Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

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Naruto was wary when Sakura entered his office and immediately knelt before him. She had never done this since his appointment to Hokage. He warily walked to the front of his desk to view her better. Sakura was dressed in ANBU armour appropriate since her recent promotion but most surprisingly her identifiable pink hair was black. He hoped it was only a henge and not dye.

"Hokage-sama."

Sakura kept her head bowed to the ground and spoke purposefully in a formal matter, after all to her this was a formal meeting. The Hokage steeled himself for whatever Sakura would say next. He knew he wasn't going to like it.

"As you are aware I was recently promoted to the ANBU ranks and I thank you for your support in that matter. Now that I am in ANBU, I request that I be allowed to work outside the village."

Naruto paled considerably. This wasn't the first time ANBU had requested to become out of state but he never imagined Sakura would ask to leave the village behind. He was sure of her abilities but not of her reasoning.

"For how long?" He dared to ask.

"Long."

She lifted her head and pinned him with a stare. In her eyes was determination but for the first time he saw desperation and helplessness and it stole his breath away. Never before had she looked at him that way and he unfairly wished she hadn't.

Naruto went to her and pulled her up by the shoulders. Their eyes remained locked.

"Sakura, why?" His voice colored with confusion.

She absolutely hated making Naruto sad, especially now that he was Hokage. The man that every person in the village looked to for support including her. She didn't want to let him down. There was strength in her childhood friend, one that was forged by misery and by perseverance. All she possessed was misery and she would do anything to have his kind of strength.

"Naruto, you are a precious person to me, someone I cannot live without. I want to be able to protect you and everyone else in the village. But I am not at that point now. The thoughts and feelings I carry with me of the past and the uncertainty of the future makes me weak. Ninja aren't supposed to be weak."

He could see she was fighting an internal demon, something he was all too familiar with. He didn't understand why his friend and family had become endowed with this much pain and he was too old to think it concerned Sasuke. Sakura surprised him by placing her hand on his cheek in a loving gesture.

"Please, let me go." Her voice was earnest and it cut like glass.

Naruto hung his head in defeat. Though he was the Hokage and had the Kyuubi, this one woman could pretty much get him to do anything without fail.

"Okay. But you are to report weekly to me with a messenger pigeon and Gaara will also liaison with you." He said with a modicum of authority.

"I'd like to leave tomorrow at first light."

Naruto simply nodded as he returned to his much worn chair. He picked up a mission scroll from his desk and threw it lightly towards her. Originally, he was going to assign the mission to Kakashi because of its rank and it required someone to be despatched immediately. He had only just sat down to read the mission in full detail before Sakura came in.

She accepted the scroll graciously and saluted Naruto. They each took one last look at the other. Both knew this was goodbye.

"Naruto you better be married by the time I get back." Sakura smiled and winked at her best friend then moved swiftly out the door.

Without pause she flew down the stairs of the Hokage building and rushed to breathe in the night air. She went through the double doors not thinking to slow down. Unfortunately, she hit somebody almost immediately after exiting the building in her haste. Sakura stepped away from the rigid chest of a man only to look up and see silver hair and an orange book.

"Kakashi."

The exact person she did not want to see.

Kakashi scrutinized her harried appearance and knew something was up. He couldn't exactly act friendly after their last encounter had been a disaster. Somehow the two had both been able to expertly avoid each other since.

She was anxious to get away from him. They hadn't spoken in quite some time, not since the day at the cenotaph. Unbeknownst to her she had caught sight of the Copy-nin at a sensitive moment as he stood in front of the immortalized names of the dead. She had approached him and after words were exchanged Kakashi had grabbed her up in his arms and kissed her suddenly.

When he broke away from the kiss, a messenger appeared to collect Sakura. She wasn't able to say anything before being taken to Naruto and finding out she made ANBU. That was almost three weeks ago. And now she was planning to leave the village indefinitely.

"Sorry I have a mission." She hastily explained. Sakura flashed the scroll so he could see before taking off onto the rooftops towards her apartment.

Kakashi remained standing alone in front of the Hokage's office with clenched fists. He hated himself for what he did to her that day. He hadn't planned to kiss her but when she came up to him all he could think was how much he wanted to tell her everything. All the things from his past that he was afraid for other people to know. Except her.

Kakashi had no idea when these feelings had developed but it was because of their friendship that he had a second chance to know her and really know her. He went and ruined that now. There was no way Sakura would be able to look past this indiscretion of his. At best he hoped they would be able to stand next to each other long enough to say more than they're going on a mission.

Speaking of a mission he had been summoned by the Hokage for an important one and though he was usually late this seemed too urgent to ignore. Kakashi banished thoughts of her from his mind as he jumped up to the open window of the Hokage's office and was met by an unhappy Naruto.

"I told you to use the door." He said sullenly.

Kakashi moved to stand in front of Naruto instead of hanging from the ledge. When he got a look at the young Hokage's face he knew something was wrong. Naruto looked stressed and worried, not a common mixture on his youthful face, which tipped the Copy-nin off.

"What is it Naruto?" His voice serious.

Naruto palmed his forehead and refused to look his former teacher in the eye. He had let another part of the team leave. There was no way to communicate this failure to his esteemed sensei.

"I don't have a mission for you Kakashi-sensei, you're free to leave."

Knowing Naruto wasn't about to offer free information, Kakashi took a second to analyze and process the situation he was in. He had been summoned for a mission but now there wasn't one for him. Sakura had been here only minutes before to see Naruto and she had a mission scroll. And she is one of the few who can make the Hokage worried like this. Something had to have happened for Naruto to give Sakura the mission intended for him and it was something big to give Naruto such a pained look.

"Naruto, what happened with Sakura?"

He twitched and raised his head slowly. Obviously Kakashi figured out this much somehow. Naruto wouldn't be able to keep the news from him forever and he knew that his teacher deserved to hear it from him first.

"I'm sorry Kakashi-sensei I couldn't get her to stay."

"What do you mean? She said there was a mission, won't she be back in a week or two?"

Naruto silently shook his head.

"This is only the first of many. Sakura, she wants to remain in the field and it might be a long time before we see her again."

Kakashi remained composed at the shocking news. All he could think of was the time after she tried to hunt down Sasuke and how she blamed himself and Naruto for leaving her behind in this village. Was she trying to get even with him after everything?

"When is she leaving?"

Naruto turned towards his window and watched a creeping sun trying to take back the night sky.

"Now."

He heard a flurry of wind from the front of the desk. Naruto turned back to see the remnants of Kakashi's teleportation jutsu. It didn't matter if his sensei reached Sakura in time there was no way of changing her mind. Reluctantly, Naruto believed his departing friend was trying to reclaim something she had lost. Or, despite what he believed, never had. His sister needed to have the chance to support herself and find her own way of the ninja.

-X-

After picking up her already prepared pack from her apartment, Sakura zoomed through the village towards the gates of Konoha. Once close enough to the entrance she dropped down onto the paved road below to take one last walk through her village.

A wonderful home she had grown up in and was leaving for the first time completely on her own. It was a scary thought but Sakura had already come to the conclusion that this is exactly how she will be able to overcome the one thing that always held her back.

Without weakness she could proudly say she was best friends and even family with the Hokage. Or finally take the position of supervisory medic of the entire hospital. Or maybe one day allow herself to be happy with the person she knew she loved but would never admit to.

These shadows of the past that overcast her entire life refused to leave and the guilt and self-loathing Sakura had been able to hide, prevented her from moving on.

In her mind she was stronger but in her heart she was still twelve and hoping everything would be okay.

Her hand tightened on the ANBU mask she carried. Painted on the week before were red cherry blossom petals made to look like tears falling from the right eye. It was a promise and a reminder that while she wore this mask and uniform these would be the only tears shed.

Sakura continued down the path with this new resolve. Without warning the leaves along the pathway rustled from a sudden breeze and she could feel the faintest brush of chakra along with it. Sakura paused mid-stride as a new presence fully manifested from a teleportation jutsu.

Naruto ratted her out. Bits of her wanted to laugh at thinking a clean getaway was possible and bits wanted to wring Naruto's neck for telling her pursuer that she was leaving. There was no other explanation for why Kakashi would be meters behind her other than the Hokage. Walking away from the village wouldn't be so easy after a confrontation with him.

And how could she tell Kakashi that he wasn't the reason for her leaving and actually have him believe her?

Sakura made a choice as she carefully set her mask over her face. She had to be brutal and she had to be honest for him to let her go.

"I could forgive you."

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A/N: AAAAand we come full circle to the first chapter.