Story: Melancholia, Chapter 4
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Really concerned about Tsunade here… I've hardly ever wrote for her, so this is probably HORRIBLY written and out of character oof…

But this is what I felt best, and there are reasons I had it though, that will play into later relatively important concepts in the story.

If she's been around them a little bit up to this point, met them a few times, could see herself in Sakura, heard Jiraiya and Kakashi's words on the matter, and also knew of Sasuke's and Naruto's rivalry, considering Team Hiruzen and Team Minato are kind of a parallel to team 7… I only felt she wouldn't be beyond offering them advice. I hope this didn't seem like rushing the gun at all ughhhh. A huge part of me wanted to leave out the pep talk because it kind of felt odd, but the other part of me wanted to keep it because I'm a sucker for motherly/big sisterly Tsunade kill me. (I'm for removing it if people don't like it…) Natually, I had Sasuke challenge it in the scene to add more of a sense of realism (considering their characters) and set the mood for future development.

Replies to Reviews:

Jorge Luis Arias Arcentales On Chapter 3:

"I also found it strange that everyone saw Naruto using a strange power (especially Sasuke with his cheat eye) and never inquire into that, especially Sasuke and Sakura since they spent much time together. I mean, when everyone walked through the village together and people began to look badly at Naruto, whispering things, none of them ever said, "Hey, why does everyone treat Naruto like that? Something happens here."

Yes, they both questioned his power at a couple points, when it was in front of them, but never put much thought into it beyond that, that never had any serious suspicions nor did they put the connection together until they were outright shown/told that he had the nine tails inside of him. I'm really sad that there wasn't a lot of focus on Sakura and Sasuke's thoughts about the way people talked about Naruto, especially after they became teammates. Well, that's what fanfiction is for and I'm super excited to explore that material! :D

suki hanasuke On Chapter 3:

"Bitter sweet endings are always good! Adorable and cute ones are good as well! I wonder if itachi has said anything? Naru-Chan is going to be the sweet sunshine child, if you want any ideas just ask ok? Plot bunny's appear everywhere...:3"

I'm a huge angst-fluff type writer, so I rarely ever have complete hope without a little bit of angst or angst without any hope in my stories, but I do like slowly making people happier, the characters just have to go through a lot of suffering to get there first. TwT

As for Itachi, I'm still undecided this early on if I'm even going to include him, but a tinsy part of me really wants to bring him in and take a much less depressing route than what we got in canon(especially since it concerns Sasuke's arc and I'm one of hopeful optimism... Heck, I've always kind of wondered what would happen if Sasuke had found out or started questioning the truth about Itachi before killing him, bonus if it was before he left the village. I also really like Itachi's character and concept so I feel so conflicted on what to do right now... Although I do mainly want to focus on Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Kakashi for the time being... But if you, or anybody else has potential ideas, especially for the Itachi thing, please throw them at me without restraint! I can always extra ideas to work with!

Thank you all so much for the follows, favorites, and comments. I originally didn't even expect this to get as much attention as it's gotten. Your support means so much to me.

"Alright, listen up, you three."

Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto looked up at Tsunade, awaiting the details of their mission.

"For this mission, you're going to be escorting two young men to a port town called Shinzuku. Your destination is located approximately 350 kilometers South West of Tanzaku Town, so it could take you up to a few days to get there. Make sure you're fully prepared before you leave. I-"

A sudden knock on the door, cut her off.

"Come in."

It only took a second before the door was opened. In stepped two slim, slightly tanned males, one had medium length stark white hair pulled into a loose braid and was probably barely older than Naruto, while the other had short black hair and appeared to a bit younger than Kakashi.

"Ah, you're back." Tsunade smiled. "These are the people that are going to be the ones protecting you on your journey back home."

"Oh, I see. Well, I'm Izumi and this is my Older Brother, Saburo." The while haired boy said casually, pointing at the young man behind him, who bowed a bit in acknowledgement.

"I'm Hatake Kakashi, I'm the Jounin in charge of them. Now, why don't you three all introduce yourselves to our clients?" Kakashi encouraged his students.

"Oh, right. Hi." Sakura smiled a bit sheepishly. "I'm Haruno Sakura. It's nice to meet you."

"Uchiha Sasuke…" Sasuke muttered.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto and I'm gonna become the Hokage, ya know!" Naruto said with a cocky grin.

Of course, Sakura and basically everybody else thought exasperated (but kind of amused at the same time), leave it up to Naruto to give more than just a simple name introduction

Izumi seemed dumbfounded for a moment, but momentarily smirked, almost seeming to find the blonde's enthusiasm rather charming. He then turned back to glance at Tsunade, putting his hands into the pockets of his black sweatpants. "Well, since that's out of the way, when can we expect to leave, Hokage-sama?"

Sakura briefly wondered if there was a reason Saburo hadn't said anything, and why Izumi had been the only one doing the talking. Maybe he was just shy, she thought dismissively, pushing the question to the side for the time being.

"Right… I want you all to be at the Main Gate within the next two hours." Tsunade instructed. "Pack your bags and take care of whatever you have to in the meantime, because once you leave, you'll be on the road for at least a few hours before you reach the next town over. As for you two, you can wait at the entrance if you want. Other than that, you're dismissed."

After a moment, everybody bowed and began to leave the room, Naruto being the first to run out, going on a tangent about being hungry for Ichiraku Ramen. However, before they could make it to the door, Sasuke and Sakura were surprised when Tsunade called out their names:

"Actually, hold on. Sasuke, Sakura, I'd like to have a word with you two about something…"

"Huh? Who? Us?" Sakura jumped a bit, looking back at her nervously. "We're not in trouble or anything, are we?"

"No, it's nothing like that. This won't even take five minutes." Tsunade assured, getting up.

"Just listen to what she has to say, Sakura. You'll be fine, I promise." Kakashi reassured her, easing her discomfort by a ton. "You too, Sasuke."

As he said that, he gave both of them a light pat on the head before leaving the room.

"Um, W…What did you need to see us about, Hokage-sam-?" Sakura started to ask, but cut herself off, when she felt a gentle hand on her cheek. A green glow of chakra illuminated the injury and it didn't take long before the bruise on her face was gone.

"What kind of Hokage of would I be if I let you run off with injuries that I could just as easily fix?" Tsunade smirked. One month ago, she would have never got involved with the matter, and probably wouldn't have cared, but after meeting Naruto, his words and will to not give up… It had really struck a cord within her and reminded of her goals; of her desire to protect her home village and the people in it.

Even if she didn't know these two all that well, they were Naruto's dear friends, and also a part of Konoha. Also, while she couldn't quite place her finger on it, there was something she really liked about the girl already, despite having only been around her a few times…

Sakura didn't know what to think or say at first. The act of kindness filled her with a sense of warmth that she'd rarely ever received from her own mother before, and she hated to admit it, but it… actually made her really happy.

"Alright, now for you. Show me your fist." Tsunade said, looking toward Sasuke.

"H-hey…!" Sasuke blushed a bit defensively when she reached for his hand. Surprisingly, however he didn't put up much of a fight, and let her do what she wanted.

Whatever the cause was, it was a blunt blow to his his knuckles, and considering the scratches…

"Let me guess. I'll bet it was a mirror you hit, am I right?" She guessed, causing Sasuke to tense. Sakura gave him a sudden look of worry at the realization.

His silence gave her all the confirmation she needed, so she decided not to press the matter.

Sasuke said nothing after that, focusing on the warmth of her hand, something welling up inside of him.

"You know… I've heard quite a bit about you two from Kakashi. And from what I've gathered, it seems you're both quite the character." Tsunade said, catching their attention.

"Oh, no, I'm really not that great at all, Hokage-sama…! Ha-ha-ha…" Sakura denied it with an awkward laugh. She would always act confident around her rival Ino and used to around Sasuke and Naruto all the time, but the truth was, her self-doubt and low self-esteem were almost unbearable sometimes, her mother's words to her and the effects of bullying from the past only making it worse. It was Ino who'd inspired so much confidence in her and had made her want to become stronger, to not continue living in her shadow and as she had watched Naruto and Sasuke progress so many times right in front of her, those doubts had only resurfaced worse than ever as of late.

They always seemed to be getting stronger, honing new jutsu, where as she herself... was always behind thems… It was just becoming a repeat of Ino again.

"Don't be so modest, Sakura!" Tsunade snapped her out of her thoughts. "I may not know you all that well myself, but from what I've heard from Kakashi, even a fool could tell that you've always had a unique affinity for Chakra control, even in the beginning of your journey. You've fought tooth and nail just to keep up with those around you, with only your persistence and encouragement from your friends pushing you forward. You've shown how amazing shinobi can be, even without some famous bloodline. You have an astounding inner passion that will always keep you pressing forward, so don't you dare cut yourself short, girl."

Sakura's eyes widened a bit. Not only Kakashi, but the Hokage too had praised her? For some reason, she felt a boost of confidence at that thought. She almost felt like she could tackle the world. Almost.

"And as for you," Tsunade turned to Sasuke, almost sounding like a mom or something. "Rivalry is one thing, but you can't live your whole life comparing yourself and holding yourself to the standards of others. I don't give a damn what anybody may have said in the past, be it Uchiha Itachi himself, but you are not weak. You just need to accept that already."

A huge part of Tsunade honestly didn't know where the words in her mouth were coming from, but considering everything Jiraiya and Kakashi had told her about both of the young ninja in front of her, of their accomplishments and much more, something like a familial instinct got the better of her(she did once have a little brother, after all.).

For some reason, Sasuke was suddenly reminded of Mikoto. When it came down to it, she wasn't afraid to occasionally scold him for things, but she also had an inner warmth and passion about her that she always showed when she had to. Yes, this woman wasn't exactly like Mikoto, but the feelings she invoked were so similar it threatened to suffocate him, the memories it caused, just a little act of kindness, just a few encouraging words, reminded him of his haunting vulnerability, of all the things he'd lost. He wanted to scream.

"You still don't have enough hatred…"

"Accept it…?" He glared at the ground, unable to look her in the eye. "What the hell would you understand about anything I've been going through?!"

She barely knew him, what right did she have to go talk about things she knew nothing about?!

"Sasuke-kun, what's-" Sakura reached out to touch his shoulder, shocked by his spiteful outburst. He slapped her hand away.

"Don't touch me. I'm going to pack my things…" He muttered aggressively, his tone cold and harsh, his bangs shadowing his eyes, as he walked off and left the room.

"I'm so sorry, Hokage-sama." Sakura immediately after bowed apologetically. "I promise he didn't mean that… He's just been really confused lately and I-"

"It's alright, Sakura." Tsunade placed a hand on her head to offer some reassurance. Perhaps she had over stepped her bounds.

Hokage-sama is so nice…, Sakura thought yet again, barely managing to restrain herself from caving into the soft touch of the woman.

"I may look young, but I do know a thing or two about what you're going through right now." Tsunade smiled a bit, thinking back to how her own team had fallen apart over the years(Perhaps that was why she had felt the need to say something).

Jiraiya had mentioned that Sasuke reminded him a bit of Orochimaru and Tsunade could see why. But Sasuke was different. There was still hope for him. Cutting him short and just giving up on him because he was an Uchiha… It would go against her pride as a Senju. He grandfather would never agree with such logic.

"…I just want to help him… But he's always pushing me away… Just like Naruto and Lee… Why are boys like that…? Why do they always have to act so strong…?"

"Don't you tell a man to run!"

Tsunade gave a side glance as she thought back to Nawaki, and then Naruto's and Jiraiya's words.

"...Heh... It's okay... Until I become Hokage... No way... There's no way I'm gonna die!"

"A shinobi is one who endures."

A small pained smile played at the corner of her lips, understanding some of what the girl felt.

"You got that right. Guys like that are stubborn as hell and they never know when to give up." Tsunade said, smirking. "But you know what?"

"What is it?" Sakura inquired, looking up at her.

"Neither do we. We're all fighters, Sakura. We have to keep both them and ourselves in check. Hell, Naruto's so reckless he'd probably jump into a volcano if it meant standing true to his nindo. So keep an eye on him, and don't you dare give up on either of your teammates, okay?" Tsunade said.

"Right…! Thank you so much, Hokage-sama… I guess I should probably be going now. If you'll excuse me, I-" Sakura started to say.

"Hold it." Tsunade said, a little harsher than intended, startling Sakura.

"Hm?" Sakura inquired, barely above a grunt.

"…If you don't mind me asking… Who was it that hit you?" Tsunade wanted to know.

"I… It was just an accident, although you wouldn't have known since I only told Naruto and Sasuke-kun about it." Sakura forced a smile, dismissively. Mentioning her mother or getting her parents involved would only cause trouble for all parties involved. Besides… It was only one time, it wasn't like it happened every day or anything. Well, the physical aggression anyway.

However, Tsunade was not an idiot. She could tell that Sakura was lying or at least hiding something, and Sakura's fake smile only added to that.

"I see…" Tsunade thought out loud, deciding not to press the matter. "Well, you wouldn't want to be late."

"Right." Sakura bowed before exiting.

Some of her words had seemed to get through to Sakura, but Sasuke, as she'd feared(based on her own past experiences), was a completely different matter. He definitely needed as much support as he could get right now – heavens knew he needed it, but only somebody who could relate on more of a personal level to him, could ever truly hope to be there for the boy.

"Kakashi… I leave the rest up to you… I'm sure you'll figure something out…"

A/N: I hope you all like it... This took me a while to consider my wording and everything... As somebody with BPD and abandonment/attachment issues, I kind of projected my desires onto Tsunade in this, and you'll be seeing quite a bit of that with her, Kakashi and Iruka in the future, just a heads up oof...