Heavy, dark clouds had begun to roll in by the time Sakura and her mother reached Konoha's memorial stone. A gentle breeze blew through the clearing. It was humid and sweet, filled with a pungent, ozone-like smell that hinted at incoming rain. Walking past the myriad of commemorative objects and dedications scattered around the area, they stopped before the stone monument. It was tall, far taller than what she had thought it would be. Small, carved letters covered its sides, listing the names of those who had died in service to Konoha.
Sakura pressed the wreath her mother and her had purchased against her chest. It was a pretty pink and white arrangement of lilies and roses, all arranged ahead of time in Yamanaka Flowers by Inoichi. A tiny handwritten card stuck out discreetly amidst the leaves and flowers in the wreath's top—'To Kizashi, with unending love, from Mebuki and Sakura'.
"Do you want to place the wreath, Sakura?"
Sakura looked at her mother, who had already kneeled in front of the memorial in order to offer some prayers. Though her voice was soft, as it had been for much of the day, her face was drawn and haggard. Nodding, she stepped forwards and kneeled beside her. Breathing in, she leant forwards and laid the wreath amongst the other dedications, as close to her father's name as she could. A moment later she put her hands together in prayer and closed her eyes.
It had been a year since the mission her father had never returned from. She still hadn't gotten used to his absence, and neither had her mother, for all she had tried to avoid showing grief in front of her. Something had gone missing from their family home ever since his death, though she couldn't quite tell what. It was dourer now, bleak and glum. Quieter than it had ever been, and significantly less joyful.
Minutes passed before they stood back up and began to leave the area. Sakura followed her mother as they made their way through the empty training grounds and back to the bustling streets of the village. Silently, she brushed the strap of the bag hanging from her shoulder. It was barely mid-morning, and her classmates would still be at one of the academy's classes.
The thought made Sakura come to a sudden stop. She didn't want to return home quite yet, not with how empty it had been throughout the entirety of the past year. "Mum?"
Mebuki turned to look at her. "Yes, Sakura?"
A raindrop fell onto her nose, and was quickly followed by a second one. It was starting to rain. "Could I return home later?" she asked. Her fingers tightened around her small, brown bag's strap. "I'd like to go to the park, to—"
"To train again?"
Sakura pressed her lips together. It wasn't the only reason why she wanted to avoid returning home, but it was close enough to the truth. "Yes," she answered.
"Are you sure?" Mebuki asked. Her brows ceased with worry. "You don't have to if you don't want to. I can understand if you'd rather rest at home."
"I want to," she answered. "I need to, if I want to be able to become a Genin. Dad said—".
Mebuki sighed. "I'm sorry, Sakura. It's all been so…" She shook her head, smiling weakly. "Just make sure to come back before it's dark so we can have dinner together, alright?"
A smile quickly grew on Sakura's face. Taking a step forwards, she hugged her mother. "Thank you!" she said.
Breaking away, Sakura turned around and ran. Keeping her hands clenched around her bag's strap, she turned into a side street and began to cut through Konoha's crowded market streets, quickly making her way towards the Senju Park. The weight of the scrolls and notebooks she had used at the academy early in the morning pressed against her lower back as she ran, weighing her down. Her hair, short ever since her father's death, fluttered in the wind behind her.
Ino had been the one that had helped her to cut and trim it, though she hadn't initially understood why Sakura had wanted it short again. The blonde girl had approached her a few days after her father's death, her worry evident despite her somewhat bossy attitude. They hadn't managed to regain their old friendship quite yet, but things were a far call from how they had been the year before.
It was raining by the time Sakura reached the park's main entrance. Coming to a near-halt, she walked through the rectangular birch-framed, white plaster structure. She didn't have an umbrella, but that didn't matter. She knew a place where she could sit down take cover.
Turning left, she passed by a stone pagoda and began to walk towards the north end of the park. The rain, refreshing and oddly light, pitter-pattered against the ground. It was a beautiful place, all trees, flowers, and grass around the calm waters of the park's single lake.
Her shirt was damp and half-clinging to her skin by the time she spotted a wooden gazebo half-hidden within a small grove of trees, just off the park's main path. Smiling, she began to approach the usually empty structure, mentally running through the different sets of notes she wanted to revise first.
She didn't see the teenager sitting on one of the gazebo's benches until she was practically in front of him. Though he must have been tall, she couldn't quite tell with the way he was slouching. He was wearing a high-collared dark outfit and black sandals. A tanto was strapped from a harness at the back of his shoulder. His forehead and right eye were covered by a hitai-ate.
Sakura blinked. A shinobi, then, she thought.
She pressed her lips together and quickly contemplated her next course of action. He was sitting at one of the ends of the gazebo, leaving the rest of the space free. He also hadn't turned to look at her despite her obvious approach, and, judging by the half-finished skewer of dango he was holding, he wasn't planning on training in the area.
Yes, it was clear. She could still study here.
Mind made up, Sakura walked into the gazebo and sat down on one of the benches. Dropping her bag onto the space besides her, she opened it and took out a scroll, a notebook, a pencil, and a rubber. Placing the scroll on one of her knees, she opened her notebook and began to copy a diagram of the circulation system, adding notes and labels as she went along.
The rain had started to pelt down by the time Sakura glanced at the shinobi again.
He looked somewhat familiar, though she didn't think that she had ever seen him before. His hair, short and unkept, was some of the darkest she had ever seen. His eyes, at least from what little she could see of his uncovered one, were dark enough to look like charcoal.
Sakura frowned and leant forwards, attempting to observe him discreetly. She had never seen anyone cover either of their eyes quite like that, though Iruka had used it as a cautionary tale earlier in the year.
Is his other eye damaged? she wondered.
Her eraser slipped from her hand and bounced away. Before she could think to reach for it, the shinobi had caught and offered it back to her.
"Here," he said.
He smiled as she took the eraser. "Thank you."
The shinobi nodded and looked down at her scroll. His eyebrows rose at the sight of the different diagrams depicted within it. "Medical ninjutsu?" he asked.
Sakura shook her head. "Oh no, not yet. I want to, eventually, but—." She paused and looked back to her notes before meeting the shinobi's single visible eye again. "I need to memorise a lot of things first."
"Aren't you in the academy?"
"I am. I don't have a good grasp on any of this, but if I work hard, maybe—." She bit her lip and breathed in, feeling nervous at what most likely was a fairly mediocre explanation. Why would a proper shinobi care about any of this? "I'm not too good at other things, not really, but I think I can learn this."
The shinobi didn't laugh at her. "Why medical ninjutsu?" he asked, openly curious. "Why not other ninjutsu or bukijutsu, like other kids your age?"
The image of her father flashed through Sakura's mind. Smiling wistfully, she looked away. "I'd like to be able to help others if I can one day," she said hesitantly. She had said as much to her mother before, immediately after her father's death, but she hadn't ever received a proper reply. "The only thing I really excel at in the academy is chakra control, so it seemed like a good place to start."
The shinobi leant back and observed her for a few seconds before finally smiling. Standing back up, he walked towards the outer edge of the gazebo and ate the final piece of dango. Absentmindedly, Sakura noticed the familiar-looking fan on the back of his shirt.
"Try some chakra control exercises once you're done with the anatomy. I don't know too much about medical ninjutsu, but from what I understand chakra control lies at its heart," he said, seemingly unaware of the water pelting him. "Leaf concentration practice, if you haven't done it at the academy yet. If not, tree climbing."
Sakura nodded. Then, before she could so much as say thanks, he had vanished from the area.
o-o-o
A large group of girls had congregated outside of the academy's main gates by the time Sakura exited the building. They had been there since the classes had ended, as was the case most days. Further beyond, closer to the training hall, a group of boys glared at the object of interest of the gathering girls—Sasuke—who was just leaving himself.
She spotted Ino as soon as she went through the main gates, standing to a side. The blonde girl looked oddly pensive and focused—a far cry from the crowding girls nearby. Sakura met her eyes and smiled, only to be slightly surprised when the other girl did the same.
She had missed the other, more boisterous and confident girl.
Sakura pressed on into the streets, directing herself towards one of the parks closest to the academy. It had become one of her usual practice grounds, if only due to how empty it tended to be.
It wasn't long before Sakura found herself standing before a particularly tall tree. Dropping her bag onto the ground, she mentally began to run through the different exercises that had been listed in the scrolls recommended to her by the strange shinobi. She had tried out most of the beginner-level chakra control exercises already, and had even managed to do them fairly well. The tree climbing exercise was one of the few that she hadn't tried out yet, so it was only logical to attempt it next.
Brushing at her red dress absentmindedly, Sakura pressed her lips together and looked up at the tree. No matter how tall it seemed, so long as she focused her chakra to the bottom of her feet and used it to cling to the trunk, she should be able to manage it. The only trick would be to use only the necessary amount of chakra—no more, no less—and to maximise its effectiveness.
Control. It's all about control, she thought.
Breathing in deeply, she took a step forwards and placed her foot on the base of the tree.
The bark cracked.
Sakura's eyes widened. Did I use to much chakra?
Slowly, she placed her foot at the base of the tree again. Avoiding the damaged bark, she lessened the stream of chakra to her feet, lifted her other foot, and—.
It stuck.
Smiling, she took another step, this time up the tree trunk. After that came another and another, until she had reached one of the highest parts of the tree. Slowly, she sat on one of its branches and, smiling, looked down at the empty park around her. The scrolls, though introductory in nature, had stated that the exercise usually took more than a few tries to achieve, with additional levels of difficulty involving practicing the exercise whilst focusing on something else. After that, there was only water walking.
Would she be able to do any of that?
It was dark by the time she returned home. Her dress was a mess, both from her repeated tree-climbing—which had left an assortment of tears in the fabric—and the sudden downpour which had soaked her through to the bone. Her mother greeted her at the door, tell-tale frown on her face as she greeted her.
"It's already past dinner, Sakura."
Sakura winced. "Sorry. I got distracted training and—," she sputtered.
"Again?" Mebuki sighed and shook her head. "Just be more careful next time, alright? I was beginning to get worried." She smiled weakly, as if to reassure her, though the expression quickly disappeared as her eyes drifted down and took in the state of Sakura's clothes. "Just what were you doing, Sakura?"
Sakura couldn't help but smile. "Practicing tree climbing."
"In this weather?" her mother said. She shook her head. "Come in and dry yourself, or you'll get a cold."
Nodding, Sakura entered the living room. Quickly making her way through it, she entered her room and rummaged around her wardrobe, searching for something dry to wear.
A plate with some rice and pork had been set on the table by the time she returned to the living room.
Mebuki smiled at her from her seat at the sofa and closed the book on her lap. "It's much better to be dry, isn't it?" she said before turning to gesture at the plates on the table. "I just warmed it up for you, it was cold by the time you arrived. There's also anmitsu for desert in the fridge—your favourite."
Sakura sat at the table. Avoiding her mother's eyes, she looked down at the dinner plate. It smelt wonderfully comforting and savoury. "Thank you," she said, feeling slightly ashamed.
Her mother leaned back and observed Sakura as she ate. "Tree climbing, Sakura?" she said softly. "I don't think I can remember your father talking about things like that being taught at the academy. Not anymore, at least."
Sakura looked away from her dinner plate. "It's just something I was recommended by someone. Apparently, it's supposed to help a lot if I want to practice chakra control."
"Did you get hurt?" She paused. "How did it go?"
"Not at all" Sakura said, beaming. "I managed to do it on my first try. I could even move onto water walking if I wanted to. If I manage to get that right too, then, maybe—."
Mebuki smiled wearily. "I'm glad," she said. She looked down and frowned, seeming to realise something. "Who recommended it to you? Was it a friend?"
"Not quite. Just a shinobi I met at the Senju Park recently," she answered. "He saw the medical scrolls I've been studying and said it'd be useful."
Her mother nodded, as in agreement, though the gesture was slightly unconvincing. "Just be careful, alright Sakura? I wouldn't want you getting hurt," she said. "You know how dangerous being a shinobi is."
Sakura frowned and looked away, towards one of the many family photographs displayed on the living room's walls. "I know."
o-o-o
The gazebo was empty the time Sakura visited it. Its interior, strangely dry despite the heavy downpour around it, showed no signs of the shinobi she had met a week earlier.
It was still early afternoon. Outside the rain was pelting, filling the humid air with a constant thrumming noise as it hit the earth. The puddles on the ground glistened green and grey, near-identical mirrors of the heavily overcast sky and the grove of trees surrounding them.
Shutting her umbrella, Sakura took a seat on her usual bench and opened her bag in search of a scroll. Crossing her legs as she opened it, she prepared herself to read through the chakra control exercises it contained. They were more advanced than the ones that the previous scroll had listed, and considerably more focused on water walking. A few explanations on the theory behind it stood out amidst a sea of annotations and diagrams, all detailed enough to give her a fighting chance of attempting the exercises without having to ask for help.
"I see you've been reading what I recommended."
Sakura's eyes darted up at the sudden, unexpected voice, only to relax at the sight of the same shinobi she had met a week ago. He was smiling from where he stood by the gazebo's entrance, holding a can of something together with another skewer of dango.
She observed him as he silently sat down and bit into one of the pieces of dango. His hair was wet and messy, though his clothes didn't seem to be nearly as damp. His hitai-ate was, once again, covering his right eye.
The shinobi leant forwards and looked over the details of her scroll. "So, how did you find the exercises?" he asked.
Sakura found herself smiling at the kind tone of voice. "Good," she said. "Most scrolls were only available for Genin, but I managed to find a few that were available for Academy students." She paused and smiled, thinking about her success. "I didn't have problems with the tree climbing."
His eyebrows rose. "Really?" he asked. "It usually takes Genin a few days to get right."
"The bark cracked a bit on my first time, but I managed it soon after that."
The shinobi leant back and rested an arm along the bench's backrest. Humming, he observed silently for a few moments, seemingly in thought. "Have you tried the water walking exercise yet?"
Sakura shook her head. "Not yet, but I wanted to try soon," she said. Her eyes darted to the scroll on her lap. "I'd attempt it today, but the rain—."
The shinobi nodded. "Well," he mused, "if it took you managed to learn tree climbing that quickly you shouldn't have any trouble with water walking. The trick's in adjusting the chakra to the water flow, but that becomes instinctive after a while."
Sakura ran a hand through her hair. "Really?" she asked incredulously. She barely managed to be passable in ninjutsu and taijutsu, unlike some of her other classmates, and anything she did manage to achieve and do well was only the result of hard work and practice.
The corners of the shinobi's lips quirked up. "If you managed to tree climb before being a Genin you shouldn't find any trouble with it. The two aren't that different." He took another bite from the dango. "Beyond that, there's a whole range of techniques that require good chakra control. Genjutsu, for one."
Sakura's eyes widened. "Genjutsu…?" she muttered. "Are you sure? I'm not that good with ninjutsu."
The shinobi nodded. "A good grasp of chakra if one wants to use it effectively." He paused and glanced at her scroll before continuing, this time more pensively. "It's very rare to see an academy student have the level of chakra control required to complete the tree walking exercise. You'd likely excel at medical ninjutsu and genjutsu."
Something in Sakura's chest lightened. She nodded slowly, not quite knowing how to respond to the older shinobi's compliment. A comfortable silence settled between them as she turned away and looked at the park's lake.
"Why are you helping me?" she asked. His recommendations had been useful, incredibly so, but no one had ever bothered to do so before. Not to her in particular, anyways.
A smile grew on the shinobi's face. "Why not?" he asked with a warm voice. "The more interesting question is—just what is an academy student is doing here, studying alone after classes have ended?"
Something about his question annoyed her. "And what are you doing here, too?" she replied. "Don't Chunin or Jounin have better things to do?"
His smile widened at her reply. He was amused. "Ah. I just like to come here when I'm not on a mission."
Sakura knit her brows and glanced at the skewer of dango and can he had brought with him. How often did he like to come here, anyways? Was there nowhere else he'd rather be at?
The shinobi laughed, likely guessing her thoughts, and gestured at the area around them. "It's a nice place to be in, if you hadn't noticed," he said playfully.
She couldn't help but to smile back. "I suppose it is," she agreed. "I usually go to other parks when I want to train outside, but since it was raining again today, I thought I'd come here again."
She looked away as a heavy, guilt-like feeling settled in her stomach at the thought of her mother. By the time she looked back at the shinobi he was facing away from her. His posture allowed her a glimpse of the symbol at the back of his shirt, only barely visible beneath the harness fastened over his shoulders.
Her eyes widened. She could recognise it. "That fan…" she muttered.
He didn't turn to face her. "Ah." It was a dull, weighty syllable; one that a smile couldn't have produced. "I take you've seen it before?"
Sakura swallowed and looked away. She knew he did. How couldn't she, after all the time she had spent focusing on the other boy before her father's last mission?
"A classmate at the academy—Sasuke—wears one, I think," she finally said.
The shinobi's posture softened. "So, you're a classmate of Sasuke's?" he asked, glancing back at her.
"Since I entered the academy," she confirmed. "Are you related? He wears the same fan on his clothes."
He smiled lopsidedly. "He's my cousin."
Sakura's eyes widened. "Oh," she said. It was obvious, now that she thought about it, though she couldn't remember ever hearing Sasuke talk about his family. "You both look quite similar; I should have realised it before."
"Don't worry about it."
Sakura nodded. Making up her mind, she placed her scroll on the bench and stood up. Taking a few steps forwards, she nervously reached out her hand. "I'm Sakura. Sakura Haruno," she said. "I should have asked your name before, but I didn't remember until it was too late. Sorry."
"There's no need to apologise for something like that," he said earnestly. He took her hand and shook it gently. "Shisui Uchiha."
Sakura smiled. "Thank you for recommending me those scrolls. I don't think I'd have found them on my own."
"It's the least I could do," he said. "Not many Genin, let alone academy students, can do it easily. You should keep it in mind when deciding what to study."
Sakura opened and closed her mouth, unsure of how to respond to his words yet again. Swallowing again, she stepped back towards her seat and attempted to gather some courage. If it hadn't been for him, she wouldn't have tried those exercises out.
"Still, thank you," she finally said, after a few seconds had gone by. "No one had ever recommended something to me before."
Shisui waved his hand dismissively. "So, tell me, Sakura. Since you are my cousin's classmate." Smiling, he reached for the can. "How is your preparation for the graduation exam going?"
A/N: Thank you for reading this story! I originally wrote this in 2017, but never got around actually posting it. Given how there isn't a take quite like this one on the Uchiha Massacre (at least as far as I know) I decided that polishing and posting it would be a good idea. I've always liked the idea of Shisui/Sakura and alternate takes on canon events, which accounts as to why I couldn't resist revisiting this idea.
Updates will be consistent, if (most likely) slightly sporadic. The first few chapters have already been written, so a new chapter will be coming every few weeks. As always, all mistakes are my own.