And here is the second chapter, introducing the first OC and time to get some neglected Haruno clan history. And an explanation for why Sakura's hair is pink!
Chapter 2: Oba-san (Grandmother)
The next morning the Haruno family sat around the table for breakfast.
"So," Mrs. Haruno began, "You were out late last night. Is there something you need to tell us?"
Sakura looked stunned at the interrogation. She was actually going to tell her mom in a few moments, but now that she was being asked, in that way, she felt awkward.
"I, well, it wasn't my choice. I was,"
"Yes," he dad said gravely, "I'm going to have to have a serious chat with this boy about his intentions."
"No it's not like that!" Sakura blurted out. Her cheeks and worse yet, her ears had turned bright shades of pink.
Her parents laughed, "Relax," her mother reassured her, "We had gotten a call from Mrs. Nara about the party."
Sakura's jaw dropped in realisation that her parents were in cahoots with that 'surprise' last night. "Don't do that!" she exclaimed, "Try to make me feel embarrassed for no reason!" Then she sighed, her parents stilled retained their vicious sense of humour.
"However," her mother continued with a tone that made her daughter jump in her seat, "Mrs. Nara said this morning that you disappeared just as the fireworks started. So, who did you watch them with?"
"Mom, it was just K-"
"Sakura," her dad interrupted. "we are kidding. You are a trustworthy girl, relax."
Sakura rolled her eyes. "I was going to tell you both all about it, just before you decided to scare me."
"I'm sorry dear," her mother gave her a quick hug, "You are just so fun to tease."
"About the fireworks," Sakura continued in a mock irritated tone, "I just went to the roof to spend some along time. I'm not a real party person. However Kakashi-sensei showed up and we just caught up and talked about Naruto."
Her dad nodded, "And this is why we were not worried in the first place. Can you forgive your gossip starved parents?"
She rolled her eyes, "Yeah."
Sakura returned to relishing her mother's skilfully cooked rice. This was certainly one of the primary reasons why she loved being on hiatus from the excitement of missions. Just as she put another bite in her mouth her mother spoke up.
"Sakura, your grandmother wants to see you"
"Me?" Sakura blurted out, "Why?"
"Don't be rude." her mother scolded calmly. "She just wants to give you some lessons."
"In what?" Sakura asked, her curiosity piqued. She had only ever seen her grandmother at festivals, and then she usually spent time with her cousins.
"She wouldn't say. Apparently it was for your ears alone." her father added.
The bustle of the early morning market was thunderous. Yelling merchants, dickering customers, and more ambient sounds such as footsteps, crackling grills, swaying doors and so on. Kakashi walked purposefully past all the bustle and made beeline to the bookstore.
He looked through the front window at the books on display. There were various genres represented, there was even an honorary omnibus made for Jiraiya's Icha Icha series. It didn't show much interest to the jounin as he already had it, in limited edition.
He sighed. He needed to get started on a new series. After all, there was no longer any potential for a sequel. After recovering from a momentary depression attack, he was just about to decide whether to start some other erotic series or go for something more respectable her heard a very familiar pair of footsteps.
He turned and saw Sakura looking up at signs and seeming lost. "That's odd." he muttered. Why would she be lost? It's same old Konoha, well rebuilt.
Just as she was about to pass on the other side of the street he called out at her uncharacteristically. "Sakura!"
She turned and made a slight smile as she walked over. "Hello again."
"You seem lost."
"Well," she blushed in shame, "yes, I am. I'm looking for Neko Avenue but as of yet I haven't been able to find it. It seems not all the street signs have been replaced."
"Oh I know where that is. However, I need your opinion on something first."
"What?" she asked suspiciously at his crinkled eyes which inevitably meant he was smiling.
"Should I start a new erotic series or go for something different?" Kakashi waited intently for her reaction, however he was somewhat disappointed as she flatly replied.
"I'm not much of a fiction reader, so I don't think I could really help you there. So could you tell me where Neko Avenue is?"
"Ok" he sighed. "First you walk all the way down this street then to the left. On the third intersection turn right then left then go through the park and along new lake…" He began to reconsider giving directions, "How about I just show you. Are you in a hurry?"
"No, we can walk." Sakura said as they passed through the market.
"So why do you have to go to that part of town, there's nothing there." Kakashi asked.
"My grandmother wanted to talk to me, teach me something…" Suddenly her eyes widened. "No!" she cried.
"What's wrong?" he asked surprised.
"I know what this is. My grandmother, she's probably the clan matchmaker! I'm turning seventeen in a couple months after all, so she's probably going to be teaching me all the graces of femininity!" a feeling of gloom passed over Sakura.
Kakashi figured it would be best to remain silent as his companion ranted her fears.
"Of course," Sakura continued, "if it is that, I already learned most of it in kunoichi school, so if anything, I'll get this done today and be over with it! Mission accomplished!" She concluded excitedly.
"Why are you so nervous about meeting your grandmother?" Kakashi asked, getting the mental image of a darling older woman who had a cat and made sweets. Then he had a side thought, this would be Sakura's grandmother, which meant Sakura might have gotten everything from her. That image was a little more intimidating.
"I don't know." Sakura sighed, "Maybe it's just that we've always been so distant, so I'm wondering what the catch is now." Suddenly the kunoichi stopped in her tracks.
Kakashi looked back in confusion then followed her gaze. She was staring at New Lake, the giant circle of water that composed the centre of Konoha.
"Notice something?" he asked.
"I was just thinking how I would like the lake to stay. Some people want to get rid of it, but I think it's a good memorial, to everything that happened. Besides, it's looks pretty at this time of day."
"Mm," Kakashi muttered in agreement.
"Well, enough of my day dreaming. Take me to my fate." Sakura said with a bright grin.
The silver haired jounin shook his head and waved for her to follow. After a few more twists and turns they arrived at a small, mass produced house a la Yamato.
"Well I guess this is it." Sakura said turning to Kakashi. She rubbed the back of her head as she thanked him, "You really helped me out."
Kakashi shrugged, keeping his hands in his pockets, "It's wasn't a bother. Good bye."
Sakura bowed and ran up to the door. She knocked cautiously.
"Is that you Sakura?" a woman's voice called out.
"Yes ma'am!" she replied.
"Then come on in!" she ordered warmly.
The jitters in Sakura's stomach faded. "Sorry for the intrusion," she said as she entered, removing her sandals. She followed the source of the voice and found herself in the kitchen where a woman sat with long greying pink hair tied back in a youthful ponytail. The woman turned and looked on Sakura with her green eyes.
"My my," she said, "You do look so much like me."
"Thanks." Sakura replied sheepishly.
"You're probably wondering why I called you here?" her grandmother said, smiling.
"Y-yes actually. What is it you are going to teach me?"
"Flower arrangement, then we move on to cooking and finally calligraphy, all the graces a good bride should have."
Sakura's face fell.
"And finally I'll help you find the man of your dreams."
Her countenance fell further, but she bolted upright when she heard the woman laugh.
"Oh you looked so down! How cute! I'm sorry dear, it was a joke."
The kunoichi looked up in bewilderment, Well, at least I know where mom get's it.
"Ok down to business." her grandmother began, "You are aware that our family has produced many ninja in the past right?"
"Umm, yes, I know we've had a few."
"Oh darling, we have had far more than a few. There have been hundreds of ninja of the Haruno clan. However nowadays we are rather small in number. I fear our great house has long passed by our glory days. But a hundred and seventy years ago, we were the ninjas in charge of protecting a very small kingdom located a mere few miles to the east of here."
Sakura sat forward intently, not knowing where the lecture was going, but fully interested.
"In fact, that crest you wear on your clothing is the symbol of the circular wall around that country, the one which Konoha based its own on, though on a much larger scale. Now back to my point, do you know where you got your name?"
"Because of my hair colour, pink, like the cherry blossoms." Sakura answered.
"Yes and no," the woman answered, "You see, my name, is Sakura as well, but you can call me Haruno to avoid confusion. Our namesake, the pink hair, isn't just for unique appearance, it symbolises something very important."
"What?" Sakura asked.
"You possess the same gene that I do, one which allows you the incredible chakra control and the fact that you are a genjutsu type ninja."
"You mean, like a bloodline limit?"
"Essentially yes," the older Haruno answered.
"So, what does this change, I mean, I have both of these, and I use the chakra control already."
"Yes, but you don't use genjutsu, do you?"
Sakura paused, and finally asked, "So, does that mean you are going to teach me genjutsu?"
Haruno smiled, "Yes, and not just any genjutsu, I want to teach you a secret jutsu that only the two of us can."
Sakura stood up excitedly, "Can we begin today?"
"First things first," Haruno chided, "let's have some tea and lunch, I need nourishment you know."
"Sorry," Sakura replied.
After the table had been set and Sakura was savouring a fantastically made rice ball, Haruno passed her granddaughter a small slip of paper.
"What's this?" Sakura asked.
"Put it between you index an middle fingers."
"Ok."
"Now just naturally make your chakra flow into it."
Sakura followed her instructions. She looked surprised when the paper suddenly crinkled inwards.
"Well, I didn't expect that." her grandmother muttered.
"What?" Sakura asked.
"I would have thought that you would be water or earth type." she commented.
"Really? So what does this mean?" Sakura asked.
"You're chakra is lightening type, rather rare, only wind chakra is less common. The reason you probably never knew is that you never learned any offensive ninjutsu."
"Yes that's true." Sakura admitted. "But why would I need to know this for genjutsu. Does your chakra type affect illusions?"
The old woman shook her head, "No. But before you learn any genjutsu I need you to learn a quick defensive ninjutsu. Such a jutsu is very important if you have to break the genjutsu to avoid attack.
Something that doesn't take a lot of thought." she rose and gestured for Sakura to follow, "Come, I'm going to show you what I used as my ninjutsu."
In the back of the house there was a small, fenced yard. There was a row of cans set on a table. "Watch closely." the grandmother ordered. She made the tiger sign, grabbed her wrist and aimed her
hand at one of the cans. A fiery red dart shot from her hand and flew past the can, through the fence and the sounds of a crash and a cat yowling were clearly heard.
"Oops!" she exclaimed, her face becoming that of a guilty child. "Umm, well, I'm out of practice, that was hoken no jutsu, fire dart. Your jutsu will be raiken, copy what I did, try to form the chakra in the
shape of a dart, then release. Oh, just use the ox hand sign and don't miss. This is a low level jutsu, so it shouldn't take too long to master."
"Ok," Sakura replied hesitantly. She made the sign, aimed and there was a bright flash and a banging sound as Sakura's hand was thrown back into her stomach. She coughed out painfully.
"Well, it seems you will have to figure out the form of lightening chakra, and I can't help you with that, I can only use fire and water style."
"Then what do I do?" Sakura asked, examining her slightly singed hand.
"You'll need to get help from someone else who is experienced with lightening chakra. Your instructor is Hatake, he would be a good person to ask. Come back to me when you master it." Haruno walked back into the house dismissively
"What?" Sakura exclaimed. "Is that it?"
"Yes." she replied simply.
"But couldn't I learn anything else? Can I try again?"
"Let me state it this way," her grandmother turned with a dangerous glint in her eyes. "I don't want to see you again until you have perfected raiken. So starting tomorrow, find your sensei, and begin your ninjutsu instruction."
"Bu-" Sakura protested.
"If you come back before than, I shall be very unpleasant!" her grandmother's voice burned with anger.
"Yes Grandmother!" Sakura shouted, bowing deeply. She winced when the door slammed shut. She's as bipolar as Tsunade! Well, I guess I have a bit of a temper too.
So without further ado, Sakura headed on home, reflecting on everything her previously estranged grandmother had said.
So… Who likes Grandma? I wanted her to reflect Sakura, since she has the same name, I hope that won't get confusing. Also what did you guys think about my reason for the pink? Now, must get back to Bleach before certain people get impatient (^_^;) Oh and the next chapter is called Mizu for… reasons. :".