Broken Youth
(Life of Konoha Academy Teens)
CH1.3:Remember II

While Sai was drawing Ino, Sakura had gone to talk to Sasuke.

'I wonder why she's coming?' Thought Sasuke as Sakura walked towards him, with her flowers in her hand.
"Hey, Sasuke-kun what are you doing over here all alone?" asked Sakura politely.
"I don't know," he lied for he did know he was there because he was afraid of making a fool of him self in front of them.
"Oh," said Sakura. "So why did you come to the park in the first place?" she said trying to keep the conversation going.
"My brother Itachi ditched for his friends," said Sasuke with his arms crossed.
"My cousin Konan does that to me all the time and I hate it. Especially when she comes home and acts like it was no big deal," said Sakura.
"I know! And then they expect you to forgive them just like that," Sasuke said as he snapped his fingers.
"How old is you brother any way?" asked Sakura.
"He's nine almost ten," answered Sasuke.
"My cousin is nine also," said Sakura. "How old are you?"
"I'm six almost seven," said Sasuke.
"No fair! You're older than me I just turn six," said Sakura.

They grew quiet for some time. Sakura looked at the flowers which she held in her hand then asked, "Can I ask you a weird question Sasuke-kun?"
"Okay," said Sasuke.
"Out of all these flowers which one do you think suits me best?" said Sakura.
"None, there all ugly," said Sasuke with out thinking. 'Why is she asking something like that? She should know that she's a whole lot prettier then any of those flowers.' He told him self.
Sakura tilted her head down to hide her sadness.
When Sasuke realized what he had done he quickly said " I mean the flowers are okay, but none of them are good enough to to represent you," Sasuke said. Sakura lifted up her gaze. "Do you really want to know what flower I would choose?" he said looking up.
"Yes," said Sakura.
"Well, the prettiest flower that fits you would be the one that you are named after," Sasuke said his face starting to flush.
Sakura looked at the flowers over head and with a blush said " You really think so Sasuke-kun?"
"Why would I lie," was his reply.
Sakura smiled "I only wish I could get some, but they're to high for me to reach," Sakura sighed as she raised her hand high.
"I'll climb up and get you some," offered Sasuke.
"You really don't need to go thru all that trouble," said Sakura.
"Getting them won't be a problem!" said Sasuke.
"Okay, but please be careful," said Sakura.
"I'll be fine I climb trees all the time and I've never fell once," he bragged as he began to climb up the trunk. Sakura watched him as she placed down her flowers. When Sasuke got to the first thick branch he slid across it on his stomach to get a smaller branch that was full of flowers. He snapped it off and handed it to Sakura. Sakura had to tip-toe just to reach it. Sakura still had a worried look on her face. She went and set the cherry blossoms on top of her other flowers.
"Please be careful coming down," Sakura told Sasuke.

As Sasuke was backing up, the thing that Sakura feared occurred, Sasuke lost his balance and fell out of the tree. He knocked over Sakura who was standing just underneath him.

"Are you alright?" they both said in simultaneously after they hit the ground.

"Yeah," they both replied.

Sakura was laying flat on her back while Sasuke held himself up with his arms.

Sasuke and Sakura's faces were inches away from each other in the opposite direction. Sasuke's hands were by Sakura's shoulders.

Both Sakura and Sasuke stayed there looking at each other for a long time.

Sakura began to giggle."What are you laughing at?" asked Sasuke.

"Oh nothing really I just think you face looks funny upside down especially since it's red," Sakura told him making his face grow warmer.

After a moment Sasuke chuckled saying "You know I'm not the only one with a funny red face."

"Huh?" Sakura said as she touched her cheek with her hand. Her face then started blazing and turning a even darker red the ever before.

Sasuke kept chuckling as he lifted himself up off the ground. He clapped off the dirt off his hands then stood besides Sakura extending his arm to her. She took a hold of his hand and he gently lifted her up. Even after Sasuke had picked her up, their hands were still connected. They stood gazing in each others eyes for a while. When Sasuke finally realized what he was doing he quickly released her hand and turned away, his face starting to blush again.

Sakura smiled and said "Thank you!"

Sasuke looked at her and chuckled, then with a smirk on his face he said "You're annoying." yet he thought: 'I fall on you and instead of yelling at me you laugh. Sakura you truly are a strange girl and somehow I'm starting to like you.'

Sakura felt a bit bad about Sasuke's comment but deep down she knew he didn't really mean it.

Sasuke started to move away from the shadow of the trees into the sunlight. He sat down and let the breeze clash on his face. He looked at Sakura who was still standing and signaled her to sit by him. Sakura sat behind Sasuke their backs pressing against each other. Sasuke leaned his head against Sakura's. Both of them stared up at the lovely baby blue sky that was full of big puffy clouds.

"Um...Sasuke-kun?" Sakura said after a while.

"Yeah?" he replied.

"I want to give you something, to repay you the nice things you have done for me today," said Sakura.

"You know you don't have to repay me, I did what I did cause I wanted to not because I had to," responded Sasuke.

"I know, but I still want you to have this." Sakura said as she bent her hand backward and handed him something.

He took it from her held it in between his fingers. "A marble?" In Sasuke's hand there was a big red with black blotches on it (it looked a little like the sharingan). He smiled as he looked at it.

"It's nothing special I know but I thought it would be more use to you than it is to me."

"It's awesome, I really like it! Especially since it almost looks like an eye," said Sasuke.

"You like it?" Sakura asked a bit surprised.

"Of course I do, it's really cool, and besides you gave it to me," said Sasuke as he put it in his pocket. "I'm tired of just sitting around, why don't we play...tag, you're it," he said as he tagged her on the shoulder and stood up and began to run away.

"Hey, no fair," said Sakura as she got up and chased after him. He ran past Sai and Ino, Sai had just finished another drawing.

"Tag," Sakura told Ino.

"No, Sai's it!" she said as she tagged him.

He chased after them, but then decided to go after an easier pray.

''You're it," he told Naruto.

"Wait, Hinata's it," Naruto said tagging her.

The six children were soon running all over the park. They were having more fun than they ever had; They didn't never wanted to stop, but had to when their parents came to take them home.

The adults stood at the edge of the park all calling their child's name. Naruto was the first to leave, he said his farewells to everyone, and with a wink as he passed Hinata he ran to his mother's open arms. Hinata followed, she said goodbye and gave them all an innocent smile as she skipped to her father's side. Sakura was next to leave, as she was leaving Sai stopped her saying "Wait, have this," he said as he tore a page from his sketchbook and handed it to her. Sakura looked at it and smiled, it was a picture of Sasuke and her sitting back-to-back. That was only one of the two of the pictures he had drawn of them, the other one, was drawing of them after Sasuke fell from the tree and the one Ino asked him to draw. He was going to keep the other one for himself at least for the time being.

Sakura not only thanked him but also Sasuke and Ino by saying "I'm grateful for having friends like you, Thank you!" They all wove goodbye to her as she left.

Sasuke left without saying a word he only gave a simple wave then he dashed off to his mother who greeted him with a smile.

Ino and Sai looked at each other for a moment. "Here I want you to have this," he said handing her the portrait of herself.

"If you give me this then how will you remember me?" asked Ino.

"A face like yours isn't something that is easily forgotten," he said with a smile. Ino blushed then took out a small pack of crayons from her back pocket and gave it to him.

"Here, so you can add some color to your black and white world," Ino told him with one last smile before sprinting off to her father.

"Thank you, Ino, you don't know how much this means to me," he said to himself as he slowly walked to his uncle Danzo.

All of the children wished to see each other again soon.

They all kept their precious gifts from that day. Those items that would seem worthless to others and were priceless to them. They kept their cherished gifts somewhere close to them so that they would never forget their significance of friendship and love.

Naruto's butterfly, Sasuke's marble, Sai's crayons, Hinata's pebble, Ino's portrait, and Sakura's cherry blossoms were all kept to remember that everlasting friendship.

End of part 1.3