. You were both wrong. Sakura admitted it, why can't you, Ino? I wouldn't let my friendship with Chouji suffer because of some girl like you had done in regards to Sasuke." Shikamaru stuck his hands inside his pockets. "I know you and this right now, is your pride talking."

Ino did the mature thing and stuck out her tongue.

He sighed, convinced his future teammate was going to kill him long before enemy-nin had the chance.

"Come on." Shikamaru gently tugged at her sleeve. "I'm walking you home."

Ino blinked, looking positively stunned...and sceptical. "I can walk myself."

The Nara heir nodded. "I know."

A few seconds of eye-contact later, Ino accepted, clinging to his arm. Night was said to be a good consellor and Shikamaru knew the blonde would be thinking about what he told her.