~Three months later~
What Itachi had said about her being bullied was an understatement, the bullying actually got worse as more than just Ino joined in on it "Just tell someone Sakura, a teacher, anyone please you can't keep letting them hurt you like this" Sasuke scowled.
As Sakura once again appeared with scrapes on her hands, knee's and elbows from where she fell after being shoved "I think Sasuke has a point Sakura, why because this has gone on long enough" Shino piped in frowning severely, worried for his friend.
"Maybe but even if I do tell, who's to say that they won't get even madder cause I tattled on them, right now their just shoving me down, it might get worse if I tell" Sakura pointed out as she dug around her bag for her first lesson books.
History it was one of her favorite classes to be honest, Sasuke sighed and held his head in his hands feeling exhausted "You have to be one of the most stubborn females I've ever met and that's excluding my mom" the raven haired boy groaned.
Sakura flashed him an apologetic smile and Shino knew that there was no getting through to his friend so decided to change topics "Are you doing anything this weekend Sakura, my Father mentioned another bug hunting expedition" the brunet said.
And the girl perked up in interest "Don't think so but I haven't seen Shisui-kun around for a week, I think maybe he's on a mission, however my parents will probably say yes since they've met you and your Dad, I'll mention it to them" the pinkette grinned.
Excited for another expedition in the forest with her friend looking for all sorts of insects, their mutual friend and row-mate shook his head but didn't comment on the weird likes of his only two friends in class so far.
"Okay settle down everyone it's time for roll-call then we'll begin with our history lesson" Iruka showed up finally and began calling out the names of their classmates until everyone was marked accounted for, then he rummaged around in his desk for his history book.
Before starting their history lesson "Lord Second Tobirama Senju….." the brunet read from his book and like Shino and Sasuke were use to by that point Sakura pulled out her notebook and started copying down her usual copious amount of notes.
It's not like she didn't already have enough of them, or already know the information being lectured to them, she simply did it because there were some things that she hadn't learned from the books and didn't want to forget in case they had it on a test in the future.
The hours passed by slowly as they went from lesson to lesson until it was finally time for lunch "Where do you think your going stupid little billboard brow" Ino caught her before they could disappear to the roof like usual.
She grit her teeth and ignored the blonde girl "Hey I'm talking to you ugly" the Yamanaka Heiress shouted and went to shove the pink haired freak when her wrist was caught in a snug grip, Ino looked up in fright and found their homeroom teacher the culprit.
"Surely Ino-chan I didn't hear you just insult Sakura-chan and try to shove her" Iruka narrowed his onyx eyes on Inoichi's daughter, having been warned by the man something like this might happen because of a certain incident going back to the first day from the start of the academy.
Quickly she shook her head "No not at all Iruka-sensei" Ino lied through her teeth it was something she wasn't very good at because fear of being found out was reflected in her cerulean eyes and Iruka knew that she was lying.
The truth came from someone unexpected through "Liar, I see you, Ami and some other girls in our class bullying Sakura all the time, pushing her down and stomping on her bag or hand" Kiba Inuzuka appeared, ninken sitting atop his head like usual.
Ino paled and Sakura knew that now might be the best time to tell the truth "Kiba-san isn't wrong but I couldn't in good faith allow Ino-san to get away with what she did on the first day of academy" Sakura squared her shoulders and spoke up.
Her two friends were very relieved that she was standing up for herself "Yeah, Himekari was bragging about how Ino snuck into the classroom during lunch and stole my pencil" Sasuke nodded eagerly wanting the bullying of his friend to stop.
"And it wasn't the only time she and the other girls tried to steal something of Sasuke's why, because I had my kikaichu on constant look out and she and the others snuck into class four other times only to get scared because of my insects" Shino admitted.
Sasuke snapped his head in Shino's direction eyes wide at the admission but thankful none the less for the effort being made to keep his stuff from being stolen by stupid girls, by that point Ino was silent and knowing she was going to be punished.
Decided to make a last ditch effort to get the stupid billboard brow in trouble to "She always starts it, mouthing off to us, so it's her fault that she gets pushed down and stuff, not like I can control Ami" the blonde grumbled unhappily.
Iruka shook his head "Run along you four to eat lunch, Ino your going to the principles office and he'll settle on your punishment, Ami Himekari will join you shortly as well as your other two friends" the brunet pointed.
Kiba snorted in disgust at the horrified expression Ino had as she was led away by their homeroom teacher "Well that could have ended differently, anyway sorry but I couldn't keep silent anymore" the Inuzuka heir shrugged.
Eyeing the three that were always together during academy hours "Nah don't worry about it Inuzuka, it was high time someone did something to stop them from hurting Sakura" the Uchiha in his class shrugged.
"Precisely, why because at any point it could have evolved into more than just being pushed down" the Aburame Heir nodded seriously relieved that everything seemed to be hopefully resolving itself on the whole matter and he could relax with the strict watch over their belongings.
Sakura crinkled her nose up "It might still get worse you know Sasuke, Shino, but thanks anyway Kiba-san I had no idea anyone was watching" the rosette flashed the boy a smile as they all turned and headed up the steps to the roof their established haunt during the lunch hour.
Not long after that they were ushered in for the rest of their lessons and released from the academy for the weekend "See you Monday" Sasuke waved scurrying off to home, maybe he could ask his brother where Shisui was in case the older Uchiha wasn't on a mission.
That way Shisui could go on a bug hunting expedition with Sakura and the Aburame's to "And I won't forget to inform my Father about what we spoke of in class" Shino nodded seriously at his friend and then marched towards his Dad upon spotting him.
Her lips curved up into a smile as she started home herself, knowing that she'd probably be alone for a couple of hours and she was right to as she had to unlock the door and sit in silence working on her homework for the better part of an hour and a half.
Until her parents finally got home "How was your day sweetie" Mebuki questioned, giving her daughter a scrutinizing stare and didn't spot any new scrapes to her relief, perhaps the bullying was finally going to stop and Sakura wouldn't get hurt anymore.
At the question the rosette turned to face her parents "Very good, Kiba one of my classmates told on Ino and the other girls in class so they had a meeting with the principle, other than that I had a lot of fun and Shino mentioned that his Father was planning an expedition for this weekend" Sakura chattered.
Causing them to laugh at her excitement "All we'll say is have fun and that you listen to Aburame-san if Shisui-san isn't there" Kizashi pat Sakura on the top of the head before sitting down in his favorite chair as she turned back to finish up her homework.
A little while later Mebuki called them in to the dining room for dinner where they sat and chatted about their day and enjoyed themselves as only a close knit family could before Sakura took a bath and dressed for bed.
Early the next morning after breakfast a knock sounded on the front door and seeing as he was already right there Kizashi was the one to answer "Shibi-san are you and Shino here to kidnap Sakura-chan for a bug hunting expedition" the pink haired male laughed.
His wife rolled her eyes "Have fun Sakura-chan, here's lunch just in case your expedition lasts past lunch" the blonde woman shook her head, hugged her daughter and handed over the four tiered lunchbox.
Which was taken in gentle hands and then sealed away in a storage scroll that Shisui had given her "All ready then Sakura-san" Shibi questioned when she adjusted her little backpack that held all the essentials for their expedition.
"Oh absolutely Shibi-san I was born ready" the pinkette flashed him a cheeky smile and Shibi coughed to hide his amused chuckle as he gently took her hand and in a swirl of kikaichu was gone to the gates so they could sign out.
Less than five minutes later to what seemed the guards eternal confusion at such an odd trio they were headed deep into the forest "Is there any kind of insect you hope to find today" the brunet asked when she pulled out her book on insects in the area.
Her little forehead creased in deliberation "Rhinoceros Beetle I think and perhaps an arachnid of some kind" Sakura answered a minute or two later and closed her book to look around and search through and under everything that she could on the hunt for her target.
Shibi just watching them in amusement "Was Shisui-san unable to come this time" the Aburame Patriarch was well aware that the Uchiha that the girl was friends with hadn't been there as he'd expected and Sakura looked up at him.
"Probably on a mission Father" Shino was the one to comment before she could open her mouth and do the same and Sakura shot him an amused smile before pulling her hand out of the hole she'd had it in to see what she'd gently captured.
Nothing of importance so she moved on to a different spot "How is the academy for you, not to hard I hope" Shibi inquired curiously, having heard that she was being bullied from his son and rumors floating around that it was going on as well.
She perked up "Good, have a bit of a bullying problem but I think Iruka-sensei is gonna put a stop to it, we'll see though" the rosette smiled brightly and shifted through the bushes and finally found her first bug target.
That was quickly caught in her little case so it could be stared at closely through the glass "It's a very nice specimen, are you going to keep this one" the brunet heir asked curiously watching as she twisted the case this way or that very gently as the beetle scurried back and forth frantically.
He should have expected it when in the next moment after looking her fill the bug was gently deposited on the ground and allowed to scurry off to get away from them "Such a strange child you are" the Aburame Patriarch chuckled under his breath.
As they headed deeper into the forest on the search for any sort of interesting insect the kids could find until it was nearly lunch time and the three of them settled on a blanket to eat the lunch that Mebuki had packed them for the expedition.
Halfway through eating they were joined by a familiar person "Finally found you" Shisui grinned grabbing up Sakura once he was certain that she wouldn't accidentally choke on her food or drink and squeeze her in a hug.
Viridian orbs lit up in happiness "Shisui-kun what are you doing here" Sakura squealed wiggling around to face the teenager and throw her arms around his neck to give him her own version of a hug that had him grinning wider.
"Been looking for you for an hour now, got back this morning from a B Rank Mission that I can't go into details on, Sasuke-chan mentioned that you were going on a bug hunting expedition so naturally I thought to come along only when I showed up you were already gone" the Uchiha sulked.
Causing the little girl to burst into a bunch of infectious giggles and squeeze him round the neck again "Either way I'm glad you were able to join us" Shibi nodded at the Jonin glad to have an extra set of experienced eyes looking out for the kids.
"Me to Aburame-sama me to" Shisui nodded back at the older man and joined them on the checkered blanket, Sakura was all to generous and soon he had a couple sandwiches and a cup of tea before him to eat with them as well.
Soon enough they were packing up and searching through the forest again "Didn't you say you wanted to find an arachnid of some sort" the Aburame Heir said suddenly eyeing what had to be the biggest spider he'd ever seen.
And that his friend was dangerously close to it "Turn your head slowly Sakura-chan and take a couple steps to the right" the ebony haired teenager instructed carefully not wanting to see her become afraid of one of the few things the girl genuinely enjoyed.
Thankfully the girl was good at listening to orders and soon she was staring wide eyed at the eight legged creature "Wow that really is a big one, I think it's a wolf spider what do you think Shibi-san" the rosette tilted her head to the side in thought.
Shibi wasn't to horrendously surprised at her knowledge and nodded in answer "Indeed you are correct Sakura-san that is one species of the wolf spider" the Aburame Patriarch explained going into a mini lecture.
Drawing his son into it as well as the children wandered towards him and sat down to listen to him absorbing the knowledge intently, Sakura even pulled out a little book and wrote down lots of little notes on the lecture.
"As much as I like Iruka-sensei that had to be my favorite lecture to date barring learning about the history of our village" Sakura announced jumping to her feet in a graceless movement when Shibi was done.
Off to the side her friend pressed his fist to his mouth to fight down the obnoxious laughter that wanted to break through "Course it was her favorite lecture it was all about insects" Shisui shook his head in amusement.
Next to him Shibi chuckled under his breath again "Perhaps I'll invite her over for other lectures sometime" Shibi mused to himself for the moment as the kids wandered away again on the hunt for any other sorts of insects.
Until it was time to start heading back before it go to late "See you Monday Sakura" Shino waved lightly once they'd signed in at the gates and Shisui had promised to take Sakura home so they didn't have to.
She waved back happily then took Shisui's outstretched hand and once home chattered about the day to her parents enthusiastically "Will she see you in the library this coming Monday" Kizashi asked before Shisui could disappear on them.
"I think so, if not tell her I'm sorry, never know when I'll get sent on another mission after all" the Uchiha said lightly eyeing the young girl fondly, she really was the most kindest, sweetest kid he'd ever met besides Itachi of course and he hoped she stayed that way and never changed.
Kizashi nodded "By the way thank you for going to keep an eye on her for us, you didn't have to after all and we do trust Shibi-san quite a bit with Sakura-chan" Mebuki added before the teenager could turn to leave.
He nodded in understanding "Nah it was a pleasure to see her having fun as all kids should and I'm glad that the bullying seems to be ending it was pure torture not doing anything" Shisui huffed to the Haruno's amusement before giving a wave and body flickering off to home.
The rest of the weekend passed by in a blur and soon Sakura found herself sitting between her only two friends so far in class again "What do you think has all the teachers in a buzz" the raven haired six year old asked.
When they were given free time to study or finish homework that they didn't complete over the weekend "No idea Sasuke, something interesting maybe" the pinkette shrugged lightly, reading over her homework to make sure she hadn't missed anything or made a mistake.
"Probably an accurate assessment, why because they don't seem to be worried about anything" the brunet heir added pushing his sunglasses back into their proper spot and leaning his head on his hand just a tiny bit bored.
It was over an hour later probably that their sensei finally showed his face in the classroom "Sorry about that, we had to finish making preparations for something" Iruka apologized, not really explaining what they were preparing for them and got started with roll-call and the lesson.
By the end of the day everyone was extremely curious "You'll find out tomorrow the surprise we have in store for you kids" their brunet haired sensei ushered them off to home, Sakura bid her friends farewell and made a dash for the library.
Avoiding the group of girls that liked to bully her unsure if she was safe or not and sprinted inside "Ah hello there Haruno-san and yes Uchiha-san is already here" the librarian greeted as five books were deposited on the counter for her to check in.
Sakura smiled wide and vanished to her favorite section "It feels like it's been forever since we last saw each other in the library Sakura-chan" indeed the Uchiha that was her best friend was there waiting for her like he usually was.
"Yeah I know, been busy with academy for me and missions for you" Sakura snickered quietly not wanting to get in trouble for being to loud, the library was her safe haven after all, where all her troubles melted away.
He gave her a fond smile "Missions are how the village gets it's income and as shinobi it's our duty to support the village and make sure it lives on for the next generations to inherit" Shisui lectured and Sakura peered up at him interest in her wide green eyes.
She was quiet for awhile as she searched the shelves looking for whatever books tickled her fancy for the week "Shisui-kun say um you had a hard decision to make between life of death even if it meant it was for the good of the village, which would you choose" the rosette questioned.
Very serious all of a sudden and Shisui was startled because he'd never thought she'd ask him that sort of thing "Well if it was for the good of the village I'd choose to die probably" the ebony haired teenager winced.
But all Sakura got was another inquisitive look on her face "Even if it's the wrong thing to do and living could be the right thing" Sakura pressed carefully and Shisui was scarily reminded of Itachi, it worried him really.
"That's a toughie Sakura-chan, if dying is the wrong choice but for the good of the village and living is the right choice but bad for the village then the only option left is to make the hardest choice, to live but lose everything you know, it'd be like dying but you'd still be alive" Shisui answered.
Wondering what was going through her head as Sakura lowered her gaze to the floor "Then one would just have to get stronger right, shinobi endure after all don't they, through the harshness of life" the pinkette finally said after several minutes of silence.
"Exactly Sakura-chan, shinobi endure no matter what their put through that's why the will of fire is so important" the Uchiha grinned glad that whatever had been bugging her was now leaving her alone as she picked out her three usual books from the shinobi section.
Then disappeared to the section on insects, had the five books checked out and hurried off, with him tailing her to make sure she reached home, he watched as she unlocked the door and vanished within before heading home to the compound for an early dinner and then bed.