Don't eat this, do that, don't study that or you'll starve, you must do this. No, no, no, no. Adults always impose what we should do, as if they know what's best, as if we were their property, mere puppets they control at will. Where do we fit in and what we want to be?
Finally, she would clean the kitchen, put on the appropriate clothes, and run to school to avoid being late.
This is how all her mornings began, and more than that, her days became monotonous. Even when Iruka scolded her, he let it slide because he had no other complaints about Sakura. In the first evaluation, unlike Sakuya, who barely passed the exams, Sakura achieved straight A's. With nothing else to do in the afternoons but study alone in the library, she quickly caught up with her classmates. She received praise from her teachers at school; however, at home, she was met with shouts and mockery, accused of cheating. In the end, Sakuya forced Sakura to get only average grades and do her homework for her.
In class, Sakura listened calmly and even envied her seatmate, Shikamaru, who spent all the theoretical classes sleeping. If she did that, it would be very embarrassing and her grades would drop. When those taking the ninja course went to the yard, she, like the other civilians, would peek from the window and watch her classmates spar. She admired watching Sasuke hit the targets or defeat the fool Naruto. She laughed when Ino practiced and sometimes even mocked Naruto's antics along with Inner.
After that, there would be classes for the civilians and finally the theoretical ones, where she could join the group before heading to the library to lock herself in.
"You look thinner," Ino suddenly said.
Sakura was abruptly pulled from her thoughts to see her best friend. It was recess, so both of them were carrying their food, looking for a place to sit and chat.
"Do you think so? I feel the same."
Ino didn't seem satisfied with that response. She squinted her eyes and placed both hands on her hips, ready to give Sakura a lecture. Suddenly, her attention was diverted to Sasuke, who was walking in the opposite direction. It was rare to see him at this hour since he usually disappeared during lunch to avoid his fans who followed him like leeches.
"Sas...
"Sakura," interrupted Sakuya's voice as she approached with her friends.
Both Ino and Sakura stopped abruptly, and even Sasuke hid behind a tree to avoid being noticed by the group approaching the two girls.
When Sakuya stood in front of Sakura, the differences between the twins became evident. Despite both having emerald green eyes, Sakuya had blonde hair like their mother, Mebuki, while Sakura's was a rare pale pink. Sakuya was taller and her skin appeared more smooth and cared for compared to her sister's, which showed a few band-aids where the long sleeve of her red dress exposed her skin.
"Give me your lunch," Sakuya demanded, extending her hand for her sister to hand over her food. Behind her, her friends began to laugh and whisper among themselves.
Sakura looked at her sister and then at her food. She was very hungry today; her parents hadn't left her many leftovers and her dad had punished her last night by denying her dinner. She wanted to say no, push her sister away, take Ino's hand, and run to eat in a peaceful place. However, she knew that was impossible.
"Do it! Give her what she deserves. Sakuya is no better than us," Inner screamed in the back of her mind, throwing punches in the air.
But it was impossible. Just thinking about her parents' fury for denying Sakuya something when her duty was to do everything her sister wanted made her shudder. With great pain, she swallowed hard and handed over her paper bag with two rice balls.
As Sakuya snatched it away, her friends laughed loudly. Sakura lowered her gaze, ashamed. Ino, unable to bear it any longer, stepped between them.
"What the hell, Sakuya? You shouldn't treat your sister like this."
Sakuya's smug smile was replaced by an annoyed expression upon seeing that the bothersome Ino was once again stepping in to defend her sister. Some of Sakuya's friends, those from civilian families, looked slightly intimidated; however, the others just laughed. Sakuya had the upper hand. The clan rules weighed more than justice.
Aware of this, Sakuya smiled.
"Talk all you want. In the end, Sakura has to do everything I order because she's my servant."
Sakura lowered her head again, and Ino clenched her fists. She knew that in the internal matters of a clan, not even the Hokage with all his power could intervene. As a future clan leader, she understood this. Additionally, she had recently discovered that Sakura's parents mistreated their daughter, and if she angered Sakuya, it could lead to more harm for her friend.
Sakuya laughed and left, leaving the two girls with negative feelings hanging over them.
Sasuke, who had been watching the exchange from a distance, seeing that none of his fans were around, decided to come out of his hiding spot and walk by. When Ino and Sakura noticed him passing by, not even Ino felt like inviting him to eat with them.
Midway, Sasuke stopped.
"Pathetic," he said, and then walked away.
Sakura's heart shattered into a thousand pieces upon hearing those words from Sasuke's mouth. That the person she admired most in the classroom said it made her pride writhe on the ground.
"If I could get out of here, I'd give that jerk a piece of my mind!" Inner yelled, spewing fire. "Banned, that Uchiha doesn't deserve our love. We'd kiss our worst enemy before ending up with someone like him… Forget that, he's now our worst enemy… Our parents would beg us on their knees for forgiveness for everything they've done to us before we'd be with someone like him!"
Inner continued ranting about how much she hated Sasuke while the two girls, shocked by the behavior of their idol, watched Sakura's heart break. They walked through the school yard looking for a place to sit without being disturbed again. They wandered into the small forest of the academy aimlessly. Along the way, Sakura heard the soft sound of a kunai being thrown into the air and then the crunch of wood as it embedded itself. Looking at the kunai's user, she wasn't surprised to see Naruto. Every day, when they looked for a spot near this "training field," they found Naruto training tirelessly, throwing kunais.
Once, for Ino's personal amusement and to mock the fool Naruto, the two sat in a nearby bush to eat without being noticed. While Ino laughed at the many times he missed the target, Sakura watched with boredom. Why mock someone who wanted to improve? She knew everyone hated him; she herself had despised him a little since the embarrassment he caused her a month and a half ago on her first day of school. However, perhaps the word "hate" was too strong.
Yes, he was an idiot, she snorted, and somewhat stupid, which only made her want to punch him in the face. But, in contrast, she felt a hint of camaraderie. The same mistreatment Naruto received from everyone was similar to what she received at home. Because of that, she felt a bit of envy and a tiny spark of admiration towards him. Despite everyone telling him he wasn't worth it, that he would never be a ninja, he kept trying.
He was able to do what he wanted, ignoring everyone.
"You do it too," Inner said as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
She had duties as the daughter of the head of a clan. A civil clan so small and unknown to many in the village that it was surprising it still remained as such. Even so, her position carried the same weight within the clan as the more prominent clans of Konoha.
Perhaps it was compassion that made her feet, unconsciously, move toward Naruto with the desire to give him another chance, to invite him to eat with them. She knew Ino would scream and perhaps go to eat with Shikamaru and Chouji out of indignation, but Sakura wanted to do something for the blonde, as she wished someone would come and take her far, far away from Konoha, where she could wash away all the sadness, fear, and sorrow she carried on her shoulders.
"Isn't that Hinata?" Ino asked.
Both of them looked at Hinata, who was hiding behind a tree, watching Naruto from a distance. He, so focused on his training, hadn't noticed that several people were already near him.
She was the quiet girl who sat at the same table as Sakura and the lazy Shikamaru. Sakura had never spoken to her beyond asking for notes. The Hyuuga would blush like a beet and hand over her notes without saying anything else. She had never bothered Sakura and, in fact, Sakura had never seen her talk to anyone else in the class. Hinata seemed fascinated watching Naruto train.
Then Sakura decided.
"Hinata."
The girl squealed and turned to look at them, almost as if she were having a heart attack from being caught spying on Naruto.
"S-Sakura-san, I-Ino-san," she whispered, hoping Naruto wouldn't notice the encounter between the three of them. Of course, he didn't.
"Do you want to eat with us?" Sakura asked her with a smile.
The fear on Hinata's face changed from surprise to curiosity. Unable to refuse, her cheeks turned red and she nodded, lowering her gaze and playing with her fingers.
Very soon, the three of them sat in a spot far enough away that no one would interrupt them during their meal. Since it was usually just Ino and Sakura eating alone, having someone else join them was welcome, especially for Ino, who had no trouble talking about her two favorite topics: Sasuke and herself.
"S-Sakura-san, did you forget your lunch?" Hinata asked timidly.
This was enough to make the atmosphere tense, and Hinata immediately regretted trying to start a conversation.
"One day Sakuya will pay for this!" Ino shouted, raising her fist.
Hinata, confused and remorseful, listened as Sakura explained the situation with her sister. Ino didn't miss the opportunity to add scathing comments about Sakuya.
"My family also differentiates a lot between the main and secondary branches," Hinata said sadly, thinking about her cousin, who was a year older than her. She explained the Hyuuga hierarchy and the power difference between the branches. "I understand what you're saying, Sakura-san."
Ino grumbled angrily about how troublesome some clans could be and thanked God that her family was more flexible with their clan rules. Meanwhile, Sakura gave Hinata a bitter smile.
Maybe Hinata understood the law because her family imposed the same, but she was from the main branch and, on top of that, the eldest daughter. She would never know what it was like to be in her place.
"I-I can share my food with you," Hinata said, blushing again as she mustered the courage to offer her food to Sakura and Ino.
"In that case, you have the honor of tasting my food," Ino said with elegance.
The three laughed and shared their food, enjoying that moment of camaraderie.
At least their monotonous days would become more colorful with the addition of Hinata as a new friend.
"Sakuya will see how I'll give her a beating in the next showdown," Ino said excitedly.
"It'll be fun to see that," Sakura agreed.
"Kill, kill, kill! I want blood!" Inner shouted.
"Wouldn't you like to be a ninja?" Hinata asked.
To be a ninja? Sakura had to think about it for a moment. Since arriving in Konoha, countless rules had been imposed on her. Don't disobey Sakuya, don't break the rules, don't raise your voice to your sister, don't embarrass the family, don't be a ninja.
"I'm from the second branch; I'm not allowed to be a ninja. My duty is to take care of Sakuya," she replied.
"That's utter nonsense. What would they say?" Inner spat, crossing her arms. Unfortunately, Sakura didn't hear her as she was talking to Ino and Hinata.
As if Ino and Inner had the same thought, the blonde spoke up.
"That's ridiculous. You should be the one to choose what you want to be, even if it's being a circus monkey."
Inner couldn't agree more. Sakura slapped her face at Ino's jest, while Hinata laughed embarrassedly. Despite her friend's eccentricities, those words echoed in her mind.
Did she want to be a servant forever, or could she be something more?
After the three new friends enjoyed their lunch and Hinata promised to prepare more food now that they discovered she was responsible for her own lunches, they headed to the classroom. The day passed faster than usual for Sakura, and before she knew it, she was bidding goodbye to Ino and Hinata to go straight to the library.
On the way, she decided to pass by the kunai training ground. At dismissal time, Sasuke usually practiced there for leisure, throwing shurikens and kunai with a precision that almost always hit the mark, unlike Naruto.
As she walked, she stopped when she saw something strange lying on the ground: a brush full of green paint. The paint looked fresh, as if someone had forgotten it while leaving. There was a trail of brown and red paint leading to the training ground. If she lost something like that, she would go crazy, as she cherished every object she had, knowing how difficult it would be to get a new one. She decided to follow the trail of paint to find the owner.
"Haha! You sure didn't see that coming, Teme!" Naruto's voice echoed from the training ground.
Peeking out, Sakura's eyes widened in surprise as she saw a smiling Naruto facing a visibly furious Sasuke, both holding brushes and covered in paint. What was surprising and strange was seeing the two of them in that situation.
"This is as stupid as you are," Sasuke responded.
Despite Sasuke calling Naruto stupid for feeling victorious about having his face stained brown, despite his own being covered in red paint, it was evident that Sasuke had done the same, as he had a brush with red paint in his hand.
"What are you guys doing?" Sakura couldn't help but ask.
Instantly, the two looked at her. Sasuke frowned, while Naruto blushed and became excited upon seeing her. Before they could respond, Iruka appeared from the bushes, visibly annoyed.
"Naruto, you've drawn on the academy wall again!" Ready to scold his student for the tenth time that day, he stopped upon seeing Sasuke and Sakura with him, both with brushes in hand and, at least Sasuke, with a paint stain on his face. "Sasuke, Sakura? I never thought you would stoop to the level of vandalism at school."
The three kids were taken aback.
"S-Sensei," Sakura tried to say.
"No excuses. I thought you would have more moral integrity than to stoop to this level and follow Naruto into one of his crazes," Iruka continued without giving Sakura a chance to speak. "I'll have to punish you."
The words resonated so deeply in Sakura's mind that Inner was petrified with horror before flames of fury surged behind her. Suddenly, a photo of Naruto appeared in the air, and in an instant, Inner launched a rain of knives toward the image.
"He humiliates us first and now punishes us because of him! That idiot wants to die!" she screamed furiously.
Both Sasuke and Sakura looked at Naruto with anger, silently promising to get revenge for this. Of course, Naruto could only laugh nervously.
"Idiot!" Sakura shouted, forcefully hitting Naruto on the head, "because of you, we have to rearrange all the books in the library. Don't just randomly put books on the shelves."
"B-but Sakura-chan, this way we'll finish faster," Naruto said, sobbing in pain.
Iruka's punishment resulted in them being taken to the library for community service, which turned out to be the most tedious, boring, and exhausting of all time: sorting all the books into their corresponding sections. More than once, Sakura had to scold Naruto for playing around or putting books randomly.
"Idiot," muttered Sasuke, annoyed for the tenth time.
If it weren't for Naruto, she would be free now, but no, she had to be in the library with the class clown and the new girl.
"What did you say, teme?" growled Naruto, ready to pounce.
"That's enough," sighed Sakura, hitting him again, this time with a thick anatomy book, "if you spent less time fighting, we could finish faster."
She tried to keep her cool like Sasuke, even though she wanted to hit Naruto, while she and Inner cried internally because they could be doing something more interesting. Although they didn't mind as much with Sasuke, they occasionally spied on him.
"Loser," Sasuke whispered again.
This time Naruto couldn't hold back and jumped on Sasuke. Surprisingly, in silence, the two began to roll on the floor to fight. Sakura watched them nervously, hoping the librarian would arrive and see the commotion inside their premises.
"I think both of them are idiots who will lead us to doom if we keep hanging out with them," Inner said, crossing her arms. "As your inner voice, I recommend that if you don't want trouble in the future, don't hang out with them. Stupidity and trouble are contagious."
She sighed heavily. Inner was right. If she didn't want to get into more trouble that day, it was better to go to another aisle to work in peace. Separating those two so they wouldn't fight would be harder than going to hell and back. She grabbed the nearest cart, filled with stacks of books, and went to another aisle to store them.
"You brought friends today," a voice said behind her.
"Wisdom," she greeted.
After spending a month and a half in the library every afternoon, one day she encountered a tall person with long light blue hair and a robe ornamented in gold and brown. He didn't seem like someone you would expect to find in Konoha. But what was most striking was not his appearance, but that as he diligently read a book, library spirits flew around him: small animals resembling axolotls, usually walking on two legs. When the man felt her gaze on him, he met Sakura's emerald eyes. Fearlessly, he approached and spoke to her, revealing that he was a god named Wisdom. Since then, they sometimes met and talked about books.
"They're not my friends."
"You're blushing... Is it because of the dark-haired boy? If it's because of the blond one, I'll think you have serious taste issues."
"T-that's not true!" she denied, although her flushed face said otherwise. "We were punished because of Naruto."
"I see..." he analyzed the boys again before turning his attention back to her. "I don't think they'll finish soon."
"Don't you have books to read?" she asked, trying to keep her irritation under control. Being with Naruto brought out the worst in her.
"There's no book I don't know, I am Wisdom," he replied plainly. "It's more entertaining to watch you work with these... friends."
"Right, I think I'll have to mark today as International Annoy Sakura Day," Inner said, pulling out a large calendar and marking the date with a bright red marker.
Wisdom's serious face, framed by those black rectangular glasses, didn't seem twisted or sadistic, but his words sounded like it, as if he enjoyed watching Sakura explode or suffer like she was now.
"Sakura-chan, why are you talking to yourself?" Naruto said, puzzled.
She began to panic, trying to come up with an excuse that turned out to be unnecessary because Naruto, with his fish-like memory, quickly forgot it. His mind was distracted by something more interesting. He took Sakura's hand and dragged her along with him, not giving her time to react or object, until he let go.
"What the hell...? Sasuke-kun?" he asked, realizing that Sasuke was with them.
They were still in the library, apparently. The two boys were crouched in front of her, looking at something in the distance. Curious, she followed their gaze until she spotted it.
"Oh."
Even Sasuke looked at her.
"Do you know what it is? Apparently, many ninjas go in there!" Naruto said, more excited than ever to see that his companion knew what was inside. "Is it a super-secret base? A special anti-crime organization? Are Konoha's darkest secrets in there?"
"Shut up, dobe."
Sakura blushed as she felt Sasuke's gaze fixed on her, as if it were the first time he really noticed her. Excited by that, she puffed out her chest and spoke.
"It's not some secret base or organization. It's the ninja-exclusive book section," she began to recite what Wisdom had explained to her a few weeks ago, when her curiosity had reached its limit and she had asked him. "There are books on strategy, espionage, and jutsus for anyone wearing a ninja headband, and as far as I understand, it's also divided by rank."
The four of them watched as a woman with her ninja headband walked towards the door and opened and closed it effortlessly.
"Incredible! We must go in," exclaimed Naruto excitedly.
Sakura gasped at the idea of Naruto.
"I can't believe I agree with the dobe for once," said Sasuke.
Without waiting for anyone, Sasuke began to walk towards the door, closely followed by Naruto. Sakura stood frozen in place.
"Aren't you going with them?" Wisdom asked her.
"It will be fun," encouraged Inner.
She couldn't answer, she could only grimace. Did she want to go? Could she go? It was like the question Hinata had asked her at noon: Did she want to be a ninja? But in her mind were her parents and her sister. They would be furious if they knew she had entered that section of the library, if she did something they had forbidden her.
She couldn't. She took a step back.
"What are you doing, Sakura-chan? Come on," said Naruto, coming back for her.
Without giving Sakura a chance to react, Naruto once again took her hand and dragged her along with him. Her gaze became hypnotized by the joining of their hands at her wrist, as if it were something impossible to believe. It would be so easy to stretch her arm to release his grip, but she couldn't bring herself to do it; her feet soon started to follow his rhythm. As she looked at Naruto's smiling face, she began to blush slightly. That boy, hated by the whole village and who had angered her more than once, was now propelling her forward for no reason other than having fun trying to get into that section of the library. The weight on her chest, which she carried every day, began to lift, allowing her to breathe as if it were the first time.
When the two approached Sasuke, he glanced at them but said nothing about it, simply returning his gaze to the door that was sealed with an intricate seal.
"Why don't you open the door? Did you forget?" taunted Naruto.
"Idiot, if it were a normal door, I would have already done it; this one has a seal," said Sasuke, pointing to the symbol in the center.
It wasn't very difficult; Sakura had seen that it only required putting a bit of chakra into the seal and the door would open. She reached out towards the seal, but stopped halfway. In her mind appeared her parents and the punishment they could inflict on her.
"You just have to put chakra... The librarian explained it to me," she tried to excuse herself.
"You're very smart, Sakura-chan!" exclaimed Naruto with great joy.
Her cheeks flushed again, this time from the praise.
Naruto attempted to open the door, but his skill at releasing chakra was quite deficient, so it was Sasuke who tried. He had to use more chakra than expected, even adopting a serious expression in the process, but the three of them smiled when the door in front of them opened.
"Let's go!" exclaimed Naruto, once again taking Sakura's hand.
Carefully, the three ventured inside and were instantly amazed. Once inside, the library didn't seem as simple as the main one. They approached the railing to get a better view of the enormous circular tower packed with shelves that reached from floor to ceiling, all laden with books. The long shelves stretched out like a maze, and occasionally they caught sight of some doors with seals even more complicated than the one they had seen earlier.
"If this library impresses you, you should see the one in Alexandria; it's my favorite," remarked Wisdom, who didn't seem as impressed as the three boys.
Like faithful eleven-year-old children, the three ran towards the nearest shelves and began to examine the books as if they were the most delicious and forbidden candy they had ever tasted in their lives. They explored the shelves, reaching up to grab any colorful book that caught Naruto's attention, although he would abandon it upon realizing it didn't have any pictures. Sasuke discreetly hid one or two scrolls among his clothes, and they continued their journey. Meanwhile, Sakura marveled at the immensity of the book collection.
If only she could enter here normally, she would have to be a ninja. Could she be a ninja?
"What are a bunch of brats doing in a place like this?" a terrifying and chilling voice echoed behind them, leaving the three boys petrified as if Medusa herself were present. With eyes filled with terror and a bewildered gaze, they mechanically turned around, paling at the sight of a woman with purple hair tied in a ponytail and light brown eyes, who was observing them like a basilisk.
"Y-you have three seconds to speak before you end up as food for my babies," two snakes slithered behind her, their eyes gleaming malevolently.
Naruto seemed on the verge of an aneurysm, Sasuke was motionless, and even Inner ran off screaming, "Every man for himself!" Meanwhile, Wisdom, showing no emotion, observed as the three children trembled before the woman.
It was her fault; if she hadn't revealed how to enter, perhaps they wouldn't have been found. How innocent they had been to think that nothing would happen after entering without being ninja! Gathering whatever courage she had left, she looked at the woman despite the fear. She wasn't as threatening as the Akatsuki. With that in mind, she tried to control her body, which stopped trembling.
"It's my fault," she said. Both Sasuke and Naruto snapped out of their trance and looked at her in surprise. "I heard that ninjas come in here, and I was curious to see what it was like, so I asked Sasuke-kun and Naruto if we could come in."
The two were so surprised that they couldn't articulate a word. The woman's malevolent aura dissipated as she evaluated and recognized who they were. She frowned upon seeing the strange group formed by the Nine-Tailed Fox's Jinchuriki, the last Uchiha, and the lone survivor of Akatsuki gathered. She remembered she was a civilian, and perhaps out of her previous experience, she wanted to know more about ninjas... But that was no longer her concern.
"You better not come in here again unless you become genin. This time, I'll let you go without punishment, but..." her eyes gleamed with malice, "...if I see you here again, even as kids, you'll be food for my children."
The three nodded vigorously.
They were expelled from the gates of the area and thrown back into the regular section of the library, sooner than they would have wished and with no care whatsoever. They were still terrified by what had happened, so this time they decided to continue their punishment in silence until they completed it.
The sky was tinged with pearly and pink hues when they finally finished. Naruto stretched his back until it satisfyingly cracked, while Sasuke walked silently beside him with his hands in his pockets. Sakura, on the other hand, walked on the other side of Naruto with a small smile.
"That was great! It'll be good to do it again sometime!" exclaimed Naruto excitedly.
"Never," Sasuke and Sakura responded firmly in unison.
Sakura had no intention whatsoever of getting involved with Naruto again. The irritation at the fact that her clean record would now be tarnished because of Naruto hit her again. She raised her hand threateningly towards him.
"If you involve me in one of your crazy schemes again, I won't hesitate to hit you," she threatened, raising her fist with the promise of hitting him even harder.
Startled by fear, Naruto nodded and ran off with the excuse of having to go somewhere else and something about ramen. Exhausted, Sakura sighed at how tired she was, and to top it off, she still had to get home. She was so lost in her thoughts that it took a moment for her to realize she was walking alongside Sasuke, who hadn't said a single word.
"S-Sasuke-kun?" she asked, blushing.
The boy beside her stopped in his tracks and looked her in the eyes. Although he seemed as serious as ever, the furrowed brow he usually wore was absent. Sakura's heart skipped a beat.
"If you don't like being trampled on, do something about it," he said softly.
After that, Sasuke turned around and walked away, leaving Sakura alone with her face completely flushed and her heart pounding hard. She brought a hand to her chest to feel it racing. Somehow, his words had been kind, almost as if he were encouraging her to do what she wanted... First Naruto, and now Sasuke. A big, embarrassed smile spread across her face involuntarily.
She walked down the street until she reached the academy's training ground, knowing that there wouldn't be anyone there at that hour.
Sasuke, Soku, Sakuya, Ino, and even Naruto wanted to be and were ninjas. Did she want to be a servant forever, or could she aspire to something more? In her mind, the image of her parents and her sister appeared, but that image faded away, replaced instead by the memory of Naruto grabbing her wrist with a big smile to take her with him, and finally, Sasuke's words of encouragement
From the backpack that Inoichi had given her, she pulled out three kunai that she had never used before.
Did she want to be a servant forever, or could she aspire to something more?
The metallic sound of the wind cutting through the air echoed until, thunk!, the three kunai hit right in the center of the target.
She smiled bitterly, remembering that no one in Konoha knew what it meant to survive in Akatsuki. She had learned more than one lesson about ninjas thanks to that hell that had been her torture chamber.
Without saying a word, she took the kunai and headed home, determined not to let even her family ruin her spirits.
Behind a tree, Wisdom and Nature were hidden, watching Sakura walk away happily, unaware that they were being observed.
"So, is she going to choose that path?" Nature asked with a slightly sad tone.
"Destiny has spoken. She cannot escape what she is meant to do. One way or another, they will drag her onto that path if she doesn't choose it herself, as you just witnessed," Wisdom replied, adjusting his square glasses.
"Every day that passes, I see her grow, and my heart fills with pain," he added, adjusting one of his violet curls.
"We cannot intervene. Gods do not meddle in human affairs," Wisdom reminded him, before they both disappeared from sight.
Often, the greatest challenge lies in finding the courage to speak up and follow what our heart dictates. The "no" is already there anyway. Now all that's left is to fight for what we desire.
Omake 6
Despite the fact that in the Land of Rain, most of the time the sky is covered with dark clouds and water falls to the ground soaking everything in its path, there are moments when, inexplicably, it gets very hot even in the rain. Today was one of those days.
It was already night when the members of Akatsuki returned to the hideout, stifled by the intense heat that enveloped them like a blanket.
"I need ice cream!" Kisame complained, seeking relief. Ice cream after an exhausting training session under the sun until nightfall would be perfect, and if he remembered correctly, there was a huge tub of vanilla ice cream in the freezer.
With the idea of enjoying his well-deserved snack, he headed straight for the freezer.
"What the hell? The ice cream isn't here!" he exclaimed, frustrated. The tub they had recently bought had mysteriously disappeared. Annoyed, he began to search everywhere for it, but to no avail.
He craved that ice cream. With that fixed idea in mind, he decided to find the culprit of the disappearance. He threatened to use Samehada against Tobi, shook Deidara until his hair was disheveled, and even tried to intimidate Sasori, although the latter completely ignored him.
He just wanted his ice cream!
As Kisame walked through the corridors, ready to find his next victim, he abruptly stopped upon hearing Sakura's crying coming from a nearby room. Confused, he decided to enter, ready to mock her for crying like a baby. However, his eyes widened when he saw her sitting on a long couch, leaning against Itachi, who had his gaze fixed on a book, while she cried bitterly with a tub of ice cream between her legs and a spoon in her hand, ready to devour the entire tub.
"Why are you eating the ice cream alone, furball?" Kisame asked, annoyed.
Sakura's teary eyes landed on him and then she swallowed, her anger momentarily subdued.
"I-it's because Satori is very sad because his best friend is leaving the country. His parents died and he's going to live with his uncles," she replied before breaking into tears again and taking another spoonful of the sweet ice cream.
"Satori" Who is he? Doubts began to invade Kisame, setting aside his anger over the ice cream.
"Who?" he asked.
"Satori, the protagonist of the novel Sakura is reading," Itachi explained without looking away from the book.
Sakura started crying even harder and nestled into Itachi's unperturbed chest, who used her as a handkerchief.
That's when Kisame noticed the TV was on. Dazed, he sat down and started watching the series with great curiosity, wondering if it could make Sakura cry like that. Besides, he couldn't deny he also wanted some ice cream. He took the tub of ice cream from between Sakura's legs and the spoon she let go of without protest, and glanced at the soap opera with some disinterest, thinking that if it allowed him to enjoy ice cream, then it was fine.
"So she's Satari... Who's the one talking to her?" Kisame asked.
"It's her evil grandmother," Sakura replied.
Soon enough, Sakura began explaining things to him as they watched the soap opera, with Itachi beside them, never lifting his gaze from his book.
Deidara and Tobi were having such a thunderous fight in the kitchen that Sasori couldn't concentrate at all. With a loud bang, he swung open the door, his eyes gleaming with malice.
"What's all the racket about?" he demanded.
"We can't do our accounting in peace," Kakuzu explained, appearing behind him.
"A week ago, the freezer was full of ice cream tubs! Now there are only two left, surely Tobi has eaten them all without saying anything!" accused Deidara.
The argument between the two Akatsuki members was so noisy that Sasori and Kakuzu began considering the possibility of killing them and making it look like an accident.
"Pain will have to deal with this," Sasori decided, pondering whether it was worth the trouble of getting rid of both, even with Kakuzu's help.
They both agreed, so they headed towards Pain's office. However, they abruptly stopped upon hearing sobs coming from the living room. Who could be crying in Akatsuki if not in the dungeons? Intrigued, they opened the door, surprised by what they saw.
On the long couch in front of the television, Itachi was calmly reading a book, while beside him, Sakura grabbed the sleeve of Itachi's Akatsuki robe with one hand and spooned ice cream after ice cream into her mouth as she sobbed loudly. To everyone's surprise, Kisame was sitting next to them, devouring his own tub of ice cream and crying bitterly.
"No! This can't be happening! She can't die! Why did she pretend to be evil?" Sakura whimpered.
"You first make us hate you, and now you turn out to be good. I'll kill you with Samehada for doing this to us," Kisame added, with a hint of sadness in his voice.
With astonishment, the four members of Akatsuki stood dumbfounded as they discovered that Sakura, Itachi, and Kisame were solemnly heading to the living room with two tubs of ice cream to watch Sakura's favorite soap opera. Itachi, on his part, accompanied them calmly, immersed in reading a book. Soon, Deidara and Tobi joined them on the floor, joining in the routine with their own tubs of ice cream.