"You have made us proud today, Itachi. That's my boy." The rich voice intoned as stern eyes softened with utmost approval as it gazed upon the small child in front of him.
Charcoal eyes closed and lips set into a grim line as the boy lowered his head in respect, before the man who just praised him. He knew he had yet again made his clan members and his family proud. It showed so on his father's face.
"Are you tired dear?"
The young Uchiha shook his head and smiled slightly as he looked up at the gentle voice, belonging to the beautiful Uchiha Matriarch, his kind and serene mother. He felt his vest, the Chuunin vest which was the prize given to him a while ago, being tugged out of his hands by smaller ones.
Little eyes widened imperceptibly, as they gaped at the green jacket, tiny lips mouthing a perfect 'o' shape. "Nii-san!" He grinned as he hugged his brother. "You looked so awesome out there! You took that creeper down without even getting a single injury!"
Though his little brother made it sound as if all what he did out there was entirely effortless, the young Uchiha genius did not escape unscathed from the rough Mist Nin he faced up against. It was no wonder they were labeled as the 'Blood Shinobi'. They truly lived up to their name, and their rough fighting skills were truly not to be messed with.
And yet, the 14 year old shinobi was taken down easily by the elite ten year old Mist Shinobi, in his pride had overlooked the fact that he had the sharingan, even more the fact that he had already mastered it well. He felt a stabbing pain in his left rib, where the insane person managed to land a kick on. Though not a medic, his knowledge enabled him to understand that he had broken a few ribs.
Itachi had been caught off guard when the Mist Shinobi managed to move after he made an otherwise, disabling wound to his stomach and using that to his advantage, landed a powerful blow to just below his left ribcage. The fact that he was wearing iron covered boots only aggravated it.
To his credit, the Uchiha did not make a sound to announce his physical distress, never mind the fact that he was still pale from the pain. As an Uchiha, the heir to the clan, injures like this would not matter an ounce. He was merely a tool for his clan, for the wrathful clan elders who demanded nothing but perfection.
"Train me!" The boy demanded petulantly, a frown marring his face as he tugged impatiently on his brother's shirt. "You promised you would! You promised!"
"Hai Sasuke..." Itachi smiled wearily. "Let's go."
Fugaku started frowning in disapproval, only to be stopped by his wife. "Let them be dear." She said softly. "After all, the exams are over. We need to talk to the elders. It would take a while."
At the small grunt, Sasuke cheered as he grasped his brother's hand. "Let's go! And wear the Chuunin vest! I want to let everyone see how powerful you became today! Just you wait! I'm gonna be as powerful as you one day!"
Though smiling on the outside, Itachi flinched inwardly at the innocent declaration. But he chose not to say anything against it, and let his impatient little brother drag him off to god knows where. He wasn't surprised when they reached the training grounds where he often visited. It was normally reserved for Genin and Chuunin, and Sasuke often visited his brother while he trained.
"Train me!" He parroted again, grinning at him with wide eyes.
"How about I train you later?" Itachi asked. He really was not in any mood to fight or train after the battle, also, being surrounded by his clan members made him slightly suffocated and all he wanted to do now was to relax. At Sasuke's face, he smiled and bending down, poked his forehead. "Shall we play a game instead?"
The younger Uchiha pouted and crossed his hands over his chest, trying his best to look like his strict father. Unknown to him, it only served to enhance his adorable features and Itachi had to bite down laughing at how ridiculously his brother failed at trying to intimidate him.
"I'm not a child!" He huffed.
"Even if you are not, we can still play a game." Itachi smiled wider at his attitude. When Sasuke didn't seem to be compromising, he decided to add in the 'magic' word. "Its a game shinobi play." He was not disappointed, and he watched his little brother jump up and down, screaming with glee. Somehow, he managed to get the ball of energy under control and soon began explaining the rules which he made up on the spot.
"The objective of the game is to find as many rabbits as you can."
"How is that going to help Shinobi become better?"
"Easy." Itachi grinned as he ruffled up Sasuke's messy head. "Rabbits are hard to catch. Chasing one would be difficult considering how nimble they are...it would improve your speed." He watched his brother's eyes light up with realization and continued,"After you find the rabbit, catch it and bring it back. Let's see how many rabbits each of us catch."
"YOSH! I'M OFF!" Sasuke yelled and ran away into the bushes without so much as hesitation, leaving the newly minted Chuunin brother of his to sit back to relax a bit, now that his surroundings were finally silent. Things such as these put him at ease, away from all the burdening responsibilities even if for a little while. The boy appreciated it well and enjoyed how his brother found pleasure in dragging him away from duties. He was not a slacker. Rather, he wanted to elevate some of the burden on himself.
The genius had no idea of how different he was from others, until they allowed him to graduate far earlier than anyone else in the academy. It couldn't be helped after all. He could not, not use the gift that was given to him. He was gifted and he was to use that well.
"Nii-san I found a rabbit!"
He chuckled as he heard his brother scampering around noisily, screaming once in a while to try see if the creature would freeze in fear. A while passed before he heard a frustrated groan and the sounds of heavy movements stop. It must have escaped.
"Sasuke, don't go too-" He started, only to stop in mid-sentence as he felt an alarming level of chakra spike up right above where they were. Acting on his reflexes the little genius shot up, a kunai already in hand and he watched in mild fascination - mostly worry as a ball of white formed, increasing in size steadily; only to shrink back as quickly as it appeared.
And it left behind a person floating in mid-air who began pummeling back downwards face-first. He was positive he heard a shriek before said person began flailing about.
"Sasuke!" He took off in order to find his sibling, fearing that he maybe in danger. Thankfully, he was not too far from where he was and he managed to take a step in front of him just as the being fell into a bush. She should've been dead judging from the height she fell and he was about to take a step closer to inspect further, only to be taken aback as she moved.
How could she have survived...?
With his sharingan flashed on, he could easily make out that the girl as he made out, was no less older than he was, severely injured and was depleted of chakra. And yet she could still sit up and stare at them.
With pink hair, half-lidded jade eyes, pale skin and a confused look overall, she looked as if she could hardly pose a threat to them. Then again, he had been taught to never underestimate anyone. And how could he possibly do that in this situation, considering that she just fell out of the sky in a large ball of white chakra?
Just as he was sure that she was about to say something, she became limp and fell backwards. He was beside her within seconds, preventing her from making contact with the ground and shot a warning look at Sasuke to stay where he was before he set on to inspect her thoroughly.
It was not hard to miss the enormous gash on the side of her waist that made a few thick rivers of blood run down to soak into the ground. It was obvious that she would die if not treated immediately and whether or not she was a threat to Konoha, she needed to be alive in order for interrogation.
So he set on dressing up the wound with the few rolls of bandages he had as quickly as possible, glancing at Sasuke every now and then in order to make sure he was alright. In the midst of the quick procedure however, she uttered something that made him freeze in place.
"Naruto..."
She knew of the Kyuubi container. It was something that children around her age should have no idea of and he was positive that she couldn't be a shinobi of Konohakagure considering he had not even seen her once around the village. Not many people existed who had pink hair -this was the first time he would be seeing it- and he knew of no kunoichi with the odd hair color.
"Sasuke kun..."
'Ridiculous! How could she-' He looked at Sasuke with a worried expression, who looked just as flabbergasted as he did. Could it be that Sasuke had made friends with the both? It was highly unlikely considering Sasuke was almost always within their sights. However, the genius could think of no other possible explanation. Dozens of possible situations began forming in his mind; she was a spy, a friend of Naruto, was attacked by him and therefore was injured-
This had to be reported to the Hokage immediately.
"Sasuke!" He said quietly, urgency in his voice. "Come. We are going to the Hokage! Hurry and get on my back-"
He paused then, as he felt hands clenching on his shirt and looked down, to see her eyes barely open, the leaf green orbs staring up at him. Before he could say a word however, she smiled weakly before her hand dropped to her side once more.
Her action on served to make him even more worried than he currently was, about her present health and for the safety of Konoha. The Uchiha ran.
"Strange...very strange indeed..." Sarutobi sighed as he blew out a puff of smoke. He observed the girl lying on the hospital bed carefully, but with concern. She was but, a small child around Itachi's age, if not younger and heavily injured to the point she had been on the brink of death not too long ago.
Those heavy injuries were healing themselves, as well as her chakra quickly replenishing itself. Both he and the newly minted Uchiha Chuunin were surprised to find out what large amount of chakra she possessed. There was no doubt that she was a shinobi, but of which rank, they were not sure yet. It was obvious that she couldn't be chuunin to say the least.
They would have to wait until she woke up. Sarutobi spared a glance at the younger brother, who was asleep on one of the chairs. Just what did this girl know about Naruto and Sasuke?
The Chuunin exams were over just a while ago, and after nearly three days of absolute lack of sleep, he was yet again in another crisis. A big one.
A strange girl who appears out of nowhere with a dangerous injury that could have killed her, murmurs names of two children she was not supposed to know. Itachi was to stay because he needed to know the reason why. And Uchiha were stubborn whether they were old or not. So he just sent a message to his parents stating that he was familiarizing the young Uchiha about Chuunin duties in order for them to leave him alone for a while.
Hiruzen took another long drag on his pipe to calm his nerves. If this girl was a spy, they were in deep trouble. Very deep trouble. He considered that possibility as a safety measure, even though it was highly unlikely considering spies disintegrated their bodies the moment they were found out. Itachi had informed him that she had briefly awakened before they arrived; she just smiled up at him before falling unconscious once more.
The young genius was just silently scrutinizing the girl, waiting for her to wake up. At the rate she was healing up, Sarutobi was sure she would soon and that was the reason he was waiting patiently.
"If she doesn't wake up soon, we might have to resort to mind probing. Possibly with Ibiki." Sarutobi finally broke the silence, and Itachi looked up, looking shocked at the words.
"Hokage sama..." He said quietly.
"I know it is painful. Yet if she doesn't wake up soon, we will have to resort to it." He said gravely, taking a seat beside her. "What she knows may not be good for Konoha."
"If possible...we should wait..." Itachi looked down at her.
That was Itachi. So kindhearted and too gentle. Sarutobi even wondered why this child was still a shinobi. A too forgiving and gentle shinobi as this would probably be taken advantage of greatly, sooner or later. And Sarutobi dreaded that day where this innocent boy would be taken control of.
"I know Itachi. But you and I both know that, this girl uttered something she should not have known. What if she is aware of Naruto's parents? We do need to consider that scenario. We need to take steps ahead and always be prepared." He said as he eyed the boy. "Whenever things like this occur, it is always best to think of the possible and even the unlikely scenarios to be prepared."
Itachi nodded softly, in agreement to the wise old man's words. As he opened his mouth to reply however, a loud groan emitted from the pinkette.
"Oww..." She muttered. "What the hell?"
"Tsunade Shisou...it didn't work did it?" The girl continued to mutter, eyes still firmly shut. But one hand rose up to her forehead. "Shit...my forehead hurts like hell. I am going to motherfu-"
Sarutobi just quickly covered Itachi's ears. Whether the kid was aware of those words or not mattered not to him; his grandfatherly instincts would not, under any circumstances, allow any children to hear such words. He was still recovering from the shock that the girl would really utter such words...and the fact that Sakura called his student her teacher. Had Tsunade sent her here?
Quickly masking his chakra, he dragged the Uchiha behind a screen and motioned him to stay silent, to observe what the girl's reaction would be once she woke up and saw Sasuke sleeping in the chair next to her. While aware that he might be putting Sasuke into danger, he needed to find out how exactly she'd react to waking up in an unknown place.
Meanwhile, the now fully awakened yet slightly disorientated Sakura was not enjoying a bit of how she was feeling right now. Though she had a moderate to high pain tolerance, she still hated it whenever she was put in a sorry condition. Judging by the smell, she was probably in the hospital where Tsunade Shisou may have immediately rushed her to.
Of course, she didn't expect the scroll to work. She tried it out just for the sake of humoring the two and because of it, she ended up being teleported somewhere high above land and nearly got crushed to death. Never again, would she do this. Realization struck her then and she froze, her eyes suddenly snapping open.
Which day was it? How long had she passed out? Did the old two wretches announce that she became Hokage?
"It can't be..." she gasped as she sat up quickly, ignoring the pain that shot up through her entire chest. "I couldn't have become...I couldn't..." Had her mentor planned all this from the beginning so that she wouldn't leave Konoha? It must have been just that seeing how things have had turned out. Rage pooled inside her stomach and glaring distastefully at the IV, she reached to tear it off, only to notice that something was different.
She felt lighter...and smaller.
"My arm...it really did shrink! I didn't dream after all!" She let out a loud gasp as she looked at both of her limbs. She drew the blankets back in order to reveal her legs and could only marvel at the sight. They were small...as well was bright and smooth with absolutely no hint of any scarring which she obtained from years of experience as an ANBU.
"Tomato...pudding..."
Oh dear lord. Just how could she have missed the boy who was napping blissfully, curled up in the big armchair right beside the hospital bed? It was none other than a baby version of her once crazy teammate, Uchiha Sasuke. Screw the crazy part; he looked like an angel who just fell from the heavens. She recalled her own fall as well but obviously the results were more...realistic. How on earth did she get herself so high up anyway?
Tsunade did say that the jutsu may do something like that. So it meant that she really was in the past now. And she now had a faint idea of how far back she was in, growing slightly flustered as she recalled looking up at Uchiha Itachi's worried face before passing out...twice. How utterly embarrassing. And here she had vowed to never, ever fall unconscious in the presence of another person no matter how weak she was.
Never mind that she was dying and that it was a complete legit reason; she was going to sulk about this for days straight.
Now then...time to call the big bosses out.
"Hey! Sasuke's big brother come out. I know you are there." She called out, rubbing the back of her neck in a lazy gesture. "I owe you a thank you for saving my life."As she suspected, he came out from his hiding place, an intense look on his face as she scrutinized her. Here comes the ever careful Uchiha Itachi; hero of Konoha...the most well known masochist she knew. Masochist...because she just loved calling stupid people nicknames. How many people did she know to go so far as to taunt their little brother enough to make him try kill their elder sibling, only to smile and die and let his said sibling try destroy the entire universe?
"Well hi," she raised an eyebrow when it was clear that he was not going to talk for a long time. "Nice to see you, Itachi Uchiha. I must say you look very different from when I last saw you." She babbled away with a grin. "You're a lot cuter in person by the way."
"...Who are you?" His tone was surprisingly deeper, for a child. He walked forward slowly, but steadily, never once taking his hard stare off her. It made her feel slightly uncomfortable, but she had absolutely had no trouble in keeping a straight expression on.
This was Uchiha Itachi she was dealing with. However innocent and childishly cute he looked right now, he was a genius, an overachiever, the perfectionist and the highly perspective to-be ANBU captain. He was probably an emotionless robot, who served directly under Konoha and therefore, would not hesitate if the Hokage so much as told him to slit her throat and throw her into a barrel of acid. Of course, the Hokage would not do that, but all the same, she had to be cautious.
She blinked and drew back as he raised a hand towards her, holding up an arm in a reflex to protect herself. He looked momentarily stunned before he retracted it and stuffed it into his pocket.
"You are scared of me." He stated, making her snort. "I do not recall ever meeting you before; I doubt I could have hurt you in any form."
"I'm not scared of you." She muttered immediately, only to pause and correct her sentence. "I used to be but now am not. I will not explain myself any further until the Hokage arrives." She fixed her eyes towards him and frowned. "Unless he sent you here to interrogate me?"
"I must say I am quite impressed as well as worried thinking of who you may be dear child," she blinked as the Hokage stepped out from behind the screen, a grave look on his face. She had almost forgotten how it looked like and seeing it up close after all this time gave her a nostalgic feeling of back from her academy days when she used to make flower crowns for him to wear on.
...Unfortunately the nostalgic memories that rushed through her head made her cringe. Why, oh why did she have to be such a useless, physically weak twat who-
"Explain yourself to us."
"Uh...I..." She started off lamely, only to realize that if she were to explain herself, she would have to go over every single detail of the very things she did not want to talk about. How was she supposed to do that?
First of all, she had not even expected for the scroll to work so waking up and seeing a mini Sasuke with the face of a sleeping angel was not something she had expected. Right now, there were so many emotions running through her that she could barely even think properly. What should she tell them? Where should she start? Would they even believe her?
"What do you want to know?"
"Tell us who you are." Sarutobi lit up his pipe, not once taking his eyes off her. "I presume that should be the easiest to start with."
"My name is Sakura." She sucked in a deep breath as she started, her heart starting to hammer inside her chest with half-excitement and fear. "I am a shinobi from the leaf and…well…actually was. I can't be considered a shinobi of this time…" This was not going well.
With an exasperated sigh, she turned to Itachi. "May I have a glass of water? My throat feels rather scratchy."
She watched as the boy moved to the counter and pour her a glass before handing it over to her, no emotion whatsoever on his face. His face. His eyes showed curiosity. She uttered a quiet 'thank you' before accepting the liquid given to her and drowned it down quickly. She was going to have to explain this in a way that would not shock them, and in a way that they could accept it all.
She remembered her Shisoutelling her that she could always trust her teacher in anything. She knew she could trust Itachi as well. The boy had always put Konoha before his clan, a pacifist who would avoid try conflict at any cost.
"...What did you mean by, 'not of this time'?" Itachi asked quietly.
She had to trust them and tell them everything in order to make them trust her properly. This was an extremely delicate issue and she knew she couldn't handle it alone. Naruto had attempted to shoulder all responsibility himself...and it ended up badly. As she lowered the glass, she looked into the eyes of the Hokage and prepared herself for the explanation she was about to give.
"What I am about to explain is very long...it would be better if you take a seat Hokage Sama."
The old man raised an eyebrow before slowly sitting on the chair beside her bed. Itachi's arms crossed over his chest and she stared at him expectantly. "I'm fine with standing." he said quietly.
She took a deep breath and sighed, wondering how to start her story. She decided that she would just say where she came from first and continue it from there. But first she had to determine which time she had arrived at. She looked at the young Uchiha once more.
"Before I begin I need to clarify something. Itachi san," She began. "How old are you?"
The Uchiha turned to look at the Hokage who nodded in approval. "Ten."
"When did you become Chuunin?"
"...Today." A frown marred his face.
She ran a hand through her hair then, feeling her soft locks against her fingers; baby soft fingers that were not yet calloused by the hard life of shinobi. "I must be nine years old...judging by how I feel and look right now."
She saw shock cross the professor's face and sighed. Before the astounded old man could utter a word out of his mouth, she began talking.
"My name is Haruno Sakura, and I am 12 years from the future, having come to warn you about the horrible events that happened in my time." She said, confirming the feeling of dread inside the old man.
She knew the words had a powerful effect on the two people in the room. The Hokage's eyes were wide, as he stared at her, an astonished look on his face while Itachi stared on in disbelief.
"In brief, I came to stop several mishaps from happening." She continued as she looked down at her lap which was covered by the white hospital sheet, urging herself silently to try stay calm and not to snap. "I came to prevent deaths from happening. I came to prevent a war from happening."
Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw a look of abashed horror cross Itachi's face, eyes widening, lips slightly parting as his pupils constricted, a hand gripping the rails of the bed so tightly, his knuckles turned white. Swallowing hard, he finally allowed himself to sit at the foot of her bed.
He was suffering horrifying flashbacks.
'PTSD..' she thought as she continued observing him.
It made her flinch inwardly. Uchiha Itachi was one who had experienced the terrifying outcomes of the war when he was only around four to five years old. To hear that another one was to happen near future would of course, petrify him. After all, it had barely been five years since the dreads of war stopped…and then news about another one near future.
But to think he'd be affected this badly...
She began to feel guilty, wondering whether she should have first, told the Hokage to send the boy out. But then, the reasonable part of her mind told her that he needed to know this, since he was one of the people who played a major part in her time. He was the one who could truly change the time.
"From the future...a war..." The hokage repeated, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and forefinger. "Terrible happenings…from the future…"
Silence prevailed in the room then, and Sakura waited for the hokage to motion her to continue to explain further. She wondered whether he believed her. After all, she was just an odd girl who appeared out of nowhere with a ridiculous story. Chances were that he would either enroll her up in a mental institution here or he would lock her up in prison.
It was after all, an unbelievable story anyone could make up on the spot.
However, just as she was about to ask the question, the old man rose and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I suspected that you were one from the description Itachi gave…but to think I would get to meet a real time traveler here…"
He thought of it? To be expected from 'The professor' of course. He must have seen his share of odd things in his life and this would add to it.
"If you still doubt me, I would dictate everything that has happened from my point of view," She placed a hand over where her heart was and nodded. "I will not lie to you Hokage Sama."
He chuckled and waved a hand in dismissal, suddenly looking paler and more tired than he initially looked. "No, I should believe you. After all, it is not every day you see a little girl dropping from the sky in a ball of light. Have you come here willingly little girl?"
"...I would not say unwillingly." She chose her words carefully. "To be honest, the scroll which sent me here…I didn't really expect it to work even though I was hoping it would. I was entrusted with this task and I honestly don't think that I could really change time on my own."
Her eyes slowly drifted towards a surprised looking Itachi before looking back down to her own hands. "There are quite a few things that I am unable to do on my own and I will need help from the Hokage and the Uchiha clan."
"Why the Uchiha clan?"
"Because they played in important part in the future happenings. There are traitors here within Konohakagure Hokage Sama," at the mention of treachery, the old man stiffened up quickly, eyes growing hard. "Uchiha were the ones who helped Konoha to suppress them, but not for long as they were overpowered."
...Uchiha attempted to protect Konoha?
"By who?"
"Traitors within their own clan-" she was cut off in mid sentence by a coughing fit which to her dismay continued for a near minute and left her with a scratchy throat with the taste of blood tinged within her throat. It was obvious that she could not sit for a long time to explain everything to them and besides, she needed Tsunade Shisou, Jiraya Sama, Kakashi and the renowned genius Uchiha Shisui and his father to be present to hear it.
They were the only ones she could pick out to trust for now.
Hiruzen meanwhile was thinking of what steps to take from now on. Surely if she were from the future, she would probably know best of where to stay and what to do and he had to consult her about it. She should very well be aware of the tense relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha judging by the way she spoke and he wondered whether he should place her in the head family's care as a sign of trust.
The top priority right now of course, was where this child was going to stay. Surely he couldn't keep a strange girl by herself within Konoha. The elders would find out sooner or later as a big ball of light in the sky was not something many would miss.
They had planted many ANBU and Danzo had spread his root members all over Konoha and around it and he was sure that he must be investigating it right now. So he quickly came to a decision.
For now, entrusting her with the Uchiha would be the wisest choice. Ever since the Kyuubi incident, the Council of Konoha had blamed the Uchiha for the mishap and in turn, the Dojutsu owners had not taken kindly to the blame. Ever since then, there had been growing enmity between the two, and Hiruzen felt powerless even as the Hokage.
She was extremely important to the village right now and should he place her in their care, the ice could melt, even a bit.
"I put my trust in you then." He spoke, making the two children look over to him."However, regarding your health right now, I will have to send you somewhere safe. Also the situation right now won't let me be able to attend to this at the moment. Spending some time with your village will give you a glimpse of how everything is right now."
"Itachi," the young prodigy stiffened and stared up at him, nodding quickly. "This girl will be staying with your family from now on."
"Wait…what?!" Sakura blinked quickly, wondering as if she just heard that right. "Hokage Sama, I am perfectly capable of taking care of-"
He ignored her protests in the background and continued. "Since she seems to be very familiar with the Uchiha, I suppose letting her stay with you until her mission is over won't be a big deal?"
"Of course not Hokage Sama." Itachi answered, standing up straight to the pink haired girl's ultimate dismay.
"Do not by any circumstance reveal that she is from the future. This is a secret between both of us for now. I will send a letter to your parents saying that we are entrusting them with an important person for the time being so that they would take it better when you actually arrive with her. In the meantime why don't you show her around the village?"
"Stop making these decisions without me! I still exist you know!"
The loud shriek only served to waken up the peacefully napping Uchiha Sasuke, much to her chagrin. The boy blinked slowly, looking around with a grumpy look on her face before his dark eyes settled on Sakura. He paused, as if seemingly wondering who on earth she was, before his face scrunched up in surprise and he jumped out of his chair.
"It's the pretty lady from the forest!" He declared pointing at her. "How do you feel now? I found you and rescued you!"
Sasuke just called her a pretty lady.
Praise buddha.
She stared at his face and posture, trying to decide whether to spring out of the bed and give him a bone crushing hug or to run around Konoha while screaming in happiness. She opted to just smile at him.
"Why thank you." She smiled. "My name is Sakura. And you are?"
"MY NAME IS SASUKE UCHIHA!" He grinned but then frowned. "But then you said my name in your sleep. How do you know me?"
She panicked. Of all the things she panicked because her mind had melted with happiness from seeing Sasuke and hearing his voice...and she could not think of a good reason to give as to why she knew him. And who was the best person to put the blame on in her state of panic? Turning to Itachi, she pointed to him and grinned as wide as she could, nervously at that.
"He told me all about you!" She declared. "Your big brother and I are kind of friends you see so he boasts about you all the time. How can I not know?"
Predictably, Sasuke turned a deep shade of red and smiled in a way that made her heart squeeze as he rubbed the back of his head. "Uh...wow...that's cool..." After that little murmur, the little five year old sent a disapproving glance at his older brother. How could he abandon such a pretty lady in the forest like that? His friend nonetheless! This pink haired girl surely seemed to like him a lot, having talked about him in her sleep.
Sasuke found an immediate attraction to this girl, who seemed to like him very much. Her very actions seemed to prove it. Who else called out for him when they were in distress? Only her of course. And so, he voiced his disapproval of his beloved niisan's acts out loud, much to the older Uchiha's mortification.
Meanwhile, the Hokage watched with amusement, knowing that he made the right decision about letting Sakura stay with the Uchiha. At least, this girl would probably make Itachi's life a bit more interesting - if not a living hell by the way she just quickly pinned a 'crime' on him- and fun. She was as loud as Naruto when the boy was throwing one of his tantrums.
Noting how she mentioned Tsunade, they probably were close and she probably inherited the woman's furious temper; which Hiruzen quickly hoped she did not. One Tsunade was enough, and another Tsunade would just be trouble for everyone. With twice the temper, colorful words and brash attitude, this girl probably wouldn't be one to mess with.
"Well then." Sarutobi chuckled, making Sasuke stop his scolding of the now, pouting Itachi who sent a half glare towards a Sakura who stared back with an apologizing look. "Sasuke why don't you go on home? I'll send an ANBU with you with a message. This girl will be staying at your household for a good long time because-"
Before the Hokage could even complete his sentence, the impulsive boy was already jumping up and down, holding the girl's arm, uncaring whether there were IV needles attached to it. The action prompted Itachi to step forward and pull him away before he could do any serious harm to the girl. As powerful as she might be, right now, the girl was in a weakened state. The jutsu she used had sucked away most of her chakra, leaving barely enough for her to live.
Even if it were replenishing, he knew she was still fatigued and needed good rest, even if she didn't show it. So with a bit of convincing, the kid agreed reluctantly to leave the nine year old behind and to return home with the escort. Once they were gone, with narrowed eyes, he turned to regard the Haruno.
"Uh...sorry about that. I panicked." She smiled, scratching her cheek with a single finger. She was already aware of Uchiha and their lack of communicative speech so decided that Itachi should not be that hard to handle. She hoped.
"You could have merely told him that you had another teammate who shared the same name as he did." He stated quietly.
"I could have." She frowned. "But I didn't. So I just said what was on my mind..."
He just stared at the girl, who was supposedly now, supposed to live in his home until either her mission was completed or the Hokage decided otherwise. She would certainly be a disruption to his normally calm, -boring- life. He briefly wondered what his parent's would say of this before his thoughts went back to about her.
A time traveler
A girl who had come all the way from her own time, in order to fix other people's mistakes, in order to prevent those who were close to her from dying. She had but, one single chance to fix things, and she had taken it upon herself to try change everything.
"You know, you should smile more." Her words seemed to surprise him and he looked at her curiously, yet again, at her smiling face. "A smile can really brighten your insides up as well as make the day of someone else brighten up. Another plus point towards you, you'd look really a lot better."
"...Smiling without a cause has no benefit." Was his dry reply.
The words were reminiscent of what she had told Sai, a very long time ago. The man who became an active ANBU member soon after the war, becoming one of her life-long friends.
"Sometimes, even a smile can get you out of the toughest situations."
Itachi blinked, surprised at her choice of words. Before he could even begin to think about it however, she let out a groan. "Good god I'm starving..."
"I shall call the nurse to free you." He stood up, only to be stopped by Sakura's hand motion. He watched as she carefully removed the needle and kept it at her side. Then she jumped off her bed and the first thing she did was to walk in front of the mirror attached to one of the walls.
At that, Itachi deduced two things. Either she was one who liked escaping from hospitals often and used the knowledge to flee as early as possible, or she was a nurse back in her early profession. However, being a nurse was highly unlikely as, if she were a shinobi, she would not have time to be on a 24 hour shift every day. So Itachi decided she was a medic nin of some sort. It made sense at least.
"Good god..." She sounded irked as she carefully looked at herself, head to toe. "I am back to being a midget again. Bangs...maybe I should keep these for the time being...and some new clothes..."
He raised an eyebrow as she continued talking to herself. He wondered who in the right mind would talk to themselves, by standing in front of a mirror. Perhaps she hit her head a little too hard from the fall. Or maybe it was side effects of the jutsu-
"Anou!" She called, bringing his attention back to her. "There is Ichiraku's here right?"
"A girl?"
"Yes." The ANBU said quietly. "The Hokage requested she be kept safely within your premises until something is done to ensure her safety. She a shinobi with a mission and it requires help from the Uchiha."
Fugaku regarded the ANBU standing in front of him, arms crossed over his chest, frowning as he contemplated it. What would be so important for the Hokage to entrust some strange girl in their safety? Was it another sign that the Hokage merely wanted a peace treaty than conflicts? Then again it was so sudden...
He knew that the Hokage was trying his best to try pacifying the silent conflicts between the Uchiha and the Konoha Council, even though he seemed to be powerless to actually do anything about it. It was perhaps either a sign that he trusted them, or that the girl was here with a ulterior motive. As if sensing what he was thinking, the ANBU bowed his head.
"The Konoha Council knows nothing of the girl yet Fugaku San."
So it was a sign that the Hokage trusted them. Pleased, though still slightly wary of the thought that a strange girl was to live in their home for god knows how long. Still, he knew he really had no choice.
"Very well." He closed his eyes, "When will she be arriving?"
"In a few minutes. She around Itachi Kun's age so there should not be much trouble…" The ANBU straightened up, seemingly wanting to get out of the Uchiha's intense glare as quickly as possible. "I will take your leave now."
Fugaku nodded and man wasted no time into disappearing in a poof of smoke. He turned around to see his youngest son, talking quickly, explaining all what he knew about the girl.
"-You should've seen her Okaachan!" The boy said excitedly, gripping her hands tightly, a large grin on his face showing that he had taken an immediate liking to the girl. "She was so pretty. But then she was lying there like someone beat her up really bad! And she was all like 'I'm going to save you next time' 'I'll protect this and who' something! But then she was so pretty..almost as pretty as you mom!"
Well that was pleasing to know. Uchiha Fugaku was absolutely not pleased by this girl, even though she was entrusted to them as a sign of trust. He hoped that Itachi would at least stay away from her. Girls were deadweights, people who didn't really fit in the title of a shinobi. Also they were a distraction to others. If one were to stay here, she would just probably distract his son from his duties.
Also, considering that this long term 'mission' was given to them immediately after Itachi's promotion to Chuunin, it was slightly suspicious. Fugaku was well aware that Itachi was the youngest boy to ever become Chuunin at this age for his time, making him stand out against others. It was possible that she could be a spy over them. One could never be too careful in the shinobi world.
"Fugaku." His wife's voice made him looked up from his thinking. She had a wide smile on her face, making it clear that she was happy about what was going on right now. "I am going to prepare the guest room. Would you mind taking care of Sasuke until then? He wants to give her a gift."
"OTOUSAN LET'S GO!" The boy squealed as he tugged on his father's hand, dragging him outside. Fugaku was absolutely not pleased at all. This was supposed to be the time where Itachi took Sasuke off to train, leaving him a peace of mind.
Five big bowls.
The little pink haired girl had finished five, big, bowls of Miso Ramen. And was already through her sixth one. By merely watching her, Itachi felt a slight stomachache start to come on the way. Who knew such a delicate girl could have such a voracious appetite? By the look on the ramen stall's owner, and the giddy look on her face, he knew that this place was going to become a regular for her, if it wasn't already.
"How could your stomach even handle through all that?" He asked, making her stop her slurping for a while and turning to glare at him. It was a funny sight really.
"I am hungry." She stated. "Obviously I can eat through it!"
"You will get fat."
"No I won't!" She turned back to her bowl of noodles. "I train a lot to make up for it."
The Uchiha was barely through his first bowl and he was already losing his appetite. He looked down at it, wondering how he was going to finish this meal.
"What a healthy appetite!" Teuchi declared, laughing loudly, wiping his hands with a cloth piece. "You should drop by more often!"
"I will!" She shot him a grin. "I absolutely love this ramen!"
"Well it seems like Itachi san doesn't really have the appetite for ramen. He always eats too healthy I say." Ayame giggled, making Sakura look at him with a raised eyebrow and then looked down at his ramen bowl.
"EAT."
He stared blankly back at her, then at the empty bowls stacked her by her side, and then back at his. Feeling his stomach squelch, he pushed it away, muttering that he was done. The next thing he knew, Sakura was holding his bowl, pointing it to his face. Drawing back slightly, he shook his head, repeating that he was really finished.
At that, she took his bowl and emptied it. Drowned it down. Completely. As if he didn't feel sick already…
"Shall we leave then?" He asked quietly. She nodded, thanking Teuchi and Ayame for the meal. He paid for their meal and then two were on the way to his home. She seemed happier now that she got something in her stomach.
After a while, the girl decided to start a conversation with him. After all, she going to live in house wasn't she? It would be better if she started to get to know him and the others well.
"So tell me about yourself Itachi san." She said turning to him. At his curious looking face, she decided to explain. "Back in my world, I knew you of course. But we never really got a change to talk...due to reasons."
"Reasons?"
"Yes well…things concerning your brother...our team...we never got a chance to talk. Also the situation at that time. I will explain in full later." She offered him a bright smile, all the while feeling sorry for him. This time, she would try her hardest to let him live his life to the full. Though she was still unaware of what his future illness was, she made it a 'must-do' point in her mind to discover it and to treat him accordingly.
Sakura watched him as he looked at her questionably. It looked adorable if thought so to herself and she had to resist from reaching out to tug on his cheeks. She doubted that he would take that well.
"I'd rather if you tell me about yourself first, Haruno San." He said quietly after a few minutes, returning his gaze back to the road.
She pouted at the formal tone but decided to continue with her introduction. "My name is Haruno Sakura. I think I am nine or ten years old by how short I am right now." He raised an eyebrow at that.
"Before I came here, I was 21 years old. Back in my world we were five years apart. Not that thats important...ahem." She coughed slightly. "I eat anything. But I usually prefer sweet things over spicy. Ramen is one of my favorite foods though because of a reason I'm not going to tell you about yet. Besides you hate ramen so I probably won't tell you that at all."
Twitch
"Anyhow, I like training, hanging out with my teammates and stuff. I dislike people who ...try to harm Konoha. I think hate an appropriate word. I also dislike the Konoha Council and Danzo Shimura because they're annoying as hell. Good thing the bastard died in my future."
She said it through all with a wide, charming smile. Something was off however and he could not put his finger on what exactly was wrong. He quickly dismissed it however, as she did a little hop, now slowly shaking her head from side to side as a young child would.
"My hobbies are," She continued, "Sleeping, playing shogei, spending time with my teammates..." She smiled wider. "I think that's about it. Your turn!"
His turn? What was he supposed to tell her about himself? She knew his name, his age, and Itachi felt that that was enough. And yet, she seemed to want to know more. What was there to know about?
Sakura sensed his hesitancy and sighed inwardly. He was more socially inept than she at first thought. Perhaps a little nudge would help him get started. For one thing, she knew that she was not going to let him have a peace of mind within his own –possibly boring- house.
"How about I just ask you and you answer? Would you like that?"
He merely inclined with his head and this time, she had to fight down the urge to slap him upside down the head. If this were how all Uchiha acted; she was going to become the worst role model alive in terms of discipline. She had learnt a few tricks to annoy people, courtesy of Naruto. Uchiha Itachi was not going to escape until he learned to act like his age; she was going to make sure of that.
"What do you do for fun Itachi San?"
"I rarely have time for entertainment. However, I do enjoy spending time with my friend and brother in order to slack off from work."
The fact that he was just like most of everyone else when it came to completing work made her relaxed and quite amused on the inside. Perhaps this wasn't so bad after all.
"What are your favorite foods?"
"Dango, Onigiri filled with seaweed and cabbage. I have an extremely high sweet tooth."
"What do you dislike?"
"...Big crowds of people..." She sensed more hesitancy building up from within him and he glanced around quickly before lowering his head. "…staying up late at for clan meetings and my clan elders." He added in a lower tone. If she would divulge such personal details about herself than who was he to withhold silly information on his side? Besides, it wasn't often that he conversed with people his age.
She nodded, understanding him completely. "I get you completely man. In face...I bunk a lot of meetings and stuff from the council too." she said smugly.
"...You?" He blinked. He expected her to be more rigid with rules -well at least she looked like it on the surface. Why else would she be entrusted with such an important task?
"Hell yeah. It's fun pissing the old hags off." She snickered, "So, hobbies?"
"Well…I do like visiting traditional tea shops." He murmured, earning a roll of eyes from the pinkette. Honestly…this boy was something else. So, she shoved him to the side playfully, making him nearly fall over. The moment he regained balance, he turned around with a mild complaining look. "What was that for?"
"You behave like an old man and it's pissing me off." She stated shaking her head in disapproval. "I bet that's the only hobby you have from being forced to attend tea ceremonies from when you were young."
He did not deny it. It was part of the truth anyway. He did like visiting tea shops though it did get boring at times considering he did not meet anyone of his age yet with a hobby as that. So he shrugged, rubbing his side. Good lord, she was strong. To think she nearly made him topple that easily…
"I admit…I have a special love for teas as well. Not many know of it. Well...you're one of the few to know and the only one in this world to." He snapped his head up, surprised at that. She smiled at him, crossing her arms over her chest. "But I have other hobbies too. You should do something you enjoy once in a while. You don't get very long to be a kid; might as well enjoy it."
He cocked his head to the side slightly, lower lip jutting out in a pout as he thought hard about what she said. She was not wrong of course; you didn't get very long to be a child. Especially if you were a shinobi and even more so if you were born into an elite clan. "I…stopped being a child since long ago."
Sakura's eyebrows drew together slightly as he continued. "You might be aware of this, but ever since the last shinobi war, I don't really remember what it was like to have friends. Most of them died as soon as the war started and I…" he sighed before letting out a chuckle. "Well, it's not the most pleasant thing to talk about on the streets."
She stared at him with an unreadable expression before finally reaching a hand towards him. He initially thought that she was going to place it on his shoulder (most of his companions did that) but to his surprise, she reached up to his neatly combed hair and ruffled it up.
"You poor thing." She sighed. "I would give you a hug but then what would people say if an albino with green eyes embraced you? So I'm settling for this. You poor, poor cute little thing. Sniffle."
Then, she left the stunned Uchiha to walk on, her hands back in her pockets. Reaching a hand up to his head, he realized in dismay that she had ruined it completely. Out of pure habit, he stood and fixed it up before jogging a considerable distance to match up with her.
"Don't do that."
"Whatever." She shrugged. "I felt sorry for you. I just had to ruffle your hair or something to show that it is going to be okay. Don't mind me. I'm a bit socially awkward since several incidents too. Just not up to your level."
"Still...my hair..." He pouted and she stared at him with a deadpanned look.
"...You're high maintenance aren't you? Fine." she shrugged, "I'll find another method of showing my affections towards you. I used to punch Naruto to show my love for him. I call it tough love. He's so adorable you know. Never hit Sasuke though. Kinda which I kicked his rear though..."
He stared at her, now intrigued. "If you do not mind me asking..." He started, seemingly surprising Sakura that he started talking on his own will -on top of that, cutting her off. "What really happened to your teammates? My brother...was your teammate as well as Naruto right? Since you seem to be really familiar with them..."
Her walking pace slowed down. Should she tell him? On the roads was definitely not a good place to discuss things as this, but then no one would really pay attention to two children mucking around the streets while engaging in an odd conversation, that was more one-sided. Even though that was the case, Sakura decided that telling him that his brother became a bloodthirsty killer all because he killed his clan tried to destroy Konoha and then finally died would have to wait until she explained her story properly.
For now she would give some oddball answer that need not be accepted by him. Whatever the case, the Uchiha would not handle it well if he was told his brother died right now. Poor child would probably faint and she'll probably need to give him mouth to mouth. Not that she would mind. He probably would. His lips were probably virgin. She vaguely began to realize that she was referring a boy who was older to her as a child. That would irritate him should he find out…
She turned to Itachi and smiled. "They..." She started.
Itachi waited for her to continue, slowing his pace down as well. Finally, she stopped, prompting him to halt as well. She turned to look at him, a grave look in her eyes. Itachi tensed for what news was coming.
"...They got kidnapped by a posse of gay men in flowing cloaks who wanted them to strip dance."
...What?
Sakura could barely contain herself as she watched a look of absolute horror crossed his face, a twitching breaking out on his left eye. It was absolutely hilarious. She was sure that if not for mentally scarring him, she could have very well switched on the paranoia switch within his brain.
For Itachi, her assumption was more than just right. He couldn't bring himself to comprehend the colorful images that flashed through his mind, thinking of all the possibilities that may have happened. It would forever scar him for life thanks to the pink haired girl standing in front of him
"..I was joking." She murmured after a while, unable to see the Uchiha going through mental torture. She was surprised that the Uchiha actually believed it. She thought he'd be a lot more practical than that, really. Then again she was from the future and…well…it made sense for him to believe it.
"Why do I have the feeling that this is only the beginning of a storm…?" He muttered, squeezing the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger
"Trust your wild Uchiha instincts and fly to the sky. Oh wait, you're a weasel. Scamper then. Scamper into the woods."
"..."
"THEY'RE HOME~!"
At Sasuke's unusually high pitched squeal, Fugaku let out an irritated sigh as his wife too, jogged along the halls to go out to go greet the newcomer. He was the last to stand up from where he was sitting, in the garden, and to drag his way towards the door.
He had thought up of many possible appearances of how the girl may have looked like; but it sure did not include a pale little girl with pink hair, green eyes who was dressed in an ordinary blue shirt and white pants. Also…where was the luggage?
"Welcome to our family!" Mikoto chirped as she tried to stop Sasuke from running up to the new guest before the introduction was over, a warm smile gracing her face. "My name is Mikoto, Itachi-Chan's mother. This is my husband, Fugaku-Kun. This is little Sasuke, who I presume you have already met?"
Sakura bowed formally in return, fixing her own polite smile in place. "My name is Sakura. I apologize for intruding upon your home. Thank you for bearing with me."
Mikoto could only marvel at the adorable child standing in front of her. She was exactly what the Uchiha Matriarch wanted in a daughter. Mission or not, she was going to keep this girl as hers, until the time came that she had to leave. Bending down in front of her, receiving a startled response from the well-mannered pink haired girl, she rubbed a dirty patch under her left eye, prompting the girl to close it, and frowned when she saw that it was dried blood.
"Dear...you look like you have been through a lot." She said gently. "Where are your bags?"
"I...don't have any." She sounded sheepish, grinning as she rubbed the back of her head. "I just arrived here so..."
"You were traveling without any luggage? Were you on your way to Konoha?"
Sakura nodded. "I was born here but, circumstances forced my parents to move me out of here...and now I am back here."
Before Mikoto could ask another question, Sasuke finally moved forward, being unable to contain himself and took hold of her hands, grinning from ear to ear excitedly. "Come on! I'll show you to my room! Let's play!" Before anyone could react, he had already dragged the pink haired girl away. It seemed that the boy was very fond of her.
Itachi himself was aware of it, having experienced his brother's scolding for leaving the 'pretty lady' in the woods. He earnestly hoped that Sasuke had not told his parents of what Sakura told him about his 'friendship' with her. It wasn't that he didn't want to make friends with her; his father would strongly disapprove of any relation with a girl, especially one from outside his clan.
"Itachi dear could you help me with the laundry? I have to finish the cooking so…" At his mother's request, he shoved his hands into his pockets and walked outside. It would be best to keep his distance from the girl from where his father could see them or until he got used to her presence. His left eye twitched as a sharp pain went through his left side of the chest.
He would have to go to the hospital tomorrow for a checkup.
Sasuke spent the whole day showing Sakura his 'shinobi moves', his toys and telling her stories of how awesome his big brother was. She never got tired of listening to his childish awe filled stories, mostly consisting of his amazing nii-san.
Right now she was flipping through one of their family albums. She wondered why they were always so stiff. 'Must be the strict and traditional way of living as a high status clan...' She mused in her head as she observed the pictures. In whatever picture Sasuke was however, the family seemed less stiff. Even Fugaku seemed to sport a small smile on his face. It was barely noticeable and yet, still there.
She came to a quick realization, by merely observing the pictures that Sasuke was indeed the apple of their eye. He was the one they all loved the most as opposed to what they believed.
"-Itachi niisan is so smart..." Sasuke was continuing his story, a pout on his baby soft lips as his gaze cast downwards, playing with a green dinosaur and a soft toy shurikan on the low level coffee table. "I want to be just like him when I grow up…to handle real shurikan and all."
"Why?"
The simple question made the boy pause his activity and look up to meet emerald green eyes filled with curiosity. "It's because Nii-san is awesome!" he said in a matter-of-fact tone. "Tou-san always talks about how proud he is of Itachi nii-san..." He looked at the dinosaur again. "Sometimes I think he doesn't pay attention to me. He will once I become a shinobi."
It probably was just a childish, innocent remark showing minor displeasure. And yet, Sakura was highly perspective and had grown to at least foresee a bit of the future with the present happenings with years of hard training. That innocent remark was not to be toyed with, she knew it well. Even now, the child was aware of how his father seemed to pay more attention to his older, more perfect brother.
Even though right now, all Sasuke had was childish awe and admiration for his seemingly perfect, over-achieving, genius older brother who would rush to his every aid, he would grow to resent the older Uchiha as he grew and began to understand what was going on. Initially, he had hated his brother because he had massacred his clan. Even if his clan were to prosper and live on now, (hopefully she was going to make that reality in due time) Sasuke would begin to foster hate towards his more accomplished brother.
He was going to see how Itachi made it into the Jounin, ANBU's before he could. He was going to see properly how the Uchiha Clan Elders praised him, all the while failing to recognize the abilities of Uchiha Sasuke. All of this would start to slowly drill into his mind, changing his views towards his brother who loved him dearly. Would consider everything he did to be a hindrance to his own achievements. Eventually it would reach to a point where Sasuke would actually loath his older sibling's existence.
She did not want that to happen at any cost. And yet, she could not focus on their brotherly relationship at the moment. For now, she needed to asses the situation was between the Konoha Council and the Uchiha Clan in order to form a plan on how to act. In order to succeed properly, she needed to get Danzo Shimura away from the picture.
The old man had supposedly wanted what was best for Konoha. And yet his motives were entirely selfish, as in the end it was clear that all he wanted was the post of Hokage. In order to do so, he needed powerful Shinobi for his root. She knew that the all the man wanted to do was to eliminate the Uchiha, seeing it as a threat to Konoha, all because of the powerful Dojutsu it possessed.
She needed to find some way to eliminate the root, and keep Danzo away from Itachi and Sasuke at any cost. If Danzo were to intervene in her plans, he would probably create a hassle of trouble, one of them would be talking to Sasuke to join the root to beat his brother, if Itachi wouldn't. She was aware that Itachi may have been part of the root in the past. Otherwise Danzo's words could not have had such an impact on his actions.
Orochimaru...there was the snake as well. Good lord, so many things to do and plan out! A throbbing headache stopped her silent thoughts, making her wince. She really needed to get some rest soon and she doubted that she would be able to…knowing that this would make her an insomniac for a few days straight.
"So what do you think Sakura Onee-chan?" She blinked at the nickname and turned to Sasuke, confused. "Do you think I can be a greater shinobi than nii-san?"
She smiled. "Ah that will happen...only if you trust in yourself, work hard, and believe in the will of fire."
"Will of fire?"
Before she could answer however, a knock sounded on the open door, and Sakura turned to see Itachi, leaning against it, a lazy expression on his face. "Dinner." He stated simply.
"ALRIGHT!" Sasuke jumped up, and dragged Sakura up. "Come on! Dinner! "Kaa-Chan makes really awesome food you know! Come on!"
"Coming..." She smiled wearily, standing up slowly. "I'm a bit sleepy though."
"Well you can't sleep till you eat!" He said snobbishly, a sentence which she presumed was taken straight off from his mother. She smiled wider and allowed herself to be dragged away by the little boy. "Itachi San, let's go." She said as they went past him.
"Yeah! Let's!" Sasuke let go of Sakura's hand and jumped onto his unsuspecting brother. Sakura saw a wave of pain cross over his face as he clutched at his left side. She vaguely remembered that he was doing the same after she delivered a blow to his back on the streets. Had she fractured a rib of his by accident?
"What happened to your side Itachi San?" She questioned, worriedly, in a tone that made Sasuke slightly step back from his beloved brother in fear of damaging him further. He just shook his head, making her scowl and cross her hands over her chest. If there was one thing that annoyed her, it would be shinobi hiding obvious injuries and lying about it.
"You could tell me you know. I am a medic. I can do something about it. Where does it hurt? And how?"
"Anou..." Sasuke tugged on her shirt, making her look down. "He did the Chuunin exams today. There was this shinobi from the village of mist he was fighting with...I think 'Tousan was talking about how he was proud of him for surviving a kick to his side. I didn't see much. All I saw were fast flashes but I bet it was awesome!"
"A kick to the side..?" She looked back at Itachi. "We need to get that tended to! There might be a broken rib."
"I suspect there is one." He said quietly, rubbing it. "However, if we delay, father will be most discontented. I suggest we finish up dinner first."
"Alright but then, you will allow me to tend to your injury right after." She told him in a no-nonsense way, placing a hand over her hip. If she were older, she would've looked stern and somewhat scary. But right now she was just a nine to ten year old child. And that expression was hardly intimidating. However, Itachi was not one to voice his thoughts out and nodding in agreement, walked out of the room.
Sakura followed close behind, Sasuke once again holding onto her shirt while filling her head with a story of how he nearly fell into a pond and swallowed a fish. By the time they reached the dinner table, they saw that Mikoto and Fugaku were already seated, side by side, looking expectant.
Seeing the amount of food Mikoto had gone out of her way to make just for the occasion of her arriving to this house, she bowed and earnestly thanked the woman, as well as apologizing for making trouble.
Mikoto just brushed it off and urged her to sit and start her meal. Glancing around the fancy arrangement of food, Sakura wondered whether the Uchiha always ate this extravagant. After all, they were the most powerful clan in whole of Konoha. She decided to start with a shrimp. Beginning with a soft 'Itadakimasu', she bit down on the piece of seafood. At the burst of delicious flavor filling her senses, she froze.
"How is it?" The woman pressed, the never vanishing smile on her face, as she looked eagerly at Sakura.
"It's delicious." She swallowed. "It's...really delicious. Thank you."
Mikoto smiled and blushed slightly at the compliment. "Ah, it could be that you were really hungry. I'm glad you like my cooking." She bit down on some rice, chewed and swallowed before turning back to her. "Tell us about yourself dear."
What should she say? Make up a fake story to leave them off track? She had to make her story as convincing as possible, and it wouldn't hurt to add in a few truths about herself as well.
"I...really don't know how to explain."
"Well then, you said that you were from Konoha right? What made you come back? And where are your parents?"
She paused briefly, looking down at her own bowl of white rice. "My parents moved me away from Konoha because of some clan conflicts apparently. That's what they told me at least. They never told me anything else, or what my clan was. They were Shinobi though. Both were Jounin level Shinobi. They often left home, saying they'd come back. And at that time I would be with a woman called Tsunade. She became my sensei later on."
"Tsunade Senju?" Fugaku interrupted, disbelief in his eyes. Sakura nodded, secretly pleased that she finally managed to get some response out of the otherwise, hard-to-please Uchiha head. At least she would be sure that he would not look down on her as much.
"What happened later on?" Mikoto pressed.
"One day, they left as usual. But even after a long time, they didn't come back. Then Tsunade Shisou told me that they weren't ever coming back, was really tearful." She cocked her head to one side, pretending not to see Mikoto's horrified expression, and playing along the innocent, know-nothing nine year old. "I don't know why she cried...but then I cried too...because I don't know why my parents left me. She said I would understand later on."
"...I see." The woman sounded sad now, and Sakura felt twinges of guilt. However, she had to weave a story as this to make sure they wouldn't pry into her personal life too much. The story was true though, with the exemption of the part that it happened outside Konoha.
"So then I began living with Tsunade Shisou Sama, learning medic techniques and different ninjutsu and taijutsu. She couldn't teach me any genjutsu, so I taught myself."
"You taught yourself?" Fugaku interrupted her once more. "How?"
"I went around reading and searching for scrolls. I learned several genjutsu techniques. Anyhow, when we were moving to another country, we got attacked by shinobi on the way, and I got separated from Shisou." Once again, Sakura pretended not to notice Mikoto's horror. it was to be expected. She was just a nine year old. "I escaped and moved on quickly for days, stopping just now and then to rest and then collapsed in a forest. I guess that's how Itachi San found me."
"Escaping from Shinobi..." Fugaku sounded mildly impressed. "How would you say your rank is right now?"
Sakura bit down a smirk. If they were to know that she was a potential Hokage candidate, surely they would be taken aback. She was in just a nine year olds body of course and that would just frighten them. She had no intention of revealing where she came from to the two; not yet anyway. "Tsunade Sama did tell me I could very well be Chuunin level."
"Then I suppose you would not mind a match between my son and yourself." He stated. Mikoto protested quickly, only to have Sakura accept the challenge, much to her dismay. The girl did not know what her son was capable of…of course Itachi-Chan would try not to hurt her so much but it was inevitable in sparring…
"I love a good challenge. It would be pleasing if he would match up to me; I always win so it's always a bore…" she bit down on her lip in order to keep them from twitching up the moment a wave of annoyance washed over Fugaku's face. She was thoroughly enjoying this and she was sure that Itachi was aware of what she was doing by how he shot her warning stares.
"The match shall be held tomorrow, in the morning." Fugaku spoke as if he knew that she was going to lose easily. And that made Sakura even more eager to try crush the man's pride, even if by a little bit. A draw surely wouldn't hurt now would it?
"Sakura Chan, are you sure?" Mikoto turned to her worriedly.
"But of course!" She turned to face Itachi. "Don't hold back Itachi San!"
"...As you wish."
Sasuke could only sit there grinning. Even though he knew nothing of what they were really talking about right now, the boy was overjoyed that dinner wasn't quiet as it usually was. If Sakura Onee-chan would stay here, that meant that dinner time wouldn't be boring anymore. And the thought made him giddy with happiness.
Q&A section/authors notes
~Hello dear readers and thank you very much for making it through his horrendously long chapter of mine! I just couldn't help it. This probably would be the longest chapter I would have ever written for any of my stories. I apologize to you all for having had to go through all that. ^^/ (This chapter has been slightly edited)
Now for some answers for questions that you might have about this fic:
- About those who are surprised that Itachi broke his ribs do remember that he is just 10 years old at the moment and not exactly what you call invincible. (He never was in the first place, though his abilities surpassed most in his generation) Also, he is definitely not an emotionless robot as most of you perceive him to be.
Itachi was noted to be an extremely kind and gentle shinobi, not just to Sasuke, to all around him. It was even said that he was considered too kind to be an actual Shinobi. But of course he had to be pushed to be one by the old geezers of his clan. If he seemed a bit OOC in this fiction, please once again remember that he is just 10 years old. Though the kid has a good poker face for his age, his acting abilities and all haven't really developed to such an extent that he would just blatantly ignore everyone for the sake of improving his status. Remember, Itachi does not enjoy fighting. He is a pacifist who would rather solve conflicts peacefully.
- Fugaku Uchiha, as much as he may seem to be an uncaring father, he does love his children immensely. He acts strict on purpose, just to push them forward to be great people who would regain the honor of his clan. He was well aware of the Konoha council's silent boycott of the clan. When Itachi became the youngest Shinobi to graduate from the academy and to become a Chuunin, he indeed would be proud. Of course, he is not really aware that by focusing too much on Itachi,
Sasuke would eventually begin to foster a hate for his brother and his family.
Sasuke by nature, though pleasant, has an inferiority as well as a superiority complex as stated by Kakashi. He is just a baby right now, who cannot understand what is going on, but as he grows older, he definitely will, and once he does, it is unavoidable that he would start hatin gon his brother.
- Sakura by nature is a joyful person, though her own actions (and incidents around her) led to some of her own emotional blockage, that does not stop her from smiling and trying to seem happy.
- For all those who are wondering why Sai isn't mentioned, a flashback in the future will show what happened during the way and his duties right now. That reference Sakura used to Sai was because she learned from him to smile even though she wasn't happy. Sai can be a bastard sometimes but he is, still a kind and understanding person. Fear not, he will be rescued from the Root one way or another.
-Sakura, as she was 21 before she came back in time, possesses a bit of an adult mind and would say awkward things like that in future, though it will decrease. What she said about 'a posse of gay men kidnapping Sasuke and Naruto to make them strip dance' was just an attempt at humor, forgetting that Itachi was but, a ten year old. I don't really think he will be able to block that out of his mind too soon...
- Also, about the fight, Sakura is more than capable to take down Itachi right now, seeing that she had more training than the current him. As much as a genius the boy is, he was just promoted to Chuunin, whereas Sakura completed years as Chuunin, Jounin, ANBU and was nearly forced to become Hokage. Considering the circumstances, I really don't think it is OOC. Many did say that Sakura did have the potential to surpass Tsunade, and for Hourglass, I decided to just make that happen. So I don't really see why those crazy elders (Konoha elders) would force her to become one.
-Sasuke, as much of as a pleasant and cute kid he is right now, I'm going to give him a bit of a 'spoiled brat' personality since he comes from a wealthy family and his family is almost entirely Shinobi. He is, attracted to Sakura as much as he is to Itachi, seeing her as a pretty lady. After the match, I bet he'd be awed too. We'll just see.
-About Itachi's injury, the news of the match probably made both Sakura and him forget it existed in the first place. But she would heal it sooner or later. Do remember that since Sakura suddenly became a child, her kunai throw and some moves will be offhanded. So that puts her at a disadvantage with Itachi who's shurikanjutsu are near perfect. Also, her chakra type isn't really mentioned, though she will have some fire jutsu in practice. Since about what Kakashi said about Jounin having at least 3 chakra types or something…
Still, a kid Itachi is pretty deadly, and Sakura knows that pretty well, having nearly fought him once.
-About Kakshi, don't worry. He will be making an appearance fairly soon enough! ^.^
-Ramen is not Sakura's most preferred food, though she has grown a liking to it. She does prefer sweets and healthy eating over it, but the ramen stall was a particular favorite of Naruto's so she takes regular trips to it. Stupid as it sounds, it is a way for her to constantly remember good times of when they were alive and well, as a team.
Thank you all for getting through this long authors note section. I'm sure you all must be fed up by now. Really. =_=
Anyway, if you like this fiction, please leave a review, as reviews tell me what I have to improve next in the fiction, as well as what you readers want from it. I really do not want to disappoint you all. So if you like it, please leave a review~
Owari~ ^.^/