Sakura sighed in disappoinment. Today was her birthday but Hashirama was nowhere in sight. She had gone to the river in hopes of meeting Madara but he didn't come. After waiting for two hours, she returned to the compound. She walked aimlessly around the compound, watching if anyone would wish her happy birthday. But no one did. 'It's not like they care,' she thought bitterly. She found herself at her quarters, more specifically Matsuri-sama's quarters. They had been sharing this room since she was four years old. She was nine today. She found the blonde woman sleeping on her futon. She had been getting close to Butsuma quite a lot. She heard the other women in the compound whisper that she was pregnant and might just become the new Senju matriach. She flopped down onto her futon beside her. She let out a long sigh. Tears welled up in her eyes. She let out another sigh. She missed Hashirama. She missed Madara. Heck, she even missed Tobirama. And Itama, Kawarama...

"If you're gonna keep sighing like that you might as well leave," Matsuri commented as she sat up. Sakura jumped, looking sheepish and apologized to the woman. "All the men have gone on a raid, if that's what you're thinking," she told her. That meant the two Senju brothers had gone too. "Really, I don't know why they keep on fighting even after receiving great losses," she muttered as she stretched her muscles. "Excuse me Matsuri-sama but were you a shinobi?" the pinkette asked. Skeptical green eyes stared back at her. She was sitting on her futon with her knees drawn together to her chest. "Why do you ask?" she replied. "Your chakra, it's coiled like a shinobi. It isn't the same with civilians," she said. Matsuri looked at the ceiling. "I guess you could say that," she breathed out. "Did you want to become a shinobi?" she asked again. "...no. It was more of a necessity than a choice," came the reply. The blonde looked to the side to see Sakura staring at her curiously. They had never talked much before, just the usual unimportant things.

She was painfully reminded of her cousin Hanami. She had the same shade of pink hair and green eyes. Hanami had been brilliant, eager to learn any and anything. She was kind with quite a temper too. She was a shinobi but not of Matsuri's caliber. After she brought Sakura to their small village, Hanami had seized the opportunity to take care of her. She couldn't produce a child of her. She had been ecstatic to become a mother at 25. She always teased Matsuri that she would die a virgin. The blonde never commented as her missions mostly involved 'that.' Then the unimaginable happened. The Senju attacked their clan. Matsuri was sure that her genjutsus were unbreakable, even to an Uchiha but somehow they had been found. The Harunos were the richest civilian clan by far in the Land of Fire despite being so small.

She had just come back from a mission when a large explosion sounded in the centre of their village before the Senju stormed their village looting everything. They killed anyone who got in their way. Hanami was one of those casualties. A Senju had torn into their house. The pinkette had just put Sakura to sleep and was cooking in the kitchen when the explosion sounded. She had rushed to Sakura who was in their bedroom but stopped when she saw a Senju with a sword over her, ready to strike her down. She charged at him with her bare hands. They fought, they wrestled but she was overpowered. She was stabbed in her chest. Matsuri arrived at that moment and finished off the Senju. But nothing could be done about Hanami. "P-Please, erase Sakura's memories of m-me. I c-can't bear the trauma she'll experience from my loss," she had told her. Matsuri refused until Hanami had gone limp in her arms.

The sound of fighting woke Sakura up. When she saw Hanami unmoving and covered in blood, she had a seizure. She cried non-stop and her chakra increased from a child to almost the size of hers at that moment. Chakra rushed to her limbs as she struggled to get out of Matsuri's hold. She was being overpowered. With a heavy heart, she performed a quick jutsu which wiped three years' worth of Sakura's memories. She also sealed off her chakra. She removed her shinobi gear, sealed it into a scroll along with her weapons and Sakura's clothes when she had arrived. She surrendered herself to the Senju.

Matsuri blinked away the memories as tears started to fill her eyes. "Matsuri-sama, are you okay? You look like you want to cry," the pinkette asked in concern. She shook her head. "It's nothing," she assured her. Sakura looked at her quizzically then to the floor. "Today's my birthday," she muttered. "I know," the blonde replied. Hanami had chosen March 28 as Sakura's birthday. Both cousins had been born in March, one on the second and the other on the eighth with Matsuri being the older one. "Did you know my parents?" she asked in a small uncertain voice. Matsuri was quiet for awhile. "Yes, I knew them," she replied. "Can you tell me about them?" she said. The blonde was in thought for awhile before agreeing. "I don't know much about your father. He died before you were born. Your mother, Hanami, had the same features as you, pink hair and green eyes. Her face was more narrow than heart-shaped. She was the most kindest person I have ever met. She was a shinobi but she specialized mostly in tracking. She also had quite a temper, just like you. She loved to eat spicy food but also loved sweet things just as much."

She looked at Sakura. "She loved you such that she'd even die for you," she spoke with a heavy heart. Sakura's eyes widened. "Matsuri-sama, you're crying!" she exclaimed as she rushed over to her side. "She loved you that she gave her life in order to protect you," she finished. "I..." the nine-year old trailed. "I'm sorry for taking her away from you," she spoke as tears cascaded down her cheeks. "It's not your fault. I should have been stronger," the blonde assured as she wiped her tears using the sleeves of her kimono. She also wiped her face. She cleared her throat. "We'll begin your shinobi training tomorrow," she said as she stood up. Sakura blinked in confusion. "Do you want to die or not?" she asked her flatly. "I don't want to die," she quickly replied. "Then we'll start training tomorrow."


"Matsuri-sama said that I should come here at 6am but she's nowhere in sight," she told herself. The early morning wind blew and she felt herself shiver unconsciously. Her white jinbei and red haori did nothing to protect her from the harsh morning chill. Then she felt a movement behind her. 'Something is coming,' she thought as she dropped to the ground. Several kunai flew over her and landed on the ground in front of her. She cautiously stood up as she looked at her surroundings. She sensed for any chakra signature that was within her peripheral. Tobirama had taught her chakra sensing. There was a chakra signature towards the south and another which just below her- She jumped away from the spot she was standing just as the ground exploded. Small rocks rained down from the sky. Standing where the ground had just exploded, there was a girl, almost as tall as Hashirama. She had a long narrow face and sharp eyes. Her black hair was swept to the side then held in a ponytail, with one long fringe left loose. She was dressed in the standard Senju gear with dark blue armour. She had a sword in her hand. There was no time to talk as she rushed towards her.

As if relying on muscle memory, Sakura dodged the sword which was aiming for her head. She aimed for her neck but she avoided it as well. The girl slashed her sword at her arm and she received a minor cut on her upper arm. Sakuta threw a punch but it was deflected and she was punched in the face. She flew a few feet backwards at landed on the ground. The girl was already upon her with her foot coming down. The pinkette rolled to the side and was on her feet just as the girl turned to her. The two girls became involved in in hand to hand combat with the older girl having the upper hand. She kicked Sakura in the stomach. The Haruno took hold of her leg and mustering all the strength she had, tossed her to the side. The dark-haired girl flipped and landed gracefully on her toes. She took out her sword, ready to attack. "That's enough!" Matsuri's voice rang out.

The blonde dropped down from a tree. She was dressed in her dark red battle kimono with a V-neckline which ended at her knees with black shinobi combat boots with low heels. A pair of katanas were strapped to her back. Her hair was held in a high ponytail. "Wow! You look amazing Matsuri-sama!" Sakura exclaimed in restrained glee. "The first rule in a being a kunoichi is to look good when kicking ass," she said as she walked over to her. The pinkette nodded eagerly. She crouched in front of her and healed the bruises she had received from older girl. "What is this?" the girl asked, fascinated by medical chakra. "It's healing ninjutsu, something you will learn over time. Toka here doesn't have the patience required for it," she said as she finished the cut on her arm. "I do have the chakra control," the girl muttered with a slight pout. "Sakura, this is Toka Senju. She's my apprentice. She has been training with me for the past year after Butsuma asked me to train her," the blonde said. "Nice to meet you Toka-san," she said with a bow. "No need to be formal. Just call her Toka," the older woman corrected her. "Toka, this is Sakura. She's my niece and she'll be joining us starting from today," she said.

Toka gave her a once over. "How old are you?" she asked. "I turned nine yesterday," the pinkette chirped. "I started earlier than you," she said. "Isn't she late to start training?" the Senju girl asked. "No, this is the perfect time for us to start training. I sent you to fight her to see what level she's on. Seems like watching the Senju brothers train did a lot to her brain. She did better than most her age considering she has no prior training," the blonde commented. But Sakura felt it was more than that. 'It's almost as if I already know how to fight. It's more in my mind than physical,' she thought. Matsuri straightened. "But first, we need to get your wardrobe upgraded."


Hashirama was tired from the long trek he had just taken. They had been involved in yet another battle with the Uchiha. Luckily, no side suffered great losses so he felt a little better. The journey back home was tiring. Plus he missed Sakura. He had left for the battle on her birthday without even saying goodbye. He just hoped that she liked her birthday present. Just as he neared the entrance of their compound, he heard sounds of a battle coming from the forests. There were shouts and clashes of metal. Exchanging glances with his father and brother, both Hashirama and Tobirama made their way towards the sounds of the battle. They weren't expecting to see Sakura in it though.

Sakura's hands trembled from the force of Toka's blows as they fought using swords but she fought back. She had never used a sword before, not even in her mind so she was still getting used to the hang of it. Toka was about to deliver a finishing blow when she stopped midway. "Oh my God, it's Tobirama!" she squeaked as her face turned red. "Hmmm?" She turned to the side to see both Senju brothers on the sidelines. Her eyes landed on her favorite brunette. "Hashirama!" she exclaimed as she ran towards him. She jumped and gave him a big hug. "I missed you," she said into his neck. "I missed you too," the brunette said with a chuckle. Toka came and stood awkwardly next to them. She disengaged herself from him. "This is my friend Toka. We're training together as Matsuri-sama's apprentices," she introduced her. "Hello," the older Senju said with a wave as the other nodded. Toka's face reddened even more. "I didn't know that Matsuri-san was a shinobi," Tobirama commented. "I didn't either until last year when she protected from an Uchiha who had crossed our boundaries. I happened to be training there," the older girl said cooly. "Hn." The white-haired ninja turned to Sakura.

"What's with the change of clothes?" he asked her. The pinkette was dressed in a long red qipao dress which ended at her calves but with slits which reached up to her waist. She had a pair of dark green shorts with bandages on her right leg. A weapons pouch was strapped on that same leg. She wore shinobi combat boots which ended at her ankles. Her long hair was left loose. "Do you like it?" she asked as she spun. "It's impractical for a shinobi," he replied. "The first rule in a being a kunoichi is to look good when kicking ass," she recited which earned her an eye roll. "I think it looks great on you," Hashirama commented. "As if anything ever looks bad on your Sakura-chan," the younger Senju mumbled. "But I have something to finish it off," he added. Sakura's face beamed. The brunette took out a piece of red cloth from his kunai pouch. He moved to stand behind her and tied the red ribbon on top of her head. "There, all better now," he said as he patted her hair. "Happy belated birthday Sakura-chan," Hashirama said with a smile. "I'm sorry I wasn't there on your birthday," he said with an apologetic smile. Sakura shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Your being here is enough for me," she said softly. Both Toka and Tobirama rolled their eyes as Hashirama blushed profusely.


And I'm done! Long time no update, sorry. Sakura's attire is the one she wears as a genin. Hope you enjoy the chapter though. Read and review.

Tozoonana

AfricanFire