A Kami's Gift

by Afanasyi

In the final battle our heroes fall. However, Sakura has caught the attention of a deity, who has offered her another go at life, as well as a chance at power beyond her wildest imagination. Follow Haruno Sakura as she figures out how to play this game her life has been turned into, and see if she has what it takes to be the hero. - Hiatus

8. Chapter 8

This chapter is a bit odd, I suppose. I really loved writing it. Really, really, but I want to know if you guys liked it. So please, let me know how you feel about it.

I have a poll up about it. Vote? Review? I'd appreciate any feedback.

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At first it seemed as if the light of the portal had blinded her, but all at once things started appearing before her. It didn't look as if her vision was clearing, but instead it looked as if the landscape before her was materializing before her eyes. As in, it had not been there before. The world was growing before her.

"What is this place?" Sakura wondered allowed.

"The Leveler's Tower." she heard a familiar voice say. The last time she had heard that voice her heart had been ripped out. She whirled around, crouching into a defensive stance.

The person behind her was not Kaguya. 'Of course it isn't. That was only a dream,' she scolded as she straightened up. "My apologizes," she murmured, embarrassed.

"I did not mean to startle you, Haruno-san," that Kami replied gently. "This place is the training grounds I have prepared for you. Do not mistake this as a gift, however. This place will challenge you. It will push you to your limits. It may even break you, if you let it. However, if you accept the challenge, this place will forge you into a weapon, into the shinobi you need to be to survive what is to come in your world."

Sakura had no words. She had been frustrated, really, with how limited she had been. How could she train herself to be stronger if she were to pass as a child?

"The time you spend her will not affect your world, of course. You can live her until you are an old woman, but when you leave, and you will leave, you will be back to when and where you were before you entered. Now, what you see about you is only level one. There are many levels, each more challenging than the last; though more rewarding as well. To move on from each level you must complete the challenge given to you. That challenge might be to gain a level, to survive a certain amount of time, or even to kill a set amount. Each floor has its own set of, lets say, rules. On one floor you might be able to earn experience at an accelerated rate, but on another you might not be able to earn any at all. Sometime you will be given a group of allies, and sometimes you might be alone. There are many riches here that will help you in your journey, but, those items may not follow you from this realm. You will die here, most likely. You have a certain amount of lives for each visit - you can not save in the dungeon. After that, you must leave, and the dungeon will be placed on cooldown before you can enter again. Now, I will generate the rules for this level."

-75% Combat XP Gain

Maximum of 2 Level Gainable

2 Starter Companions

Limit of 2 Lives

"Now, let me spawn your companions."

Before Sakura appeared two figures. One was small, child-like, in height, but mature in their features. The female had thick, wild hair the color of copper, and her eyes hazel. Her garb was leather, and she wore a sword belted at her hip.

"This is Laze, a Gnomish Bard." the Kami said, motioning to the tiny woman.

The second was female as well, and shared the same eye color, but that was where the two's similarities ended. This person stood at what seemed to be slightly below what was the average height, perhaps around four foot. What she could see of the woman's body seemed slender, which only made the woman's set of full plate armor seem that much more out of place. The woman's hair was silver, and her features alien. Her face was all sharp angles, and slanted. She was beautiful, in her stranger, foreign way.

"And this is Mirianye, an Elven Cleric."

Nameplates for both appeared above them as the Kami spoke. They also gained a place in her party bar. Both females were unmoving. In fact, nothing but she and the Kami moved. Everything else was frozen in place.

"Now, for this level your quest is to assist Laze in searching for her familiar."

Quest Started

Down the Rabbit Hole

Rescue Jorda from the Kobold Camp

Reward : 1 Level, Random Wonderous Item Reward

"Do you have any questions, Haruno-san?"

Sakura shook her head.

"One more thing, then. You will not have factions here. Instead, you will have Morality. Your Morality reflects how others will act towards you. If you are Good, then others that are Good will trust you, but those that are Evil will want to kill you. If you are Evil, then some that are Evil may work with you, but those that are Good will likely seek to Kill you on site. For now, you will be true Neutral. That may change, however, based upon your actions. Now, you may begin. Though, might I suggest you put in the points from the last two levels you gained."

The Kami faded from sight, and everything else came to life. A small breeze granted movement to the trees, and grass. Her companions began to move. She knew them, suddenly. At least somewhat. She could remember meeting them, agreeing to help them on their quest. It was strange, but helpful.

'Stats.'

The world froze again.

Mind – 20 (33)

Body – 23 (38)

Spirit - 15 (21)

Bonus - 26

'Stupid.' she scolded herself. She had completely forgotten about leveling up. 'Well, you did almost die,' she reminded herself. 'Mirianye is going to be at the front lines, doing most of the damage. Laze is like me, though. She has some spells, but can also be a melee fighter. Putting points into Body would help us in a fight. However, putting points into Mind and Spirit would help us in the downtime. Plus, if I have more chakra I can use Power Strike more often. Anyways, Mind will help me out more in the long run. So, I'll bring Spirit and Body up to 25 each, which leave me with fourteen points to put into mind.'

Mind - 34 (56)

Body - 25 (41)

Spirit - 25 (35)

'Accept. Close stats.'

"Alright," Laze spoke, "According to my map, we should be nearing their camp. It'll be tricky sneaking in there with Miss Clank over here," Mirianye let out a snort of amusement at this, "So we'll have to go with a full on assault. That won't be a walk in the park, either; This is a large camp. They have patrols scouting the area. I think Guerilla tactics might work best. We'll have to chip away at their defences, bit by bit, and retreat to recover. Alright?"

Sakura and Mirianye both nodded in reply.

"I'll take the lead," Mirianye spoke. "Sakura, do as much damage as we can, but do your best to save your energy to mend any wounds we receive. Make sure we get out of this alive."

Another curt nod from Sakura, and the trio set off into the lush forest. The forest was teeming with life. Plants she had never seen, nor heard of grew in abundance around them. Hints of animal life was everywhere. If not for the experience debuff it would have been a wonderful place for her to hunt.

It wasn't long before they came across a scout party. A small one, only four. The Kobolds were the strangest thing Sakura had ever seen before. They were small like Laze and herself, but they were reptilian like. They had a muzzle, like a dog, and there were small horns on top of their heads. They had tails, as well. There clothes were simplistic, and not well cared for. They carried long, crude spears. One seemed to have a bird perched on its shoulder. No, not a bird; a bat.

She could tell they were Kobolds due to the nameplates above their heads that said Kobold. Two of the Kobolds names were white, while two were in a light blue. All four names were encircled in red. Suddenly she remembered, as if she had already knew, that the Blue meant that the creatures were slightly weaker than her. White meant they were of equal strength. The red outline meant they were aggressive, and would attempt to kill her on sight.

"There we are, Laze murmured as the creatures came into view. "Hide," she commanded Sakura, who slipped behind a tree, Laze doing the same. Mirianye, however, yelled a challenge to the small creatures as she hefted her morning star, and readied her shield. They screeched back in reply. They were speaking, she thought, - there sounds did not seem thoughtless - but she could not understand them.

The spear bearers charged. Four against one seemed an easy battle to the small creatures. They were quick, but one was quicker than the others. It deftly dodged beneath Mirianye's swinging weapon, and whirled to stab at the elven woman. Laze leapt from her hiding spot to sever the creature's head from its neck. Sakura rounded the tree she had hide behind, appearing behind the attacking Kobolds, and swiftly stabbing a kunai into the neck of one.

Ability Created

Piercing Weapon Mastery

+5% Piercing Damage per Level

+1% Body per Level

The game informed her that her attack had critically hit, - of course, as she had severed the creatures spine - and the Kobold crumpled to the ground, dead. Enraged, one of the Kobolds turned to attack Sakura, stabbing at her with its spear. Sakura was quick, dodging, but the Kobold was quicker. The stone tip slashed across the top of her arm.

-6 HP

The second Kobold screeched something, raising its left hand -the one not grasping its spear- to face Mirianye. Bursts of light - energy- burst from its hand and flew at the Elf. Even in her heavy armor the Cleric was light on her feet, and was able to dodge two of the four projections. Her HP bar went down about a third of the way.

Sakura dove and ducked, keeping herself out of range of the darting spear. She was fast enough to keep out of the way, but the Kobold was fast enough to keep her on her toes, unable to switch from the defencive. She heard, rather than saw, the third Kobold die. A squelch of blood and flesh as Mirianye clubbed the creature to death. The last Kobold was alone.

Kobolds were cowardly creatures.

It turned, darting to escape. Sakura immediately darted forward after it, a shuriken flinging from her hand to take the monster in its shoulder. It screeched in fear and pain. The injured kobold stumbled over a fallen log, and that was the only opening Sakura needed. She punched, channeling chakra into the blow, and the creature lost a large chunk of health. She struck again, bring the back of her heel down on the monster's head. It died.

Encounter Complete

+25 Experience Gained

Sakura breathed heavily as she calmed herself.

"Hell yeah!" she heard Laze shout in celebration.

"Do they have anything on them," Mirianye asked, much more subdued than her Gnomish partner. Sakura remembered their discussion about loot as if it had happened. They thought she had a magic looting ability, and a bag of infinite holding. Something that was not unreasonable to think was possible here. Sakura would gather and carry any goods they found, and then would divvy them up after the completion of the quest.

'Loot.'

Gained - To Leveler's Tower Inventory

4x Short Spears

900 Silver Coin

Lv 2 Pearl of Power

Cloak of Arachnida

Sakura rattled off the names as they appeared before her. At the Pearl of Power Mirianye let a gasp.

"Ah, might I have it? For now?"

"What does it do?" Sakura asked, summoning the item from her inventory with a thought. It looked completely average, she thought, for a pearl.

"It allows me to use more magic each day."

Which did nothing for Sakura. She handed the item over.

"I wonder what this does." the small child murmured, summoning the cloak from her inventory.

Laze shrugged. "Hell if I know."

Sakura looked at the item, willing a item message to pop up.

Cloak of Arachnida

?

'Inspect.'

Ability Created

Observe

+10% Chance to Gain Information on Target

+1% Per Level Chance to Gain Information on Target

+1 Mind Gained

Cloak of Arachnida

~10,000 Gold Piece value

Gives wearer some of the abilities of a spider.

Grants wearer bonus against spider enemies.

"I'll wear it for now, if thats alright?"

Both her companions agreed. With a thought it was on her back. For a moment a tingly sensation filled her limbs.

Gear Ability Created

Spider Climb

Allows the subject to travel across surfaces as a spider does.

'Interesting. It'll let us do that without using chakra.' - 'Not that I know how to, yet.'

Using both hands and feet she scampered up the trunk of a tree, before she stepped onto a low hanging branch.

Laze clapped her hands in amazement. "Look at the little spider monkey go! Well, that opens up some tactics, doesn't it? You'll be able to use your throwing blades from up in a tree."

Mirianye nodded. "Its probably worth a fair amount, as well."

Sakura did a backflip off of the limb, landing lightly on her feet.

"Alright, let me heal you quick, and we can move on."

"Shouldn't you heal yourself as well?" Laze questioned, eyeing the blood on the small human's arm.

Sakura shrugged. "Probably," she answered. A brief glow of green surrounded her hand, and the cut healed, taking three points of chakra with it. "Alright, lets see what we have here," Sakura said, stepping towards the Elven woman. Mirianye, being a Cleric, could heal, and with Sakura's low ability level, likely far more efficiently. Despite that, Sakura would be the groups main healer, as she wanted to increase her levels. Besides, while her chakra would regen, both Mirianye and Laze had a set amount of spells they could use each day.

It was a challenge to heal the woman through the plate armor, but it would have been even more tiresome to have to woman ungear. She figured the added challenge could only make leveling that much easier. By the time she was done healing the wound - a burn - Sakura was down to 36 Chakra Points, but had gained a level in Mystic Palm.

The party continued on through the forest, battling until the sky started to darken, at which time Sakura lead them back toward the portal -her minimap letting her easily guide them- so they could set up camp. Over the course of the day Sakura had gained a total of 634 experience, which brought her to level five - her party members gaining a level as she did. She had leveled her Taijutsu to level 8, her Power Strike to level 3, Mystic Palm to level 2, her Piercing Weapon Mastery to level 4, and her Observe level to 7. She also gained 5 points in Body, 4 points in Mind, and 3 points in Spirit. Upon leveling she earned only a disappointing 3 points to spend, which she dumped all into Mind. Then, after setting up camp, she gained another point in Cooking.

The party looted a modest, and random amount of items. One of which was a Carriage that fit nicely in Sakura's inventory. It had never really occurred to her just how powerful that could be until the heavy item disappeared from the battlefield -a double battlefield, as the Kobolds they had killed had killed a small band of traveling traders, hence the Carriage- , and appeared in her game window. That night they ate well thanks to the food they had looted from the large, but very weakened band of Kobolds that had fought the traders. The party of three had given the slain traders a burial before moving on. Sakura was not sure if this place was really real, or not, but her companions had insisted on it, and she had no desire to protest.

As for equitable loot, Sakura had gained a Ring of Feather Falling, which coupled nicely with her cloak, allowing her to climb high without having to worry about the fear of falling. Laze had been given Boots of Striding and Springing, which allowed her to move faster, and jump farther. The group had also looted a shortbow, but as the arrows for it had been damaged, it did little good for them.

The group had gained three Arcane Scrolls : Jump, Obscuring Mist, and Scorching Ray. Neither of the other two could discern what the script was on them, but Sakura was certain that, while she could not read the language, the scrolls were made with fuuinjutsu, or at least something similar. She proved to be right when, after studying all three scrolls, she gained the Fuuinjutsu ability, as well as a level in crafting.

The trio split the night up, each taking a portion to keep guard while the others slept. Laze kept first watch, Mirianye took second, and Sakura took third. All went well until the sun started to rise, and a Huge Monstrous Spider - the exact name plate title - stealthily crept to the group, and took Sakura unawares. The bite to her shoulder blade was brutal, taking a total of 29 out of her 75 HP points. Her scream of pain had awoke her sleeping party members.

Every thirty seconds the poison took out a small blip of her HP, no more than 4, but the spider had a large amount of health, and was agile. It took the three quite a few minutes to get it down. At the end of the battle Sakura was left with 18 HP, and had to expend 17 CP to regain her health. The poison was healed by Laze. The battled gained Sakura 133 EXP, and a few vials of spider venom. She gained back her lost CP at breakfast - she made extra to add to inventory, just in case. After which the trio packed up camp - or rather, Sakura looted their camp - and set off for the day.

Over the course of the day the party encountered a giant mantis, a giant stag beetle, four dire wolves, seven dire bats, an encounter that included an Ettercap, - a horrifying creature with a humanoid body, but a spider's face - along with six giant spiders, thirteen dire boars, and a grand total of twenty eight kobolds. Sakura gained 2349 EXP, and was sure she would have gained more if not for the level cap. Upon leveling she gained 23 bonus points, 8 of which she put into Spirit, 5 went into Body, and the remaining 10 went into Mind. That, along with the stats and ability levels she had gained over that day made her stat page appear so :

Haruno Sakura

Academy Student

Age - Five

Level - 6

Xp - 0/3000

Health - 109/109

Chakra - 99/99

Mind – 53 (113)

Body – 40 (80)

Spirit - 40 (66)

She also gained a new ability.

Mind over Matter

+1 Mind Granted at level up

+10% Chakra Control

+10% Ninjutsu Damage

Over the next few days the amount of Kobolds they found lowered, and they pushed closer to where the Kobold camp - an abandoned mine - was rumored to be. Sakura was only able to gain another 21 one points in Mind, 15 in Body, and 23 in Spirit. Once she had gained that many they just stopped being granted, and so Sakura figured that the amount she was able to earn was capped due to her level. And, since the numbers she had earned in the dungeon were uneven, it must include the stats she had earned for prior levels as well. If her math was right, that was 30 points overall, which meant 5 per level.

Once her overall body hit 100 she gained yet another ability.

Body of War

+1 Mind Granted at level up

+10% Taijutsu Damage

+10% Weapon Damage

And with Spirit she gained yet another.

Spirit Without Measure

+1 Spirit Granted at level up

+10% Genjutsu Damage

+10% EXP Gain

She gauged that strength wise, she was already nearing her genin self - Not, that she noted, that was saying much.

Days turned to weeks, and with Sakura's ability to gather everything their multitude of enemies dropped the trio had gathered a staggering amount of loot. She studied scroll after scroll, until the language on them started to become readable, and her Fuuinjutsu levels rising to level 18. She could make minor exploding tags now, and did so, though the her supplies with which to make them were limited. The multitude of weapons they found enabled her to learn more abilities - Slashing Weapon Mastery, Bludgeoning Weapon Mastery, Ranged Weapon Mastery, and Enchanted Weapon Mastery. Once she put on gear she gained abilities for that as well : Cloth Armor Mastery, Light Armor Mastery, Medium Armor Mastery, Heavy Armor Mastery, Shield Mastery, Enchanted Armor Mastery.

The bonuses from which boosted her Body astronomically, and as the stat rouse over 200 the stat effects of Body of War doubled.

Sakura estimated that they had killed over two hundred Kobolds, and near fifty dire badgers - as they ranged closer the Kobold groups grew larger, and they used the badgers as fighting companions - by the time they were able to see the mine. From their scouting she guessed that their were near two hundred more living in and around the mine. That was worrisome. What was more worrisome, however, was the Green Dragon they had spotted flying overhead at times. From what Laze knew of Kobolds, it was likely that the Dragon ruled over the lesser reptilian creatures.

"It'll take us weeks to kill that many more," Laze complained upon seeing the mass of Kobolds. It had taken them over three weeks to get this far, so Sakura guessed that the estimate was not far off. "Plus, we don't want to have to deal with the dragon."

"I'll have to sneak in, and take Jorda right out from under their noses," Sakura replied. Over the few weeks she had used her transformation jutsu a few times to scout ahead.

"That will be hard to do as you do not speak Draconian," Mirianye replied.

"No matter, I'll just have to pretend I am mute. Its out best option, I think." Perhaps Sakura was rushing, but going three weeks without a level was making her anxious, and the lack of deaths was making her cocky.

Her partners agreed, and they went separate ways - Sakura, disguised as a Kobold, towards the mine, while Laze and Mirianye retreated to an agreed upon spot much farther from the Kobold camp. Sakura put her Persuasion skill to use, acting as if she belonged, and openly walked through the camp. Jorda - Laze's powerful rabbit familiar - was somewhere in the mines. Sakura was not sure how she knew, but she knew. It was like she and Jorda were connected by a taunt chain, giving her the sensation of being pulled, not strongly, but it was enough to guide her were to go.

It took Sakura hours to find the rabbit, regardless, as the mines were deep. Along the way she had encountered a chamber that contained piles of loot. Piles, upon piles. The sight made her shiver in delight, but she held off from looting it all right then and there. She did not want to alert the Kobolds that anything was wrong.

Jorda turned out to be in the Leader's compound, locked in a cage. The leader was a sorcerer, and had decided to make Jorda its familiar. Jorda, however, had other ideas, and so the Kobold leader had locked the poor thing away. The leader also was in their compound, but Sakura butchered the reptile before it could even notice her. With a thought she looted everything the chamber held, including Jorda, before swiftly making her way back the way she had came, dropping Exploding tags as she went - ones that had been designed to go off an hour after they were activated. Upon coming the room of loot she once again thought looted, and continued her way out. The explosions started going off before she could escape, but the calamity it caused only made it easier for the sprinting child to escape amongst the swarm of fleeing Kobolds she was transformed to look like. She was, of course, looting all the way though.

By nightfall she was out of the mines, and back within the forest. It took her to the early hours of the morning to reach her teams camp. With a thought Jorda was in her arms, and Sakura offered the thin, shaking rabbit to Laze. The Gnome cried as she swept the rabbit into her arms, and snuggled it to her chest.

The quest updated, but did not complete.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Escape or Survive Nelarth's attack.

Reward : 1 Level, Random Wonderous Item Reward

Who Nelarth was became apparent as the quartet heard a loud roar.

"Oh no." Mirianye murmured.

"The dragon," Laze whimpered.

"The dragon!" Sakura cheered, fist pumping. The other two shot her looks of bewilderment.

"It will kill us!" Laze hissed.

Sakura shook her head. "No, it won't. Look, you two head back to town, alright? I'll catch up. Trust me on this, okay? Even if I die I will respawn thanks to my abilities, and it will give you two time to escape. We can't lose."

Laze looked uncertain, worried, but Mirianye agreed. "Don't forget to bring our loot," the elf said before the two disappeared into the night.

"Hey lizard! Nelarth! I've got your gold!" Sakura screamed into the night. The hunting dragon bellowed in response, and dove towards the sound of Sakura's voice. Trees were knocked over, and the green dragon landed with an earthshaking crash. Above its head was a name plate and title.

Nelarth, the Juvenile Young Dragon

Sakura did not want to know what a full grown dragon might look like, as Nelarth was large. She guessed around ten feet long, and over five hundred pounds.

"You dare?" the dragon demanded, bellowing still. Sakura readied to attack, darting forward, but the dragon too was ready. Its jaws opened, and out blasted a cone of acid. Sakura darted to escape the blast, but she was not quick enough. As she was at the edge of the blast's acid coated her left side, and back. Sakura screamed in pain as the acid seeped under her armor - light at the time - and seared her skin.

-41 HP

Over the past few weeks she had gotten her HP just over 330, but in one hit it was reduced to 289. She channeled healing chakra to her hand, bringing it to the wound as she darted forward to the dragon. Her Mystic Palm had rose to level 33, and so she was able to heal the wound with a single CP. Unfortunately, she could not take her hand away as the acid continued to eat at her flesh.

She neared the dragon, weaving beneath its clawed strike to send a kick to the dragons shoulder. Its scales were hard, but her kicks were harder.

-37 Damage Dealt

In one hit she had taken about a fourth of its HP.

With words Sakura could not understand the dragon cast a spell, and she was sent flying backwards. Her slowfall did not help her here, and she crashed into the ground. Her healing stopped, and the damage to her body resumed. The dragon was still speaking, and in second Sakura found herself covered in biting vipers. She recovered quickly, despite the enormous pain, pushing herself up. She found her legs entangled in vines, however, which pinned her in place for the dragon's next attack. The dragon's claws came down in a crushing blow that would have killed the average mortal.

Sakura, however, was no longer average. The combination of attacks took almost half her health, but it took only a thought for her to ready the blade she used to sever the Dragon's limb. She sent healing chakra to her hand to help heal the damage to her body, but it was slow due to the team of venom and acid wreaking havoc on her. The viper bites were small, but added up, and she could do nothing about them as the maimed dragon was lashing out, snapping at her, and she had to fight the dragon off with her small blade with only one arm.

A thought later and Sakura was in full plate armor. The vipers could no longer attack her. The dragon was casting again, and Sakura heard something behind her. She knew the trick - Mirianye also had the spell Ghost Sound - but it still was enough to distract her, and the dragon was able to get its head passed her blade, and its tooth filled mouth clamped down onto her plate encased arm. The armor was able to keep the dragon's bite from severing her arm, but the dragon was strong enough to have the plate cut into her arm. The dragon's head whipped back and forth, tugging Sakura out of the encasing vines, and wiping her back and forth. She felt her shoulder snap out of socket. The bones in her arm broke. She was nauseous with pain, and screaming. A thought later, and another blade was in her free arm. Her healing stopped, and the damage being done to her was incredible. It she did not escape soon she would die.

She stabbed once, then twice into the dragon's exposed chest. The creature attempted to toss her away, but she clamped onto the creature's tongue. In return that dragon let out another burst of acid, and Sakura's hand soon was no more. She was able to get in two more stabs in the time, though, and the dragon was no more. Sakura was screaming, sobbing in pain. The dragon was gurgling as blood filled its longs. Sakura desperately channeled her chakra with her remaining hand, trying to stop the loss of her health. Everything seemed dark. Her HP was in the single digits.

Encounter Complete!

Quest Complete!

Down the Rabbit Hole

Reward : 1 Level, Tome of Clear Thought (5)

You have leveled up!

HP and CP Restored

Sakura wasn't sure if the sound she was making was laughter, crying, or both, but she couldn't stop. Tears rolled down her face as she hugged her regrown hand to her chest. She knew she had only been second away from death, if that. This near death experience had been far more painful than her other deaths, however, and she was in shock from the experience. The acid continued to tick at her health. Sakura crawled away from the fallen dragon. Crawling until she could pushed herself up. She unequipped the plate arm, and sprinted into the forest. When the damage grew she healed it. She was able to completely heal the effects of the acid, but it slowly chipped at her HP. It took her over an hour to find water, and she promptly dove into it, letting the water from the river wash away the acid eating at her flesh. Once the acid was washed away she crawled to shore, and promptly passed out.

Once again Sakura was caught unawares by a spider. This time, however, Sakura had no party to back her up, and promptly died.

750 Experience Dept Gained

Sakura found herself back at the portal, along with her two party members.

Laze let out an oath, falling back on her bottom. Mirianye had to steady herself, but did not fall. Sakura appeared lying on the ground, in the same position she had died in. The pink haired girl let out a wail of anger.

"Did the dragon kill you?" Mirianye asked, easily coming to terms with the fact that she, Laze, and apparently Sakura had all been teleported miles upon miles from where they had been. Sakura's magic was strange. There was no need to panic over it.

"No," Sakura whined. "I got offed by a stupid spider when I was asleep!"

"Ouch, tough luck," Laze replied sympathetically. Sure, Sakura might not be permanently dead, but still, that must have hurt. "So you escaped the dragon?"

"I killed him," Sakura said primly, feeling a bit offended they were so certain that she would not have been able to take the beast. Sure, it had almost killed her, and would have if not for the quest, but she had won.

"You know, I actually believe her," Laze said after a few moments.

"Incredible." Mirianye replied.

Sakura sat up, and sent the two a glare. "Its late, so lets set up camp for the night. If we push ourselves we might be able to make it back to town in the morning. Then we can divvy up the loot," she sent the two a smirk, "By the way, I ran into the dragon's treasure stash while I was in the mines. I took it all."

The trio partied that evening, with only a brief recess to kill a pack of hunting dire wolves. They fell into their night routine, and set off at first light. It was dark by the time they arrived at the moderate town, and so they decided to wait until tomorrow before dealing with anything, instead getting rooms at an inn.

Sakura was in heaven, being able to take a bath - though the water was not warm - and getting to sleep in an actual bed - though the mattress was thin. Before sleeping, however, she placed in the points from her latest level. Since she was given three points she placed one each into the three stats. She also read through the Tome she had earned as the quest reward, and found that it taught her the ability Meditation which allowed her to regenerate her CP at an increased rate while used, as well as grant her 5 points in mind.

In the morning the trio - plus rabbit - met up in the inn's common room to discuss, and, of course, have breakfast. Both Laze and Mirianye quiet expressed their disappointment in the food, saying it did not compare to Sakura's, who grinned in response. With much discussion the three humanoids decided that, as most of the wealth was in items, the only fair thing to do was to appraise the items. Then Mirianye and Laze revealed that there was no way they could get their items properly appraised in the village, especially not the magical items, and so they would need to travel to the closest city.

"Are you sure that the truth isn't that you two are just too afraid to travel the way alone?" Sakura wry questioned. Laze immediately protested, flushing red with anger, but Mirianye agreed, and so Sakura laughed, and agreed that indeed, they should stick together until the city.

She didn't want to admit it, but she had grown fond of the two, and was not quite ready to say goodbye. At first she was certain that this world could in no way be real, but now after getting to know the two, she was no certain of the opposite. Her companions had vibrant personalities, and had told her countless stories about her life. Maybe they had not been real before her arrival, but they were real now, and that was good enough for her.

Plus, she had to admit, this was theraputic - well, besides the whole near death then actual death part. She could be herself here, completely and truly. She was Haruno Sakura, a nearly grown woman trapped in a child's body who seeked to gain power. Her companions knew that, respected that. She still woke with nightmares, but she was much quicker to be able to put them behind her. She missed her friends, missed the future she was supposed to have with them, but the knowledge that her future could be so much more, so much more grand than she had ever imagined before made the hurt fade. She couldn't have that life, but she could have countless lives here. If things went wrong back in her world she could just turn back time. She could make everything the way she wanted.

For the first time in her life Sakura felt completely in control, and the feeling was intoxicating.

After a few days of rest the few took up the job of guards for a caravan heading to the city, and set out back on their journey. Along the way Sakura made back her experience dept. Upon arriving at the city the trio set about selling their unneeded items, which took over a week, and then divvying up the remaining loot. Sakura set about apprenticing herself to local craftsmen. Laze and Mirianye often got stir crazy, and so the trio would set out a small trips out of the city. Weeks became months, and months became years. Sakura found that her her abilities could not be leveled pasted level 35. She learned new abilities, and leveled them. She became a blacksmith, a tailor, a leatherworker, an alchemist, jewelcrafter, and an engineer. She learned how to perform first aid. A scroll from her initial adventure taught her the skill Handle Animal, and, while it did not give her any stat bonuses, she found that having an animal companion more than made up for that, and so she leveled that too.

Eventually the trio bit off more than they could chew on one of their outings, and Sakura sacrificed herself so her companions could escape.

At this death she did not, however, find herself at the portal. Instead, her world faded to black.

And then she was five years old ago, standing in front of her closet door. She was Haruno Sakura, the five year orphan, academy student, housemate of Konoha's most hated citizen, Uzumaki Naruto, and she had a lot of work to do.

But first, she wanted to see her boys, and so Sakura departed from her house, and headed towards the Uchiha clan's compound. Sure, it would probably be a bit weird to stop by, but she really did not give a damn. Besides, Sasuke had invited her.

---

Haruno Sakura

Academy Student

Age - 5 (23)

Level - 7

Xp - -750/3,500

Health - 459/459

Chakra - 354/354

Mind - 81 (304)

Body – 57 (351)

Spirit - 42 (188)

Group Factions

Konoha Civilians : Unfriendly : -4962/20,000

Konoha Ninja : Unfriendly : -4810/20,000

Uchiha Clan : Neutral : 962/20,000

Solo Factions

Uzumaki Naruto : Friends / Trusted: 48,062 /100,000

Sarutobi Hiruzen : Friendly : 29,596/100,000

Hatake Kakashi : Positive / Curious : 9,844/100,000

Uchiha Itachi : Positive / Curious : 8,209/100,000

Uchiha Sasuke : Postive / Curious : 5,840/100,000

Uchiha Shisui : Friendly / Curious : 14,194/100,000

---

Just to clarify, for those who missed the one line in the chapter, Sakura has a separate inventory for this dungeon. She can not use the items from here back home. In fact, any items she uses from her normal inventory become part of the dungeon inventory, and are then lost to her outside of it. She is aware of this as, at the start of the dungeon, she used some of her own weapons.

Also, there is a dungeon lockout (of which time I have not specified as of yet, and will be random generated) so she will not be able to spam the dungeon everyday to become superwoman. In fact, it could be years between her visits.

Sakura is still neutral. She helped her companions plenty, and in the end sacrificed herself for them, but she also went on a murdering spree. Yes, the humanoid creatures she killed were technically evil, but her intentions were not good, so neither were her actions. Let me be clear : Sakura was killing them for her own personal gain.

Oh, and all the creatures can be found in the Dungeons and Dragons monster manual, as can all the items she used. I mostly used the 3.5 edition. If your curious about anything she fought, you can just google something like "d&d 3.5 Kobold".

Also, Sakura learned the skill Handle Animal, which means she could get a ninken, which would make sense as her sensei used them, but there is always the possibility of her training another animal. Any ideas? Otherwise she is getting a dog. Which works, cause dogs are awesome, right? The animal could even be some mythical or unnatural thing that the game gives to her. Maybe she could have multiple pets like a WoW Hunter that she can switch out. "Sakura, where did you get that monster?!" "I found a scroll in my daddy's old things..."

The amount of violence in this chapter lead me to up the rating of this story. I mean, she got her hand dissolved. Thats kinda a lot. She was practically tortured, and was killed. That is not just something that is going to be happening in this dungeon, either. Let me be clear on that. Sakura will suffer, both physically and mentally, and Sakura will die. A lot. So, I apologize for originally mislabeling the story. It wasn't intentional, but it is what it is.