-Would I be posting this here if Naruto belonged to me? I don't think so.-

Comeback

I wasn't supposed to update this so quickly. But the ideas just kept flowing. And since I've completed it, I might as well post it! (SF Geronimo, I'm looking forward to that 500 word review. xD)

Thank you for reading! ^_^

All of you make me beyond happy. Especially those who have reviewed! I love you all~

Proceed to read. ~('.'~)

Chapter 3: Oh, Woe is me!

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The walls we build around us to keep sadness out also keeps out the joy.

~Jim Rohn

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Sasuke struggled to gain control of his body as he tried to lift his heavy body of the grass. From his peripheral vision, he could see the Dobe trying to stand up from his position by the tree. It might have looked like Sakura had thrown a feather when in truth; she had lifted a full grown man and threw him. He wondered where she had gotten that type of strength.

Sasuke walked towards Naruto and helped him to his feet; the blonde was still groaning and clutching the back of his neck in pain.

"This is your entire fault, Dobe," Sasuke muttered.

"My fault? You attacked me first!" Naruto countered.

Before Sasuke could speak, he felt a presence. A man clad in the full ANBU uniform appeared before them. His porcelain mask fully covered his face and slightly muffled his voice, "Uchiha-san, Uzumaki-san."

The ANBU nodded in respect before continuing, "The Hokage requires your presence. Both of you are to report to the Hokage Tower immediately." The ANBU immediately vanished leaving the two of them.

The two of them had fought all the way to the Hokage Tower.

Naruto slammed open the Hokage doors, "TEME! You-" He stopped abruptly when he walked into the office his mouth agape and his bright blue eyes as large as saucers. The entire room was filled with paperwork and mission scrolls. Naruto could barely find a spot on the floor that wasn't covered in paper.

Sasuke entered the office pushing Naruto who was blocking the doorway and frowned at the sight before him.

"Naruto! Sasuke!" Tsunade called out their names happily a smile on her face. Her amber eyes were twinkling with excitement. "I've heard from Sakura that both of you were doing an excellent job."

Naruto and Sasuke looked at each other.

Tsunade continued, "She also informed me that both of you have requested for more work! So, both of you will be given the task to clear up all these paperwork." Tsunade opened her arms wide gesturing to the room; a happy smile still evident on her features.

Naruto's jaw dropped and Sasuke looked even paler than usual.

The Brat was right when he said they wouldn't like it if she was angry.

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Sai thanked the nurse with his fake smile as he left the hospital. His body was still a little sore but it was nothing he couldn't handle. He clutched the new book he had in his hands: How to Win Her Heart in Seconds. Sai was still unsure why he had bought the book but he deemed it useful for his research on human emotions. His other recent book on nicknames had failed him immensely and had caused his almost demise after being thrown out the window.

Weren't these types of nicknames supposed to bring him closer to people? The Traitor and Dickless had used nicknames like Teme and Dobe for each other and they were pretty close. So, he had tried nicknames with the pink-haired kunoichi. He wasn't expecting to be thrown out the window. Was Hag and Ugly not sufficient? Should he have tried something more insulting?

Suddenly, he saw a flash of pink. He immediately masked his chakra and followed the pinkette. He found himself following her deep in the forest. He was sure this was one of the new training grounds Konoha had built while he had been gone. Instead of having a clear area for ninjas to train, the terrain was filled with trees that could be used as cover.

He crouched on a branch above her as he watched Sakura stomp towards a tree. He duly noted that she was in a bad mood. Sai could practically see the fumes coming out of her ears. Her face was a bright red that complemented her hair. He could see a myriad of emotions through her emerald eyes.

Anger.

Pain.

Disappointment.

He wondered why he didn't have such emotions.

Sai's eyes widened as she pulled back an arm to punch a very unlucky tree into pieces. She swung her leg annihilating another tree.

"SHANNARO!"

Sakura's fist hit the ground as Sai braced for the oncoming earthquake. But, it never happened. The forest was eerily quiet. Maybe she didn't use her chak-

All at once, the ground surrounding her gave way interrupting his thoughts. It was too late for Sai to jump out of the way; he was soon buried under debris and chunks of trees.

He groaned in pain.

"Who's there? Kami-sama! Sai! Are you okay?"

Sakura ran towards the pale artist her hands already glowing a mint green to repair any damage. He had broken a couple of ribs and had a deep gash across his forehead. She helped him to his feet and placed his arm around her shoulders to steady him, "What are you doing here?"

Sai cracked open one of his eyes, he could taste the metallic tang of blood in his mouth. He slowly took in his environment. Before him, the trees that once stood up proudly were crushed and uprooted. The terrain was uneven and the two of them were standing in the middle of a very large crater.

He didn't even bother to reply to her question as he stared dumbly at the sight before him.

"Come on, I'm taking you to the hospital to patch you up."

Sakura placed another arm around his waist as she leapt towards the hospital.

Once they arrived at the hospital they were greeted by one of the nurses, "Sai-san, I wasn't expecting you back here so soon."

"Neither did I," his fake smile already plastered across his face. Sakura practically dragged him to one of the unoccupied rooms in the hospital and placed him on the bed. She started to tear his clothes open and heal the broken ribs.

Her hands against his chest were warm and comforting. He lifted his gaze from her slender fingers to look at her. Her eyebrows were furrowed in concentration. "Tell me, Sakura. What were you doing in the forest?"

Sakura looked up at him, surprise evident in her features. Had he just called her by her name? She shrugged, "Training?"

"Destroying one whole training ground is training?"

"It was either that or those two idiots."

"Traitor and Dickless?"

Sakura raised an eyebrow and laughed, "You're still using those silly nicknames? Don't tell me you're still reading those ludicrous guide books."

Sai lifted the now dirty book he had kept; his empty smile not faltering.

Sakura sighed, "You can't learn about emotions through books, Sai. You've got to feel them though experience."

"How would I do that, Hag?"

Sakura's eye twitched. He was lucky he was already injured or Sai would have taken another sight-seeing flight over Konoha. Sakura pondered for a minute. How do you teach emotions to someone who has never felt anything before? It was like describing the colour orange to a blind person. Sai was from Root, an organisation that did not favour any type of emotion. Sai was like a blank piece of paper. Empty. He saw things as cold logic instead of what they really were. She remembered the first time she had punched him. She also remembered the guilt she felt when he confessed that he had no feelings.

Sakura looked at Sai; his chest and forehead bandaged. He was looking at her, expecting an answer. Sai resembled Sasuke in many ways but they also differed. Sasuke's eyes were filled with hatred and anger towards his brother that had murdered his entire Clan. Sai's eyes on the other hand were emotionless and empty. People say that the eyes were windows to the souls, yet staring into Sai's eyes; one has to wonder if he even had a soul. It scared Sakura sometimes to look at him.

All her boys were broken beyond repair.

Sakura only wished that she could ease the pain.

She walked towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck, embracing him. Sakura could feel Sai stiffen momentarily.

Meanwhile, Sai was having a war in his head. Half of it told him to push her away while the other half told him to enjoy the moment while it lasted. He wracked his brain for a reasonable explanation as to why the Hag was hugging him. It seems that none of the guides he had read could give him a proper explanation. Maybe he should get some more of those guides on kunoichis.

Sakura finally removed herself from him. A little too quickly for Sai's taste. She noticed that Sai's dark eyes were wide and his cheeks were a light pink colour; a huge contrast to his pale skin.

She giggled, "What you felt just now was an emotion called 'Surprise'."

Sakura smiled a saccharine sweet smile at him before leaving, "Stay in the hospital for the night. I'll come to check on your injuries tomorrow."

Sai stood in the middle of the hospital room, her smile still in his head. He liked how her sea foam eyes seemed to sparkle when she smiled. Wait. Did he just say he liked butt ugly Sakura? He shook his head in denial. An emotionless person like him could never come to like someone. Right?

That day, the unemotional artist had started to feel.

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Kakashi had his nose in one of his erotic novels when he walked into one of his students.

"Sakura! How have you been?" Kakashi ruffled her hair affectionately. Even though a couple of years had passed, Sakura was still a head shorter than him.

She smiled at him, "Fine, sensei. I take it that you've been at the Memorial the whole day?"

Kakashi's visible eye widened slightly, "How did you know?" He started to fall into step with Sakura.

"Remember the first time Team 7 had to undergo the bell test? You pointed out that your best friend's name was carved on the stone. I just guessed you would have been there since you've been gone for a couple of years," Sakura explained shrugging her shoulders.

Of course, this was an outright lie. Unbeknownst to Kakashi, Sakura actually knew a great deal about her sensei's mysterious past.

During the time when her Team had abandoned - Yes, she was still bitter about it- her in search for the Uchiha, Sakura had been given the task to clear up Konoha's Archives. During her cleaning, she had come across files pertaining Hatake Sakumo and Kakashi's Genin team. She had learnt about Uchiha Obito and Rin. Sakura had finally understood why her sensei was always late. On that day itself, she had visited the Memorial and left flowers.

Kakashi was a man that had loved and lost. He had lost his mother at a young age. He had lost his father. He had lost his friends and team mates. Like her team mates, Kakashi was also broken. Despite that, Kakashi still cared for them and showed concern.

Kakashi noticed that his pink-haired student was zoning out when her face suddenly changed to a blank expression, "Sakura? Is something wrong?"

Sakura turned to look at him, "You know, Sensei. When was the last time you had your physical examination?"

Kakashi scratched the back of his neck and laughed awkwardly. He tried to change the subject, "Sakura! I heard that you became Naruto and Sasuke's stand-in sensei."

The kunoichi gave him a that-won't-work-on-me look, "You're lucky I'm too tired to drag you to the hospital today." She shook her head before continuing, "Sasuke and Naruto are being difficult as usual, though I think they're having a wonderful time at the Hokage's office now."

Kakashi backed away slightly when he saw Sakura smile evilly.

"What do you mean?" He ventured cautiously.

She looked at him, the evil grin not wavering, "Oh. You know, payback for leaving. You better sleep with one eye open tonight, Kakashi-sensei."

Sakura burst into in laughter when she noticed how tense her sensei had become. Kakashi sighed in relief, "It's not nice to tease, Sakura."

She stopped laughing, her tone suddenly serious, "I wasn't teasing."

Okay, now Kakashi was scared.

Who would have thought that the great Copy Ninja would be afraid of a petite pink-haired kunoichi?

Haruno Sakura was one of his students. When he first met his Genin team, he instantly noticed Sakura's bright pink hair. He had mused if her hair was dyed or a natural colour. The day he had first met his Genin team, he was pleasantly surprised to find out that the legendary Uchiha Sasuke and the jinchuriki Uzumaki Naruto was placed under him. Back then, he didn't even bother to take notice of the pink-haired kunoichi. Of course, she had memorised everything there was to know about being a ninja. But, when it came to battle, she lacked the skill and talent.

When being compared to Sasuke and Naruto, Sakura was like a speck of dust. She was always the one he had to keep an eye on. She was the one he always had to protect and rescue from harm. Sakura seemed to want to become a ninja only to impress her childhood crush. She didn't have some sort of ambition or dream that she wanted to achieve. On top of that all, she did not have any special background.

She came from a normal civilian family, not from a special clan that had special abilities or a family that was famous for having skilled and powerful ninjas. If he wasn't mistaken, Sakura was the first from her family to become a ninja.

Out of all his students, he hadn't expected Sakura to become a Jounin first, let alone be a part of the ANBU medical team. Of course, Sakura had incredible chakra control and had grown stronger under Tsunade's tutelage. He had seen her improvement during their second bell test.

Sakura was no longer the over-emotional twelve year old girl he had thought that needed protection.

She had changed.

"Sensei? Sensei! Are you even listening to me?" Sakura interrupted his thoughts. Loudly.

"I'm sorry. What did you say?" Kakashi asked apologetically, scratching his cheek sheepishly.

Sakura sighed, "I said: We've already reached my house."

Kakashi blinked and started to look around him. He had actually escorted Sakura home without even realising it. Sakura grinned at him, "Thank you for sending me home. I'll see you around, Sensei."

Sakura was about to close the door when she was stopped by him, "Uhh..." He muttered oh so intelligently.

He struggled to form the correct sentence. "We haven't actually talked much."

Sakura tilted her head, "It wasn't my fault that you chose not to stay in contact during the two years."

Ouch.

Kakashi swallowed, "Right. That's why... I thought that maybe… We could have lunch together and talk."

Sakura stared at him for a minute, contemplating. She grinned, "Sure, Kaka-sensei. Why don't all of Team 7 come over to my house tomorrow for lunch? I'll cook."

Kakashi gave Sakura his signature eye crease, "See you tomorrow then."

Kakashi disappeared with a loud poof sound. He was already far from Sakura's house when it suddenly dawned on him.

Did Sakura just say she was going to cook?

Oh, shit.

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*~The Next Day~*

Naruto dragged his feet down Konoha's concrete paths. His eyelids were dangerously heavy and threatening to close any minute. He knew what was wrong with him. And it was more serious than he could ever imagine.

His Ramen Level was low.

He needed to get to Ichiraku's and fast. He dug into his pocket and fished out his green frog man purse. Yes, it is a very manly place to keep your precious money. In his hands, the purse slumped pathetically. He sighed. It was empty since he had spent it all.

Naruto looked at the Teme that was walking alongside him. Both of them had stayed up all night clearing up Tsunade-baachan's paperwork and mission scrolls. It was an incredibly long and painful process. The Kyuubi container noticed that the Uchiha was swaying slightly when he walked. He had dark circles under his eyes.

"Eh? Are you sure they are Genins?"

Naruto turned towards the high-pitched voice and found three kids each adorning the Konoha headband proudly. He easily recognised one of them as Mochizuki Shin, also known as The Brat. Beside the Brat was a girl with short light brown hair that touched the base of her neck. Next to her was another boy with spiky dark green hair. His eyes were covered by his over-sized black-rimmed glasses.

Shin nodded, "It's true!"

The one with the glasses spoke, "There is a possibility that they could have failed the Academy terribly and were required to repeat the year."

The girl whispered, "I think they repeated more than a year."

Naruto could feel Sasuke's mood darken considerably.

"And they're MARRIED!" Shin shouted, flailing his arms wildly.

Naruto choked on his spit, "HOLY MOTHER OF-! WHAT?"

Glasses boy frowned, "That is highly unlikely. They are both males and would be unable to procreate."

"If they are married then which is the Mom and which is the Dad," the girl completely ignored Glasses boy's comment. Glasses boy looked mortally wounded.

Naruto was about to protest when an idea hit him. He slung his hand around Sasuke's neck despite the scary killing aura he was giving off. "Yeah, Sas-UKE. I wonder who the Mom is."

Sasuke's killing aura intensified tenfold and he turned his head to glower at the blonde. For a second, Naruto saw his life flash by. He was pretty sure it was the end for him.

Goodbye world.

Goodbye Ramen.

Goodbye Sakura-chan.

Goodbye Ramen. Wait, did he say that already?

Sasuke had already lifted his hand to punch the idiot when he heard a voice calling him from above.

Yes, above.

"Naruto! Sasuke!"

Sakura?

Sasuke lifted his head to look up. He found Sakura squatting on the roof directly above them. The sun was directly behind her, making it impossible for him to discern her features. Her pink hair was flying in the wind like a halo around her head. The Uchiha had to admit that it was a beautiful sight.

It was hard to believe that she was the same fan girl he had left behind so many years ago. He hadn't expected for her to change so much.

She leapt from the roof and landed gracefully on her feet, her medic skirt flying showing her tight black shorts wrapped around her hips and legs. Naruto blushed and looked away, not wanting to become victim to one of Sakura's deadly punches.

"Sakura-sensei!"

The kids crowded around the pinkette. She laughed, ruffling their hairs. "What are all of you doing here?"

Shin puffed up like a proud lion, "We were given a very important mission."

"We are required to locate Madam Shijimi's missing cat," Glasses Boy deadpanned.

Sasuke snickered while Naruto started to laugh loudly.

Sakura smiled and crouched down to their level, "I'll teach you a trick."

Their eyes widened and watched with anticipation as Sakura placed her right hand on the ground. Sasuke folded his arms and watched. Suddenly, he felt her chakra travel below him and further down the village.

"By leaking your chakra and spreading it like a web, it should work as a sensor for you to locate your target. This is useful if you're searching for a particular target. But any ninja's in the area would be alerted of your presence. Hence, it is not advisable to use this technique if you are undercover." She stood up, "You should be able to find Tora using this method."

Shin had already started trying the new technique while the one with the glasses had started to mumble equations under his breath.

The three Genins (excluding Teme and Dobe) nodded their thanks and waved goodbye as they started their search for Tora.

Sakura turned towards her team mates and was about to speak when she was suddenly tackled by something big and… furry?

Akamaru started to lick her neck and face playfully as she giggled.

"Akamaru!" Kiba noticed pink hair and smiled, "Sakura!"

Sakura tried to sit up as she petted Akamaru. Kiba scratched the back of his head, "Sorry about that. Akamaru must have felt your chakra web and thought you were in trouble."

After the dog specialist had removed Akamaru, Sakura stood up dusting her medic skirt. She grinned like a Cheshire Cat.

"This is good! All of you can help me with my grocery shopping!"

Huh? They thought in unison.

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Okay!

A little bit of SaiSaku there since it was requested!

Any other pairings? :D

Oh! Sand Siblings will appear in the next chapter. Sakura beating Sasuke's ass also in the next chapter. ;D

Now, Please click the button below and reviewwww~! 'Cause it makes me write faster. xD (I'm shameless, I know.)