Sakura had taken the little gray haired girl into her care. She didn't know who or where she was from except that she called her okaa-san. Weird. She met up with Naruto and Sasuke who thankfully didn't question her about the girl who was clinging onto her as if her very life depended on it. Her name was Harumi, she had said so herself. She guessed that she was familiar with Inner Sakura. Her boys had found an inn and had taken two rooms. It was unofficially decided that Naruto and Sasuke would share a room and she would share a room with Harumi. The little girl was unusually quiet for someone her age. She expected her to be a miniature version of Naruto, Ino or even her but instead she was a miniature version of Sasuke, except even she wasn't all angst. She had bought a navy blue long-sleeved kimono top with a red sash for her and a pair of black pants. Harumi's clothes were battered beyond repair. Her shoes were still usable though. She gave the girl a really good scrub, washing away all the dirt and grim from her small body. Surprisingly, she wasn't smelling. She noticed red markings on her cheeks and chin similar to the ones she saw on the Nidaime's face but she brushed it off.
After dressing the girl, she gave her some warm water and onigiri to soothe her stomach before sending her off for a nap, she promised to wake her up for dinner later. She observed that she had a round face, still chubby with baby fat and the markings seemingly off on her baby face. Sakura caressed her gray-almost-white hair softly. She had short wavy-spiky hair which reminded her of Mirai Sarutobi, Kurenai's daughter except it was a bit longer, ending at her shoulders. She hummed softly. "Harumi," she mummered softly, a memory tugging at the back of her mind but unable to reveal itself.
"Mind telling us who she is?" Naruto asked as she joined them in their room. "I don't know really but I think she's somehow related to Inner," Sakura replied. "So are we keeping her?" the blonde asked as he eyes his teammate. "I'm not sure if I'm ready to be a parent right now," the medic replied grimly. Sasuke eyed her curiously before turning to glare at the wall. "Any news on Inner?" he asked her. She debated whether or not to tell them about the extinction of the Haruno clan but decied against it. She shook her head no. "So what do we do now?" her blonde teammate asked. "I'd say we hang around here until Sakura gets word from Inner. She's the reason why we're here in the first place," the Uchiha explained, giving Sakura a sideways glance before looking away. Sakura narrowed her eyes fractionally. It was almost as if he knew that she was hiding something from them. She hoped not.
"Sakura! Come here," her mother called from the kitchen. The said girl immediately left her mini garden and ran over to her mother. "Kaa-san," she said as she hugged her mother's waist. The red haired woman smiled down at her five-year old daughter before picking her up and swinging her a few times and setting her on the ground again. "What's up, kaa-san?" she asked, her eyes beaming at her mother. Akarui leaned down until she was eye level with her daughter. She smiled as she played with her pink hair. "What'd I tell you about hiding your forehead with your bangs?" she asked sweetly. Sakura immediately tensed. "You said I shouldn't cover my forehead with my bangs," she grumbled, her hand unconsciously going to her forehead. "Then why are you covering it?" her mother asked her. "It's coz the other kids are gonna make fun of me! It's bad enough when no one wants to play with me coz they say my large forehead scared them away," Sakura complained heatedly. "It's not like covering it will make it smaller," Akarui teased. Sakura's face turned red with anger. "Kaa-san! Don't say that!" she yelled as she stomped her foot on the ground. "Don't worry sweetie, I'm just joking. But really, it'll only make them tease you more," she said as she patted her daughter's head. Akarui stood up, her long red hair swaying with the motion. It was held in a high ponytail. "Your hair is so pretty, kaa-san!" Sakura exclaimed childishly. "I wish I had red hair," she grumbled under her breath. "Now now Sakura, don't say that. Grandma won't be pleased to hear you say that," Akarui chastised her.
"But kaa-san! Why am I the only one in the clan with pink hair? Everyone else had red, blonde, ginger, raven, black, brown and all those other colors," she yelled. "It shows how special you are," she replied as she turned back to her pot into the stove. Sakura pouted sourly. "We're the Haruno, the spring clan. Your hair is a symbol of spring time, our clan! Be proud of it," she explained animatedly. Sakura blushed as she tipped her head down. "Well, if you put it like that I guess it's not that bad," the girl said shyly. "Come on, you!" Akarui said as she motioned her to come over. Sakura skipped to her mother's side. "Why don't you help cook some of this miso soup? You said you wanted to become the best mom in the whole world!" Akarui said. "Hai!" Sakura beamed.
"Okaa-san."
Sakura woke up to meet face to face with large green eyes, so innocent and pure. "Harumi," she smiled as she sat upright. "How was your moment of rest?" she asked the girl who had made herself comfortable on her lap. "It was good. I feel rejuvenated," she replied happily. 'Smart girl,' she thought. Harumi looked at her expectantly, as though she wanted something. Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Do you want something?" she asked the girl. 'Am I supposed to do something?' she thought quizzically. She was new to parenting and it was hard. Harumi's expression was crest fallen for a split second before masking back to her nonchalant expression. Sakura had to appraise the girl for controlling her emotions quickly. "No," she said in a quiet voice. She slid off her lap and went to sit on the floor in a meditative posture. 'Did I do something wrong?' she thought as she watched the five-year old 'meditate'. Her head was left swirling at the thought.
"Sakura."
"Inner."
The two were having a face-off, glaring at each other and wanting to see who would back down first. During their two previous encounters, they had been arguing, Inner begging Sakura to help protect their clan and Sakura refusing. She was scared really. Even though she had fought in the Fourth Shinobi War, fought a goddess, she was still- Argh! This was frustrating! "Sakura, please. I'm begging you. Help me protect my clan," Inner said with teary eyes. Sakura hardened her face. "No," she spat. "Why?! Why won't you protect them?!" Inner asked, her voice with a hint of hysteria. "I just can't. I had my life planned out. You can't expect me to just do what you want because I'm part of your soul!" she snapped. Inner set her lips in a thin line. "Did you see my memory with my mom?" she asked quietly. "That was yours?" Sakura asked. She nodded. "You're going to start seeing bits and pieces of my life. That was just one of them. You get to experience them as though it's real. Of which it is," Inner explained. Sakura nodded. "The bond that I had with my mother, you saw it yourself. There are many other children who have those bonds, who will soon no longer get to experience that because they'll be dead. Lots of people are going to die. Only a few people will remain, they'll become the merchants you'll know. But you have a chance to change that. To not be just a civilian but a ninja. You were always bitter that you were born into a civilian family. You can change that," Inner reasoned with her. Sakura pondered over this. In as much as she hated to admit, Inner was right.
The fate of her clan was in her hands. Many people were going to die if she refused to help them. An entire clan was going to become extinct if she didn't to do something. She had felt the strong connection between Inner and her mother, or should she say their mother. She didn't want that to end, she never wants that to end. She had refused knowing that she was going to accept anyways. She just needed to vent out her frustration, she had been unwillingly been thrown into the past and was now bestowed the burden of protecting an entire clan. She sighed exasperatedly. "Fine," she muttered annoyingly.
"Really?!" Inner asked excitedly. Sakura nodded with a smile. "Thank you so much! Shannaro!" she said as she punched the air.
"Protecting the entire Haruno clan all by yourself?" Naruto asked disbelievingly. Sakura was hurt by his lack of faith but she decided to brush it off. "Not that I mean you can't. You're awesome, it's just that..." he trailed, not even knowing why he had said that. "I can handle it," she replied with the wave of her hand. "Besides, I have you guys. You're always there no matter what," she said with a smile. Naruto blushed as he scratched his cheek and even Sasuke had a ghost of a smile on his face. They were the infamous Team 7 after all. "What about Harumi-chan?" Naruto asked. Sakura held her chin in deep thought. "To be honest, I don't know. I mean, I don't even know who she is or who her parents are," the pinkette said as she massaged her temples. "Doesn't she call you okaa-san?" the blonde asked. "Yeah but I'm not sure if I'm even her mom," she replied. Naruto frowned. "I guess we'll have to keep her around until we find her parents," she suggested. The two boys shared a look before nodding.
Little did they know that Harumi was listening to their conversation with teary eyes and a broken heart.
Done with the chapter. Hope you enjoy it. So we'll be having Inner Sakura's flashbacks which will be in Italic. You'll be getting many ore of those flashbacks. Sakura will be experiencing Inner's lifetime, exactly as it happened. The emotions she felt, the pain and all those other stuff.
And question, who is Harumi?
Read and review. Comments would be much appreciated, you know.
Tozoonana
AfricanFire
