The following morning found Naruto and Sakura packed and ready to go off on their first mission as Chunin "Good luck on your mission you two" Mebuki smiled warmly at the duo, waking up in time to see them off to the Tower for mission details.
"Yeah and if you can bring me back an awesome souvenir or something" Sasuke sulked only perking up as he thought of an excellent way to stave off boredom while Sakura and Naruto were gone as the duo waved.
Before body flickering to their destination "Hold up Sarutobi-sensei, I only asked for the gaki, not the other one" Jiraiya scowled at his sensei when both Chunin appeared in the office, entering through the door of course.
Hiruzen held up his hands "I realize that, however Sakura will be most useful on this mission as well Jiraiya, sharp mind, fully qualified medic you don't find those often, not to mention she can help keep Naruto in line" Hiruzen chuckled.
While the knucklehead gave an offended ~hey~ "Not that bad anymore" Naruto huffed crossing his arms over his chest and Hiruzen shook his head in amusement, while Sakura merely grinned, obviously finding his antics hilarious.
She'd been a good friend to Naruto and now he was as happy as could be with an adoptive family "Let me hear some credentials then, past mission reports and a report from the Head Medic, I'll only take her if I get some proof that she's as good as you say she is" the Sannin demanded.
And the girl sighed frustrated that the man was being so obtuse "Very well Jiraiya, as of now Sakura has 1 A Rank, 4 C Rank, and 43 D Rank missions completed and here's the report for one of her C Ranks, also a report from Ittei-san on her work ethnics directly" the Hokage sighed.
Jiraiya took the reports in hand, scanning them with intent, only to slump his shoulders and relent to the Hokage's decision of having another brat along with him "So beyond that the mission is B Rank, what exactly are we going to be doing" Sakura piped in curiously.
Next to her Jiraiya went rigid again "You mean you don't even know what mission we're going on, sensei please I can't handle two brats at the same time, if she's as ill-prepared as I think she is" Jiraiya whined throwing a fit.
Off to the side Naruto edged away from his friend as her brow twitched and her hands clenched into fists "Jiraiya-sama if you would stop acting like a child for one minute I'm sure you'll find out why neither of us know what kind of mission we're going on" the pinkette snapped.
Clearly done being treated like she was, the man reeled back and the Hokage cleared his throat "To find Tsunade that is your mission, I've decided to step down and chose her to be my successor" Hiruzen explained seriously.
Both young shinobi straightened "Old man how can you just quit being Hokage like that, what if this Tsunade lady isn't very good" the blonde looked very sad at the news, they were probably some of the first ones to know as well.
While Sakura pressed her lips together, repressed excitement visible in her green irises "We'll find her Hokage-sama and Naruto it's not like he's dying or anything, just retiring and I'm sure he'll be happy to have you come visit him any time you'd like" Sakura nodded seriously.
Then turned to Naruto and soothed his upset feelings, Jiraiya watched curiously while Hiruzen threw his head back and laughed "Right, thanks Sakura-chan, anyway I guess we'll be back whenever we find this Tsunade lady" Naruto sighed.
Depressed probably but ready to get the search underway, Hiruzen chuckled softly "Before you leave, Sakura, I forgot to give this to you yesterday from you know who, another gift for passing a shinobi milestone, open it at your discretion" the Third Hokage produced a scroll from his desk and held it out.
Sakura bowed her head and took the scroll gently before stowing it away in a pouch, then the three of them headed from the office, out the Hokage Tower and down the streets to the gates "I swear every time we see you, your with the oddest people" Kotetsu said eyeing her mission companions.
"Quite so where are you off to this time, another bug hunting expedition I presume, then again you only do that with the Aburame's so it must be a mission right" Izumo inquired, while Jiraiya looked oddly disturbed suddenly.
The pink haired teenager blushed lightly "Mission this time Izumo-san, Kotetsu-san, it's a big one" the rosette admitted signing her name before passing the pen to Naruto who did the same for Jiraiya until all three of them signed out.
"Where are we going first anyway pervy sage" the blonde knucklehead folded his hands behind his head as they started off down the path leading away from the village, no doubt they'd be searching outpost towns for information on their mission target.
Beside him Sakura's mouth opened and closed in horror "Damn Gaki how many times have I told you to stop calling me that" Jiraiya grumbled clearly unnerved at the nickname he'd been branded with, not to mention how he got saddled with an extra brat on the mission as well.
"Knucklehead you shouldn't call Jiraiya-sama something so atrocious like that, how would you feel if someone called you an insulting nickname like that" Sakura scolded, wondering if she'd be able to break him from his bad habit.
Naruto sulked "He's a big pervert though always peeking on women in the bath and a uh toad sage what else am I supposed to call him but that" Naruto whined obnoxiously and waved his arms, this was starting off as a very bad day for him it seemed.
She sighed "Certainly not that for sure" the pinkette quipped with a stern frown, trying not to laugh, oh kami it was so hard, but she managed to reign the urge in just barely, because she didn't want to burden Jiraiya more than he already was.
"Fine I'll stop calling him that all the time, will Sensei do since you did promise to train me" the blonde pouted knowing that if he didn't Sakura would keep nagging at him until his ears bled to change how he treated the adult with them.
Jiraiya blinked "Good enough gaki…and I've got a good jutsu to teach you later on, by the way who did Sarutobi-sensei mean when he said you know who" Jiraiya prodded the young girl, who jolted having been lost in her thoughts.
"Err Shisui Uchiha, we were pretty close when I was little before he died, I guess he left me some things as I passed shinobi milestones such as becoming a genin, chunin, probably jonin and so on" the fuscia haired teen explained simply.
Itching to open the scroll and find out what he'd left her this time "Are you gonna open it" the white haired Sannin raised a brow, Sakura shook her head "Why not" he frowned, curious about what kind of things the deceased Uchiha would have left the girl.
Her eyes changed from warm to sad "Sakura-chan likes opening those sorts of gifts alone or with the Teme, that's Sasuke by the way" Naruto piped in knowing Sakura very well after living with her for over five months at this point.
Grateful the knucklehead understood she flashed him a calm smile "Precisely sorry Jiraiya-sama, Shisui was like a brother to me, whatever he gives me is so important knowing that even in his final moments I was there on his mind" Sakura announced.
Looking a little sad still but he could understand he guessed "Very well then I won't ask or pry, just keep the gaki in line and maybe I'll even teach you something to" Jiraiya snorted falling silent after that as quiet settled around them like a blanket as they walked.
For an hour, neither of the newly promoted Chunin so much as complained about their feet or leg muscles hurting from the fast paced walk "Okay kids, our first town, goal gather information on Tsunade, gaki with me, Sakura on your own, meet at that inn in two hours" the Sannin ordered.
"Good luck Sakura-chan" the blonde Uzumaki waved as the two of them disappeared down the streets of the outpost town, Sakura watched them go, keeping her senses spread to keep up with their movements around the little town.
And turned on her heel heading in the opposite direction, the first place she hit "Brats aren't allowed now get out brat" the bartender/owner of the bar demanded almost immediately when she walked over to him.
"Hold on now I'm not here trying to buy anything Sir, I'm a ninja, and I'm looking for a woman named Tsunade Senju, you wouldn't have any information on her would you" the pinkette launched into an interrogation, flashing her ninja registration card at the man.
Not wanting to be kicked out right away especially when she could gather information "You a ninja ha that's hilarious, but no kid, I ain't heard nothing about Tsunade, now please respect the rules of my bar and leave" the bartender/owner pointed at the door.
"Sorry for the inconvenience and thanks Sir" Sakura bowed properly on her way out of the bar, so the first stop proved inconclusive that just meant she would have to try again until she found something concrete about Tsunade.
Her next stop was a gambling house, knowing the woman's penchant for gambling, yet the master of the house shook his head, "Don't know why your looking for her girly, but good luck" the man waved her off on her way to find somewhere else that might produce results in her search.
A public onsen seemed like a good hot-spot for Tsunade, but they hadn't seen her either, Sakura sighed glancing to the sky to check the time and how much had gone by, before locating Jiraiya and Naruto's chakra still on the other side of the outpost town in the same spot as before.
If they were just goofing off she was so going to hit them when they met up at the inn "Freaking jerks making the girl do all the hard work" the pinkette grumbled seeking out a casino just in case the woman had been there.
No such luck and she was about ready to scream in frustration or tear her hair out, either one sounded good right about then as she meandered around the town with what little time she had left seeking out places Tsunade would like or stopping in more bars.
All with negative results in her search until it was time to head to the inn, she didn't waste a single second in body flickering, yet she found herself the first one there, it was more than a good twenty minutes that she stood there waiting.
Before her mission companions finally showed up "Oh Sakura-chan hope you weren't waiting long" Naruto grinned when he spotted her standing in front of the inn, only pausing as he realized her unimpressed expression, he gulped realizing she had been waiting.
For how long he didn't know but he was probably about to find out "Surely that can wait until you two get inside, take my pack Naruto I'm going to go do some research, make sure you get a room big enough for the three of us" Jiraiya spotted a pretty girl and was off.
Practically throwing his pack at his godson "Told ya he was a pervert Sakura-chan, anyway I really am sorry, it's his fault just so you know" the blonde Uzumaki flinched expecting the whack, ninja were suppose to be on time, it could mean a matter between life or death as she'd told him.
"Try to keep that nickname to a minimum and don't worry about it Naruto" Sakura adjusted her pack to be more comfortable as they headed in and rented a room for the night, Jiraiya could add more days himself later depending on how long they were there.
With room key in hand they headed up the steps to find their room and what a spacious room it was complete with three beds and a bathroom, bathtub attached thank you very much to her absolute delight "You really like baths don't you Sakura-chan" Naruto sniggered.
As Sakura nodded her head eagerly "Exactly Naruto, got to keep my skin hydrated after all, that can wait though, want to see what Shisui gave me" the rosette yanked out the scroll, only trusting three people to see what the Uchiha had left her.
Naruto plopped down on her chosen bed with her "Heck yeah Sakura-chan" he nodded eagerly staring with wide eyes as she unrolled the fancy looking scroll with the Uchiha fan on it, then swiped some blood down the storage seal to unseal it.
Out came a plethora of interesting items, four new books, extremely advanced fuinjutsu, a book on the sharingan for medical purposes, plus a book on earth and water nature jutsu's in respect to her two natural elements and a book on poisonous insects that would interest her greatly.
There were three packs of dark pink colored senbon, a sword that was completely black, hilt and blade, a case that held two earrings, designed like the Uchiha fan that she was very confused over, a folded up shirt with shorts, and a new ninja outfit dark green yukata with removable sleeves.
After that was a pair of new sandals, three pairs of gloves, another scroll that revealed a pack full of medical supplies, lastly two envelopes, one seemed thicker than the other so she went with the thinner one first, cracking it open to read and finding it another letter, as Naruto scooted closer.
~Dear Sakura-chan
Must be surprised huh, I bet you thought that I only wrote you one letter, I'm assuming you're a Chunin now if your reading this, Sasuke-chan to hopefully, if not I'm glad you made it to the next rank and he'll join you as Chunin soon enough.
Right I hope you enjoy those books I left you, I found them with you specifically in mind, it was hard finding one of them though so take good care of it, I had to go clear to another land for that and there's not another like it in existence, well not anymore.
Not that I really have to worry or anything, you've always been good to books and you'll no doubt treasure that one until the end of time, the rest of them as well, hope you like the senbon, I know they were your favorite weapon to use and I had a hard time deciding between having them tempered a color or not.
In the end I got them tempered, the sword to, though that was actually meant for Sasuke-chan I just accidentally sealed it in the wrong scroll look there see I make mistakes to sometimes, you can keep hold of it until he becomes Chunin by the way or use it for the time being.
Bet your confused about the earrings, they would have signified your status as my apprentice Sakura-chan if I'd gotten to take you on but I want you to wear them anyway, you've earned them after all the hard work you've put in.
For the shirt and shorts they were actually mine, figured you'd want something to remember me by, the yukata is for you to wear with your Chunin Vest and yes you can take the sleeves off, pretty clever if I do say so myself.
As for the sandals I'm sure you'll forever be in need of an extra set and the gloves are to protect your hands, from splinters and the like, have your summons weave his silk into them, they'll be extra strong I'm sure, if you signed on with them anyway.
The pack of medical supplies is in case you made part of your dream came true and became a medic like you always vowed you would, someday I hope you get to meet Lady Tsunade, maybe she could be your Shishou, if you ever meet her ask her to take you on as her apprentice.
Lastly the other envelope contains a valuable contact network that I set up, I'm leaving them in your hands Sakura-chan, if you ever need information send a message to one of them and they'll get it to you asap.
With Much Love Shisui~
Just like that the letter ended abruptly "Wow that Shisui guy must have really cared for you huh Sakura-chan" Naruto whistled in awe, not only that but he'd written her a really long letter to, saying lots of things.
Her eyes sparkled with literal happiness "Mhm he was the best older brother I could have ever asked for even if we weren't really related, he was always so kind to me and teaching me important things that I keep close to my heart to this day" Sakura nodded.
Grabbing for the other envelope and cracking it open, page after page of contact information for people she didn't know, it was a thought for later in case they couldn't find Tsunade though as she sealed it all away in the scroll that had been given to her.
Along with the sandals, gloves, the shirt and shorts, pack of medical supplies, plus the sword that she would never use, this left out the books that were stowed away in her storage pouch, the senbon needles that were exchanged with the regular ones.
The yukata to and the earrings "Say Sakura-chan mind if I take a peek at your new fuinjutsu book please" the blonde suddenly pouted when she was heading into the bathroom to change out of her usual outfit into the new one that Shisui had gifted her.
She paused long enough to reach into her pouch and gently toss him the book "Be careful with it" the rosette grinned knowing the knucklehead would be careful cause it was a book on sealing jutsu that he'd never read before.
With that she hurried into the bathroom, quickly changing into the dark green yukata, it went to her knee's, then she rearranged all her pouches and summoned Mibojin "Sakura-sama it's been awhile" the spider greeted.
"I apologize Mibojin-sama it's been a rather hectic month trying to rebuild the Leaf Village, plus I was obligated to help heal patients at the hospital since I have my qualifications" Sakura bowed low before her summons in apology.
Hoping it would be enough for him along with some juicy flies she kept in constant supply for her summons "Very well, just do try to warn us when you go long periods of time without summoning us next time Sakura-sama" Mibojin sighed knowing she was sincere.
Like that she scooped him up into her arms unafraid to hold him or snuggle as the case was "Extra apology Mibojin-sama, also would you mind weaving your silk into this yukata for me, it's new" the pinkette requested while handing over a couple of juicy flies for further apology.
Wanting to make her summons know that she hadn't ignored them because of some stupid reason, "Of course Sakura-sama" the large red spider nodding working his magic on his summoners clothes until it provided an extra layer of protection.
This earned him a third fly before he poofed out of his existence, Sakura blew out a breath and took out a senbon needle to pierce her ears with taking to heart Shisui's wish for her to wear the earrings he'd gifted her.
In the next moment after shoving the thin weapon through her ears making large enough holes in the flesh, she quickly popped the earrings in and healed her self injury, checking them out in the mirror as she did so and finding she quite liked them.
Dabbing up the bit of blood as she spotted it before finally exiting the bathroom sporting her Chunin Vest again over the top of her yukata "Look at me Sakura-chan I'm see through" Naruto practically shouted in excitement.
And she looked over at him only to burst out laughing because the knucklehead was indeed see through "Interesting did you find that seal in the book, would make for an amazing prank on Jiraiya-sama I think for abandoning us to goof off with a woman" Sakura grinned.
Deciding that Jiraiya had been gone long enough and he needed to be brought back through any means necessary, Naruto's eyes twinkled with mischievousness "You rock Sakura-chan, we'll also pick up dinner after I get my fun out of the way" the blonde sniggered.
Adding the rest on a lighter note "Go on knucklehead and sweet potato curry and rice with dango and plum flavored tea" the fuscia haired teen waved him off with a snicker, only sending a clone armed with her camera after him as an afterthought.
Plopping down on her chosen bed afterwards to pull out the book on the sharingan that Shisui had given her, cracking it open to read while she waited, becoming absorbed in the book once it proved to be a veritable information treasure trove on the Uchiha clan dojutsu.
It was going on thirty minutes on exactly chapter four that an all to familiar chakra flared to life on the other side of the door to the room she was in, her head snapped up and her heart dropped feeling the larger more malicious chakra that accompanied that familiar chakra.
Followed by an all to polite knock that was Itachi even as a rogue, respectful and polite to a fault, when she sat frozen on the bed another knock came a couple minutes after the first 'Crap what am I suppose to do' she panicked inwardly.
Trying to decide on a course of action that would hopefully get her away from the imminent danger, the third knock was louder, impatient and so not Itachi and she really didn't want to answer the door in the least.
Especially when not even five seconds after the third knock came a fourth, fifth and six, each more impatient and definitely angrier than the one that came before it and after spreading out her chakra to find out where Naruto or even Jiraiya was her hopes were dashed.
She was completely alone and body flickering would only escalate the situation so with a sigh she stood and finally went to answer the door "May I help you" Sakura forced herself to say upon opening the room door.
Meeting Itachi's sharingan gaze with trepidation "Yeah you stupid little brat where's the blonde brat that's suppose to be with you" the one with blue hair and blue skin stepped into her space rather forcefully, the one who'd been practically beating on the door.
"I'm sorry Sir, but Naruto is not here, he stepped out a little while ago to find our mission leader and hasn't come back yet" the pinkette said cursing herself for being so polite to a rogue of all people, like seriously how stupid could she be.
Clearly the rogue was shocked at her politeness while out of the corner of her eyes she caught a glimmer of amusement in Itachi's red eyes, probably thinking she hadn't changed one little bit since she'd been a little kid.
It made her really want to throw something at him for finding her politeness amusing "Sir, man are you dumb or something you don't go acting all friendly with a rogue pinky people might think your in league with them" the blue skinned rogue scowled incredulously.
Obviously disturbed and obviously thinking she was stupid like she'd just thought herself a couple minutes ago "Not exactly it's just ingrained in me to be polite, anyway Naruto isn't here" Sakura scowled right back before repeating her earlier statement.
"Then we have no more business here, come Kisame our mission was merely to acquire the nine tails Jinchuuriki if he is not here then we lost our chance" blessed Itachi spoke up finally and ordered the rogue to retreat.
While also giving her some valuable information as well, his partners name and their reason for being there "Just hang on a minute Itachi-kun, we could use Pinky as bait don't you think for blondy" Kisame jerked his thumb at her.
Giving a sharp toothed grin as he thought of an excellent idea while Sakura's heart dropped further into her stomach, Itachi peered over his shoulder at his partner, irritation in his gaze that was completely missed by the oblivious Kisame.
And when he realized the man wouldn't relent shot her a sneaky apologetic glance "No sudden moves understand or we'll kill you" the Uchiha heir warned turning on his heel taking a reluctant step forward to enter the inn room that she'd rented.
At the last possible second though as he was about to turn into the room she was in another familiar person showed up "It's been a long time, little brother" Itachi felt the chakra, feeling frustrated that nothing seemed to be going well.
Sasuke seemed to realize that she was there "Get away from her or I'll kill you Itachi" Sasuke grit his teeth angry because of what his brother had done to Kakashi, even knowing Itachi was merely acting the part of rogue for their village's sake it didn't make what he'd done right.
Killing off their whole clan either, surely not all of the Uchiha had wanted to revolt against the Hokage or rather Danzo "Don't be an idiot Sasuke, your not…your not ready to face him" the pinkette warned looking torn on what to do.
He sent her a murderous glare, the first time she'd ever seen such anger from him and thrust out his hand "Shut up Sakura, that side of you has always been annoying, stop thinking your better than everyone else and butt out of my life for once" the ebony haired preteen snarled.
Obviously not in the right mind right now as lightning crackled in the palm of his hand and charged recklessly at Itachi while missing Sakura's expression "Poor Pinky even Itachi-kun's brat brother doesn't like you" the rogue from mist laughed.
Taking enjoyment out of her upset feelings, she grit her teeth and readied herself to step in anyway when Itachi caught Sasuke's hand at point blank range, destroying part of the inn as the jutsu exploded violently.
Then to make matters worse Itachi gripped Sasuke's wrist and snapped it brutally "Foolish, and treating Sakura-san like that how cruel, I wouldn't be surprised if she starts to hate you after this" the older Uchiha laughed mockingly.
Sakura jumped when Itachi invaded her personal space a second later, "Come with me Sakura-san, forget my foolish Otouto, you have so much potential and it's wasted in that village, the Akatsuki would make you blossom into a kunoichi stronger than Tsunade herself" Itachi whispered.
Pulling her into an awkward embrace, hot breath caressing her ear as he propositioned her to come with him and abandon her village "N..No do..don't do it Sakura, y..you'll be no better than him if you do" Sasuke grunted out in pain from his broken wrist.
While she stood there in his brother's embrace completely frozen "I..I can't, leave my village impossible" the rosette forced out from between her clenched teeth raising her hands to Itachi's chest and shoving him away.
Leaping back at the same time to gain distance from the older teenager "Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame huh" thank the kami for Jiraiya who decided to arrive on the back of a giant toad summons along with Naruto.
"Sakura-chan are you okay, Teme what happened, who the hell are these people" Naruto panicked afraid for the lives of his friends/family, he was just about to jump down from the toad when Jiraiya gripped the back of his shirt.
Knowing who these people were and exactly what they were after "Not so fast there Sannin, any sudden moves and I'll slice Pinky here to ribbons" Kisame pulled his huge bandage wrapped sword from his back and brandished it at the trapped Sakura.
Who was still in the room, with Itachi Uchiha of all rogues, the sword also blocked the entire doorway "Like I'd let you put a finger on me" Sakura snapped simply body flickering to safety, stopping to grab Sasuke as an afterthought.
Though she really wanted to punt him on his ass for what he'd said to her earlier, right now was not the time for petty squabbles between them when the situation was so serious "Back off Sakura, I'm not leaving until I kill him, he hurt Kakashi, killed our clan" the younger Uchiha struggled.
Finally wiggling free and jumping away from her, mad with anger that had been shoved to the deepest crevices of his mind for nearly five years "Go away you don't interest me right now" the seventeen year old informed, probably looking for an escape route.
It would be hard with a shinobi of Jiraiya's caliber but he and Kisame should be able to pull it off, hopefully "Well get interested" Sasuke snarled charging recklessly again as he stepped out into the hallway, only to be kicked all the way down the hall to slam into a wall.
Naruto and Sakura winced at the cracking sound that echoed in their ears "Idiot, he's no match for Itachi-kun" the blue skinned rogue shook his head with a disgusted snort, watching as the bratty Uchiha charged again.
"Shut up you don't know Sasuke-teme like we do, if anyone can kick that guys ass it's Sasuke" the blue eyed blonde snapped angrily, feigning confidence in Sasuke's abilities when Sasuke was kicked down the hall again.
To slid down a wall barely conscious at that point "I've lived my life fostering hatred just to kill you I won't lose, you better take me seriously Itachi or else" Sasuke growled frustrated that he couldn't even get one hit in on his brother.
"Oi Sakura can't you do something" the white haired sage whispered urgently when the rogue Uchiha shook his head and started slowly down the hallway towards his stubborn brother, who couldn't leave things well enough along.
Emerald orbs snapped to his, gears turning in her brain to think up some sort of plan to help Sasuke out of the sticky situation he'd gotten himself into "Maybe but I'd be putting myself in the line of fire" the pinkette whispered back sadly.
Watching on with horror as Itachi beat Sasuke, taunting him about not having enough hate before pulling back, Sasuke's eyes widened and Sakura realized what Itachi was going to do for the second time, in the next moment she sacrificed herself essentially.
Syncing her chakra up to Sasuke's at the last possible moment and let herself be carried away in a swirl of cherry blossoms "Tsukuyomi" Itachi breathed activating his genjutsu right as he felt Sasuke be ripped away and appear near Jiraiya.
As Sakura took his place, then, then she was screaming as she was tortured within her mind and he took a step back in shock, "Damn Itachi-kun I didn't take you as a tormentor of pink haired brats" Kisame laughed jovially finding amusement out of the situation.
"NOOO SAKURA-CHAN" Naruto screamed in horror struggling against Jiraiya's grip trying to get loose while Sasuke lay there on the floor next to him, eyes just as wide as they'd been before he found himself free of Itachi and not being subjected to that dojutsu.
In the chaos the two rogues got away, "When I said do something I didn't mean sacrifice yourself stupid brat" Jiraiya grumbled finally releasing his gaki of an apprentice to go check on Sakura, who had stopped screaming.
Bloodshot emerald met his gaze as he approached carefully, "So..Sorry Jirai..Jiraiya-sama I kn..know it was..wasn't exactly what you wan..wanted bu..but it wa..was all I co..could co..come up with" Sakura murmured voice hoarse and trembling from the mental trauma she'd just went through.
Jiraiya let his gaze soften "It's my fault for pressuring you into thinking up a plan to help the Uchiha brat, how you holding up" the Sannin shook his head making sure to let the kid know she wasn't the one at fault, before asking how she was.
She sat up slowly with his help "Th..Throat hurts and I'm okay for the most part, it's not like I didn't already have nightmares" the pinkette admitted, raising a glowing green hand to her throat to heal her vocal cords after screaming like bloody murder while in Itachi's dojutsu.
Only becoming visibly angry in the next moment as Sasuke and Naruto inched their way towards her, she was on her feet in a flash "Fuck Sakura what the hell was that for" the ebony haired preteen cradled his cheek as she slapped him full force.
Enough to crack the bone actually "Yeah how come you slapped Sasuke-teme for" the blonde inched away from the duo, Sakura was actually glaring at Sasuke, he'd never seen her that angry at anyone before especially not Sasuke.
"After EVERYTHING We've Been Through, all That I've done for you, YOU dare to call me ANNOYING and tell me to butt out of your life, and who's the self important asshole that would come to me whenever he had a nightmare, obviously not you because I'm so much better than you remember and wouldn't even think to help you through it" Sakura spat.
More furious than she'd ever felt in her entire life with someone, tears streaming down her cheeks from the amount of stress she'd been put through for the last hour, Sasuke felt his heart drop in realization now that his mind was clear he remembered what he'd said in the heat of the moment.
"I can't stress to you enough how sorry I am for saying all that Sakura, it was wrong I know but I was so mad at Itachi and then you said that and I couldn't think straight, I can't take it back, but I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me just this once" Sasuke lowered his gaze.
Bowing lower than he had for anyone in his entire life, and extremely pale because he realized just how much he'd fucked up, his entire friendship with Sakura might be ruined now and Itachi's taunt about how she could end up hating him came back to haunt him suddenly.
It scared him more than he liked to admit actually off to the side Naruto held his breath as Sakura breathed heavily after her angry rant, still crying, he hated it when she cried, until she raised glowing green hands of medical chakra to heal Sasuke of all his injuries.
Silently accepting Sasuke's apology "Alright then bratty little Uchiha you need to get back to the village or else there are going to be serious consequences you'll have to face for running off like you did" Jiraiya cleared his throat.
And Sasuke's head snapped towards him, face pale and eyes filled with horror "Go on Teme, I'll take care of Sakura-chan until we complete our mission" Naruto shooed Sasuke off, who was clearly reluctant.
Especially when Sakura swayed on her feet, looking like she'd been through literal hell, might as well have been since she'd taken Tsukuyomi on for him, it was a wonder how she was still awake at all when the first time he'd been out for more than four days.
But in the end he left trusting Naruto to keep his promise leaving the three of them alone to find another inn, pay for the damages that had been dealt to the one they were originally in and go to sleep after eating an extremely late dinner.
Jiraiya keeping a silent vigil over the young chunin as they slept for a little while at least, and right as he was contemplating getting some shuteye Sakura sat up with a terror-filled scream, he was just glad he'd placed a sound-proofing tag for this very reason.
As Naruto was startled out of his sleep "Sakura-chan, Sakura-chan it's alright, only a nightmare, shh, shh" the blonde was right there at her bedside helping her through the nightmare, because he'd promised the Teme after all.
Sakura trembled and squeezed her eyes shut "I'm okay, I'm okay" the pinkette chanted like a mantra forcing the nightmare to a back-burner to not think about and trying to ignore the all-consuming darkness of the room that threatened to bring flash-backs of that night to her.
Regardless of not smelling blood, the dark had just the same affect on her as the metallic scent did, Jiraiya watched on helplessly unsure of what to do or how to help in the least "Do you want to talk about it Sakura" the Sannin finally asked.
Wondering if she'd be able to, her head snapped to him looking to be on the verge of a mental breakdown before nodding hesitantly "Tsukuyomi showed me Shisui dying by Itachi's hand in the most brutal, bloody way possible" Sakura gasped out.
Managing that much which was a good sign hopefully "What else do you see Sakura-chan" Naruto inquired hesitantly not sure if he really wanted to hear what she'd went through in great detail like she was known to do.
"Aft..After that I..I was strapped down to a table, forced to watch as Itachi murdered everyone I love and care for, my parents, you, Sasuke, all our friends, Shibi-sensei an..and Sh..Shino-kun before torturing me, finally ending with my death" the rosette finally choked out.
When several minutes went by where she didn't say a single thing, merely staring blankly ahead, which she was doing again now that she'd said more about what her nightmare had entailed, thankfully not going into gory detail this time.
Though he was still pretty horrified "Think you can go back to sleep Sakura" the white haired Sannin prodded lightly not daring to be forceful, but he knew if she didn't at least try, she'd be of no use on the mission.
It was clear that she was unsure if she would actually be able to go to sleep until Naruto had an epiphany "Here Sakura-chan, I noticed you didn't pack it so thought I'd pack it for you" Naruto rifled through his pack for a couple of minutes.
Before he emerged with a very familiar object "O..Oh Naruto that was unbelievably kind of you" Sakura hiccuped as the dam broke and tears flooded from her eyes as she took her chakra powered lava lamp from all those years ago.
Followed by a nightlight that he plugged in at her bedside, it was enough though as she lay back down on the comfortable bed, pulling the covers up to her shoulders and snuggling down, five minutes later she was out like a light.
Naruto rubbed his nose feeling mighty proud of himself for thinking ahead like that "You to gaki get some rest for tomorrow alright" Jiraiya snorted just glad that things seemed to be working out though he felt like an ass for ever making the girl go through something like that.
Eventually though he did settle down on the bed that was in the inn room, just glad that Sakura was even sleeping for now, and closed his eyes to get some shut eye in the wee early morning hours of the night.