Sakura almost groaned as she watched Martina drop her bag, the grin still on her face. Did she want to fight her now?

"Hey, forehead girl," The girl suddenly said. "You think you're so cool because you stole Sasuke's first kiss, huh?"

Was this girl really serious? Sakura was not in the mood for this! How did she even find her way on Martina's hall of all places.

"It was an accident," said Sakura, hoarsely. Her throat was tight from crying. "You can even ask him."

"Ask him?" the girl scoffed. "he's cool. You don't ask cool people lame questions, dummy!"

Sakura just blinked at her. She was crazy.

"So," said Sakura awkwardly. "Can I leave now?"

Martina narrowed her eyes at her, a nasty smirk on her face.

"No." She said. "I have a surprise for you."

A surprise!?

Sakura's head began to hurt. However, it was not as worse as it was back in the classroom, and she felt she could hold her own this time.

"Leave me alone, Martina. Please, I'm not feeling well."

And with that thought in mind, she remembered what she was doing: Running.

"I-I have to go!" Sakura almost pleaded with the girl, and made to skirt around her. Down the hall was the double doors that led outside.

The girl moved forward suddenly, so fast Sakura didn't have time to react when she was grabbed in an armlock.

"Ahhh!"

she cried out as she went into the air over the girl's back, and hit the floor.

Her body hurt too much to cry.

"Ha, she's even weak. A simple move like that shouldn't have been a problem for you if you were really a ninja, civilian girl." Martina spat that last part out, and crouched before her head.

Why can't she just leave me alone!?

The girl grabbed a fistful of her hair, and lifted her to her face.

"Listen, you messed up pink-haired freak. You kissed Sasuke with those cursed lips of yours," she got close in her face with a smile.

"And now your village's curse won't be the only thing that will kill you."

Sakura gasped, staring at her. What was she talking about? What curse?

As if to answer her question, the sounds of distant shooting and blood filled her head, the lullaby of her life. She shrieked in surprise and shut her eyes to shake them out.

Martina just threatened her, something their teachers told them never to do in a school setting. If Sakura told on her...

The girl seemed to note Sakura's thoughts and she shoved down her head painfully.

"Don't even think about telling on me!"

She snarled. "I know people in your stupid village. I can get them to kill a certain Haruno family easily."

Wait a minute! That was going to far.

Sakura felt her heart stop for a moment, then she looked up with a glower at her, thinking of her parents.

"You can hurt me," she snarled, a

shocking the girl. "but you can't hurt my family!"

The girl looked stricken for a moment, then she growled and raised her hand to slap her.

"You shouldn't have come here, you little prick!"

Sakura braced for impact.

There was a slap of skin, but Sakura didn't feel pain. Slowly, she raised her head, and gaped.

Martina's hand was stopped midway, caught in someone's grip.

"I come in here to this."

A calm voice stated with a sigh, and Sakura and Martina looked up to see Sasuke Uchiha.

When did he get here!?

Was lunch already over?

He gave them a look of disdain.

"Sasuke, I-" started Martina, her whole demeanor changing with a hard blush. Sakura dropped to the ground when she released her hair. "We-"

"Who picks on the weak and call themselves real ninja? Why are you even going to this academy?"

He asked bluntly, a hand in his pocket. The other held Martina's wrist.

Martina seemed to almost faint, whether from embarrassment or because of her obsession with the boy, Sakura did not know.

"I was just... testing her!" she cried.

"Y-yeah." She waved in Sakura's general direction. "She looks so pitiful right? Plus, she's from that awful Haruno village. I was just making sure she knew her place in case she decided to kill us all!"

Sakura gasped at her. What the heck!? What more lies would this girl tell to get on Sasuke's good side? Why would she ever want to kill anyone?

Sasuke's gaze narrowed, dropping her arm. "That's a pretty big assumption about someone who keeps to herself."

"I-I-its her plan!" Martina shouted. "Quiet girls are the deadliest, you know. Especially ones with the nine tailed curse all over her!" she pointed accusingly at Sakura, eyes teary as she looked at Sasuke.

Sakura was watching in horror.

What is she saying?

However, Sasuke didn't look concerned at Sakura's potential evil, he just gave her a look and held out a hand.

"Need help?"

She realized she was still on the ground.

Sakura nodded, blushing when their hands touched and she was reminded of the accident earlier that led to the kiss.

She didn't look him in the eye, especially when Martina seemed to breathe down her neck with jealousy.

Sasuke turned to her again, eyes narrowed.

"You're in my way."

Martina looked beaten by those words. Her voice was hoarse as she tried again.

"Sasuke, I overheard it with the Hokage himself! Please, you have to see she's no good!"

Sasuke gave her a hard look, much to the girls' surprise.

Sakura watched with inner victory as the girl scurried out of his way, eyes down in shame.

However, she wasn't done. As Sakura went to follow Sasuke, she moved forward too.

"Sorry!" She cried, and quickly grabbed Sakura by her collar.

Wait, what!?

She was yanked by her side, pressed to her body. Sasuke stopped walking to turn to them.

"We'll leave." she crooned. And inside Sakura's head she yelled no! as she was led away toward the girls bathroom.

"Wait-" Sakura began in a panic.

An arm snaked around Sakura's waist then, stopping their progression effectively.

The owner spoke up over her head. "She's walking with me."

Sakura looked up at Sasuke, not believing her ears. Was he really saving her?

Shocked, the orange-haired girl quickly let go of Sakura, who coughed and rubbed at her neck.

She'd left no mercy in pulling her.

"Oh! Sorry," exclaimed Martina falsely. "you should have said something before, Sasuke."

Sasuke gave her a look that said he didn't care.

"Lets go," stated the boy to no one in particular, and turned to walk up the hall where the classrooms began. Sakura was hesitant, but moved when she realized he was going to leave her with Martina.

"Sasuke,wait!" she said, moving to cross his path.

He stopped, looking surprised at her movement.

Sakura wanted to ask Martina what she'd been talking about about her home and herself, about how she knew what the Hokage knew, but she didn't want to do it alone.

And Sasuke was helping her now.

"Sasuke, I-I-I need-" she stammered, but Sasuke put up a hand before she could manage a word.

"I only got involved because I don't like to see people pick on the weak. I don't want any part of your predicament."

Sakura's mouth was left open.

After a few moments of awkward silence on her part, he moved around her to continue to class.

"It's better for you not to know, anyway. Whatever it is that girl was spouting."

Sakura stared at the tiles under her feet, heart pounding with the urge to say she did need to know, but too afraid to speak.

Being shy, that was the real curse.

The halls began to fill with feet and kids returning from the lunchroom, and, startled at the noise, Sakura stood frozen.

Oh,Gods. I have to go back to class!

She started to move, then halted as Iruka-sensei's face entered her mind.

The monster's face underneath.

She gulped and backed a step.

Martina and Sasuke had left already and the children from lunch were starting to show themselves in the hall. If any of them saw her just standing there, she'd become a laughing stock.

So, Sakura sucked in her gut and moved back to her class.

Iruka-sensei was sitting at his desk, reading his notes, when she entered in. All of her classmates, including Sasuke, was there.

She gulped, spotting Ino and Naruto bantering with their peers, and she was struck with the horrid thought that they might hate her now.

Especially the teacher.

"Sakura," said Iruka-sensei, smiling up at her. She was surprised.

He wasn't...angry?

Iruka-sensei gestured to her seat beside Ino and Sasuke, Naruto behind them.

"Have a seat, Sakura. I want to say something to all of you."

Sakura hesitantly moved to sit, unwilling to meet anyone in the eye. She felt her heart beating erratically as their teacher stood.

He was going to tell everyone that she yelled at him and took off out of the classroom during lunch.

Her life would be ruined.

"I want to say something about Haruno Sakura, everyone."

Here it comes.

"I've been hearing rumors from everyone concerning her village. I keep hearing that she has a curse. Anyone know who brought that up?" No one spoke.

"That's, right, because it didn't come from this class but Anki's down the hall. Now, I want you all to understand something here. Sakura is no threat to us. And she is as much a victim to her village as if anyone of us went inside it."

Then he smiled warmly at her, which made her blush deepen.

"Everyone is equal here and no one will treat your birth any different. As you know, Naruto has the nine-tailed fox inside him."

Sakura expected everyone to react to this, some kind of exclamation or something, but no one did.

Naruto's hand touched her shoulder then, and she looked over at him.

His blue eyes were full of tears, but he was smiling.

"Who cares if you got a curse, we'll protect you anyway."

"Cause you're a part of this class," Ino spoke beside her. When Sakura looked at her, she playfully punched her shoulder. "And run like that again, I'll kill you," she laughed. "You didn't even get to eat!"

What? I don't understand. Why are they being so nice to me?

They must have planned this while she was deciding whether to come back or not.

She caught someone watching her then, and turned to see Sasuke nod his head.

That little movement from him broke her.

She cried into her arms hard, snot stuffing her nose and her throat getting raw.

People began to touch her back and murmur well wishes to her. It felt like the whole class.

No way are people this kind. No way am I living in such a moment like this.

No way...

She smelled something like food near her suddenly, and she raised her head a little.

A boy with swirls on his wide cheeks held out a box of ramen to her. Choji, she remembered.

Her stomach growled for the food he offered her.

"You never ate, so everyone decided to give you this."

"Th-thank you," she said quietly, taking it. A girl with short black hair and clear-colored eyes handed over some chopsticks, blushing as she did so. "H-h-here, Sakura. Th-this is for you." Sakura knew her to be Hinata. Her voice was soft as pillows.

Sakura grinned at her, her spirits soaring as she looked at everyone.

Then at Iruka-sensei.

Even though they all must have thought she ran out of the room because of a different reason, she was still very happy.

Especially because she never had to tell them the truth.

The day was over quickly afterwards, a thick stack of ninjutsu and taijutsu techniques in everyone's hands. After their speech to Sakura, everyone had buckled down to work like nothing had happened. Sakura was happy about that, but she knew Iruka-sensei would want to talk to her afterwards, so she waited while everyone left after Iruka-sensei's signal.

She stood to approach his desk where he sat grading worksheets.

He smiled. "So, Haruno. Is it time to go talk to the Hokage?"

Sakura remembered what Martina said about her overhearing the third Hokage talking about her curse, and spoke.

"Martina said something about hearing the Hokage mention about me and the- my- curse." She stumbled over the words. She wasn't used to thinking of her village as such. She always figured her people's evil ways were due to their own thoughts.

"It's really similar to the Uchiha's."

Spoke Iruka-sensei.

She looked up at him with astonishment.

Really!?

"But, more importantly, Martina Santos should not have been near the Hokage office at all. I'll have a talk with her teacher." Then he looked closer at her.

"When did she tell you this?"

"When I...ran, she came out of nowhere and..." Sakura trailed off, connecting something. Martina was there, but she showed up out of the blue. The hall they were in connected to the Hokage's office because it was closest to the exit of the Academy, so...

Sakura looked at her teacher with a gasp.

"Martina was sneaking around the Hokage's office, sensei!"

And that was grounds for suspension big time, their teachers made sure to tell them that that day.

Iruka sensei nodded thoughtfully, standing.

His dark eyes were narrowed.

"So it was her who spread the rumors, huh?"

Sakura startled at that. "D-does everyone know?"

His face told her an unfortunate yes. "I'm sorry, Sakura."

Sakura's fingers trembled, but she squeezed them together to stop them.

It was bound to happen.

"Lets go," Her sensei said, leading her to the doors.

"The Hokage is waiting."