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Sakura wasn't really a curious person by nature. So on her first day of the academy, she didn't actually pay attention to the giant hoard of girls fighting over something. Instead, she just passed them all and looked next to the closest seat, which just happened to be next to a brooding black haired boy who looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn't place his face.
"Mind if I take this seat?" The young girl asked timidly.
The boy didn't even spare her a glance, only grunting so she took that as a yes. Sitting down, she looked around what would be her new classroom for the next two years and marveled at all the maps on the wall and the only slightly complicated mock battle plan that had been drawn on the board. It seemed this wouldn't be a waste of her time after all.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?" A voice screeched in front of her, and she tore her jade eyes away from the board to look in the direction the voice was going on.
Surprisingly, the blond who had spoken was pointing at her. Sakura could only wonder what she had done. This was the problem with only having social interaction with less than five people her whole life. Two of them preferring to not talk at all unless necessary.
"Me?" She asked confused. The blond haired girl rolled her eyes as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and put one hand on her hip, impatient.
"Yes, you," she said, now walking forward. "What do you think you are doing sitting next to Sasuke-kun?" The pink haired noticed from the corner of her eye that said black haired boy seemed to flinch and the dark cloud that was around him become darker.
"Well, Sasuke-san said yes?" She said it more like a question than an answer, but in her defense, she was nervous. She hadn't been treated with such hostility since she was a young child when they used to bully and tease her. She had forgotten what it was like.
"'Sasuke-san said yes,'" the blond mocked in a high voice. "Well listen here, no one is allowed to sit next to him except for me. And certainly not someone with like you with a billboard for a forehead." A bunch of protests rang out the room after her declaration but Sakura didn't hear them. She was still reeling from the insult. No one was allowed to insult her forehead! No more!
"Excuse me?" She asked angrily. The blue eyed girl smirked, thinking she had won.
"You heard me," she snarled, her nostrils flaring.
"Okay. Well let me tell you something. I didn't see your name on this seat or anything indicating that it's yours so I'm gonna sit here if I want to! And no one, and I mean no one, is allowed to insult my forehead. And certainly not a pig like you." The way she said the word "pig" made it seem like the worst possible insult in existence, making the class break into fierce whispers.
"W-w-what?!" The girl shrieked indignantly.
"You heard me," Sakura mocked smirking in triumph.
"I think everyone heard you," a lazy but familiar voice said and the person proceeding to sit in the last available seat in the row, on her left.
"Shikamaru! Don't sit next t-to that freak!" The now red blond shouted angrily.
The Nara just rolled his eyes and propped his head sluggishly in his open palm. "Ino, calm down," he dragged on, rolling his brown eyes. "Just go and sit somewhere else. You're being troublesome."
"Yes Ino, go sit somewhere else," a male voice said sternly, drawing everyone's attention to the front of the class. It seemed their sensei had arrived, and not a moment too soon.
Ino huffed and stomped her foot angrily, before stomping up the stairs and sitting in the back.
"…Now that that's over. Let me begin by saying that we have a new student, who I'm sure you've already 'met'. Haruno Sakura, please raise your hand-thank you. Yes, she is starting four years late but I assure you that she passed all the tests with flying colors so please welcome her warmly as one of your own. My name is Tomochi-sensei so if you need something just ask." He explained, smiling when the pink haired girl nodded. "Good. Now today, as you can see, we will be working on strategy. I hope you all remember what I told you all yesterday, Sakura, you weren't here so you can relax and not participate, but if you think you can, please don't hesitate to join in." He told her. Then he proceeded to rummage through some things on his desk and pull out an extendable rod.
"Can anyone tell me the situation that is playing out?" He asked, pointing at the black board.
A few students raised their hands but the teacher ignored them all, his grey eyes roaming around for a helpless unsuspecting student.
"Shino. You look like you are just dying to answer. Care to share your enthusiasm?" He asked sounding amused. Actually, Sakura noticed, her eyes going in the direction the teacher was pointing, the hooded boy just looked like he was dying. Period. He was a bit creepy in her opinion. But the she noticed everyone else in class and decided that there was no such thing as normal in this room anyway. Her simple black tights and red t-shirt actually made her look like a freak!
"It seems that enemies-Iwa" the spectacle wearing boy corrected, seeing the color of the symbols "are trying to infiltrate Fire country, but have met resistance from the ANBU. Why? Because ANBU are stationed at the border. The ANBU are being pushed back by the Iwa nin. Why? Because they are being overwhelmed by the number of unexpected enemies. The messenger tower has been destroyed and they cannot call for back up. ANBU are getting tired and running out of chakra and weapons. The question; what is the best course of action?" He asked reading the question at the side of the battle.
"Good. It seems you understand the scenario perfectly. This is actually something that happened during the war so I thought it would be the best thing to test your minds." Tomochi explained.
"Now, what I want you to do is to think carefully about it then write what you would do if you were the commander. You have ten minutes. Sakura let me give you a notebook. I'll write your name on the top. Don't lose it since it's the only one you'll be getting until it runs out." The brown haired man said to her, pulling out a blue notebook from his desk and writing her name with a sharpie.
"Here." He said, tossing it to her. She was only slightly amazed that it landed perfectly in front of her, first page open. But she was in the third row from the bottom so it would only be too easy for a professional shinobi to be able to do that.
Minutes passed by the students working in silence, pens and pencils hitting their papers at a fast pace. Sakura too was completely engrossed in her writing that she didn't notice the teacher hovering over her shoulder with a very shocked look on his face.
Tomochi really wasn't expecting it though. He read her plan with wide eyes, thinking that even most chunin couldn't do it as well as she could! And she was only ten!
It seemed he had something to report to the Hokage…
Alright! Taijutsu 101! Yes students, it's that day again! The day where you'll be pitted against each other until one of you is either knocked out or I call out the winner!" Sakura looked around the group to notice more than a couple of people looking nervous. And others looking wayy too excited, like that blond kid currently shadow boxing in the back.
"First match;" the gruff battle-loving teacher said smirking. "Uzumaki Naruto versus the one with the perfect entrance scores."
"YEAH! I'm ready! I'm ready! I'll beat you all to a bloody pulp!" He cried out happily sprinting forward.
All eyes were on the pink haired girl now, and Sakura slowly walked forward to stand in the middle of the circle, wondering what type of a fighter this boy was.
"Aw man! But I can't hit a girl! She's too fra-"
He was interrupted by a sweeping kick, knocking him off his feet, making him fall face first.
Many people laughed at his expense and Sakura just glared at him angrily. So he was sexist, was he? Fine then, she would just teach him not to underestimate this pink haired girl.
"Haha! Serves you right, Naruto. Remember, kunoichi are also very strong. Looks can be deceiving. Now, start."
As soon as their teacher said this, the blond was on his feet, charging towards Sakura, fist cocked behind him. Sakura watched him, hands behind her back, analyzing like her sister had taught her. Sakura was exasperated to notice that this eager boy wasn't even defending himself. Sighing, she calmly sidestepped him then kicked the back of his knee, making his leg buckle immediately and once again he was on the floor, face first. The class laughed even more and the teacher stood there with a pensive look on his face, rubbing his beard.
"Interesting….Change of Plans! Naruto, you lost. Badly. Sasuke, why don't you come on up?"
Many people gasped as when he said this and they all made a wide gap for the boy to come through…
The pink haired girl was now pretty sure she had met him somewhere…She just wasn't sure where!
She watched as he entered the circle and got into a very interesting stance. …Both legs bent only slightly, one foot a few feet behind the other, with his upper body angled down and his arms in front of him, elbows slightly raised, hands in fists, with his index and middle fingers jutting out the most.
"Eh? So you're going with the Uchiha's tradition fighting style for this one eh? It seems you're not joking around for this!" The teacher declared, smirking in clear anticipation.
Sakura took this as her cue to also take this boy seriously. He really didn't look like he was joking around.
So, the best bet would be Luna's fighting style. It was fast, and difficult to defend against.
Quickly retying her hair into a bun, to make sure it wouldn't get in her face when she fought, she shocked everyone with what she did next.
She lifted up her elbows so they were only silently angled towards the ground and started jumping from foot to foot. To most, it would look crazy and stupid, with only one hole in her defense, her whole stance but she knew that it was deceiving.
"AHAHAHA! I don't know what you are planning to do little girl but it seems interesting. Begin!" He declared and the pink haired girl wasted no time, getting Sasuke with a sweeping high-kick which he ducked under, making her black clad leg sail harmlessly over his head.
No matter, it was better for her anyway. As soon as her foot hit the ground, she was on the floor, with a sweeping kick with her right leg, expectedly, he jumped over it, but she shocked them all with using both her legs like a top. They watched in shock as she pushed the Uchiha back, her hands holding her up and only lifting when her legs came round again then going back down.
Even their teacher was silent.
Seeing that this was leading nowhere, she shifted and pushed herself into a handstand, her legs now moving like a helicopter and on occasion going down and under, then up again.
Thank goodness she was wearing her gloves. She could see her hands chafing from all the rocks on the ground.
"Is she break dancing?" A shocked student asked. It must have looked like it to them and she smirked silently.
"It looks like it! That's so cool!" Another boy with a dog on his head exclaimed. Sasuke couldn't get near her unless he wanted to be subjected to her legs but her arms were getting a bit tired now. Only recently did she understand why her sister made her wear those weights and would teach her the style until she was seven
With one last sweep, she was on her legs and hitting Sasuke with a barrage of punches that were coming from the side. The black haired boy could finally retaliate now that she was upright and her legs not moving like a chopper.
Sakura had to stop to avoid a kick at her chin and she back flipped just in time, but the boy wasn't finished, and as soon as his leg was on the ground, he followed up with a round-house kick that she was sure would've knocked off her head had she not ducked backwards. She placed her arms behind her, and kicked upwards, that way, her flip would also act as a double kick.
He jumped to the side just in time and took the opportunity to launch his fist at her face when she was upright and only her reflexes allowed her to block with her forearm just in time to avoid a broken jaw.
They stared hard at each other before simultaneously jumping back, panting and back in their stances.
So far, no one had made the first hit and now the tension was high. The whole class was watching in anticipation to see who would gain the upper hand. The teacher was also keenly watching the two young fighters, an excited gleam in his eyes and his hand stroking his beard automatically.
Sasuke charged forward, his fist flying towards him, but Sakura ducked forwards, hands on the ground and her left leg up behind her about to get Sasuke in the chest. The young Uchiha was quick though, and grabbed her foot, tripping he other leg which was still on the ground. The pink haired girl acted fast and took hold of his own which was in front of her face, making both of them fall to the ground. He fell on top of her but he quickly rolled off before she could kick him off.
They wasted no time, both launching a flurry of punches and kicks at each other, but none of them making contact. Occasionally, Sasuke was thrown by a flip Sakura would perform that would break his nose if it her outstretched legs made contact and sometimes Sakura would have to quickly fall to the ground in order to avoid a very fast high kick the boy would perform.
She jumped and grabbed hold of his shoulders, doing a handstand on them, planning to fall backwards and throw him with the momentum but her shocked her by firmly grabbing hold of her hands and instead leaning forward so she would fall.
And she did fall, right into his awaiting knee. The wind was knocked right out of her, and she resisted the urge to hurl, instead coughing and almost dry heaving.
Sasuke watched with a smirk as she shakily stood up, wiping the spit from the side of her mouth with one hand and holding her stomach with the other.
"It seems Sasuke has drawn 'first blood'." The teacher declared, a wide grin on his face, revealing his surprising sharp teeth.
Indeed the Uchiha had, after almost fifteen minutes of fighting; he had finally made a hit. It had been hard but he had done it.
"Not bad Sasuke-san." Sakura said, standing straight up now, she too with a smirk on her face, but it was from excitement. She had finally found an opponent that was at her level. Unlike Kimimaro, who could beat her into the ground in two seconds flat.
"Hn." He grunted. Sasuke was thinking along the same lines, this girl, whoever she was, was actually a worthy opponent and the only other female in class who didn't fawn after him. He supposed she wasn't too bad.
"You two have two have fifteen more minutes to settle this. I'm giving you the whole period. The others, I want you to watch and see how you are all supposed to fight. In my day, weaklings like you lot weren't even allowed to try for the entrance exams." He said directing at the rest of the class…Yes, he really was a battle loving man.
The class just ignored him and carried on watching Sasuke and Sakura size each other up.
Sakura decided to just change her fighting style, and shocked everyone else by taking up Konoha's traditional fighting style. Obviously her own wasn't really working against Sasuke. She watched as the onyx eyed boy raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow before mimicking her, he too taking up the Leaf's stance. None of them had any holes in their stance, and they had the perfect form.
Sakura knew it would be hard but it wouldn't be fun if it wasn't.
The Uchiha ran forward, his fist at the ready, but Sakura caught it and twisted sideways, so that the boy would stumble. He did and while his back was turned she took the opportunity and tried to elbow his spine but he acted fast and instead twisted his body so that it would instead get his back bone. He still fell to the ground, but he recovered fast with a back sweeping kick, which she jumped over. However, she was forced to continuously flip backwards in order to avoid Sasuke's lightning kicks. As soon as there was an opening, she ducked and punched him in the stomach, making him keel over in reflex, and then the pink haired girl followed up with a kick to his side. He recovered just in time and grabbed the leg. Sakura used his hand as support and kicked with her other leg. He caught that one too and she fell to the ground on her back. Sasuke was about to get her with a drop kick to her stomach, but she caught his foot in her hand just in time. She was shocked at how heavy it was, but nothing she couldn't handle. She wore weights that weighed three times his body weight after all. He pressed harder, frowning but the green eyed girl instead jerked her legs harshly, making him fall back no that he only had one leg to support him.
Sakura quickly got up, but stumbled unexpectedly. It was only then she realized how tired she was!
According to her body clock, they had been fighting for twenty-five minutes and only had five minutes left before the ball rang to signal the end of the period and lunch.
She had to end this quickly, but with the serious look Sasuke was sporting, it wasn't going to be easy. But she could see the sweat rolling down him like it was on her and she saw that he too was tired.
The both charged at each other. Sakura launched a punch at his face which he blocked with a clear flinch on his visage, and then he grabbed hold of her forearm, pulling her forward, so he could punch her in the stomach, but she quickly twisted her body so the punch only skimmed her side. He released her, and both of their legs met in a kick and it was then Sakura noticed that Sasuke also wore weights; they were just hidden under that white leg protector. (Her own weights were actually her whole outfit. Her sister had taught her a jutsu that made her clothes heavier so that it wouldn't be hard to wear clothes.)
Sasuke hooked his leg around hers and tugged, making her fall to the floor, but she used her hands and instead flipped, forcing Sasuke to move back lest he be kicked in the face. As soon as she was up, she had to lift her hands to catch a drop kick to her shoulder. This didn't faze Sasuke, instead he back flipped away then tried to get her with a sweeping kick but she caught his leg between her feet preventing him from getting up properly. She also tried to drop kick him, but he dodged it by moving to the side, and everyone stared as a small crater formed where her heel sat.
Sasuke kicked up, making Sakura jump away and Sasuke launched a fist at her which she prepared herself to block.
"TIME!" The teacher shouted, forcing Sasuke to stop his fist mid-way. Everybody immediately protested, but Sasuke just shrugged at Sakura, who replied with a helpless smile.
'We'll finish this some other time' was the unspoken agreement.
"Sorry, but don't you all want your lunch break?" He said. "Anyway! It seems the match was a draw! And even if it had continued, I'm not even sure who would've won. Good job you two! You fought better than most Chunin. You all are free to do what you want. Class dismissed." Then he walked away, disappearing behind the doors.
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted, running forward with a bright smile on his face. "That was awesome! You totally kicked teme's ass!"
'Sakura-chan?' Sakura thought surprised.
"It was a draw dobe," Sasuke stated, bored. "Meaning no one won."
"Nu-uh!" The blond cried, looking smug. "You just don't want to admit she won!"
"You're delusional," the black haired boy said, sticking his hands into his pockets and starting to walk, Sakura followed after him, prompting Naruto to do the same.
"He's right Naruto-san," Sakura told the grinning boy as they entered the academy halls so they could get back to class and get their lunch. "I didn't win. Actually, Sasuke got in more hits than I did. We'll just have to see the next time we fight."
"Oh you're just being modest!" He exclaimed. "You were awesome! And what was that really awesome fighting style? It looked like you were break dancing!" This drew Sasuke's attention again and he looked at her expectantly, waiting for her explanation.
"My sister taught it to me," she told them. "It is based on dance though. It's called Capoeira . There was a civilization way back even before the first Hokage's time that used to use it. It was long forgotten and only a few people know it. But don't tell anyone. I don't want people researching it and stuff."
Both nodded and they entered the class, seeing only a few people there. They quickly took their lunches and headed back outside.
"And where do you think you're going?" Sakura asked Sasuke, when she saw him walking in a completely different direction.
"I'm going to the roof," he told the two, not stopping. Sakura looked at the ground dejected; she had thought that she had made a friend.
"Oh," she sighed, and Naruto looked at her sadly.
"…You guys can come if you want," he said, smirking a bit, but they couldn't see his expression since he was walking away from them. "Just don't be too annoying."
Sakura and Naruto both grinned at each other brightly before rushing to catch up.
Flashback;
It was dark. The clouds had covered the moon and the stars preventing her from seeing much in the trees around her. No matter, she could sense everything. Including the familiar chakra that was watching from above. And the person knew it too. After all, he didn't bother concealing it.
"You're back, I see," she said, not stopping her katas, only slowing down a little.
"And you're still here," he said, hopping down and walking towards her. She didn't bother turning around to face him for the girl knew he wouldn't attack her.
"Have you come to hear me out?" She asked, the smug tone in her voice evident.
"I have. But first, what is your name?" He asked her, his tone leaving no room for nonsense.
"My name? Well I suppose it's only fair…My name is Luna," she answered, finally stopping her exercise and turning to face him, her long ponytail whipping around.
"No last name?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I do not see how that is relevant," she answered him.
He watched her with a critical eye, trying to figure out this weird female in front of him. She was much like himself, never showing her true intentions, always hiding behind a mask, albeit hers was a mask of false emotion. And she was cunning. Not a person to underestimate. Yes, she was much like himself.
"You have learned the truth about your clan, have you not?" She asked, her yellow eyes glowing in the dark. "But it was sooner than I expected…Tell me how you did it?"
"It is none of your concern," he stated, staring blankly at her. "I have come to see exactly what you want."
She smirked and leaned forward to brush his shoulder.
"There was a leaf," she sat down on the plush grass and patted the spot next to her invitingly. "Sit. The night is quite cool around this hour." The black haired boy scrutinized her for a moment and then did as told, crossing his legs.
"What is it I want you ask?" She started, staring at the dark sky pensively "Well, Itachi-san, I want many, many things. But what I want with you is a…friend…. Someone to count on.… Another pair of ears… A partner. I have plans, many plans that can't afford to be interfered with."
"And do these plans include the destruction of Konoha?" He asked, observing her laid back form.
"Hmm…That is a tough question," Luna said to him, turning her head in his direction, watching him think about it. "No, they do NOT include Konoha's demise, but then again, if the situation calls for it, it is possible. Itachi, may I call you that? I don't think formalities are required between us. As I was saying, you are a very smart shinobi. Very gifted as well, judging by the ANBU attire you are now sporting…But one thing I am certain. You do not like conflict. I can see it in your eyes. And now that you are being sent on all these high ranking missions, you can see that Konoha isn't as good as you thought. Perhaps it is the war that rendered you a pacifist. I haven't seen you in one year and already you look like you hold the weight of the world on your shoulders. Is that normal? A twelve year old boy having already seen more deaths than most grown men have in their life time, and you performed more than half of them."
He knew it wasn't right. And he knew that she was right.
"So what exactly is it that you do want?" He asked her. She hmmed concomitantly and smiled at him.
"I told you. I want many things," She said to him, giving him a weird smile. "It's up to you to see if you will help me get what I want. You must judge me on what I've been saying then you must make your decision. I pity you. Having to decide where to go, who to trust…"
"Even after all that I've learnt about this village, its dark secrets and evil doings…I cannot betray it," Itachi told her, his face grave, looking ten times older than his actual age. "Instead all I can do is make it better. But this does not mean I will not be your partner. Your eyes and ears…your friend. If your goal is as you say it is then I will stop at nothing to make it a reality. But I am only doing this because of Sasuke. So that my little brother can live in a safe world that is not filled with hate and deceit. "
"Thank you." Luna said softly.
'So that he won't have to go through all that I have...' Itachi thought.
Hello there darling readers of mine!
I hope you are all doing well! I'm really sorry for taking so long to update this but I was sick and just didn't have the energy!
I am very happy to say that while I was down and under, I got a review from Cyndal91 which just made my day! That makes six reviews!
BUT! I am very disappointed with you guys...tons of people have read this(for which I am very grateful) but only a few have reviewed...I think it is time I explained something.
Reviews are very important to the author because it helps the writer to know what he/she is doing wrong so that they can fix it! A little constructive criticism can go a very long way! And, it also gives the author motivation to put out more chapters so that they can please their readers! Remember, a happy writer equals a productive writer!
So please, spare five minutes of your time and leave one! It doesn't even have to be very long!
Before I end this note, I MUST say thank you to my awesome and caring Beta reader who sent me a message asking about my wellbeing and quickly edited this chapter as a 'get-well-soon' present! That girl is AMAAZING! And she did an awesome job, like always...
I don't know where I'd be without her...
Anyway...Once again, PLEASE leave a review!
Lots of love,
Bluetopianprincess^o^