Letters the following morning from their friends back in Cloud basically ensured that the new day after the terrible one they'd had the day before, started out on a good note "Later Karin-chan, I know you want to hear what Omoi's complaining about this week" Sakura giggled.
"But work before fun I get it" Karin sulked lightly, she was mostly just glad to finally be on a duo team with her sister as they finished cleaning up after eating breakfast before leaving the apartment on the way to the tower to get some missions for the morning.
There was no Genma or Shisui to bother them that morning either as they meandered along to the center of the village and up the steps to reach the mission room where they were assigned four d rank missions to start them off.
Sakura blew out a breath at one of them "Escape one animal chasing mission for another in a different village" Sakura groaned, seeing the picture of Tora on the scroll for the d rank that someone had handed her.
Karin winced "Come on Sakura-chan lets just do that one first and at least it's a cat, not a huge dog named Shun who tries to bite you" Karin pat Sakura on the back kindly as they began their search for their target.
Four minutes later Karin spread out her senses "Got him I think, cats have a different feel to them but this one has a slightly more feral quality to his chakra" Karin exclaimed in triumph as she led Sakura in the opposite direction.
To where she'd felt what could be Tora "Yep it's him" Sakura hummed seven minutes later when they arrived and peered down over the wall into the alley where Karin could feel Tora's chakra "Now the hard part, catching him" Sakura grimaced.
Eyeballing the open end of the alley and rapidly formulating a plan to acquire their target with minimal damage to themselves or Tora who was probably like Shun and loathed people trying to capture him all the time.
Beside her Karin was silent knowing that Sakura was thinking before she finally nodded and formed hand signs "Ninja Art: Shadow Clone Jutsu, right go buy a small net, a small pet carrier and a pair of double reinforced gloves from the market" Sakura instructed.
The minute her clone poofed into existence "Ooh sounds like you've come up with something interesting, are you going to let me in on your plan" Karin grinned, feeling excitement for the first time since she'd come to Konoha with Sakura.
"See the entrance, layer it with mesh wire, I'll do the same over the top and leave a small opening for us to jump down in when my clone gets back and activate a barrier so he can't escape until we have him secure in the carrier" Sakura explained easily.
Laying a mesh barrier down over the entire top of the alley "Always so complicated, yet simple at the same time" Karin snorted softly in amusement as she went to do as asked until there was only a small space for them to fit through.
That Sakura slapped a barrier tag next to it a few minutes later her clone was back with everything she had asked for and quickly donned the gloves "Be ready with the carrier Karin-chan" Sakura warned as they dropped down into the alley.
With a quick hand sign the barrier blocked their only escape route "Roger that Sakura-chan" Karin nodded as she positioned herself while Sakura spread open the net and moved deliberately slow towards their target.
Who was by now catching on to their presence, growling filled the alley along with hissing and general angry cat noises and right as Tora jumped intent on trying to escape Sakura lunged and wrapped the net around the vicious feline.
And fought with Tora for a few minutes until the cat settled and a moment later Tora was tucked away in the pet carrier Sakura and Karin took a moment to release matching sighs of relief that capturing Tora had been so easy.
Before taking down the mesh and after creating another clone after writing up the report of how the mission had went Tora was taken off to the tower to be returned to his owner and then it was off to finish the last three d ranks they had for the day.
"Phew now what training or back to the apartment for an early lunch" Karin questioned once they had their mission pay, Sakura lifted her gaze to the sky to eye the sun for a moment before directing them down the streets to the library.
Which didn't surprise Karin to much because Sakura had always been studious "I want to learn a new elemental jutsu of my opposite nature so lets study for a bit, then have lunch and train after" Sakura said.
Grabbing for a scroll that detailed various earth style jutsu off the shelf, Karin considered that fair enough because she hadn't learned anything new either since arriving in Leaf so they both sat and studied the scroll to memorize the hand signs so they could repeat and try the jutsu for themselves.
For two hours they were in the library just studying until it was noon and time for lunch "Curry or barbecue" Karin asked when they walked by Yakiniku Q, suddenly feeling hungry for meat as the smell of meat filled her nostrils.
Making her nearly salivate to Sakura's amusement "Guess we're having bbq today" Sakura snickered softly as she lifted the flap and ducked into the restaurant with Karin on her heels and a moment later they were seated with their orders taken.
Of course like every other time Karin and Sakura stopped to eat in the restaurant Ino immediately spotted them "Hey Sakura, Karin" Ino greeted as she plopped down next to the pinkette and curled her arm around Sakura's shoulders.
And let go a second later as the rest of her team shuffled over, including her sensei who seemed quite awkward around Sakura and Karin "Ino" Karin nodded with a small smile, relieved that the blonde seemed to be learning how to respect boundaries.
"I have a question to ask, did you really get yourselves put on a duo team with no jonin" Shikamaru asked, jumping straight in only after having heard the gossip that everyone was whispering about amongst the higher ups.
Verdant orbs shifted his way "We didn't ask Lord Hokage if that's what you mean, the Patriarch of the Uchiha clan came to us yesterday and said that we were a team now so neither Karin or I are really sure what happened" Sakura shrugged.
Being completely honest to Shikamaru's surprise "So if you don't have a Jonin to instruct you, what have you been doing all morning so far" Asuma frowned, wondering if this was a good idea and maybe he should try to get his father to rethink things through a bit.
Karin spoke next "Ah we did about four d ranks, then studied in the library for a couple hours and once we're done eating we're going to go train and practice a new jutsu" Karin listed as she ticked off her fingers all the things they'd done so far.
Asuma blinked and furrowed his brow but right as he was about to say something he was interrupted "My Dad is really impressed with your plants, he's never seen someone grow plants the way you do and wants to know if you'd be willing to work" Choji chimed in.
Trailing off when he realized everyone was staring at him "Work you mean like at the greenhouse, sure I'd love to" Sakura thankfully caught on to what he was trying to say and easily agreed without fuss.
Because she saw his waning confidence and wanted to encourage it so he would be able to stop second-guessing himself all the time "Really" Choji perked up and got a single decisive nod in response.
Less than a minute later Sakura and Karin's order arrived and the rosette quickly began cooking their meal "Just make sure to let me know when he wants me to start okay" Sakura requested while watching the meat.
Choji nodded eagerly in answer "What kind of missions did you do this morning, usually it takes genin much longer to complete d ranks due to arguing or outright failing the mission" Asuma cleared his throat.
Wanting to ask a few questions himself "Hmm there was catching Tora, weeding someones garden, cleaning out the river at one of the training grounds and shopping for an older couple I believe" Karin ticked off her fingers again.
Not in the least bit jealous that only Sakura had been asked to help out at the greenhouse, "And how exactly did you catch Tora, surely you didn't harm him did you because we all know how hard that cat is to catch especially for a newly formed team" Asuma frowned.
Drawing Sakura's attention away from the food so Karin took over "Uh no we didn't hurt Tora and we're not exactly newly formed, we were a team before coming here, plus we've known each other for four years so it only took us about half an hour really" Sakura admitted.
Prompting Ino to gape at her "Thi..Thirty minutes how the hell did you catch that heathen feline in only thirty minutes" Ino demanded to know, trying not to let petty jealously trump over her friendship with Sakura.
Who smiled lightly "Found him in an alley and made sure he couldn't escape then caught him in a net and put him in a pet carrier simple as that" Sakura shrugged not sure what the big deal was, she'd completed the mission, efficiently at that.
"Okay and now the question is how did you find Tora so fast in the first place, I know it took us over three hours to find where the menace was hiding in the village" Shikamaru grunted, inwardly grumbling about troublesome women.
Because he got the feeling Sakura wouldn't take kindly to it "Me..I'm a sensor, I've been working on developing my sensory range for quite awhile now so I differentiated between dogs and cats, found the one who felt like he had a feral quality to his chakra and led the way" Karin piped in.
Ino put her head in her hands and let out a muffled scream of frustration "Can my students and I watch you train" Asuma questioned, much more intrigued than before, crimson orbs narrowed on him suspiciously, but it was Sakura who nodded.
Half an hour later they were on their way to the training grounds with four extra on their heels "Okay first a warm up of stretches" Sakura declared as she reached down and touched her toes without bending her knee's.
Karin easily followed complying with the warm up exercise so they didn't accidentally pull a muscle proving to be nearly equally as flexible as Sakura who did the splits to stretch her groin area though she couldn't quite go all the way to the ground like her sister could unfortunately.
"Now a quick taijutsu spar right before we work on our new jutsu for awhile" Karin inquired once her muscles were all loose, quick as a snake Sakura spun on her heel and struck out with a fist not even forewarning her before starting the spar.
Though while not as efficient at dodging Karin managed to avoid getting hit "Your getting better at evading Karin-chan" Sakura giggled, making sure to not use chakra against Karin who was a lot softer than she was.
In response Karin huffed "Only cause your crazy Sakura-chan" Karin shot back, throwing her own punch at Sakura who caught her fist and tried to throw her over her shoulder, Karin was smart though as she ground herself in place with chakra.
Then kicked out managing to kick Sakura after that neither spoke merely sparred physically against one another until the pinkette emerged as the victor "Beat you again Karin-chan" Sakura announced not bragging or anything.
"But you don't deny that I got better which means I was pretty close to winning that time" Karin deduced as they took a five minute breather to cool off after their spar considering it was early afternoon with the sun blaring down on them.
Off on the sidelines Team Ten and their Jonin were dumbfounded at how natural everything seemed to be coming for the two kunoichi "I still can't believe that's Sakura" Ino commented when the girls made a clone to meditate while starting practice on their jutsu's.
Different ones but the same element "What do you mean Ino" Asuma tilted his head down to gaze at his kunoichi who bit her lip for a moment then decided to answer his question after peering warily at the girl in question.
"She use to be really shy you know, not at all confident in herself because of her forehead that got her bullied a lot and I know for a fact that she was still pretty shy when she left on that trip with her parents so yeah it's hard to believe that's really Sakura though I know it is" Ino explained.
Asuma could understand "Like Sakura said Ino she's been through a lot, to you it seems like she changed drastically but to her it was probably a gradual change over the seven year period that she was gone" Choji chimed in.
It was Shikamaru who brought up the subject that hadn't yet been broached "By the way has anyone told her where her parents are buried at or even attempted to give her what her parents had owned that should be returned to her now that she's back" Shikamaru inquired.
"Good question Shikamaru perhaps once she's more comfortable when her emotions aren't on a hair trigger" Ino blurted, knowing that right now especially when Sakura had finally relaxed some, mentioning that would only bring out the worst in the pinkette.
Shikamaru nodded and simply turned his attention on Sakura and Karin again who were still training "How are they not tired yet" Asuma asked two hours later when it had been two and a half hours since they'd arrived on the field.
Yet the two were still going, only they'd changed what they were doing by working with their weapons, practicing expanding Karin's sensory range, improving upon their chakra control by walking on water all while a clone each meditated.
Until finally they reached their limits after another hour and a half had passed "Mean I can't believe you Sakura-chan" Karin whined when the clones dispelled to help them refuel on chakra in order to heal themselves.
Sakura rolled her eyes in mock annoyance "Karin-imouto-chan what are you complaining for, you got the water walking exercise down at long last so be grateful" Sakura teased as her jade orbs glittered with mischief.
Ruby orbs glared at her "Yeah only after you scared the living daylights out of me by having a clone grab my ankle to try and drag me under the water" Karin huffed just glad she'd managed to remain above the water.
"Oh by the way Ino hows practicing the mystical palm going for you" Sakura turned, fighting back a smile at Karin's pout when she saw that Ino was still stood at the edge of the field with her team and sensei.
Indicating they'd stayed for the entire four hours they'd trained "Uh okay I guess, I still haven't gotten my chakra to sync up with the stupid fish's but I'm gonna keep trying until I get it" Ino shrugged a little bummed she was having such a difficult time.
Thankfully Sakura was still the gentle person she remembered underneath all the mental and physical trauma she'd been through "Here's an idea if it's okay with your sensei, practice chakra control for the next couple of weeks in various forms with me when you can" Sakura suggested.
Wanting to help Ino succeed "Fine by me, in fact why don't we all do that and make it a team exercise because as you all know chakra control is key" Asuma offered, wanting to keep an eye on the two kunoichi.
But he also didn't want to come off as overbearing "Sounds like fun" Karin declared, warming up to the older man who was nothing like his Father so far that she and Sakura had noticed anyway and with that they headed off to the apartment.
Leaving Team Ten behind to go home themselves eat dinner then go to bed and the next day was a near repeat of the morning before except Sakura and Karin only studied in the library for an hour and ate an early lunch.
Then headed off for the training grounds to train until Team Ten showed up "Alright we're ready whenever you are Sakura" Ino bounced in place, only blushing when Sakura smiled in amusement at her excitement.
Shikamaru grumbled a troublesome but waited for whatever instructions Sakura was going to give them "As I'm sure you know there are many different forms of chakra control and manipulation, to start off practice sticking a leaf to some part of your body with chakra" Sakura lectured.
Imparting her instructions last to Shikamaru's horror "The leaf exercise that's what your going to have them practice" Asuma asked incredulously trying not to laugh at Shikamaru's expression at the same time.
"Just at first until Sakura has a better understanding of what their control level is then the exercises will get harder, even I had to start with the leaf but Sakura's been doing chakra control exercises since she was seven" Karin explained.
Knowing that much because Sakura had loved to talk about all the training Isha had given her "Excuse me since you were seven" Shikamaru spluttered while focusing his chakra to make the leaf stick to his arm because she said to stick it to some random part of their bodies.
The girl smiled sadly "Yes Shikamaru, the village I wandered into after the incident, there was a woman named Isha Uzumaki who took me in" Sakura said, glancing up at the sky with a wistful look on her face.
Remembering those simpler times "Sakura are you okay, by the way my Dad said that if you were able to come to the greenhouse after this he'll tell you when he wants you to work and how much he's willing to pay you" Choji asked.
Getting the feeling that she'd kind of zoned out for a moment and he was proven right when she jolted a bit "Right uh okay and yeah I'm fine just remembering really, she was like a second mom to me" Sakura shook her head.
Shaking away her morose thoughts to focus on the here and now "Can I ask what happened to her" Asuma inquired gently not really wanting to be the one who made her cry especially when Sakura seemed to be doing so well.
"A pandemic hit the little village that we lived in and being the only medic who had a vast knowledge of how to use medicinal plants, she got sick to and right before I turned eight passed away and the village turned it's back on me" Sakura informed.
He couldn't help but wince a little "Don't hit me when I ask but did you ever have to steal in order to survive Sakura" Ino asked hesitantly while sticking the leaf to the top of her foot and holding it there with her chakra.
No one hadn't said she couldn't show off for Sakura after all who nodded in answer "Twice, once when I first got to that village but I paid the apple vendor back what he was owed later on and in another village though I did leave some money I doubt it was enough for what I took" Sakura said.
Still guilty over that but there was nothing she could now considering how much time had passed since then "Well given what I've seen so far, your proficient with the leaf exercise so we'll move on to the next level of chakra control exercise water sticking" Sakura clapped.
Trying to change the subject because she didn't want to talk about her sordid past anymore thankfully Team Ten understood and wisely stopped asking questions "Water sticking that's new I thought next would be tree climbing" Asuma furrowed his brow in confusion.
"What you mean you never had to practice sticking water to some part of your body, that's standard practice back in Kumo, our sensei wouldn't even let us attempt tree climbing until we had water sticking down like it was second nature" Karin gaped.
Giggling under her breath when Sakura gleefully showed off by covering both of her arms all the way up to her bare shoulders with water to demonstrate the next task the genin of Team Ten had to practice in order to better their chakra control.
This exercise proved to be a little more difficult for Choji while Shikamaru who manipulated shadows and Ino who had been the best of her class in Leafs academy simply blew right through the exercise though she didn't even make it past her elbows it was enough.
Being the kind of person she was Sakura focused most of her attention on Choji to help him complete the exercise "That's it, coat your hand in chakra, not to much, not to little" Sakura instructed patiently.
Verdant orbs watching intently as Choji attempted the water sticking exercise again and again until finally he managed to keep water stuck to his arm for over a minute "Wow that's exhausting I had no idea chakra control could be so tiring" Choji commented.
Feeling hungry despite having eaten not to long ago "Meditating helps as does eating large quantities of food but I think that's it for today so you don't get chakra exhaustion" Karin commented also tired.
"Was there someone back in Kumo who ate a lot" Ino questioned not having thought there was someone else out there who ate like they were starved all the time like Choji did though she knew he had to because of his clan who could convert those calories into chakra for their jutsu's.
Karin and Sakura nodded in sync "Her name is Karui, after every extensive workout she would drag us, plus Omoi to a restaurant and eat her weight in food literally, if anyone happened to make fun of her she would practically bite their heads off because she had a temper" Sakura grinned.
Excited for the next letter that she would receive from the redhead because the last one had been interesting, with that Ino, Shikamaru and Asuma wandered off leaving Sakura and Karin to tail Choji who led them to the greenhouse.
Where Choza was waiting for them "Glad to see you two doing well, your smiles are more genuine" Choza greeted, relieved to see the pain hidden within the depths of their eyes slowly dissipating now that they weren't separated.
Sakura bounced up to him while Karin hung back since the offer was more for Sakura than Karin "Anyway I didn't just ask you to come here to listen to me mother hen you so Sakura-san what hours are you comfortable working" Choza chuckled.
The girl tilted her head to the side "Well compared to what we did back in Cloud is two hours a day okay" Sakura mused out loud remembering the eight hours she and Karin had to spend in Kumo's greenhouses twice a week.
Choza quirked a brow "Sounds fair but what do you mean compared to what you had to do back in Kumo and how does every Monday, Wednesday and Friday sound so that would equal about six hundred ryo" Choza questioned.
At the same time gave the amount he'd be willing to pay the girl to work in the greenhouse "What I meant by that is our sensei had us working sixteen hours a week in the greenhouses, and twenty hours a week at the hospital with training and missions in between" Sakura explained.
Choji gaped "How did you have any time to yourselves at all" Choji asked, not sure how the two had kept up with that outrageous schedule their sensei back in Kumogakure had put them on after they'd become genin under his command.
Though it did make sense now how they were able to keep going for hours when most would have quit out of sheer exhaustion "Eh we managed" Karin shrugged, understanding most in Leaf that were their age didn't have such strenuous schedules like they had back in Kumo.
In any case Choza was leaving what time to come in up to Sakura as they left the greenhouse after checking up on Sakura's plants to see how they were doing and headed straight back to the apartment to eat a late dinner then go to bed after reading for awhile.