Disclaimer: I do not own any Naruto characters, though I wish I did.

A/N: Thank you for your reviews, everyone. I'm glad you're all enjoying the story. It makes me happy that I'm getting so many good reviews. Also, there was somone asking about who Sakura is being paired up with and to be honest, there is a pairing. I just won't reveal it right now. You might find out in the next chapter, but for now, everyone is just being friends. But there has been a few hints now and then about who she's going to be paired with. All you have to do to figure out who it is is watch for the clues.

Anyway, in this chapter, Sakura gets into a little bit of trouble with Kakashi, but knowing our favorite cherry blossom, she's not one who gives up so easily and she will do anything to prove herself.

Naruto-Heart of Honor Six

With the new alliance with Hyuuga Neji, Sakura wasn't picked on as much as she was used to. No one seemed to dare pick on her while she was around him. Whenever they did, Neji or Naruto would immediately stand up for her. And eventually, Sasuke started to speak up. Not too long after the survival exercise, Sasuke had decided to ask Neji why he was hanging around 'Zaku'.
So the prodigy of the Hyuuga clan told him, "Zaku's not that bad. Yes, his hair is strange but he's really not bad with jutsu. And out of everyone here, besides the Elites, I think he has more control over his chakra than he lets on about."
He was telling half the truth but he did not once tell anyone that Sakura was actually a girl. He kept that to himself and her. He would also smuggle a few things that she needed from any of the supply tents, pretending that he needed them himself. It was a nice change for once that someone knew her secret but chose to help her instead.

But still, quite a few of the young men picked on her, even if they ended up facing Neji later. They kept taunting her, saying that she needed someone to stick up for her when she couldn't do it herself. And it was really starting to get on her nerves. She did try her best to stick up for herself, but it didn't seem to help very much.

But as the days of training went, Sakura realized that she was not showing very much progress and it was starting to annoy Kakashi. She remained the weakest one in the bunch. True, she was practically the smartest out of the recruits but for some reason, she couldn't keep up with the males. No matter how hard she tried. She wasn't as strong as them and she wasn't as good as jutsu as she hoped. She was always the last one to get it right. No matter how hard she tried.

And soon, she knew, she would have to do everything she could to show that she was a Shinobi before she was sent home.

The day things really went wrong for Sakura was a very rainy day. The recruits were jogging through the Forest of Death while there was a light rain falling down on them. They were carrying two pails on a stick which were slowly filling up with water as it rained. It didn't' really help with the trail getting a little muddy and slippery under Sakura's feet but she was doing her best to stay standing up. However, the buckets were getting heavier for her and she was starting to slow down.

"Come on, Zaku. You can do it." Naruto urged her as he slowed down with Neji, Sasuke and Rock.

Sakura did her best to keep up with them, though she did notice the Elites looking over their shoulders at her. Some of them were tsking and shaking their head while few others were trying to give her an encouraging look. Kakashi was not one of them. He was actually giving her a dry look as he kept a well pace ahead of everyone.

Then her luck rock bottom.

As Sakura was trying to climb over a small log, her foot caught the top of it and she tripped over it. She went down hard into the mud, sending her buckets full of water everywhere. She gasped in pain though as her air had been knocked out of her lungs from the impact. She laid there for moment before she noticed that her four companions had stopped to wait for her. "Come on, Zaku. Get up!" Naruto told her with worry. Sakura gasped for breath but it was hard. She pushed herself up to her knees, pushing water out of her eyes. "Just a second. I've got to catch my breath." She told them. And then she noticed Kakashi approach her.

"In battle, you don't have a second to catch your breath." Kakashi said dryly as he held his stick and buckets on his shoulders. "In battle, you must always be on your guard and you must always move. Even for that one second, you can die." He then turned his one revealed eye onto the four boys. "Keep moving. You don't have time to wait for a comrade who can not keep up." He told them. Sasuke immediately was moving away while the other three glanced at Sakura, who nodded as she gasped for breath and reached for her stick again. So they went.

However, before she could grab her stick, Kakashi moved forward and picked it up with the buckets. She gave him an alarmed look but he gave her a dry stare. "As I said, we don't have time to wait for stragglers. Haruno, go back to camp. I'll deal with you later when we get back." He told her before he turned and hurried after the others.
Sakura watched him with disappointment before she sighed and lowered her head. She knew that she was blowing her chance to impress the commander, to prove herself worthy. She knew for a fact that the Shinobi Elite commander, Hatake Kakashi was not impressed with her at all.

But with a sigh, she went back to camp.

That night, after everyone had returned from the hike and had eaten, Sakura couldn't help but stare into one of the fires that had been build while everyone was talking to one another. Naruto and Neji tried to sit down with her to start up a conversation but she wasn't in the mood to speak right now. So she excused herself to go to bed early.

But when she got to her tent, it was no longer there.

Kakashi was standing by the tree where she had pitched her tent several weeks before, when she joined the army. He was just standing there with his arms folded while at his feet were her bags. It looked like she was going to be going on a trip. But seeing her bags and her tent, she had a feeling that it was just a trip she was going to be going on. She knew it was the sign of trouble. Sakura knew that she was in trouble. And a lot of it. The look on the Elite's face didn't look very nice either. He didn't look happy at all. But then again, when did he ever?

As Sakura approached, Kakashi slowly shook his head until she was right in front of him looking at him in worry. "Haruno Zaku," He began as he straightened up and let his arms fall at his sides. "Here are all of your things. You can keep the tent. But you are done with the training. You're to go home." He told her as he went around her and started to walk away.

"What?!" Sakura gasped as she whirled around and stared at him. "But…..I'm….I'm still working hard. I…."

Kakashi slowed his pace to a stop then looked over his shoulder without turning around. "You can't cut it, Haruno. You're weak and you can take the training. It's getting way hard for you and you're way too behind. I'm sorry but this Shinobi army can't afford any weak links. We have to stay strong. So go home. You're through here." He said before he started walking again.
"No, I am not!" Sakura shouted after him as she hurried after him. "I am not going home until this war is over! Until the Fire Country is safe from Orochimaru! I am staying here to finish my training!" She told him sternly. She also ignored the fact that Kakashi halted in his foot steps before he turned around gave her a very unpleasant look.

However, Sakura's shout did not go un-noticed by the other young men. As soon as she had started yelling, a few came looking to see what was going on and soon enough, almost everyone in the camp were standing around the two glaring at one another. Sakura was looking as brave and serious as she could muster while Kakashi was beating her in a glaring contest. His glares were intense but she refused to break. She had promised Namikaze Minato that she wouldn't break. Even the Elites were there, looking at the pink haired 'boy' with alarm that she had actually shouted at Hatake Kakashi.

"No?" The silver white haired Shinobi asked coolly. He then moved towards Sakura only to stop ten feet away from her. "You dare to tell me no? You are not even a Shinobi, Haruno and you never will be. While I, on the other hand, am a ANBU. When I say you're finished with the army, they are finished. You are no longer a recruit here and I am sending you home." He told her seriously. "You are a hopeless cause. To continue your training now, it's just a waste of time and money."

Sakra just shook her head as she clenched her fists and glared at him. She was looking rather brave, even though inside, the Inner Sakura was nearly melted with fear. "I am not a hopeless cause. And it's not a waste of time training me. I am my father's…..son." She almost said daughter but she had stopped herself in time. "I will be the very best Shinobi in Fire. I promise." She told him.

"You, Haruno," Kakashi said coolly. "Are the worst Shinobi in Fire Country. In fact, you're not even close to being Shinobi. You are a joke."

Sakura felt the sting of his words but she wasn't going to let them get to her. She couldn't. She had to make sure her father would live and still have honor. She was doing it for him. She could not go home. "I can't go home and face my father, Hatake-sama. I will do my best to catch up." She told him. Kakashi slowly shook his head as he stared dryly at her. "Your best is not good enough. Since you've even gotten here, you haven't improved on your jutsu at all. You can't even climb a tree right." He said darkly. "I've given you too many breaks already because of your father. But no more. I don't have time for some girly boy who can't be turned into a real man." And as he spoke, his voice was raising. "Go home. You've dishonored yourself enough." The Shinobi said before turning away again. Sakura slowly shook her head, her lip trembling a little. She was not going to give up so easily. She knew it wasn't smart to get in an argument with Kakashi but she completely refused to go home. She wouldn't. "I said I am not going home until this war is over. I want to fight as a Shinobi. I want a chance to prove myself!" She said with determination.

Again, Kakashi turned to face her, his eyes were very dark. It was very clear that he was losing his patience with her. But then he shook his head and gave her a dry look. "Don't make me have to force you out, Haruno. You are not capable to fight in this war."

"Yes, I am." Sakura said as fiercely as she could.

There was a dangerous silence between the two as they glared at one another. Everyone was looked at Sakura with wide eyes before glancing at Kakashi. They were very sure that he was going to kill the pink haired 'boy' for even back talking him. As for the Elites, Iruka was making his way over to intercept Sakura and escort her out of the Shinobi training camp before she got herself killed. But to his, and everyone's surprise, Kakashi held up a hand to stop him.

"You want to prove yourself, Haruno," The Copy Nin said quietly, but it was a dangerous quiet tone he was using. "Fine. Let's see if you have what it takes. Fight me now. If you can at least knock me off my feet at least once, you can stay. But if you can't, you will leave." He told her.

Sakura looked as if someone had just slapped her across the face with a fish. She stepped back away from Kakashi, looking almost terrified. "I….I can't fight you! You're an Elite! You…you'd beat me in no time!" She argued. She knew it was true. She knew that Kakashi would have her down in no time flat. But with a shrug, Kakashi turned away. "Fine then. Leave the Training camp." He started to take a step to leave.

"I said no!" Sakura said sternly.

Suddenly, she found herself shoved against the tree with a very strong arm pinning her there. A kunai was stabbed into the tree close to her head but it wasn't that had her frightened. It was Kakashi who had her pinned there, one hand on the kunai's hilt while his forehead had finally been shoved up to reveal the left side of his face. To her shock, the Elite had a long scar running over a fiery red eye with black swirls slowly revolving around the pupil.

"Do not ever tell me no." Kakashi said in a dangerous low voice. "You are not ready to fight Orochimaru, nor will you ever be. When I was your age, I was exactly like you. Stubborn and pig-headed. I wasn't ready to fight enemies but I tried anyway. I got this scar because I wasn't ready. I lost my left eye to my enemy and then I lost my best friend for trying to help me." He said darkly, glaring into Sakura's emerald green eyes.
"My best friend, Uchiha Obito gave me his eye before he died. But he was still killed on my behalf. Just because I wasn't ready to fight and I wouldn't listen to an Elite!" He shook his head as he finally backed away from Sakura, yanking the kunai out of the tree. "You want to prove yourself? Fine! Earn my respect before the night is through! If you can't do that, you go home!" He turned away, but kept his fiery red eye on her. "If you fail to earn my respect before the night is through and you so much as try to stay here in the camp, I will do what I have to do to make you leave. Even if it means executing you. I will not let anyone weak slow down this army. We have a war to win and thousands of people to protect from the biggest threat in history!" He snapped before he walked away. But not before he shouted, "Go to bed, men! We get up at the crack of dawn for more training!"

Stunned and hurt by his words, Sakura just leaned against the tree, staring at the empty space before her with shock. She couldn't believe what just happened. She didn't even see him move. More than less, she saw what was behind the forehead protector. She was pretty sure that no one else saw it because they were farther away and it was too dark. She barely even saw it because of the night's darkness. The only way she saw it was because he was so close to her. His nose had nearly touched hers while he was glaring at her.

But still, the fact that she knew it was impossible to earn his respect before the night was over. That man didn't seem to respect anyone other than his superiors or his equals. She didn't blame him though. The men that he was training were only boys and some of them were foolish.

Still, how in the hell was she going to earn Hatake Kakashi's respect before the night was over?

She must have stood there for a good long moment with tears in her eyes before she realized that she was kneeling on the ground, staring down at her father's kunai. She couldn't leave now. She could almost see the images of her father on the ground in the onyx colored blade. She sighed as she tried to think of a way to get Kakashi's respect.

What was it that Master Minato told her to do?

Sakura then remembered. He had told her that Kakashi was the strictest Shinobi there was in the Shinobi army but he respected hard workers. And there was also that one thing Kakashi said on the very first day of training. "Retrieve the kunai and earn my respect."

"The kunai?" The pink haired girl said before she turned her emerald green eyes onto the tall trees with the kunai still in the branches. None of the young men had been able to get the kunai yet. No one had been able to get up the tree. Surely if she managed to get up the tree and retrieve the kunai, she would have to have Kakashi's respect. She had no choice. She knew this was the only way.

Sakura's mouth firmly closed before she clenched her fists, making her way over to one of the trees. She knew this was the only way of getting the respect she deserved. She had to get up in the tree and get the kunai. She found the 10 lbs weights at the base of the tree. Without a word, she picked them up and began trying to climb the tree.
Unfortunately, she kept falling back down, landing hard on her butt. But every time she fell, she would get back up and try again. She spent hours trying to get up the tree and falling back down. She knew she must have had dark bruises on her backside from falling so hard every time. But she refused to give up. This was for her father, and this was for herself. She needed the respect from Kakashi. She wanted it. She didn't want to let anyone know that she was just some weak-ass Shinobi recruit but let them know that she was the most stubborn, determined to succeed Shinobi in the entire Fire Country.

But after hours of failing, she had to stop to catch her breath. She had to think of how she was going to do this. She had fallen over fifty times and she knew she was incredibly bruised. She could feel it. Sakura sighed as she just sat there at the base, trying to think. She knew she had to come up with some idea of how to get up the tree. She couldn't just keep trying and trying only to fail. She knew it was somewhere after midnight. She could feel it by how tired she was. But she refused to let herself go to sleep. If she did, the morning would come too quickly and she would be forced to leave the training camp. She also couldn't just sit there either.

"How in the hell do you expect me to climb a tree without my hands?" Kiba had asked that day. And all Kakashi was just smirk at him. "Use your feet then. There are ways of climbing a tree without your hands."

Sakura's eyes brightened when she remembered those words. She knew how to get up in the tree now. All she had to do was concentrate on her chakra to her feet. She had done it before. When Neji had found out about her, she had showed him that she could stand on a tree branch without falling off.

"It's my only hope."

Sakura took a deep breath as she stood up and moved a few steps back away from the tree. She tried to concentrate hard on her chakra, pushing it towards her feet. She even closed her eyes to concentrate better. She could feel her chakra slowly rolling around in her body, moving towards her feet until they tingled. She was ready.

With her eyes flashing open and her hands tightly clenching the weights in her hands, Sakura flew towards the tree as fast as she could. She wasn't going to fail this. She was going to succeed. She was going to get that kunai no matter what it took. If it took her all night to do it, she would do it. All of the taunts and teasing she had been through the many days were in her head. She was not going to let them get to her. She was not going to let her father, Daisuka fall down again because she was not going to fall. Sakura gritted her teeth as she placed her feet against the tree trunk, getting ready to run up it. She almost fell but quickly she concentrated her chakra between the tree and her feet, trying to latch on.

She did not fall down this time.

Sakura was somewhat surprised by that and would have fallen if she didn't quickly catch her chakra and the tree. She was standing sideward on the tree trunk now. It was working. She couldn't believe it was actually working. But without any time to spare, she began to walk up the tree, though slowly so she couldn't lose her concentration. She didn't have time to spare any excitement at all. She would save it for later once she got the kunai. A few times while trying to walk up the tree trunk, Sakura slipped a few times, sliding down the tree but she quickly caught herself and kept going up. She was not going to fail this.

Without her awareness, two of the Elites, Iruka and Gai were watching her from their tents, looking very surprised that 'Zaku' was actually doing it. They were both thinking the same thing though. This pink haired 'boy' might actually just get the respect he was demanding for.

It took almost all night trying to get even half way up the tree but Sakura kept moving, even if it was going very slow. She just locked her jaw tight as she took each shaky step up, going straight up. She had tears flowing down her face, mixing with sweat as she kept moving upward. Both of her arms and legs were burning with pain as she strained herself but she wouldn't let go. She would have what she wanted.

Hours of walking up the tree past, making her more and more exhausted but with all of the memories of being taunted, teased and bullied, she pushed onward.
The sun was barely coming up now and she was almost to the branch with the kunai. She was very unaware of the growing crowd of young men looking up at her now, all looking very astonished of what she was doing. She was unaware of all of the bullying young men were staring up at her with wide eyes before joining Naruto into cheering her own. She didn't even hear them, even if they were yelling up at her, a few jerks trying to break her concentration. All she could hear was her heart pounding and all of the memories whizzing past her eyes as she stared directly at the kunai she was trying to reach for.
Joining the young recruits, the Elites were staring up with the same amazement. They didn't say anything but watched as the Haruno 'boy' was walking straight up the side of the tree trunk. And soon to join them was Hatake Kakashi, his one eye trained on Sakura with only mild surprise but more interest.

However, with only a few feet away, Sakura's strength was starting to give out. She could feel her entire body burning from the overuse of chakra. Her feet was even burning from too much chakra. She slid down a fraction, almost a foot away causing her to gasp. But she clutched at the tree tightly with her chakra. She was getting way too tired and she was losing her strength quickly from climbing the tree all night long.

"No!" Sakura gasped between her teeth. "I am not giving up!" She took a painful step up the tree, moving closer to the kunai. "I am not weak!" She took another step. "I am not naïve! And if I am naïve, I am naïve to finish what I've started!" She shouted as she took another step. Sakura was very close to the kunai now. She could almost reach out and take it now. But to do that, she needed a hand, so she rearranged the weights into one hand and reached for the blade. Yet, she still couldn't reach it. Her fingers were barely touching the hilt.

"I will not fail Master Minato!" The pink haired girl cried out as she tried to take another step, almost losing control. Her fingers were still grazing the blade but it still wasn't close enough.
"……! I will…..!" She shouted as she tried to push herself up, almost bending over on the tree. "…..Never! Give….!" She then threw her arm up and around the branch the kunai was stuck in. just as her strength gave up. Her chakra was gone now and she would have fell if she wasn't holding onto the branch now. She just held on tight, trying to throw her other arm with the weights around the branch. "UP!" She screamed as she swung her legs upward and onto the branch. Sakura wrapped knees around the tree and she laid there for a very long moment, gasping for breath and out of exhaustion.

"I will….gasp…..never give up….."

After moments of laying there on the branch, she opened her eyes and looked at the kunai just inches away from her hands. It was right there. She took a deep breath as she used one hand to pin the weights against the branch and used the other hand to reach over and wrap around the hilt, yanking it right out of the branch.

And as it came loose, there was a sudden explosion of smoke in her hand and the kunai vanished. To her surprise, she saw what the kunai really was.

A forehead protector; the symbol of the leaf was engraved in the brand new, shining metal.

Sakura stared at it with wide eyes until she finally heard the cheers. She turned her eyes downward and saw the entire camp staring up at her. More than half of the young men were cheering and yelling out her name, Zaku's name. Naruto was jumping up and down, throwing his arms above his head and yelling her name. Beside him, Neji had his arms folded across his chest and she could almost see the smirk of satisfaction on his face as he stared up at her. Even the young men who bullied her were cheering for her. But her eyes slowly slid over the Shinobi Elites, stopping them on the silver white haired Kakashi, who was still staring up at her. Again to her surprise, he vanished into a puff of smoke and leaves before appearing right before her, on the branch. He had used his teleportation technique to get up onto the branch, in front of her.

Suddenly, it got very quiet.

Sakura just frowned as she laid on the branch, clutching the weights and the forehead protector in both hands. She just looked up Kakashi fiercely before she tried to sit up, almost slipping. She gasped as she almost fell off the branch and she was sure she heard the young men below yelp with her in shock.

But a hand slapped onto her shoulder to steady her.

Again, Sakura looked up to see Kakashi bent down beside her, his hand on her shoulder to keep her from falling out of the tree. She frowned as she looked into his eye before shaking her head. "I….I will never give up." She told him in a quiet voice, but with determination.

And for the first time since she came to the training camp, Kakashi looked at her softly. He didn't even look like he was concentrating hard to keep himself steady on the branch. He had such good balance on it when Sakura was having trouble. Without a word, the Elite reached down and took the forehead protector from her, holding it up.

"……A true Shinobi never does." Kakashi spoke quietly before he tied the forehead protector around Sakura's head.

Sakura's eyes lit up in surprise as she looked at him from under the forehead protector, noting the soft look in his eye. And she knew that she had succeeded with what she tried to do. She had actually gained respect from the strict Shinobi, Hatake Kakashi. She could see it in his eye. He respected her.

And soon after that, so did everyone else.

After her braveefforts of determination, no one ever treated her wrongly ever again. No one dared to now that she had the respect of the Commanding Shinobi. She had been the first of the recruits to become a Shinobi. So instead of taunting her, they began asking her how she could control their chakra and climb the trees like she did. Soon after that, they were able to walk up the trees and get their kunai, which turned out to be forehead protectors. All of them were.
After that day, they began to work hard and train harder together. Sakura became a little more popular among the men because of her amazing control over chakra. She was still not as strong as the men but she was the strongest when it came to chakra uses. She began to learn new techniques, dealing with Genjutsu and Ninjutsu. She was even learning Taijutsu from Kakashi, himself. He had finally decided to split up most of the young men, placing them under one of the Elites. The teams mostly consisted of three men cells and were lead by an Elite.

Sakura, Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke were on the same team, learning from Kakashi.

Though they were learning from their Elite captain, they also learned a few new techniques from the other Elites. And soon enough, it was almost time for Uzumaki-Namikaze Minato's six month check up, to see if they were fine Shinobi. Sakura couldn't wait to show the Shinobi General of what she had learned.