Song of a Cherry Blossom
by Diana-san

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Chapter 4

Sakura took a deep breath as she stood in front of the classroom door. Ugh. I don't want to see that jerk. Why does he have to be sitting in the back of me?

Sakura sighed and turned the doorknob and went inside. The classroom was just as chaotic as yesterday and students were milling around and talking to each other. Some of the guys were throwing erasers and small objects at each other. Sakura scanned the room and saw no signs of the obnoxious raven-head. Sakura grinned as she went to sit down in her seat. She placed her schoolbag down on the floor and took out a book.

"Good morning, Sakura-chan!" a cheery voice yelled out.

Sakura looked up from her book and into the cheerful face of Naruto. "Morning Naruto," Sakura replied back.

Naruto sat down in the seat in front of Sakura and glanced at the book Sakura was holding. "What's that?" he asked as he pointed to the book. Sakura held the book up to his face so that he could read the title of the book. "Our homework assignment," Sakura explained. "Didn't you do it?" Sakura inquired.

Naruto blinked twice. "We had homework?" he asked.

Sakura laughed. "Yes, didn't you read the board?

Naruto scratched his head. "I think I was sleeping that time."

Sakura sighed. "Well, just cross your fingers that Kakashi-sensei doesn't call you up to explain what the book was about."

Naruto groaned. "Even if I did knew about the assignment, how could I finish reading a book in a day?"

"It's only a short story, Naruto."

"Reading is boring though."

Sakura shook her head. "But sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do." Like serve drinks to an arrogant jerk.

"Oh well. I'll just make something up if I get called on," Naruto said with a grin. Naruto thought for a moment before saying, "Say, where do you eat lunch at?"

"Lunch?" Sakura asked. Naruto nodded. Sakura looked out the window. "Well, I sit by the shady areas of the trees in the courtyard."

"Alright. I'll come find you there."

"Huh?"

Naruto grinned. "Let's eat lunch together!"

Sakura looked at the smiling face of Naruto and couldn't help but smile herself. Sakura nodded. "Okay."

Suddenly a few squeals went up in the room and Sakura looked to see what caused the commotion. She frowned when she saw who it was. She eyed the man with black hair that was rebelliously spiked with bangs that hung over his eyes. Just thinking about him made her head hurt.

Sasuke walked over to the last row and passed by Sakura without a word as he sat down in his seat.

Kakashi walked in and set his briefcase on top of the desk. "Alright, kiddies! Let's begin class!"

The bell rang signaling the end of the class. Sakura quickly packed up her stuff and grabbed her schoolbag and swung it over her shoulders.

"Sakura-chan! I'll find you outside in the courtyard!" Naruto said.

Sakura nodded. "Okay then."

She walked out and went outside to the courtyard. She walked over o the grove of trees and sat down. Under the shady leaves of the tree, she leaned against the trunk of one of the trees and closed her eyes. Even though it was fall, the weather still felt like summer. A nice breeze tickled against the back of Sakura's neck as Sakura tied her hair in a messy bun. Sakura opened her bag and brought her lunch out. She opened up the bento that contained her lunch. Meat and fish along with cooked vegetables laid on one side of the bento and the other side was the rice portion. She used her chopsticks and pondered over which she should eat first. She glanced up and gazed at the students eating lunch in the distance and continued to watch them as she ate.

She smiled when she saw a familiar blond head walking towards her. She waved to him to get his attention and the blond quickly ran over.

"Hey," Sakura said as Naruto sat down beside her. She noticed something in his hands and looked at it with interest. "What's that?" she inquired as she pointed to it.

Naruto opened his hand up and it revealed a bowl of instant ramen. Sakura stared bug-eyed at it. "How are you going to eat that?" she asked.

Naruto took out a thermos. "I'll just pour hot water on it and wait three minutes. But I always hated waiting the three minutes."

Sakura laughed quietly. She picked up a vegetable with her chopsticks and took a bite. "You seem different from the rest of the kids."

Naruto looked up from his bowl of ramen, his chopsticks raised up in the air. "Huh?" Naruto said between mouthfuls. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you don't seem to be overly obsessed with money like those other rich kids. You actually seem… well… normal."

Naruto lowered his chopsticks. "That's because I'm not rich."

Sakura looked at Naruto with confusion written in her emerald eyes. "What do you mean? Does that mean you got in with a scholarship?"

Naruto almost choked on his ramen. "Well, people say I'm a genius," he bragged. "But I'm not exactly the scholarship type."

"People say you are a genius?" Sakura asked.

"Okay, so they don't."

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Then what?"

Naruto set his bowl down on the grass and placed his chopsticks on top of the bowl. "Well, for starters, Sasuke and I are friends."

Sakura nearly choked on her food. "You guys? Friends? You two don't seem to have that friendly, brotherly bond."

"My parents and his parents were friends from way back and so Sasuke and I knew each other. After my parents died, the Uchihas took me in and treated me like I was another son. Since Sasuke's father owned this school, naturally, I went here too."

"Wait a minute. Sasuke owns this school?"

"Actually, his dad does."

"He OWNS this school?"

Naruto nodded. Sakura gazed into the distance in disbelief. "Oh my god. Uchiha Sasuke… Uchiha Corporation." Sakura said in realization. Sakura slapped her head with her hand. "I can't believe I called the heir to the Uchiha Corporation a chicken head," she muttered.

Naruto laughed. "I love that name. It always gets to him every time and pisses him off when we were young." Naruto stopped laughing when he saw Sakura with a frown. "But, didn't you know he was an Uchiha?"

"Well, yes. But my brain must have been elsewhere."

"Have you been watching the news? The company is expanding out to other countries and getting bigger each year. When Sasuke turns eighteen, he's going to be the new president of Uchiha Corporation."

Sakura laughed nervously. "Well, I don't really watch the news. Or read the paper for that matter."

Naruto laughed. "So, what about you?"

"Huh? What about me?"

Naruto leaned against the tree. "You know… your life. You're a scholarship student right?"

The pink-headed girl nodded. "A music scholarship." Sakura brought her knees up to her chins and wrapped her arms around them. "My life?" Sakura asked softly.

Naruto nodded slowly. Sakura stared up at the trees. The wind was blowing swiftly against the branches and the leaves were drifting slowly down to the ground as autumn should have it. A small green leaf fell into the open palm of Sakura's hand and Sakura clutched it tightly. "I'm an only child. My parents loved me dearly. They would always put my needs ahead of their own needs. They were the two most unselfish people I ever knew in my whole life," Sakura said softly as she played with the leaf. Naruto sat still and listened intently. Sakura looked out onto the campus grounds with a faraway gaze in her emerald green eyes. The light shade of green was glistened with tears but they dared not to fall.

Sakura closed her eyes. "It seemed so long ago… since that accident…" Sakura's voice faltered but she continued on, "I was packing my things since we were going to my grandparent's house…"

"Sakura! Hurry up! We need to get going to Grandma's," Sakura's mom yelled as she stuck her head out from behind the door.

"Alright, alright," Sakura grumbled as she jumped off from her luggage. "I don't see why we have to visit them. They probably don't even want to see us. It's just one of those family gatherings where everyone is putting on a fake smile and pretending that there is nothing wrong."

"Sakura, they are your grandparents and they are my parents. We have to go and visit them."

"Why? Why do we have to go see them? They always looked down on Dad just because he was of lower status. But you went ahead and married him because you didn't care what they think. Now, they are always pushing on me and wanting me to marry into a rich family so that I wouldn't turn out like their only daughter. I hate them for belittling Dad and I hate their false love. They don't care about me. They just want me to marry into a good family so that I can make them proud," Sakura spat out in disgust.

"Sakura," her mom said in a warning tone. "They are your…"

Sakura interrupted. "Yes, I know. They are my grandparents after all," she mimicked her mother's tone. "But if they were really my grandparents, then they shouldn't treat Dad like that. Sometimes even I feel that they see me as inferior and that I'm not their granddaughter."

"Sakura, honey. They do love you. They love you very much and care about you deeply. They even paid for all of your lessons."

Sakura looked at her mom. "They are only paying for all those lessons because they feel guilty for not being there when I was younger. When you and Dad got married, they shut you two out of their lives because they didn't approve, right? Then they learned that you had a child but I was already twelve when they found out. To make up for that lost time spent with me as their only granddaughter, they agreed to pay for everything for me. Piano lessons, guitar lessons, dance lessons, and self-defense class. But other than that, what love did they truly show me?"

Sakura zipped up her duffel bag. "I don't know what grandparents do but everyone tells me all these stories of how their grandma would bake them delicious cookies and knit them sweaters they would never wear in public. Their grandpa would go fishing with them and at dinner, tell them old war jokes that everyone's heard a million times. Even though everyone complains of having to visit their grandparents, I know that they liked that bonding time they have with them. Something that I will never be able to experience."

"Sakura…"

Sakura looked at her mom with a cheerful smile. "Forget it Mom. I will be on my best behavior when we get there, okay?"

Sakura's mom nodded and the two walked out. Sakura lugged her luggage out her bedroom and carried it downstairs. She got in the car and slumped down in her seat. She got out her CD player and placed the headphones on her ears. Sakura turned up the volume and closed her eyes. It was going to be a long ride.

When Sakura opened her eyes, she saw that the car was already parked in front of her grandparent's house. The house was surrounded by a large number of tall trees. It was on the outskirts of a small town that was 40 miles away from Konoha.

Sakura went to the trunk of the car and began to unload the luggage. "Don't worry, I got it Dad," Sakura said as her dad tried to help.

When Sakura was sure that her parents were already inside the house, she sighed in relief. "Now, I just have to see how much time I can waste standing out here with the luggage before they tell me to go in," Sakura muttered to herself.

Before long, Sakura was made to go in and she reluctantly stepped inside the grand house. Sakura's grandmother came running over and gave Sakura a big hug. Sakura gave a little hug back as she tried not to suffocate from the tight squeezing. Her grandfather came and ruffled her hair and Sakura smiled lightly.

After some light talking between her parents and her grandparents, they sat down for dinner. On Sakura's plate was a lavish looking steak. Sakura picked up the steak knife and poked at the piece of meat.

"This looks like rubber," she muttered to herself.

"Honey, did you say something?" Sakura's mom asked.

Sakura looked up with a startled look. "Oh no, I was just saying how nice the steak was done," she lied.

Her grandfather waved his fork at Sakura. "You should eat up, Sakura. You're looking skinny." He turned to Sakura's mother. "Mebuki," he addressed her. "Haven't you been feeding the girl?" he chided.

"Grandpa," Sakura interjected before her mother could say anything. "Mom's been taking very good care of me."

"Well, if you say so Sakura," he said as he cut into his steak.

Sakura took a quick glance at her mom and saw a sad expression on her mother's face. Sakura sighed and began to cut a small piece of the steak. Frankly, she couldn't bring herself to enjoy the food because it would seem as if she was giving in to their rich and comfortable lifestyle. She raised the fork with the piece of steak attached to it to her mouth and looked at everyone seated at the table. She felt as if they were all watching her eat even though each person was concerned with their own meal. Sakura ate the piece of steak and chewed thoughtlessly. The savory taste of the steak covered in sauce melted in her mouth but all she could taste was dryness. She felt uncomfortable at the table since it was quiet and the only sounds came from the clinking of forks hitting against the fine dinner plates.

The silence was finally broken when her grandmother began to speak. "Sakura, have you had your eye on any nice young man?"

"Grandma!" Sakura exclaimed with a faint blush to her cheeks.

"Mother! Sakura is only sixteen," Sakura's mother exclaimed after her daughter.

"Hah! Girls are married at sixteen and I was married when I was sixteen," Sakura's grandmother retorted.

"Grandma, they need parental consent to marry at sixteen," Sakura replied coolly.

"Well, I give you my 100 percent consent," Sakura's grandmother answered.

"You're not my mother."

"That's right," Sakura's mother said. "I am her mother and you shouldn't be pushing Sakura into marriage so quickly. She's only sixteen and still has high school to finish."

Sakura's grandmother looked at her only daughter, Mebuki. "Did I ask for your opinion? I was only merely asking if Sakura has met anyone she liked yet."

"Mother! For Christ's sake! Your only reason for asking was because you want her to get married."

"And so what if I do? She's a bright girl with a bright future ahead of her. I don't want you to ruin her future by making her marry some pauper."

Sakura's mother stood up angrily. "And what is that suppose to mean? Are you still holding something against me after all these years? Do you still not approve of the choice that I chose to make?"

Sakura's grandmother stood up. "Of course, I don't. I never did. How could I approve of something that went completely against what I believed in? I raised you up as a fine lady so that you can have the best. I sent you to all the good schools and eventually knew that you would be married into a good family. But instead, you did the unexpected. You dropped out of college because you met somebody and then decided to get married. You knew I didn't approve and yet, you went ahead and eloped!"

"But you know what? I do have the best!" Sakura's mother yelled. "I have a loving husband and a beautiful daughter. I finally found happiness which is something that I never had in this house when I lived here with you and dad. I was always miserable here in this house! I hated it here and I still do!"

Sakura stood up. "Stop it! The both of you! I had enough of all this yelling." Sakura slammed her hands against the table which caused the glasses of wine and Sakura's apple cider to shake. "I had enough! You all make me sick! I hate you all!"

Sakura grabbed the jacket that was hanging on her chair and stormed off. All of the grown-ups stood up and called after her but she ignored every one of their cries.

Sakura opened the door and ran outside into the cold. It was not dark yet and the sky was just a dim shade of dark blue. Sakura shoved her hands into the pockets of her jacket and walked off into the woods. She didn't know how long she was walking but the fresh smell of cedar and pine made her feel comfortable as her feet stomped on the crunching leaves. The cool wind blew through her hair and it whipped against her face.

The pink-headed girl sighed. "I guess I should head back now," she muttered. The sky was starting to darken and stars began to littered across the night sky. As she walked closer back to the house, she heard loud screams and lots of shouting and yelling. Quickly, Sakura started to run and when she came to the edge of the woods, she stood with her feet planted firmly on the ground as she stared in shock.

The magnificent house was now erupted in flames and smoke rose into the night sky. Two fire trucks were parked out in front of the house and firefighters were busy trying to put out the flames. Some other people who drove up in cars stopped to stare in horror.

Sakura ran from her frozen place and up to one of the firefighters. She grabbed him by the collar of his jacket and shook him hard. "My parents," she screamed. "Where are they?!"

The fireman placed his hands calmly on top of Sakura's shaking hands. "Is this your house?" he asked calmly.

Sakura removed her hands from his jacket. "I-it's my grandparents' house."

Several men came out of the burning house and came up to the man who Sakura grabbed. "Chief," one of them said. "There seems to be no survivors."

Sakura stared at the ground with a stunned look on her face. She drowned out the rest of the words and ran towards the burning house.

"Miss! Stay away!" several of the firefighters yelled out. Sakura ignored their shouts and continued to run. Before she could make it to the door, two men grabbed onto each of her arms. Sakura struggled to escape from their firm grip.

"Let me go!" she shrieked. "I have to go. I have to save them."

The two men held on to Sakura's arms still and Sakura collapsed on the ground with tears spilling out and she collapsed in sobs. "WHY?" she screamed out before her head fell against the dirt floor of the ground. She let the tears fall out and watched the chaos around her.

The two firefighters who were holding Sakura's arms let go and stood beside her. Sakura fingered the dirt on the ground and tears continued to fall freely down her moistened cheeks. "I never… I never got to apologize… for saying all those things…"

Sakura closed her eyes and the sirens, the screams, the shouts, and the yelling all disappeared into silence.

"Miss," someone said softly and shook Sakura's shoulders gently. Sakura's eyes fluttered open. A man with gray hair and gentle brown eyes was looking at her and shaking her. It was the same man who Sakura grabbed by the collar.

"Miss," he continued on. "Do you have somewhere to go?"

Sakura shook her head. "N-no," she croaked.

The next thing she knew, she was riding in the ambulance. She closed her eyes as she hugged the blanket that was given to her before the ride. She refused to cry anymore. She had already cried her heart and soul out.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Naruto said softly.

Sakura turned to look at the blond. She smiled. "It's alright. I got through it. I'm okay now."

They stayed silent as Naruto watched the pink-headed girl staring off into space. "It's not whether you fall or not, but whether you choose to get up when you're down," Sakura murmured the saying her mom would always tell her.

The bell rang which signaled the end of lunch. "Let's get to class, Naruto."

Naruto nodded and helped Sakura up. Sakura smiled. "Enough of all this sad talk. Let's go learn."

Naruto groaned. "That's even sadder talk."

Sakura rolled her eyes and dragged Naruto by the collar of his shirt. "C'mon. I don't want to be late."

Sakura finished lacing up her sneakers as she got ready for her next class. Gym was over and she only had one more period to go. She glanced at her schedule. This was the class that I missed yesterday.

A deep sigh escaped her lips as she realized what class it was. I can't believe I missed the first day of what should be my most favorite class.

Slinging her schoolbag over her shoulders, she walked down the hallway of the third floor of the school building. She turned a corner at the end of the hallway and then another small turn in the corridor. She stopped in front of a door marked with the numbers 300. The tardy bell rang and Sakura pushed the door opened.

Sakura blinked her eyes twice to see if she was seeing things correctly. It was slightly dusty inside and looked more like the inside of a supply closet than a music classroom. There was not a single soul in sight.

"Where is everybody?"