Sakura slipped into the hot springs with a loud sigh. On the other side she could hear Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi talking about the second chunin exam. The third part would be in two weeks, giving them time to recuperate. They were having dinner at the compound again, and their parents had yet to see them. She dipped under the water to her neck and sighed. The jasmine sent was calming, but it appeared Naruto still had energy. Deciding ten minutes was enough she slipped out and got dressed in the clothes her mother had sent for her. A cute pale pink sundress slid over her body nicely. Messing with her hair she frowned at the length. Though it was easier to move around without it getting in the way she really didn't feel cute.
Glancing back at the door, she thought of what happened only two hours ago. Kakashi-sensei had sealed the mark on Sasuke's neck, causing him to be weakened for a while.
Hearing the clamoring about she figured they were soon leaving to get to the compound.
The sun had officially set around the village. No doubt their mothers' were worried.
Sasuke appeared outside the bath house just then, hair still damp.
"How are you feeling?"
"Hn."
He was mad at her. She had been the one to tell Kakashi-sensei what had happened to the three of them, causing him to have the mark sealed. Since then Kakashi-sensei looked at them with hidden sadness. She didn't understand.
"Sakura-chan! You look so cute!"
She was pulled up into a hug and she sighed before laughing.
"Come on Naruto, we shouldn't keep anyone waiting."
"Sakura's right. Let's get going."
For once their sensei was casually dressed in a pair of black pants and a gray shirt looking utterly bored with himself. When they got to the compound Sakura and Sasuke were immediately tackled.
"Sakura! What happened to your hair? How'd you get that cut on your face? How-"
"Minako, let her breath!"
Her father came to her rescue, pulling her into a hug and patting her head.
"I like her hair shorter, she looks older. But not too older."
She smiled up at her dad. Finally turning to Sasuke and Naruto, the later who was talking with Fugaku over their three days in the forest of death.
Sasuke caught her eye and gave her a glare. She sent him a look knowing he didn't tell his parents.
"Come now, the food's almost ready."
They were ushered inside, and once in the kitchen Mikoto gushed over her hair too.
"Personally I think you look cute! The long hair was lovely, for a woman, but you're not a woman yet Sakura-chan."
The older woman winked at her and turned back to the stove, finally declaring that it was ready.
Almost as if on cue, once everyone finished an ANBU appeared inside the dinning room.
"Fugaku-sama, we have news you need to hear. Come to the Hokage tower please."
The table stilled as Fugaku got up and politely excused himself, disappearing in a cloud of smoke.
Her mother was the first to speak."I'm sure it's nothing. Let's get this cleaned up shall we? Come on Sakura."
She nodded at her mother and began gathering plates, shooting Naruto and Sasuke a look. Sasuke nodded and Naruto did as well. The three boys got up and went to the living room. While doing dishes Sakura noticed Mikoto's distracted stares.
"Mikoto-sama, if there's anything you need from me just let me know."
The woman snapped out of her stare and offered her a smile.
"Thank you Sakura-chan, I appreciate it."
At midnight Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto met at the red bridge.
The moment Sasuke arrived, Sakura was ready with questions.
"What did that man want?"
"I haven't been told yet."
"First those siblings, then that snake guy, now this. Something's happening."
Sakura nodded, agreeing with Naruto.
"Whatever it is, we'll have to be prepared. In the mean time we have two weeks until the last exam."
"It's everyone for themselves, we're not in teams in that exam. We might have to go against each other."
"Don't worry about is Sakura-chan, I'm sure they wouldn't put team mates against each other."
"Don't be so sure Naruto. In any case if we have to fight each other no holding back, agreed? This is a test of skill and strength."
Sakura and Naruto nodded before Sakura yawned.
"I'll see you both bright and early."
She received a nod and left, anxious to sleep in a bed again.
xxXXxx
Sakura and Naruto were at the bridge at normal time, but two were missing. Once it dawned on two hours late, they were shocked to see a different jonin appear before them.
"Kakashi has taken Sasuke out of the village for training. That is the note I have been told to pass on."
"Listen you closet pervert," Sakura stared at Naruto's outburst "tell me where they went!"
"Naruto, there are bigger things to worry about. Train, become stronger. They'll be back in time for the exam."
Ebisu left just like that and Sakura sighed.
"I bet it has something to do with last night. You want lunch at my house? I'll cook."
"Sure!"
She smiled and they walked to her house. Bringing a few pots to boil, Sakura turned around to see Naruto reading a piece of paper."You're parents left you a note."
"Oh yeah, what's it say? Naruto, you're going pale."
"Itachi has left the village, and sworn his allegiance to a group called the 'Akatsuki'. He's officially an S class criminal."
"That's why Kakashi-sensei took Sasuke away. He knew Sasuke would want to go after him."
"He can only derail him for so long."
"Sasuke's not stupid. He won't leave. But if he does, do we go with him?"
Naruto crossed his arms and leaned back against the chair at the table.
"Yeah. We're together remember? A three man squad. If Sasuke leaves, we all leave."
Sakura nodded and started making lunch for the two of them.
"My parents are on a mission then to go retrieve him."
"Don't worry Sakura-chan. He had to have had a good reason to leave. No one just gives up on their home."
"Right."
xxXXxx
The first four days out of fourteen passed quickly. Naruto gained a new person to train him for now, and once again she was left behind. Sakura sighed as she leaned against a tree.
"Sakura-chan?"
Looking up she saw the Uchiha Matriarch. Standing quickly to her feet, she noticed the woman carrying two large bags of groceries.
"Ah, let me help you!"
She took one of the bags easily enough and walked with the woman back to the compound.
"I take it you know about Ita-chan?"
Sakura only nodded.
"You can ask questions Sakura-chan. It's okay. Only the top elite know, and of course you and Naruto-chan. You're parents are part of a five man squad sent to retrieve him. I don't know what happened to him to be honest. I just hope they can bring him home without anyone getting hurt."
Sakura sighed and nodded.
"I've spent a lot of time with Sasuke. It was smart of Kakashi-sensei to take him out of the village."
"He wanted to teach him something knew. When Sasuke found out, he became mute. The fire in his eyes was scary. But his father is becoming worse. Fugaku wants to be desperately on the team to retrieve him, but Hokage-sama has said no. Those who need to retrieve him can't be distracted by emotional attachments."
They entered the house and Sakura shimmied off her shoes before setting the groceries in the kitchen.
"Thanks for your help Sakura-chan. Is there anything I can do for you?"
Sakura bit her lip.
"Mikoto-sama, can you train me?"
"I haven't done anything for years, but I can teach you something useful, if you'd like."
"I'd love that."
xxXXxx
Sakura stared at her cute kimono. It brought out the green in her eyes by being pale green with a pink obi.
"Sakura-chan!"
A smile graced her features, for Sasuke and Naruto had returned back to the village in time for the festival. Tomorrow would be the start of the final part of the exams, and apparently they weren't the only country to host the chunin exams, no other finalists were here too, it was a massive event.
"I'm coming!"
Walking down the steps, her smile widened to see the boys dressed for the festival as well, Sasuke in blue, Naruto in orange.
"Let's get a picture!"
Sakura pulled them beside her and hooked her arms through there's smiling for her mother's camera. She took three pictures, one for the each of them she was sure.
"I can't wait to print these off! Go on you three, you have a big day tomorrow so don't stay out late!"
Sakura nodded at her mother and pulled the boys out, ready to get some sweets.
She listened to Naruto's story of his training on top of water, and how he wasn't sure it would help in the arena. She herself just nodded when appropriate, noticing the solemn look on Sasuke's face. He caught her eye and simply stared.
Offering a small smile was pointless at this point, so when a few hours were up they parted ways. Laying in her bed Sakura sighed and stared at the pictures they had taken inside a photo booth. She was smiling politely in the first one while Naruto was talking and Sasuke was looking away. The second frame she had the two were glaring at each other while she had a nervous look on her face. They had taken six, so they each had two small pictures.
She sighed again and rolled over, placing the pictures on her end table. Sasuke was changing. There was a hate ebbing in his eyes and it scared her.
What am I going to do?
He's anxious to leave, I know it.
xxXXxx
Sakura hugged both Sasuke and Naruto before giving them each a kiss on a cheek. Her nerves were getting the best of her, and Naruto was the first to fight. Sasuke and Sakura took seats together, and Ino was beside Sasuke with Choji and Shikamaru beside her. Her hands wrung as Naruto squared off against a ninja from sound. In fact, it was the one with the kid from sand who confronted her weeks ago. Sasuke would be facing the one kid named Gaara, and Sakura would be facing the girl who pulled her hair. No one from Konoha faced each other, for that she was glad.
She switched from bopping her legs to fidgeting with her hands.
A hand was placed on her knee and she blushed pink.
"Relax. He'll do fine."
She sighed and nodded, her nerves temporarily calmed. Her hands grabbed for the one on her knee and held his hand in her lap. Strangely he let her, but for now she guessed it didn't matter.
One week he's glaring at me,
The next he's letting me hold his hand.
She softly smiled before taking a closer look at his arm. Frowning she took a look at his right.
"Sasuke's with this?"
"Don't worry about it."
She huffed and he smirked.
"You'll see."
Rolling her eyes she sat back, noticing the glare Ino gave her. Sticking her tongue out she smiled and watched Naruto finish the match as a winner. She cheered louder than her row, but she didn't care.
"Way to go Naruto-kun! I knew you could do it!"
Hours past, and the Konoha 9 had made it through their fights, she felt like celebrating. Sitting watching the next upcoming fight with her team, Sakura let out a scream as an explosion was heard above. Silence dawned and suddenly Kakashi and Guy were on the stairs.
"Hokage-sama!"
The Hokage's up there?
Immediately those who were ninja stood, confusion setting in.
Who would attack the Hokage?
"What the hell is going on?"
"Calm down idiot, keep a clear head."
Feathers fell from the sky, and one by one people around them started to fall asleep.
"Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, Ino, Choji, Shikamaru, it's just genjutsu!"
One by one they released the spell off of them, staring at the person at the bottom of the steps.
No way.
It was the silver haired kid from the beginning on the chunin exams. Eight sound ninja hiding amongst the crowd appeared on either side of them. That's when Sasuke caught something.
"That kid I fought wasn't normal. They're escorting him out into the woods inside the village."
"Wait for me teme!"
Sakura looked at her team mates leave before turning to Ino.
"Hold it down here. We'll be right back."
"W-Wait a minute!"
"Team Seven! Get back here!"
"Sorry Kakashi-sensei!"
Realizing she was left behind, Sakura sighed and almost left before Kakashi called to her one more time.
"Sakura! Get to the academy, help escort the kids under ground! Tell Iruka to sound the alarms."
"Roger!"
Jumping down she took off to the school undetected. Rushing through the door she was happy to spot Moegi in the hallway.
"Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?"
"No time, do me a favor and kid the kids under ground. Konoha is under attack. You're not a genin yet, you can't fight but keep the kids safe! Tell Iruka-sensei to sound the village alarm."
Moegi's eyes grew wider at each word she spoke.
"R-right! I'll do my best Sakura-chan!"
Sakura took a deep breath and concentrated. Within seconds she disappeared in a flurry of Cherry Blossoms. Reappearing at the edge of the forest, she sped off to find her team, taking care to follow the chakra footsteps on the branches.
The bells chimed behind her, a warning to the villagers to hide and stay safe. Halting in her steps she saw the puppet master in front of her.
"So we meet again."
She smirked at him.
"So it seems."
"Your little friends slipped by, but you're quite loud aren't you? Heavy footsteps and all."
Sakura seethed.
"Are you calling me fat?"
"Ha! Maybe I am! Is that a sore spot for you?"
"I'm not chunky what's so ever!"
Suddenly someone landed beside her and rested an elbow on her shoulder.
"What's this? A boy picking on a girl?"
"Get lost pineapple head. This is between me and the pink freak."
"I don't think so. It's troubling but I'm following orders. Get going Sakura. From what we know they're planning something with that kid."
Sakura looked at Shikamaru and he nodded at her.
"Thanks Shikamaru. Stay safe. Where's your team?"
"On their way. I was just ordered here first."
"Got it. See you back at Ichiraku's for dinner!"
Sakura offered a smile and jumped up, landing behind Kankuro and sticking her tongue at him.
"Next time big boy!"
Taking off she focused solely on finding Sasuke and Naruto. That Gaara kid was dangerous, he emitted similar dark chakra like Naruto unleashed a few times. It was scary and chilling at the same time.
Arriving at the scene she saw the kid had half transformed into some kind of beast. His left arm wasn't normal, half his face wasn't normal, and a tail.
Taking to Sasuke's side, she saw he was shaking and frozen again.
"Sasuke-kun! You used too much chakra again, didn't you?"
The marks covered his body fully, and she knew he took advantage of the chakra it gave him, even though Kakashi had sealed it. The new jutsu he learned, chidori expelled chakra from the body in a form of 'lightening'. Using it too much however, lowered your chakra level immensely. She was surprised he was still awake at this point.
She tried to help him up, taking his hand but in seconds everything changed. Naruto had cried out her name and she was looking at the kid coming right at them. Standing up, she shielded Sasuke like he had once for her, not even drawing out a weapon yet.
For a brief second two different shades of green met. She immediately saw anger, lust for death, and sorrow. Her own eyes softened and she felt something warm wrap around her. Once her head hit the tree, she blacked out.
xxXXxx
When she awoke, two figures were sleeping on her bed, using it as a pillow as well as their arm. Smiling, she sat up feeling refreshed, patting both of their heads. The boys obviously received chakra treatments, so why was she the last one to wake up. Two more beds were in the small room, someone must've shoved them in together.
Probably on Kakashi-sensei's orders.
The clouds were rolling in, it'd rain soon. The village seemed so sad.
What happened when I was out?
"Oh, you're awake."
Looking up she nodded. Kakashi sat on the bed next to her.
"The Hokage is dead. The funeral is in an hour. You're all officially released. Put on your mourning clothes, and look your best for the Third."
He's mad.
No, he's scared.
Sakura looked at her hands. Sasuke and Naruto must've woken up when he walked in for they were looking at him and nodding.
"Let's go then."
Sakura climbed out of bed, noticing not one of them was wearing hospital clothes.
xxXXxx
She sighed as she heard the soft knock. The black dress was something she loved, but for this occasion, there was no joy. Her parents had left before her, needing to be there early. There hasn't been a celebration yet for team seven, for right now it wasn't the time to celebrate.
The clouds were rolling in it appeared. Looking past the sky to the two at her door, she gave a soft nod. Naruto looked the worse between them. Sasuke and Sakura had a few memories with the Hokage from their academy years, but the Hokage looked out for Naruto personally. Made sure he had a place to live, groceries, clothes. Her hand reached for his, and he held it with a soft smile. Grabbing Sasuke's too, she was more than half way surprised he didn't pull away. They walked from her house to the Hokage tower in silence.
It wasn't uncomfortable either. Arriving to the roof which over looked the village they took their place in a line, right next to each other. Naruto stood on the outside, Sasuke in the middle, and Sakura at the end. Kakashi was right next to her, looking almost as bad as Naruto.
But there was one that was worse. The grandson of the Hokage, Konohamaru, was holding back tears, his body shaking with pent up sobs. The bitterness was there too, for not being allowed to fight she assumed. She felt for him, part of her wanted to break line and embrace him.
Rain fell on her shoulders lightly before it became hard. It appears the sky was mourning too.
"We will now start the funeral service of the Third Hokage who lost his life in battle, as well as the others who lost their lives in battle."
She didn't listen to the words of the elders. A tear slid down her cheek as it was time to give their final gift to the Hokage and those poor men who died defending the village. She placed her flower down and pressed her hands together. With a short prayer for a good afterlife she moved on. Back in her place she grabbed Sasuke's hand. He squeezed back but didn't make a move to hold her hand tighter, in fact, it was limp as if he didn't know what to do with it. She just squeezed back.
xxXXxx
End.