Chapter Text
Sakura and Kakashi limped over to the edge of the grass. They looked down and Sakura flinched.
“There they are.”
“I figured they’d be here.”
She turned slowly, bringing Kakashi’s arm gently from around her shoulders and back down to his side. With a small smile, she jumped down the cliff side and landed between the two beaten and bloodied bodies on the ground.
Her heart hurt looking at the two of them. Their dominant arms gone with a trail of blood between them shocked her momentarily. Sakura steeled her nerves and took a breath before she leaned down and brought her green healing chakra to her hands and hovered over the remnants of both arms.
“Thanks, Sakura-chan.” Naruto smiled at her.
“Sakura, never mind me...”
“Hush now. I need to concentrate.”
Sasuke looked at the determined face above him and he felt something in his chest twist.
“I’m sorry.” He voiced.
“Sorry? For what?”
“For everything.”
That broke her then.
Sakura may not have loved him anymore but he was still her friend. Sasuke was still her family.
“You should be.” Her shoulders shook and tears began to stream down her face. “You, damn idiot!” Sobs wracked her between every word.
She finished healing what was left of their arms and both boys sat up.
Naruto started talking about the first thing he was going to eat as soon as they got back to the village.
“Ichiraku! I’m going to eat so much!” His entire body shook with laughter.
Sasuke was smiling at him and Sakura was wiping the tears from her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt that was still in tact.
The sky shifted behind Sakura then. A black line that broke itself open almost like it was tearing through the blue morning itself.
“Sakura!”
The sound of Kakashi’s voice had her turning her head, and staring right at the face of the goddess they had just saved the world from.
“Kaguya!”
“Sakura!”
Sasuke and Naruto shouted at the same time, both reaching out for their pink haired teammate.
“With the last of my power, I will take everything from you, as you have from me. This I curse you.”
Everything around Sakura went black.
She was falling, her legs tumbling from beneath her. It all went by so quickly she couldn’t even bring herself to scream.
When Sakura opened her eyes she was back on the grass though flat on her back this time. Slowly she sat up, a hand clutching her head that was pounding. She looked around and panic gripped her chest like a vice.
“Sasuke? Naruto?” She turned to the ledge her team leader was and found it absent. “Kakashi-sensei?”
A kunai was flung in her direction and she dodged and watched it sink into the ground beside her. As tired and confused as she was Sakura didn’t let that stop her from leaping to her feet and drawing her fists up.
“Who’s there?”
A shock of silver darted past her face and ended up behind her. Sakura twisted and visibly relaxed.
“Oh, Kakashi-sensei! What happened? Where are Naruto and Sasuke? We were all right here? What happened with Kaguya?”
Kakashi looked at her, eyebrows drawn together in confusion. That’s when Sakura saw it.
“Your Sharingan? But your eyes-? After Obito-?”
In a flash Kakashi was in front of her, a kunai held to her throat, his fingers chirping with lightening.
“Who are you and what are you talking about?” His voice was low and deadly. Sakura had only ever heard him speak that way to enemies before.
His words registered slowly and when they finally did, Sakura felt as if a brick had been slammed down her stomach. She wanted to fall to her knees from her exhaustion and confusion but she stayed standing, disbelief clouding her features.
“You’re not... my, Kakashi... are you?”
Sakura’s eyelids fluttered and she barely caught the look of surprise and utter confusion on the mans face before she fainted.
Kakashi dropped the kunai and released his chidori faster than he ever had, catching the pink haired woman before she could hit the ground. He had no idea what prompted him to do so as he was pretty sure this was a spy or enemy of some kind.
Though, what she was doing in the Valley of the End, he couldn’t be sure. He was, however, suddenly very glad he was training here. There was a disturbing lack of security in this area he was just determining when the woman in his arms stirred.
Kakashi gently brought her to the ground, laying her feet out and keeping an arm under her head. He watched her bring a hand to her head as it glowed green. His Sharingan was spinning rapidly but he noticed it was just healing chakra.
A medic nin? But from where? And how does she know of Naruto, Sasuke, and I?
Kakashi’s questioning thoughts were cut short when her eyes fluttered open again. The woman groaned and started to sit up. He had to admit, she looked worse for ware. Her shirt was dirtied and torn, one of the arms ripped completely off. Her exposed arm was covered in bruises and dried blood. The bubblegum pink hair on her head was dulled by dirt and grime as was her face.
The purple diamond in the center of her forehead stood out to him however. The massive amount of stored chakra at the seal was enough to rival that of Naruto on an off day and even that was saying something.
“Kakashi-“
It seemed the woman stopped before saying the honorific this time around.
“Who are you?” He figured he would start slow.
The jade orbs looked at him hard as if trying to decipher his entire existence with her eyes. Tears dabbed at the rims but she blinked them away and pursed her lips.
“My name is Sakura Haruno. I am a shinobi of Konohagakura. I am the daughter and only child of Mebuki and Kizashi Haruno.”
Her declaration had his mind racing to determine if he’d ever heard those names before.
Seeing as to how he was a shinobi of the same village she said, and he had no idea who she was, she was either a very good actor, or there was something going on here that Kakashi couldn’t explain.
Both options were plausible at present, he decided.
“How do you know me?”
Sakura pursed her lips again like she was less inclined to share that information but she took a steadying breath a moment later.
“You were my sensei when I graduated the academy. Along with Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha. We’ve-“ she stopped and picked her words carefully. “We’ve known each other more than 5 years now and we’ve been through more than those years could encompass.”
“The biggest problem with your story is that you weren’t on my genin team with Naruto and Sasuke. So I’ll ask you again. Who are you?”
The woman looked like she was about to cry again and Kakashi didn’t know why but it hurt him just a little to see her like that.
“I think something is very wrong and I respectfully request to be brought to the Hokage before giving you any more information.”
Kakashi raised an eyebrow at that.
“And why should I do that instead of just killing you right now?”
Sakura shuttered as her eyes widened at his statement. Though she kept direct eye contact with his steel grey iris, he could tell she was trying to figure out what to say next.
“Because I need your help so I can go home!” She was pleading with him. “Please, Kakashi-san!” The use of the phrase had her almost flinching again but she held it back well.
Kakashi, for his part, just stared at her. His eyes were trained on her, trying to determine the best course of action.
“Alright. But as of right now you are under my authority and I reserve the right to take you down with or without your knowledge or consent.”
Sakura stared with her mouth falling open. She quickly snapped it shut and nodded before lifting herself to her feet and watching Kakashi do the same.
Without wasting any more time, Kakashi raced them both back to the village, more confused than he had ever been in his life and it infuriated him more than a little.
The trek back to the village was a quiet one, and relatively short. Sakura only stumbled once but she caught herself before Kakashi said anything.
Her thoughts were racing the entire time trying to piece together what was going on.
Kakashi doesn’t remember me. Or know me. So Kaguya more than likely didn’t spend me back in time, if that’s even possible. If she had, he would at least still remember me, theoretically. What I wouldn’t give to get some more information and sit with Shikamaru to figure this out.
On her last thought a sigh escaped her. Kakashi looked over to her with a brow raised. Sakura just pursed her lips and gave a short nod.
They arrived at the entrance gates and Sakura had to stop herself from waving to the two familiar faces at the guard gate; they gave her curious stares of their own that shied her away from interaction. She tucked that bit of information with the rest.
Kakashi had covered his sharingan just before they arrived to the gates but Sakura knew he was watching her closely. He had his hands in his pockets but his usual slouch was absent and he wasn’t reading his infamous orange book. Sakura was trying to keep an eye on him as well but everything surrounding her was catching her attention.
This was Konoha, but somehow, it wasn’t at the same time.
The colours on the buildings were richer and more vibrant. There were more power lines running across the rooftops than she remembered. Various food and merchant stalls that she recognized were full storefronts instead of the tables they were before.
Suddenly Sakura stopped dead in her tracks, her heart going a mile a minute. Kakashi stopped too, immediately on his guard with a hand at his weapons pouch and all attention on her.
Sakura didn’t pay him any mind though. Slowly she turned her head to the left and all the air escaped her lungs like she had taken a punch to the gut harder than Tsunade used to give her in training.
The Uchiha compound to her left was buzzing with life. The front gates were open and almost inviting, there were children playing, running back and forth around the grounds. Adults were chatting with each other as they strolled through the paths and houses.
“They’re all alive?”
It was just a whisper. But it was enough that Kakashi had heard her and was behind her immediately with the tip of a blade pressed to the small of her back. Sakura didn’t even flinch, she was so caught up in the sight before her.
“Keep walking and you can explain that statement when you’re in front of the Hokage.”
With a stiff nod Sakura pulled herself away from the gates and before she turned back in front she collided with a body. She stumbled backwards and had her hands up.
“I’m so sorry, I wasn’t paying-!” Her words were cut short when she looked up and saw a pair of onyx eyes looking down at her.
Sakura froze.
Itachi.
The man didn’t speak, only looked at Kakashi and seemed to have a silent conversation. Sakura was still standing, gaping at the Uchiha.
He looked well. He didn’t look like he had aged far beyond his years and he certainly didn’t look like he was going to slaughter his entire clan. Though she was more accustomed to killers and murderers than she’d like, she could definitively say this was not the face of one. And since he wasn’t overly young looking, Sakura again ruled out the idea of time travel and being brought back in time.
“Let’s move.”
Sakura didn’t look away from the man before her but Kakashi’s words did pull her from her stupor. Quickly she bowed at the waist and spoke.
“It’s a-“ pleasure? Honor? Wonder? She decided a moment later. “Pleasure to meet you.”
She righted herself and followed Kakashi again towards Hokage Tower which was close enough now and that’s when she noticed the mountain range as well.
Four faces. Tsunade isn’t on there.
They reached the doors and ascended the steps quickly and silently before reaching the large wooden doors to the Hokage’s office. Sakura was trying to prepare herself. No matter who sat on the other side of that desk it would be a shock. Sarutobi was someone she respected and looked up to. And though she just saw him only hours ago in battle, that was a reanimation of himself. The same could be said for Minato Namikaze. Though she had never met him before the war and outside of his reanimated state, seeing him would almost be more of a shock for that held more implications than Sakura could count at what was going on here.
She took a deep breath and steeled her nerves, squaring her shoulders as Kakashi knocked twice and pushed the door open without waiting. Sakura took several steps in and finally looked at the desk before them. Sakura heard the doors close behind her as she felt her chest tighten. The yellow head of hair and strikingly blue eyes felt like they stared right through her.
Immediately Sakura bowed and used every ounce of her courage to not let her voice shake.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Hokage-sama.”
The depth of her words were felt by both other parties in the room. It wasn’t just the meeting of the village head she was addressing. Sakura’s words were for the man himself behind the desk. Minato Namikaze was very much alive and looked like he should in his mid years of life.
The Hokage cleared his throat and Sakura brought herself up from her bow.
“Thank you. Now why don’t you tell me who you are and what this is about?” He looked at Kakashi with the last question.
Sakura took a deep breath and noted the chakra presences around her. She could feel that of Kakashi’s beside her, the Hokage’s, and then the faintest one from behind the window which she figured had to be an Anbu guard. Though why there was only one she wouldn’t question at this moment. Squaring her shoulders again she looked directly at the man behind the desk and started.
“My name is Sakura Haruno. I am the daughter of Mebuki and Kizashi Haruno.” Her pause was only brief when she felt the hidden chakra disappear but she continued anyway. “I am a shinobi of Konohagakura. I am seventeen years old and I’ve lived in Konoha all my life. I am the student of both, Hatake Kakashi, and Senju Tsunade.”
Her last statement had both men looking at her with curiosity.
“Well, Haruno-san, I must say I’m at a bit of a loss.” Minato started and steepled his fingers. “As far as I’m aware, we don’t have a shinobi with distinctly pink hair named Sakura.”
Though she expected it, the words still stung her. Before she could speak the hidden chakra reappeared along with the user who was kneeling at the side of the desk.
Itachi looked up and spoke.
“Kizashi Haruno is a traveling merchant with no children, and Mebuki Inadate was killed in the Third War.”
Sakura stood, frozen with shock. She could feel the tears in her eyes but she refused to let them fall. She brought her hand to her chest, fingers twisted in a sign and squeezed her eyes shut.
“Kai.”
She opened her eyes and found herself in the same room with the same people all staring intently at her. One foot stepped backward, fear gripping her body, her mind and soul as she realised she wasn’t in a genjutsu. As she processed the words Itachi spoke she shouted the release word again.
“Kai! Kai! KAI!”
Sakura stumbled backwards and stared at the three man, her mouth falling open.
“I don’t exist in this world.”
Suddenly Kaguya’s words came back to her like she’d been struck across the face.
“With the last of my power, I will take everything from you, as you have from me. This I curse you.”
“She erased me from existence? But, how!?”
Sakura wasn’t talking to any of them. Her hands were clutching the sides of her head and she noticed one of her shirt sleeves was missing. She had just been fighting in a war that defied all odds. She was fighting the dead that had been brought back to life. Monsters with enough power to destroy the world times over. She punched a goddess in the face, damnit, and what the hell was going on now?!
“Haruno-san, why don’t we get you to the hospital? We can have one of our staff take a look at your injuries-,” Minato started softly.
“No! I’m- I’m not,” Not what?
A thought like a lightening strike came to her and she bit her thumb, twisting her hands together faster than she ever had. She briefly noted Itachi and Kakashi lunging towards her before she slammed her hand on the ground and shouted,
“Summoning Jutsu!”
The black text unfolded across the floor and a puff of smoke covered her hands. Before she could blink, both man had one of her arms pulled away from the ground and twisted so she couldn’t easily move. Two kunai were pointed to her throat but Sakura didn’t care. She looked down with a ray of hope at the small blue and white slug that was on the ground before her.
“Katsuyu-sama!”
“Sakura-san! We’ve been so worried! Where-?” The slug stopped speaking when she took in the scene around her. “Kakashi-san, what are you doing?”
Minato raised a hand and both blades were pulled from Sakura’s throat. The Hokage stood and made his way over to the group before he leaned down and brought his hand out for the slug to climb on.
“Minato-san.” Katsuyu stared.
“Katsuyu-sama, somethings wrong. Something happened. Kaguya said something, a curse and I ended up here but it’s not here!” The slug turned back to the frantic voice behind her. “I don’t exist here, Katsuyu-sama.”
The entire room was quiet for a few moments. Minato was the one who broke it.
“You are Senju Tsunade’s summons, the great healer slug Katsuyu, are you not?”
“I am, Minato-san.” The slug gave a small nod of her head in respect.
“You seem to know this girl.” He gestures to Sakura. “Maybe you should help shed some light on the situation.”
“Lord Hokage, can we trust the word of her summons?” Itachi spoke quietly though everyone could hear.
“I don’t know how this is her summons but this is Lady Katsuyu. She is the personal summons of the Legendary Sannin Tsunade Senju. She is not a threat. Nor would I assume Sakura Haruno is either.”
Sakura visibly relaxed though only just.
“Katsuyu-sama, is everyone alright? Please, where are Sasuke, and Naruto? Kakashi-sensei?”
“Rest easy, Sakura-san. Naruto-kun and Sasuke-san are recuperating and under the care of Tsunade-sama. Kakashi-san has been trying to find you though to no avail. Now we understand why.”
“I don’t understand Katsuyu-sama?”
The slug was quiet for a long moment before she wiggled her eye stalks and continued.
“Sakura-san, it would seem, you’re not in your world anymore.”