Work Text
Guilt and sadness; that’s what he felt looking at her bawling her eyes out. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. It wasn’t supposed to hurt like this with her sobbing uncontrollably and him feeling like he needs to throw up.Kiba winced as he saw the pitiful woman before him trying so hard to keep herself together. He couldn’t help but feel sorry and distressed at the whole scene in front of him. There he was, trying his best to see a glimmer of hope in the situation but she kept making it difficult. Only crying continuously without drawing in a breath, at this rate, she’ll be dehydrated soon. He sighed and made a move to comfort her but was beaten to it by TenTen of all people.‘There, there, It’s alright, calm down. You’ll be ok.’ She hushed the woman softly.She sniffed and wiped her eyes only to have fresh tears stream down her cheeks and Kiba knew that this wasn’t the end and it only made him clench his fists at the whole situation. He knew this was wrong, he knew saying something would only ruin the matter, but he still couldn’t help but voice his opinion. ‘Ino, you need to calm down. There’s very little we can do at this point. Your reaction is completely weird and unnecessary’TenTen shot him a dark look, obviously telling him to shut up, but he couldn’t Ino may be well intentioned but he honestly didn’t see why she was fretting over it so much or wasting her emotions. ‘Unnecessary...unnecessary?!’ she screeched wildly. Her blonde hair flipped around and her blue eyes that normally sparkled were now bloodshot and creepy. ‘Don’t you dare tell me how I should feel dog boy! You have no idea what’s going on in my mind and don’t presume to think for a moment that you can actually figure it out. Idiot!’Kiba flinched. Maybe he had taken it too far. Regardless he didn’t see the big deal in wasting her tears over someone so…He sighed. ‘Ino you don’t need to waste your tears over someone who doesn’t care. He doesn’t care about you or us or anyone for that matter, so dry your eyes and take care of yourself’He was done talking about it; he hated the lot of them. They were all so dramatic, always with their mania; Especially Naruto. Kiba knew Ino felt upset and he couldn’t imagine what Naruto was feeling at this point, what he must be going through, though he wasn’t entirely sure if Naruto knew of the news that had just broken out in Konoha. He rubbed the back of his neck. Naruto wasn’t in Konoha right now, he was off training with Kakashi and Gai, gods knew where, so it was impossible for the news to reach him, but he wondered if Kakashi had heard anything, he probably had and would have chosen not to tell Naruto so soon. Kiba doesn’t get the point of hiding anyway. The loud mouth will find out soon enough. Although it made Kiba realize that if the new order in Konoha had issued certain proclamations then it could only mean that everyone had heard them, everyone including Sakura. Kiba hadn’t seen her or spoken to her but he knew she had thrown herself into working at the hospital consistently without meeting anyone. Kiba wondered how she was after the news. If Ino was bawling at the news, Kiba can’t imagine how Sakura must be feeling. Somehow he noticed that no one seemed to pay attention or care or even mention her. What the hell was going on?He scratched his head and wrecked his brains to come up with an excuse to leave the group. The girls’ respective teams had just come up and were now being filled in. This was his chance to slip by unnoticed. So he gave a half-baked excuse and left. He guessed if he had to do something, he might as well make sure the only member of team 7 in Konoha was holding up okay. With that in mind, Kiba made his way to the hospital.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Kiba shuffled into the clean, linoleum floor of the hospital. His nose picked up the scent of antiseptic in the air and he heard people of all ages crying or groaning in pain. He straightened up his shoulders and strode over to the reception desk with purpose.‘Hi…uh is Sakura here?’ he asked hesitantly.The girl at the desk looked up and immediately looked flustered. Like Kiba said something offensive. ‘One moment’ she said, picking up her record book and checking something. ‘She’s in surgery right now, it will take another 2 hours or so’ ‘Its fine I can wait’ Kiba replied. He didn’t have a mission and if he went back to his friends, it’ll be going back to the same rigamole of hearing Ino and her opinion on the matter. He just didn’t have it in him.Around three hours later Kiba was woken up by the receptionist and told that Sakura was out of surgery.He thanked her and went to the place she indicated as Sakura’s office. Kiba knocked on the door with a plague that had Sakura’s name on it and entered.Sakura was seated on her desk looking over a sheaf of papers. She looked up and gave Kiba a bright smile. Kiba didn’t know what to think or say. She looked fine although a bit tired, but he supposed she had a tough job and would naturally feel the strain of it.‘Hey Kiba, what brings you here? Are you hurt?’ she asked immediately scanning for injuries on him.‘Uh, no I’m fine. I just came here to see you’ ‘Oh, right. What’s up?’ she said, clearly surprised.Kiba rubbed the back of his neck and shifted on his other foot uncomfortably. Where was he even supposed to begin?He sighed. It’s now or never.‘Sakura, the village council issued a proclamation today. I was wondering if you heard it..’ he trailed offHe saw a momentary flicker of emotion her face but it disappeared and she kept her emotions in check.‘Yes I heard Kiba, what of it?’ ‘Ino was bawling her eyes out, I…it just made me wonder how you were’ he sighed and looked at her guiltily.She definitely looked startled. He knew she wasn’t expecting him to check up on her. Sakura swallowed and looked away biting her lower lip.She looked like she was choosing her words carefully. ‘Kiba, the hokage and the council work very hard to make decisions for the village that are right for us. They obviously thought it was right so as a Konoha shinobi I will obey them’ he spoke in a neutral voice. ‘Sakura, I get where you’re coming from, but do you honestly expect me to buy that? Do you really think Naruto would be ok with it?’Her smile faltered, he knew he had struck a nerve.‘Why are you here Kiba?’ she whispered.‘I’m here to make sure you’re alright. Naruto and Kakashi aren’t here, Ino over there crying even though it has nothing to do with her…I don’t know…I thought you could use a friend, especially since we all know how you feel about Sasuke’‘That was kind of you Kiba. I really appreciate it, but I’m fine. Honestly there’s nothing wrong, so you know you were worried for nothing’ she shrugged.‘Right yeah, I’m not going to believe you so I’ll just go, obviously you don’t want me here, and it’s too personal a topic so let’s just leave it at that, but I’m serious when I said that I’m here, if you want to talk. I know that if something happened to Shino or Hinata I would be a wreck, so yeah.’ He shrugged and made his way to the door.Sakura remained silent for a while and only looked at him with eyes narrowed. ‘Did you really wait three hours in the waiting room?’ she finally asked. ‘Uh…it was either that or watch Ino cry’ Sakura gave him a rueful smile.‘Thanks for stopping by Kiba but I’m fine’ she finally said.He nodded and left, clearly miffed by the dismissal. Well that was a bust. What was he thinking anyway? He and Sakura were never close and she would obviously be weirded out if he randomly showed up asking her personal questions. Kiba mentally kicked himself. That was a dumb thing to do. He didn’t have Akamaru to talk some sense into him today. The mut was at the vet with his sister. He sighed, might as well check up on his best friend and forge this whole embarrassing situation ever happened. Konoha was going to send ANBU members to execute Sasuke and if Sakura wants to pretend nothing’s wrong and that she doesn’t feel anything then she clearly had issues to sort through. Kiba wasn’t sure what to do anymore.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Three weeks had passed since his visit to the hospital, but he hadn’t seen or mentioned his conversation with Sakura. He pretended it never happened, it was too embarrassing to bring up anyway, and he knew if the village found out, he would receive so much crap from his mom and sister. He really didn’t want to listen to all that.So he kept his mouth shut. To make things easier, Kiba hadn’t seen Sakura at all. She had gone back to her work and as far as he knew she was too busy to meet anyone. So Kiba kept to himself, went on a few missions and met up with his teammates. A while later he had forgotten all about the incident and his uncharacteristic burst of weird sensitivity. He ambled over to his apartment after a particularly long day of training. Times like this he was thankful for having his own place now. He didn’t have to listen to any sarcasm from his sister or mom. Those two could really give a verbal thrashing when they’re in form.He sighed and went straight to the shower to wash off the grime on him. When he was done, he grabbed a quick late dinner and was about to head to bed when he heard a soft knock. It sounded so soft and unsure that he thought he imagined it. H heard it again, this time a bit louder, so he went to answer his door.He had barely opened his front door when two arms grabbed his middle and started sobbing uncontrollably. It took him a moment to register the pink head that had blocked his vision and the soft weight that had settled on him. He was definitely glad for his own place.He cleared his throat and detangled himself from her to allow her inside.She thankfully took the hint. He closed the door and went to make her a cup of tea. ‘Sit, I’m glad you’re here.’ He started.She looked agitated, clearly she had been upset and he knew she felt a torrent of emotions. So he took her hand where she sat across from him and tried to comfort her but not scare her. It seemed to calm her down a bit and she gave him a small smile.“I don’t know why I’m here, or how I got here in the first place, but I can’t move on’ He simply looked at her so she could speak. ‘He’s going to die. It seems so final now, so real, like they’ll parade around the news any day now. I don’t want that, I don’t want to think about it but I can’t help it. It’s awful’ she had fresh tears streaming down her face and Kiba only tightened his grip on her hand.He only moved to get her some tea and sat with her as she gulped it and sniffled. ‘You want to know something really messed up?’ she whispered.He moved his head to the side slightly. ‘I don’t even want him back in the village. A part of me doesn’t anyway, if he’s happy out there, then that’s okay. I don’t even know what it’ll accomplish except more hate from the villagers’ He felt insanely bad now. Sakura was hurting and conflicted and she clearly didn’t have anyone to turn to so Kiba decided to be that for her if she needed him to be. ‘It’s fine if you don’t want him here, personally I always felt that he was too obsessed with power and perfection, but you know to each of their own. Look if you want to do something you can’She looked startled but didn’t mention it. ‘I thought about saying something, protesting or just leaving the village, but I know that won’t accomplish anything. It would only brand me as a traitor and I don’t want to do that’ ‘You won’t be a traitor, the only traitors are the one’s making these decisions’‘Kiba, you can’t say that!’ she looked at him sternly.“Doesn’t change the fact that it’s still insane’‘Yeah, but you can’t’ He rolled his eyes and stayed silent. ‘Goody two shoes, no wonder you were the best in the academy’ he mutteredSakura giggled in spite of herself.‘No wonder you were always the rebellious type’ she shot back.He laughed loudly. They stayed like that for a while until Sakura got up to leave.‘I should go, thanks for the tea and the sympathy.’‘You could stay you know, it’s fine’ he smiled up at her‘Thanks but I have to go to the hospital tomorrow. ‘I’ll see you around Kiba’ She hugged him tightly and he patted her on the back, letting her know that he really was there for her.‘Later’ he shot back.She turned on her heel and strode out of his apartment.And you thought you messed up, Kiba thought to himself.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Kiba felt light-hearted almost free. If anyone were to look closely, they would have spotted Kiba moving with a jolt in his step, irrespective he felt happy that he had somehow gotten through to Sakura. He couldn’t stand anyone moping around much less a fellow ninja. Sakura was talented and smart. She was a skilled medic who could go far, Kiba wasn’t blind enough not to know that, but he always hated how Sakura put herself down because someone like Sasuke looked down on her. He hated when that happened to anyone. He hated it when he saw experienced Jounin putting his sister down in a condescending manner. He supposed it was because of his mother and sister; strong women in his life that he was able to understand the pitfalls that most kunoichi had to go through. His mother often raved about not trusting men or how little she depended or trusted on them. He supposed it was another repercussion of his dad leaving them. Che, wherever he was, the old man doesn’t need to come back, Kiba thought viciously, we’re better off without him in their lives. Sakura didn’t contact or show up at Kiba’s house unannounced again. He thought he was making progress with their easy companionship, but obviously it must have spooked her out. He sometimes didn’t understand women, but he figured she needed space to figure out her own torrent of emotions. Still it did nothing to calm his nerves. He still thought he might have been too forward and creeped her out. The village had already sent out an ANBU squad to take Sasuke out. The idea was to bring him in for questioning, he might know something about the Akatsuki’s whereabouts, given the fact that he was rumored to have joined not long ago. Kiba scrubbed a hand over his face. This was going to get ugly. He went to meet his sister to pick up Akamaru. The poor dog must be crazy homesick. He was so busy thinking about the new order that he barely had time for his best friend. He felt extremely guilty over it, but his attentions were caught elsewhere, especially now since he knew Naruto found out about the new Hokage’s order and went straight on the road to intercept Sasuke before the ANBU got to him. Kiba picked up Akamaru and headed to the hospital once again for he knew Sakura would be there. He found her in her office, buried under paperwork. “This is just sad and pathetic’ he said with a wide grin. ‘Shut up, I’d like to see you try’ she retorted.Kiba was glad at least they were on good terms, he had thought they’d ruined whatever understanding they achieved that day.He grinned and settled himself down on her couch. It was cramped just like the rest of the office. There wasn’t a single surface area of the walls not stacked with piles of paperwork. Yeesh what a waste of paper, Kiba thought disdainfully.‘Anyway, to what do I owe this surprise visit?’ asked Sakura‘What? I can’t visit you now? Geez Sakura if you don’t want me here, you can say it plainly.’ He replied, teasing her.‘Yeah I know you’re not so subtle so I’ll have to be direct’ she shot back with a smile quirking her lips. He rolled his eyes. His grin diffused immediately and he became very serious all of a sudden. ‘Sakura, Naruto found out and he went after the dispatched ANBU squad’If this was news to her, she didn’t show it, though Kiba had a sneaky suspicion, she was aware of Naruto’s whereabouts and didn’t want anyone to know. ‘Kiba, I know what you’re trying to say, but believe me, I don’t want to have anything to do with this. I know Naruto went after them, it’ll be a surprise if he didn’t. I also know that he’ll most likely try to convince Sasuke to come back. Either way it doesn’t matter what he does. If Sasuke comes back, he won’t be accepted by the villagers and would most likely be executed or given some sort of punishment. It’s better that he doesn’t return, but Naruto will never understand that, he has a very idealistic view of the world, and I’m not going to take that from him.’‘So you’re not going to do anything about it? Even if they duke it out and end up killing each other?’‘I didn’t say that! I just can’t stand the fact that he might be dead either way! I hate this, but its not like I didn’t expect it. Kiba we knew this would happen. Sasuke wasn’t going to come back after killing his brother, not after everything!’She was heaving by the time she ended her rant. Kiba knew he had pushed her to say something she didn’t want to, or avoided up until this point. ‘Sakura, do you want to do something about it?’She blinked, clearly surprised, but after a beat she conceded that despite Danzo being in charge, she did want to do everything she could to stop the dispatched ANBU and change these miserable turn of events. Kiba knew better than to stand in her way, as far as he knew, this was a personal team 7 dynaic and he wasn’t going to get in the middle of that. He figured he’ll just help Sakura to get to the answers. He decided that if Naruto for some reason couldn’t be there for her, he will. He did remember what she looked like asking Naruto to retrieve Sasuke. It was recall miserable sight and he felt bad then. He can only imagine what must be going through her head now. Sakura may be older and more mature but she still held onto those feelings, and he hated how smart, capable girls like her put themselves down. ‘I’d hate to see you get hurt’ he murmured seriously.‘What with the sudden sentimental outburst?’ she teased.He rolled his eyes.‘You know what I mean’ She sighed. ‘Thanks Kiba, I know you mean well and I appreciate you being here, it’s just a bad time’ she smiled.He nodded; he knew what she was talking about. She stood from her desk and gave him a hug anyway. He knew what she was going to do anyway. But doesn’t mean he won’t look out for her.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
To say Sakura was surprised was an understatement. She never thought she’d acquire a new friend while grieving the loss of her teammate, and that too Kiba!At first, she found his antics creepy and too forward. But then she thought, he genuinely cared so this new tentative friend dynamic wasn’t that bad. He made her feel empowered, and strong enough to say what was really going on in her mind rather than shy away from her feelings and pretend otherwise. Spending time with him meant she didn’t have to pretend to be someone else and mull over things like her mind usually allows her to do. During his last visit to the hospital, Sakura felt emboldened to take action. She knew there was the risk of being branded as a traitor, but the authorities were already watching her reaction, they knew Naruto would go after Sasuke to talk him out of it or stop the ANBU, so far they were correct. However they couldn’t predict her next move, so she figured she’ll go on pretending otherwise. After her brief and embarrassing outburst, Sakura made a clear decision for herself and that night, she decided to go after Naruto. She summoned Katsuyu and asked her to locate Naruto. The trust slug had returned within the hour and Sakura had set out to stop or at least tame the inevitable.She knew eventually Naruto and Sasuke would meet in a penultimate battle. However, a reality where only one of them manages to live was not what she was prepared for. Her journey led her to Iron country, North of Konoha. She spent the five days travelling with only one goal in mind, to stop Sasuke from killing Naruto like he planned. She spent the journey searching for any signs of skirmishes or clues that’ll lead her to the ANBU agents. It took Sakura five days of sleepless nights and an endless journey to find them. By the time she got to Iron country she knew she had walked right into danger. She was surrounded by the Samurai of Iron country. ‘State your purpose of entry’ spoke a samurai in a booming voice.‘I’m here to see my friend, Uzumaki Naruto, I’m here to take him home’ she spoke clearly even though she was nervous internally.The samurai harrumphed and spoke softly with his colleagues, obviously deciding on what to do with her. Sakura sensed a few chakra signatures not far from where they were. She subtly glimpsed over to see figures hiding in the shadows all clad in black. ANBU ops; possibly waiting or watching out for Sasuke’s movements and whether or not someone would come after him, obviously they had anticipated her and Naruto’s arrival. The samurai let her pass on the condition that she was to find her friend and leave immediately. They didn’t give her any information of his whereabouts or if the spotted him, however, as a politically neutral country they informed her that they will be reporting her arrival to Konoha. She mentally sighed and nodded; thanking them she made her way to the island.Sakura searched for Naruto’s chakra signatures only to be disappointed. She decided to mask her chakra signatures however; she knew she was being followed by the ANBU ops. She needed to shirk them off quickly and find Naruto soon. She sped up quickly and moved towards a clearing with an open field. That’s when she realized that the ANBU were catching up to her, expecting her to find the boys, she whirled around and landed a swift kick to the nearest operative. He was thrown backwards but he maintained his balanced and lunged forward at her. Steeling herself, Sakura ran chakra through her fists and started charging at him, aiming for a good punch. He evaded it easily and moved to aim at her again. She avoided his kunai and flash stepped towards a nearby tree’s branches. Gathering herself she dropped down at him and collided her fist with his cat mask. A sickening crunch was heard, which only meant that she managed to break his nose. He collapsed and she hit his chakra point, yielding him unconscious. She sensed more ops moving towards her, so she summoned Katuyu, her trusty slug and aimed an acid attack at them. The ANBU managed to slip away; two weren’t so quick and ended up getting caught in the torrent. Three ANBU ops came up behind Sakura who shielded herself using Katsuyu’s ample exterior. An ANBU with a panther mask made seals that such an alarming rate, Sakura barely had time to react. She realized it was an earth style jutsu aiming to encase her in a mound of mud. She countered it by forming seals for a water style jutsu, allowing her ‘prison’ to melt away. She lunged forward with another one of her infamous kicks and drove the two ops to unconsciousness by cutting off their chakra networks in their limbs and pressed a point in their neck. Panting, Sakura leaned up against a tree wiping sweat off her brow and thanking Katsuyu for all her help. The slug disappeared and Sakura took off to find the boys.Fortunately, she didn’t have to look for them for very long, since she felt rising chakra signatures, a few miles East from where she was. Steeling herself, she drew in a deep breath and moved towards a cliff, she knew they’d be fighting at.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Sakura rushed towards a valley northwards in search of the boys. The rising chakra signatures showed that she had finally found them. When she arrived, she saw the two engaged in some form of conversation, she couldn’t hear what they were saying, but she didn’t have to stick around to find out. Sasuke immediately launched a fireball jutsu at Naruto who deflected it by diving out of the way, however he wasn’t quick enough and managed to get part of his skin on his arm singed. He then casted his infamous shadow clone technique and tried to confuse Sasuke and luring him in a trap. Sasuke however was quick and, with his sharingan already activated, lunged forward with a chidori in his hand at the original Naruto. Naruto jumped and sent a flying kick towards Sasuke’s head which he blocked. It was a close hand to hand combat now. Both started aiming punches and kicks. A few minutes later, Sasuke jumped backwards to keep a considerable distance between them. Panting with blood dripping down his head and into his eyes, he rubbed away excess blood and called forth his Susaano. At once, his entire body was encased in a purple glowing ghost-like shell in the shape of a samurai. The samurai’s sword aimed at Naruto and started to swing. Naruto despite being beaten up and bruised was quick and aimed his Rasenshuriken at him. It effectively cut off the Susaanoed samurai’s arm, and swung back like a boomerang to aim for the Susaano’s head. Sasuke swung his right arm and redirected the attack over to Naruto who dodged it and released another batch of clones to attack Sasuke. They effectively forced Sasuke to release his Susaano and gave Naruto the advantage to charge at him with another torrential Rasengan. Sasuke saw him charging head on so he readied himself for a counter attack by encasing his entire hand in crackling lightening. Sasuke’s hand glowed blue and a chorus of chirping birds echoed in the valley.
Sakura lay crouched and hidden away near the edge of a hill where she could see the battle raging on. She knew if she intervened she would only get in the way and get injured. She needed to find a way to get to both of them without hurting either of them; however, with the way they were fighting, Sakura remained skeptical, especially since she regarded the extent of their injuries. She summoned Katsuyu and tried to find an opening for her to jump through. She knew it would be tough seeing as the two were charging at each other at full speed; however, she saw a tunnel nearby leading to the battlefield and decided to take the shot. She leapt atop Katsuyu and hurried through the tunnel. Sasuke and Naruto gathered speed and charge at each other, Sasuke aimed for Naruto’s jugular vein, trying to end it once and for all, Naruto sensed his intent and moved slightly to the right, causing his opponent’s aim to go off and for Naruto take a quick aim at his arm. Sasuke was a second too slow to react and with a sound that sounded a lot like someone’s skin tearing apart, he launched himself to the side and out of Naruto’s reach. Blood trickled down Sasuke’s left arm and blended with the earth at his feet. He lunged once again at his opponent this time to finish the job, sharingan gleaming scarlet in his sockets, crimson tears rolled down his left cheek as he prepared to engulf his former friend in dark, eternal flames. However, before he could cast the dangerous and cursed Amaterasu fire, He was beaten to it with the intervention of what looked like an acid attack aimed his way. He immediately got out of the way, and looked around wildly for the assailant. Crimson eyes met sea foam green and he understood what he as dealing with.‘Sakura’ he spoke softly, his voice hoarse.‘Sasuke’ she replied tersely, scanning him for injuries. ‘It’s not too late Sasuke, come back with us’ she spoke tentatively‘I’m not going back, there’s nothing that Konoha can offer me’ he spoke morosely ‘All I can do is end it, and it has to start with you’ he looked pointedly at both of them.Sakura sighed audibly. There really was no going back. All those dreams of growing up and staying together as a team were long gone. This is their future, and it was the price they paid for choosing the path of a shinobi. Teammates long before them suffered the same dilemma and they were no different. In that moment, Sakura realized that the have been nothing more than pawns caught up in a vicious cycle started off by someone or something bigger than them. It wasn’t about team 7 anymore, it was about the shinobi world order and how easily it takes and discards lives that no longer serves its purpose. It wasn’t Sasuke’s fault, he was a victim in the grand scheme but his reaction wasn’t aimed right, which was why she was here, trying to offer a peace offering, no matter how distorted it was. ‘Sasuke come home.’ Naruto added in.He simply laughed, it was a manic sound that made him sound so unhinged, like the weight of the world was catching up to him. ‘Then leave.’ Sakura final said. She ignored Naruto’s alarmed looks or the barrage of complaints he began aiming at her. ‘I was followed by ANBU operatives, they were ordered to take you out in the name of Konoha’s new establishment. I took out a few but more will likely follow. Your name was down in the bingo book for years and now they’ve decided what to do about it, the only way to end this permanently is if you die here Sasuke.’‘I see’ he said, and then he charged at them. Naruto was a second too late to get into a defensive position. Sakura formed hand seals and covered both her and Naruto in a glowing green shield, a move she had been developing recently. The seal made Sasuke jump back and analyse it. He frowned deeply trying to study the contours of the seal. The seal broke off and Sasuke lunged again, however, before Naruto’s clones which had appeared again, could do anything, a huge puff of smoke gathered around them blinding them. They both saw a large hawk emerge out of the smoke and flying over to clouds above. ‘Sasuke!’ Naruto exclaimed and made a move to stop him; however Sakura caught his arm and prevented him from moving. Shaking her head, she moved to head out of the valley.‘Let him go Naruto, it’s the best chance he’s got’‘But, he belongs with us in Konoha, they’ll keep looking for him’ he reasoned.‘He’s smart, he’ll keep evading them, there’s only death for him back in Danzo’s Konoha’ she said grimly.She turned towards the tunnel where she came from and started making her way towards it. She didn’t want to look back at Naruto’s crestfallen expression. She knew he was heartbroken but she needed him to understand the reality of the situation and no amount of talking would have helped with that. Slowly and after what seemed like forever, Naruto follows her. A life without Sasuke was something they had grown accustomed to, but a life without the hope of his return was something they both had yet to face.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It took a full year before Naruto and Sakura could say that they were perfectly fine. Ever since the battle at the Samurai Valley, Naruto and Sakura had returned to the village in a dejected state. Although Sakura bore it considerably well, diving into her work and spending time with Ino and Kiba respectively, she knew Naruto was suffering tremendously. He tried hiding it but somehow his frustration and grief showed through in different forms. It certainly didn’t help Kakashi and Hinata who would be at the receiving end of these ‘episodes’.Sakura tried getting him to accompany her on her missions and when she’s meeting with her friends, but he mostly remained detached and weirdly disconnected. It was tough for him to move on. Konoha too had undergone major changes within a short time span. Danzo had sent over forty-three ANBU squads to apprehend Sasuke. However, each of those missions turned out to be unsuccessful. His entire term in office eventually became all about bringing and executing Sasuke who has since evaded capture. The news although pacified her and Naruto, Sakura knew it was absolutely torturous for them to keep themselves alert for any news of Sasuke’s capture. They spent months scoring for any kinds of news, keeping a low profile, not talking unnecessarily with anyone, all to avoid suspicion of aiding him. It was pointless and agonizing, Sakura abhorred trying to constantly prove herself to a group of people who had no idea what they were doing.Eventually, with Konoha’s funds draining and ANBU ops being sent out constantly, the number of dangerous missions fell over to the jounins and chunins who despite trying their best, were not asked so by clients and Konoha’s economy suffered immensely.With Tsunade still hospitalized and indisposed after the Akatsuki attack, a panel comprising of Konoha’s advisers, seasoned shinobi and oldest clan leaders gathered to form a council and nominated new candidates for Hokage. Eventually after much debate and rectification, Kakashi was named the sixth Hokage and the blimp that was Danzo’s brief term of office, was forgotten. After his repeated failure and fixation with capturing criminals, Kakashi’s first move was to order an arrest for Danzo and indicted him on grounds of torture and treasonous liaisons with dangerous shinobi like Orochimaru. Publicly humiliated, Danzo remained incarcerated abd his legacy, ROOT disbanded. Kakshi with Sai serving as the project head, eventually worked to assimilate former ROOT members into the Hokage led shinobi system. Under his new leadership, every registered shinobi was brought in the fold of the Hokage’s leadership and was not answerable to an authority except the Hokage. Sakura for the most part, was a lot more relaxed than before. Her conscience had never felt so light and weightless. She knew Sasuke was alive somewhere and that was fine with her. She had slowl come to build a new life for herself. Tsunade’s condition still made her heart clench and Shizune’s round the clock care for her, made Sakura pity the older woman. With Shizune devoted to caring for Tsunade, she didn’t have much time to look after the hospital, which eventually fell to Sakura. So begrudgingly and with a motivated spirit, Sakura took over the hospital’s leadership and served as chief medical adviser during the Jounin meetings carried out in the Hokage’s presence. She was the only chunin in the village given that special privilege.Sakura spent her days oscillating between treating patients, and checking up on Tsunade and Naruto. She knew the latter wasn’t doing so well, he went on missions and interacted with the villagers, but something was always off about him. It was like the light had gone off in him. Sakura felt really bad for him, she knew he was going through a hard time, more so than her, but she also knew he eventually had to let go of his past and way room for a bright future in the village. She had spent a whole month trying to get Kiba to take Naruto on a male bonding trip in hopes that Naruto may compensate for his friend’s loss. However, the whole thing turned out to be awkward, as Kiba tried to get him to talk and eventually with Naruto’s clipped answers, his patience grew thing. Needless to say, it was a disaster and she didn’t try to force Naruto into company anymore unless he wanted it. She on the other hand, spoke to Kiba more often and eventually the started hanging out. Their friendship was one that progressed tremendously and Sakura couldn’t have been happier about that.He was crass and rude sometimes, and quite brutally honest, but he was patient and listened to her vent about the hospital or her frustrations with Naruto. He made her feel empowered and strong enough to do what she wanted to do. Kiba always made his thoughts known but he remained respectful of Sakura’s opinion and her decisions. Sakura found it fascinating, he was a complete oxymoron, kind but brutal, crass but gentle, rude but gentlemanly when he put his mind to it. It alarmed her how close they got in such a short amount of time, but simultaneously it never ceased to bring a smile to her face. Ino called it nauseatingly adorable and although she had her reservations at first (which she always voiced out at every opportunity) eventually she thawed at the idea after they all hung out one evening after work. Lately, in spite of Ino’s incessant teasing, Sakura has felt a shift in her friendship with Kiba, she knows he cares for her and she loves how easy it is to have a conversation with him or vent out her problems, but somehow, Sakura still feels unsure in taking a leap and progressing the easy going friendship into uncharted territory. It was like something was holding her back, maybe it was the fear of being rejected again. After being constantly let down by Sasuke, she didn’t want to get her hopes up, till then, no matter how much Ino pester her or called her spineless, she won’t make the mistake of assuming something that obviously wasn’t there. She won’t fall for anyone this time.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Sakura was just tidying up her office after a long day. Six long surgeries and then hours of paperwork and consultations made tiredness seep into her bones. All she wanted to do was head home and take a nice long luxurious bath. There was a sudden knock on her door.‘Enter’ she responded.‘Sakura-san, could you take a look at this case? It’s a bit tricky and Moegi needs an extra set of hands’ ‘Sure, I’ll be right there’ Sakura was extremely tired and practically sleep walking that night when she finally got off work that night. She was slowly dragging her feet when she saw a familiar figure hunched over on a bench at the hospital gates. She recognized the figure immediately and rushed over to check for injuries.‘Naruto. Are you hurt?’ she inquired hurriedly, fearing the worst.‘No. Not externally anyway’ he murmured. ‘Sakura-chan’ he looked over at her giving her a sad smile. Sakura was now really weirded out. She knew Naruto was navigating an internal torrent of emotions, but he never let it show. To see him so dejected and practically resigned, worried her. ‘What’s wrong then, and don’t bother hiding it’ she gave him a soft smile and sat down beside him on the bench.‘I went on a mission near Snow country, that’s all’‘Was it a challenging one?’ ‘Nah, piece of cake’ He grinned at herShe frowned.“Naruto, what aren’t you telling me? You know I could beat it out of you’ He winced at that.‘Always the violent one’ he sighed. He spoke after a beat, not sure where to begin.‘I was on a mission, and on my way back I saw Sasuke’Sakura stiffened, she wasn’t expecting that.‘He’s seemed different, like he was finally at peace. I kind of went and asked around about him’ he grinned sheepishly.‘What do you mean he’s different?’ Sakura spoke slowly. Her mind had gone numb for a few seconds. You’d think after all this time she’d tune out the sinking feeling she gets in the pit of her stomach, yet it always takes a few moments for her senses to return to her. ‘I mean he’s settled in a small village near Snow country!’ Naruto exclaimed impatiently.‘He’s living under a different name and he’s a simple farmer, Ha!’ he found the whole thing hilarious.‘He did that to stay safe, good for him. If they found out about him being an Uchiha, the villagers would simply hand him over to a shinobi village’ ‘Yeah, I know, doesn’t change the fact that it’s still weird and absurd’ ‘That literally means the same thing’‘You know what I mean!’ The both fell silent, contemplating this new strange turn of events.After a while, Naruto slowly broke the silence.‘He’s married you know. He even has a son. A newborn from what the villagers told me’ Sakura inhaled sharply and slowly turned away from Naruto. He’s married, she thought, he has a wife and child. He got his other wish. He’s finally at peace.
She felt nauseous at the thought. ‘Was he happy?’ she muttered. ‘Yeah, he seemed content. I’m really sorry Sakura-chan’Sakura inhaled sharply. ‘Don’t be. If he’s happy, then that’s all there is to it. Maybe he realized that the life of a shinobi is only going to bring him suffering. I think we should
respect his decision to walk away from it.’‘Yeah, it’s a path he chose, I just wished things were different and that we were there with him, you know’‘I know Naruto. I know you mean well, but there’s no point mulling over it now. You have to train to be Hokage, that’s our path, and I have to work on finding my path too’
She patted his hand softly and got up to leave.‘We’ll be okay, right?’ he asked.Sakura didn’t have the heart to tell him that they weren’t in fact okay. They were broken beyond repair and a piece of their heart would always remain shattered, never quite healing. ‘Yes Naruto, we’ll be okay, we have an entire village backing us and people who are important to us’ she smiled softly at him and turned towards her house.Naruto may seem satisfied with the answer, but she knew that deep down they both knew the truth was far from satisfactory. The news was a big blow to Sakura, but she didn’t want to mull over it. Sasuke found someone and married her, had a whole family and she and Naruto were left on the sidelines once again. He got married after rejecting her for so long, like she didn’t matter.She really didn’t want to think over it, but it inevitably hit her, she was never important to him, not the way Naruto was, and most likely will never be. Fresh tears spilled down her eyelids and she let them roll freely. After today there will be no more crying over this. After today, she will move on. If Sasuke can shed his old life, then what was stopping her? She spent the next few hours walking around the deserted streets of Konoha, mulling over the new information. Tiredness forgotten, she walked around aimlessly reminiscing over their days as team 7 and how all those naïve fantasies and hopes she held in her heart were just that, idealistic dreams that would never happen.She eventually wiped her tears and without really thinking about it, her feet led her on a familiar district of the village with traditional buildings and huge structures. Obviously it was the oldest part of Konoha, maintained with the modern amenities. She was unsure of her next move. Her friendship with Kiba had developed drastically overtime, but it still confused her, especially how she felt the need to show up near his house when she felt overwhelmed. She chalked it down to him being a good listener and being there for her when she needed him. Steeling herself, she made her way up to his apartment building and knocked on his door tentatively. He opened the door after a while, surprise etched on his dangerous looking features.‘Sakura, what’re-‘‘I’m going to enter the ANBU task force’
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
‘Woah, hold up, what?’ he spluttered, clearly confused at this newfound career choice.‘What do you mean you’re going to join the task force?’ ‘It means what it means, I’m sitting through m Jounin exams, and after the mandatory six months duration, I’ll apply for the task force.’‘But don’t you think that’s a little too abrupt? What brought this on?’Sakura sighed. ‘I’m tired of thinking I’m not good enough and I hate being left behind. So I’m taking things in my own hands.’‘But you’re a medic, you’re needed at the hospital!’ exclaimed Kiba, clearly he found the decision impulsive and incredulous. ‘The hospital is a safe job but there’s no growth, eventually I’ll remain stagnant. I need to move on, pace myself, do things that give me peace’‘And going on assassination missions will give you peace?’ he retorted‘It’ll harness my skills and push me to work on my ninjutsu which is clearly lagging behind’‘Sakura I really want you think this through.’‘I have thought it through; honestly Kiba there’s nothing you can say that’ll change my mind.’‘What happened?’Sakura hesitated. A part of her didn’t want to tell Kiba anything; she felt that telling him would be betraying Sasuke and her past. But then again, Sasuke went ahead and betrayed her, so there’s no moral ground where she could defend him. ‘Naruto told me he located Sasuke. He’s living in a small village under an alias. He has a family and everything too, a wife and child, the whole thing!’
Kiba’s features changed and a look of understanding washed over them. ‘Oh. So that’s what’s gotten you all twisted up’‘I’m not twisted!’ she exclaimedHe shrugged and went to lounge on his couch. ‘Sure, sure, the guy you loved for years, ditched you and married someone else. He even has a kid so it’s not like anyone can do anything about that. Besides, you’re not the type who’d rush there and break up his little family’‘Of course I’m not’ ‘Yeah so now you’re being impulsive and doing the first crazy thing you can think of to show that you’ve moved on too’ ‘It’s not impulsive and I have thought about this. I have it all planned out!’‘Whatever you say’ he scoffed.‘Fine, whatever, I don’t need your approval’ She turned on her heel and stormed out of his apartment.‘Sakura wait!’She didn’t turn around and ran over in the direction of her house. Her mind was clearly made up.The next day Sakura had a familiar visitor lounging awa at his usual spot in her office.‘I see you’re back. Want to talk me out of my life decisions again?’ she taunted.‘No. Actually I came in to tell you that I’m joining in too’‘What?!’ She yelled, completely baffled at the idea.‘Yeah, I figured it’ll be something we could do together. Pick up each other’s slack and train together, if you’re serious about this, then you’ll need someone to challenge you every step of the way. ‘And I suppose that’s you?’ she said coolly.‘Why not? Sakura I was skeptical before because I thought you were putting yourself in danger to prove that you’re okay when you’re not and its fine if you’re not. You want to grieve, you grieve and move on. He didn’t deserve you in the first place and if some other unfortunate girl got his attention then you need to thank the universe for putting you out of that situation. Look, I’m not Ino and I don’t do girl talk or whatever, but I know that you’re smart and driven and if this is what you want to do then I want to be there with you at every step’Sakura knew he was being sincere. She knew he cared for her and was so moved by his words that she crossed the room in a full stride and kissed him hard on the mouth.
It was the first time she made a move like that and it felt liberating. It was an empowering feeling that she didn’t want to shy away from. Besides, the way Kiba responded made her even more confident in herself. When they finally broke apart, Kiba looked stunned but recovered quickly giving her a lazy smile that she had grown used to.‘Guess I’ll need to start writing more motivational speeches if that’s how you’ll react to them’ Sakura chuckled in spite of herself and held his face in her hands. ‘As long as you don’t go around giving speeches to everyone else’ she said.He smiled at her and her lousy day just got a lot better.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
When Sakura passed the Jounin exams with flying colors, Kiba and Naruto threw the biggest party she’s ever attended in Konoha. She wasn’t expecting them to go all out but they simply grinned at her and shut down her complaints.‘You deserve this Sakura, you’ve worked too hard for it’ said Kiba affectionately.She didn’t protest after that. Life at Konoha had grown relatively peaceful. They were no longer living under the shadow of Danzo’s horrendous regime. Instead more shinobi were being inducted and sent out, not just for missions but as peace envoys to the smaller villages as a way to maintain contact and share acquired knowledge and techniques. The idea was to strengthen ties and help the less equipped nations to provide a quality of life to its citizens.Sakura thought that it was a great idea especially since Kakashi’s intent was to keep up with bilateral relations and specialize in peace and restoration. He devised a new council comprising of Konoha’s top ranking Jounin and ANBU who were tasked with overseeing of different sectors. Sakura was of course in charge of the medical division while Naruto and Kiba both made it to the council too. Naruto specialized in international affairs given his expertise in convincing anyone of just about anything, while Kiba was tasked with handling surveillance and recon. It was definitely something he and Akamaru looked forward to handling and they couldn’t be happier. Ino was of course dealing with Interrogation given her clan’s signature jutsu, while Sai replaced Ibiki in the torture and interrogation cell, with new ideas and a fresh new uptake on investigation. Shikamaru too rose up in the ranks and was in charge of strategy and decoding complex information.Sakura felt confident and upbeat with her new take on life. Her friends were making the most of their life and moving on despite the past and its overwhelming baggage. She sometimes caught Natuto deep in thought or detached from a crowd, with a somber look on his face. But when he got in too deep, Hinata who was now wife, would always draw hi out and make sure he was back to his usual self.It was moments like that she knew he was thinking of Sasuke and what he’s missing out on. She too felt a distant ache in her heart sometimes, but she doesn’t feel the weight of it and it no longer ties her down. Especially since her relationship with Kiba was thriving,They managed to find a new and improved place for themselves something Sakura’s parents disapproved of and Kiba’s mom found hilarious.‘They’re not kids anymore, give them some space’ she said gruffly while having dinner with Sakura’s parents. Sakura knew her parents took a long time warming up to Kiba’s family. She also knew how important it was to him that they got along. He told her about his father and it only made Sakura more in awe of the man he had become.
She adored his mother and sister. They would even get paired up on missions occasionally. It was a really warm and welcome feeling to be wanted and cared for like that. Sakura always cherished little moments she spent with them and clearly they wasted no time in practically adopting her. She was finally able to understand what it was to be a part of a family of shinobi and she did love it very much.Sakura and Kiba spent six months as Jounin and applied for the ANBU task force at the same time, something that didn’t go unnoticed and raised a lot of eyebrows.‘Are you sure about this Sakura?’ Kakashi asked her one day in his office. ‘Positive’‘I just don’t understand why? Being a Jounin is great for you, you’re even on the council’‘This isn’t about the council, it’s about challenging myself, getting out of the village more. The ANBU is doing great work, not just assassinations but handling really inspiring work and I want to do that’‘And Kiba? Did you rope him in too?’‘No, he’s doing that on his own. We don’t work like that.’‘I see’ he gave her one of his penetrating stares that still makes her feel like a child.She blushed and coughed lightly to hide it.‘He said if we’re both in the ANBU we’ll see each other more often and won’t have a clash in schedule. Plus we’ll be on equal levels and neither of us will stay in the village waiting for the each other’‘That sounds reasonable enough. I can’t say I’m a hundred percent behind this, but I’ll forward through your applications and recommend the both of you. Good luck.’ Sakura beamed at him and went over to tell Kiba the good news.Sakura spent the next few months pushing herself to the extreme with her training. She had to make it to the ANBU task force. She had to at least give herself that chance. Sometimes Kiba joined her and they trained together, his ninjutsu and collaboration with Akamaru went really well against Sakura’s taijutsu and new earth and water style techniques. With both elemental jutsus under her belt she felt confident on taking the exams and facing its challenges head on. It had taken up to a year of exams, aptitude profiling and interrogations to full be accepted and start missions as an ANBU op.By the end of their year training, Sakura and Kiba barely saw anyone else as most of the the trainings took place in isolation and out of Konoha. Having Kiba by her side made things so much easier and for the first time, she didn’t feel so alone. She knew she could count on him when she needed him the most.Sakura’s first mission as an ANBU op however was in a completely new team of strangers. She had been inducted in the squad and had received the traditional tattoo and mask. Hers was in the form of a cat. She was extremely nervous. She didn’t know anyone and had to trust them to make the mission work. It was nearly impossible.
That day, Sakura told herself that whenever she got anxious, she would always take the mission in steps. The first step was to focus on her breathing to even out her chakra. If it elevated the enemy would sense her presence and her teammates would definitely be counting on her to hold herself together.After a brief introduction and mission briefing, Sakura took a deep breath, steeled herself for her first mission and set out with the rest of her team.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Two months into Sakura’s life as an ANBU passed by in a blur. She hadn’t expected it to pass by so quickly. Most of her days were spent on recon missions and securing peace near the Konoha-Suna Border.It was amazing how her missions as a peace envoy could create harmony with the smaller villages. She had visited many war torn areas and brokered peace between disgruntled tribes. She had even managed to use her skills as a medic while visiting a small village near Suna. It was to display gestures of goodwill, yet all she wanted to do was heal the village kids who were injured in a serious bout of attack between the warring tribes. Sakura felt like her decision to become ANBU was a great turning point in her life, and it was the best thing she did for herself. She spent her days on missions and alternative weekends with Kiba who would be home too by then.It was during such lazy moments when Sakura felt most content. Curled up on the couch with Akamaru’s head in her lap watching the night sky with Kiba by her side. Late into the evening, when they were getting ready for bed, a soft knock was heard. However instead of the door, it came from their balcony window. Akamaru barked loudly, bearing his teeth, and in true ANBU fashion, a fully geared up ANBU descended into their home and bowed.‘What news?’ asked Kiba emerging into their living room.‘The Hokage has requested a meeting with both of you’ he directed his gaze towards him and Sakura.‘Any idea why?’ he asked‘Those were my instructions; a full briefing will be given to you in the Hokage tower’ With that he disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving a very puzzled couple. When they arrived at the Hokage tower, Sakura and Kiba were met by the sight of a full room filled with Jounin and ANBU upper classmen. Clearly this was serious.
Kakashi cleared his throat audibly and began.‘Right, now that we’re all here, I’ll let Shikamaru start with the meeting’ ‘Thank you Hokage-sama,’ said Shikamaru formally.‘Right, a few months ago we received information that a group called ‘Sting’ as they have fashioned themselves, were reported to have attacked small villages in this general area’ he motioned at the a nearby map laid out for the presentation. The map pointed towards a general area near lightening country.‘Scouts reported that they only target areas that have ties with Madara and the ancient ninjutsu, possibly trying to steal and recreate an infinite tskyuomi. Our mission is to locate them and stop them from getting too close to the temples guarding the information. Assume this as a Kill on Sight order. Engage if you have to but this mission is information gathering only. That should be your only priority’Shikamaru looked towards the Hokage.‘Right, I think that sums it up. Shikamaru has devised a strategy that you will be expected to follow and a breakdown of the teams you’ll be assigned.’At this, Shikamaru began calling out names of the Jounin and codenames of ANBU who would be in one team, their positions and departure timings.
Kiba and Sakura were placed on the same squad along with Lee and Shino. The idea was to balance out their abilities together. They met at the Konoha gates within the hour and left for the lightening country border.They travelled for two days before reaching a small village rumored to house secrets of the sage of six paths and the early ninjutsu he passed onto his descendants.
They spent a day searching up the area, covering as much ground as they could and discreetly spoke to the villagers nearby. So far there was no sign of Sting members. Taking this as an opportunity, the four set up camp near the village and tried locating the tomb. They discovered records of an ancient bunker that housed scrolls of lightening country, its history and traditions. Shino immediately dispatched his bugs to search for the bunker while Kiba and Akamaru set out on a search of their own. Lee and Sakura however, decided to look around the landscape for clues. They decided to rendezvous at a different point in two hours. When they met up, Shino reported a vague metal structure that his insects couldn’t get through which he found very suspicious, so they decided to check it out. Sakura and Lee both discovered that the villagers weren’t so keen in discussing the village’s history. They all concurred that Shino found a good lead and hence moved towards the direction he instructed. ‘There’s definitely something here, the scent is weird’ said Kiba. Akamaru gave a bark in agreement.‘I could burst the ground open and see?’ suggested Sakura.They all stepped out of the way, which she took as a yes. Kiba smirking slightly, winked at her.Smiling at him, Sakura pumped chakra through her fists and cracked the ground open. Deep craters formed in the land and caved through to show a metal passageway leading in a deep underground area.‘Guess we should take a look’ said Lee.‘Wait’ said Kiba suddenly, his senses active and turned around towards a nearby forest.Akamaru growled and bared his sharp fangs.‘Shinobi, six of them at least’ he murmured.The rest of the team readied themselves. Suddenly a kunai was thrown towards them which they dodged. ‘Akamaru, guard the entrance’ yelled Kiba.Six ninjas descended from the tree tops and attacked them instantly.Lee and Sakura engaged them in hand-to-hand combat while Shino unleashed his creepy crawlies at them.Kiba leapt and swirled around to attack but missed as his opponent attacked him with a lightening technique. Jumping back to create some distance between them, he threw some kunai with flash tags attached to them. Using the smoke as a cover, he switched with Akamrau and they both used their combination attack at him effectively killing the shinobi.Both smirked and moved towards the entrance where Sakura was engaged in battle.Lee and Shino were able to dismount the attack on them too but Sakura was in quite a bind. She had used her water and earth technique but her opponent was strong. He evaded all of her close range attacks and wasn’t holding back.Sakura swayed a little on her feet and the opponent detected it, he moved to hit her weak point when Kiba and Akamaru jumped in with another dual combination and hit him. Shino encased him in his bugs until the man was lifeless.‘I had that under control you know’ fumed Sakura.‘Ha! Yet you still need our help, not so tough then, eh? Grinned Kiba wolfishly. Right Akamaru?’ The dog barked in response. ‘Ugh’ she cried out.‘You-‘But she didn’t get to complete her sentence, because just as Kiba was laughing at her antics, a senbon flew from the forest and hit Kiba in the chest. Lee and Shino immediately went towards the forest and located the man, he scarpered off aiming to slip through the entrance but Sakura was quick for him. She landed a swift kick and cracked his skull in half. Horrified, she knelt next to Kiba whose blood was seeping through his chest.‘Lie down here, Kiba. Don’t worry, I’ve got this, you’ll be fine’ He did as he was told, staying quiet all the while Sakura worked. She asked lee to get her water. The senbon was poisoned so she spent a few minutes detecting its type. It was what they called a silent killer. It spread quickly without making its symptoms known. Sakura inhaled sharply and tried to heal his wound with the weapon still lodged in him. She had to work fast or the poison would get to his heart quickly. She used her chakra to close the tear in his arteries and heart muscle. She then temporaily numbed Kiba’s sensory network so he won’t be in pain while she removed the weapon. When Lee was back with the water, she looked at the gaping hole in his middle and resorted to sucking out the poison all the while keeping the tear in his chest at bay. It was grueling work but the poison was moving too quickly forher to catch onto. She increased the speed of her chakra and inserted enough to help his body generate new cells to counter the poison. However doing so, wore his weakened heart muscles and new tears started forming. Cursing herself, she expanded her chakra and diverted her attention there. The poison had spread to his kidneys and she tried desperately to cleanse them. The frustration must have shown on her face because Kiba took her hand in his and smiled softly at her.‘It’s ok Sakura, I know when its my time. Its ok’‘No, you’re not dying today. Not here.’ Tears started streaming down her face and landing in his shirt. ‘I’m going to die next to my lifelong friend and the girl I love, there’s not much I can ask for’ he spoke softly now.‘Shut up and stay quiet while I work’ she increased the level of her chakra and pumped it through his system. It had spread towards his heart, liver and pancreas. She summoned Katsuyu to help her but it only made Kiba look more somber and pale. She knew her was losing blood so she tasked Katsuyu to break down soldier pills in her pocket and fill Kiba’s system with them.‘Sakura…stop. Listen, these past two years have been nothing but a dream. I always knew it wasn’t going to last, like somehow it was all going to be over soon. Guess it’s just the universe’s way of being cruel.’ He was whispering now.Sakura still kept repairing the tears in his body and sucking out the poison, trying to maintain her breathing despite the burning feeling in her throat. ‘Kiba, please don’t leave me’ she whimpered her eyes blinded with tears.‘I’m not. I was never the kind of person who wanted to be with one person all their life, guess that’s what I turned out to be’ he chuckled darkly.‘Sakura, after I’m gone…don’t fall in a dark hole of depression or something, that’ll be really lousy. Do something with your life, do something great and challenging and show them what a force you are. Don’t let anyone tell you you’re not good enough, because as cheesy as it sounds, loving you has been one of the greatest moments of my life’ He started coughing up blood and Sakura knew this is where it ended. So she pressed her forehead against his trying to show him what he meant to her.‘Loving you was something I never thought I’d get a chance to do, but you changed me in ways I never imagined. It’s okay Kiba, if you want to go. It’s okay’ He gave her a last lazy smile that he knew she loved and closed his eyes to find peace.Sakura didn’t want him to see her howling for him, trying to get him back, but her heart was dying in that moment too.Sakura lay next to Kiba with her head on his broken chest and cried like she had never done before. All her anger and frustration was going into this one moment where she realized that she would never wake up to him again or be herself with him or just see his face after this moment. It was like her heart was a gaping wound similar to the one on Kiba’s chest from which her life force kept seeping out of, only to leave her drained and completely paralyzed.Everything was going to change. He had easily wormed his way into her heart and he had left just as easily. How cruel could a person be? She had only thought of him as a distant friend. Yet if it wasn’t for him checking up on her, who knows what she would’ve ended up doing? After what seemed like hours Lee and Shino separated her from Kiba and took him to get cleaned up. She used the remnants of her chakra to knit his wound together while both Shino and Lee had quietly retrieved the information they were after. Shino had sealed the exits so no one would venture there again. Later, Sakura let Shino carry Kiba towards Konoha. He wanted to do his small bit for his old friend and teammate and Sakura thought it was his way of showing the bond he had with his teamate. Akamaru had separated from them but they could hear distant howling. Sakura assumed this was his way of expressing his grief. She let Lee take her arm gently and help her walk towards Konoha. Shino summoned one of his insects and asked them to send word to Kakashi.Sakura’s life had turned out to be completely different just when the greatest moments of her life were beginning. She sighed heavily as a fresh round of tears leaked through her eyelashes.She was never going to be the same again.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It took four months for Sakura to stop crying in the shower and another three months before she could sleep without any medication.When she got back from her mission, they were met by a stoic Hokage and an equally shocked Naruto. Obviously Kakashi would have told Naruto. He was concerned about her after all and wanted him to look after her. They had informed Kiba’s family who had accepted the news as best as they could. Sakura was glad she wasn’t the one to do it. She didn’t think she could face Kiba’s mother alone or look her in the eye. She felt responsible for his death and sickened by the fact that he won’t live his life just when it was finally getting good.After the burial, Sakura went into an aggressive workaholic mode. She didn’t want to be disturbed or make small talk. She just wanted to be left alone with her grief. Sakura felt as if she had aged immensely over these past few days, like she wasn’t herself but only having an out-of-body experience.Naruto and Hinata stopped by often to check in on her, which she thought was nice, but quite annoying. She felt that their constant presence was out of pity and fear that she might do something crazy.Sakura went through bouts of annoyance and anger mostly directed at Naruto and Kakashi for being overbearing and nonchalant in Kakashi’s case. She blamed him for sending Kiba out on the mission in the first place. But mostly she just blamed her incompetence for not ridding Kiba of the poison on time.She couldn’t channelize her anger properly there, so she simply spent her days barking orders at the new medics in the hospital or at an unsuspecting Naruto. She also managed to step down from her position on the ANBU task force fearing it was too much. She settled for being a Jounin and reporting to the hokage on the medical scenario of the village.
It took months of tears, rants and fights with Naruto and Ino before Sakura felt that she had reached some sort of a new normalcy.‘Forehead, you really need to take a break’ said Ino sympathetically one day.She had come over one evening on Sakura’s rare day off and told her the latest gossip like she used to. ‘I’m fine. I have patients who rely on me’ she shrugged.‘You won’t be there to rely on if you keep going like this. Seriously, have you seen yourself lately?’ Sakura looked away.She didn’t need Ino to tell her she looked like a tired mess. She had lost a considerable amount of weight, had purplish bags under her eyes and now had a permanent knot lodged inside her throat that she knew will never unclench.But she was too tired to argue and use the same sentences she had rote learned. So she simply nodded and drank the tea that she had prepared for Ino and herself.She couldn’t tell her how she didn’t want to see her or talk about her feelings. As far as she knew, Ino couldn’t understand what she was feeling. She was clearly in a successful and loving relationship with Sai and wouldn’t know what it was like to give her heart away once more, only to have it crushed beyond belief, again.But Sakura kept all that to herself and simply gave her a small smile to mask the misery she felt. Ino seemed to have bought it as she gently squeezed Sakura’s hand and moved to leave. ‘I should go, Sai’s waiting for me’ Sakura nodded and they said their goodbyes.Later that night Sakura wondered what her life would be like if she had made different decisions for herself. She cried herself to sleep only no tears fell. She seemed to have run out of them. There was nothing left in her now.Sakura woke up that day with a game plan. She couldn’t sa she was back to her usual self but she felt that she was gaining some form of clarity. She still felt claustrophobic and stifled in Konoha and knew that her skills were only getting rusty if she didn’t do something about it. So that morning she took a familiar path towards the Hokage tower and sought a meeting with Kakashi.‘Are you sure about this?’ he asked when she had pitched her decision.Sakura nodded.‘I don’t want you to be alone Sakura. You have friends here, people who care about you and want to see you do well for yourself’‘Kakashi, I tried. But everywhere I look only reminds me of him. My apartment, friends, the places I visit. It never ends and I’m tired now. I really feel like I should be out there, helping the lesser villages and their medics with basic medical techniques. It’ll help their mortality rate. Instead of being a peace envoy, I can be of some use by helping their medics.’‘It is a good idea, strengthening bi-lateral relations through medical training. Okay I’ll allow it. You are hereby tasked with a long-term mission of spreading your knowledge as a medic to less quipped villages. However you are to devise a route of the villages you’ll be visiting and update me on your progress. Also you are bound to report to Konoha once every six months so we know you’re alive’ he added that with a smile.Sakura gave him an incredulous look.‘So Naruto isn’t harping at me for letting you go so easily’ She chuckled lightly at that. It was the first time she had laughed in months. This was already a good idea for her.‘Deal. Anything else?’‘Try not to get into any trouble and stay safe.’Kakashi got up from his desk and moved to hugged Sakura.‘I really am sorry for everything that’s happened. I wish I could make it better for you’She patted his shoulder softly and smiled.‘You’re already doing that by letting me go.’ He grunted in response. Sakura left two weeks later much to Naruto’s chagrin. She felt that it was the right thing to do. She was already excited at the prospect of meeting new people and discovering new antidotes for ailments. For the first time in six months, she felt that she could breathe easily. Stepping out of the village knowing there was more out there for her was all the confidence she needed to begin a new chapter in her life. To think it all started with Kiba’s declamation of understanding that propelled Sakura’s growth as a person. She was no longer the girl who pined after someone who didn’t want her, nor was she the girl who gave her heart to a loving yet a commitment-phobic person. As she made her journey she realized that she was something else entirely and she was on her way to discover just that.