Hello friends. I highly doubt anyone reading this are any of my old followers, it has been nearly 10 years since I have been completely active. I am really grateful to my new readers! And I am so happy so many of you are reading this story.

Sakura sighed, tempted to both scream and cry. Like always it felt like she was the only sane member of their team. And yet, with the images of strangling the two people who were the most important to her in the world running through her mind, she highly doubted she would be passing any sanity tests. her two idiots would decide to start fighting at a time they should be focused on their cover stories. They were infuriating at almost all times. How did I go wrong with my life?

Still, as she walked into the home of Tazuna and his family, her two boys followed closely behind her, and she felt her regrets and anger slip away. NO matter how infuriating her teammates were and how out of control her life had become, the truth of the matter was that she was blessed. A smart civilian with little to her other than looks would have been easy prey for the world. She shook her head, shaking off THAT train of thought with ease. Now was most definitely not the time to dwell on trauma and past thoughts.

Instead, she shooed Naruto and Sasuke ahead of her, "Kakashi sensei is injured right now, and we have enemies around. Naruto!" She pointed at him, eyes narrowing as she caught his hand halfway towards poking the Uchiha standing next to him. Breathe, don't yell, be calm. How could this fool be a leader and a man nearly 20 years old? she breathed deeply, stomping down on her anger. "Go get food put together, enough for everyone and Tazuna's family. We owe them for taking us in"

"Ma'am yes Ma'am, Sakura!' He grinned brilliantly at her, snapping to attention and giving an across the shoulder salute. With that he scurried out to most likely go catch some easy game, and also, most likely pick some herbs for flavor.

Don't smack him. She felt her lips stretch into a stiff, and pissed off smile. Shaking her head, she sighed so heavily, all her tension just dropped out of her. Whatever, she was used to his antics. Sakura looked around, eyeing the kitchen and familiarizing herself with the space. She was surprised that no one else was up yet, but since the sun was still barely even noticeable, perhaps she shouldn't have been surprised. from what she could barely remember, Tazuna's daughter had stayed up late into the night tending to Kakashi.

"You know, I think it's still weird that getting mad for you can make you relax." Sakura blinked, startled by his words.

"Our best friend is basically a hyper storage box that likes to befriend killers and this is what's weird to you." She was flushing, her ears heated slightly. Still, she couldn't help the teasing lilt from her voice as she tucked her hair gently behind her left ear. "I think maybe you need me to give you an examination Sasuke. You are obviously suffering from the adverse effects of that idiot's shenanigans."

She cracked a wide grin seeing him snort, his eyes wide in surprise at her own antics. Silly boy, they weren't in a warzone, she wasn't going to be tensed up forever and take his prickly words easily. and it would never not be funny how shy he got at any type of teasing from her.

"Come on. I need to go check on Kakashi sensei, and you should stand guard outside the room. You need to pull that old angsty teenager look back together. You look entirely too mellow for your age." she sauntered past him, gently bumping his shoulder, "Naruto will always be Naruto, and I am well used to acting the part of ditzy fangirl. I think this will ironically be much harder on you."

She kept her tone light, as Sasuke nodded, frowning and looking away. She knew that her words were an understatement of epic proportions. Sasuke younger, was a rolling mess of all sorts of instability, and antagonism. This mission especially, seeing how weak he was when faced with someone clearly weaker than the wall that was his brother, was an especially turbulent time.

"Hn.'

She giggled, spotting a small smirk on his lips that he was barely hiding in the shadows of his face. It was nice to be young again. Especially since so many of the weights holding them back in the past were gone. Funny, the whole world depended on them, but Sakura felt freer and more fulfilled than she had nearly her whole life.

She climbed the stairs, ears tuned towards the sounds of Tazuna his daughter and grandson somewhere in the house. The breathing she identified as the daughter starting to stutter as the woman started to wake with the rising dawn. Sakura picked up the pace, stopping in front of the closed door hiding her sensei. She breathed deeply, mentally preparing herself for what was bound to be a very weird experience.

She started to sweat, her pulse picking up and she mentally brought back those old memories of constant anxiety, and worry that she was ugly, weak, unwanted. Her hand shook with a fine tremble as she forced herself to truly reexperience the reality of her genin days. Next to her, she felt Sasuke stride over, giving her an empty stair as he callously leaned against the wall behind her, directly across from their sensei's room.

She bit her lip, readying herself to give a knock on the door that, from her old fears and worries, now seemed to be in a purple glow of impending doom and evidence. What was behind this door was evidence that she was not enough. She froze, surprised slightly by how illogical she used to feel all the time. How much she let her own worries and self flagellation held her back.

She was so different now. Sakura steeled herself, ignoring Sasuke's worried gaze that he was failing to hide from her senses. She could do this, it was simple.

"Come in." She blinked, concentration shattered as she blushed. She had dithered so much that Kakashi was already up and aware. This was it. She breathed in, pushing the door open and taking her first look in forever at her Sensei.

He was so young. Was her first thought. He was so cold. Was the second.

More prevalent than the treated wounds on their teacher, was the tone and manner he spoke. Those eyes closed in an easy going grin, hid everything he felt. His demeanor was closed off and alien. Had he figured them out? Or even worse. Sakura pushed down her fears. It was not the time, she couldn't dwell.

But even as she felt tears come to her eyes as she started to apologize to her teacher for being weak, for not being able to help in his fight against the demon in the mist, she couldn't quite silence her inner voice.

What if he had been this cold to them from the start, and they never realized? It was preposterous, but she knew this man so well. His guilt and his fears and his worries. He wasn't on guard from her acting unusual, or from a higher enemy. This was the gaze of stranger keeping himself at a distance.