"Last mission Sakura-chan, you'll be going with Shibi-san, Kurenai-san and her students to a protected area to make sure no ones attempting to pouch a certain insect, the Bikochu Beetle" Minato informed.
When he called Sakura into his office two weeks later when there was a week left before she and Tsunade were to leave on their two year training trip "It's because I'm a medic isn't it" Sakura guessed easily.
Understanding why she'd be sent "Correct, the mission will only be a few days long, so nothing can truly go wrong on it hopefully" Minato said, hoping he hadn't just jinxed the mission in any way what so ever.
As Sakura winced "Right…I'm going to go pack now" Sakura waved, grabbing the mission scroll to read it over while she returned to the house, upon entering she was swung up into Shisui's arms for some reason or another.
So she gave him a deadpan look "What can't I hug you" Shisui pouted, still obnoxiously annoying, though she'd been steadily growing use to him, Sakura sighed softly but relented and even hugged him back.
Before hurrying up the steps to her room, fifteen minutes later she was back "Going on a mission, see you all in a few days" Sakura called, making a quick trip into the weapon storage room to grab a couple of her retractable spears to take along.
Naruto and Sasuke groaned from their spots on the couch, but Itachi nodded calmly at her, "Take care Sakura-san" Itachi smiled lightly, eyes no longer heavily clouded with guilt, it was something he was taking a day at a time to be honest.
Sakura smiled back, pressed a kiss to Chishi and Chimei's scaly heads then vanished out the door "Heard we were being assigned a medic, I didn't think it would be you Sakura-san" Kurenai greeted when the pinkette arrived at the gates ahead of her students.
Of course the girl wouldn't procrastinate "Mhm and I'll be able to heal you of most injuries, even draw poison if push comes to shove" Sakura hummed, signing out so that she wouldn't waste time doing so when the others got here.
Kurenai smiled, which high-lighted her natural beauty and made her crimsons orbs shine "Kurenai….Uzumaki-san" Shibi the Patriarch of the Aburame Clan showed up a minute later, nodding his head at the two kunoichi.
And Sakura had to bite her lip to stop herself from correcting him that her last name was Haruno, but reminded herself that it was both and people could call her whichever they wanted "Aburame-sama" instead Sakura bowed her head politely at him.
Ever polite earning an amused chuckle from the man "The heck, Sakura what are you doing here at the gates" Kiba skidded to a halt seconds after the arrival of Shibi, only to look at the rosette in confusion.
She smiled "I was assigned to be your medic Kiba" Sakura explained calmly, Kiba gaped at her then closed his eyes considering the idea before shrugging ultimately in acceptance because he knew he could trust her to save their lives if need be.
"Well that's a relief, why because given your track record so far, your the most competent field medic we have besides Lady Tsunade" Shino commented from behind his teammate, having taken a little longer to prepare than his Father had.
Hinata nodded her agreement "T..That's right w..with Sakura-chan a..any injuries we sustain wi..will be healed right up" Hinata exclaimed, with that the others signed out and the six of them started down the path towards the protected forest.
To Kurenai and Shibi's shock unlike Kiba, Hinata and Shino, Sakura was quiet, scanning her surroundings warily as if she expected an attack to happen at any moment "Perhaps Sandaime-sama was right to promote you" Shibi noted.
Seeing that nothing had escaped the girls gaze so far in their short trek "I wonder Aburame-sama" Sakura sent him a faint smile that made him uncomfortable then she was right back to keeping an eye out for any trouble.
"Gah just call him Shibi, Shino's old man doesn't care just stop being so stiff all the time Sakura" Kiba burst out, frustrated for some reason, Sakura had always been like that back in the academy but he'd thought she'd long since grown out of her proper mannerisms.
Viridian orbs widened "L..Leave S..Sakura-chan alone Kiba-kun, sh..she's always been p..polite and she's not going to ch..change because you t..tell her to" Hinata scolded the Inuzuka heir and Akamaru whined from atop Kiba's head.
Agreeing with the gentle natured girl, Sakura shook her head with a light smile on her lips "Use to something similar I assume, why because of Naruto and Sasuke" Shino said, after seeing her actions, and the amusement in her jade orbs.
"Basically Shino those two could drive anyone insane with their squabbling" Sakura laughed wryly, in spite of what she said though she loved her teammates to death and she would protect them no matter what.
With that silence descended upon the group of six until they arrived at their destination a few hours later since it was so close to Konohagakure "Before we head down we need to discuss a plan of action" Shibi informed.
Glad that a temporary camp was quickly made "I believe Sakura-san should go with my students, she can take temporary command over them and lead them on the best course of action she decides on in case of an emergency" Kurenai declared.
There was a split second of panic in the girls gaze before it was hidden away by a determined look "Okay I'm down with that, Sakura is a Chunin, so her decision making skills should be on par with Shikamaru" Kiba shrugged.
Deciding to roll with his sensei's suggestion "S..So what d..do we do if we do f..find someone here trying to p..poach the Bikochu" Hinata stuttered, not arguing either, she trusted Sakura who wouldn't hesitate to protect them if push came to shove.
"Can I ask why protecting this insect from being poached is so important" Sakura questioned, not wanting to go in blind on this particular mission and it wasn't until she asked that it occurred to the others that she knew nothing.
Shibi pinched the bridge of his nose then looked to his son who turned to Sakura "The Bikochu is a special beetle, why because it can track a singular scent for the rest of it's life" Shino explained efficiently.
Hopefully anyway "That also means you know the likely suspects that will be attempting to poach it as well" Sakura easily guessed, impressing both Aburame at how quickly she was catching on to things, probably already coming up with several solid plans geared towards their safety.
"Precisely Sakura-san, the Kamizuru clan in which there are grudges on both sides considering we're both bug user clans, though the Kamizuru's come from Iwagakure their an almost extinct clan" Shibi announced.
Not missing Sakura's rigidity at the mention of Iwa-nin or the flash of anger that crossed her features briefly "Now as previously mentioned Sakura will be in charge of you three in case of an emergency other than that Shibi and I will be split up" Kurenai interjected.
Taking control of the conversation again "How do you want us to get in contact with you Kurenai-sensei should we run into poachers or those Kamizuru guys" Kiba asked, itching to find out what Sakura was so angry about.
"Surely Sakura-san has her mentors summons already….no well hmm" Shibi commented only for Sakura to shake her head then worry her lip for a moment as she contemplated telling him about something probably.
Before sighing "I do have a summons though, wolves, I'd need something with your scents on it for her to track though" Sakura admitted after a couple of seconds had passed, the two Jonin nodded pleased with the turn of events.
As they quickly handed something over that was coated in their scents and Sakura sealed those objects away in a storage scroll "Gu..Guess we bet..better get started then" Hinata said, peering over the cliff that led to the protected forest warily.
Sakura gently pat her on the back before focusing chakra into her feet to walk down the cliff, ten minutes later they were at the bottom staring into the foreboding forest before them "Let us go then, why because the sooner we start, the sooner this all ends" Shino stated.
Nodding to his Father and sensei as they split up in three different directions and began walking "Say Sakura you seemed pretty angry back there at the mention of Iwa-nin possibly being involved, why is that" Kiba inquired.
Once they were well and truly on their own Sakura tensed before sighing "The Tsuchikage made repeated threats on my life, even hired someone to sneak into my room to try and kill me before I ran him off" Sakura admitted quietly.
Kiba paled wishing he'd never asked in the first place "W..Why though S..Sakura-chan i..it's not as if you w..were a threat to him" Hinata frowned unsure of what to think about what had been revealed to them thanks to her teammates nosiness.
"Because I supported Hokage-sama in freeing Itachi from his status as an S class rogue" Sakura announced, glancing this way and that for any signs that someone had come through ahead of them on the search for the Bikochu Beetle.
Hinata winced in response "That wouldn't normally cause one to be targeted, why because you merely supported Lord Hokage's ideals and endeavors" Shino pointed out, sending a wave of his kikaichu out to scout in all directions.
"True but the Tsuchikage hates Uchiha and thinks their all evil and beyond forgiveness, still I'm wary because I can't be sure he won't send someone again to make another attempt on my life" Sakura grimaced.
Really hating to impart that kind of news luckily Team Eight took it in stride, two hours later "We've been looking for hours, can we stop for lunch please Sakura" Kiba whined like a little puppy amusing her.
Since he almost sounded like Naruto "Technically we've only been searching for two hours Kiba but yeah we can stop for lunch" Sakura snorted, dropping her pack and vanishing into the forest in hopes of finding something edible.
Leaving them to make camp, she was back twenty minutes later to find a fire going with four skinned and deboned rabbits in hand, that she rubbed ground herbs on then skewered and set before the fire to cook.
"S..Smells good S..Sakura-chan" Hinata hummed in appreciation of the delicious herb scent filling her nostrils, Sakura smiled kindly at her but resumed watching their surroundings never once lowering her guard.
Until lunch was ready to be eaten, fifteen minutes after that camp was broken down and they resumed their search "Sakura" Shino called out to her half an hour later, Sakura paused, then swung around to face him.
Eyebrow raised, Shino pointed so she followed his finger to see what he saw "Wax…bee wax, what kind of insects do Kamizuru's use exactly" Sakura frowned deeply as she bent to inspect the strange substance only to figure out what it was rather quickly.
Shino matched her frown with one of his own "Bee's, they utilize them in many ways, such as coating an enemy in honey to immobilize them" Shino explained promptly, Sakura rubbed her temples in response.
He didn't blame her "Alright nothing I can't handle, I have an affinity for water jutsu's and I can trap enemy in a similar way" Sakura mused, reassuring herself and Team Eight at her competency not just as a medic but as a Chunin as well.
They did however continue walking until clear up to dinner time "How are you not tired from walking all day" Kiba panted out of breath from trying to keep up with Sakura for the past several hours who'd marched onwards.
Keeping an even closer eye on their surroundings "Lots of stamina Kiba, you just set up camp, I'll go catch dinner" Sakura smiled at him, disappearing on the three of them yet again, he had no doubt she'd be right back if something happened though.
For supper Sakura brought back a few vegetables and another rabbit that she turned into a thick soup for them "W..We sh..should probably t..talk about night watch" Hinata said, not wanting to sleep without someone keeping guard.
"What about your seals Sakura, I heard you were very proficient at perimeter and barrier seals" Shino glanced over their temporary squad leader, who'd done brilliantly from the moment they'd split up from the Jonin on the mission.
She grinned in response "Indeed Shino I am, Hokage-sama's been teaching me how to strengthen them to, to keep people out and anyone within protected" Sakura announced, pleased that she didn't have to suggest it herself.
As they simply allowed her to draw seals that circled their entire camp to keep them safe during the night "Remind me not to get on your bad side or Hokage-sama's" Kiba shuddered, not sure he understood what all the seals meant and not wanting to understand either.
Because he didn't want to be wholly terrified like Naruto and Sasuke seemed to be of Sakura "Hehehe, anyway eat up you three then try to get some shut eye, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow" Sakura reminded.
Gesturing to the soup indicating it was done "Th..This is e..even better th..than wh..what the cooks at the compound c..can make" Hinata gasped in delight at the flavors bursting on her tongue when she took a sip of the soup.
"Aw thanks Hinata but it's pretty basic stuff compared to what I heard Choji's mom could make" Sakura said, not bragging when others would if they'd received a compliment of that high a degree from a Hyuga.
Hinata wasn't just any Hyuga though, she'd always been the most gentle and kindest of the lot "Time for bed then, why because we need all the rest we can get" Shino announced when the soup had been devoured.
So they rolled out their sleeping bags to get some sleep for the night, it happened the following morning when Sakura was gone hunting down breakfast for them, that Team Eight was stumbled upon by the Kamizuru's.
Fighting immediately broke out amongst them and Sakura returned to chaos "Suiton: Water Dragon Jutsu" Sakura weaved one handed hand signs creating a large water dragon that crashed into the brunette who'd been about to seriously hurt Kiba.
"Where the fuck did you come from you little brat" the lone blonde spat having barely gotten out of the way of the unexpected jutsu, Suzumebachi hadn't been so lucky however as the pink haired brat marched her way between them.
Pointing a scythe threatening at them "That's what I'd like to know" the brunet male scowled, looking around trying to see if there were more shinobi hidden in the forest just waiting to attack them when their guards were down.
Sakura gestured at the forest "Sakura we should let Shino's old man and Kurenai-sensei know as soon as possible" Kiba said, worried that the situation was about to get out of hand on them and he was right to.
When they were bombarded by hundreds of bees carrying exploding tags "Bee Bomb Jutsu" the brunette who'd taken the brunt of Sakura's jutsu had regained her bearings enough to launch a counter jutsu.
"Get in the seal and stay in it" Sakura told Team Eight, already weaving hand signs for another jutsu "Doton: Subterranean Voyage" then to their horror disappeared underground, but thanks to the rosettes barrier seal.
The Kamizuru's couldn't touch them nor could their attacks reach them as long as they stayed inside the circle, beneath their feet was Sakura who flashed through her third set of signs followed by biting her thumb "Summoning Jutsu" Sakura called out.
Ivory appeared before her in a puff of smoke "Ivory-chan I need you to scent these, then deliver the news we found the potential poachers to Aburame-sama and Kurenai-sensei alright" Sakura instructed.
Knowing better than to leave Team Eight on their own for to long, Kiba was reckless he was bound to try something because he wasn't the type to sit still "Consider it done Sakura-sama" Ivory bowed her head.
Bounding off in the direction she smelled the first person she was tasked with delivering a message to, with that done Sakura made a shadow clone then set it to the task of coating one of her nets in sticky chakra.
Before emerging once more "S..Sakura-chan" Hinata exclaimed in relief at the sight of Sakura who dropped into a crouch to avoid being tackled by the blonde, spin on her heel to sweep his feet out from underneath him and deliver a punch to his stomach to daze him for a bit.
"Aburame-sama and Kurenai-sensei are being notified they should be here soon" Sakura assured when Kiba looked at her and drooped his shoulders in relief, she couldn't focus on him for to long though as another one of the Kamizuru bastards came after her.
It was the brunet this time who tried using the Honey Bee Jutsu on her "Suiton: Waterwall" however this was thwarted by Sakura using a water jutsu to protect herself until the jutsu ended "Suiton: Syrup Trap" Sakura shot back at him.
Coating the brunet in a sticky liquid, the rosette had to quickly spin out of the way when a horde of bees came after her "Really no variety" Sakura taunted, riling the lone kunoichi up purposefully so that she would make mistakes.
"I'M GONNA KILL YOU" Suzumebachi shrieked furiously, enraged that this brat was getting the best of them and dodging their attacks effortlessly, Sakura smirked further infuriating her and she rushed the younger kunoichi.
A hand shot up grabbing hold of her ankle in the nick of time causing the brunette to face plant just as a net was thrown over her "Have fun getting out of that Kamizuru-san" Sakura grinned, thrusting her foot out.
To kick the blonde and send him flying into a tree, he crashed into it head first, knocking him unconscious and with that all three Kamizuru's had been dealt with easily "Anyone else feel useless, why because I certainly do" Shino deadpanned.
Feeling safe in leaving the safety of the barrier now that none of their attackers could attack back, Sakura was even extra cautious as she dragged the blonde over and dropped him unceremoniously on top of the still yelling brunette so that he was trapped in the net to.
Who was screaming every curse word in the books at them, it was to this that Ivory returned to her summoners side Kurenai and Shibi on her heels "Well seems like everything's been taken care of" Shibi commented.
"Sorry I figured this was better than letting them escape" Sakura apologized heading for Team Eight to heal their injuries they'd sustained before she'd returned from catching breakfast only to find chaos.
Shibi shook his head "No matter, I wasn't quite sure what to do with them myself, still I'm impressed, you took down three Jonin class shinobi all trained in clan techniques in a matter of minutes that's commendable" Shibi said.
Praising the girl who didn't really feel like she deserved it "Crazy did it by herself to, though I understand with your style of fighting we would have gotten in the way since this is our first mission together" Kiba chimed in.
"By yourself Sakura-san that's incredible" Kurenai whistled softly, Sakura obviously didn't think it was that amazing herself as she sat and began preparing breakfast while Shibi tried to figure out how to deal with the Kamizuru's.
Ten minutes later breakfast was ready and the three wannabe poachers were sealed away in a storage scroll "Does that mean we've co..completed the mission" Hinata asked, seeing no point in staying any longer since the threat had been neutralized.
"Quite…however just in case we'll stay an extra day until the storm passes and any new Bikochu beetles have been hatched" Shibi informed, Sakura understood his reasoning as did Shino who wouldn't argue with him either.
Kiba was the only one to complain until Akamaru whined at him "Why does it seem like your use to fighting off multiple opponents at a time" Shino questioned suddenly of Sakura when Kiba stopped his moaning and groaning.
Sakura smiled at him, it wasn't a very good smile either "Let's just say bandits like to gang up on my team a lot, usually there's more I have to fight than that, I can safely say that this is the first time I haven't been injured on a mission" Sakura intoned flatly.
Deadly serious "Just how many missions have you been on" Kurenai inquired, slightly horrified and worried about the sorts of mission the pinkette had been undertaking that she'd be so frequently hurt as she had just implied.
"Many Kurenai-sensei to many to count really, I'm really unlucky" Sakura admitted casually sounding exhausted to their ears, someone as young as Sakura should never sound like that but there was little any of them could do.
Hours later when the storm Shibi mentioned rolled in, Sakura made an earth dome to provide shelter from the rain "Care to confirm something for me Sakura-san, does Team Seven truly live together in the forest on your team training grounds" Shibi questioned.
As she stoked the fire to keep it from going out, her head snapped up "Yes, minus Kakashi-sensei, though he does often stay in one of the guest rooms, Naruto, Sasuke and I have been living together since before our first mission outside the village though" Sakura nodded.
"Why on your team training grounds though because it doesn't make sense" Shino prodded, wanting to know more since they got to interact with Team Seven so rarely this was his chance to gain more information on the trio.
Sakura rolled her eyes with a snort "Kakashi-sensei's whacked sense of humor I guess" the rosette deadpanned not really sure why just that it had been her sensei's idea when he'd had his friend Tenzo build the house for them.
Kiba practically bust his gut laughing in response "Anko mentioned that you'd soon be leaving on a training trip with Lady Tsunade as her apprentice is that also true" Kurenai chimed in, leaning forward in interest to hear the answer.
"Also true….at the end of this week to be precise, I'll have three days to pack and say my farewells to everyone for the next two years" Sakura announced, Kiba abruptly stopped laughing and Akamaru whined pawing at her knee.
Obviously having taken a liking to her as she scratched the pup on the head "Th..That soon Sakura-chan, th..that's barely any t..time to properly p..prepare" Hinata gasped, feeling sad that just when she'd managed to make a connection Sakura was leaving the village for two years.
"To be honest we were supposed to have left a month ago, Naruto to, but Tsunade-sama and Jiraiya-sama decided to postpone our departure so that we could undertake a couple more missions before leaving" Sakura admitted quietly.
Patting Hinata gently on the shoulder "Did you really have the legendary thunder blade once wielded by Nidaime-sama shoved into your chest" Shibi asked, Jonin gossiped like old ladies sometimes so of course he'd heard.
He just wanted her to confirm it "Like I said Aburame-sama I'm unlucky but yes and I'm glad I know medical ninjutsu I really didn't feel like dying that day" Sakura grimaced, tense until Kiba said something utterly moronic that had her laughing.
Later on when Sakura was the first to fall asleep Shino glanced at his teammate "You made her laugh on purpose, why because she felt uncomfortable with our stares" Shino accused knowingly, Kiba nodded and soon the rest of them went to bed.
The next morning they packed up and broke down camp moving towards the exit of the protected forest which took them nearly all day to reach the cliff, where they spent another night out underneath the stars before heading home on the fourth day of their mission.
Minato was relieved to hear that there was no injuries to be reported and that the mission had been unexpectedly simple, his daughter hadn't been in life threatening danger for once as he dismissed his shinobi to go home and rest and Sakura happily did just that by hiding in her room for the rest of the day to everyone else's chagrin.