They planned to travel to the Spring Country where the Haruno clan was situated. Inner had helped them with the directions, they would take five days at most to get there, considering they were travelling with a child. But if they pushed themselves to the limits, they could arrive in two days or so. Sakura packed the few belongings they had into a storage scroll. They had some food, protein bars, medical supplies, a few yukatas and a futon. She counted the money they had, mentally going through the things they had to buy and how much they would have left. They would get more resources from the Haruno clan. Plus Harumi...she had to buy the girl more clothes from the few she had. She could do it at a later date and work on finding her parents in the meantime. With that thought in mind, she set about to continue packing their things.
Meanwhile, Harumi had taken a small bag where she had put her belongings. That imposter was not her okaa-san! She was going to find her mother, even if it meant travelling all alone again. She packed her three yukatas, some dried food and money she had snuck out of the blonde's pocket and a kunai she had stolen from the brooding one. She hid it well enough that the imposter would never think she had a kunai in there. She took a water canteen and filled it with water. She went through her plan; go back to where her mother had left her and start asking around for a woman with pink hair and green eyes. She was going to leave this trio when they deep into the forest. She didn't even know where her mother had left but she could start searching. 'It's easier said than done,' she thought bitterly but it was better than living with a person who looked like your mother and not be your actual mother. She had confessed herself! She was not her mother. Her mother was the only family she had. Her father... Well, she chose not dwell on that. She would think about her father later. Right now, her top priority was her mother.
Her pink markings were a bit of a problem. Her mother had often told her to hide them but she didn't have the cream she often used before. It had long since ran out. They seemed red but if you looked close enough, they were a dark shade of pink and almost red, pink like her mother's hair. Her beautiful mother she dearly missed and would stop at nothing to find her. Blinking back the tears which threatened to fall, she made her way to the brooding man who was already outside and waiting for the rest of them.
He was handsome and she found herself staring at his face more often than not. To say she admired him would be an overstatement but still, she adored the man. The way he was composed and quiet, his eyes almost cold but calculative, taking in the environment and not leaving anything behind. The way he ate and walked spoke grace unlike the blonde who ate like a pig (not that she was disregarding him though), the way he talked screamed large volumes of intelligence. Even his chakra was strong and always pulsing within her radius. He was almost like the dark knight in shining armor she had heard most older girls gush over. But she was not like those other girls hence she wouldn't gush over him. She found herself eager to know him, despite the fact that they were going to part ways soon.
"Are you her friend?" she asked as she stared up at him, refusing to acknowledge her as her mother. "Hn," he replied which she translated to a yes. "What's your name?" she asked again. He stared down at her, wondering whether or not he should answer her. "Sasuke," he said flatly, knowing she would continue to bug him about his name. She seemed to ponder over that given by the almost calculating look she had in her green eyes. After a moment of silence which he clearly was enjoying, she spoke again. "What about your surname?" she asked curiously, though trying to look casual about it. He raised an eyebrow at her question. "Kaa-san said that we should know each other's identity so that we don't befriend an enemy. We're during a time of war right now so I just wanted to know in case you might be an enemy. Besides, I'm curious anyway," she explained, pouting slightly at the last part. "The fact that we're during a time of war is enough reason for me not to tell you my surname. What if I turn out to be your enemy?" he replied in a monotone voice. "But you're with kaa-san so you're obviously not an enemy. C'mon, just tell me," she whined. "No," he said without a moment of hesitation. "Please, I'll do anything you want!" she pleaded, her curiosity getting the best of her.
Usually, she was calm and composed but she needed to know his clan so that she could search for him when she found her actual mother. And if getting his surname meant pulling out a few cards she never used, then so be it! She could start acting like a child, all whining and cute. A reasonable number of people had called her cute so she passed as cute, right? Maybe she could get some information on him, she definitely wanted to meet him later. No one said you couldn't use your beauty for your own advantage. "You'll do anything I want?" he voiced out loud. She nodded eagerly. Sasuke stared at her with curious eyes. She was so persistent in wanting to know his clan but what for? Besides they were during a war, he wouldn't risk scaring the girl if she found his clan name. But her curious gaze spoke volumes of intelligence, she was too keen for a child her age. Almost like a prodigy. She never spoke much but when she did speak, it was enough to tell him of the brains she had. She was eager to know him, which reminded him of Sakura and her many attempts to want to know him more. He decided to humor her and himself as well. "If you use ninjutsu, I'll tell you my surname," he replied with a smirk. The girl visibly tensed. He had found his mark. "But I can't use ninjutsu. I barely know a single one!" she exclaimed disappointedly. "That's your own problem. If you don't use ninjutsu in the next two days then I won't tell you my surname at all," he replied. The girl glared at him in a way which shocked him as to how a young girl would be able to muster such contempt before turning to glare at a nearby tree with a scowl on her face. He wondered if that's what his team meant whenever he glared or scolwed because that look was just too dark.
At that moment, Sakura and Naruto chose to arrive. He inwardly sighed in relief. He would never admit that the tension that had settled between him and Harumi had unnerved him, almost scarily.
They had been travelling for two days and were walking in the dense forest. They were to arrive in the Spring Country in a day or so. They were cooling off since Harumi had lied that she was tiring and couldn't continue anymore. This was now her time to put her plan into action. Just as she was sure that everyone was distracted enough so she could sneak away, Sasuke shot her a glance. She gulped inwardly, feeling as though he was suspicious before moving close to the imposter. Perhaps he wouldn't suspect her of trying to run away.
She waited until it was late afternoon, the sun slightly lowering itself. She couldn't travel when it still mid afternoon, she would tire easily. Moving so that she was in front of the trio, she secretly took out a smoke bomb she had stolen from their imposter's pouch. As swift as she could, she threw the bomb on the ground and quickly covered her nose and taking off away from them. She didn't know its components but considering that the imposter was a medic, she must've packed in something pretty nasty so she couldn't be too sure. The trio, obviously caught off guard, choked on the smoke as they tried to get out of it. She took the stone she had wrapped an explosive tag around it and set it off with a flicker of her chakra, lurching it towards the group before it exploded. 'That'll teach you not to mess with me!' she thought triumphantly as she took off into the trees away from them.
Sakura barely noticed the explosive tag wrapped the stone until it exploded in front of her. She was sent flying a few metres before landing in a crouch and started to cough. She immediately took out an antidote from her medical pouch and threw the pill into her mouth and chewing on it. She rushed over to her teammates who looked to be on the verge of passing out and shoved the pills into their mouths which they eagerly chewed on. "What was that?" Naruto asked as he regained his composure. "Smoke bomb with sleeping poison, same one I used on Kiba and the others when I went after Sasuke," she replied as she tried to breathe properly. "That's a pretty nasty one, isn't it?" the blonde asked with a laugh, diffusing the tension which had settled on them as they recalled the time Sasuke and Sakura had tried to kill each other. "Harumi did this," Sasuke stated in a matter of fact tone. "Thanks for stating the obvious teme," the blonde said with sarcasm. "Why'd she do that?" Sakura thought out loud. "She's going to look for her mother," the Uchiha said. "All by herself?" the jinchuriki asked. "Kids," Sakura muttered exasperatedly as she rubbed her temples. "Should we go after her?" Naruto asked as both boys stared at Sakura. "Why are you looking at me?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "You're the team leader of this mission," Sasuke stared as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. She was silent for awhile before replying. "Maybe we should let her find her mother on her own-"
"You've got to push Sakura. You're almost there," the midwife, Katsumi, urged gently at the pink-haired female who was on the verge of fainting. She was sprawled out on a futon, drenched in sweat and blood, her gut twisting uncomfortably. She had entered into labour a month early. She was breathing hard and tried to ignore the soreness between her legs or how her frantic heart was beating. "You can do it. C'mon, just push," she said. "O-Okay, I'll try," the sixteen-year old said with shaky breaths. She braved herself before starting to force the baby out of her. She bit back her screams, opting to groan instead as the pain cut through her like a hot knife. "I see the head, just push a bit more," Katsumi urged her.
Tears pricked at her eyes and she made no move to wipe them away. It was scary enough that she had gotten pregnant at 15 then had to give birth at 16. The unfair part was that she wasn't sharing the pain with him! He was supposed to be hear comforting her but instead he was busy fighting off those imbeciles. 'I swear to Kami when I see him, I'll castrate him,' she thought darkly. She pushed and pushed but the baby wasn't moving. "She stopped moving," the midwife said. "Just one more push and you're done," she spoke. 'Just one more, one more,' she thought with teary eyes. Gathering the last of her strength, she pushed, as in really pushed. "Shannaro!"
Cries of a baby filled the room. "It's a girl!" Katsumi exclaimed happily. She could not believe it. She had given birth in her room a month early than expected. "A healthy girl if I may say, considering she was born early," the old woman said warmly. "Can I see her?" Sakura said as she fought to be conscious. The midwife hurriedly wrapped the little girl in a blanket and helped Sakura sit up before handing her the baby. She took the girl gingerly into her arms. She was now a mother and she could not believe it! She thought of the pain she had went through to get this little one out. 'You better take care of me, little one otherwise,' shee thought with a weak smile. She had grey, almost white, hair with small pink markings on her cheeks and chin. She opened her eyes to reveal clear green eyes which stared back at her as though she was Kami himself. "What are you going to name her?" Katsumi asked. Sakura smiled. "Harumi," she replied before her eyes rolled back and she was engulfed in darkness.
She had been travelling for barely an hour. And Kami she was tired! She was sitting under a tall baobab tree as she watched the sun dip low into the horizon. She would have to find somewhere to sleep. Harumi was thirsty. She checked her water canteen to find it empty. She opened her bag to find all her food gone. She had forgotten that she had had eaten all her food just before she had separated from the trio. "I have been travelling for barely an hour and all my resources are finished," she groaned out loud. How was she going to find her mother if she died due to hunger and starvation? Just then, her keen ears caught the sound of a moving cart and she felt five chakra signatures, as her mother had told her, moving a few metres parallel from where she was. She followed the sound and found herself staring at a cart full of food which was guarded by five teenagers who were dressed in civilian clothing. Their skin was very pale and their hair just like hers. Something was odd about them but she ignored that in favor of forming a plan to satisfy her stomach. The five boys stopped and settled under a tree. "Man, I'm tired. I can't take another step. Going to Tanzaku Gai is such a drag," one of them said, who looked to be the oldest of them all. "You wouldn't say that in front of Daisuke-sama, would you now?" another teased. "Don't mention that old geezer to me. He gives me the creeps," the first boy said as he shuddered sarcastically. "He's not that old. He's just 24, a few years our senior," the second boy said. "Yeah, he's still an old geezer. All clan leaders are geezers," the first shot back.
Whilst the two boys bickered on about 'Daisuke-sama', Harumi silently made her way to the back of her cart, her eyes searching for any movement and her ears still listening to the ongoing conversation. She had seen the brooding one raid a food cart once. Surely she could do just the same. Her parents were both ninjas, she hoped her inherited ninjaness would manifest itself physically in the event that she got caught. She half way through reaching towards a large tomato when it suddenly became silent. She sensed the change in atmosphere. She peeked over the cart to check to see if the boys were still there to find them gone. She turned back to reaching for the tomato before she noticed all five boys standing to her right with maniac smiles. "Look at what the cat dropped in," the first boy said with a sadistic smile. Harumi dropped the tomato she had been holding as she stared fearfully at the boys. She stepped back fearfully, trying to create distance between them but the boys moved forward with every step she took.
"Hmmm, you look like one of us. Did you run away?" the second boy said with a glint in his eyes. "Sure she did, Daisuke-sama must've her scared her shitless. Too bad we caught you before you moved any further. I'm sure Daisuke-sama will be pleased," the first one said. Harumi gulped inwardly, hoping that she didn't look as she fearful as she felt. She had long since learned to not appear intimidated by the enemy. She hoped that her acting skills were intact. "I just wanted something to eat. I have to find my okaa-san," she spoke in a clear voice, silently patting herself for not stuttering. "You were gonna steal from us, weren't you?" a third one said as he pointed an accusing finger at her. She gulped again. "I wasn't stealing. Let me go," she spoke. "You think we're just gonna let you go, you little bitch?" the first boy said as he inched closer. "Just let me go. If my okaa-san finds you, she'll kick your butt if you try to hurt me," she snapped angrily. She did not tolerate being called the 'b' word. "Well, I don't see your okaa-san around," the second snickered which caused the others to laugh as well. Taking this moment of distraction, she took out another stone wrapped with an explosive tag and set it off before sprinting away.
She moved a few metres before she felt the explosion. She wanted to turn around to check if they had survived but any second of distraction would only cause to slow her down. She heard shouts of anger and soon enough the five boys were following her. She maneuvered her way through the forest, hoping her tiny legs would pick up more speed. She moved to the left, barely dodging the bone which had been sent towards. They were of the Kaguya clan and she prayed for Kami that their bloodlust level were not as high as they were claimed to be. The footsteps grew closer and she felt her panic start to heighten. She couldn't help the tears that were falling down her face. She was only a child after all. 'I'm going to die before I can see my okaa-san,' she thought miserably as a few more bones sailed over her head. She ran as fast as she could, flailing her arms. Her backpack had been lost somewhere along the run. "I'm gonna catch you, you little bitch!" a voice shouted and a bone grazed her arm. She clutched her arm but continued to run nonetheless. She tripped on a tree root and fell to the ground, scraping her knee in the process and twisting her ankle. She stared tearfully at the first one who had been the first to reach her. She tried to move away but he caught her by her hair.
"You think you can run away from me?" he asked with a mean smile, his bloodlust radiating off of him in waves but she knew she shouldn't cave in. She bit her lip and instead focused on ignoring the bloodlust. "My okaa-san will kill you if you don't let me go," she snarled venomously. The boy laughed in return and Harumi kicked him between the legs, her legs reaching as far as 'there'. The boy dropped her unceremoniously to the ground as he put his hands between his legs. "You just hurt my manhood!" the boy screamed incredulously. He aimed a bone at her and she closed her eyes as she uselessly swiped her hand in front her for cover. She waited for the bone to come but it never came. She opened her eyes to find the boy still in front of her. However, a large tree branch was prodding out where his heart had been, blood and gore dripping down. She stared wide-eyed at him, his lifeless eyes staring back at her. Her tears sprung up again and she sobbed uncontrollably. She had witnessed the death of a person and she was only forum years old! She touched her face to find some of the blood on her face. It had sprayed on her. Some of it had even gone on her clothes. She wished her okaa-san was here then everything would be alright.
She heard shouts comings towards her and she stood up on shaky legs. Surprisingly, her sprained ankle or scraped knee wasn't hurting. Going into an emotional breakdown now was going to be the death of her. She wiped away her tears furiously and took off forward once again. She heard maniacal laughter following her and she countinued to run faster. She was going to reach her limit soon. She heard screams of pain and agony, sounds of the ground cracking and uprooting, flesh being pierced but she ignored that. She was sure she had lost them but then she found herself being held by her throat. It was one of the boys. He was covered in blood everywhere, with a hole in his chest, blood and gore dripping down it but he didn't appear to be fazed by it at all. Kami, she was going to be traumatized for all eternity. "You think a few trees can stop us?! We're the Kaguya clan! Nothing can stop us, not even a Senju," he said with a hysterical laugh. She found herself flying in the air and hit her head against a tree before falling down on the forest floor. The last thing she saw was a flash of pink and she smiled weakly. "Okaa-san," she croaked before blacking out.
"She's, she's... Harumi is Inner Sakura's daughter. She's my daughter," Sakura gasped disbelievingly as she dropped onto her knees in tears. Four words; she had messed up. She was Harumi's mother, as in her actual mother! She had gone through the experience of childbirth itself, the pain and joy of it all. Naruto crouched beside her with a somber look. "Sakura," he said as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "I can't believe I didn't pay attention to my daughter. She must think that I don't care about her, that I don't love," she said as tears trailed down her cheeks. "I failed her as her mother," she said as her heart clenched terribly. "Sakura, regretting won't help anything. We have to find her," the blonde said seriously. "We better get there fast. She's going to encounter a few Kaguyas with the direction she headed. And I don't think that they are that polite to children," Sasuke said as he glanced at her. Sakura nodded as she stood up. "Our new mission is to find Harumi before we go to the Spring Country," she said as she wiped away her tears. They shared a look before they took off into the trees. They had already wasted thirty minutes with Sakura reliving Harumi's birth. She was going to save her daughter and make up for all the lost time.
I'm done with this chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Read and review. As for the Konoha founders, they're coming soon.
Tozoonana
AfricanFire
