Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"I'm clearly wasting my time here," Sakura groaned. She'd been there for hours, doing what Kakashi always had her do, the same basic exercises she could, and did, do when he wasn't there anyways. The same ones she’d done since she was in the academy.

It was always the same, with her sensei. Before and after the disastrous mission to the Land of Waves. It had been the same since graduation.

Sakura knew she needed to work on her physical strength, stamina and speed, but she also knew that her form for the exercises was perfect, and so she didn’t need to use her only time with her sensei to practice them. He could actually teach her something useful instead.

"Don't say that, Sakura!" She heard Naruto call out to her from where he was sitting, taking a break from the spar. "If you sparred with me and Sasuke, you might get hurt."

Sakura couldn't resist the urge to groan as she paused her exercises, wiping the sweat she had built up before the chronically late sensei of Team Seven had even arrived from her palms.

"I'm more than capable of some light sparring, Naruto," she replied, rolling her eyes, annoyed.

"Yeah, but you might end up hurting your pretty face." Naruto continued, and Sakura stopped completely.

"I'm more than just something to look at, Naruto." She said, her voice uncharacteristically calm despite her anger.

"Oh, I mean I know," Naruto stammered out in response, the pink haired girl's reply having thrown him off.

"Well you don't act like it," Sakura continued, a tinge of emotion re-entering her tone as she looked at the blonde. "None of you do."

"What do you mean, Sakura?" Naruto asked, his face confused, one hand raised to scratch at the side of his head.

"Ever since we graduated I've just been an afterthought to Kakashi-sensei," Sakura said loud enough for the man to hear, her voice cracking a bit, as she fought hard to keep tears from springing into her eyes. "And Sasuke hasn't once thought of me as anything more than a burden."

Despite her volume, Kakashi continued to read and Sasuke simply kept eating his lunch with a quiet scoff.

Sakura lowers her head at that, turning slightly as if to leave. A small part of her hoped that one of the three would try to stop her, but when she had turned a full one hundred and eighty degrees, all of them had yet to reply.

She realized abruptly then that no matter what she said, nobody was going to take her seriously on Team Seven.

Without another thought, she started to walk away, the team she'd been so excited to be part of after graduation still did nothing to make her stay.

The air was humid, and a dark cloud loomed overhead an hour later. She had been wandering the village streets aimlessly, not wanting to return home and explain to her father why she was so early.

"Stupid team," she muttered angrily to herself. "Stupid Naruto, stupid Kakashi. Hell, even stupid Sasuke."

A few weeks prior, she would have never said such a thing about Uchiha Sasuke. He was her first crush, and she still thought she liked him until they landed on the same team.

Now, she saw him for what he really was, an arrogant, stuck-up jerk with a stick up his ass.

"What's Kakashi even thinking, signing us up for the Chunin Exams," she rants quietly, "Naruto doesn't work well with Sasuke, and both of them basically refuse to work with me."

She sighed, her legs tired from the morning of exercise, and the cold wind that had picked up wasn't helping.

"A storm's on its way, too." She groaned again. Groaning had become a large part of her life as of late, she realized.

"Just great," she continued sarcastically.

A few more minutes pass by as she walks, her mind wandering and her eyes barely paying attention to where she is going.

Eventually she takes a moment to glance around, realizing she'd never been to the area of the village she found herself in, but recognising it easily.

Before her stood the intelligence headquarters, a large building with few windows painted in a dull gray. It was stationed at the base of the Hokage mountain, and Sakura guessed they used tunnel systems inside the rock itself to hide more sensitive information.

"We don't see many fresh genin around here," a deep voice spoke from in front of the building, just a few meters away. Sakura jumped slightly at the sound before looking up at the man.

He was tall, and incredibly imposing. He had multiple scars on his face and wore a bandana style Konoha headband and the standard intelligence division uniform beneath a black trenchcoat.

He watched her as she took in his appearance, a small smirk on his face. He was pleased to see the new Genin was not so careless as to trust any shinobi she met, even in her home village. Suspicion like that would serve her well.

"What are you doing here?" He questioned, eying her up and down. Her build was about what he expected on a fresh genin, some muscle definition but carrying few weapons. Her clothing of choice was lacking, though, both in utility and armor.

Sakura faltered for a moment, not wanting to tell the truth, but also not wanting to lie to a shinobi clearly higher ranked than she was.

"I, uh," she stuttered, avoiding eye contact with the man as she did. "I'm on a walk?"

The man almost chuckled at that, letting out an amused huff of air. "There's more to it than that, so tell me." He didn't seem particularly annoyed, but to Sakura just his presence was intimidating enough to get her to talk.

Sakura sighed, realizing she'd have to tell the truth to a man she just met, but relinquished regardless. "I had an argument with my stupid team."

The man hummed at that with a small shrug. "Not everyone can get along, you need to suck it up and work with them. Or you'll end up dead."

Sakura sighed again at that. This man had no idea, she didn't think Sasuke or Naruto knew the definition of teamwork even if they'd managed it once or twice. And she imagined she'd be pretty useless in any task that actually involved combat thanks to Kakashi not teaching her anything she could use in that situation.

"It's not that simple," she practically growled, not realizing how defensive and annoyed her tone became, causing the man to raise an eyebrow curiously. "My teammates are so self-centered, and Kakashi does nothing to even try and fix it."

The man's smirk left them, his face schooled into a blank look with hints of what Sakura thought was pity. The man was incredibly hard to read, and Sakura assumed anything she did manage to figure out from his expressions was because he allowed her to.

"Oh, you're one of Hatake's." He said, "were you arguing about the exams?"

Sakura was shocked when he said that, but she supposed it made sense. The man clearly worked in intelligence, given the uniform.

"Not really," Sakura shrugged. "I'm just sick of being ignored. Naruto only seems to care about looking at me, and Sasuke doesn't even think of me as part of the team."

The man hummed at that thoughtfully. "So you're annoyed they don't take you seriously, and Naruto only cares about your appearance?"

"I guess," she shrugged. Her voice was quiet and her eyes had yet to meet the man's.

"Then the problem should be easy to ignore, no?" He tried, but Sakura groaned yet again.

"No, because Kakashi-sensei only seems to care about the boys." She continued her list of complaints, "and when I do ask for some training, he just has me do basic exercises I already do before he shows up whilst Naruto and Sasuke spar."

The man listened carefully as she explained, before seeming to decide, "It seems most of the blame here lands on Hatake, no?"

Sakura shrugged again then, but then went still, realizing she'd just bad-mouthed her superior officer to some random shinobi she just met. One in the intelligence division no less.

"I suppose I can help you file a formal complaint, if you want," he shrugs back, his tone changing from one of interrogation to a more laid back yet still serious sounding one. "But honestly, I doubt it'd go anywhere for your team."

Sakura nodded at that, relieved she didn't seem to be in trouble, "They want Kakashi-sensei to teach Sasuke because of his eye probably. Plus moving me from the team would just land me in the genin corps, I imagine."

He sighed at that, knowing she was entirely correct. Shaking his head slightly he resolved to help her out, especially since it would resolve his own problem at the same time.

"Follow me," he spun around, although Sakura had a distinct feeling the man was still aware of her every move.

She wondered briefly if he was a sensor, pausing for a moment before shaking her head, and then nodding, "Oh, uh, okay?"

Sakura resisted the urge to question the man, who she was now more sure than ever was probably somewhat important, as he led her inside the intelligence building.

But they didn't take the main doors she had seen at the front, instead Sakura found herself being led towards the side, where a smaller but still large door stood.

Sakura noted the absence of windows entirely as she was led inside.

Once inside, she quickly realized where she was, mainly because of the label on the receptionists desk, a subdivision of the intelligence division. The Torture and Interrogation unit.

Sakura held her tongue as she was led through the hallways, more brightly lit than she would have imagined.

"The more interesting stuff happens in the lower levels," the man informed her, and Sakura didn't know how to feel about torture being the aforementioned 'interesting' stuff.

She also didn't question how he knew what she was thinking. She assumed that working in intelligence, especially a unit dealing directly with people like T&I, made it relatively easy to pick up on body language.

"Uh, sir?" She spoke, realizing she had yet to learn the man's name, as they walked down a long hallway, "where are you taking me?"

The man huffed a short chuckle before responding, "my name's Morino Ibiki," he said, "and we're going to my office."

Sakura solidified the perception of the man she had in her head then. Important enough to have his own office meant he was likely at the very least a Tokubetsu Jonin.

They walked another twenty or so seconds before Sakura realized she'd yet to introduce herself too. "I'm Haruno Sakura."

Ibiki nodded, before stopping abruptly and facing a door that looked like the others they had passed, except this one had his name on it in white lettering.

Opening the door, he walked in ahead of his guest. Sakura walked in behind him, closing the door, as he sat behind the desk, entirely clear of paperwork, which was instead neatly sorted on another table off to the side.

She stood awkwardly for a moment before Ibiki sighed, "take a seat."

He gestured to a wooden chair sat beside her. She nodded and sat, adjusting the chair to be straight on and facing Ibiki, wincing when it scraped against the concrete floor and whispering a quick apology.

"We'll get straight to the point," Ibiki spoke, his voice tired. Sakura felt guilty about dragging the man back to work when he was obviously about to do something elsewhere. "You're feeling like your team isn't taking you seriously, but what do you want to do about it?"

Sakura was taken back by the question, shocked that the man wasn't going to hand her the answer. She was used to that at the academy, and Kakashi always ordered her around and told her exactly what to do, even if it was a menial task or exercise.

She sat still, totally silent, for a few minutes as she thought about what she actually, truly wanted. She knew that she still wanted to be a shinobi, without a doubt. She actually doubted her ability to do anything else after the mission in Wave.

"I want to catch up," she decided after a while, "I'm not stupid enough to not realize both Naruto and Sasuke are better shinobi than me."

Ibiki nodded at that, seeming both pleased and not. "It is a good thing, to know your weaknesses," he nodded before continuing, "but it is also a good thing to know that strength, jutsu and physical power are not the only things a shinobi needs."

Sakura nodded back, taking in the lesson her impromptu teacher was giving her. It was the most teaching she’d received since her graduation, and it felt nice.

"Your teammates are both strong, that is true," Ibiki continued to speak, "but you are smarter than either of them, and you could use that to your advantage."

Pushing the fact Ibiki knew more about her team than she'd told him, or that he had let on, to the back of her mind, Sakura replied, "How can I compete with them without being as powerful?"

"Don't get me wrong," Ibiki was quick to admonish, "power is an important part of being a shinobi, too. What I'm saying is trying to catch up to them would take time, and they won't wait for you."

"Instead, you should study tactics, alongside your training," Ibiki said, "and research specialist skills that could enhance your skills with the chakra capacity you have."

Sakura nodded at that, "I have really good chakra control, and I did the best in my class on the written exam."

"Then use those," he smirked, "both Medical Ninjutsu and Genjutsu are well suited to those with good chakra control, and whilst requiring more physical training, Bukijutsu and Taijutsu are both usable with minimal chakra, even some of the high level techniques."

Sakura let that soak in for a moment before Ibiki spoke again, this time his voice was more serious.

"As much as I dislike the extra work on my plate, I'm willing to help you out, if you'd like," he said, and Sakura struggled to hide her surprise, beginning to take over her expression.

Instead of questioning it, though, she nodded, "Thank you, Ibiki-sensei."

"You're welcome," Ibiki snorted at the honorific, "you're doing me a favor too. Hokage-sama has been bugging me about taking an apprentice."

Sakura made a noise of understanding at that, glad to know the man's motive for assisting her. It would make her feel uneasy, if a man clearly known for doing torture and interrogation work was simply helping her out of kindness.

"So, we may as well discuss briefly what you'll want to focus on during our lessons," Ibiki leaned back in his chair slightly. "But let’s get the paperwork all filed first."

Ibiki quickly opened a drawer in his desk before retrieving a scroll. Opening it, Sakura saw that it was an assignment transfer form. Ibiki scrawled some details into the relevant sections first, before spinning it around for Sakura to read.

Sakura read over it quickly, realizing just what she had agreed to and letting a smile take over her face.

She had thought a moment ago that she was simply going to be taking extra assignments and training with Ibiki alongside remaining on Team Seven, but in reality she would be transferred from the team entirely. Removed from Team Seven and instead being a direct subordinate under Ibiki, and the T&I unit altogether.

She took the pen Ibiki now held out for her and neatly signed her name, making her apprenticeship under Morino Ibiki official.

Well, given the Hokage approved.

Chapter Text

Hiruzen hummed, as he assessed the scroll sitting in front of him. A request to transfer Haruno Sakura from the care of Hatake Kakashi, and to become the direct apprentice and subordinate of Morino Ibiki.

He didn’t have to think very hard about that at all, though. It was a no-brainer to allow it, realistically. He had been prodding Ibiki to take an apprentice for a few years now. And if the one he wanted only required finding a suitable replacement for an inconsequential genin on Team Seven, then that makes things rather simple.

So, without much thought, he signed his approval, and had the message of his decision sent off to Ibiki.

When she woke up the next day, Sakura couldn’t help the small grin that was stuck on her face. The idea she wasn't going to see Team Seven, and their utterly irritating, apathetic sensei, made her feel as if things were finally working out for her.

She changed herself out of her sleep clothes quickly, and into something she had never worn before, but probably should have. A pair of black pants, and a grayish pink shirt over a mesh one, all of which her father had given her when she had graduated. She felt bad, as she pulled them on, thinking about how she prioritized her own looks over wearing what her father had gotten her.

After that was all on, she pulled out a roll of bandages, the kind shinobi used to stop the hem of their pants and shirts from flowing, and carefully did so around her ankles.

She put her sandals on and then glazed out the window. It was raining, fairly heavily as well.

She went back to the closet, remembering another thing she'd find useful, especially in this weather; A cloak, one with a hood. Her father had given her this too, before she set off on the Wave mission. She never wore it.

It was a pretty standard gray, waterproof cloak, made for shinobi going on missions to wetter, more humid areas.

She pulled it on quickly, before leaving her room. Making her way down the stairs quietly, as to not wake her mother, and smiling as she saw her father sat on the sofa in the living room.

As soon as Kizashi saw Sakura, a smile sprung to his own face, especially as he saw what she was wearing. Despite clearly being glad to see her wearing what he had bought her, he didn’t mention it as he spoke.

“Morning, sunshine.” He said jovially, waving her over to where he sat, and patting the space beside him, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and giving her a small side-hug as she sat. “Excited about your new sensei?”

Sakura nodded gently as she hugged her father back, smiling up at him as she replied, “yeah, I’m so excited to actually learn something, y’know?”

Kizashi nodded back at her in response, before gently ruffling her hair. “Of course you are. And I’m glad you’ve found someone willing to teach you the things you want to learn.” He said, before yawning gently.

“Were you up all night again?” Sakura asked as she heard her father yawn, letting out a little sigh as she saw him nod in response. “Then you need to rest! I wish the Hokage didn’t give you so many overnight shifts.”

Kizashi chuckled as he heard her concern, and pats her head again fondly, as he spoke. “You worry too much, sweetheart, but alright. I’ll get to bed as soon as you’ve left, okay?”

Sakura nodded at that, seeming at least slightly satisfied by her fathers placating words.

“You’re early.” Ibiki hummed as Sakura entered his office later that morning, gesturing to the wooden chair opposite his desk. “Take a seat, I won't be long.”

Sakura nodded as she sat down, watching her new sensei carefully looking over various sheets of paper and scrolls, occasionally writing something down, or stamping something or other onto them.

While she waited she looked around the rather dull office, the walls were a darker gray than the floor and the ceiling was even darker than that, but not quite black. There were stacks of paper around, but all in neat piles unlike her father's study, or what she’d seen the few times she’d been inside the Hokage’s office. A number of filing cabinets sat behind Ibiki, all labeled in some sort of code she didn’t understand.

After a few minutes, Ibiki finished up his small stack of paperwork and handed them to Sakura. She looked down and saw the top piece was something to do with requesting the transfer of a prisoner from somewhere else to the interrogation chambers.

“Deliver those to Mitarashi Anko. Her office is a few doors down the corridor. She probably won’t be there, so just leave them on her desk.” Ibiki says, as he stands up, taking another small pile of paperwork from his desk and straightening it out carefully, and moving to the filing cabinets behind him, beginning to sort the pieces of paper into the appropriate drawers.

Sakura nodded at that, caught off guard and almost failing to catch a key Ibiki threw at her a moment later.

“Use that to get into her office.” He said, a small smirk on his face. “Oh, and be careful.”

“Be careful?” Sakura hummed to herself curiously, but didn’t question his words outright. Instead, turning and leaving her sensei’s office, and heading down the hallway, stopping at a door labeled as Mitarashi Anko’s office.

The halls were slightly busier than the previous evening, but not by a whole lot. Sakura imagined the number of people in the T&I unit’s building at any given point was probably simlilar, regardless of the time of day.

Knocking on Anko's door, Sakura heard no response and tried the handle. It was indeed locked, and so she pushed the key into the hole, and twisted it.

Inside was different from Ibiki's office. Instead of just drab, gray walls, Anko's office was filled with potted plants, some of which Sakura recognised as poisonous from her classes at the academy, as well as a large glass tank behind the desk. Inside sat a snake bigger than any she'd seen before, that seemed to stare at her intently as she walked inside

Sakura took one step forward whilst focused on the tank, and felt a slight something at her foot. Looking down, and seeing a tripwire, her eyes widening, and she barely managed to duck in time as a flurry of senbon flew in her direction, from the opposite wall.

Now she understood why Ibiki had told her to be careful.

She stayed down for a few moments, before feeling confident enough to stand fully and continue, this time carefully scanning for traps as she went.

There were many, and Sakura carefully avoided them all. She assumed they were set to catch out those in a hurry to steal information, and as such were relatively easy to spot if you were actually looking carefully.

Once she reached the desk, she placed the paperwork down and hurried back outside. She didn't want to deal with those traps any more than she already had.

As she stepped out of the room, though, she came face to face with a woman, her hair purple and up in a spiky ponytail that reminded Sakura vaguely of her old classmate Shikamaru. She wore a mesh shirt, of which you could see through clearly, under a tan coloured trench coat.

"So, you must be Ibiki's new brat," the woman said, sounding far too happy about it. "You set off one of my traps.”

Sakura nodded as she looked up at the imposing woman, gulping slightly. She was intimidating, but in a vastly different way to Ibiki. Ibiki seemed cold, calculating and dangerous, she felt wild, unhinged and dangerous instead.

She simply continued smiling at the younger girl, and eventually nodded back in satisfaction.

“Hm, you're a tough one. Most genin run away at that amount of killing intent.” Anko smirked, looking down at Sakura.

Sakura let out a breath of relief, as she felt pressure she had been feeling a moment before dissipate, as Anko relaxed her position slightly.

“Oh, I uh,” Sakura stumbled over her words for a moment as she tried to steady her breathing again. “You didn’t use as much as Momochi Zabuza…”

Anko's smile dropped for a moment, eying Sakura with a calculating gaze. Then, she laughed loudly again and placed a hand on Sakura's shoulder.

"Let's get you back to Ibiki," she smiled wide.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t keep me waiting for my student next time, Anko.” Ibiki grumbled as Anko opened the door to his office, leading Sakura inside.

“Hey, I was just having some fun with her!” Anko pouted, and Sakura couldn’t help but find it funny how she acted like a child being told off, despite clearly being a very dangerous shinobi.

“Have fun on your own time, Anko, not mine.” Ibiki rolled his eyes as Anko pouted, watching as she left the room, before turning his attention to Sakura.

“Alright, Sakura. We’re going to start today with genjutsu, and later this afternoon, you’ll be meeting with Izumo and Kotetsu, for sparring.” Ibiki explained, gesturing for her to follow him.

The training field closest to the T&I building was smaller than the one she was used to using with Team Seven, but still sizable enough. It was mostly packed dirt, rather than grass though, thanks to being so firmly inside the village, and clearly getting a lot of use.

In fact, it was in use when Ibiki and Sakura arrived. A pair of shinobi wearing the standard chunin uniform were sparring off to the side.

“That’s Izumo and Kotetsu. They’ll be helping you with your physical combat skills from now on, be it taijutsu, shurikenjutsu, bukijutsu, or anything else.” Ibiki says, as he takes her to the other side of the field. “But for now, you and I are going to focus on genjutsu, alright?”

Sakura nodded at that, looking up at her sensei as she spoke, “Yeah, that sounds good.”

"Good, then we'll get started with the simplest Genjutsu I know." Ibiki let a wide, creepy smile that sent shivers down Sakura's spine onto his lips, "Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique."

Sakura barely had a chance to recognise the name of the technique Kakashi used on her during the bell test before everything around her changed.

It was hell, as the name implied. The first time she'd had this technique used on her, Sasuke was the fake victim of Kakashi, no doubt due to her previous infatuation with the boy. Now though, her father sat before her, bloodied and bruised, shuriken and Kunai piercing into him from all angles.

She knew logically she was in a Genjutsu though despite that, she stared at the corpse of her father for a full thirty seconds, tears springing to her eyes, before she found the strength to flare out her chakra, dissipating the genjutsu, as the field returning to normal.

"You broke out of the Genjutsu, but you used too much chakra," Ibiki explained calmly, not giving Sakura a second to pause. "I'm going to use it again. You'll keep trying until you can use the perfect amount, even under such stress."

Sakura took a shallow breath at that, but nodded gently, chanting over and over in her head ‘It’s only an illusion, stay calm.’

When things changed again, Sakura felt her teacher's chakra under her skin, and whilst staring her father's corpse in the eye, she released herself.

"Better, but you were prepared," he noted, "we'll have to work on it, but you're unlikely to fall for this specific Genjutsu again."

Sakura nodded at that, taking another breath, calming her racing heart as best she could. “Yeah, okay…”

“Good, now, let’s get you started learning how to perform it, now.”

Chapter Text

Kabuto faked a smile as he approached the training field. It wouldn't do to be found out by his new 'sensei', after all, not so soon, at least. Why the Hokage had felt him the best choice to fill in on Team Seven, well, he knew Orochimaru had meddled in the decision somehow, especially by having his previous teammates coincidentally die the same day the Hokage needed a replacement for the Uchiha's team.

Unless he'd been found out already? But that made very little sense, they'd simply capture him, if they knew. Still, Kabuto tried to keep his guard up.

"You must be Kabuto," Kakashi greeted him calmly as the boy approached, although it was easy for Kabuto to feel a hint of regret from the man, "I'm Hatake Kakashi, the sensei of Team Seven."

"Yakushi Kabuto," he replied easily, "I look forward to working with you and your team for the upcoming chunin exams."

Naruto seemed upset, likely due to the loss of their teammate, Haruno Sakura. she wasn't dead as far as Kabuto had gathered, simply transferred to the care of a different sensei. It was painfully obvious that Kakashi and Naruto were feeling guilty over it though, although Naruto seemed to be sulking, more than reflecting on why she had left.

Sasuke seemed... Well he was brooding. According to Kabuto's intel, that was pretty standard. It also made sense that the Uchiha didn’t seem to be reacting to the loss of his teammate. He simply seemed unaffected.

"We'll start with introductions, then," Kakashi said, gesturing towards Naruto.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto," the boy said, having seemingly forgotten his worries from a moment prior in an instant. "I'm gonna become the strongest shinobi, and the next Hokage!"

Kabuto simply smiled politely at the orange-clad blonde’s introduction, before turning his attention to the Uchiha.

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke," he said simply, refusing to elaborate further.

"Well, now that we've gotten that much out of the way," Kakashi clapped his hands, "how about we go and get ourselves a mission?"

Naruto cheered, Sasuke groaned. One of them was clearly more optimistic for their chances at a C rank, although it was unlikely they'd go out of the village with a brand new teammate.

Kabuto just hoped he didn't have to stay on this team, gathering information on the Jinchuriki and Uchiha, for too long. And if what he knew of Orochimaru’s plans for the chunin exams were correct, he shouldn't.

"Almost. You just need to pull it tighter and send it further," Ibiki said cryptically, as if that instruction made perfect sense, "right now you've left gaps. I can see where the illusion ends and the real world begins."

Sakura let out a groan as she released the technique. Looking up at the afternoon sky as she thought for a moment on Ibiki's words before shaking her head, trying to clear her thoughts before again.

'Snake, then Rat,’ she thinks to herself, performing the hand seals for the Genjutsu again. 'Pull it tighter, then send it further.'

When the Genjutsu clicks into place over Ibiki's vision he doesn't even blink at the image before him, nodding as he glances around. “Perfect. That’s exactly correct, no issues.”

Then, he breaks free instantly, making Sakura pout.

"It'll work well on an unsuspecting enemy," Ibiki assured her, chuckling softly at her pout before reaching over and patting her head. Sakura’s cheeks heated up a bit at that, unused to any form of affection from anyone other than her father, but she didn’t complain.

In fact, Sakura couldn’t help but smile, as she looked up at her sensei, speaking softly, “Okay, that’s good then…”

Ibiki smirked and nodded gently, before speaking again. “Alright, that’ll do for today's genjutsu lesson. I’m going to head back to the office now. You stay here, and Izumo and Kotetsu will be working with you on your taijutsu, understand?”

Sakura nodded at that before watching Ibiki begin to walk away, out of the training field. Sakura stretched quickly, as he did, before glancing over at the pair of chunin, who just finished another sparring match.

A moment later, the pair glance over at her, and seeing Ibiki gone, they give her a lazy wave, and approach.

“You must be Haruno Sakura,” one said, with spiky hair and a bandaged nose. “I’m Hagane Kotetsu, and he is my partner, Kamizuki Izumo.”

Sakura nodded softly at that, looking over the pair. She definitely recognised them, specifically from the gates when she had gone on the mission to the Land of Waves with Team Seven. “Yeah, I’m Haruno Sakura, it’s nice to meet you both.”

“We’re gonna start with figuring out what you can already do, and go from there.” Izumo cut in a moment later. “Are you ready?”

Sakura nodded at that, and before she could even blink she saw Izumo charging her, her eyes widening as the man got close, and sent a flurry of blows towards her. Most of them she managed to block or dodge, just barely, but a well placed kick to her shin left her leg buckling slightly. He was clearly going easy on her, but it still hurt.

She didn’t let herself fall though, and tried her best to gather herself quickly and fight back. She withdrew a kunai from her holster and held it before her in a standard combat stance she was taught in the academy, whilst Izumo backed off slightly, looking over her appraisingly.

A moment later though, she threw it, an attempt at distracting her opponent for a chance to cast her genjutsu.

Izumo blocked it easily, pulling a kunai of his own from his holster, but it gave Sakura just enough time to flash her hands into the ‘snake’ hand seal, and then ‘rat’, catching Izumo’s eye as she sent him a smirk. “Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique.”

It wouldn’t last long, but whilst it did, she ran forward quickly, as she could already feel her hold on the genjutsu slipping as she moved. As fast as she could, she pulled another Kunai from her holster, making her way behind Izumo and pressing a blunt edge against his neck.

Then, the chunin broke the genjutsu, and he simply sighed as he felt the cold metal against his neck. "That was unexpected," he said calmly, "I let my guard down, I didn't know you knew Genjutsu. It wasn’t listed in your file."

"I learnt it today," Sakura replied, "Ibiki-sensei taught me."

Kotetsu chuckled slightly at that, taking a step forward to join the conversation. “That makes sense, he does like that one a lot.”

Sakura let a little grin onto her face at that, nodding up at Kotetsu as she withdrew her kunai from against Izumo’s neck.

"So, we've established your Taijutsu isn't quite where it needs to be, and your reaction times need work." Izumo spoke honestly, "but you're capable of quick thinking when you're actually in a fight."

Sakura hummed softly at the assessment, but nodded in agreement fairly easily.

"She also needs to work on her conditioning," Kotetsu snorted, "she looks like a wet noodle."

Sakura's face went a bit red again as she pouted, but she nodded in agreement regardless of how embarrassing it was. She couldn’t let her pride or something as small as embarrassment get in her way, if she wanted to catch up.

"We can get started with some laps, then," Izumo chuckled, and Sakura got to running.

Returning home that night after multiple hours of running, push-ups, sit-ups, squats and any other manner of exercise Kotetsu and Izumo could think up, felt like actual hell.

Forget Ibiki's Genjutsu, try walking home when you feel like your entire body is made of jelly.

But in the end she did manage to make it home, walking inside and finding her father sitting on the sofa with his blanket as usual, reading a book.

"Hey, sweetheart,” he said fondly, putting his book down and looking up at her from his place on the sofa. “You look tired. How was your first day with your new sensei?”

"Hell," she said, although a smile danced on her lips as she sat down next to him, leaning in for a hug as Kizashi started to dig for details.

They sat and talked for an hour or so, Sakura talking about her day as Kazashi hugged her to his side and listened quietly, before he sent her off for her bath and to sleep. Sakura knew that realistically she didn't have to listen, being a shinobi made her an adult after all, but she didn't care. Her father was looking out for her and just the thought of that made her happy.

The fact she's seen the man's dead body, even just as an illusion that day, probably played into how much she appreciated him just then, too.

The next day, she arrived early to Ibiki's office again, and sat down on her usual chair as he finished up some paperwork. When he finished, he simply placed it to the side and looked Sakura up and down, his eyes lingering on her hair for a few moments longer than the rest of her.

She was wearing the same outfit as the day before, with her long pink hair flowing down her back.

"You'll need to cut your hair," Ibiki said blandly, and Sakura almost laughed at how sudden it was.

"I'd prefer not to," Sakura replied softly. She was getting used to Ibiki, but as she outright denied him telling her to cut her hair, she was a bit worried at how he’d react. "I quite like it."

Ibiki hummed for a moment then, "alright, I'll ask a colleague to come by and help you with it later." He said, "it can be a liability in combat, so you need to have it up, at least."

Sakura nodded at that, a small sigh escaping her lips, glad he hadn’t reacted negatively. Sakura understood why he was concerned about it too, She'd experienced enough bullying at the academy to know pulling someone's hair could hurt quite a bit.

"Anyway, we'll start on our next Genjutsu today, but this one's a bit trickier." Ibiki said before his hands moved and did some hand seals, "Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings."

Sakura's guard went up immediately, but nothing happened, instead she noticed that Ibiki's previously mostly empty desk was now covered in stacks upon stacks of paperwork.

"This Genjutsu does exactly what it says in the name," Ibiki explains, "it's interesting because instead of being placed on a human target, you place it on an area, and anyone close to that area is affected by it."

"Does that make it harder to break?" Sakura questioned, poking the stacks of paper and watching as the illusion ripples slightly, but doesn’t break.

"Sort of," he nods, smirking as he watches his student poking at the illusion. "If the chakra placed in the area is disturbed, then it will still be broken, but it's harder to notice since it doesn't disturb the opponent's chakra pathways like the Hell Viewing Technique does.."

Sakura nods, taking in the information as Ibiki speaks.

"Now, I want you to try and break this, and then we'll get to teaching it to you."

Sakura broke Ibiki's Genjutsu relatively easily, a moment later, with a short, concentrated flash of her chakra. But when she tried using the genjutsu herself, she had less luck.

"It won't stick," Sakura complained, doing it again. The image appears for a split second before fizzling out.

"You need to anchor it," Ibiki said, continuing to do the paperwork in front of him without pause. "Right now it's like you're throwing chakra at my desk, and just hoping for it to stay. You need to stick it down."

"Like the tree walking exercise?" Sakura asked, tilting her head slightly as she thought, and Ibiki nodded.

"Sort of, in the way you're sticking it with chakra," he said, "but remember that this time you're not trying to stick yourself with the chakra, but the jutsu. It’s a bit trickier.”

Sakura took in his words and began to concentrate, feeling her chakra latch on to her Genjutsu as she cast it, making anchors to have it last longer.

The illusion of a mess of paperwork remained for a full two seconds before disappearing.

Chapter Text

"You requested my presence, Ibiki?" A woman's voice called out as she opened the door to his office. Both Sakura and Ibiki's eyes were drawn to her face as she entered.

The new arrival was relatively pale, with purple hair reaching halfway down her back, although it was a bit shorter than Sakura's.

"Yugao, I'm glad you could make it," Ibiki said with a nod. "I wanted to ask you a favor regarding my student's hair."

"I'm not qualified to cut hair," she quipped blankly, "it'll end up a lopsided bob if you let me near her with a pair of scissors."

Sakura's face went pale at the mention, leaning back a bit, away from Yugao, but Ibiki let out a low chuckle, "No, I wanted you to teach her ways to style it that'll discourage opponents from grabbing it."

Yugao nodded at that, then with a small, quiet hum. "Now that is something I'm qualified for."

Sakura smiled then, glad she wouldn’t be getting her hair cut, and also finding the woman's dry brand of humor refreshing.

The lesson with Yugao lasted for about an hour, after that. Sakura learnt a lot, hiding razor wire in her hair had never even occurred to her before!

Her hair was also styled by Yugao during the lesson, now a loose-looking but secure bun with ninja wire hidden within for anybody attempting to grab it to cut their hand open on.

It took Sakura the rest of the week to get the Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings Technique to work properly, and when she did Ibiki had given her a smile so unbelievably unlike his others, Sakura had to do a double take just to believe it.

Instead of the usual smirk, or the creepy grin, this one felt proud, as he smiled and pats her head as he had become accustomed to doing so. Sakura's heart filled with warmth as she took it in.

"Good job," Ibiki said, fondness clear in his tone, gazing at the desk full of paperwork that Sakura had cast over his usually tidy work surface, "you learn faster than most people would."

Sakura grinned at that. She felt rather slow whilst doing it, so hearing that made her feel so much better about her progress.

"How is your training with Kotetsu and Izumo going?" He asked a moment later, taking his hand from her head gently, causing Sakura to pause.

"Good, I think." She replied with a small hum. "They're focusing on my taijutsu and conditioning for now, I think it's starting to help a little."

"That's good," Ibiki nodded at her words, "it's important you remember that the basics are just as important as the techniques I’m teaching you."

Sakura nodded back, her smile still in place, "yes, Ibiki-sensei."

The man simply chuckled at the honorific before dispelling Sakura's genjutsu with a quick burst of chakra, and picking up one of the real pieces of paperwork off his desk.

"Here," he said, handing it to her, "I know you had your doubts about taking part in the chunin exams whilst on Team Seven, but you can still choose to take part, if you want. We've set up a pair of the genin corps members who help out around here to be your team, if you choose to."

Sakura looked down and saw she was holding the application form for the chunin exams. It felt heavy in her hands, almost as if her doubt was manifesting itself physically, and weighing down the paper.

She did her best to squash those feelings down though, knowing she'd already improved massively since leaving Kakashi's team. Plus, she's bound to work better with these two genin than with Naruto and Sasuke.

"Alright," Sakura agrees, signing her name on the paper with a pen she plucks off Ibiki’s desk. "Who will my teammates be?"

"Their names are Shimizu Masato and Funai Nanako," Ibiki said, "they're competent, and about half a year older than you.”

Sakura gulped slightly at that, realizing her teammates would be more experienced than her.

"Don't be so nervous," Ibiki waved his hand as if to dismiss her anxieties, "I know for a fact neither of them could have stayed standing under Anko's killing intent like you did when you met her, and you're working hard to improve too. Most of what they do is errands for our unit, rather than training."

Sakura calmed down a little at that, but she was clearly still anxious about the exams.

"You have another week to train before the exams begin, regardless," Ibiki continued, "Izumo, Kotetsu and I will be sure to get you as ready as you can be for them."

Ibiki smirked at that, as if he was just telling an inside joke only he understood.

"You ready, noodle?" Kotetsu asked as he and his partner arrived on the training ground, to which Sakura agreed with a nod of her head.

Then, Izumo surged forwards, a heavy kick aimed right at her abdomen, only just blocked by Sakura.

"I've wanted to try this trick out for a while," Sakura said, and Izumo's eyes widened a fraction as he tried to pull away, before he smirked back at her.

"Smart," he praised, struggling to disconnect his foot from her forearm. "Using chakra to stick to the sole of my foot, but what good will it do you?"

Then, he hopped up with his other foot, showing a level of dexterity yet seen by Sakura as he strikes out with his free foot at her head.

But her other arm came up to block it, too. The weight of Izumo, attached to her at the arms, was a lot, but by coursing chakra through her arms and legs she managed to keep him up just long enough.

As her Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique set in, without a single hand seal, she quickly let's the chakra holding Izumo up dissipate. Taking a kunai out and pointing it at the grounded Izumo with a grin.

When the Genjutsu is broken a half second later, Izumo simply sighs, "why do you always pull out the surprises when it's my turn to spar with you," he huffed.

Sakura giggled at that, glad to have bagged her second win against the man.

"Enough of that," he playfully snapped back, "let's get to conditioning."

Kabuto resisted the urge to groan as Naruto continued to bombard him with countless questions about the exams, all of which he simply shrugged towards, and gave the same answer.

"I told you, Naruto," He said, sounding every bit the patient older teammate he was portraying, even though inside, he was screaming at how irritating he found the orange twerp. "The exams are different every time, I can't really tell you anything you don't already know."

Naruto sighed at that, finally understanding he wasn’t going to get an answer, instead jumping into some other, indistinguishable rant about ramen of all things a moment later.

'Does this kid ever shut up,' Kabuto complained to himself internally, wishing this assignment to be over.

The only saving grace was that he knew it would soon be, according to Orochimaru's plan.

He continued following behind his Uchiha teammate alongside Naruto. As they approached the academy building, he noticed a pink haired girl he didn't really have any information on, beside the bare minimum.

"Oh, that's Sakura," Naruto said softly, stopping his ramblings for a moment, "she was on our team, before you."

Kabuto nodded, watching as the girl stood off to the side, probably waiting for her team. Quietly, he slipped away from Naruto and towards Sakura.

By the day of the chunin exams, Sakura felt much more prepared. A sense of accomplishment surged through her as she made her way to the academy, leaving the house without much fanfare.

Her father would already be gone to work, and her mother had left a few days prior for a work trip. Not that her mother would have said anything nice about it, anyway.

Her week of training had been productive, lessons in Ibiki’s office focused not only on a new genjutsu, the Demonic Illusion Hell Binding, which forces a searing hot pain through the target’s body with the aim to immobilize them, but also lessons of finding hidden meaning in sentences, and tactics and strategy. As well as her usual lessons with Izumo and Kotetsu to help her with combat ability and conditioning.

“Haruno Sakura, right?” She heard a voice speak, from right behind her. She spun around with slightly widened eyes as she looked up, seeing a boy, older than her, with white hair, a pair of glasses on his face.

“Yeah, and?” She said, her voice defensive as she looked up at the boy. He had gotten behind her too easily, without her even noticing. “Do you need something?”

“Oh, nothing in particular.” He said, his voice sounding placating and polite, but there was certainly a hint of something else. Something that made her skin crawl. “I just wanted to meet the person I replaced, really. I’m Yakushi Kabuto, the newest member of Team Seven.”

Sakura rolled her eyes a bit then, taking a step back as she nodded. “Alright, well, now you’ve met me, bye.”

The boy didn’t leave quite yet though, smiling in that creepily polite manner as he spoke. “Oh? But I was hoping to talk to you a bit more, Sakura…”

“And I said no thanks, so leave me alone.” Sakura said back, coldly. She wasn’t there to make friends, even less so with the person who replaced her on Team Seven.

“Oh, but Sakura, I-” he tried to keep talking, but was interrupted a moment later by a quiet but firm voice, as the speaker came forwards and stood between the pair, talking directly to Sakura, ignoring Kabuto entirely.

“You. You’re Haruno Sakura.” The girl who walked over said bluntly, looking her up and down. “You’re my teammate.”

Sakura blinked, as the girl walked between her and Kabuto, who was walking off now, clearly realizing he wasn’t going to get anything out of her now. The girl was a little taller than her, with brown hair reaching her mid-back in a pair of braids and dark black eyes.

“Yeah, that’s me.” Sakura nodded, looking over the girl appraisingly. “You’re Funai Nanako.”

The girl nods at that, her face blank as she looks around quietly.

“Masato should show up soon.” She said, and is if on cue a boy with spiked, dark blonde hair, blue eyes and a very pale complexion walked over, smiling. His smile was wide, and sort of creepy, in the same way Ibiki’s was.

“Nanako! Is this our teammate?” He asked, as he walked towards them, looking at Sakura for a moment, before looking at Nanako.

“It is.” Nanako nodded.

“Then it’s nice to meet you!” Masato grins as he looks Sakura up and down. “I hope we don’t drag you down too much.”

Sakura smiled politely at that, but she was a bit surprised by the boys humility. She wasn’t used to anyone assuming they would slow her down. Usually it was Sasuke telling her that she was slowing him down.

“I’m sure we’ll all do great.” She tries to assure him, and Nanako nods gently.

“Of course we will.” The girl said, letting a small smile onto her lips, as one hand reaches out and pats Masato’s shoulder. “You have nothing to worry about.

Going inside the academy, she slowly made her way up the stairs, beside her teammates. Their room was on the third floor, and she smirked when she saw a familiar pair of chunin, albeit in younger looking transformation, blocking the second floor with a genjutus.

"They're having too much fun," Sakura laughed quietly to her teammates, causing Masato to giggle in response, clearly familiar with the pair. Nanako had a small, amused smile on her lips as she heard that.

Once they reached the real classroom, Sakura and her team chose to claim a small space off to the side, trying to avoid attention.

It mostly worked, too. Masato had received a glare from an Ame nin after he laughed a little too loudly at one of his own jokes but otherwise they were overlooked.

Then, Sakura heard a familiar voice speaking loudly from the other end of the room, and couldn't help but smile wide. Glancing at Masato, she saw him smiling too.

Ibiki stood front and center, beginning to explain the first section of their exam.

"Knowing Ibiki-sensei, this won't be a simple written test," Sakura muttered to her teammates quietly.

Nanako nodded at that, and Masato grinned. "Look underneath the underneath," the boy remarked.

Chapter Text

Naruto was stressed, flipping through his exam with one hand as his other grabbed a fistful of blonde hair, trying his best to make sense of any of the test, but the questions were too hard for him, and the true meaning of the test was no doubt too difficult for him to figure out too, Kabuto noted.

The questions were easy for him, though, but he made himself act worried too whilst filling out some correctly, some slightly off the mark. It wouldn't do to stand out after all. He needed to play the nerdy, although not particularly skilled, medic nin genin who wanted to finally pass the Chunin exams. After numerous attempts. The same role he was quite irritated at having played for so long

He looked around briefly between questions. Haruno Sakura was going through them with relative ease, but seemed unsure, as if questioning if there was more to the exam. A Yamanaka had used her clan's technique to steal answers and relay them to her teammates, one Hyuga was using his Byakugan to gather the correct answers.

Sasuke, he assumed, was using his sharingan to copy the pencil movements of another shinobi Kabuto could sense was already above genin level, likely a plant by the exam proctors, to give the genin a chance to cheat.

Kabuto could tell that most of the room had figured out that they were supposed to cheat, that most of them were doing so, rather blatantly. But it was also painfully obvious the proctors were giving them a fair amount of leeway with their methods too.

“You all pass,” Ibiki said with a smirk, as the test ended. His psychological tricks to try and get people out worked well, the room almost half empty now.

‘Heh, Naruto totally almost fumbled it’ Sakura thought to herself, chuckling after Naruto had stood up, and given his speech, and made an enemy of the entire room whilst he was at it.

Perfect for Sakura and her team.

Then, he did the unexpected and took off his bandana, revealing the truly massive number of scars present on his head.

Sakura had seen them briefly before, but taking a long look gave her a much deeper appreciation for her teacher, and his utter loyalty to Konoha. He'd been through a lot, and the fact he's still around means he never gave secrets away to the enemy, and held out for a chance to escape every single time he was captured.

Sakura felt proud to be the student of Morino Ibiki that day, and when Ibiki picked up Sakura's test, half finished with little doodles covering the later pages, he was proud of her too.

"This is the Forest of Death," Nanako spoke in her quiet tone as they were led to their gate by one of the proctors. “We can’t spend too long inside. It’s too dangerous, even without the other teams hunting us. Anko-sensei took me in once for only a few hours, and it wouldn’t have been too pretty if I was alone.”

Sakura agrees, with Masato nodding along with her.

"Did either of you see what teams had which scroll?" Masato asked softly, glancing between his two teammates, with Sakura shaking her head and Nanako humming quietly in thought.

"I think one of the Ame teams had an earth scroll," she said, "they weren't very smart about hiding it."

Sakura hummed at that, glancing at Nanako briefly. The girl had swallowed their scroll whole, before even looking at it for a second. Apparently it was something Anko had taught her to do.

"So we should target them?" Masato asked, "since that's the one we need, right?"

Nanako agreed to the plan easily enough, and Sakura went along with it too.

Then, the second part of the exam began, and every single genin team rushed inside.

"Do you sense the Ame team? The group without the masks," Nanako asked Masato, causing the boy to focus. He closed his eyes briefly, and Sakura had to guide him away from jumping into a tree as he did, her hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, they're not too far from us, actually," he said, his usual smile small on his face. “They probably came in through the gate closest to ours, just eat of here.

Nanako nodded, "lead the way, then."

It didn’t take long for Masato to pause though, as the team jumped from tree to tree, his eyes wide and his smile replaced with an expression of pure, unbridled fear. “They’re dead.”

Sakura and Nanako pause too, a tree or so ahead of Masato and look back, their eyes widening too, in response to his words.

“The Ame team? This quickly?” Nanako asks, her voice barely betraying her concern.

“Yeah, and I… I sense another team, where I sensed the Ame nin a moment ago. They… they're strong. One of them has more chakra than I thought possible for a genin…” Masato nods, his eyes closed, focussing on sensing the shinobi. “They’re definitely the one responsible. Nobody else is in my sensing range.”

“We should avoid them, then.” Sakura says, her own voice quiet, making her concern evident. “We could stop here, and wait until that team is far enough away, for us to check the Ame nin’s bodies for their scroll.”

“What if another team arrives first, and takes it? Assuming whoever killed them didn’t I mean.” Nanako says, clearly worried about their chances of finding a scroll.

“We might have a chance, against some other team.” Masato said, his voice calming a bit, glad his teammates weren’t stupid enough to plan on charging in to fight whoever had killed the Ame nin. “We could camp out a bit closer to the Ame nin’s bodies until the other team has left, and fight anyone who comes trying to steal the scroll, given that does happen.”

Sakura and Nanako agreed with that idea easily enough then, as the group slowly began to move closer, through the trees.

Arriving at the location Masato last sensed the Ame team, a feeling of dread washed over the group. There thankfully wasn’t another team, trying to opportunistically find a free scroll like them, but instead, they were shocked, and disgusted, by the sight before them.

The three dead Ame genin, their bodies little more than a pile of red flesh and blood, crushed hard enough to make the scene covered in the viscous fluid and chunks of flesh, littered with sand, as well.

"It would have been that Suna nin," Nanako reasoned, as she looked around the scene, her face slightly pale, "the one with a gourd on his back."

Sakura nodded at that, taking in the sight before her. She'd seen dead bodies before, like Zabuza and Haku, but these were simply gruesome. Barely even human, little more than a pile of mush.

"We should still search through them," Masato said, although he seemed to not look forward to digging around a pile of flesh and bones. "In case they didn’t have the scroll they wanted, and the Suna nin didn't take it."

Nanako nodded at that and walked forward to get to work with a grimace, followed afterwards by Masato and finally by Sakura.

It was disgusting, flies already having surrounded the mounds of flesh that were once human, but she set to it and searched the corpse.

When Masato made a sound of what Sakura decided was success, and held up a scroll covered in blood and guts, Sakura smiled alongside him. They must have made quite a sight, hands covered in blood not their own whilst celebrating.

Nanako shook her head, exasperated, at that, looking over her two teammates.

"We need to get to the tower quickly," she said calmly, "before another team, or any of the wildlife in this forest finds us."

Sakura and Masato stop their impromptu celebration at that, and nod along.

Kabuto was not enjoying his time in the forest of death, although he supposed that was the point of the exam.

His annoyance was compounded when they ran into the shinobi who's face Orochimaru had borrowed. When he sensed him, he almost couldn’t help but groan, knowing he had to pretend to be as clueless as the other two.

"So, you want my scroll, do you?" The man spoke, his voice smooth like caramel yet it felt bitter as dirt in his ears, just as he remembered his whole time knowing the snake sannin. "Then you'll have to fight for it, Sasuke."

Kabuto sighed, watching his superior lure a genin into his trap. He watched carefully as Sasuke sprung into action, watching their battle begin, a burst of fire, with shuriken hidden within soaring through the air at Orochimaru.

"Sasuke, I’ll leave this one to you!” Kabuto called out then, glancing in the direction Orochimaru’s snake had taken Naruto. “I’ll go help Naruto.”

Fighting Orochimaru was not something he wanted to do, but he could manage one of the man's summons, even if it would be a pain.

So he leaped away, Sasuke glanced at him briefly but doing nothing to stop him from leaving, as the white haired boy hopped through the trees, towards Naruto.

Tracking down the snake wasn't hard, and when he arrived he found it bulging and writhing in discomfort, as if it had eaten far too much live food that wouldn’t stop squirming.

Then, he watched with a wry smile as it exploded. He was glad he didn't need to deal with the creature himself, at least, and now that Naruto collapsed, he just had to deal with his chakra exhaustion.

When he returned to a downed Sasuke as well, he couldn’t help but groan, his master sure didn’t like making his job easy.

Collecting the now unconscious Sasuke and Naruto, Kabuto made his way swiftly to a more defensible position. Stowing the pair under a large tree's roots and got to work tending to them, although steering clear of Sasuke's new cursed seal. He wouldn’t touch that with a ten foot pole, he only had the bare minimum of understanding as to how it worked, after all.

They were like that throughout the first night, with Sasuke rolling around and muttering in his sleep. Kabuto managed to keep his fever down with his medical Ninjutsu, but there was nothing to do about his restlessness whilst stranded in the middle of a forest like the one he found himself in.

Naruto, for one, slept calmly. It annoyed Kabuto, he'd been getting annoyed a lot recently, that he'd need to stay awake, but he didn't complain and took a soldier pill before settling in to keep guard.

But when morning came, another irritating, and overall unpleasant, surprise awaited him.

Taking the scroll they'd received at the beginning of the test, he placed it down in front of himself and spoke clearly.

"I'd prefer if we didn't have to come to blows," Kabuto said diplomatically, watching the Oto genin carefully. "So I'll offer you our scroll and ask that you be on your way."

"We aren't here for your scroll," the kunoichi of the group said, smirking at Kabuto's perceived weakness. "We're here for Sasuke."

Kabuto stilled at that as he wondered, 'why would Orochimaru send his team after Sasuke?'

Dosu took a step forward bringing Kabuto's attention back to the group with a critical gaze.

It became obvious in that moment that they had no clue of Kabuto’s true allegiance, even more so when he remembered Dosu attacking him during the first stage of the exam.

"Let us kill him, and we'll be on our way," Dosu claimed, his voice arrogant and filled with a calm confidence, although Kabuto saw through the lie easily. "That way you don't get any more hurt."

Kabuto shook his head at that and scowled. He'd need to conceal his actual skills, to be able to maintain his cover, but a regular genin of the skill he had pretended to be at could not defeat this team.

So, he scanned the surroundings for familiar chakra signatures as he watched the Oto team carefully. He noticed a few not too far away, being members of Naruto's graduating class from what he'd overheard before the exam. The team with the Nara.

He decided then, he'd use just enough power to survive, and hoped that the Nara’s team arrived and decided to back him up.

Getting into a stance, Zaku, the third and most cocky member of Team Dosu, scoffed at Kabuto. "You have no chance of winning. You should give up now.."

Kabuto mirrored his actions though, getting into a defensive stance, as Zaku burst forth.

Taijutsu wasn't where Kabuto shined, but he wasn't a slacker either. He wished his chakra scalpels were a choice he had, but a genin wouldn't know a technique like that. Instead, he did it the old fashioned way.

A kick to Zaku's ribs caught the boy off guard as Kabuto pushed forward. He planned on taking the defensive until the Nara's team arrived, but if he could handle at least one of them whilst the others were content to stay their hands then who was he to give away that advantage.

But Zaku didn't just stick to Taijutsu, and began pushing a blast of air through the holes in his palms.

Thus Kabuto took the defensive again, standing back, barely dodging the blast, before...

A boy with a black bowl cut and a blinding white smile swooped down from the trees, Kabuto had not sensed him, so he was probably incredibly fast, having come from outside the older boy’s, admittedly not massive, sensing range. He was wearing dark green spandex.

"Leaf hurricane!" He shouted out, spinning and kicking the Oto nin repeatedly as he jumped down from amongst the massively tall trees of the surrounding area. He seemed slightly tired already, after traveling as far as he must have to save him, but his attacks were still unbelievably powerful, the sound of his shins hitting into the Oto nin repeatedly reverberating through the clearing.

But Zaku recovered quickly, standing back up, although now with a limp to his left leg. “You piece of shit," he cursed, glaring at the taijutsu user, "you'll pay for that!"

Kabuto felt the Oto nin's chakra soar as he prepared a blast larger than any so far.

But Rock Lee, Kabuto recalled the genin’s name to be, didn't even react verbally, instead plunging his hand into the packed soil beneath his feet as if it were barely even there.

And when the air is blasted forward, Lee dragged out an entire tree root, several times larger than himself, to block the attack, the air battering into it and ripping the wood apart, but not making it through

'That's some impressive raw power,' Kabuto noted to himself as he watched the battle unfold further, prepared to step in again if needed.

Lee's advantage didn't last long, as when Dosu joined in he ended up on the back foot quickly. Fighting both Oto nin would be impossible for the Taijutsu user at this stage, and so Kabuto was ready to rejoin the fray, despite a few cuts and bruises he'd yet to heal.

But then Nara Shikamaru, the lazy kid Kabuto was hoping would show up, did so with his team, and the tide turned in their favor.

And some time later, as they were struggling yet again after the Oto kunoichi joined the battle, they felt it.

They all turned, watching as a venomous aura radiated from Sasuke whilst he emerged from within the tree root, walking slowly towards Zaku. The boy was injured heavily already, and when Sasuke gripped his arms, nobody moved to stop him.

When Sasuke pulled and Zaku screamed, nobody stopped him.

He pulled harder, he screamed louder, nobody stepped in still.

Then, a sickening crunch and a squelch sounded from the Oto nin’s body, and Sasuke smirked darkly. Zaku's arms were laying on the floor beside him, the boy no longer conscious, and unlikely to live much longer, lacking his arms.

Chapter Text

“Congratulations on passing the second portion of the exam, Sakura.” Iruka said, as he appeared as the group opened their scrolls within the tower. “You two as well.” He nodded towards her teammates, clearly not personally familiar with them.”

Sakura, for her part, didn’t respond with words, instead nodding gently as she looked up at the man.

“Yeah, alright.” Nanako spoke instead, looking up at the chunin, and glancing to the side, at Sakura, with a concerned expression. “Just let us in, we’re tired.”

Iruka nodded at that, clearly not particularly offended by the girls bluntness, as he turned, taking them to a door at the end of the room and gesturing for them to go through. “Go on through, then. Get yourself something to eat, and someone will show you to your room soon.”

“Alright.” Nanako nods, her hand gently on Sakura's shoulder, Masato walking a half step behind the two as they walk into the tower proper.

As they walked towards where they could get some food, they saw the Suna siblings, and couldn’t help but feel both relieved, and slightly worried.

Relieved because it meant they weren’t the first, and so wouldn’t have to deal with the attention and target that came with that.

But concerned because it meant they would have to be living in this tower for a number of days, alongside the three Suna nin. Sakura couldn’t help but focus her gaze on the shortest of the three, with red hair and a gourd of sand on his back.

Images of blood red mounds of flesh, blood and sand swirled through her mind.

With a small shake of her head, looking over her teammates, they chose to make their way straight to where they would be sleeping, instead.

The bedrooms assigned to her team were serviceable, if not a bit bland. They reminded Sakura of Ibiki's office, with gray walls, but at least the floors were wooden rather than the concrete of her sensei’s workplace, and didn't feel frozen under her feet.

It was as she was checking over her pack, of which she'd only ended up needing her water and food thanks to their quick trip through the forest, when a knock sounded at the door. She wasn't sure who it would be, but went to answer it anyway.

Opening the door, she practically jumped as she saw the man behind it. Standing there with a small grin, one of his nice ones, was Ibiki.

"You did well," he said, reaching out and patting her head, expertly avoiding the sharp wire tangled in her hair, "conserving your energy for the next round is important."

Sakura nodded at that, smiling up at her sensei, happy about being praised. "Will the next round begin as soon as the five day timer is up?"

"It depends," Ibiki says, walking into the bedroom and examining it closely, glad to see a few basic traps had been set up by his student and her team, who were off getting some food. "If there are too many people who made it through this round, then there's a chance we'll need to do a preliminary round before moving on to the third and final stage."

Sakura thinks then, "will it be one on one battles?"

Sakura broke out in a wide smile when Ibiki nodded, glad she'd deduced the next round correctly.

"The prelims and the main event will both be," he states, "so you should make sure not to slack off with your training, just in case you need to fight in a few days."

Sakura agrees, and goes on to explain her trip in the forest to her sensei.

The wait was passed by the teams who made it with basic training, nothing too strenuous or interesting, but enough to ensure they weren’t going to be unprepared for the final round.

And then the day had arrived, they were all gathered in a large hall with stone walls, floors, ceilings and viewing areas. It seemed suited for battle, which meant the preliminary round was going to happen, Sakura believed.

The Hokage appeared briefly to explain the situation, and give anybody who wanted it the chance to drop out. Only Kabuto, Sakura's replacement, and an armless Oto nin, she'd had no idea how he survived, chose to not continue on. Instead heading out and not even watching the following matches. Apparently Kabuto sustained an injury before the exams even began, and Sasuke was getting glares from the silent Oto nin.

Then, the matches began to be announced.

"The first match shall be between Uchiha Sasuke and Funai Nanako." The coughing man, Gekko Hayate, called out. He was the proctor for the third round of the exam.

Nanako doesn't blink, simply nodding and hopping down from the spectator stands, where she had been standing beside Sakura, Ibiki and Masato, off to the side.

Uchiha Sasuke did not look in good condition. His eyes were dark, and he held a hand to the back of his shoulder as if nursing an injury. He wouldn't be at full strength, clearly, whilst Nanako was.

"Begin!" Hayate called out, lowering his raised arm to signal the start of the match.

Nanake, without a moment of hesitation, reached for her equipment pouch, her hands returning with a spool of ninja wire, carefully held in her thickly gloved hands, intertwined with her fingers, for an incredibly strong grip.

Sasuke seemed put off by her choice of weapon for a moment, before he reached for his holster himself, pulling out a pair of shuriken, and throwing them experimentally at Nanako, to see what she would do.

The twin metal star-shaped blades soar through the air towards Nanako quickly, as she stood still, watching them carefully, before suddenly their trajectory changed, and they were forced down into the ground instead, a light membrane of saliva-like liquid barely visible on the deflected weapons.

“They should have hit her…” Sasuke scowled, looking at his deflected weapons, before charging forward. He was clearly short on chakra, Nanako assumed. If he could, he would be throwing fireballs at her right now.

He reached her, but was slower than he usually was. Clearly he didn’t have a particularly good time in the forest, as he tried to throw a well-aimed punch towards her gut, but it was deflected, as if by some sort of invisible force, off to the side, much like his shuriken, left with a slick, gooey saliva-like liquid on it.

Sakura, for her part, hummed in the stands, finally understanding what she was watching, as she saw the saliva left on Sasuke’s hand.

Sasuke however, was too irritated to understand, and attempted a kick, aimed at her side. Again though, it was deflected away, and Sasuke barely managed to catch himself from falling over.

He reached her, slower than she'd thought he'd be, eventually. He threw a well aimed punch towards her gut, but instead it shifted to the side as if pushed by an invisible force.

Nanako watched quietly, stood back in her combat stance, prepared to fight if needed, but so far it looked clear that her invisible defense was more than enough.

The Uchiha was glaring now, attempting again, and then again, to force an attack through to hit her, but each was deflected by her invisible guard. A moment later, he felt the same sensation again, but in the form of an attack this time, the harsh invisible force punching into his face, sending him back a step, wiping at his face with a disgusted scowl.

He realized then that he wasn’t going to win like that, and took a breath, glancing over Nanako carefully, before clicking his tongue, his eyes gazing at her shoulder.

Nanako frowns as she sees him eying her shoulder, and whispers quietly. “He’s seen you. Conserve your chakra.”

In an instant as she said that, the air over her shoulder shimmered, revealing a silver coloured chameleon sat atop it.

“Ginmaru,” Nanako mumbled to her summon sat upon her shoulder. “We need to finish this quickly now. He’s an Uchiha, and I doubt either of us could avoid his shurikenjutsu for long.”

The chameleon nodded silently at that, watching the Uchiha carefully, before it hopped off her shoulder, impressive jumping force helped with a flick of its tongue against the floor sent it into the air.

Then it went invisible again, and Nanako smirked as she watched the Uchiha split his focus.

Then she charged, a smirk on her face as she entered his space, sending a flurry of blows towards Sasuke, which at first seemed fairly inaccurate and random, but as Sasuke began to try to block, he realized her aim. The ninja wire tangled around her fingers wrapped itself around his arms, and as he struggled, it only tightened, the razor sharp wire digging into his skin, starting to draw blood.

Then, as he tried his best to calm himself, he felt the force of Ginmaru’s tongue slamming into his back, and he grimaced, the attack making him stumble, pulling at the wire and making it dig painfully into his arms.

“Shit,” Sasuke scowled as he tried to find a way out, but with each movement, the wire dug harder into his arms.

Nanako didn’t move to finish things though, her eyes locked onto his form as she held him in place through her wires. She was trying to make him surrender, clearly not wanting to harm a fellow Konoha shinobi bad enough to make the proctor call the match.

Sasuke didn't give up though, instead, he stayed still, before a moment later, Nanako saw what he was doing. Chakra gathered in his arm and expelled, as if he was doing the tree climbing exercise incorrectly, blasting the wire away from his skin, as he used the moment to jerk away, jumping backwards and panting.

Nanako could swear she saw black markings growing over his skin, as he had used his chakra, but she didn’t pay it any mind, as she jumped back as well, the markings not there by the time she looked again at the Uchiha.

“Ginmaru.” Nanako said quietly, and without a word another harsh, invisible blow was sent at Sasuke’s side, which he barely had the reaction time to dodge slightly.

“Give up now, Uchiha.” Nanako said, her tone not arrogant, but almost concerned. “I don’t want to hurt you any more.”

Sasuke however didn’t respond, his arms shooting down to his equipment holster and retrieving a handful of shuriken, one between each finger of his hands, and threw them. They all curved outwards in different angles, and Nanako couldn’t help but scowl as she saw them all curving towards her. She jumped backwards, avoiding a few, whist she saw another few pushed away by the invisible Ginmaru’s tongue, but the final pair uninterrupted buried themselves into her shoulder as she grimaced.

Carefully, she gripped them, and ripped them from her shoulder, tossing them to the ground as she narrowed her eyes.

A moment later, her hands moved through a set of seals, and she let out a small barrage of earthen bullets.

“Earth Release: Stone Bullets,” Nanako mumbles as she watches Sasuke struggle to roll out of the way, getting grazed by a few of the stone pellets shot at him.

Then she charged forward again, and jumped up into the air, as Sasuke carefully jumps himself, avoiding the final bullet. Nanako grins, as she feels a pressure against her foot’s sole though, Ginmaru boosting her up as she withdraws a kunai from her holster, and begins to barrel down at Sasuke.

It was as Sasuke just lands, that she’s right above him, her kunai positioned to plunge right into his shoulder as she fell, that she felt it. Someone caught her, looking up, she saw Ibiki looking down at her, and glancing down, she saw Kakashi between her and Sasuke.

“This match is over. The winner is Funai Nanako.” Hayate Gekko announces, and Nanako lets out a sigh, as Ibiki lets her down onto the floor.

“I wouldn’t have hurt him that badly.” Nanako mumbled softly, as she looked up at Ibiki, clearly confused why the match was stopped.

“I know, but we want to avoid unnecessary injuries. It was clear by how Sasuke was moving that this match could only go one way.” Ibiki explained quietly, as the pair walked back up into the stands. “And so when we saw you do that, an attack that could easily kill the Uchiha were you to aim slightly to the side, the winner was undisputed.”

"The second match," Hayate coughs, "will be between Shimizu Masato and Kankuro."

Masato blinked, watching the guy he was going to fight nervously, as the Suna nin walked down the stairs to the battlefield. Something was off, Masato realized, and sent out his chakra senses to check, and smirked as he did, making his own way downwards.

Kankuro smirked as well, assuming Masato hadn't noticed his trick he'd pulled with his puppet replacing his body, whilst he hid on its back.

It started slowly, his Masato watching his opponent carefully. He could sense that he wasn't real, instead a puppet, but that just made him more dangerous. Puppets were more likely to have poisons on their weapons, after all. If he wanted to pull this off, he'd need to be fast.

After a moment he drew a kunai out and threw it fast and hard at his opponent. Kankuro made the move to dodge but wasn't fast enough and the knife hit with the loud thud of a kunai into wood, hitting the puppet.

"Thought so," Masato said, watching the puppet wearily, "you wanna come out, then?"

Kankuro cursed but did, unveiling his actual body from the bandages on his puppets back.

"Stupid sensors," he complained quietly to himself, as he mirrored his opponent, watching Masato carefully.

Eventually, Kankuro makes a move... Well, his puppet does, attempting to charge the Konoha genin with its weapons drawn, and Masato could tell just by looking at them that they were poisoned.

By the time it reached Masato though, he was ready for it, smirking as he jumped backwards, landing a slap right onto the body of the puppet.

Then, he lifted a hand up in a chakra concentration hand seal, and Kankuro's eyes went wide. Glancing at his puppet, he sees it, a paper bomb stuck right onto the wood.

Kankuro raises his hand quickly at that, shaking his head. “Hey, I forfeit!” He called out, watching as Masato smirked, but clearly surprised it had been that easy.

"Even if I won," Kankuro complained to himself quietly, "I don't have the tools to repair him here." He mumbled, knowing he’d be more than useless during the invasion, were his puppet destroyed.

Chapter Text

The next few matches after that go by quickly. First, a match between Hyuga Hinata and Hyuga Neji that, whilst it did make Sakura’s blood boil a bit, she watched with fascination with their clan’s dojutsu and techniques.

Then there was the match between Akimichi Choji and Dosu Kinuta, which was won quite easily by the Oto nin, after the Akimichi used his human boulder technique too recklessly.

Sakura got a particularly bad vibe from the Oto nin, and hoped that given she made it to the final round, she didn’t have to face him.

Then came Nara Shikamaru vs Kin Tsuchi, and Sakura had a feeling from the start that the Nara would win. He was particularly intelligent, even if he never showed it back in the academy, and alongside his clan’s techniques, she wasn’t surprised when he defeated the Oto nin, though she did think he could have done so without the theatrics.

Temari vs Tenten was a particularly hard one to watch. It was clear the weapon user was skilled, but she simply had no counter to the power and technique of the Suna nin, and her wind ninjutsu.

Then came the match she was most interested, and most terrified, to watch.

She watched intently, stood beside Ibiki, as Gaara made his way down the stairs, into the arena floor. She watched as well, as Rock Lee went down, and couldn’t help but feel bad for the boy. She didn’t know him, or how skilled he was, but she doubted that he could beat the Suna nin.

And when she was proven right, when the boy with the bowl cut opened five of the eight inner gates and still failed to defeat the monstrous Gaara, Sakura couldn’t helep but feel a little upset. Rock Lee was strong. Stronger than her by a mile, maybe two, and he couldn’t beat the Suna shinobi.

Sakura prayed that were she to move on to the final round, that Gaara would not be her opponent.

It was as she was wandering her own thoughts, that she heard it. Her name, being called out. Her opponent, Aburame Shino.

“Begin!” Hayate Gekko called out.

Immediately Shino's insects began crawling from his body to the ground. He wanted to take her out quickly, assuming she'd be easy to beat, as she always had been in the academy.

His eyes widened slightly, not that Sakura could tell under his glasses, when she charged forwards though, circulating her chakra around her skin to feel for any wayward bugs that landed on her.

Whenever she found one, she sent a slightly larger bit of chakra to the area, blasting it off as if it failed the tree walking exercise. It was times like these she thanked the world for giving her such perfect chakra control.

Sakura smiled as Shino realized his mistake, hastily trying to recall a portion of his bugs to defend him, but by then, she was close. Her fist flying towards the clumsy block on the Aburame's arms. It sounded out with a loud clapping noise, and Shino winced in pain slightly.

Sakura didn't pause, though, continuing her quick string of attacks. They became less effective as Shino adjusted his block to better counter them, but each one hit his block with a force much greater than he knew Sakura was able to produce back in the academy.

Eventually, the boy managed to push her back away from him and create some distance. As he did though, Sakura began performing a couple of hand seals, two clones appeared beside her. Simple, illusionary clones, but useful nonetheless.

Shino saw through it quickly though, his insects swarming outwards and latching onto the clones, making them disappear quickly, as Sakura used the small distraction to push through those sent at her, she scowled, but forced her way through.

As soon as she caught sight of Shino, her hands shot together in a string of hand signs, her chakra reaching out and latching onto his mind as her “Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing” Took effect,

Shino stilled as the technique latched onto his psyche, not thrashing or panicking as many would do. Sakura assumed being trained by the genjutsu mistress of Konoha has something to do with his calm response, as he began easily unraveling her genjutsu from his mind.

But he was just slightly too late, as he broke out, Sakura was close, and sent a harsh kick right into his side, followed by a punch right into his face, his goggles breaking from the force, dropping down to the floor, the pressure of them being punched into his face leaving a scratch across the bridge of his nose, which left a trail of blood dripping downwards

Shino buzzed with irritation at that, as he tried to regain his balance, his insects shooting out at Sakura, as she forced her way forward, trying her best to keep to close combat, knowing Shino was not as proficient as her in that area.

And it worked, as she pushed forward, another hit landing on Shino’s side, and another to the side of his head sent him crashing to the floor, before hastily scrambling back onto his feet, his insects surrounding him, and leaching off Sakura’s chakra with each hit.

Sakura scowled as she kept pushing forward, her breath slowly growing heavier, watching as Shino began avoiding her, too, jumping backwards as she pushed forward, the insects on her skin slowly taking away her chakra, and her energy with it.

Her hand twitched down to her kunai holster, and she sighed, nodding to herself as she pulled out a kunai, and immediately threw it at Shino. She didn’t really want to use the kunai Masato gave her, knowing it could seriously hurt the Aburame, but she didn’t have a choice.

The boy dodges it easily, as Sakura smirks, one hand coming up in the chakra concentration seal, and the kunai bursts into a ball of flame, a loud explosion rocking the arena right beside the Aburame. As the smoke cleared, Sakura stood back, watching carefully with heavy breaths, as Shino was nowhere to be seen, replaced by a pile of burnt, charred insects.

“Substitution,” Sakura mumbled, her eyes shooting behind her as she spins, finding Shino on his knees, where some of his insects were swarming a moment before he had switched with them, coughing a bit, his clothes singed. Slowly, the insects swarming Sakura’s skin retreat too, returning to their host.

“Ah, sorry about killing your bugs and stuff,” Sakura says awkwardly, keeping her stance, watching the Aburame stand slowly, his movements slow and careful, he was clearly hurt.

“You apologized.” Shino looks at her, seeming surprised for a moment, before nodding. His hand raised up a moment later, declaring that he was forfeiting.

“I inhaled too much smoke, and half of my allies are dead. It would just be a waste of Sakura’s time to continue.” He says, as he coughs lightly.

Sakura sighed quietly as she opened the door to her house, walking in and slipping her shoes off, she groaned, as she saw not only her father’s shoes, but her mothers too.

“There goes my plans to talk to dad about the exams.” Sakura mumbles to herself, and avoids the living room entirely, as she walks in, straight to her room, where she shuts the door and sighs again, as she flops onto her bed, face down.

"I'll make chunin," she told herself, quietly, her voice muffled by the pillows she had planted her face into, "then Mom won't ever be able to say anything about me not being cut out for this."

The next morning, Sakura frowned as she remembered the previous night. She had no intention of speaking to her mother until she became a chunin. That way, she’ll be forced to acknowledge her as a real shinobi, and stop trying to convince her to return to being a civilian instead.

Once she was changed, she carefully opened her window and hopped out, shutting it quietly behind her before she hopped along the roofs of the nearby buildings. Eventually, she reached the T&I building, and hopped down to the floor, opening the big, imposing doors and entering.

Looking around, everything looked exactly as she remembered. But that was to be expected. It had only been a week or so.

Slowly, she made her way down the long corridor she usually did, and knocked gently on Ibiki’s office door. When no response came, Sakura became confused almost immediately. With another knock, and no answer, she tried the handle, finding it locked.

“This is weird. He’s always in the office at this time.” Sakura mumbles to herself, before turning on her heels, and moving down to Anko’s office door instead. She knocks gently, and is glad to hear the purple haired woman respond, telling her to come in.

Carefully, Sakura opens the door, and looks over at Anko. She didn’t know the woman super well, but they were friendly enough from their few interactions in the hallway, and their initial meeting.

“Hey, Sakura!” Anko smiled wide as the pink haired genin entered the office. “Glad to see you made it through to the finals! I was sure you’d mess up in the prelims.”

Sakura sighed at the teasing tone in Anko’s voice, “wow, thanks for the confidence.” She deadpanned, before sighing. “I’m looking for Ibiki-sensei, do you know where he is?”

Anko thought for a minute at that, before nodding with that same grin, “Oh, yeah. There was a meeting he had to go to, at the Hokage tower. He said it was some sort of emergency meeting. He asked me to babysit you.”

“Ah, I see.” Sakura hums in thought. An emergency meeting? About what? The exams, maybe?

“Alright, anyway, we better get started, eh? Masato and Nanako will be waiting for us at the training ground.” Anko says, stretching as she stands up, and Sakura’s eyes widened slightly.

“I’ll be training with them again?” She asked, certainly not against the idea. She just assumed the team would be a temporary one, for the chunin exams and nothing else.

“Yeah, not all the time, but Ibiki thought it’d be a good idea to get you working with them for the month between rounds, at least a little.” Anko nodded, walking out of her office, clearly expecting Sakura to follow. “Training is usually more effective in groups, after all.”

Chapter Text

"Ugh, it's been a week already!" Sakura complained, as she sat in the training field with Anko, Nanako and Masato. "Where is he?!"

"Wish I could tell ya." Anko shrugged, clearly knowing something, but unable to tell her. "All I can say is he's working hard to prepare for something."

"He's probably working on the exams still." Nanako added, glancing over at Sakura. The taller girl was braiding her hair idly, as they rested between training exercises.

"But the first part was section, right? Why's he still doing so much that he can't come see Sakura at least..." Masato hummed, clearly feeling bad for his pink haired teammate.

"What he's doing is important," Anko shakes her head, smirking at their complaining. "And if you've got the energy to complain, then break time is over."

The three of them groan collectively at that, but stand up, read to continue training anyway.

Waking early as always, the next morning, Sakura stretched and changed into her usual outfit, of which she'd bought multiples of before the exams began.

She climbed out the window again, knowing her mother was still home. She had almost bumped into her, when heading to the restroom that night.

She didn't care if it seemed dramatic, she had no intention to deal with her mother before she made chunin.

Shutting the window and leaping from rooftop to rooftop, eventually she made her way to the T&I building.

Dropping to the ground in front of the doors she opened it and made her way inside and towards Ibiki's office, hope that he would finally be around agai.

"You're early," Ibiki said, as he always did, as if he hadn't inexplicably disappeared for a week. "Come sit down and I'll be with you in a minute, Sakura."

Sakura shook her head at that, pouting, as she looked up at him. "No, not until you explain yourself!"

Ibiki let out a soft chuckle, at her attitude, before sighing, seeing she wasn't going to back down. "I was helping the Hokage prepare."

"For the final round?" Sakura asked, watching him carefully. She hadn't been explicitly trained in picking up body language and facial expressions, but being Ibiki's student certainly helped. She'd observed him as he spoke to others, and asked about what, and why, he noticed.

She tried her best to put that knowledge to the test, as Ibiki answered.

"Something like that." He gave her nothing, his face blank as he answered. Sakura knew though, through that, that it definitely wasn't simply preparing for the third round. There was something more going on.

"Anyway, I suppose congratulations are in order," Ibiki smiles, as Sakura pays him her full attention again, letting the topic drop for now. "You'll be moving on to the third round."

Sakura smiled back, although she seemed nervous, "yeah, and I was hoping we could maybe train me in something to help with my match..."

"You're worried," Ibiki figured it out easily though, "about your match, I assume?"

Sakura sighed, but nodded nonetheless. "You saw how he fought against Rock Lee, I don't stand a chance as I am now. Lee is like, the strongest Genin I've seen, probably. Beside Gaara."

Ibiki nodded at that, agreeing instantly, "you're right, which is why I planned on getting you started on something new."

Sakura perked up a little at that, hearing him agree with her own suggestion. She watched as her sensei pulls a scroll from a drawer in his desk. It was of regular size, but it seemed much more ornate than anything else she'd seen before. Especially anything in his very utilitarian office.

"What do you know about the summoning technique?" Ibiki asked and Sakura answered as if reading from a textbook.

"The user has to have a contract with a specific animal clan to use it," she summarised the absolute basics. "I think Nanako has one with her chameleon."

Ibiki nodded, "Nanako's father left her his summoning scroll before he passed away, from what I heard." He explained, before getting back to the lesson at hand, gently tapping the scroll before him. "This is my summoning contract, although it's a bit more unusual than the usual kind with an animal clan."

Sakura tilted her head at that, and Ibiki smiled, one of his creepy ones. "I summon a number of torture devices, an iron maiden, torture chambers, things like that."

Sakura nodded at the explanation, keeping her eyes on the scroll sat in front of Ibiki.

"I don't know how well that would suit you, or how I foresee your style of combat working out, so I've called in a favour." Ibiki says, as he put away his scroll.

Sakura's face lit up even more, seeing how seriously he was taking her training. It truly was a far cry from how Kakashi had been.

Then she thought about it, and panicked a bit. This was a big commitment, after all.

"With who?" She questioned quickly, "you can't just expect me to sign any summoning scroll!"

"Calm down," Ibiki waved his hand, deciding to explain, "We'll be going to the main intelligence offices, where the bulk of the division is stationed."

Sakura nods, but doesn't say anything, still curious as to what scroll she would be signing.

"We're going to access the archives. Konoha has amassed a small collection of summoning scrolls once used by enemies and allies without heirs alike." Ibiki explained, "Hokage-sama has been gracious enough to allow you access to one, so long as you uphold the expectations of an animal clan's primary summoner."

"And those expectations are?" Sakura asked, finding the situation all too surprising.

"That you pass the scroll on before you die, is the main one," Ibiki shrugged, "and there's also whatever rules the summoned creatures themselves want you to abide by."

Sakura nodded at that, understanding somewhat more clearly.

"We need to get there soon though," Ibiki groaned as he stood, "Inoichi doesn't like when people hang around the archives too long."

The Konoha archives were basically a giant library, deep beneath the Hokage rock. Stacks upon stacks of paperwork, Jutsu manuals, declassified mission reports, and other such odds and ends ended up here to be sorted and used for various shinobi purposes, be it training, education, or otherwise.

Ibiki's purpose that day was to lead Sakura to a small corner of the archive, where a smaller shelf stood. On it sat scrolls of varied grandeur and scale, but all were clearly what she was here for.

Sakura picked up a first scroll, the largest of them with a golden trim to the parchment, and read the label that had been attached.

"Bears?" Sakura shrugged, grabbing for another, smaller but more intricately adorned one, "Scorpions?"

She read through the other labels too, and eventually she decided to take one of the two she thought would be most fitting for her.

"I think I'm going to choose this one," Sakura said, grabbing the smaller, but more finely decorated scroll from the shelf. The label marked them as scorpions.

"A decent enough choice," Ibiki nodded, "do you have an interest in poisons and venoms? I can always ask Anko to teach you more if it's something that you think you'd be able to use well."

Sakura thinks for a moment before nodding in return, "I think that'd be nice, but I'll need to kick up my training to be able to outspeed Gaara's sand barrier first."

Ibiki returns the nod again, and grabbed the scroll from his young student's hand, "we need to do the paperwork sadly, before we can take this. Then we can start having you practice with them."

"So I just write my name in blood?" Sakura asked, looking down at the scroll, opened up on the packed dirt of the training field.

"I've heard all of them are different, but it looks to me like that's what the previous owners of the contract have done, even though their names are faded," Ibiki nods, examining the scroll as well, trying to work out the names, but failing. They looked very old, though.

Sakura pulled a kunai from her holster and bloodied a finger carefully, shrugging. Then, dragging it across the scroll until she spelt her name out in neat writing.

"Is that okay?" Sakura said, "I don't feel any different."

"You don't usually," Ibiki shrugged, "the only way to really know is to use the Jutau at this point."

Sakura sighed but nods along, standing up.

Moving slowly from one hand seal to another, she placed her still bloodied hand to the ground. An array of complex symbols displays briefly before a puff of smoke appeared, that once dissipated reveals...

A tiny scorpion, barely the size of a kunai handle sat on the grass, staring up at Sakura.

But it was clearly no normal creature. It's eyes showed intelligence, and it's carapace looked particularly healthy.

"You who has summoned me, Oujimaru, prince of the scorpion tribe!" He addresses Sakura in a high-pitched voice, although he clearly took himself more seriously than Sakura was seeing him as. "State your reasoning for signing our long lost contract!"

"Oh God," Sakura giggled, crouching down to look at the little guy, "you're so small."

"Are all humans this stupid?" Oujimaru huffed when he heard that, but allowed Sakura to place a finger on his tiny head for petting, even leaning into it like a cat. "According to the elders, our first summoner was just as insufferable when it came to the young of our tribe."

"You're just mad you aren't as big as me," Sakura teased, feeling strangely at ease. She assumed it was due to their connection, thanks to the contract.

"That isn't true!" Oujimaru snorted, crawling past another attempt at petting him and onto Sakura's arm, "I am a scorpion who specialises in stealth, I have no need for a larger size."

"But anyway, human!" He said, returning to the topic at hand, "answer me, why have you signed the contract of my tribe?"

Sakura thinks for a moment before she answers, "I want to get stronger, and I figured you would be the best summons for me."

"And why is that?" Oujimaru questioned, "why do you believe the scorpions to be your ticket to greatness?"

Sakura frowned then, "I didn't say your tribe alone will bring me there." She replied, "I want to request your assistance, not use you for my own gain. I am willing to assist you in any matters you'd need my help in, too, obviously."

Oujimaru nods his tiny scorpion head at that. "Good, then I believe you a worthy summoner." He said, "I shall inform the elders of my decision. Feel free to call on me or my tribe whenever you require us!"

Then, the small guy disappeared, leaving a small cloud of smoke behind.

"Well, that was certainly interesting," Ibiki mused, and Sakura couldn't help but agree, giggling softly.

"It was, but I'm glad it worked out. He seemed nice."

Chapter Text

Sakura couldn't sleep, as she lay in bed that night. Her door was locked, out of fear of her mother barging in and forcing the same old, tired conversation topic of quitting the shinobi life onto her.

But that wasn't why she couldn't sleep. She was moreso thinking about her upcoming match. She knew the scorpions could help, but she had no clue how. She doubted such animals could move fast enough to get around Gaara's sand barrier, and she doubted the arena was big enough for a scorpion who could naturally overpower it. That's even if she had enough chakra to summon such a beast, which she didn't.

So, she decided that she needed a way to weaken his sand, or at least make it slower.

Then, it clicked. "Water!" She smiled, speaking to herself softly, as to not wake her parents, "if his sand is wet, it'll be softer and slower..."

"Plus I bet dad could help me with it," she mumbled to herself, half from excitement at her idea, half from sleep deprivation, "he used water Ninjutsu, before he had to retire..."

With a plan for the next day and a smile on her face, Sakura finally managed to fall asleep.

"Dad?" Sakura approached her father once her mother had already left for the day. She was lucky that he had a day off, that morning too. "I was wondering if you had any water Ninjutsu scrolls you could lend me?"

The man seemed taken back by the question for a moment, but grinned soon after, "of course! I'm glad you're finally taking interest in your old man's techniques, you know?"

He stood slowly and made his way towards one of the multiple bookshelves in the living room. Up on a high shelf he pulled down a trio of scrolls.

"These are the three I still have," he explained, "they aren't overly powerful, but they're a good place to start."

Sakura smiled widely and gripped her father in a tight hug before waving as she left to go back to training with Ibiki, packing the scrolls in her bag, the hope Izumo and Kotetsu would let her focus on them instead of Taijutsu in her mind.

"You seem to have a talent for this, Sakura." Izumo commented, as Sakura managed to perform the Water Bullet Technique after only a few hours of practice. He smiled warmly as he continued, "Wanna get started on the Water Palm Blade, next?"

Sakura smiled back twice as wide, at Izumo's praise. It meant even more than it would from anyone else, given he was a Water Ninjutsu user as well.

Sakura then nodded, and they got to work.

Ibiki and Kotetsu sat off to the side on the grass, as she began to train the new technique with Izumo, talking quietly so as to avoid disturbing their young student's training.

"She's incredible," Kotetsu said simply, watching as she managed to shape the blade of water almost instantly, even if it did burst into a splash of droplets a second later. "She's taking to this better than she ever has Taijutsu."

"It was same with Genjutsu," Ibiki said, "she seems predetermined to be a Ninjutsu specialist of some kind, at this point."

"We shouldn't stop Taijutsu entirely though," Kotetsu suggested, "she needs to stay in shape. Just using all her chakra won't do that for her."

Ibiki nodded easily, "Lets alter her training plan, then. Taijutsu and Ninjutsu training alternating each day, except weekends. On weekends she'll be training with Anko and her teammates again."

Sakura sat on the floor of the training ground that weekend, exhausted. Anko was a tough teacher. Moreso than anyone else she had dealt with. The trio of genin had been learning about poisons and venom, at first, but it quickly turned into a three versus one sparring match when Anko got frustrated by Nanako simply knowing every answer already.

So now, the three of them were out of breath, sat beside one another.

"You gonna be okay, Sakura?" Masato asked, once they all caught their breath a bit. "I mean, you're up against the sand guy, right?"

"Yeah, but I've been training pretty hard." Sakura nodded. "I've got a plan."

"Oh? Well, good luck. I'm against a Yamanaka, so I'm not looking forwards to it." Nanako adds. "The idea of someone else inside my head gives me the creeps."

"Heh, Ino shouldn't give you too much trouble, but I haven't actually seen her properly since graduation, so she could have improved." Sakura said. "She wasn't weak back then, but she was kinda shallow, and didn't train seriously."

"I see... I should have realised you would have been in her class." Nanako hummed. "Thanks for the intel."

"Gah, I wish we knew more about my opponent." Masato complained then, thinking about his upcoming match versus Dosu. "He beat his preliminary opponent real easy, so I'm kinda worried."

"Well, fighting strong enemies is something we'll have to do a lot, if we make chunin." Sakura shrugged softly. "At least the proctors aren't gonna let you die here."

"I guess I shouldn't complain then, yeah." Masato nodded, smiling in the same creepy looking way he always did, tilting his head and looking at her. "Thanks Sakura."

Much of the month goes on, just like that. Training with Ibiki in the mornings, and Kotetsu and Izumo in the afternoons, with Anko training her, Masato and Nanako on weekends instead.

A week out from the tournament though, Ibiki decided to give her a suggestion.

"Try out the Summoning Jutsu again," He said, sat at his desk, unusually swamped in paperwork, "get to know them, and figure out your strategy for next week."

So, with a simple nod, Sakura went off to a distant training field outside of the village, just in case, and used the Jutsu.

"I need your help, Oujimaru," Sakura said to the tiny scorpion, after he appeared in a puff of smoke. "I'm participating in a battle against a monstrous opponent tomorrow and I need advice. Which scorpion should I summon, someone not too big, to punch through a wet wall of heavily packed sand?"

Oujimaru seemed to short-circuit for a moment before recovering, the question oddly specific, "a peculiar query, but alright." He mumbled near her ear, having crawled up to her shoulder already.

"I'd summon Chosuke, if you want a manageable sized scorpion who can pack a powerful punch," Oujimaru advised, "I can inform him of your plan when I return to the nest later, so he'll be ready to answer your summons, if you wish?"

Sakura nodded at that, giving the small prince of scorpions a pat on the head with her index finger, as he nuzzled against her neck.

For a little scorpion guy, he sure was fond of cuddling.

The day before the third stage came quickly, and Sakura was walking through the streets, bored. Ibiki had instructed her to spend the day resting, rather than using as much chakra as she usually did, since she would need to be in top condition for her matches.

So, to avoid her mother, she decided to spend the day outside, rather than at home,which was a shame, since her father had the day off, too.

It was as she passed the entrance to a narrower side street, that she heard something that made her blood boil, though. The sound of a thousand birds, chirping loudly, and the angry sound of one Uchiha Sasuke shouting.

Quickly, she rushed down the street, to find Sasuke, using the Chidori, aimed right at Nanako. The girl was clearly expecting a fight, her ninja wire out and ready, but not for him to pull out such a powerful Ninjutsu.

Sakura bit her finger quickly, and slammed her hand to the ground, performing a summoning, Chosuke appearing.

Chosuke was a scorpion the size of two grown men, his dark carapace shiny with health and his stinger and claws sharper than any kunai could hope to be.

Chosuke didn't even need instructions, to understand, having met Masato and Nanako in their most recent training session. His stinger shot forward and intercepted the Chidori, the scorpion wincing in pain, though the Chidori didn't pierce it.

Sasuke clearly wasn't done though, as he glared at Sakura, his teeth grit. "This is between me and her. Stay out of this!"

"You can't just go around using Jutsu like that on your comrades!" Sakura shook her head, arguing back. "Stop this, Sasuke."

"Tch, shut up!" Sasuke refused, shaking his head, as his hand sparked into a mother Chidori, and Sakura winced.

"Chosuke, go. I'll handle it." Sakura commanded, and Chosuke did as he was told, disappearing in a plume of smoke.

Smoke Sakura used to cover her approach until it was too late for Sasuke. Sakura grabbed his arm and used her chakra to stay on, even as he tried to pull away.

"Stop this, now. This is ridiculous." Sakura said, her voice as stern as she could make it, trying to channel Ibiki's energy.

Somehow, it seemed to work a little, as Sasuke dismissed his Ninjutsu, the sound dissipating, as Sakura let go.

"Go to hell..." Sasuke muttered, as he began to storm off. Sakura thought about trying to restrain him, and take him in to the Hokage or something, but chose against it. A formal complaint would be enough.

"Make sure you submit a complaint, Nanako." Sakura said softly, as the Uchiha ran off, and Nanako nodded.

"I will."

Chapter Text

Sakura watched carefully as Nara Shikamaru raised his hand and forfeit his match. It was an intelligent move, as far as Sakura could tell, since he was low on energy already and would be fairly useless to defend himself in any upcoming matches he would have to fight.

Were it Sakura's decision, Shikamaru would be made chunin, despite her knowing if his naturally lazy nature. His intelligence alone made him worthy in her eyes, and his fighting power wasn't lacking either.

The Nara clan's techniques of course giving him the edge in that department.

She was thinking about the pros and cons of said techniques, when she saw Naruto's match be announced.

Sakura was fairly certain she knew how the match would end, given the skills of Hyuga Neji, but she was surprised quickly.

Naruto, in a surprising display of combat intelligence, pulled a series of moves that led the Hyuga boy to be blindsided, and caught off guard, and uppercut to his chin knocking him out.

His shadow clones were a powerful tool, especially since even the Hyuga's Byakugan failed to find the difference between the original and his doppelgangers. The fact Naruto worked such out surprised Sakura greatly.

Although she doubted it would be enough to get him a promotion. It took him too long, and he was utterly exhausted. Not to mention his personality and attitude.

Nanako smirked, as her match began against Yamanaka Ino, watching the girl carefully.

After her talk with Sakura, she decided to go out and collect some intel for herself. A bag of chips and acting friendly towards her teammate Akimichi Choji wielded results. Even with the upcoming final round, she had been slacking off on training a fair bit, only compounded by their sensei's preoccupation with training Shikamaru.

And so Nanako, who had been training hard all month with Anko and Masato, felt confident.

And she was clearly right to feel so, as she pulled out her wire, wielding it as she rushed towards the Yamanaka.

The only way she foresaw losing was getting caught in the Yamanaka's clan Ninjutsu, so she resolved herself to finish the match quickly.

She reached Ino quickly, and the difference in skill was already obvious. Ino looked dumbfounded by the older girl's speed, as she tried to block and avoid her strikes.

But in no time, she glanced down to find her arms bound in Nanako's wire, digging into her flesh painfully.

"Give up, or the arms will come off." Nanako said, warning the Yamanaka. Obviously she was bluffing, but Ino didn't need to know that.

"Y-yeah, I...." She said, as if about to surrender, but suddenly Nanako felt Ino invading her mind, as the Yamanaka smirked.

Nanako hadn't expected her to be able to use the technique without hand seals.

Ino, controlling Nanako's body, began to try unravelling the wire from her own arms, but was struggling. Struggling enough that by the time she even began her control over Nanako's mind slipped, and the taller girl was back in control.

"Good try," Nanako said, gritting her teeth. She knew that slip up would be held against her, when it came to chunin selection. She pulled the wire tighter against Ino's arms, drawing blood. "Now surrender. I meant my threat earlier."

Ino didn't have to be told twice, and the proctor, Shiranui Genma, stepped in to end the match, once Ino gave up.

Then, it was time for Masato's match. Sakura watched as the boy made his way nervously down into the arena, the Sound genin waiting for him

Masato was strong, his Fuinjutsu allowing him to make paper bombs much stronger than those most other shinobi used, as well as place that seal onto kunai and other objects, but Sakura was still unsure of his chances.

But Masato surprised her, charging straight in, as the match began, engaging Dosu in Taijutsu of all things.

When Sakura caught a glimpse of what was in his hand, though, she understood why Masato was forcing them into a close-ranged battle. A paper bomb, to destroy the device Dosu used for his sound wave Jutsu.

But he wasn't getting an opening to place it. His ears bleeding from the intensity of the sound waves, his movements getting sloppy, off-balance and disoriented.

Masato didn't give up though, as he kept going, aiming solely for the device. Eventually, he managed, slapping the tag onto it and jumping back, lifting up a hand to activate the explosive but...

The tag didn't go off. Dosu gave an ominous grin, his hand covering the tag. Once he moved it and revealed the tag, still in place, Masato grit his teeth. It had been smeared in ink.

It was clear to everyone that Dosu had done some reconnaissance of his own, and found out Masato's specialty.

"The problem with paper seals," Dosu chuckled darkly, "is that they can be ruined quite easily with just a little bit of Fuinjutsu ink."

Masato scowled at that and prepared to continue their Taijutsu combat, but then he began swaying, eventually falling to the ground clumsily, the damage to his ears having caught up to him.

"Your sense of balance will be messed up," Dosu explained, "until your ears have fully healed."

Masato heard him, and begun to shakily raise his hand to surrender. Dosu, despite the cruelty he seemed to possess in spades, didn't move to stop him from forfeiting.

Chapter Text

Sakura felt a bead of sweat run down her brow, as she stood opposite Gaara, in the arena. His killing intent alone felt like it was suffocating her, comparable to- no, greater than that of Momochi Zabuza by a large margin.

“The next match is between Haruno Sakura of Konohagakure, and Gaara of Sunagakure!” The proctor, Shiranui Genma, announced the two once they had both taken their positions.

Then, it began, and Sakura felt utterly unprepared as a surge of sand washes over her left arm, as she barely managed to stop it from wiping her out in one hit. Her arm is grazed heavily, and already bleeding, but avoided the brunt of the force; It was still usable.

Quickly, she placed her hands together, shooting out bullets of water from her mouth, as she continued to dodge a further onslaught of attacks, much more effectively than she had the first, the sand getting wetter and slowing with each bullet.

Gaara growled as he realised her strategy, and pushed a wave of sand forward. It was slow, but huge, and Sakura failed to dodge it, before she was enveloped, buried in sand.

Baki smirked, as he watched the match progress. Gaara was going to defeat this girl with ease, it seemed. She had no chance.

That's what he believed, at first. But as he watched Gaara’s sand begin to bulge and shift suddenly, after burying the Konoha girl, he wasn't so sure.

When Sakura emerged, clinging to the back of a scorpion, the size of two full-grown shinobi, his surprise turned quickly into anger.

“The scorpion contract?!” He grit his teeth, mumbling to himself. “Konoha had it this whole time? And dares use our First Kazekage’s summoning technique against the son of our Fourth?!”

Baki glared down into the arena, as the scorpion clearly followed Sakura's instructions, burrowing down into the soft ground and hiding, as she prepared to continue her fight with Gaara alone for now, despite her sandy, scraped up appearance.

Baki couldn't believe it. The scorpions had clearly chosen her, a Konoha Genin, as their next master. Their loyalty to Sunagakure and their first leader clearly long forgotten.

Sakura smirked as she re-emerged, watching Gaara closely. His sand was slow, sluggish and saturated with the water from her Ninjutsu. It was still powerful, clearly, but not for its speed. Even she could probably have made it through, now.

So, with a hand seal, a blade of water emerged from each of her palms, as she charged in. The sand tried its best to defend its user, but was too slow to stop her, as she landed a solid slash right into his right bicep, blood seeping out.

Gaara didn't react, for a moment, as he looked down. The sand had stopped in its tracks, as if in shock, before he felt a searing hot pain run through his body.

Sakura jumped back, and had performed her “Demonic Illusion: Binding” technique, sending pain through Gaara's body in an effort to immobilise him further.

And it seemed to work for a moment, as Sakura tried to dash back in, only for huge spikes of sand to jut out from Gaara’s gourd, one of which stabbing cleanly through her, just below her left shoulder, thankfully missing everything viral.

Sakura growled in pain, as she forced herself backwards, out of range of even more spikes. She growled, as she felt the hole that size knowing it would take a while to heal, even with medical techniques.

She watched carefully as Gaara began to surround himself in his sand, the quiet sound of soft chanting coming from within, just barely audible to her.

“Chosuke!” She stomped her foot on the ground, and watched as her scorpion revealed himself, returning from his hiding place. He saw the sphere of sand and knew immediately his job. He pushed forward, and got in close.

Before being pushed back, by spikes of sand spearing out, although none could pierce his carapace.

“Let me on,” Sakura said, climbing onto his back quickly as the scorpion shifted his tail to allow it. “Focus solely on hitting through the sphere. I'll deal with his spikes.”

Chosuke nodded at that, taking a breath before pushing in again. Sakura on his back, using her Water Palm Blade technique to slice at the sand trying to pierce his armour, stopping them in their tracks.

Then, Chosuke’s stinger thrusted forth, stabbing hard into the sphere of damp, compressed sand. It pushed right through.

All the spectators in the arena could hear the ear-piercing scream Gaara let out. Guttural, almost primal in its rage, before a large, sandy arm with blue markings pushed through the hole Chosuke had created, grabbing onto his stinger, and squeezing, hard. A crunching noise sounded out.

“Apologies, summoner-” Chosuke, his voice strained, muttered out, before disappearing in a cloud of smoke suddenly.

Sakura just barely managed to jump back before the hand managed to grab her, too.

It was as if the air went still, in the moment after Gaara's scream ceased. The sand sphere fell, whilst the sound of the crowd all dropping unconscious sounded out. Glancing up at the Kage box, she saw what was clearly a barrier of some kind emerge, too.

“Get him out of here, and treat him as best you can,” Sakura heard a man's voice speak. Looking up she saw Gaara's sensei, Baki, ordering his siblings Temari and Kankuro to take him away. “He's essential to our plan. Do not let it fail because of him.”

The pair nodded quickly, and began to help Gaara to his feet, and rushed out of the arena. Sakura threw a Kunai in an attempt to stop them without losing sight of Baki, but it was intercepted by the Suna Jonin.

“What's going on?” Sakura grit her teeth, seeing the Suna shinobi before her. She assumed it was an invasion of some kind, but she didn't know exactly what was happening.

“What's going on, is that I've been provided the perfect opportunity to pry the scorpion contract from your hands,” Baki scowled, as he prepared to fight. “You wielding them is an insult to our First Kazekage and Sunagakure.”

Sakura didn't get to question him any more, before Genma appeared between the two, glaring at Baki.

“Sakura, Oto and Suna are attacking.” Genma explains. “Go after Gaara, I'll handle him.”

Sakura almost nodded immediately at that, but spoke a second later. “You should go after them. I'm not good at tracking, or sensing chakra.”

Genma thought for a second, looking as if he was going to refuse her, but nodded a moment later. Her judgement was sound. “Fine. You hold this guy off as best you can. One of the Jonin or Chunin in the stands will come down to help soon, I'm sure.”

Sakura scowled at Baki. "The scorpions have accepted me as their summoner," she said simply, watching him carefully, ready to fight with the chakra she had left after her fight with Gaara. "What happens with their contract is for me to decide.”

“It doesn't matter what they decide. A summoner will be found for them in Suna, where they belong.” Baki growled, glaring at her, before suddenly shooting multiple blades of wind in her direction.

Sakura barely managed to dodge, a sharp pain in her left side revealing a significantly deep slash, blood seeping out and staining her clothes. Suddenly she felt weak, from that and the damage she had taken earlier, wondering how she was even still conscious.

Adrenaline was the only thing keeping her up and running.

She took a deep breath, at that, and steeled herself. She readjusted her mindset, knowing that her opponent wasn't just a Genin, but a full-fledged shinobi; Baki was a Jonin.

She knew holding back or being careful would lose her this fight and her life. She didn't have a choice but to go all-in, as soon as she could.

So, with a flair of her hands into a set of seals, she charged forward. Blades of water sprung to her palms as she tried her best to slash at the Suna nin, only to be kicked away harshly, her ribs crunching under the force of the blow.

She struggled to stand straight, as she recovered, knowing her ribs had surely fractured at the very least. But she did her best, and faintly reached up to her head, her fingers expertly navigating the mess of wire holding her hair in pace, to pat the head of Oujimaru carefully.

The small scorpion nuzzled back against her hand, in silent communication that he understood, as Sakura felt him leave her head and drop to the ground behind her, to burrow in.

Sakura didn't have time to think of a way to distract Baki, though, as he pushed forward, a performance of the body flicker technique making him appear before her.

Then, his fist flew at her face, attempting to punch her, only for Sakura to barely dodge.

Then, she grabbed onto his arm, and stuck on with her chakra. She was already running low, summoning Chosuke and using so many water Ninjutsu earlier did that to her, but she knew she needed to keep him focused on her somehow.

So she clung to his arm, even as he lifted her up, and slammed her against the ground again and again, over and over, her body screaming for her to run, to escape the pain; She didn't give in, and held on tight.

Eventually, Sakura felt her vision fading into unconsciousness, the damage from Gaara and Baki catching up to her, as the adrenaline left her body.

But as she did she saw Baki, his eyes rolling back, as he fell to his knees. Oujimaru stood on his shoulder, near his neck, where a very obvious sting was, the skin turning a sickly green and spreading quickly.

Chapter Text

Genma chewed his metal senbon, as he jumped from tree to tree, nervous. His decision to leave Sakura to fight a Jonin aside, the idea of having to fight Gaara wasn't exactly appealing for him.

The Suna Genin’s fight against Sakura had proven that the redhead was a jinchuriki, and they were notoriously dangerous and powerful.

He was almost glad for the backup, when he ran into four Genin, also in pursuit of Gaara.

Uzumaki Naruto, Nara Shikamaru, Uchiha Sasuke and Funai Nanako, accompanied by one of Hatake Kakashis ninken, where alone in chasing after what was potentially the most deadly shinobi Suna had sent for the invasion.

Sasuke however was charging faster than the rest, making significant distance. Genma found himself not caring too much, though. According to some of his friends still in the ANBU, the Uchiha kid had turned a powerful Jutsu on an ally just the previous day. Not the type of person Genma wanted on any team he was going to take charge of.

Genma stopped the group in its tracks, not long after he took charge, though.

“Do you smell them?” He asked Pakkun, who took a moment to focus, and nod. A group of almost ten Oto shinobi. He groaned.

"There's an ambush waiting for us up ahead," he explained, leaving a thoughtful look on Shikamaru's face, and a worried one on Naruto's. Nanako was harder to read than either of the boys. "We don't have the time to all get caught up in it, but we can't leave them to catch us from behind either. If we did, we'd likely all die."

Shikamaru nodded in understanding, as Genma explained the situation. "So one of us will have to stay behind," he assumed, before elaborating, "it has to be me."

Genma was shocked then. The lazy Nara didn't seem one to volunteer for anything, much less very possibly sacrifice his life.

"I'm low on chakra, so fighting against Gaara is out of the question," he explained, "my shadows should be able to stall some regular shinobi for a while, though. At least until backup arrives, if it's on the way.”

Genma hesitated to allow the boy to remain alone, but in the end he had to. His reasoning was sound, but he also knew this could be an act of self sacrifice by the Nara, too.

"You have the highest chance of survival, out of the three genin present," Pakkun agreed, "but be careful."

Shikamaru likely wanted to make a sarcastic remark, but he held his tongue and nodded. Genma nodded back, respect evident on his face.

“Temari, the wind user.” Genma scowled, as they moved. He sensed her chakra, just before Pakkun picked up her scent.

“Hm, I smell it too.” Pakkun nodded. “Likely staying behind to hold off any pursuers. The Uchiha brat isn't with her, though.”

“He must have snuck around.” Genma nodded.

“Leave Temari to me.” Nanako spoke up, a then. “You, Naruto and Pakkun should go ahead. Kankuro and Gaara are the biggest threats. Temari should be weakened by her fight with Shikamaru.”

Genma hesitated again, fearful he was simply sending genin to their deaths, but agreed. He resolved himself to handle Kankuro himself, so that Sasuke and Naruto could handle Gaara together. An Uchiha and a jinchuriki should be more than enough to deal with another jinchuriki, he reasoned to himself, trying to calm his nerves.

“You're finally going all out.” Nanako remarked, holding tightly to her arm, where a deep gash had been carved into the flesh, by a blast of sharpened wind which had easily cut a number of the surrounding trees to stumps. “You didn't show this much power against Tenten, or Shikamaru.”

"Obviously. The girl wasn't worth the effort, and the Nara was too intelligent for such a direct assault. Not to mention the arena wouldn't allow for it,” Temari scoffed.

“I'm flattered then,” Nanako smirked, an expression that looked alien on her face. “To be the first to warrant you using your full strength.”

Temari didn't respond though, as she shut her fan back up, pushing off the tree she had been perched on, trying to close the gap between them.

She had used a lot of chakra, and so hoped to finish the fight with close combat, instead of Ninjutsu.

Nanako wouldn't protest, as she pulled out her wire, holding it with her gloved hands, her grip strong despite the damage to her arm.

It was clearly instantly that Nanako's finesse, hindered by the gash in her arm, was inferior to the brutal force of Temari’s fan. Bruises began to blossom all over Nanako's body, with each attack she failed to avoid.

It was as Nanako managed to jump back, creating a little distance, that she bit her finger. Quickly, slamming her palm to the floor, a puff of smoke the size of a small house appeared, dissipating quickly to reveal a huge chameleon.

“Kill her.” Nanako ordered immediately, taking her place behind the beast, who simply nodded at its master's orders, and began its assault, its mouth opening and a green fog rolling out.

So, Temari was forced to open her fan again, to blow the gas attack away. Only, whilst she was focussed on that, Nanako dashed out, and found herself behind Temari, her wire poised to wrap around the Suna girl's arm, should she move even an inch.

So when Temari made an attempt at slamming her fan down, onto Nanako's head, she felt her arm suddenly go numb, before the pain blossomed and became excruciating.

Her arm fell to the ground below, as Nanako jumped off the branch, back to beside her summon.

Temari let out a blood-curdling scream, as she saw her arm detached from her body. She reached for her fan again, and raised it up with her remaining arm shakily, before slamming it open and swinging it at full–force.

The gale that emerged, aimed directly for Nanako was impossible to dodge by both her, and her summon who instantly disappeared in a puff of smoke. Trees ripped from the ground and flew up to fifty feet in the air, as did Nanako, her consciousness fading already, from the brute force of the air slamming into her. It wasn't sharp like before, simply blunt trauma.

As she fell, Nanako was fully prepared for death. She had imagined that cutting the Suna kunoichi’s arm off would end the battle, but on the contrary, it seemed she had become even more reckless, spending what chakra she had left on an all-in blast of air.

It was as Nanako's body was seconds from slamming into the ground that she felt herself being caught, and heared what could only be described as a growl from who she vaguely recognised as Inuzuka Kiba.

"Fang over Fang!" He shouted, once he placed Nanako down gently; A vortex of limbs, both his and his ninken's, charging into Temari who was in the process of tying a shred of her top around the stump where her arm was previously attached to stop the bleeding. This pushed her to the ground, where another person Nanako recognised stood. A usually shy girl, who in that moment looked to be out for blood.

Hyuga Hinata, with the terrifying eyes of her clan, bore down the might of the gentle fist onto the Suna girl, a number of her tenketsu blocked and knocking her into a state of unconsciousness within minutes, barely alive.

"Holy fuck," Nanako muttered weakly where she lay, not loud enough for anyone to hear though. "I thought I was dead."

Then, the third member of that team arrived and began speaking orders, quietly but without room for question. "Hinata, Kiba, get her to the hospital," Shino said simply, "my allies have sensed another battle ahead. I will go and assist as best I can."

The pair agreed easily and hoisted Nanako to her feet.

Genma, Pakkun and Naruto continued on, and when they caught up to the Suna nin again, it was to Gaara and Kankuro together. Gaara's situation had improved somewhat, no doubt thanks to Kankuro’s help.

Sasuke stood nearby, looking ready to spear a Chidori through their chests.

"Gaara, you need to get further away," Kankuro ordered, "keep drinking the remedy I gave you, and then loop back around when you're ready. You're essential to the plan."

Gaara scowled slightly, but did as he was told, continuing onwards through the trees. Sasuke followed after him immediately, not waiting for orders from Genma.

Genma had to stop himself from pursuing, instead turning to Naruto and Pakkun.

"You two continue the pursuit," he ordered, glaring at Kankuro, "I'll stand back here and stop him from following you, I'll catch up when I can."

Naruto seemed hesitant, but Pakkun nodded wearily, moving onwards. Naruto followed a moment later.

Chapter Text

Shiranui Genma was not known for his prowess on the front lines. He was at first an assassin in ANBU, a stealthy killer not used to prolonged combat. Then, he joined the Hokage's guard under the fourth, continuing on into the Third's tenure back out of retirement, although he had been given more and more missions away from his guard post as of late.

Most of his career had been spent hiding in the dark, waiting to strike, or for someone else to.

In that moment, facing a Suna puppet master genin, he was regretting that decision. A stupid mistake had cost him so dearly. His breathing was laboured and he struggled to stand. The genin was on death's doorstep himself, however. Senbon stuck out of him all over, and he was swaying side to side.

It was as Genma fell to the ground, a good ten meters away from his opponent's place on the dirt, that he saw a familiar face.

"I'll have my allies extract the poison," Aburame Shino said, wary of the barely conscious Suna nin not a few meters away, "it will hurt, though."

And holy fuck did it hurt, but by the end, he felt well enough to stand.

"Thank you," Genma nodded, glancing over to the downed genin, now seeming fully unconscious, motionless. "We will transport him to T&I, now. Then we'll assist at the battle in the village proper."

Shino nodded at that, not one to question orders from his, currently, direct superior.

So, he walked forward to pick up the boy, but found him rattling like...

"A puppet," the Aburame revealed, "he must have substituted himself when I was focused on removing the poison."

Genma nodded, a frown on his face, "despite the annoyance, I doubt he's in any condition to fight, even if he catches up to Naruto and Sasuke. His goal is to get Gaara into the village, for their plan. We should head back.”

Ibiki knew just how out of his depth he was. Hidden within the tangled branches of the reanimated First Hokage’s Wood Release Ninjutsu.

He cursed the request he made, as soon as they began to suspect foul play by Otogakure and Sunagakure. The request to be stationed within the arena, so he could look out for Sakura.

Because now, he was helpless to do that. He had gotten himself stuck within the barrier erected by Orochimaru's henchmen, unable to assist his student, or his Hokage, given the gap in strength.

The fact he had remained undetected was a miracle, given it took him a moment to cast the genjutsu that kept his presence hidden, and hide his chakra signature.

He had no clue how. But he wasn't going to complain. No, he was busy watching the fight unfold, waiting for any opportunity he could find to assist his Hokage. That was all he could do, at that moment.

When he saw it, Hiruzen holding Orochimaru and his two Hokage reanimations still, he knew he had to act, before Hiruzen sacrificed himself.

So, biting his finger, he slammed his hand down onto the ground, “Summoning Jutsu!”

Suddenly, Orochimaru found himself within a torture chamber, iron chains surging forth and binding him. Looking side to side, he saw his two reanimated Hokage in the same position. Hiruzen stood, exhausted, opposite them, alongside one Morino Ibiki.

“I apologize, Hokage-sama, for butting in.” Ibiki said, smirking, as he looked at the restrained Snake Sannin, a look of utter shock on his face.

“Morino Ibiki…” He scowled, trying to escape the bindings, seeing no success.

Ibiki, whilst certainly weaker than Orochimaru in normal combat by a wide margin, was an expert in restraining opponents, especially when he had caught them off guard.

“Don't apologise.” Hiruzen shook his head. “We must finish him quickly, though.”

“Leave that to me, then.” Ibiki nodded, biting his finger yet again, and smirking. “Summoning Jutsu!”

A lucky cat shaped iron maiden, big enough to fit Orochimaru within, sprung out from the floor of the torture chamber, opening and encasing the Sannin inside.

The sound of Orochimaru's pain only fuelled Ibiki's sadistic nature, as he held a hand seal, willing the spikes within the iron maiden to elongate, and widen, his control over his summons absolute, thanks to his increased training since taking Sakura as a pupil.

The screaming became more intense, the Sannin cursing Ibiki's name, as the spikes pierced his flesh, mangling him within what felt like a metal coffin.

But suddenly, the torture chamber vanished in a plume of smoke. The four shinobi who had erected the barrier had destroyed it from the outside, and immediately darted towards the iron maiden.

Ibiki tried his best to intercept them, and stop them from destroying it, but all he achieved was a yellow arrow through his shoulder for the trouble, from the spider-like one with darker skin.

The iron maiden disappeared much the same as the chamber had, revealing a very, very bloody and mangled Orochimaru, glaring daggers at Ibiki with his piercing yellow eyes. The killing intent was enough to make even Ibiki shiver.

Then, they disappear in a Body Flicker. Orochimaru was in no condition to fight, now.

“Pursue them!” Ibiki commands the nearby ANBU, who follow his order without question, darting after the Oto nin and their master.

Ibiki meanwhile turns around to find the exhausted Hiruzen, collapsed to his knees, as the two reanimated Hokage disintegrate into dust.

“Hokage-sama,” Ibiki mutters as he leans down to assist the man. Hiruzen shakes his head in response.

“Go, and assist in the defense. I shall be fine here.” He commands. “And good work, against my student, Ibiki.”

The damage left once the invasion had concluded, was immense. Homes were crumbling in areas, the wall was missing a large portion, and bodies littered the streets. Civilians and shinobi alike lay in body bags and storage scrolls, as those left standing worked tirelessly to collect them.

Masato was one such shinobi, his ears having been healed after his match, and it made him feel utterly sick. He struggled not to throw up.

He kept going though, for the sake of his village, and the people he cared about. He found himself drawn to the part of the village he knew Sakura lived, having picked her up for training one weekend.

When he saw the man lying dead, in front of their home, and a woman in the doorway, also face-down and equally lifeless, he recognised them immediately, without having ever met them.

The man's pink hair gave it away. Sakura's parents were dead, and it wasn't a quick one either. Her father had fought and killed at least three Oto shinobi, from what Masato could see around them, before being killed himself. His wife, distraught, had tried to fight back too, only to be killed easily.

They died feet away from one another, probably only seconds apart.

Chapter Text

Uchiha Sasuke scowled at nothing, as he sat in a hospital bed, clenching his fists around the thin blanket provided to him.

The subject of his hatred being practically everything in existence made it difficult to calm himself down.

Funai Nanako was the first of all. A Genin corps shinobi able to take him, top of his academy class, down in the preliminary round. He reasoned to himself that it was because of his handicap, unable to use chakra thanks to the cursed seal.

But then he had tried again, and Haruno Sakura of all people was the one to stop him spearing the older girl through the chest with his brand new Chidori. The weak, pathetic girl who used to pester him constantly about dating and romance. He didn't care that she had to use her summons to do it, it still stung.

Then, he even failed against Gaara, the enemy Sakura had managed to damage fairly significantly, was defeated not by him but by the very worst of their academy class, his teammate Uzumaki Naruto.

Then, Kakashi arrived, a day after the invasion, and began to berate him despite his poor condition. The copy bin hadn't cared a single bit.

"How could you attempt use the Chidori on an ally, Sasuke?” He spoke clearly, but he was anything but calm. His voice was intense, anger and disappointment underlined his every word, the pressure akin to the killing intent he'd felt from Momochi Zabuza or Gaara, "I taught you that technique in the hopes you would use it for Konoha, not against it."

"She insulted me," he argued back, although with much less intensity and resolve than Kakashi, "she spat on the Uchiha name."

"So?" Kakashi growled, glaring at the Uchiha, "you have spat on Konoha itself. Your comparison between a near extinct clan and our village is insulting."

Kakashi wouldn't usually be so harsh, but when he'd heard of the formal complaints against his student, his rage had boiled over. Even without the intense flashbacks he had to his own time on Team Seven, his Chidori through the chest of his Kunoichi teammate, he was not having a good time as a sensei. Not at all.

First, Sakura was taken from him thanks to his neglect, then Naruto was taken by Jiraiya to train for the third round. Kabuto was a traitor, someone planted by Orochimaru, and Sasuke had used the single jutsu he himself imparted upon his student to attempt murder on another Konoha shinobi.

Kakashi was a failure as a sensei, and he knew it. The worst part? He still acted as if he himself was impervious to it. He chastised Sasuke for using the jutsu Kakashi had developed to kill, and even taught the boy with the incredibly negative psych evaluation record rivaling even his own in his youth that very same technique with joy.

He was happy, when Sasuke had managed it, praised the boy for succeeding. Then that sense of pride came tumbling down, landing atop him with the weight of an entire village.

The stares he received from other shinobi were harsh, reminding him of his father.

"What did I tell you when you passed the bell test?" Kakashi asked, his voice taking a less intense note, but still angry.

Sasuke didn't answer though, glaring at his lap, and Kakashi had to resist the urge to shout. "It was a quote, from one of my genin teammates," he revealed, "those who abandon their mission are scum, that is true."

"But those who abandon their comrades are worse than scum." Kakashi finished, "but let me add on to that: Whilst those who abandon a mission are scum, and those who abandon a comrade are even worse, what does that make you, Sasuke?"

Sasuke's knuckles were clenched so hard they turned white as he stared at the sheets of his bed silently. He didn't feel shame, simply anger that he of all people was being chastised for his mistakes. Him: Uchiha Sasuke.

"You are worse than those who are worse than scum." He continued when the Uchiha didn't respond, "you're a disgusting traitor."

Sasuke visually recoiled at the word, and grit his teeth hard. He didn't respond, but Kakashi continued.

"Whilst it is feasible for someone to abandon a comrade for the sake of a mission," Kakashi said, "even whilst distasteful that is true. There is never a reason for a Konoha shinobi not under the effects of a jutsu to attack a comrade."

"You're being reassigned," Kakashi finished without missing a beat, seeing Sasuke wasn't going to respond. "So is Naruto. You, however, will be placed in the genin corps, whilst Naruto has earned himself a personal apprenticeship under Jiraiya of the Sannin."

"The fuck?!" Sasuke tried to complain, finally speaking, but Kakashi simply shook his head and left the Uchiha to think.

Two days after the invasion of Konoha, Sakura woke up. Her wounds had been mostly healed, though her body felt sore and had a dull throb of pain throughout from the over excursion she had put her chakra network through.

Ibiki sat beside her bed, watching her with a worried expression.

“People may get the wrong idea, if you watch me sleeping for too long, Ibiki-sensei.” Sakura quipped, letting out a softly chuckle as she sat up carefully, raising an arm to push the hair from her face.

“I don't think I could care less about anything, than what people think of me, so I'll survive.” He chuckled back. “Especially for my favourite student.”

Sakura smiled softly at that, looking up at him appreciatively. She knew Kakadhi would never sit for however long, just to ensure she was okay.

“yhoe are you feeling?” Ibiki asked after a short pause.

“Like I've been put in a blender.” Sakura complained, groaning quietly.”But better than I did after fighting that Suna Jonin.”

“I saw his body. It was impressive.” Ibiki smirked, complimenting her. “I heard from a chunin who caught glimpses of your fight that you managed to stall him, whilst your scorpion snuck around to take him out.”

Sakura nodded, smirking back. “He was too strong for me, it was my only choice. I'd have been dead without Oujimaru.”

“I'm glad I took you to get a summoning contract, then."

Sakura chuckled, "and I'm glad to have the honour of holding the same contract as the first Kazekage," she giggled, "when were you going to tell me?"

“I wasn't.” Ibiki says honestly, snorting. “Didn't want you thinking that just because you hold a legendary contract, that you're the strongest. It only takes a moment of distraction or a lucky shot for you to die anyway.”

Sakura nodded, but pouted all the same, "I'm not like that."

"Maybe not, but I was being cautious," Ibiki said placatingly.

Sakura didn't respond verbally, simply reaching a hand out to her teacher. The man hesitated for a single moment before grabbing it, and Sakura's smile widened.

"Thank you for looking out for me," she said sincerely, and Ibiki felt his heart break a little in that moment. the way she said it, she'd never had someone to do so before. Never had someone in her corner, rooting her on and actively pushing her to improve.

It was as he squeezed her hand, that Sakura heard Masato's voice outside, arguing with another she didn't recognise.

“No, I'll tell her!” Masato insisted, and it seemed the other person was relenting. Masato walked in a moment later, a frown on his face.

"Sakura, I…” Masato took a breath. He didn't expect it to be so hard to tell her, but he knew he had to. He produced a black scroll; A body scroll, a storage seal used for retrieving dead allies.

Ibiki began to move, as if to stand, but Sakura gripped his hand harder, a hint of fear in her eyes as she eyed the scroll her teammate held. Black, with a white stripe.

“Who?” She asked softly, tears already springing to her eyes.

"I'm sorry.” Masato said gently, “I found them during the clean-up. It's your parents.”

Sakura's breath hitches, as soon as she heard the words leave Masato's lips. Her parents were dead.

Her hand had remained in Ibiki's, and she was squeezing hard enough that even Ibiki felt some pain, not that he minded in the slightest, especially in this situation.

"Oh," Sakura said between breaths, her mind no doubt had been traveling at thousands of miles a minute. "I see. Thank you, Masato...”

“Me and Nanako are around, if you need anything, Sakura.” Masato said quietly, as he looked at her. “But I'll leave you with Ibiki-sensei for now.”

Masato left then, not wanting to just stand there awkwardly. He could tell Sakura had been trying hard not to cry in front of him.

The tears fell from where they were being held in Sakura's eyes, as soon as Masato left. She squeezed Ibiki's hand hard enough that her knuckles turned white, but he didn't make a sound. He simply leaned in closer and allowed the girl to hug him instead.

If she was making it hard to breathe with the strength of her squeeze, Ibiki refused to say anything, simply hugging her back gently, rubbing a calloused hand against her back.

“You'll be okay,” were the only words he said, as Sakura sobbed into his chest.

It took another week before Sakura was discharged from the hospital, and as soon as she was, she was forced to go and dig her funeral clothes out from the back of her closet.

Putting them on hastily, she left the house to fund Ibiki, stood beside Masato, and Anko behind Nanako, waiting for her. She gave the four a small smile, before walking over and gripping Ibiki's hand, chatting quietly to Masato, as he struck up a conversation.

It was clear he was trying to make her feel better, and Sakura appreciated it a lot. Nanako smiled gently in her direction, whenever their eyes met too, reminding her that despite what she's lost, she wasn't alone.

Arriving at the funeral, they quietly took their place near the middle of the crowd, and watched the ceremony begin.

Multiple people spoke at length about the various important shinobi who lost their lives. The Hokage gave a speech, before the names of all those who had passed was read out.

It made Sakura sad that nobody mentioned even a word about her father, beside his place on the list. He was simply a name, now. But she wasn't surprised. He wasn't particularly important to the village. A paper-nin, after he was forced into an early retirement by an injury to his chakra network.

Chapter Text

Hatake Kakashi was never good with emotions. Telling anger from sadness had never come easy to him.

Maybe it was because when he was sad, he blamed himself. Anger was his default, in a small way, but it was always aimed inwards.

He was angry now, over the loss of his students. He had finally believed he found the right team, too. He blamed himself, because he knew it was his fault.

So as he always did when grief of any kinds threatened to consume him, he became Hound once again. Even if this were a different kind of loss, it hurt in much the same manner as losing the others had.

He began to patrol, leaping from rooftop to rooftop, surveying the damage wrought by the invasion. Some buildings were collapsed or crumbling, and a large section of the perimeter wall was demolished by the snake summon Jiraiya had handled.

Kakashi knew though that the real damage was the people they had lost. The shinobi and civilians who had died in the attack because of Orochimaru.

As he went, he was reminded of that, when he found a body, hidden amongst some rubble in an alleyway. He cursed, realising he didn't have a body scroll, and stood to go and retrieve one.

On his way, he saw them. Two figures in black cloaks adorned with red clouds.

His eyes narrowed at the unique garb, only for his stomach to twist as he caught sight of the face of one of them. The shorter one.

Uchiha Itachi.

He was back within Konoha’s walls. A reminder of Kakashi’s failure. Not just to Sasuke but to both Uchiha brothers.

Despite himself, he followed the two.

Kakashi could tell immediately that Itachi had caught on to his presence though. Yet, the two missing-nin continued on, making their way to a quieter area beside a lake. That was when Kakashi struck.

Launching himself from the treetops with a burst of chakra, he surged forward, lightning crackling around his hand with the chorus of a thousand birds. He aimed straight for Itachi, but with a calculated angle; If the Uchiha dodged, the taller man beside him would take the hit instead.

By now, Kakashi had recognized him from the bingo book.

Hoshigaki Kisame.

Itachi sidestepped the attack with little effort. Kisame, however, took it head-on, or so it seemed. Instead of collapsing with a hole in his abdomen, his body dissolved into a form of water, merging with the lake below.

"A water clone," Kakashi spat, leaping back to put distance between himself and Itachi.

Then, he felt a sudden tug at his ankle from below.

His gaze snapped downward. Kisame’s grip tightened as he yanked him down with surprising force, trying to get him underwater.

Reacting quickly, Kakashi substituted with a nearby rock, landing on the lake’s edge as Itachi hummed softly.

"So, you’ve put the mask back on," Itachi mused, his voice quiet yet unmistakably sharp. He hadn't dulled in the years he'd been away, Kakashi observed. "I didn’t think you would, not after taking a Genin team, Kakashi."

Kakashi didn’t respond verbally to that, though. Instead, he moved swiftly through a series of hand seals. He wasn’t foolish enough to believe he could take both men down alone, but if he could eliminate one, or at least make enough of a scene, backup would surely arrive.

"A water dragon, huh?" Kisame reappeared beside his partner, watching as the hulking serpent-like form rose from the lake. "Not bad. Didn’t think a Konoha-nin could control water so well."

Itachi shook his head slightly. "Kisame, that is Hatake Kakashi," he murmured. "He possesses a Sharingan. His Ninjutsu repertoire is larger than anyone else's."

Kisame’s expression shifted, eyes gleaming with interest now, as he recognised the name. "I see. That explains the lightning." He grinned, hefting his still-wrapped sword. "This might be fun. Stay out of it, Itachi. I want to handle him myself."

Itachi gave no verbal response but stepped back slightly. Not far, but just enough to observe and close enough to intervene if necessary.

Then the battle began.

Kakashi was immediately on the defensive.

Samehada, even wrapped, was relentless. With every strike, it drained his chakra, making it harder to weave his hand seals and perform Ninjutsu. But Kakashi wasn’t known for holding back. If he was going down, he would do so fighting at his absolute limit.

He unleashed everything.

Jutsu of all releases, copied over years of battle, ripped through the battlefield. Massive boulders crashed down, flames hotter than molten lava seared through the air, and razor-sharp wind slashes tore through the mist forming over the lake. Each technique was fast, deadly, and precise.

But Kisame was no Momochi Zabuza.

He was on a whole different level.

After yet another large-scale earth jutsu, help finally arrived.

Sarutobi Asuma, Yuhi Kurenai, Might Guy, and Morino Ibiki appeared at the lake’s edge, having seemingly already been together before encountering the battle.

"Who are they?" Kurenai asked, taking a defensive stance as soon as she saw the battle raging.

Ibiki was the first to answer. "Hoshigaki Kisame," he said grimly, his tone laced with recognition. "And Uchiha Itachi. Not the kind of shinobi we want to be taking lightly.”

"Missing-nin," Asuma muttered. "They seem to be coming out of the woodwork lately."

"That may be," Guy said, cracking his knuckles, "but we have the advantage. Five against two."

"We should split up," Ibiki suggested. "Kurenai and I will handle Kisame, while Gai and Asuma assist Kakashi against Itachi."

Kurenai looked ready to object, but Kakashi cut in, landing near them. "That’s the best course of action. Kurenai, your genjutsu will be next to useless against a Sharingan as strong as Itachi’s."

"And I have some amount of experience with Kisame," Ibiki added, though his tone made it clear that it wasn’t much.

With the plan set, they moved.

The battle was far from over. It was only just beginning.

Ibiki was not prepared for this fight, and Kurenai did little to assuage his doubt, given she was a newer Jonin.

“Morino Ibiki. To think we'd meet again.” Kisame sent him a toothy grin. “I won't be fleeing this time to preserve intel, though.”

“I assumed as much,” Ibiki smirked back, “Although it makes my job of ripping whatever intel you do have from your lips that much more simple.”

Kisame barked a laugh, drawing the sharkskin blade from his back and getting into a stance.

Kurenai prepared herself too, but Ibiki remained standing with his hands in his pockets.

Without a single hand seal, Ibiki activated a common Genjutsu among Konoha's forces. It was used for communication between allies rather than to harm. Ibiki, however, usually used it for torture.

"Kurenai," he said into her mind, which she kindly gave him access to speak within, "You need to distract him. If I manage to summon my iron maiden, this will be over quickly."

Kurenai gave her agreement easily and charged forth, wrapping a Genjutsu around herself to appear invisible.

She landed behind the swordsman with him unaware, although he seemed more amused than concerned.

Then, roots began to wrap around him, rendering him immobile.

"I hate Genjutsu," Kisame complained. Although he certainly wasn't taking it particularly seriously, he made no move to break out, smirking still.

Kurenai emerged from the tree and dug a kunai into the man, but he popped like a bubble into water yet again.

"Water clone," Ibiki scowled, looking around for his opponent as Kurenai dismissed her technique.

"Below!" he heard shouted from accros the lake, Kakashi's voice carrying from his own combat with Itachi. Ibiki looked down in response and found Kisame trying to drag him under. He jumped away immediately.

"You ruin all my fun, Copy Nin," Kisame grumbled but drew his blade again. As soon as he did, he was trapped in a Genjutsu again, though he broke free seconds later.

That was enough time for Ibiki though. He ran through the seals for the summoning jutsu and unleashed it, watching as a giant cat-shaped iron maiden emerged from under the water, encasing Kisame before being pulled back down into the water and then the lakebed below.

Ibiki almost sighed in relief before Kisame emerged moments after—his appearance very different, with a scowl on his face. Gone was his cloak and his sword. He now looked much more like a shark than before, with fins sprouting from his arms and back.

Then he swiped out, claws made of water extending from his hand as he attacked Kurenai's legs.

"Argh!" she screamed, falling to her knees and barely staying afloat.

Ibiki tried to make distance, drawing a kunai from his holster, but as he did, he glanced over at the other fight occurring.

And directly into Uchiha Itachi's eyes, who ceased the moment to cast his genjutsu on him, as well as Kakashi.

Chapter Text

“Well, with Tsunade denying the role, we have two viable options left,” Hiruzen sighed, glancing around the room.

“Nara Shikaku, or Hyuga Hiashi?” Koharu, one of the elders of Konohagakure, asked, as she sat alongside her peers and the Hokage.

“The choice is fairly clear to me.” Hiruzen hummed easily. “Nara Shikaku distinguished himself in the defense. Hiashi is skilled, and a capable leader, but should the practices of his clan become common knowledge, many would be hesitant to follow him.”

“Indeed,” Hatake Botan, the leader of the Hatake clan, as well as one of the very few shinobi to come from the clan of farmers, agreed easily. He was old, the signs of age clearly on his face. “I was there, witness to Shikaku’s strength. As we're many others.”

The room shook as the explosion rang out. Shikaku's eyes shot open, and he sprang to his feet, bursting out of his office. He had been working at his desk, though his mind had been more occupied with thoughts of how Shikamaru was doing in the Chunin Exams.

Without a single hand seal, he body-flickered outside, his sharp eyes scanning the battlefield carefully. Konoha-nin were locked in combat against a mix of Suna and Oto shinobi all over the village.

"Status report," he barked at the closest Konoha shinobi, a Chunin who had just taken down an Otogakure shinobi, crushing his windpipe underfoot.

"Yes, sir!" The young man, likely in his twenties, spoke professionally but couldn't quite hide his nervousness. "From what I can tell, Otogakure and Sunagakure have launched a joint invasion of Konoha. During the Chunin Exams tournament, the Hokage was attacked by Orochimaru of the Sannin, who was disguised as the Fourth Kazekage. He's now trapped inside a barrier, and none of the ANBU have been able to break through."

Shikaku nodded, a deep frown settling on his face. "Alright, carry on," he said before taking off at a run.

He doubted his limited knowledge of Fuinjutsu would help break a barrier designed to contain the Hokage, so he didn’t even bother heading in that direction. Instead, he stretched his senses wide, feeling for chakra signatures across the village and beyond. It was hard, but when he detected over two hundred signatures moving swiftly toward the walls, none of which he recognized, he began to sprint. No one else had likely sensed them yet, and the shinobi stationed at the walls would be powerless to stop such a force.

As he rushed through the streets towards the walls, he spotted a group of shinobi, most of whom bore only minor injuries. They were searching for enemies, but Shikaku already knew exactly where to take them.

"Botan!" Shikaku called. A tall man with white hair turned toward him. He was older, of the same generation as the Sannin. Botan was one of the few Hatake besides Kakashi who had become a shinobi, and the only other Jonin of the clan.

"You and your men need to follow me. I don’t have time to explain," Shikaku ordered immediately. Botan was a shinobi he could trust, at least, and the man seemed to have gathered a fairly capable temporary team to work with.

Botan nodded without hesitation, and his men fell in line. The group was an eclectic mix of shinobi, both clan-born and civilian-born, likely gathered along the way. They numbered just over ten.

"Hyuga," Shikaku addressed one of them. "Activate your Byakugan. Keep track of the battlefield and keep me updated.”

As they ran, Shikaku relied on the Yamanaka, young and far less experienced than the teammate he was accustomed to though he waa, to relay orders to different groups fighting across the village. It was undoubtedly draining for his temporary team, but an internal loss would spell disaster for the entire village. He could work with a small group to take down the army outside. At least, he hoped so.

By the time they reached the wall, climbing atop it, the approaching army was nearly upon them. On the other side of the village, Shikaku watched as three giant snakes crashed into the defenses, drawing most of Konoha’s attention away from the advancing force.

Scanning the enemy ranks, he scowled. Nearly all of them wore the standard uniforms of Suna or Oto, which meant…

“It’s all Chunin or higher,” Botan muttered, nervously tapping his foot.

Shikaku nodded grimly.

“We can handle them,” he reassured the man, though even he wasn’t entirely convinced. A few of the Chunin stationed on the wall had joined their group, bringing their numbers to just over twenty.

“I hope you have a plan,” the Yamanaka stuttered anxiously. He was newly promoted to Chunin, Shikaku recalled. His nerves were understandable.

“I do, but it’s risky,” he admitted, his gaze shifting to the two Akimichi in the group. One was a Jonin, a man Shikaku only knew in passing, while the other was a Chunin. “I need a distraction. And a medic.”

The Akimichi nodded without hesitation. They understood their role immediately. After all, they could grow large enough to rival boss summons. Distracting an army wouldn’t be difficult with their size.

A medic quickly stepped forward too, a recently promoted Tokubetsu Jonin specializing in medical ninjutsu. Shikaku recalled that he was particularly skilled in injuries regarding the chakra network, which made him perfect for the job he had in mind.

“I need you to perform the Chakra Transplant Technique,” Shikaku said. “I’ll be borrowing some chakra from everyone here.”

The medic’s eyes widened slightly. He opened his mouth, likely to warn about the risks of the jutsu, but Shikaku shook his head.

“I’ll be draining my chakra fast enough to avoid a burst coil,” he assured him. “And even if I don't, I don't care. Protecting Konoha is our priority here.”

The medic hesitated for only a moment before nodding. Shikaku returned the gesture and signaled for the group to follow him.

He leaped from the wall to face the army head-on. From the ground, the sheer size of the enemy force was even more daunting.

“Now, Akimichi,” he commanded. “Pick everyone up, draw their fire, and protect us until we reach their center.”

The Chunin paled at the idea but agreed regardless. The Jonin simply nodded, his expression grim. It was entirely possible they wouldn’t make it out alive, but this was the only way. Shikaku shot them both a grateful smile before calculating his next move.

Moments later, the Akimichi had gathered all of the group’s shinobi in their massive hands and began to charge forward. A barrage of weapons and jutsu rained down upon them, but they didn’t waver, pressing on until they reached the center of the enemy ranks.

“We’re here!” the Jonin Akimichi bellowed, stomping down on a cluster of Suna-nin who had gathered too close. “I’m setting you down.”

Shikaku nodded, and the group quickly took their positions. They were surrounded, their only defense being the two colossal Akimichi.

“Now, medic!” he ordered.

The Tokubetsu Jonin rushed to his side, placing one hand on the back of Shikaku’s head and the other on Hatake Botan’s. As the medic funneled chakra from the Hatake into the Nara, Shikaku closed his eyes in concentration, forming the seal for his Shadow Sewing Technique.

His shadow shot out, infused with yin chakra, snaking through the battlefield and ensnaring every enemy shinobi in sight.

When Botan’s chakra ran low, the medic quickly switched to another Jonin, continuing the transfer.

Within moments, over two hundred enemy shinobi, each of Chunin rank or higher, were bound within Shikaku’s shadow.

A slow smirk spread across his face.

Changing his hand sign, he spoke in a low grumble, still receiving chakra, although now from chunin who were being drained much faster. "Shadow Neck Binding Technique…”

Instantly, his shadows twisted, crawling up the legs of their struggling opponents and gripped at their throats. Not enough to strangle, but enough to cause major discomfort.

Then, he switched his hand seal to one that allowed him to concentrate on each and every shadow as he let out a grunt of effort.

It was followed swiftly by hundreds of loud snaps, ringing out across the entire battlefield. All the enemy shinobi dropped down, all of their heads at unnatural angles on their shoulders.

The group glanced around in shock then, "hundreds of shinobi," Botan whispered, amazement evident in his voice, "dead in an instant."

"Actually," Shikaku coughed as the medic detached his hand from his head. "I left those with the strongest chakra signatures alive. I need a group sent out to locate them and bring them to T&I for interrogation.”

Botan nodded, eyes wide at the power and precision Shikaku possessed with his clans techniques, even if it was amplified with multiple people's chakra, it was impressive nonetheless.

“So it's decided.” Hiruzen nodded. Most of the council had agreed, and so it was only the Daimyo who could stand in the way, now.

Hiruzen doubted he would, though. They were overdue for a new Hokage, and with Shikaku’s recent success on the battlefield, and long tenure as Jonin Commander, there was nobody more qualified to take over, now that Hiruzen had decided to retire again.

Chapter Text

Sakura nodded slowly, stepping forward to take the chunin vest from the new Hokage. Her hands threatened to tremble slightly as she did, but she managed to steel herself.

"You two were the only genin worthy of becoming chunin," Shikaku explained, looking between his son and the pink haired girl carefully. One of his first jobs as Hokage was to decide who would receive promotions, after the botched exams.

Things had changed since the chunin exams though. Sure, Sakura was still proud of her achievement, but before she'd been determined to prove others wrong for it. When she proved them wrong not only in the exam but in the invasion too, she'd been so happy.

But then she received that news from Masato, and it all felt like it'd been for nothing. Her mother was gone, the one person she wanted to prove wrong more than anybody else in the world, who she cruelly ignored for something as simple as worrying far too much about her daughter's future.

So was her father, the man she most wanted to hug after she managed it, to go to a nice barbeque place like they used to and celebrate. Like they had when she graduated, like they had after her first C rank mission.

Shikaku spoke for a few minutes longer about their responsibilities as chunin, but Sakura mostly tuned the man out. Once he was done, Sakura left with a body flicker, rather than walking as she usually would.

Arriving at her family home, Sakura walked inside. She had been living there like a ghost since her parents death, but now she really took it in.

Her parent's shoes were still sitting in the doorway. Sakura nudged them to the side as she walked in, leaving her own to join them.

Walking further in she glanced at the empty sofa, her father's thick blanket laid on top, a book on the coffee table clearly half read, marked with a pink slip of paper as to where her father had reached.

Then she moved up the stairs, finding her parents door open as usual. Walking inside she saw the bed, neatly made on the morning of the invasion and never to be touched by Kizashi or Mebuki again.

Moving again, this time to the bathroom, she gazed upon the various soaps and lotions her mother would try to make her use, to make her smell like a proper lady rather than a soldier. She succeeded for a while, but after the Wave mission Sakura refused vehemently.

She moved her gaze to the wall in the hallway, then. Falling to her knees as she takes in a photo hung there.

A picture from her last day at the academy. Kizashi smiled wide, a hand on Sakura's head with Mebuki standing beside them with a small smile, unable to resist the humour of her husband's antics.

She loved them, Sakura understood then. It felt like something she should have known already, and to some extent she had. But, seeing what she could never have again, Sakura sobbed. She missed her father, and even her mother.

She sat here for an hour, watching the photo and wishing, hoping to wake up from the bad dream her home had become.

But it never came, and she couldn't mope around forever, so she stood up and wiped her eyes.

Returning down the stairs and into a room she rarely entered, Sakura looked around her father's study.

It wasn't massive, but it was filled with things. From books and scrolls covering every shelf, to his small store of coloured inks he'd use to paint landscapes Sakura had always found too abstract to understand.

Sakura smiled as she looked down and found a stack of thick papers, each with a different drawing done in the vibrant colours Sakura's mother had got him every time she left on a business trip.

She idly scanned through them, noticing the age of the later ones. They ranged from just a few weeks old to multiple years. Eventually she reached the bottom of the stack and tears fell again.

A drawing of a different sort, but just as beautiful as all the others. It was of Sakura's mother, holding a baby Sakura could only assume was her.

She held the paper close as she sat on her father's chair carefully, placing her elbows on the desk and her palms to her eyes.

Hiruzen sat quietly, at the bedside of Morino Ibiki. The man had saved his life, only to be hit with the consequences of another of Hiruzen’s many, many failures.

Uchiha Itachi.

Hiruzen was glad that the damage done to Ibiki's brain seemed minimal, though. Tsunade had already been around to heal him, after returning with Jiraiya and Naruto but refusing the position of Hokage, but he still needed rest. Hiruzen had caught him during his many, many hours of sleep.

Then, he heard the door opening softly, turning his gaze to find Haruno Sakura, the man's student.

“Oh, Hokage-sama,” Sakura bowed to the man, as she saw him sat there. “I didn't mean to interrupt, I just wanted to see Ibiki-sensei…”

“It's fine, Sakura.” Hiruzen shook his head, smiling at her overly polite manners when speaking to him. “Please, take a seat. Ibiki is asleep right now, but he may wake soon.”

Sakura nodded, stepping forward and carefully took another chair, beside the former Hokage's.

“He has been a good teacher to you.” Hiruzen spoke again, his voice fond. “I could tell from your performance in the exams.”

“Thank you, Hokage-sama,” Sakura nodded her head in response. “He has been the best sensei I could hope for.”

“He had been submitting reports on your progress, too.” Hiruzen nodded, smirking. “Those reports are part of the reason we decided to promote you, in the end. Your performance in the exam may not have been enough.”

“I'll be sure to thank him, then.” Sakura smiled down at her unconscious sensei. “But I'm not done, I still have a lot to learn from him.”

“Of course,” Hiruzen nodded. “I'm sure he'll still be happy to teach you. Teaching is a great honour.”

“In fact, please give me the honour of teaching you something, whilst we await Ibiki's recovery.” Hiruzen said, smirking, whilst Sakura's eyes widened.

“Try it again,” Hiruzen hummed, watching Sakura attempt the genjutsu he had been teaching her for the past few days yet again. “Remember, send your chakra out, and latch it onto your target's senses.”

Sakura nodded, panting a bit from effort, her chakra slowly running low after so many attempts.

Carefully, she clasped her hands together in the string of seals, before sending her chakra towards Hiruzen.

His vision went pitch-dark, and he smirked. “That's a success.”

Sakura smiled at that, realising she had finally managed it. She wanted to cheer, but even as tired as she was she understood whose presence she was in. The Third Hokage was known to many as a God of Shinobi, just as the First had been.

If she wanted him to continue training her like this, she thought her best chance was to take it as seriously as she could.

Hiruzen broke the genjutsu a few moments later, though. She was inexperienced still, so her hold on the technique was loose.

“For now, we will practice until you can perform it perfectly.” Hiruzen decided, “And once you have succeeded at that, we will move onto something new.”

“I hope tmit wasn't too much to ask, Hokage-sama,” Ibiki said weakly, laying in the hospital bed that evening, the Hokage visiting him again. “I just don't want her to lose direction, whilst she waits for me to recover.”

“I understand, it's not a problem Ibiki.” Hiruzen shook his head. “She has been taking to the training very well. She is close to mastering the Bringer of Darkness genjutsu already.”

“Really?” Ibiki hummed, impressed. “I imagine that's a drain on her chakra stores, though.”

“Of course, but that's a positive. She must drain her chakra in order for her network to expand its capacity.” Hiruzen chuckled. “Her capacity is already fairly impressive for a civilian-born shinobi. You must have been training her hard.”

“That was moreso her fault. She would train to exhaustion, even once we had finished for the day.” Ibiki shook him head, smiling.

Hiruzen could hear the fondness in his voice, and couldn't help but smile too. “You're fond of her.”

“Obviously.” Ibiki rolled his eyes. “She's my student. My favourite student.”

Chapter Text

“As a chunin you'll have less time spent with me training, and more spent actively doing work," Ibiki explained, whilst he sat on his hospital bed. He was feeling much better already, but needed to stay a while longer for observation. "Chunin are expected to lead squads of either genin or their peers in the field, it is the same in the Intelligence Division, too."

Sakura nodded at the explanation, before her sensei continued, "sadly though, we can't simply have you inside the village doing paperwork," he went on, clearly a bit disheartened at having to send Sakura out of the village, "so you're being placed under the care of the Intelligence Division as a whole, rather than T&I alone."

Sakura stilled at that, but didn't speak. Her being transferred to the main branch of the division likely meant...

"Before you worry too much, you've received special permission to remain stationed in the T&I headquarters whenever you're inside the village, thanks to your status as my apprentice."

Sakura gave a sigh of relief, but Ibiki simply chuckled.

"Don't sound too relieved though," he said, "manpower is at its lowest since the Kyuubi attack, so you won't be inside the village very often."

"Konoha needs to project her strength as much as possible in a time like this to avoid further conflict." Ibiki explained, "Hokage-sama doesn't want Iwa, Kumo or Kiri to get any ideas."

Sakura understood that, and she nodded to show as such. Ibiki returned the nod in response and stood up weakly from his bed. Sakura almost protested, but Ibiki shook his head to stop her.

Taking her shoulder, they body flickered from the hospital, to the familiar hallways of T&I, and eventually they arrived outside a door simply labelled 'Team Three'.

Ibiki knocked once before opening the door, and Sakura gazed curiously at the trio sitting within.

The room was dull, the same grey colour as Ibiki's office, and contained four desks, one of which was unoccupied and slightly bigger.

"Oh?" Masato glanced over at her and flashed her a grin, "Sakura-taichou's here."

Sakura's eyes widened at the honorific, but remained silent as Nanako spoke.

"Good, I was starting to get worried," she said simply, giving the pink haired girl a small wave. Sakura was supposed to take her new position days ago, but her training with the Third Hokage had gotten in the way of that.

The final member of the group nodded, the buzz of insects coming from beneath his jacket.

"Hold on," Sakura turned her gaze to a mischievous looking Ibiki, "why did Masato call me taichou? And why is Shino here?!"

"These three are your fellow members of Team Three," Ibiki explained calmly, "you're being assigned as their captain."

Sakura glared at Ibiki when he said that, pushing the issue of Shino's presence from her mind for the moment.

"What do you mean!?" Sakura groaned loudly, "I'm a brand new chunin, not someone who should be given a squad to look after!"

Ibiki shrugged, "for once this one wasn't my decision," he said, "Inoichi and Hokage-sama agreed that you displayed adequate decision making skills during the invasion, with the testimony of one Shiranui Genma backing such information up, and decided to put you in this position as team leader."

Sakura sighed at the explanation, but more so at the fact she couldn't annoy Ibiki out of the decision. If the Hokage himself decided it, she wasn't going to be able to argue with him.

"I suggest you spend some time getting to know each other, and get settled at your desk," Ibiki motioned towards the slightly larger, vacant desk, "your first mission will begin tomorrow morning, so make sure you're well rested."

Then, Ibiki left again, likely back to go and rest, and Sakura glanced at her new teammates. Well, Shino was new, Nanako and Masato had been with her for the Chunin exams.

"I guess introductions aren't necessary, since we should all know each other well enough," Sakura said, aware they'd likely been working together on the menial paperwork covering their individual desks for a little while, waiting for her. She and Shino had attended the academy together as well.

Sitting down, Sakura glanced at the Aburame. His desk was directly next to hers, and he was focusing on a simple psych evaluation for a random genin. The three genin were probably tasked with sorting through them.

"So you've been placed into the Intelligence Division too?" Sakura asked, and Shino nodded.

"I have, although I was surprised when I was directed towards the T&I building instead." He glanced up at Sakura's eyes. Seeing her curiosity, he continued, "Hinata and Kiba both impressed their clan's during the invasion, and are receiving further training in their techniques. Hinata is taking missions with her clan members and Kiba requested transfer to a squad with a cousin of his. Team Eight officially disbanded a week ago."

Sakura looked upset by that, but Shino shook his head, "it's alright, though." He went on, "we plan on meeting up at least once a week with Kurenai-sensei when available still, we just mutually agreed that we could improve better apart."

Sakura smiled at that, "that's nice." She said simply, "Team Seven kind of blew itself up."

She chuckled at that, knowing full well the fate of her former teammates and replacement. Naruto was really the only one in a half decent situation, having been selected as a sannin's apprentice. Sasuke had been transferred to the genin corps, where he was apparently running D ranks day in and day out, whilst Kabuto had revealed himself a traitor during the invasion and fought against the two loyal sannin alongside Orochimaru when Jiraiya sought out Tsunade.

Shino nodded at that, apparently having heard the rumours. People were saying some nasty things about Kakashi, and even about Sasuke. Sakura didn't even bother correcting them, no matter how untrue the rumours got. So long as they didn't paint Sakura as weak, Sakura left them be.

Team Three, with Sakura at the forefront, stood in the office of Yamanaka Inoichi the following morning, nervously awaiting their assignment. The man had proceeded to hand Sakura a mission scroll, which she opened, and spoke.

"Suki Kei was formally declared a missing nin a week ago, he was captured yesterday morning when he was caught by Kusa shinobi for illegally crossing the border between Fire and Grass country." Inoichi explained, "his return to Konoha as a prisoner has been negotiated, and I'm sending the four of you to collect him."

Sakura read the scroll in her hands as she listened, reading all the information they had on Kei.

Genin, aged fourteen. He had defected after his two teammates had been killed by missing nin, assisting their attacker in killing his Jonin sensei.

“You are going to meet a Kusa team near the border, fifteen miles east of the western outpost.” Inoichi explained, watching the four carefully. “You will hand the team the authorisation papers contained inside the mission scroll in exchange for the prisoner.”

“Yes, sir,” Sakura nodded, once the man finished explaining their task. She turned to her team with a serious face a moment later, xPrepare for a trip to the Land of Grass border and back again. Remember to take the weather into account when you pack.”

Nanako rolls her eyes at the relatively obvious reminder whilst Shino nods. Masato also nods, a grateful smile on his face.

Sakura smiled back, feeling like she could get used to being the leader of Team Three, as they all began to leave the room.

"We were expecting an older team," the Kusa nin, a chunin based on his uniform, said idly to Sakura as he looked over the authorization papers she had handed him a moment prior.

The trip to the border had all been smooth sailing, which had Sakura particularly on edge.

"We're more than capable of such a simple mission," Sakura responded, careful not to appear weak, though also to not show how cautious she felt the need to be, as she glanced at the bound prisoner they had to transport back to Konoha.

"Yeah, yeah," the Kusa nin muttered, signing something briefly on the papers before nodding. "Well that's all we needed, so you're free to take the kid."

Sakura didn't respond verbally, but nodded and stepped forward. She grabbed the older boy, the traitorous Suki Kei, and allowed her favourite little summoner to crawl from her skin to his.

The previously annoyed, slightly twitchy missing nin went slack when Oujimaru injected him with a powerful sedative. Most higher ranked shinobi would be able to burn it from their system with chakra, but an inexperienced genin wouldn't have the skill or knowledge.

"Good, then we'll make our leave," Sakura said simply, turning to leave. The Kusa team did the same, although they eyed Sakura curiously, and both teams began to run in opposite directions, back home.

"We'll take it in turns carrying the prisoner," Sakura spoke seriously, knowing it was important to act as captain even if her teammates were all her friends. "I'll start, then Masato, followed by Nanako, and Shino will take the last stretch."

The team nodded at that, and they began the trip back to Konoha.

Why do you think he did it?" Masato asked, watching the still unconscious prisoner they had been lugging around all day, as the team began to take a break.

"There's a million reasons a shinobi may want to become a missing nin," Sakura shrugged at the question, "some want money, fame or power. Others just want to escape the shinobi life."

Nanako nodded at the explanation, and added to it, "he had allies outside the village, if his surviving teammate is to be believed."

Shino hummed, "there's a few groups of missing nin that operate in this area." He added, "I'd guess that he was planning on joining up with one of them."

Masato made a sound of understanding at the three before shaking his head, "I just don't really get why a person would betray their village like that." He saidy sounding angrier than before, "it makes me so mad."

Sakura nodded at that, knowing how it felt. "First there was that Kabuto guy, then Orochimaru's invasion, and even Hoshigaki Kisame and Uchiha Itachi showed up in Konoha."

Shino looked surprised at that one, and Sakura shook her head to herself. Technically, she shouldn't even know about that, but Ibiki had told her once he had woken up in the hospital.

"Makes you worry about our security," Nanako sighed, "what are ANBU even doing nowadays?"

A round of agreement passed through them before Nanako spoke again, "I think that's my goal, now." She said, "ANBU, I mean."

Sakura wasn't particularly shocked at the idea. Nanako had always shown aptitude at skills prevalent in ANBU members. Her stealth alone could probably get her in within a few years, and her skill with her ninja wires was unparalleled as far as Sakura had seen.

"I've been thinking about ANBU, too," Masato said then, "I thought I wanted to hunt down missing nin, but medical Ninjutsu is really interesting, too..."

Shino's insects buzzed, and he spoke softly, "I haven't really thought about what I'll specialise in. I always assumed I'd be like my father and work in reconnaissance."

Sakura nodded at her teammates, smiling when they shared their goals. "Shino, you should focus on what you think you'll be good at, not just whatever your father did."

Shino glanced at her, but didn't respond. Masato spoke up instead, "what do you want to do, taichou?"

Sakura thought for a minute but shrugged, "I thought I'd just end up in T&I, but recently I'm not too sure," she explained, "T&I is a lot of sitting around and doing paperwork, and even the fun stuff is just torturing people. It isn't really for me."

Nanako and Masato nodded at that, understanding that feeling, having helped around the unit even more than Sakura had.

"Maybe we'll end up staying on this team together!" Masato grins, and Nanako gives him a smile back. Sakura became thoughtful at the idea whilst Shino was hard to read as always.

They ended their break soon after, the missing nin sedated again and slung over their shoulders in turn. Nanako held him, as Masato raised a hand, his eyes wide.

“Stop,” Masato said suddenly, as they jumped from tree to tree, and they all paused, glancing around checking for threats or spys. “Four, or maybe five shinobi are headed towards us. They're strong.”

They were closer to Konoha than most missing nin would dare stray, though. The fact the signatures Masato felt were coming from Konoha would have put them at ease, were it not for recent events.

"Unlikely to be an enemy," Sakura said, but remained on guard anyway. It wouldn't do to be caught unprepared on the off chance it was an opponent.

They stood their ground until a group of four appeared before them, all wearing variations of what Sakura recognised as Oto uniform.

“Oh, what do we have here?” One spoke, and Sakura's eyes widened at his appearance. He boasted six whole arms. “A group of genin, all alone?”

"Sakura," Shino spoke in a low tone, barely audible to the pink haired chunin thanks to the distance between them, but she managed to hear anyway.

She didn't respond to the implied request for orders verbally though. Instead, she raised her hand slowly, not to alarm her opponents into thinking she was performing a jutsu and signed out a command using the basic codes they'd learnt at the academy..

'Scatter.'

And they did, all darting off in different directions as the red headed girl of the Oto nin's group scowled at the spider-like one, "thanks a lot, Kidomaru. Now we have to play fucking tag with a bunch of genin or they'll report our presence.”

“Shit…” Masato growled, as he glanced behind him. The strange, two-headed shinobi from the Oto nin’s group was chasing him, and he was losing ground fast.

Pumping his chakra down into his legs, he continued to run. These guys had powerful chakra signatures, strong as a regular Jonin’s, making combat out of the question.

He wasn't willing to take that chance, and neither was Sakura, it seemed. Hence the command to scatter.

Being apart may have lowered the chance of all of them dying, but Masato was getting a sinking feeling he'd be one of the unlucky ones.

So, he had to take a chance. He continued to run as he dug around his equipment pouch on his hip with his one free hand. He cursed as he pulled out nothing, he'd forgotten his chakra flares!

Without missing a beat he pulled out a pot of ink and a brush instead. He had one shot, and if he failed then he'd surely blow himself up.

Fuinjutsu was a fickle beast, and a single mistake would cause catastrophic repercussions for the user.

Grabbing a blank scroll from a pocket inside his clothes, he began running the brush against the page as he moved. He had to slow slightly to get the correct flow of chakra into his brush, and the Oto nin was gaining even faster.

A single stroke, and he heard the enemy's footsteps behind him. Another few, and he could feel him getting closer. By the time he finished, he was barely out of the enemy's reach.

He couldn't check the seal for mistakes, though. He had no time. It was do or die. So without a second thought, he threw the scroll at his opponent, focussing his chakra to it and...

A burst of light shot in all directions, but mainly upwards. Masato smirked at the success but didn't stop. He continued running, even faster than before.

He couldn't tell if he'd lost his enemy, his eyes stinging from his own technique, but he refused to stop and check. He kept running, jumping as fast as he could across the treetops.

He was simply glad they ran into such strong enemies close to Konoha. His flare would surely be visible from the walls.

Nanako smirked as she watched a flash of light erupt from Masato's direction. They were close enough at this point that it was surely seen and a rescue team would be sent out in no time.

She glanced back at the girl who had followed her, a scowl on the redhead's face, before pivoting towards the light. If she made it there, they could combat the enemy alongside the rescue team. She would have stopped to fight the one chasing her, were she not burdened with carrying the missing nin.

Shino was relieved when he watched the distinctive light of a chakra flare burst into the sky from the direction Masato had escaped.

He pivoted his direction towards the light whilst continuing to leak his allies behind him. They were landing one by one on the large, orange haired man who had followed him, draining his chakra.

Shino estimated it would take a few hours before his opponent was empty, but it would cost too many of his friends. The man seemed a somewhat decent sensor, and was killing each insect that landed on him in short order.

But if they made it to the flare location, they actually had a chance at direct confrontation, if the enemy didn't decide to retreat first.

Sakura grinned when she noticed it, Masato was intelligent when he wanted to be, and began to rush towards it, dodging the yellow coloured arrows shooting after her as she ran.

She assumed the enemy would retreat at the sign of the light, and she was somewhat right. When she got close, the dark skinned spider man groaned and made his way to leave, although not before an arrow shot right through Sakura's shoulder.

"Shit," Sakura grit her teeth and brought a hand up to her shoulder. "He's been playing with me this whole time…”

Chapter Text

After leaving their report with Inoichi, Sakura made her way to the hospital, whilst the rest of her team headed home to rest. Inoichi had handed her a slip of paper as she left, telling her to give it in at the reception of the hospital.

She didn't glance at it, before doing so, and somehow, it had landed her inside the office of someone Sakura never really planned to meet.

"Sit," Tsunade said seriously, to which Sakura obeyed easily. This was the first of the Sannin she had met. The students of Hiruzen, who had now taught her, if only a bit.

Tsunade examined the hole in her arm before nodding to herself, hands glowing green with medical chakra.

"Your enemy missed," she mused, and Sakura let out a short.

"Sure doesn't feel like it," she groaned as Tsunade put her healing hands to the wound, the feeling of the woman's chakra mending her body hurting in a way that felt incredibly satisfying.

"If he hit the actual joint, it would have taken a surgery that can last hours, and days of recovery," the woman explained, "he shot too low, so I can fix this in about half an hour.”

“Ah, that's what you meant.” Sakura nodded. “I was moving when he shot. He probably miscalculated his angles or whatever.”

“You're lucky, then.” Tsunade sighed. “Seems the old man's not a terrible sensei still, eh?”

Sakura's eyes widened a bit at that. She hadn't expected Tsunade to know about her training under the Third Hokage.

“Ah, I mean,” Sakura stuttered a bit, suddenly feeling awkward. It almost felt like when she had first met Ibiki, the older shinobi knowing much more than they initially let on. “He only trained me for a week or so. Ibiki-sensei is my actual teacher.”

“I'm aware,” Tsunade nodded, smirking. “But I bet he had you calling him ‘Sarutobi-sensei’, right?”

Sakura nodded at that, eyes widening a bit. The former Hokage had insisted she fall him that, during their training. Did that mean..?

“He sees you as a proper pupil, then.” Tsunade said simply. “Use that resource. He may be old as hell, but he's also the strongest shinobi Konoha has.”

“We need to grow stronger.” Nanako saidy the next time the whole team was together, in their office. All three of the others nodded in unison, agreeing immediately.

They had been useless against the Oto shinobi that had attacked them. All they could do was run for their lives.

“If I had been running from any of the other three, I would have died.” Shino nodded simply. “He was slow, and I could use my allies to drain his chakra as I went. Even then I could barely keep ahead of him.”

Sakura nodded, "I didn't have a chance to even fight back. He shot projectiles at me so fast I could barely even dodge, and ended up with a hole through my shoulder for the trouble."

"I was barely fast enough to stay ahead of him," Masato replied, "I would have died had I not managed to make that flare in time."

Nanako frowned at their words, but didn't add anything. She was the quiet type, after all, and not one to air out her weaknesses unnecessarily, even amongst friends and allies.

"We'll start training more seriously, as a team," Sakura decided after a moment. "Every single day, we'll go to a training ground and train."

"I'll ask Anko if I can continue my training with her, too," Nanako said, "she already taught me some stuff a few months ago, like the swallowing thing I did in the forest of death."

Sakura nodded, glancing towards Masato, wondering his plan.

"I'm going to practice my Fuinjutsu more," he said after a few seconds, "I need more than explosions and flash bangs. I was thinking of volunteering at the hospital too, to maybe learn some medical techniques.”

Sakura agreed, and she watched Shino carefully. "I need to stop being so reliant on my clan's techniques. I'm going to find an instructor to help me learn some form of Bukijutsu."

Sakura's eyes widened then, "I was thinking the same thing, I wanted to learn how to use a weapon."

"I think I know who to ask, too.”

Uzuki Yugao couldn't believe what she was doing. She'd quit ANBU not long before, and now she was making her way to T&I yet again, anyway.

She wasn't going there for work, she had rejoined the standard forces after resignation from ANBU, but instead she was going to assist Ibiki, an old friend of Hayate's.

Sakura, as well as an Aburame on her team had taken an interest in Kenjutsu of all things, and even she couldn't pass that opportunity up.

An Aburame skilled in close-ranged combat was a scary thing. Their insects required contact to be of use, after all, and so the host being mere feet, if not inches, from the enemy made them all the more deadly.

Not to mention the stories she'd heard of Sakura from Ibiki, when they bumped into one another. She would clearly make a fantastic student.

There was more to it than that, though. Her thoughts roamed to Hayate, and her time training with him. The techniques he helped her master didn't have to die with her, just because he was gone.

Sakura had sat nervously, watching as Yugao, the same woman who helped her learn to style her hair appropriately what seemed like so long ago, glared at Shino. She'd done the same to her right before and nodded in satisfaction. She had a feeling she'd find Shino...

"Lacking," Yugao said simply, "your chakra coils are developed well for someone of your age and clan, but your body is not suited to handling a sword as it is now."

Shino didn't speak, but nodded, "I was hoping to receive guidance in training my body, for this," he explained, nodding. “I did not know where to start. My clan is of little help for anything beside our own techniques.”

Yugao thought for a moment, but eventually came to a decision, "a weapon may not be your best option." Yugao stated, "you should focus on short range Ninjutsu, if you want to see improvement quickly.”

Shino frowned slightly at that and shook his head, "my clan's insects feed off of our chakra," he explained, "using standard Ninjutsu, whilst entirely possible, is not an effective use of our energy. I'm more than willing to put in the work.”

Yugao sighed at that, but decided to help anyway, "then I guess we can get you started on the basics of swordsmanship, and train your body up too, but I'll warn you that my style requires dexterity above all else. If you aren't willing to put in the work to train your body as much as learn the movements, then you won't get far, and you'll probably get injured trying.”

Shino thought for a moment before nodding. He realised abruptly soon after that his clan had always focused on their insects, that an Aburame training their body above the bare minimum felt absurd.

He steeled himself for a chat with his father that night.

“I'm home," Shino spoke calmly as he walked inside, a small frown on his face.

"I'm in the kitchen," his father, Aburame Shibi, replied. His voice was deep but smooth, and it often made the skin of those not well acquainted with him crawl.

Walking into the kitchen, Shino found his father sitting at the counter, reading some sort of scroll. He didn't question it's contents, though, and instead sat beside Shibi.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Shino said simply, and Shibi placed the scroll down in response, giving his son his full attention.

"What is it?" He asked, his tone slightly worried, although a non-Aburame would have trouble telling.

"I want to move our training sessions to another day," he said simply, "I have begun to train more with my new team leader. We recently got a new instructor, and she wants to work with us on the same day I usually spend with you."

"I don't see that being a problem," Shibi nodded minutely, "what is it this instructor is teaching you?"

Shino took a breath. He was nervous to tell his father his plans, but he decided it had to be done.

"I'm going to focus more on my physical training," he explained, "she's teaching us Kenjutsu."

Shibi paused then, watching Shino carefully. "That's an unusual path for an Aburame to take." He said. He was not judging the decision, simply stating a fact.

Shino did not deny it, nodding his head, "yes, but I believe it for the best. My Taijutsu is lacking and my allies are a finite resource. I need to learn to defend myself without them."

Shibi sighed at that, "I didn't mean to offend you, son," he said simply, "you make decisions for yourself, based on what you feel is missing from your skillset."

Shino smiled slightly at that, "but if it is your lack of close ranged options you find troubling, and running out of allies hosted within your body you worry about, we will start you on a new technique during our training sessions, which will be moved to the weekend.”

Sakura grunted under the surprising weight of Shino's blade, barely blocked by her own as she hops backwards, creating some distance between them.

Her own sword was a straight blade with a single edge, about sixty-five centimeters in length and was, according to Yugao, called a 'Chokuto'.

Shino's sword was different, a curved blade of about seventy centimeters, a katana.

Shino copied her movement, moving backwards to prepare for their next clash. Sakura was more nimble than Aburame, but his power was greater.

Something Yugao found very amusing, considering a month ago he had been much weaker than Sakura. He had taken to it like a moth to a lightbulb.

Sakura supposed the giant jar he'd begun carrying on his hip, the size of multiple human heads, containing his most deadly insects and heavy as multiple cinder blocks added to his quickly improving strength.

"That's enough for today," Yugao decided, watching as both her students breathed heavily. "You're both improving quickly, which I have to say is a suprise when it comes to you, Shino."

"Thank you, Yugao-sensei," Shino nodded, and the woman resisted a scoff at the honorific.

Shino and Sakura began to leave before they saw the proud, although small, smile on Yugao's face.

They had been training with her for just over a month, and they'd improved a lot. Even between the missions they ran and other training. Both of them were talented with the blade.

“Well, I'd say you've mastered pretty much all the water Ninjutsu of note, for now.” Hiruzen hummed, as Sakura stood before him at the training ground. The ground was soaked from her display, having been practicing outside of their rare lessons together.

“Really? There's none more?” Sakura tilted her head, eyes wider than usual in surprise.

“Well, there's plenty more, but they're either going to be useless to you at your level, or far too chakra intensive to be viable.” He explained, as Sakura hummed in understanding, nodding.

“What am I supposed to work on now?” Sakura asked, confused. “I mean, I have my Kenjutsu lessons with Yugao-sensei, and I do genjutsu with Ibiki, but what are you gonna teach me?”

“For now? Nothing new.” Hiruzen smirked, shaking his head. “We're going to work on the basics. Sparring.”

Sakura's eyes widened, and her face paled at the idea.

Sakura was rubbing absently at her arm on her way home. Her training with Hiruzen was going well, although the sparring left her bruised every time they met up.

She passed by an Akimichi restaurant as she walked and smiled when she saw Team Eight, or who were formerly Team Eight at least, minus their sensei, walk out. She was about to call out to them when, surprising everyone, Hinata beat her to it.

"Sakura," She said as she approached, her voice soft as always, but with less of a stutter than she recalled. Training with her clansmen was helping her confidence a bit, it seemed. "I've uhm… I've been keeping an eye out for you."

Sakura raised an eyebrow at that, surprised. What did the Hyuga girl need her for? “oh? Well I'm here now, so what's up?"

Hinata turned, glancing at her teammates, her face flushing slightly. Shino seemed to pick up the message immediately, giving Sakura a small nod, before dragging Kiba away.

"I'm still hungry," she said, clearly a lie, but she wanted an excuse to talk, "so I… l-let me buy you lunch… Please.”

Sakura ignored the fact it was nearing evening and shrugged, nodding. “Yeah, sure.”

Hinata, taking Sakura's hand, lead her across the street towards a ramen stand. Sakura didn't mind, although her own face flushed slightly at the sudden contact.

As the pair sat, Sakura ordered for them both, Hinata mumbling what she wanted quietly beside her.

“I… wanted to congratulate you on your promotion,” Hinata said, once the food arrived before them. “I asked Shino to pass it on, b-but he said I should tell you myself.”

“O-oh, well, thanks I guess.” Sakura smiled kindly at the more timid girl, as she saw her take a bite of her ramen.

“How are you handling it?” Hinata asked, a few moments later. “I can't imagine, leading a team so suddenly.”

Sakura shrugged at that, "being team leader is tough sometimes, but I've been training super hard.” She said, digging into the ramen herself, "I haven't really had time to think about it too much."

"How have you been, anyway?” Sakura wondered, "I heard you're training with your clan now?”

“Ah, yes.” Hinata nodded. “It's going well, although the added responsibilities have been difficult. I've been put in charge of training some of the younger clan children, still in the academy.”

Sakura sympathised, one of her teammates in particular coming to mine, "Masato's a bit of an idiot, but he always listens," Sakura spoke fondly, "I imagine children aren't quite the same.”

“I think not,” Hinata let out a little giggle, “How are your other teammates?”

“Ah, well Nanako is impressive as always. Strong and listens to my orders.” Sakura nods, smiling warmly. “And Shino… Well, you know him. He's as strong as Nanako, and as loyal as Masato. He's even improving faster than me at Kenjutsu. He's a bit quiet, though.”

"Sounds like a nice problem to have," Hinata giggled as Sakura ate more of her ramen. Hinata's expression softens a bit, afterwards though. "Do you… Do you feel worthy? I m-mean, of being a chinin?”

That widened Sakura's eyes slightly, “Ah, I mean… It's complicated.”

“I understand.” Hinata nodded. “I didn't get promoted, but I… still, I can't help b-but feel like my clansmen taking note of me was a fluke.”

"I get it," she whispered, only just loud enough for the Hyuga to hear, "our first mission as Team Three, we were chased by enemy shinobi."

"I was the only one who got injured," she explained quietly, staring down into her bowl, "whilst all my comrades of lower rank than me outran them. Shino even fought back, and Masato called for rescue."

"I alone got hurt, and I still had the audacity to order them around," she clenched her fists, "every day I fight to get stronger. I lost my parents already, I don't want to lose my team, too."

Hinata struggled to speak then, but she didn't have to. She shuffled herself a little closer and brought a hand to Sakura's back, hesitantly, as if she wasn't sure if it was okay.

They finished their food in silence after that, though they sat a little closer than at first. Hinata paid for it all, and they set up another lunch, although actually at lunch time, for the next week.

Chapter Text

Weeks passed after her meeting with Hinata and they'd continued to have lunch together at least once a week or so.

It was as Hinata was about to part ways with Sakura one day after their lunch, which had turned into dinner and then a late night snack after staying together all day, that the pink haired girl scowled.

Hinata followed her gaze and saw the object of her discontent.

A blur of yellow and orange barrelled towards the pair, only stopping barely a foot in front of them.

"Sakura!" Naruto exclaimed her name, a wide smile on his face, "man, I haven't been able to speak with you since... uh?"

The boy thought for a moment before Sakura groaned, "before the Chunin exams, when I left Team Seven."

"Oh, yeah!" Naruto nodded, not seeming particularly upset with the way things went. It rubbed Sakura the wrong way, seeing him act as if nothing changed. "Did you hear? I got a new sensei, too!"

Sakura nodded at that, "good job, Naruto," she said somewhat sincerely. No matter which way you looked at it, impressing a sannin wasn't an easy feat. Neither was impressing the Third Hokage though, and she had managed that.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly at the praise, "heh, thanks Sakura!" He looked her in the eyes, bouncing on every word.

"How about we go get ramen to celebrate?" Naruto asked, and Sakura couldn't help but recoil at the suggestion. "C'mon, it can be a date, now that you're not interested in Sasuke!"

Sakura's face twisted at the boys words, her fists clenched so tightly her knuckles turned white. She felt nauseous, to think he thought so little of her still.

“You're not still interested in Sasuke right? You're way too pretty fo-” Naruto tried to speak, but he was cut off.

"I'm not your teammate anymore, Naruto," she grit her teeth, "but you're still treating me the same as before."

Hinata took a small step forwards, slightly in front of Sakura, minutely blocking Naruto's view of her.

No matter the Hyuga girl's feelings for the orange-clad Uzumaki, which were becoming more complicated the more she spoke to Sakura, she cared for her friend more.

"But Sakura, I-" Naruto tried, but Hinata shook his head at the boy with a sad, disappointed gaze.

"I left your team," Sakura went on, "I found a sensei who cared, I made chunin, I became the captain of an actual team!"

Tears welled in her eyes as she watched the blonde squirm slightly from behind Hinata.

"I became a real shinobi, one just as capable as you or Sasuke." She spat, channeling her sadness into bitter rage through her words, "but you still have the nerve to treat me like a trophy. Like something that you can just leave behind, only to compete for me in some one-sided competition against an asshole Uchiha who cares for nobody but himself! An asshole of an Uchiha who would, and has, turned on his own comrades because his little ego got hurt."

"Well let me tell you something, Uzumaki," Sakura spat, pushing past Hinata gently as to not hurt her, who stepped aside, her usually timid posture straighter than usual, ready in case some sort of physical confrontation broke out to separate them.

"I care as much about you and your fragile idea of a perfect Team Seven as I do the dirt I could have left Sasuke lying on the last time he tried his shit." She took a step closer, her face only a few inches from Naruto's. "Team Seven was never going to work, because all three of you were too blind to see past your own idea of it."

"For Sasuke, it was a stepping stone."

"For Kakashi, it was a chore."

"For you, it was supposed to be like a storybook," Sakura seethed, "I was supposed to be some damsel in distress for you to save, Sasuke your best friend and rival, Kakashi an actual mentor."

"But it didn't work out that way, so stop pretending I'm some weak, fragile piece of glass that can't handle herself," her voice became quiet then, barely a whisper. "Otherwise, I won't be as kind to you as I was to Sasuke."

With those final words, and tears threatening to fall from her eyes, Sakura's body flickered away.

“You didn't go very far,” Hinata said softly, when she found Sakura a few minutes later. She was sat, her knees close to her face, on the ground outside their usual ramen place.

“I guess,” Sakura mumbled, her voice sad and quiet, making it clear she had been crying. “I just feel stupid.”

“You know you aren't stupid, though,” Hinata said softly, kneeling down to the other girl's level, gently reaching a hand out, placing it on her shoulder. “You have nothing to prove to anyone. Least of all th-that… that idiot.”

Sakura let out a surprised giggle, as Hinata called Naruto an idiot. She never would have imagined that in a million years.

“Thanks…” Sakura said, looking up at her friend, smiling weakly.

They sat quietly, softly making jokes and chatting as the minutes passed by. Eventually, when Sakura had run out of tears to cry, she stood, followed by Hinata.

Then, Sakura wrapped both arms around her and squeezed her in a grateful embrace. She hesitated shyly for a moment before returning the hug, smiling as she did.

"I'm here for you, w-whenever you need me," Hinata whispered into her ear, and Sakura nodded her head .

"Thank you," she replied, her face against her neck, as they held the hug.

Sakura was still not in a great mood, the next day, as she entered the office of Team Three. Her confrontation with Naruto still swirled in her mind like a tornado, wondering if she had been too harsh, or not harsh enough.

“Hey, taichou.” Masato greeted Sakura with a small smile, although not as cheerfully as usual, seeing she was in a bad mood.

Sakura nodded in response, then gave her other two teammates a small smile, sitting down at her own desk, which was surprisingly empty of paperwork, making her hum.

“We'll be out on another mission soon,” she muttered. “We always get less paperwork when we have a mission coming up.”

And as if on cue, the door opens and a Chunin walks in.

“Hokage-sama requests your immediate presence,” She announced, and Sakura nodded as she stood, with a small sigh.

The remainder of Team Three stand as well, to follow their captain.

Sasuke scowled darkly, glaring at Naruto as he stood across from him in the alleyway. Sasuke had been mopping around, as he often did when he wasn't forced to do endless Drank missions for the Genin corps.

"What did you say?!" He growled, to which Naruto simply shrugged and gave him a weak smile.

"I think we upset Sakura," he explained again, "maybe we should apologize?”

Sasuke simply shook his head, an exasperated sigh escaping his lips.

"That's so fucking stupid," he replied, his eyes locked on to Naruto's own. "What could I have possibly done to piss her off! I don't think I've even seen her since she ran off-"

He paused for a moment, recalling his encounter with her before the final chunin exams round, his scowl deepened.

Naruto scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "She uh," he said, "said something about leaving you in the dirt?"

Sasuke glared at the blonde when he said it, gritting his teeth, "she got lucky with those summons," he muttered, before raising his voice again, "I have nothing to apologise for."

Naruto didn't give in though, "I think you might, Sasuke," he tried, "she seemed really angry when I spoke to her…”

The Uchiha didn't listen to reason, though. His face twisted to that of pure rage, and Naruto took a small step back, but stood firm.

"I said I have nothing to apologize for," he raised his voice louder, reaching a shout, "if anything, it's her fault I'm in this stupid fucking situation to begin with!"

"I think it was our fault though!" Naruto argued back, his own voice getting louder, "we didn't treat her like a teammate, not us or Kakashi-sensei."

Sasuke lowered his head, staring down at his hands but didn't speak.

"I mean," Naruto continued, "I've been thinking about it a lot since I spoke to her. We didn't include her in anything, and even Kakashi-sensei didn't really help train her."

"So you're saying it's our fault she's a weakling?" Sasuke spat out, his eyes glued downwards in anger.

"She isn't a weakling!" Naruto called out without hesitation, "I mean, she fought Gaara, and would have won I think, and she's one of the only people who actually made it to chunin."

"Her rank means nothing," Sasuke muttered back, his ego bruised by the reminder of his own failure against Gaara, whilst both his old teammates practically beat the Suna jinchuriki.

"No, it does Sasuke," Naruto replied back, getting angrier, "don't you see? We were bad teammates, and we abandoned her, even Kakashi-sensei did."

"Abandoning something that's only weighing you down is the smart thing to do," Sasuke argued, glancing upwards at Naruto, and then around him at the streets of Konoha, as if contemplating his next move.

"She wouldn't have dragged Team Seven down," Naruto glared back, his fists balled tightly, "she never even got a chance to be a part of the team at all."

Sasuke had had enough though. From the 'meeting' with Orochimaru's men from a few weeks ago to Naruto's attempt at comradeship, he snapped.

The sound of a thousand birds chirping filled the alleyway, and his hand, coated in potent lightning chakra, found its way through Naruto's gut a moment too fast for Naruto to stop it.

Chapter Text

Shikaku watched as Team Three entered his office. Nanako, Masato and Shino a step behind their captain, Sakura.

"Approximately half an hour ago, Uzumaki Naruto was found unconscious, barely alive in an alleyway," Shikaku explained, watching Sakura.

The girl didn't seem particularly upset by the new, but was certainly shocked.

“He had one wound, a hole carved straight though his gut.” The Hokage explained, “If Tsunade wasn't back in the village, he would have died.”

Sakura's shock grew at that, and a hint of regret entered her eyes. Not because she did it, but because of how she had treated the boy during their last conversation.

“The wound was caused by a Lightning Release Ninjutsu,” Shikaku continued, observing Team Three carefully. “A Chidori.”

“Kakashi is not in the village,” Shikaku said simply a moment later, “Not that he would do this.”

“So it was the Uchiha.” Sakura nodded in understanding, having already figured as much. “But why call me in? Has he been captured? Killed?”

“No. He left the village soon after the attack, joined by four other shinobi.” Shikaku shook his head. “I had an ANBU team figure out the direction he was headed.”

“But it is not the job of ANBU to track down runaway Genin. That's why I have called for you,” He explained, "I am giving you this mission, alongside any genin you can recruit."

"Uchiha Sasuke had been assigned a missing nin," Shikaku spoke sternly, "Haruno Sakura, your mission is to track, locate and retrieve the target, dead or alive. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir.” Sakura nodded gravely, before turning and leaving, her team following behind.

Sakura watched quietly, waiting near the gates of Konoha, as the Genin she had asked Shino and Masato to collect arrived.

The first, Inuzuka Kiba. He was furious, clearly, and happy to assist in retrieving the traitorous Uchiha.

He was a strong fighter in close quarters combat, and one of the best trackers of their generation alongside his ex-teammates of Team Eight.

The next to arrive, Hyuga Hinata. Also a force to be reckoned with up close, but also an asset to tracking with her Byakugan. Tracking was half of their mission objective after all, and as such all three members of the former Team Eight would be an asset.

She chose Hinata over Neji for two simple reasons. She had experience working with both Kiba and Shino, and they had grown close, so she believed they would work much better together.

Sakura had briefly thought to contact Yamanaka Ino, too, for her clan's jutsu to be applied as an interrogation tactic against any enemies they may capture, as well as her recent study of medical Ninjutsu, but decided against it in the end. According to Shikamaru, she still held the Uchiha in high regard, and Sakura had a feeling she would hesitate to kill him if needed.

She didn't recruit Choji or any of the team containing Lee, Neji and Tenten due to not wanting to slow their team down as they pursued. She also had little interaction with them outside of the chunin exams.

Sakura wasn't disappointed though. The team they had assembled was a skilled one, filled with some of the best trackers and combatants Sakura knew.

In fact, only her and Nanako were lacking in tracking abilities, and they were probably the heaviest hitters of the squad.

"I hope you're all ready for this mission," Sakura spoke seriously, pleasantly surprised when Kiba didn't seem particularly shocked at the change between her academy self and the one before them. She imagined Shino and Hinata had kept him updated whenever they met up.

"It's not going to be an easy one." She went on, glancing at each member of her enlarged group. "We are being sent to hunt one of our own, someone we at one point or another have thought of as our comrade."

"Alongside that, he is accompanied by an unknown group of four others," Sakura watched as all of her team stood strong. Hinata had surprised her most, standing completely at attention without her usual insecure slouch. Even after becoming friends, the Hyuga had seemed shy most of the time, but not now. "For all we know, these four others could be Jonin. Prepare for the worst. If you don't think you can handle it, I won't hold it against you."

Sakura gave a small smile when nobody showed a sign of backing out. With a clap of her hands and a nod, she watched as the team approached her, getting into formation.

Hinata and Kiba would be at the front, being their main trackers, with Nanako and Sakura taking either side behind them. Shino and Masato would take the rear, wary of any incoming threats from behind.

Once in formation they formed a sort of hexagonal shape, if looked at from above.

Sakura cursed as the rain began to fall. Kiba was holding up, but the downpour would wash away scent quickly, as well as the footprints inevitably left behind during a quick getaway. Shino's bugs could not move quite as efficiently in the rain, also.

The five sets of footprints had changed to four some time ago, and Sasuke's scent had become more discreet, but still there. Sakura guessed that the Uchiha had been carried in an attempt to dissuade trackers from pursuing the set of four foreign footprints. It was a futile attempt, though.

Sakura was glad to have Kiba, at that moment. If they did not, it was possible they would be searching for a new set of tracks, allowing the Uchiha to get away with his escort.

"We need to pick up the pace," Sakura commanded, "the scent won't linger for long, so the Byakugan and Masato's sensing will be the better option."

Kiba nodded at that, not offended by the honest explanation. Sakura noted with a small smile that she wasn't the only one to have changed since the academy. Kiba seemed much more mature, although still himself.

"Kiba, let us know when the scent runs cold," Sakura commanded, "Masato will take your place when it does.”

It had grown dark, by the time Hinata’s eyes opened wide, her face portraying a sense of fear.

Masato followed a moment later, but his fear was much more visible, and intense.

“Sakura-taichou,” He said, turning to meet her eyes as he spoke. “The shinobi accompanying Uchiha Sasuke…”

Sakura's own eyes widened, fearing what he was going to say. “The same Oto nin, from that mission.”

Sakura's eyes widened in response, and it took a moment for her emotions to be squashed down.

"I see," she nodded, "if we're close enough for you to sense them, we need to prepare."

Masato nodded, and Nanako let out a hum of agreement from her side. Shino's insects buzzed in anticipation.

It wasn't long after Masato and Hinata had sensed the Oto shinobi, that they caught up. They had slowed after they had sensed them, supporting the theory of them having a sensor of their own.

“Oh, look who it is!” Kidomaru, the spider-,like one spoke with a vicious smirk. “The scaredy cats we chased, on the day we met with our Uchiha friend.”

The girl, her red hair damp from the rain, matched his smirk with one of her own.

"We can redeem ourselves for our failure to eliminate them the last time," the largest of the group said, glaring at Shino as he did.

"We don't have time to stop and fight them," the final member, the one with a second head coming from the back of his neck, said. His voice was assertive, as if he was the leader of their group.

"Then let me hang back," the large one said again, "Jirobo of the South Gate will face them."

The rest of the Oto nin seemed to have no issue with that, the team leader taking the container containing Sasuke from the large one, before beginning to escape quickly. Sakura scowled as they did, and tried to make chase after them.

But then a dome of earth came soaring up from the ground. None of the Konoha nin managed to avoid the attack, all being blindsided.

"Shit," Sakura groaned, flashing through hand seals as she did, seeing them all trapped inside.

"Water Release: Water Palm Blade," a blade of water emitted from her hand, slicing down at the dome.

But when the gash appeared, a small hole at the deepest part, it healed instantly.

"It has chakra running through it," Masato explained, "and it's siphoning our chakra too, so avoid Ninjutsu."

Sakura nodded at the explanation, "Shino, can you allies drain the dome of its chakra?"

The Aburame thought for a moment, likely taking a second to sense the chakra for himself, before nodding.

"The chakra within these walls is not evenly distributed," Hinata spoke before the Aburame made his attempt, "rather than wasting time extracting the chakra, I believe a strong attack to the least chakra dense point should suffice to leave the opening long enough to escape."

Sakura nodded, and Shino gave her a grateful look. Having his insects eat a person's chakra was draining, as that chakra was passed on to him to dispose of, which would slow him down and waste his energy.

So, the group watched carefully as chakra surrounded Hinata's palms, and she struck hard into the side opposite where they'd seen Jirobo standing.

And the earth crumbled, and they darted out.

"That's annoying," was what Jirobo said when he felt the dome be destroyed, letting the jutsu dissipate and the dome crumble fully, "your chakra was barely a snack."

It was as the Oto nin charged that a surge of insects poured from Shino's sleeves and intercepted him, with the rest of the team carefully prepared for combat, various weapons drawn and stances taken.

"You five should continue," Shino remarked, carefully jumping back from a swing of Jirobo's fist and drawing the katana from his back. "My insects are slowed in the rain, but I should be able to keep up with this one."

"We shouldn't leave a pack member behind," Kiba muttered, likely something his clan had ingrained into him with how quickly he muttered the words.

"Are you sure you can win, Shino?" Sakura asked, watching as the large man shot bullets of stone at the boy. He seemed happy to focus purely on the Aburame, so long as the others stood to the side.

Sakura almost scoffed at the man, clearly hurt by his past failure to catch the boy.

"I will," was all Shino had to say for Sakura to nod.

“Then we move, we can't let them get away with Sasuke."

The four members left on her team nodded, although Kiba hesitated, before they all darted forwards into the trees.

Jirobo tried to shoot bullets of stone at them to stop them, but they were dodged easily.

“Not very smart,” Jirobo mocked, as he sent a heavy punch at Shinso, who dodged it. “Having your team abandon you.”

Shino didn't respond verbally though, simply sending more of his allies at the man from within his sleeves, his Katana carefully placed between him and his opponent.

Jirobo shrugged, though, and made for another attempt at Taijutsu.

For most, it would be a terrible idea to fight a Kenjutsu user with Taijutsu, but Jirobo's style was different.

He was slow, and incredibly methodical with his movements, and he knew how to throw his body mass around for maximum effect. Even if Shino blocked an attack with his katana, he doubted it would hold up without snapping.l under the man's clearly chakra-enhanced strength.

So, an intricate dance of attempts to punch, kick and throw the Aburame ensued. Slowly, Jirobo became more and more irritated with the lack of progress, as well as how Shino's allies were constantly draining his chakra, although it was slow.

"Enough of this!" Jirobo growled, taking a step back. Shino stood still, watching as the older shinobi gripped his hands downwards into the ground.

He wasn't so careless as to approach, however. The Oto nin surely wasn't careless enough to leave himself wide open.

"Earth Release: Earth Mausoleum Dumpling," Jirobo roared, ripping a hunk of earth from the ground as he did. Shino stared, eyes wide at the attack.

Then, it began moving through the air towards him as Jirobo threw it, and he had to act fast.

Gripping the lid of the jar held at his waist, Shino flicked it off with a popping noise before commanding a group of his specialised species to emerge.

From within came a large mass of worm-like insects, moving faster than they looked able. Shino watched on as his usual allies, the Kikaichu, gripped on to the newly emerged ones, Shokaichu, and flew them upwards.

Shino commanded them to dig as soon as they entered the mass of rock and earth, and the attack crumbled before it even hit him, simply showering the area with mud.

"Your attacks will not work against the Aburame," Shino said, a breath of air escaping his lungs in relief as he placed the lid back on his jar. He wasn't sure they'd manage it in time, but was relieved that they had.

"Oh yeah?" Jirobo grit his teeth, "then how about this!"

Then, the Oto nin's skin changed. Slowly a black pattern spread itself across his skin, a chain of triangle shaped markings.

Shino's eyes widened slightly as he sensed his opponent's chakra increase dramatically.

"It seems I underestimated you," Shino acknowledged, but prepared himself regardless. “But I will not lose.”

When Sakura's team finally approached the Oto nin again, it was met with less amusement, and more annoyance on the part of the Oto shinobi.

“For god's sake,” Tayuya snarled, letting out a huff of air. “Can that idiot not do anything right?”

The sentiment seemed shared as the leader spoke quietly, "Kidomaru, stall them."

The dark skinned spider like shinobi nodded, turning to face the incoming Konoha nin with a grin.

Then he shot out a spider web from his mouth, blocking their path. It was wide enough to give them trouble catching up after making their way around.

"So, who will be Kidomaru of the East Gate's opponent?" the man smirked, and watched as Sakura took a step forward.

But she was held back by a pale hand on her shoulder, and gazed at Masato's back as he stepped forwards instead.

"You're the team leader," he said, "you need to stay with the group."

"Plus I doubt anyone else can lay a hand on Sasuke now. His chakra was growing inside that container." He continued. Sakura turned to Hinata for confirmation, and she nodded.

"Fine," the pink haired chunin relented after studying Masato's face, "but you have to come back to Konoha alive."

Masato gave her a grin, the usual creepiness to it sneaking in, "I wouldn't be a very good teammate if I didn't."

Sakura barked out a laugh as she nodded, slipping past Kidomaru alongside her other teammates.

It would take a few minutes to go around the wide web, wide and tangled amongst many, many trees, and by then the gap between their targets and them only got bigger.

Shino panted frantically, as he dodged another punch aimed for his skill, barely managing to avoid the strike, leaving Jirobo’s fist to hit a tree behind him.

The tree was left with a huge crack, running up it's bark, as Jirobo pulled his hand back.

"You're slippery," Jirobo said, a grin on his face, "but you cannot outlast me in a battle of Taijutsu."

Shino resisted the urge to scowl as he dodged another punch, he was getting slower and slower with his evasion, and his allies were dying whenever they got close enough to try and extract chakra, thanks to the pure potency of the large man's.

"My cursed seal is more than enough in just its first stage," Jirobo mocked, "if your entire team is this weak, then I doubt any of you will survive.”

Shino actually did scowl at that, barely managing to duck beneath another punch aimed for his shoulder.

"Your team leader looked weak, at least," Jirobo continued to mock the Aburame as he sent a kick at his legs. "Abandoning her teammate to die. What a terrible leader."

Shino didn't hesitate after hearing that, remembering the words of his father as he popped open his jar, allowing the lid to fall to the ground as he did.

"Sakura-taichou is not weak," he said, his voice quiet but laced with venom . "And neither are the Aburame."

The words of Shibi rang through his head as he barely dodged another attack, slipping a thick glove onto his left hand as he did.

"Torune chose to take the Rinkaichu within himself to protect the clan and village," his father had said, "so I bestow this sample of their kind for you to do the same."

He dug his hand within the jar, careful not to disturb his other insects, before pulling a lump of purple from within.

"This is the Rinkaichu," Shino said in a monotone voice as he glared at Jirobo. His glasses had fallen off during their Taijutsu combat, and his eyes were narrowed into a harsh glare. "The most deadly insect of my clan."

Jirobo for his part simply chuckled loudly as he attacked again. A moment later, he regretted his decision.

"I do not have the ability to host them within my body," Shino explained calmly, watching as Jirobo's eyes widened, the microscopic bugs sinking into his skin, where Shino had planted his hand on his arm, "but I have learnt to breed them within my insect jar, feasting on my chakra, and the flesh of my fallen allies."

"They will spread, destroying the cells of your body without prejudice until you no longer exist." Shino gave the man a smirk as he jumped back, panic colouring his face. "Nothing you do can stop them, now."

Jirobo screamed then, the pain kicking in. Shino was almost ready to walk away when he felt it.

Jirobo's chakra surged, and Shino would have mistook it for an attempt at burning the Rinkaichu away like a venom, were it not to have remained in the heightened state.

Looking at Jirobo, his appearance had changed drastically. His arm had been ripped from the socket and lay, purple and festering, on the ground. The rest of his body had changed, his skin to a dark red colour, and his hair had grown to a long spiky mane reaching his shoulders.

"So, this is what you meant when you spoke of your seal having stages," Shino muttered, panting as he did.

"I'll kill you for this!" Jirobo screamed, charging forwards. His speed had increased too, Shino noted, and his strength too, given he was leaving deeper prints within the wet dirt underfoot.

Chapter Text

Shino let out a grunt of pain, scowling as his left arm burst into pain.

Jirobo had punched blinds towards him with his remaining arm, missing wildly and splintering a nearby tree into a thousand pieces, many of which flew directly into Shino’s arm. It was useable still, but hurt like hell.

Not to mention dodging had become less and less viable and option for the Aburame, his opponent raging. No matter what the man hit with his brutish strength, Shino was caught in the aftermath.

His left leg was sending harsh bursts of pain through him, after Jirobo earlier attacked the ground, causing Shino to sink into the wet mud, only escaping thanks to his allies, before Jirobo could get in a direct hit, though he had twisted his ankle in the process, giving him a slight limp.

Shino scowled openly with every move the man made, unsure of his path to victory. Jirobo attacked him again, shaking the ground violently as he missed, his fists against the mud.

Shino was beyond struggling, now. He was helpless, a single thought was running through his mind as he carefully dodged the force of his opponent's attacks.

The rain had become heavy, leaving his insects even slower than before, and his injuries only got worse as he moved around. He had one choice.

A last ditch effort, a technique he knew he wasn't yet good enough at to use in a true battle, but he had no other options. Despite his misgivings, knowing he would surely die if the technique were to fail, he moved.

With his mind made up and his eyes hardened, he drew his katana yet again, placing it before him as he focused, watching Jirobo closely.

Channeling chakra through his body, he jumped high, higher than naturally possible, and spun his blade in a circular motion. Jirobo would have noted its similarity to the moon, were he not so transfixed on his anger.

Shino's heart pounded as he hoped, praying his chakra enhanced movement was fast enough to have the desired effect against the enraged Jirobo. He needed him to confuse his speed, attack either too early or too late.

"Hazy Moon Night," Shino muttered the name of the technique Yugao had taught him, falling to the ground and charging forwards.

It was almost too fast, as Jirobo smashed his balled fist into the ground right before him, but Shino jumped again, landing on top of Jirobo's own back and stabbing down hard.

A sickening crunch and squelch sounded out, the sword passing through organs and bone as Shino panted. Blood poured from his own arm, as well as Jirobo's shoulder, mingling on the ground below.

When Shino pulled his katana from the man's back, he didn't begin to celebrate. He watched carefully as Jirobo twitched for a moment before he fell to the ground. His skin slowly reverted to its usual colour and his hair shortening to its natural length.

Masato groaned as another arrow tore into his body, this time lodging deep into his shoulder.

Across the trees, Kidomaru grinned maliciously, perched atop a thick branch, his skin covered in swirling black patterns.

"You put up a decent fight," Kidomaru called out, smirking. "But you won’t live to tell anyone.”

Masato grit his teeth and yanked the arrow from his shoulder, hissing as pain flared through his arm. At least it hadn’t pierced all the way through.

"We'll see about that," he growled, forcing himself upright, swaying slightly.

In truth, he knew he couldn't win. He was certain of it.

But that didn’t matter. What mattered was buying time for his team- ensuring the success of their mission.

Ensuring that Uchiha Sasuke was killed. No matter the cost.

Missing-nin deserved nothing more. The pain Sasuke had caused his taichou in the past still burned in Masato’s mind. Even if it cost him his life, he would see this mission through.

With a grunt, he raised his arms, gripping a kunai in each hand. He met Kidomaru’s gaze and threw both blades.

The Oto-nin reacted instantly, spitting out a thick web that caught the kunai mid-air. They detonated harmlessly before they could reach him.

Another arrow whistled past Masato’s head, barely dodged. Kidomaru barked out a laugh.

"So, you’ve still got some fight left!" he cackled, stringing another arrow. His grin widened. "Let’s dance, then!"

Masato’s breath hitched as Kidomaru’s form shifted. His skin darkened to a deep red, his eyes turned yellow, and sharp horns sprouted from his forehead, shoulders, and elbows.

A third eye opened on his forehead, the horns knocking his headband off as it scanned the battlefield with deadly precision.

"Shit," Masato muttered. He braced himself.

But he wasn’t fast enough.

Three arrows shot toward him with terrifying speed, each carrying immense power. He managed to deflect two with explosive kunai, but the third pierced straight into his other shoulder. The arm went limp.

Grinding his teeth, Masato gripped a kunai, enhancing it with his chakra and sliced through the chakra thread connecting the arrow to Kidomaru before ripping it out. Blood dripped down his fingers.

"You’re a resilient one," Kidomaru mocked. "I’ll be sure to enjoy killing you."

Another arrow was knocked. Masato knew he wouldn’t survive this.

So instead of dodging, he charged.

The arrow released. It tore through his abdomen, but he didn’t stop. He clenched his jaw, his legs trembling, held together only by sheer will and chakra.

Kidomaru chuckled as Masato staggered toward him, barely standing. With a casual spit, he formed a golden blade in his hand.

"I suppose I should honor your stubbornness," he mused, lifting the blade. "Such a brave little shinobi."

But Masato didn’t flinch. He didn’t run. He couldn’t.

Instead, he smirked.

As the blade neared his chest, he formed a single hand seal with his only working hand and slammed it against Kidomaru’s forehead, his eyes closing in anticipation.

"Fūinjutsu: Mutual Death Technique."

Dark seals spread from Masato’s palm, creeping across Kidomaru’s skin like ink soaking into paper. The Oto-nin froze, his body locking in place. The seals burrowed into his skull, shutting down his nervous system piece by piece.

"This technique took me so long to create," Masato murmured, watching as the markings crawled up his own arm. His smile was almost serene. A far-cry from the usual creepiness that plagued his joy. "A last-ditch effort... that puts both the target and user into a coma. I always thought it was a waste."

His vision blurred as the seals reached his head.

"But now... I can only be glad it works."

His body slackened, a soft smile still on his lips as he collapsed beside the motionless, spider-like Oto shinobi.

And then, silence…

Sakura cursed as she heard the explosions from where they'd left Masato, but continued regardless. He told her he'd survive, and she had to believe him.

So, she went on. Nanako to her side, Kiba behind and Hinata in front.

It was as Hinata let them know they were fast approaching the remaining members of Sasuke's escort that she gasped.

"He's awake," she said, "Sasuke just came out of the container, and he's running beside them."

Sakura scowled, realising it meant they'd have to actually combat the three, rather than just two.

"Once we catch up," Sakura spoke calmly, although her mind was racing, "Kiba, you will take the white haired one. Hinata will take on the girl."

"Their job is to cover Sasuke's escape," She continued, "so he isn't going to just stand his ground and fight."

"So you're leaving combatting the Uchiha to me and you?" Nanako asked, receiving a nod in response.

Soon, they approached the team again, but rather than the standoff of previous encounters, they split in what was almost a mutual understanding. Hinata chased after the redheaded girl, whilst Kiba followed the two headed boy.

Sakura and Nanako glared at Sasuke, but he didn't speak, continuing to run, faster than either kunoichi had seen him move before. They chased after him.

Hinata stood, calm and composed as she faced Tayuya across the forest clearing. The red-haired Oto kunoichi watched her carefully, but Hinata gave her nothing, her mind already racing through strategies, trying to come up with a plan to deal with an unknown enemy.

When Tayuya pulled out a flute, Hinata’s brows raised in brief confusion. But as the first notes played, realization set in. Genjutsu.

She almost sighed in relief.

“Byakugan."

The veins around her eyes bulged as her Kekkei Genkai activated, her vision sharpening instantly. She could see the way the chakra within the sound waves tried to enter her system, only to be dispelled before it could even try to take hold.

“Tch.” Tayuya scowled. “Of course I get stuck with the girl who can see through my Genjutsu.”

Hinata didn’t respond. She simply held her stance, her body poised, ready to move at any moment. She was certain she could counter the Genjutsu of her opponent, but she didn't know any other skills the girl had at her disposal.

Tayuya clicked her tongue, clearly irritated. “Guess I’ll have to do this the hard way.”

Her chakra flared. The surge came from a single point, dark and ominous.

Hinata reacted instantly.

Before Tayuya could complete the transformation, Hinata shot forward, dropping into the stance of the Gentle Fist. Her gaze hardened.

“Too slow,” Hinata whispered.

Then she struck.

Her fingertips slammed into Tayuya’s body, precisely targeting her tenketsu, sealing off chakra points with pinpoint accuracy. A flurry of blows, eight, sixteen, thirty-two, each one precise. Relentless.

But then her breath hitched. A fraction of a second too slow. to complete the full sixty-four palms.

Tayuya capitalized.

A powerful spin kick crashed into Hinata’s ribs, sending her flying backward. She hit the ground hard, skidding across the dirt before managing to roll back to her feet.

“Fuck,” Tayuya hissed, shaking out her arm, clearly feeling the effects of the attack. Her gaze darkened. “Now I really need to activate my seal…”

Dark lines slithered across her body, zigzagging in eerie patterns as her cursed seal took hold.

Hinata barely had time to adjust before Tayuya was on her.

Fists and kicks rained down. Hinata deflected as best she could, intercepting with precise strikes to Tayuya’s arms, blocking what she could, but she was losing ground. The blows that slipped past her defenses struck hard, bruising her limbs, rattling her bones.

"God, you're annoying!" Tayuya growled, leaping back to catch her breath, one arm wrapped around her abdomen where a particularly sharp strike had landed. “Just roll over and die already!”

Hinata, breath heavy, remained silent. She stood quietly, readying herself, keeping her eyes locked on her opponent.

The battle resumed. A brutal exchange, strike, counter, strike, counter. Neither gained ground, neither was able to take any either. But Hinata was faltering. She wasn’t built for prolonged combat like this.

Tayuya was slowing too, her breath ragged, but she still had the upper hand. And Hinata knew it.

Then, Tayuya suddenly slammed her hands together, forming five quick seals before pressing a pricked finger to the ground.

“Summoning!”

Hinata’s breath caught as the ground trembled.

Three monstrous figures emerged from the smoke, towering, disgusting figures with bloated bodies and huge weapons in hand.

Tayuya lifted her flute again. Hinata braced herself to dispel another Genjutsu, but it wasn’t for her.

The summons reacted instantly.

The moment the melody filled the air, the summons charged. Weapons and fists crashed down, aiming to flatten her where she stood.

Hinata moved on instinct.

She leaped, landing atop the studded metal club of one of the beasts, barely avoiding the impact that splattered into the wet ground beneath her. Without hesitation, she sprinted up its arm, chakra flowing to her feet to keep her balanced.

No time to think, but no time to hesitate.

Reaching the ogre’s back, she took a deep breath, gathering chakra to every tenketsu in her body.

Her arms spread wide.

She spun.

A violent whirlwind of chakra erupted around her, expanding outward, shredding everything in its path.

“Rotation!”

The ogre beneath her collapsed. A quarter of its massive body was simply gone, torn to fleshy ribbons that lay scattered across the battlefield.

Hinata landed, chest rising and falling rapidly as she surveyed the damage. She’d done it. One down, three enemies remained.

"Holy fuck," Tayuya muttered, visibly shaken.

But she recovered fast, raising her flute once more. The remaining summons stirred, their eyes locking onto Hinata.

Then, another note.

They charged.

Hinata barely had time to move before a massive hand snatched her out of the air, closing around her leg.

Her eyes widened.

"That won't work twice!" Tayuya snarled, playing another sharp note on her flute. The grip on Hinata’s leg tightened, crushing down with bone-snapping force.

But the Hyuga girl didn’t struggle, once she calmed slightly. She simply held her opponent’s gaze, eyes calm and unyielding, as her hands flickered through a quick set of seals.

Then, she was gone.

Instead of the kunoichi, the Ogre's massive hand was now squeezing the dead one's metal club.

“Substution,” Tayuya spat, her head snapping around. But Hinata had already vanished, body flickering away the moment the switch was made.

She couldn't see her anywhere.

Gritting her teeth, Tayuya played another note. The remaining two Doki rumbled to life, their hulking forms tearing through the forest, snapping trees in half as they searched.

But the hunt didn’t last long.

Hinata’s voice rang out from above.

"Summoning!"

A burst of chakra, a cloud of smoke, and she was gone again.

Tayuya’s eyes widened as she looked up. High above, Hinata now sat atop the back of a massive owl, its wings spread wide as it hovered in the air. A second identical owl flanked its side, both enormous, their forms easily twice the size of a horse, if not even bigger.

Hinata gave her summons a small nod of thanks. “I appreciate your help.”

“It is nothing, Hinata-hime,” the owl beside her answered solemnly. “We Fukuro Brothers serve the Hyuga Clan, no matter what.”

Tayuya’s face twisted in irritation. She was losing her patience. With a low growl, she let the Cursed Seal take hold, black markings crawling across her body as her skin darkened. Her horns lengthened, and the whites of her eyes turned an unnatural black.

Then she played a new note.

Hinata tensed.

Below them, the remaining ogres threw their heads back, their mouths gaping open wide. And from within, something emerged.

A twisting, many-mouthed abomination slithered free, its grotesque form writhing as it crawled from the depths of the summoned Ogre's.

Hinata fought back a shudder.

“Rise,” she commanded, and the owl beneath her obeyed, carrying her higher into the sky.

The second owl cocked its head, calculating. “I believe I can handle one of those creatures if you order it.”

Hinata hesitated only a moment before nodding. “Then go, but if the danger is too great, return to your realm immediately.”

The Fukuro Brother gave a soft hoot in response before diving downward. Talons outstretched, it raked across one of the Doki’s faces, forcing its jaws shut before it could release another of those things.

But the second Doki had already released its own creature, and the monstrosity was coming.

It slithered through the air with terrifying speed, rising toward them like a predator sensing blood.

“They seem to be made of spiritual energy,” the owl carrying Hinata observed, its own Byakugan active. “Physical attacks will not harm them. We must neutralize either the ogre or its summoner herself.”

Hinata took a deep breath. That wasn’t exactly what she wanted to hear.

But she nodded. “Then bring me to the summoner. She has relied solely on her summons so far. She’s nothing I can’t handle.”

The owl glanced at her, something amused in its sharp, byakugan eyes at the newfound confidence in her voice. But it obeyed without question, shifting into a sharp dive toward Tayuya.

The Oto kunoichi was ready.

Hinata barely had time to react before the spirit beast twisted in midair, its many mouths snapping toward them.

“Distract it,” she ordered quickly.

Her summon gave a quick nod before peeling away, drawing the monstrous worm after it, leading it away from Hinata and toward the battlefield of his brother and the ogre.

That left only her and Tayuya.

“You’re a tricky little brat,” Tayuya sneered between notes, watching Hinata’s rapid descent.

Hinata met her gaze coolly. "You can't play your flute if your hands are occupied."

Tayuya smirked. “And I know your techniques now. Your summons won’t last long. I just have to dodge you in the meantime.”

Hinata didn’t respond. Instead, she lowered herself into the Gentle Fist stance.

Then, she attacked.

She moved swiftly, striking at Tayuya’s tenketsu with relentless precision. But the Oto kunoichi was fast. She dodged backward, weaving around each blow, her movements fluid and calculated.

“See?” Tayuya taunted, an arrogant grin splitting her face. “You can’t even touch me!”

Still, Hinata didn’t waver. Didn’t slow down. She kept pressing forward, forcing Tayuya to give ground, to retreat further and further..

Until her back hit a tree.

Tayuya’s cocky grin faltered.

Hinata allowed herself the faintest smirk.

“Like this is gonna stop me,” Tayuya scoffed.

But Hinata wasn’t finished. She took a slow, deliberate step back, her Byakugan piercing straight through her opponent.

“You’re too far away to hit me,” Tayuya said smugly, eyeing the ten feet of space between them.

Hinata’s gaze didn’t waver.

"That’s fine."

Then—she struck.

Her palm thrust forward, sending a concentrated blast of chakra hurtling through the air.

By the time Tayuya realized what was happening, it was too late.

The impact slammed into her chest with devastating force. Her heart stopped in an instant.

She collapsed, lifeless.

Hinata barely had the energy to exhale.

“Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm,” she murmured before her legs finally gave out, her body slumping against the nearest tree.

Her vision blurred. Her chakra reserves were nearly gone. Her Byakugan deactivated.

But she’d won.

And that was enough.

Chapter Text

"Come back, Sasuke," Sakura said, her breaths heavy but controlled, eyes locked onto the Uchiha standing before them. The rain poured down, soaking her hair, sliding down her face.

Sasuke stared back, his expression unreadable, his black bangs dripping with water. "You're wasting your time," he said flatly. "I'm not coming back peacefully."

Nanako almost scoffed, and beside her, Sakura let out a quiet, humorless chuckle.

"It's good then," she murmured, tilting her head slightly. "That we’re not here to bring you back peacefully."

Sasuke’s brows furrowed for half a second before his face settled into something cold and unreadable yet again.

"I just thought I’d give you the option."

A flicker of something, annoyance, hesitation maybe, crossed Sasuke’s face, but before he could speak, another presence made itself known.

A figure landed between them, pale as the moon, his bone-white hair hanging limp under the rain. His back was to Sasuke, his stance casual but unmistakably confident.

The stance of a man who knew he outclassed everyone nearby.

Nanako tensed. She didn’t recognize him, but something about him made her breath hitch, like an animal sensing a predator.

"You should run, Sasuke," the newcomer said, his voice eerily calm, as though he was stating a simple fact. He didn’t turn, barely even acknowledging the Uchiha behind him. "Orochimaru-sama does not appreciate those who waste his time."

Sakura’s grip tightened around the kunai in her hand. This one was different. Older than the other Oto shinobi they’d encountered. More experienced. The way he held himself, the way he spoke. He was stronger. She knew it. She could tell.

Sasuke hesitated.

It was barely more than a second, but it was enough.

A single glance from the white-haired shinobi, and Sasuke turned without another word, preparing to leave.

Sakura stepped forward, to fight the newcomer, expecting Nanako to go after Sasuke, but a whisper stopped her.

"Sakura," Nanako said, voice low. "Go after the traitor. I'll handle this one."

Sakura hesitated, her fingers twitching at her side. She didn’t want to leave another teammate behind. They had already been forced to trust the others to survive their battles.

"Go, Sakura-taichou," Nanako said, her voice firmer this time, the title deliberate. A reminder of their mission. "I’ll survive. I promise."

Sakura clenched her jaw. Then, after one last glance between her teammate and the Oto nin, she nodded.

“Fine,” she said. “But I’ll hold you to that promise.”

And then she was gone, disappearing in a flicker of movement, leaving Nanako alone with the enemy.

Kimimaro barely reacted. He simply tilted his head slightly, his pale eyes scanning her as though he were analyzing something unimportant.

"You cannot pass," he said simply. "So I will kill you quickly before killing the pink one, and taking Sasuke to our master.”

Nanako swallowed but didn’t let herself waver.

And then he moved.

She barely saw it, the blur of his form, the way he closed the distance between them in an instant. A crushing strike came for her head, and she barely raised her arms in time to block it. The impact sent her skidding back, her muscles screaming under the pressure.

"You have potential," Kimimaro mused, watching as she struggled to steady herself. "It's a pity I have to eliminate you. You may have been useful to Orochimaru-sama alive.”

Nanako narrowed her eyes but didn’t respond. Instead, she jumped back, barely dodging the follow-up kick that slammed into the ground, leaving a crater in the wet mud.

He was fast. Too fast.

Her hands flashed through seals.

“Earth Release: Mud Wall!”

A thick wall of earth surged up between them, but before she could even hope for a moment’s rest, a spear of bone tore through it effortlessly, stopping inches from her face.

Nanako barely had time to curse before she launched into her next attack.

“Lightning Release: Thunderbolt!”

A bolt of crackling energy shot forward, cutting through the rain in a blinding flash. But Kimimaro was faster. With a small shift of his weight, he evaded the attack with practiced ease.

"Your Ninjutsu are strong," he commented, tone as steady as ever. "But they are far too slow."

Nanako grit her teeth, raising her arms in another desperate block as he struck again.

She thought about grabbing his leg for a split second as it hovered above her in the aftermath of his kick. But she didn’t. He had already proven his bones could extend into weapons at any moment. If she grabbed him, she’d only be impaling her own hands.

Instead, she slipped away just as his foot slammed into the ground, the force creating another deep crater in the mud.

She couldn’t keep this up forever.

The fight continued, a relentless cycle. Nanako dodged by inches, trying to find an opening, but never getting the chance. Even her ninja wire was useless, snapped apart before she could even attempt to use it.

So she changed tactics.

Kimimaro’s leg came down in another devastating kick, aimed for her shoulder, just like before.

But this time, she didn’t move.

The impact crashed into her, and she felt something crack deep in her bones. But she didn’t fall. Instead, she moved.

Her left hand shot up, gripping his leg in a vice-like hold.

Kimimaro’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Earth Release: Gravel!” She muttered, activating the technique without any hand seals.

The mud beneath them shifted, crawling up Kimimaro’s legs, solidifying around his limbs in thick, grasping tendrils.

Pain flared through her hand as she felt bones spear through her palm, but she held on.

The mud climbed higher, encasing his torso, locking his arms in place.

Then, with a final seal, she hardened it into solid earth.

Nanako exhaled sharply, her entire body shaking. She knew it wouldn’t last.

But it was enough.

She had bought time. Even if just a little.

That was what she thought. But reality rarely went according to plan.

Dark markings slithered across Kimimaro’s skin, spreading like ink under water. The air around them grew heavy.

Then, a crack.

And he broke free. The hardened earth crumbling as he simply stood up, his foot tearing from her shoulder, shredding her already mangled hand in the process.

Kimimaro sighed, wiping blood from his lips as he coughed a moment later.

"This is becoming tedious," he murmured. "So I will end it now."

Nanako’s breath stilled. She knew that it was the end, as soon as those words left the man's lips.

"Sorry, taichou," she whispered. "I guess I broke my promise."

She barely saw the movement—Kimimaro’s arm shifting, bones extending from his hand, aiming straight for her heart.

Then…

"LEAF WHIRLWIND!"

A blur of green and orange slammed into Kimimaro, knocking him back in an explosion of force.

Nanako barely processed the sudden shift before another voice spoke.

"You really don’t need to announce your attacks, Lee," a second voice sighed, exasperated but firm.

A third landed closer to her.

"Yeah, the enemy definitely knows you’re coming when you do."

Nanako’s vision blurred, but she forced her eyes to focus.

And there they were.

Rock Lee. Hyuga Neji. Tenten.

“Holy shit,” she wheezed, eyes widening.

Before she could get another word out, Tenten was already lifting her up, moving swiftly.

“Take her back, treat her as best you can with the others,” Neji ordered. “We’ll handle things here.”

Lee exhaled sharply, stepping back just in time to avoid another jab from Kimimaro. The Oto-nin pressed forward relentlessly, but Neji was already moving. With a burst of speed, the Hyuga closed in, his Byakugan glaring as he struck out with calculated precision, aiming for the bone user’s tenketsu.

"You fight well together," Kimimaro observed calmly, moving back, just out of range of Neji’s strikes. "But unfortunately, my master expects me to deliver Uchiha Sasuke to him. I cannot lose here.”

He flipped back, effortlessly avoiding Neji’s next attack. "So I must end this."

The black markings across his body darkened and expanded, crawling like ink over his skin. As he landed, his form shifted; His once-pale complexion turning ashen gray, his eyes glowing yellow with a sharp-toothed grin. From his back, six massive bone spines protruded, twisting like jagged spears. A tail sprouted from beneath them, and black, curved markings darkened the space beneath his eyes.

Neji's breath caught in his throat, His Byakugan took in the change immediately, his gaze following the flow of Kimimaro’s chakra.

"Lee," he said, voice tight. "We can’t defeat him."

Lee stiffened, his eyes widening, but he didn’t argue. "What do we do then, Neji?"

"There’s nothing we can do," Neji admitted, watching as Kimimaro prepared to attack again. "We have to stall him. Buy Sakura time to finish the mission and escape before he pursues."

"Then we will have to go all out," Lee stated simply, his expression unwavering.

"As far as you can," Neji agreed, nodding solemnly. "We can’t afford to hold back."

Without hesitation, Neji surged forward, his role clear. It was to distract Kimimaro, force him to focus on something else, and give Lee time to open the gates.

But calling their encounter a fight would have been generous. Kimimaro’s body was a fortress of bone, shifting and growing in an instant to block every strike. Neji’s fingers barely found flesh before a hardened defense formed beneath his touch. The Hyūga adapted, twisting and maneuvering, but wounds still opened along his arms and legs, his reflexes only just keeping him from worse injuries. A particularly sharp slice of bone tore across his face, cutting a deep line from chin to temple, cutting the fabric of his headband and sending it to the mud.

Neji barely reacted.

He could feel it: the shift in the air, the rising heat of chakra behind him. His Byakugan saw it clearly.

Lee’s skin darkened to a deep red, veins bulging, his hair standing on end.

And then he moved.

A blur of green and orange shot forward, spinning into a powerful kick. Kimimaro barely raised his arm in time to block, and even then, the bones shielding him cracked under the impact.

"I’ll protect you, Lee," Neji murmured under his breath.

Lee only gave a sharp nod, already launching forward again. His first flew straight toward Kimimaro’s face, one of the few places not covered in bone.

But the Oto-nin ducked at the last second, countering with a swiped at Lee’s legs. Lee leapt back, avoiding the strike, only to immediately charge forward again.

Kimimaro reacted faster than either of them expected.

A bone projectile fired from his outstretched hand, too fast for Lee to dodge.

"Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm!"

Neji’s voice cut through the chaos, and a blast of air slammed into the projectile, knocking it off course just in time.

Lee didn’t slow. He didn’t need to thank Neji, didn’t need to hesitate. He trusted his teammate.

"Reverse Lotus!"

Lee’s movements became a blur, too fast for Kimimaro to fully predict. He struck from all angles, breaking through the hardened bones surrounding his opponent. His bandages unraveled mid-attack, wrapping around Kimimaro’s limbs, restricting his movement just enough for Lee to land a final, crushing kick.

Kimimaro’s body launched into the air.

Lee was already there to meet him, waiting above, hammering his heel down onto the Oto-nin’s chest with force enough to send him crashing into the ground below.

Lee landed a few feet away, breath coming fast, body trembling from exertion. His muscles burned, his limbs growing heavier by the moment.

But Kimimaro stood again.

Not unscathed, but far less damaged than one would expect.

"I should stop underestimating you," he mused, his eerie yellow eyes flicking between them. "But this truly ends now."

The ground trembled.

Bones erupted from the earth, shooting upward in jagged spikes, aiming straight for Lee.

Neji’s stomach dropped. He knew what Kimimaro intended.

His legs moved before his mind could catch up.

Lee couldn’t dodge. His body was spent, dropping out from the opening of five chakra gates.

But Neji arrived just in time.

He planted his feet, arms shooting outward as chakra flared.

"Rotation!"

He spun, forming a perfect, impenetrable sphere, deflecting every single deadly spike before they could reach his teammate.

"Rotation," Neji huffed again, his breath ragged as his chakra pulsed outward in a final desperate defense. Lee had collapsed beside him, unmoving, his body pushed beyond its limits.

Kimimaro was relentless, his bone spears hammering against Neji’s thinning chakra barrier, each strike forcing him to spin again, to push more chakra into his defense. Sweat dripped from his brow, his muscles screaming in protest.

"Just a little longer," he muttered under his breath. "I just need to stall him a little longer."

But Kimimaro was still moving. Still attacking. The coughing fits were getting worse, but they never lasted long enough for Neji to take advantage. Every time he caught a glimpse of an opening, it was gone before he could act. And now, his chakra reserves were dangerously low.

His rotations were slowing.

Kimimaro noticed.

The next strike cracked through the weakened chakra shell, forcing Neji back a step. He barely managed to spin again, keeping the spear from fully impaling him, but the force was breaking through. He braced himself, preparing to pour every last ounce of his strength into one final rotation…

And then, from the trees, he saw her.

Tenten.

Neji didn’t react. He couldn’t afford to.

Kimimaro lunged again, his bone spear driving forward, determined to pierce straight through him. Neji met the strike with a surge of chakra, the grinding clash filling the air as his barrier struggled to hold. The spear inched closer, its edge biting against his chest, pushing forward despite the force of his chakra.

Then, without hesitation, Neji moved.

He twisted sharply to the side, his hand snapping out to grip the spear just as Kimimaro’s eyes widened. The Oto-nin turned instinctively, but he was too late.

A trio of explosive-tagged kunai sailed from the treetops, cutting through the rain-soaked air.

Neji gritted his teeth. He didn’t have the energy to move anymore.

A deafening boom shook the battlefield, flames and debris consuming the space where Kimimaro stood. The force of the blast threw Neji backward, and before he could even register the pain, darkness swallowed his vision.

He had done his part. He knew now that he could rest.

Chapter Text

“You’re not going to get away, Sasuke!” Sakura called across the trees as they ran, her opponent only a few strides ahead. He was nimble enough to evade the few attacks she had thrown his way, so she focused on keeping pace instead, knowing her chakra-enhanced speed would outlast his, thanks to her superior control.

“I don’t plan on getting away,” Sasuke shot back with a scowl. “I’m simply choosing a suitable place for your end.”

Sakura scoffed but didn’t bother with a verbal response, opting instead to track his movements carefully, watching and waiting.

Eventually, they reached a location any Konoha resident would recognize, despite being miles from the village.

“A suitable place, huh?” Sakura chuckled darkly as she watched Sasuke charge up the statue of Uchiha Madara. “I’d be flattered, if you weren’t arrogant enough to think yourself comparable to Madara.”

Without hesitation, she mirrored his movement, sprinting up the opposing statue, Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage.

Once they stood atop the statues’ heads, they faced each other, neither willing to make the first move. That is, until Sasuke’s hand erupted into a deafening cacophony of a thousand birds, lightning crackling violently around his arm as his eyes locked onto her.

“You tried the same thing against Nanako,” Sakura said, almost scoffing as she watched him pour even more chakra into his technique than she’d ever seen before. “I stopped you then, and I won’t be so kind this time.”

Sasuke remained silent, continuing to charge his attack.

Sakura almost lunged at him right then but hesitated. If she got too close, he could counter with speed she had no hope of matching. As long as she kept her distance, she could at least react to his movements before he had the chance to land a strike.

Eventually, after Sakura had studied Sasuke for a few moments, the raven-haired boy charged. But instead of running with the immense speed she had seen before, he surged power into his legs, leaping the distance in an instant and landing directly in front of her.

His lightning-encased hand shot forward once he was close enough, and Sakura barely had time to scowl before she flipped backward, her hands propelling her just out of the Uchiha’s reach.

The lightning around his hand dissipated, once he knew he had missed, and Sakura, now on the offensive, charged forward. Before Sasuke could react, his hands were up, blocking a flurry of punches and kicks from his opponent.

Slowly, the three tomoe of his Sharingan began to swirl, and his defense adapted to her movements. He watched carefully, predicting where she would strike before she even made the move.

Sakura gritted her teeth, tempted to look into the swirling eyes of her opponent, but refused. She had heard stories from the older shinobi in T&I about the Genjutsu of the Sharingan, especially its uses in interrogation. She certainly didn’t want to see how effective it was in battle. Instead, she focused her gaze on his center, avoiding eye contact entirely.

After a few more moments of Taijutsu, Sakura began to struggle. Sasuke’s movements were far faster than when they had been on Team Seven, and the Sharingan’s ability to anticipate her moves made it nearly impossible to land even the fastest of her attacks.

So, as soon as an opening appeared, she shot backward, falling gracefully off the head of the First Hokage’s statue. She flashed through a set of hand seals before Sasuke had the chance to engage her in hand-to-hand combat again. Sakura knew her Taijutsu wouldn’t work against his Dojutsu, so she decided to switch to a longer-range style of combat.

“Water Release: Water Shuriken,” she said, watching as the star-shaped, bladed weapons emerged from the waterfall and shot upward toward Sasuke, who had dove down after her, mentally thanking Hiruzen for teaching her so many water techniques.

Sasuke mostly managed to narrowly avoid most of the spinning projectiles, twisting and shifting from side to side as they approached. However, he scowled as one of them made a shallow cut along his leg.

“You shouldn’t have taken me here, Sasuke,” Sakura shouted upward, before landing silently on the lake below. She used the body flicker technique to dodge the falling Uchiha and create some distance between them. Sasuke followed soon after, landing opposite her with a barely noticeable ripple beneath his feet. “I have an endless supply of ammunition for my water ninjutsu.”

Sasuke didn’t respond verbally but instead brought his hands upward, shooting through a set of seals that Sakura vaguely recognized from the bell test.

She mimicked him, forming her own set of seals, carefully focusing her chakra on the surrounding water, rather than transforming her chakra into the liquid itself.

“Fire Release: Great Fireball,” Sasuke breathed, and a ball of fire twice the size of the one Sakura had seen at the beginning of Team Seven shot forward.

“Water Release: Wild Water Wave,” Sakura whispered, using her chakra to send a wave of water to surround the fireball. She leapt backward as the two techniques collided, landing horizontally on the leg of Uchiha Madara’s statue.

When the two techniques clashed, Sasuke mimicking her movements, on the statue of the First Hokage, a blast of steam erupted, and the water rippled violently.

Sakura appreciated the cover as she took a deep breath, grateful that the Uchiha seemed to have the same idea. She gripped the hilt of her Chokuto, ready for the inevitable melee clash that would soon follow. With the lowered visibility, and neither of them being sensor nin, long-range battle would become difficult for both of them.

Sakura was glad to have a chance to arm herself before Sasuke charged through the steam a moment later, and she smirked slightly as he barely managed to draw a kunai before their combat resumed.

Sakura’s advantage in weapon length was minimized by the Uchiha’s Sharingan, which allowed him to read her movements. However, Sasuke had never seen her use the weapon before, so she managed to briefly hold her own.

But soon, the Uchiha’s clear advantage in close-range combat became apparent again. His kunai expertly blocked her Chokuto, forcing her backward, further up the statue.

They ended up on the head of Uchiha Madara, and Sakura was struggling to keep up still.

A slice to her forearm was the first, a shallow stab to her left thigh and a graze to her cheek followed soon after. Sakura scowled in response to the quick movements of her opponent, pushing chakra to her legs in an attempt to jump backwards and create distance.

Watching with wide eyes as the Uchiha burst into a dash towards her, her hand flew together and formed seals, finishing just in time for the Uchiha to engage her again.

“Water Release: Water Palm Blade,” she performed, a blade of water emerging from her free hand as she engaged the Uchiha again. The added element to her fighting style caught the Uchiha off guard for a moment, evening the playing field once again.

But, as it had been the entire time, the Uchiha took the advantage again not long after, although with more caution to his movements, avoiding the pressurised blade of water carefully, his movements adapting thanks to his Sharingan.

Sakura swore as he landed another, deeper slash to the left side of her face, just below her eye, and huffed a breath of air in frustration. She didn’t know if her next move would actually work, but she reassured herself with a deep breath, barely avoiding another stab.

Jumping a foot or so back, she gripped her Chokuto hard, swinging it down at the air before her.

“Water Release: Water Forge,” she muttered out, first coating her blade in dense water before it slashed forwards toward the Uchiha in a strong surge. A technique Sakura had learnt, inspired by the wind blades of Baki she had seen in the aftermath of the Chunin exams.

The Uchiha grunted out as he dodged to the side, a harsh slash to his left arm left by what little of the attack hit him.

But Sakura didn’t let the distance between them go to waste, placing her Chokuto away and immediately flashing through a new set of hand seals faster than she ever had before.

A mass of water flew from the waterfall in response as she finished the fourteen or so hand seals she needed to perform her technique. “Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet.”

The mass of water shaped itself into a dragon as it soared forwards, and Sasuke’s eyes widened. Sakura was certain she knew which other shinobi he was thinking about.

“Momochi Zabuza used this technique against Kakashi,” she shouted with a smirk, watching the Uchiha flip and dash out of the dragon's way. “Don’t think just because you can use the same lightning jutsu that man can, that I will match the demon’s fate.”

Sasuke scowled as he flipped over the dragon, which had then crashed itself into the head of Hashirama, which Sasuke stood on top of after his consistent backwards dodges. The stone cracked, splitting and falling down the valley and into the lake below with a large splash.

But Sakura’s relentless stream of jutsu was not done, seeing the Uchiha prepare to charge at her again. She slammed her hands together with sweat sliding down her face, her chakra network feeling the strain slightly.

“Water Release: Water Buckshot,” she commanded the water around her, rising from the stream in a dozen blade-like projectiles, aiming directly for the Uchiha.

But very few hit, only a couple grazed him and one left a painful slice in his arm.

Sasuke didn’t stop despite the attacks soaring at him, beginning to charge forwards towards the pink haired chunin.

Sakura watched carefully as the Uchiha made to get in close, her teeth grit as she placed her hands together again. She wanted to avoid using her summons, but it seemed inevitable at such close range.

Biting into her thumb, she jumped, falling gracefully back to the lake below and slamming her hand down, watching as a cloud of smoke dissipated, revealing a scorpion she knew only in passing, never having actually used her for combat.

She was dark red in colour, and had amber eyes. She was smaller than Chosuke, but still larger than Sakura herself.

“You need my assistance, summoner?” The scorpion questioned, watching as the Uchiha paused, watching her from half way down the statue.

“Yes please, Dokuka, our mission is to retrieve that boy, dead or alive,” Sakura declared, loud enough that Sasuke could hear.

“I see, then let’s get to it,” the scorpion said simply, and Sakura smirked as she charged forward to meet the Uchiha.

Dokuka was an abnormality within her clan. She lacked any sort of venom whatsoever, her tail and claws were blunt, and thus she trained far differently.

Sakura watched on in awe as the scorpion matched Sasuke's hesitant strikes, her tail and claws easily blocking each of his attacks.

“Your strikes are weak,” Dokuka said in her monotone voice, “you will never land a strike on the scorpion clan’s Taijutsu Princess like this.”

Sakura didn’t just watch, however, and instead began to weave hand seals, slowly and deliberately, unused to the technique she was planning to use.

She realised that fighting the Uchiha fairly would become tedious and end in her defeat, with his sharingan eyes swirling and capable of predicting her movements, and so she had a plan to deal with it.

“Genjutsu: Bringer of Darkness,” she mutters, sending her chakra outwards towards the Uchiha. She couldn't thank Sarutobi enough, in her mind. The techniques he had taught her were saving her, again and again.”

A moment later, Sasuke’s eyes went blank, and he lost track of his opponent. A harsh strike to the stomach, and then the side of his head caused him to scowl and move backwards with a body flicker, grateful his sharingan had memorised the area already.

“Dokuka,” Sakura called out, her hair wet from the sweat of effort, as well as the rain. “I can’t hold the Genjutsu for long, so hurry up and finish him.”

The scorpion turned her head and nodded slightly before charging forwards, but the Uchiha managed to dodge to the side before she could reach, gaining more distance. He coils hear her clearly still, the scorpion Taijutsu Princess not particularly light on her feet.

“Can you not be any quieter?” Sakura muttered to herself before shaking her head.

This went on for a moment longer before Sakura decided, “Dokuka, go home. Thank you for distracting him.”

The scorpion seemed offended briefly, but disappeared in a puff of smoke a moment later.

“I’ll finish you off myself,” Sakura said, conscious of ensuring the Uchiha would be unable to hear her. She was confident that she could win, even without her scorpion summon.

Drawing her Chokuto, she smirked, although it was strained under the massive lack of chakra using the A ranked Genjutsu had left her with.

Slowly and silently, Sakura approached the boy, but as she got close, she lost focus for barely a moment, and stepped on a loose rock, sending it rolling slightly.

But rather than run, Sasuke snapped his gaze to the location the rock landed, fear evident in his expression as his eyes shifted.

The three tomoe of the sharingan slowly morphed with a pained expression on the Uchiha’s face, changing to that of three intersecting red ellipses, black surrounding them.

“Amaterasu,” the Uchiha scowled, and spun his head from side to side as Sakura barely managed to dodge backwards.

Black flames erupted in a semi-circle around her as she tripped back in her dodge, and by the time she managed to get up and go around the circle, the Uchiha was gone, and Sakura knew she couldn’t make an attempt at pursuit in her condition. She had barely any chakra, and the various wounds to her body would find it difficult to close if she continued moving.

So, after a moment she released her Genjutsu, barely a drop of chakra left, and began to fall to the ground, too tired to cry.

“I can’t believe I failed,” was the last thing she said before a firm grip caught her from behind, slinging her over his back.

“Everyone fails at least one mission,” Kakashi sighed simply, his single exposed eye filled with sadness. “I believe I failed my mission to be the sensei of Team Seven much worse than you failed here.”

Chapter Text

Sakura groaned, as she sat on the uncomfortable hospital bed, her fists clenched where they rested in her lap, atop the thin blanket provided to her.

Her fight against Sasuke was replaying in her mind, swirling around like a cyclone of thoughts.

“I was arrogant.” She admitted to the empty room. “I shouldn't have sent Dokuka away just so I could finish the Uchiha myself.”

She slammed her fist down beside her, against the plastic feeling mattress below.

“I'm so stupid,” She muttered to herself. “I could have had her circle around him, whilst I moved in on the opposite side. Even if she was struggling to move quietly.”

A soft knock at the white door halted her thoughts spiraling. She looked up, watching Shino walk in, bandages over his arm.

“I wanted to come and apologize,” the Aburame spoke, gripping his arm, remembering his fight. “I wanted to finish my opponent quickly, and come assist you all after.”

Sakura's eyes widened slightly, not expecting it from Shino, but understanding his frustration completely.

“You aren't to blame.” She shook her head, gesturing for him to take a seat in one of the two chairs laying nearby. “As team captain, it was my job to prevent things going wrong.”

“I never should have been made Chunin.” Sakura continued, shaking her head and singing. She was beyond the point of tears, though. “I failed as team captain.”

But before Shino could respond, another voice came from the doorway.

“We were against opponents who outclassed us entirely.” Nanako spoke, a cast around her injured hand. “That's why Masato and I had to resort to such drastic measures.”

Sakura sighed again, shaking her head sadly as her thoughts drifted to Masato's condition.

"I'm sorry for leaving you to fight opponents like that alone," she whispered, but both conscious members of her team heard her clearly.

"We chose our battles," Shino said, his tone steady. He had clearly been brought up to speed on the mission’s outcome by now.

"Shino's right," a third voice added from the doorway before slipping past Nanako into the room.

Kiba.

Hinata followed her Inuzuka teammate inside, nodding as she spoke, smiling gently at her friend. "We would never blame you for the outcome of a battle we fought alone, g-good or bad."

Sakura’s eyes moistened at their support, and slowly, she nodded. The others seemed to relax as she did. Nanako took a seat beside Shino, while Kiba stood behind them with Hinata.

"I don’t plan on letting the Uchiha get away with this," Hinata was the first to break the silence, and to Sakura’s surprise, her voice carried more venom than she thought possible for the usually sweet, timid girl.

"Me either," Nanako added quickly, and Sakura’s gaze flickered to her hand. Nanako picked up on the silent question.

"The medics said the chakra pathways are damaged beyond repair," Nanako admitted, but her smile didn’t falter. "But the actual structure will heal perfectly."

Sakura's eyes widened at that, but Nanako only smirked.

"I don’t plan on letting an injury like this stop me."

A moment later, understanding clicked into place. Sakura gave a small nod, flashes of Haku forming jutsu with one-handed seals playing in her mind. She had told her team about her first C-rank mission. Nanako had taken inspiration.

"I’ve offered to help her train," Shino declared. "Uchiha Sasuke caused my comrades a lot of pain. I will repay him for it."

Kiba didn’t speak, which was unusual for him, but he nodded immediately in agreement.

Sakura gave them all a small smile before she spoke.

"Then we’ll focus on training together," she announced. "All six of us."

No one mentioned that Masato had yet to wake up.

No matter what, Sakura had faith in her friend.

A week passed slowly, and Sakura was discharged from the hospital. A week after that, she was back to visit Masato, as well as make a tough decision.

"He has a thirty percent chance of surviving the procedure," Shizune explained as Sakura looked down, the cold, even paler than usual, body of Masato lay quietly on a hospital bed, hooked up to various machines. “As the leader of Team Three, and with him having no living family, you're the one who has to sign off on it."

Sakura didn't respond though and grabbed the boy's hand. It was cold as ice, and Sakura knew that even without the procedure, he would die soon. It was the only choice, it was a do or die thing.

She nodded then, and took the clipboard from the black haired medical nin, signing her name on the dotted line.

"Will he be able to continue as a shinobi?" She asked, with Shizune giving her a small, reassuring smile.

"If the surgery goes without complications, he will make a full and complete recovery." Shizune explained. "But the brain is a difficult organ to heal. A number of things can go wrong."

Sakura didn't want to ask, though, so she remained quiet as Shizune excused herself.

Sitting slowly on the visitors chair, Sakura squeezed her teammate's hand gently.

"I hope you don't hate me," she whispered to the unconscious boy. "But I wouldn't blame you if you did."

The boy, predictably, didn't respond.

"I blame myself every day for what happened to you and Nanako," she continued. "Shino will recover but Nanako won't be able to use her hand for seals ever again."

"And you," Sakura's eyes teared up, her grip on the boy's hand tightening. "I'm not even sure you'll survive."

She lowered her head then, slouching down and leaning it against the boy's bed.

What felt like only moments later, but in reality was over an hour later, a heavy, reassuring hand landed on her head.

"I've missed you," Sakura huffed as she took her free hand, gripping the familiar hand on her head with it gently.

"I know," Ibiki replied, his voice softer than she'd ever heard, beside just after her parents had passed.

"Will he be okay?" Sakura questioned desperately, but Ibiki simply sighed.

"All we can do is believe in him," he answered. "He's a tough kid, and I know that if he does survive, he won't let this slow him down."

"So, I've put in a request with the Hokage for you," Ibiki revealed, and Sakura sat herself upright in surprise.

"Huh?" She tilted her head, looking up at the man as he removed his hand.

"Team Three, led by Haruno Sakura previously consisted of Funai Nanako, Shimizu Masato and Aburame Shino," Ibiki said, "but due to their current positions as genin without an official team after a few 'coincidental' transfers, Hyuga Hinata and Inuzuka Kiba are being placed under your command also."

Sakura's eyes widened, but Ibiki didn't pause. Instead, he dropped another bombshell on her.

"Your team, being larger than a four man cell, has ended up in a unique position," Ibiki explained, "and as such, will no longer be working under the Intelligence Division."

"Instead, I heard a long term mission coming directly from the Hokage is in the cards.”

Masato's eyes opened slowly, squinting under the harsh lights of the hospital as he slowly pushed himself into a sitting position on weak arms.

But he was immediately pushed down again, Sakura tackling him in a hug, although careful not to cause pain.

"Uh, hey?" Masato said dumbly, bringing one arm to return the hug and the other to rub at his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Sakura whispered between sobs, and Masato paused. "I'm so sorry."

The boy didn't respond, though, but brought his other arm into the hug instead.

Nanako joined them a moment later, and a second after that Shino approached slowly and placed a firm, supporting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry," Sakura echoed herself, but Masato shushed her then.

"It's not your fault," Masato whispered, "but I know you'll never believe that, so I'll say this instead."

Sakura's breathing paused for a second as he whispered the words, "I forgive you."

But the tears gushed twice as fast a moment later. Tears of utter relief.

Chapter Text

Shikaku watched, as Team Three entered his office. The six man squad was an oddity in Konoha’s ranks, for a permanent team, but weirder things had been done.

“I trust Ibiki hasn't said much to you about the mission?” Shikaku asked, looking over at Sakura specifically as the team's leader. Her cheek had a scar, one that hadn't been there prior to her previous mission.

“Only that it will be long-term, Hokage-sama.” Sakura nodded her head gently.

“Good, then let me explain.” Shikaku said, “do you know anything about the Land of Mountains?”

“We were at war with them, thirty years ago.” Sakura nodded, “But I don't know much more.”

“Correct. The war ended in a ceasefire deal, though, before their shinobi village was decimated in an opportunistic attack by Tanigakure a few weeks after.” Shikaku explained. “As such, they have no shinobi of their own, anymore.”

“Last March, our Daimyo's nephew married their Daimyo's daughter. As such, relations have been improving between the Land of Fire and the Land of Mountains.

So as a showing of goodwill, and due to Mountains proximity to Earth Country, our Daimyo has offered a team of Konoha shinobi to act as bodyguard to their Daimyo.”

“We'll be guarding a Daimyo?” Masato spoke up, tilting his head, surprise evident on his face.

“Most of the time, no.” Shikaku chuckled, shaking his head. “Which is why I'm comfortable sending a team of mostly Genin on a mission like this.”

"For the most part, you will only be accompanying the Daimyo on trips outside of the capital of his country, a showing of force type thing." Shikaku explained, "It means you'll have plenty of time to spend training and such, too.”

“Usually, a medic is required for these types of long term missions, right?” Kiba piped up a moment later. “In case of serious injury?”

“We have a medic. Or at least, one in training.” Nanako chuckled, smirking. Her, Sakura and Shino glanced at Masato.

“Oh, yeah! I've been training medical Ninjutsu for a while now, at the hospital.” Masato chuckled, realizing Kiba and Hinata likely didn't know. “Tsunade-sama has taught me quite a lot.”

“Your clan's and sensei have been informed of your upcoming absence, and are advised to provide you all with adequate training supplies and instruction for the duration.” Shikaku continued, once that tangent ended.

Sakura was surprised at the amount Shikaku seemed to care for their growth, but it was smart when she stopped and thought about it.

Konoha didn't waste their weapon's potential.

"Sakura, Ibiki let me know he had Yugao put together a set of scrolls detailing Kenjutsu techniques you should learn over the course of your stay, share these with Shino," Shikaku continued to speak, "Nanako will receive a similar training plan from Anko. Kiba and Hinata's clans are doing the same for them.”

“I was wondering why Tsunade-sama gave me so much homework the last time I saw her…” Masato giggled to himself, realising she had already provided him his.

“Sarutobi-sensei did something similar… He gave me so many Earth Release technique guides.” Sakura chuckled.

"You should also make use of the Archive as best you can before leaving," Shikaku continued, "find something you want to focus on during your time away and request a copy made. I also recommend you pack anything valuable to you away to travel alongside, you never know what can happen on a mission like this. Having a piece of home can be a lifesaver, or at least something to keep close as you die.”

Sakura nodded at that last bit, and made note to pack up her scorpion contract, alongside the stack of paintings she'd found in her father's study.

"How long will this mission last?" Sakura asked once the Hokage sounded finished.

"A year and a half," Shikaku said, "I will be receiving reports of your performance during this time, and I will be considering field promotions for those who exceed expectations."

The fact he didn't simply look at the genin present made Sakura's heart jump a moment. Being considered for promotion so young was quite a feat, even if she didn't get it.

But getting it would feel great, too.

"Inside I've put Yugao's instructions, alongside Sarutobi-sama’s guides on Earth Release," Ibiki said as he handed Sakura a storage scroll. "Also, a guide on building immunity to different poisons and venoms, you should follow it with your scorpions."

"On top of that, Anko requested a trap making guide be added, whilst Izumo and Kotetsu asked for a new Chokuto be added. They paid for it themselves, so be sure to thank them when you return."

Ibiki continued fussing over her, looking her up and down to see if she was truly ready. She was not found lacking.

"I don't expect you to master everything, but I wanted to include it all just in case," the man explained, "oh, and Hatake came by and requested I give you this."

In Ibiki's hand, taken from his pocket after Sakura had accepted the storage scroll, was another.

"I didn't check what's inside, and I won't blame you if you don't want to take it."

Sakura shook her head before reaching out for the scroll. The man may not be her sensei, he never really was, but he had retrieved her after she collapsed of chakra exhaustion, she owed him for that.

As far as she was concerned, accepting this gift was a good enough way to repay him. Even if she didn't bother opening it yet.

"The Land of Mountains is a small country located between the Land of Grass and the Land of Earth," Sakura explained as Team Three jumped from tree to tree. "Although it's mountainous terrain has protected it for most of its history, a prolonged war against Konoha left it weakened before Tanigakure came along and destroyed their shinobi village."

"That must sting,” Kiba spoke, his voice a little too loud as always. “Losing your whole shinobi force like that.”

“Yes, which is why we can't take it personally if some of the citizens are distrustful towards us.” Shino added as they moved along. “Many of them blame our village, that is where their anger lays.”

"We're as much diplomats as we are shinobi on this mission," Nanako mumbled, and the rest nodded in agreement.

"The way we are perceived is how Konoha as a whole will be perceived by the people of Mountains," Sakura said then.

“So we're basically doing two jobs?” Masato tilted his head, “Guarding the Daimyo, and improving relations between our countries?”

“Exactly, so be mindful of that.” Sakura hummed, leading the group. “Anyway, we'll be arriving near the border soon, so be prepared. Keep your guard up, but don't be hostile.”

“You must be Team Three," the man who greeted the group said as they approached the gates of the capital. He was tall, and fairly old, with salt and pepper coloured hair. “Please, allow me to escort you to the Daimyo's residence."

"Of course," Sakura replied, taking note of the man's katana. She glanced towards Masato, who's head shook.

Not a shinobi, as expected.

Sakura was surprised as she walked through the city. She knew the country was nearly entirely mountainous, so it being built on such flat ground was surprising.

Despite the glares some of the older citizens of the city sent their way, most of the people they passed cast curious glances at their headbands rather than looks of disdain. Sakura made an effort to stand tall at the head of their group, and walked alongside the soldier who was leading them along. She didn't want to seem subordinate to him at all.

Soon after their arrival, they had made it to a large, traditional looking home. Sakura had expected some form of palace, but it seemed that wasn't to the Daimyo's tastes. She could only hope none of her teammates passed judgement. She doubted they would, of course though.

The man who was leading them had a word with one of the guards at the gate before it was opened, the man joined by a couple more as they made it inside.

Not that regular soldiers could do anything against shinobi, if Sakura's team were there to cause trouble.

"Riku-sama will see to you soon," the man said, leading them down a hallway. "In the meantime I will show you to your lodgings."

The hallway led them back outside, although to the other side of the large house, and into a courtyard. On the other side sat what seemed to be a barracks, and beside it sat a second, smaller one.

"Riku-sama doesn't need two barracks worth of samurai on hand for his protection here in the capital," the man who had still yet to introduce himself said, "especially with you here, so the second building will house you for the duration of your stay."

Sakura nodded in understanding at that, as the man brought them inside. It was basic, with six beds and little room for much more. A bathroom was thankfully provided, too.

"I'll leave you all to settle in," he said then, turning to leave. "Riku-sama will likely call for you this evening."

Once the man had left, Sakura gave a sigh of relief before a buzzing filled the air, insects flying out from Shino's sleeves.

"Make sure this room is secure, and be careful nobody notices your Kikaichu snooping around," Sakura ordered, watching as the insects flew towards the various walls and corners of the room.

"Hinata, scan the property for anything you think is abnormal," she ordered next, and the Hyuga girl nodded in agreement before the veins around her eyes bulged.

A moment later, Shino nodded to let her know the room was safe, whilst Hinata did the same a moment after.

"Good, we should be able to settle down for now then," Sakura replied, sitting herself on one of the beds. The one closest to the door.

She placed her pack down to the ground alongside everyone else before Masato went and passed out a tag to each of them.

Kiba and Hinata seemed confused, but as Nanako placed hers on her pack, causing it to camouflage into the background, they nodded in understanding.

"It's based on Nanako's summons," Masato explained as he activated his own. "I can't use them on people since their chakra disrupts the flow inside the seal, but these should last at least a month before we need to reapply them."

"I can still smell them," Kiba noted a second later, with Akamaru barking in agreement by his feet, and Hinata activated her Byakugan again a second after.

"And I can see the flow of chakra through the seal using my eyes," she added.

Masato nodded, "It's only visual, but in a country with little to no shinobi presence, it should do."

Sakura nodded at that, and slid her backpack beneath her bed. The colours of the camouflaged bag shifted as its environment did.

"Anything else we gotta do?" Kiba asked a second later, and Sakura shook her head.

"Nothing I can think of," she said, "we've secured our housing, and ensured the Daimyo is safe."

"In that case," Masato smiled, grabbing his own bag and rooting through it briefly, "I'm going to get started on my training."

Mumbling went through the room as Nanako did the same. She was meditating seconds later, trying to get a feel for the new state of her chakra coils.

Shino followed soon after, beginning to read through one of the scrolls he'd brought with him whilst Kiba did the same. Hinata fell into a meditation of her own, too.

Sakura smiled at her focusing teammates, before reaching under her bed and pulling out the pair of storage scrolls.

She placed the one from Ibiki aside for the moment and instead went to open the one from Kakashi.

The seal was different, and so she glanced over at Masato.

The boy got her meaning immediately and jogged over, studying the seal with curious eyes.

"It's a kind of seal made to hold other seals," Masato explained, "you could store a storage scroll inside of this, without the problems usually caused by that coming up."

Sakura thanked the boy before he went back to his own reading, placing a hand onto the seal as she did.

Pushing a drop of her chakra into the seal, she watched as a cloud of smoke appeared, when it cleared, she stared dumbfounded at what lay before her.

A scroll, as wide as a normal one but thicker than any she'd seen before. The sight was almost comical.

A note sat neatly on top of it, although the handwriting was anything but neat.

'Sakura, I failed Team Seven, and without a doubt I failed you the most. I do not expect forgiveness, please take this as a token of my remorse.'

Sakura read the note over three times before sighing. It was too much to ask for a simple 'I'm sorry,' from him, it seemed.

Placing the note into her pocket, she slowly unraveled the scroll a bit.

It had no title, no name. Simply another storage seal. Unraveling it further revealed another, and then another.

Choosing one at random, she opened it, and another scroll appeared.

"If they all have scrolls in, this is very awkward." Sakura muttered to herself before opening the scroll.

It didn't have another seal inside thankfully, but instead contained instructions.

"Wind Release: Breakthrough," was the title, and Sakura's eyes widened. The entire thing was handwritten in the same handwriting as Kakashi's note.

Quickly sealing that scroll back in place, she went to another seal and revealed the contents.

"Ninja Art: Poison Mist," the title read, the text in the same handwriting, instructions on how to perform the jutsu.

"Holy shit," Sakura's eyes went wide and her breath hitched, staring at the scroll. It was so thick, she doubted it was anything short of several hundred seals.

Taking the note out of her pocket again, she read the signature placed at the bottom. Her mouth twitched into a tiny smirk as she truly took in what he had given her.

"Hatake Kakashi, Copy Nin.”

The man who had used his Sharingan to learn over a thousand techniques had decided to gift her hundreds of them.

Chapter Text

"Team Three, from Konoha," the man at the door announced as Sakura strode in, her teammates following close behind.

At the far end of the chamber, seated on an ornate throne, was the man she presumed to be Riku, the Daimyo of the Land of Mountains. He was balding, with only a thin ring of hair circling his scalp, and his robes were woven with such extravagant fabric that they practically shone under the light.

"Please, you may approach me," he said. Though his words were polite, his tone left no room for her to refuse. Sakura obeyed, stepping forward while her team maintained some distance behind her.

"Introduce your team," Riku ordered, his gaze fixed solely on her.

Sakura straightened her posture and spoke in her most professional tone. "I am Haruno Sakura, Chunin and squad leader. Accompanying me are Funai Nanako, Shimizu Masato, Aburame Shino, Inuzuka Kiba, and Hyuga Hinata. All five are Genin."

Riku gave a curt nod, his sharp eyes scanning her as if measuring her worth. He did not so much as glance at her teammates.

"Good," he said at last. "I am Yamaguchi Riku. You will refer to me as Riku-sama."

"Of course, Riku-sama," Sakura replied, bowing respectfully.

Riku turned to the man beside him, the same one who had led them inside. "Have they been shown their accommodations?"

The man nodded.

"Fantastic," Riku said, his voice tinged with mild indifference. "Then I will allow you to go about your business, survey the grounds, or do whatever it is you shinobi do in your spare time. I do not mind."

Sakura suppressed the urge to roll her eyes at his ignorance. She had just turned to leave when the doors burst open.

"Riku-sama!" A soldier stumbled into the room, breathless. "The bandits have returned! They’re storming the eastern gate. Over a hundred of them!"

Sakura’s muscles tensed. That wasn’t just a simple raid; it was an assault. She turned swiftly to Rikuq, watching for his response.

"Send every soldier we can spare!" Riku barked, rising from his seat. "Ginmaru will lead them!"

Sakura recognized the name. But here it belonged to the very man who had escorted them into the city. She almost smirked at the coincidence, thinking briefly of Nanako’s main summon, but she pushed the thought aside. This was no time for amusement.

"If I may, Riku-sama," she interjected before Ginmaru could leave. "My team can handle this for you."

"You are here to protect me," Riku snapped, shaking his head quickly. He thought of himself first, and thus the shinobi were to stay with him.

Sakura exhaled slowly, maintaining her composure. "We hardly need six shinobi to guard one man from bandits," she reasoned. "I can leave my entire team behind and eliminate them myself, if you wish.”

Riku’s eyes widened slightly at her boldness. He studied her, then hummed in thought.

"A test of your worthiness, then," he mused, before nodding. "Very well. But Ginmaru and my men will accompany you."

Sakura bowed. "I appreciate your willingness, Riku-sama. I will not disappoint."

Sakura didn’t wait for Ginmaru to muster his soldiers. In a blur of motion, she vanished with a body flicker, reappearing atop the eastern wall.

What she saw made her blood run cold.

The section of city burned.

Flames licked the rooftops, casting twisted shadows along the streets. Smoke choked the air, and the screams of civilians pierced the night. Below, bandits surged through the broken gate, cutting down anyone in their path. The scene was eerily reminiscent of Konoha's destruction after her Chunin Exams.

Sakura's grip tightened around the hilt of her chokuto. She would not show them mercy.

In a flash, she jumped down from the rooftop. The moment before her feet even touched the ground, her blade sliced clean through a bandit's neck. Blood sprayed across the cobblestones.

Another fell before the first had even hit the floor. A body flicker placed her behind a third, and he barely had time to register her presence before a trio of water bullets ripped through his torso. A kunai lodged itself in the throat of another, cutting his scream short.

Panic rippled through the enemy ranks. Some turned to fight, others bolted for the gate, only to be struck down by arrows from the archers above. Ginmaru had arrived, joining the men who had been stationed on the wall already, but been too outnumbered to fight back.

Sakura smirked and surged forward, her Water Palm Blade technique igniting in her left hand with her chokuto in her right.

They never stood a chance.

The battle was over in less than ten minutes. Bodies littered the streets, blood seeping between the cracks in the stone, before Sakura used her Ninjutsu to put out the flames surrounding her, even if it used up most of her chakra.

"It is done, Riku-sama," Sakura announced as she returned, bowing before the Daimyo. She was slightly damp, having used Water Release to clean the blood from her skin and clothes, but she was otherwise unscathed.

Nanako and Masato stood near Riku, while the rest of her team remained outside, securing the perimeter.

"It seems you are quite capable, after all." Riku chuckled, his lips curling into a satisfied smile, "I will ask Ginmaru for details later. For now, you may rest."

Sakura bowed once more. "Thank you, Riku-sama."

With a subtle gesture, she signaled Nanako and Masato to follow her, as she left the room. The pair followed her after bowing quickly to the Daimyo, who waved them off.

"The perimeter seems pretty clear for now," Kiba said simply, slipping into their barracks and taking a seat on his bed.

They had been in the Land of Mountains for over a week now, settling into a steady routine.

Every morning, midday, and evening, one of them would sweep the perimeter while Hinata did the same for the interior with her Byakugan.

Nothing had come up so far, since the bandit attack, and Hinata confirmed the area was still secure with a small nod.

"Good. Then we’ll get started on today’s training," Sakura said, watching as Shino stood to follow her while the others remained seated. Masato was focused on his medical studies, Nanako was still practicing forming hand seals with only one hand, and Kiba was reading through a scroll adorned with the Inuzuka clan symbol. Hinata, cross-legged, was deep in meditation, her Byakugan active.

Sakura and Shino made their way into the courtyard. Normally, they would have found a more secluded spot for their kenjutsu training, but Riku had requested they remain on the estate for the next month as additional protection before his upcoming trip to the Land of Grass, as well as in case of another bandit raid.

As they drew their weapons, a few of the samurai stationed at the estate gathered to watch, as they had been every time Hsino and Sakura sparred in plain view.

Then, they began.

Shino’s strikes were heavier, but Sakura was faster. For every solid hit he landed with his dulled practice blade, Sakura struck twice with lighter, more precise blows.

With more bruises than his training partner, Shino switched tactics, surging chakra through his body to enhance his speed. He leaped into the air, spinning his blade in a circular motion to disorient, then brought it down with all his strength.

But Sakura was ready. She dodged backward just in time, leaving Shino panting as he landed, his sword raised to defend against her next move.

Slowly, Sakura focused her chakra. Not into her limbs to enhance her strength, but into her blade, coating it in a faint blue aura. One of the techniques she was learning from the scroll Kakashi had given her.

A quiet gasp came from one of the samurai at the front of the audience, Ginmaru, the head samurai who had first greeted them upon their arrival.

Sakura ignored it, charging forward.

But the Land of Iron’s sabre technique was unstable on her weapon. By the time she struck at Shino, the chakra coating had already flickered and faded to almost nothing.

"That’s annoying," Sakura muttered, lowering her blade, knowing the spar was over at that moment. "I can use it at full strength easily, but controlling the output for a spar is impossible."

"I imagine it isn’t really a technique meant for sparring," Shino shrugged with a sigh. "Samurai have strict rules about what’s acceptable against comrades, even in training. It was probably never designed with weaker versions in mind."

“You're correct. Even still,” Ginmaru stepped forward then, his hand resting on the hilt of his katana.

"That was an impressive display of swordsmanship from both of you," he said honestly. "I would be honored if either of you would spar with me next."

Sakura glanced at Shino, who shook his head, before nodding her own. "Okay, I’ll be your opponent, then."

Ginmaru nodded, offering a small but respectful smile before taking Shino’s starting position. Shino stepped back, joining the gathered samurai to watch.

"Begin!" Shino called a moment later.

But Ginmaru didn’t move.

Sakura mirrored him, watching carefully. She knew he lacked the ability to use jutsu, based on what both Masato and Hinata had told her, but that didn’t mean he was incapable of chakra augmentation. He would just have to use it in short bursts, given his smaller reserves.

Then, he shot forward.

Faster than she anticipated, he closed the distance in an instant, his dull blade grazing her arm as she barely managed to push off the ground and evade the strike.

Sakura scowled as he retreated, his stance resetting. He was using chakra to enhance his speed, but his attacks had been normal strength. He was conserving what little chakra he had, focusing on getting close enough to strike rather than making every hit lethal.

Death by a thousand strikes.

But Sakura wasn’t going to let him get away with that. Taking a deep breath, she lifted her sword, gripping the hilt between her teeth as she flashed through a series of hand seals.

A moment later, water surged from her hands, forming two identical copies of herself. "Water Release: Water Clone," she muttered, drawing her sword once more as she and her clones charged.

Ginmaru didn’t falter. He adjusted his grip, his stance shifting into a careful defense as the three Sakuras split, attacking from different angles.

"Dance of the Crescent Moon," all three whispered in unison, blades slashing down at him from above.

But Ginmaru was no easy opponent.

His grip tightened, knuckles white, as he slashed out in a swift counter. He ducked low, his sword passing through the two clones, dispelling them instantly.

The real Sakura’s training blade struck his back at the same moment.

Ginmaru stilled. Then, slowly, he straightened and sheathed his weapon with a quiet nod.

Sakura did the same.

Both combatants bowed before speaking.

"You could have beaten me without your ninjutsu," Ginmaru said simply.

"Maybe," Sakura admitted, "but it wouldn’t have been without consequences in a real fight. The Dance of the Crescent Moon requires at least two clones to work properly."

Ginmaru nodded at that. "I haven’t had a spar like that since I left the Land of Iron. I appreciate you indulging me."

Sakura offered him a small smile. "Thank you for taking the time to assist in my training."

As the duel ended, most of the gathered samurai dispersed, though a few remained behind to watch the next few rounds between Sakura and Shino.

"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall," Sakura muttered, slamming her palms against the ground.

A faint tremor rippled through the dirt beneath her fingertips before the earth responded to her chakra. Slowly, a wall of solid stone rose from the ground, standing about as tall as she was and spanning a few meters in width. It wasn’t perfect, there were a few cracks running through its surface and the edges were uneven, but it was fairly sturdy.

Still kneeling, Sakura leaned back to examine her handiwork and allowed herself a small smile.

"Good job," Nanako called from where she sat a few feet behind, her arms crossed as she studied the structure with a nod of approval. "It took me at least a month to get that right."

Sakura exhaled, dusting off her hands. "Yeah, but you didn’t have elemental manipulation training beforehand like I did. It still took me a week just to manage something this basic."

Nanako scoffed, shaking her head. "Don’t sell yourself short. It might look simple, but this is still a B-rank technique. And you picking this as your second Earth Release jutsu right after the practice brick? Kind of insane."

Sakura shrugged. "I figured I’d start with something useful in battle. But I’ll probably go for something easier next."

Nanako tapped a finger against her chin, considering. "How about the Hiding Like a Mole Technique? It’s pretty versatile. You could use it to evade attacks, spy on enemies, or just avoid detection. And if you learn that, you can pick up the Headhunter Technique right after, too.”

At that, Sakura couldn’t help but smirk. The memory of Kakashi dragging Sasuke underground during the bell test resurfaced in her mind. If only he had stayed down there a little longer…

"That actually sounds reasonable," she admitted, rolling her shoulders before standing. "I guess I’ll give it a shot."

Nanako grinned and pulled out the scroll she’d received from Anko, tossing it over. Sakura caught it with ease and unrolled it, her eyes scanning the contents, looking for the right technique.

She found it pretty quickly. The technique’s principles seemed straightforward enough, chakra manipulation to soften the earth around her, allowing her to slip underground like it was water.

Easy in theory. In practice? That was a different story. Still, Sakura wasn’t one to back down from a challenge.

Setting the scroll down, she took a deep breath and did the hand seals once more. This time, she let her chakra seep into the earth, focusing on making it pliable beneath her feet. The dirt resisted at first, stubborn and unyielding, but with a little more force, she could feel it start to shift.

Nanako watched in silence, waiting.

A few minutes passed, then… Sakura sank. Well, partially.

Her legs disappeared up to the knees, but when she tried to go further, the earth suddenly hardened, trapping her in place. She frowned, wiggling her toes experimentally.

Nanako laughed gently. "Next time, at least make sure you can get back out." She advised unhelpfully.

Sakura shot her a glare before focusing again, sending a pulse of chakra downward. The dirt softened once more, and with a grunt, she yanked herself free, stepping away from the hole she had made.

"Okay," she exhaled, shaking off the dust. "Not the worst first attempt."

Nanako smirked. "Not bad at all. But try putting more emphasis on spreading your chakra evenly next time. Right now, you're focusing too much on the entry point."

Sakura nodded, rolling her shoulders before getting back into position. This time, she was going to get it right.

"Shit!" Kiba yelped loudly, gripping his arm. He had been sharpening his kunai when his grip slipped, the blade slicing deep into his wrist. Akamaru at his side barked, glancing over at the others, alerting them even more.

Sakura moved first, grabbing her first aid kit and rushing towards him. She pulled out a roll of bandages, ready to wrap them tightly around his wound, when a hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"Let me do it," Masato said, smiling his usual, creepy smile.

Sakura hesitated for only a second before nodding, stepping aside. Masato had better first aid knowledge than her at this point, and his medical ninjutsu would probably heal most of the damage anyway.

She watched as he set the bandages aside, his hands glowing a soft green as he held them over the wound. A moment later, when he pulled them away, the gash was completely gone. Only the blood that had already escaped remained.

"Thanks, man," Kiba said, frowning at his arm. "I really need to be more careful."

Masato didn’t contradict him, simply smiling as he handed the bandages back to Sakura. "The area will feel tender for a few days, but it’ll be back to normal after that."

"Good," Sakura said, tucking her kit away. "It would’ve been annoying if we had to guard the Daimyo in a couple of weeks without our frontline tracker."

At that, the team’s focus sharpened.

"Speaking of, we should discuss the formation we’ll be taking on the mission," she said, and everyone shuffled closer to the center of the room.

"Kiba will take point as usual. His sense of smell is invaluable, and it works best up front," she said, receiving murmurs of agreement in response. "Hinata will take the rear for similar reasons. She’ll be our main lookout."

"Nanako and I will take the left side, since she’s still not back to full strength," she continued. "Masato will take the right as a third lookout and our primary medic."

"Shino, you’ll be our scout," she declared. "You’ll move ahead, just inside of Hinata’s Byakugan range, and signal us if there’s a problem."

"I assume I’m to avoid engaging in combat until you send others to back me up?" Shino asked.

Sakura nodded. "If combat is inevitable before we get there, focus on survival. We have more than enough skill in this team to take down most anyone looking to get the jump on the Daimyo."

Before anyone could respond, the door slid open sharply.

A soldier stood there, breathing heavily. His eyes found Sakura immediately.

"They’re back," he said. "The bandits. And they brought more men.”

Chapter Text

"Masato, Nanako, Hinata, Kiba," Sakura barked, instantly shifting into command mode. "You four protect Riku-sama."

"Shino," she turned to the Aburame. "Have Riku's guard form a perimeter around the residence, then take command here."

"What about you...?" the soldier who had come to report the city's attack asked.

"I'll go combat the bandits. I trust Ginmaru already knows?" she said, looking at the man.

"Yes, he took as many men as he could to fight," the soldier nodded. "They’ve probably already engaged the enemy by now."

"Good. I'll go join them."

From the rooftops, Sakura watched as the soldiers of Mountain Country clashed with the bandits, the roars of battle echoing through the streets of the capital.

There had to be at least a few hundred of them, if she could even call such a large force "bandits."

The way they attacked made it immediately clear that their leader was present.

They stuck to groups, resisting the urge to break ranks for looting or murdering civilians. They were acting almost like an army.

A boring one, in Sakura's eyes. They were little more than civilians with some weapons training. Nothing compared to a shinobi.

No, the problem wasn't that they could overpower her. They couldn't.

The problem was that it would take time to kill every single one of them, and she had no way to cut off their escape.

She had techniques that could affect a wide area, like the Poison Fog Ninjutsu she had begun learning from Kakashi's scroll of scrolls, but that was indiscriminate. It would kill her enemies and allies alike, as well as any civilians in the buildings nearby.

She could use Water Release, but on the large scale she would need, that had a similar issue. The destruction it would cause would reflect poorly on her and Konoha.

Her only choice was to leap down and join the fight.

Her Chokuto glowed blue as she pumped her chakra into it, activating the Samurai Sabre technique. Unlike in her spars with Shino, she didn't need to hold back here, making it far easier to use.

As she landed among the bandits, she spun, her blade flashing in a single motion. A group of them dropped dead, decapitated in an instant.

She flickered to another group, where soldiers were struggling, and repeated the move.

Again and again, she wiped out small groups of bandits, but they kept coming.

It was truly an army. And when she caught sight of the one commanding them at the back near the entrance, she froze.

Usoko. Family name unknown. A once-renowned shinobi from Kagero Village, famous for her Lightning Release techniques.

Her skin was dark and wrinkled with age. But her eyes, piercing bright blue, were exactly as they appeared in her aged bingo book entry.

She barked out orders, too far away for Sakura to hear. But Sakura knew immediately: she had to kill her, rather than waste time on small fry.

Carefully, she clasped her hands together and ran through a series of seals.

She sank into the ground and shot across the battlefield beneath everyone's feet.

Then, her hands emerged, grabbing Usoko's ankles and yanking her down, burying her up to the neck in the earth beneath the cobblestone street.

Sakura wasted no time, launching herself out of the ground…

Only to be blasted back as a foot collided with her chest.

Usoko had escaped easily, lightning crackling around her hands.

"Oh, Konoha-nin are as full of themselves as always," she said, her voice deep and powerful, yet strangely melodic. "Lightning chakra beats Earth, Sakura."

Sakura's eyes widened. She knew that ever since she killed Baki, her name had been added to the bingo book, but she hadn't expected to be recognized for it. She was only a low-ranked threat, after all.

"You memorized the bingo book or something?" she scowled, standing up and catching her breath as she drew her chokuto again.

"Only the Konoha-nin," Usoko smirked, watching Sakura carefully. "They're the ones I'm after, you see."

Sakura tensed, but she understood immediately. "You want revenge. Why not go after Tanigakure? They're the ones who destroyed your village."

"I don't care about Kagero Village," Usoko scoffed, the lightning crackling around her intensifying. "I care about how Konoha killed my husband."

Sakura paused at that. It made sense. The two villages had been at war before Kagero’s destruction.

"I see," she smirked. "Then if you want revenge, come get it."

"Oh, I will."

Sakura panted hard, leaping backward once again. She was on the defensive, losing ground and energy against a far more skilled, experienced opponent.

It almost reminded her of sparring with Hiruzen, except back then, her life had never been in danger.

"You're persistent, I'll give you that," Usoko growled, aiming another punch at Sakura’s head.

Sakura ducked just in time, shooting her arm out, chokuto in hand, trying to slashh at Usoko’s legs.

But she was too fast.

Sakura scowled. Even when she saw an opening, she couldn’t take advantage of it. The difference in speed was too great.

She needed to keep Usoko still. That was the only way to land a decisive, final blow.

She flickered backward, creating distance, hands clasping together as she wove her seals.

"Water Release: Starch Syrup Capturing Field!"

A massive wave of thick, sticky water spewed from her mouth. One of the first Water Ninjutsu Izumo had taught her.

Usoko reacted immediately, leaping high into the air with such force that the cobblestones beneath her cracked.

Only to be knocked back down mid-leap…

Ginmaru.

He had been watching, waiting for the right moment. He struck her from above, slashing down in a move reminiscent of Shino’s Hazy Moon Night technique.

Usoko slammed into the adhesive water below, struggling as she glared up at Sakura.

"This will be your end," Sakura said, watching closely as she clasped her hands together again.

"Water Release: Water Shuriken!"

The water below shifted, forming the shape of a shuriken.

It shot forward, piercing straight through Usoko’s chest before dissipating back into liquid, losing its shape.

Chapter Text

Ibiki was surprised when a small scorpion appeared in front of his office door, a scroll almost twice its size strapped to its back.

The small creature crawled up his desk before disappearing in a puff of smoke, and Ibiki couldn't help the smile that crossed his face as he picked up the scroll.

He hadn't expected a message from Sakura so soon, but he wasn’t about to complain.

Opening the scroll, he began to read.

‘Ibiki-sensei,

I know I've been gone for less than a month, but I wanted to fill you in on my progress with my training and let you know about the development caused by Kakashi's gift.

After we arrived, I began training to further my Kenjutsu and start my Earth Release training.

So far, I've mastered the Dance of the Crescent Moon and a couple of Earth Release Ninjutsu. It was difficult at first, but I got the hang of them eventually.

The development I spoke of is that Kakashi actually gave me a fantastic gift, and I wanted you to thank him for me.

He gave me a storage scroll containing over three hundred technique instructions. Many of them are useless, and I have already mastered a number of the Water Release Ninjutsu inside, but I have already made use of it within my Kenjutsu, learning the Samurai Sabre Technique from the Land of Iron.

He may have been a terrible sensei, and I have still yet to receive an "I'm sorry" from him, but he is a good comrade, and I would appreciate it if you could deliver that message to him for me.

We did have a small issue recently, regarding the Missing Nin known as Usoko, from Kagero Village, but I dealt with her to protect the Daimyo. She was fast, but luckily me and Ginmaru, the head Samurai, got the jump on her.

Other than my own progress, the rest of our team is doing well.

Shino is working hard in our Kenjutsu studies, and Nanako is making progress with one-handed seals. Masato is already better than most at medical Ninjutsu, and both Kiba and Hinata are working to improve their abilities with their clan techniques.

The mission itself is monotonous and dull, but recently, it has become better. The head samurai of the Daimyo's guard occasionally joins Shino and me for Kenjutsu spars, and a few others have followed suit. I haven’t learned much from him directly, but he is skilled, and practicing against various opponents is helpful.

Hinata and Kiba have been conducting routine perimeter and interior scans of the Daimyo's residence three times a day, and we have yet to find anything that poses a danger to the Daimyo's life from inside the premises, which is promising.

Shino and Masato have been taking turns standing guard at the gate, and Masato's sensing range has improved quite substantially because of it. Shino's insects have also gotten better at avoiding the rain thanks to this too. It is surprisingly wet in Mountain Country.

Nanako has been helping me with my training since she is skilled with Earth Ninjutsu, and it has helped a great deal. Her skill with her ninja wire has also improved incredibly, too, which is something I thought impossible after her showing in the Chunin Exams. Honestly, I think she'd be a harder fight now than she was during the exams, even without Ninjutsu. Especially now that Masato has helped her tattoo her summoning contract onto her arm, allowing her to perform the technique without seals.

Anyway, I tell you all this in part because I know you'd want to hear, but also because I want you to pass this on to Hokage-sama. I firmly believe that all the members of Team Three are Chunin level, and I'm sad that they will miss the next exams due to this mission.

Thank you, and I miss you.’

“Our formation will be as we discussed.” Sakura said, as the group prepared to set off.

Riku was headed to the Land of Grass to meet with their Daimyo and officials. Grass was allied with fire over shared enemies, mainly Earth Country, and Fire being their main trade partner. As such, with Mountains Country growing closer to Fire, growing closer to Grass was logical.

The trip, there and back, was set to take three months, given the civilian pace, as well as the stay. It didn't help that their pace was further slowed by the ridiculous form of travel the Daimyo of the elemental nations chose to use.

Riku sat inside of what is called a litter, a small box with golden trims and velvet curtain covered windows, carried by a pair of servants. A symbol of status, and one that would slow them down greatly.

A moment later, Sakura was cursing the 'vehicle' even more.

"Riku-sama requests two of you carry his litter," the servant said, a smug expression over his face. Sakura got the distinct impression the man was lying, her training with Ibiki kicking in.

Riku wasn't the smartest from what she'd seen, but he would refrain from insulting those charged with his life, especially when Team Three were only present thanks to the Fire Daimyo's good will.

Immediately Sakura wanted to punch the man, but refrained and simply scowled.

"We are here for his protection, we will not be used as his vehicle," she said simply. "I will go and let him know his request has been denied, personally."

The man seemed to panic at hat, and Sakura knew that he had been lying immediately. She ignored him, and approached the Daimyo's box from behind, bowing upon him noticing her.

“Apologies for interrupting you, Riku-sama,* She spoke as politely as she could, “but I wanted to inform Our that the servant over there just made an attempt at having members of m team bear your litter.”

“Truly?” The Daimyo hummed, his eyes squinting at the man, his face going pale as he made eye contact, bowing awkwardly. “Then he will be replaced, the moment we return. He is fired from his position immediately. We mean no insult to Konoha or her shinobi.”

Sakura nodded, "I did not think someone as esteemed as yourself would, I simply wanted to inform you of your employee's laziness."

"I thank you for the service, then," Riku replied in a dismissive tone before shutting the curtain.

Sakura bowed again to be polite before returning to her team. A few moments later she watched as an older servant approached the one that had pulled the attempt at tricking them, before scolding him.

Then, the younger man was sent away, and Sakura made a note to keep an eye out for him. No matter how insignificant he may seem, he could have friends in the Daimyo's employ and seek revenge after the loss of his job.

You could never be too careful. Paranoia is a shinobi’s greatest ally.

“I can smell two people ahead,” Kiba whispered into Sakura's ear, having broken formation to inform her discreetly. “One smells like dirt, and ash. The other is kinda hard to tell. Blood and… Dango, maybe.”

"Hinata," Sakura calls over her shoulder with a slight scowl, "do you see anything?"

Hinata focused a moment before her Byakugan eyes widened.

"It isn't Iwa," she said, almost assuaging their fears before speaking again, bringing their concern right back, “they both have slashed hitai-ate, one is from Takigakure, the other is from... Yugakure. They're wearing matching black cloaks, red clouds."

"Shit," Nanako muttered before Sakura paused in her tracks.

"Stop," she ordered the group. Mainly servants, a few samurai also accompanied them. She knew that uniform. Ibiki had mentioned it briefly. It was what Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame had worn, when entering Konoha.

"What's going on?!" Riku asked, his tone demanding answers.

"Rogue shinobi are nearby," Sakura answered simply, "we need you and your men to remain here, alongside two of my teammates."

The man didn't argue, simply nodding and allowing the Samurai to take position surrounding the litter.

It was as Sakura was forming a plan that Hinata gasped.

"Shino has made contact," she muttered, "no combat has begun, but things look tense."

Sakura snapped into action with a nod. "Kiba, Hinata come with me."

The two former members of Team Eight nodded as they followed her forwards. Hinata told her the directions as they ran.

Soon, they found themselves off the road entirely, landing behind a stiff looking Shino and in front of two shinobi.

"More Konoha Brats?" One of them said, hus eyes were the first thing Sakura noticed, red sclera and solid green pupils met her own emerald green eyes.

Getting a look at the pair, she didn't immediately recognise them from the bingo book, but she couldn't be sure they weren't a massive threat. Ibiki had said that five Konoha jonin had lost against two of their allies, and there was always the possibility of nobody having an accurate description of either of these two to give the bingo book.

"We can kill them and then move on," the other one said, "this mission won't be a good enough sacrifice for Jashin-sama, Kakuzu. Stop wasting my time."

The name drop made Sakura halt in her thought process then. Kakuzu, the bounty hunter, was well known throughout the shinobi world. He was a missing nin from Takigakure, and had a hefty bounty on his head.

But according to his small entry in the bingo book, he was supposed to be much older than he appeared before her.

"Shut up, Hidan," Kakuzu growled in return, "they could have information on our target, give it a moment."

Hidan scowled at that, but didn't make a move to contradict the order.

"So, do you know about our target's location or not?" Kakuzu asked with an intimidating expression covering his face.

"We do not," Shino replied calmly. "We are in Earth country, not Mountains."

"We received word that the Daimyo of Mountains was passing through," Kakuzu said, practically growling. "We also heard that he had recently acquired some Konoha bodyguards."

Shino's expression remained calm, and Sakura, Hinata and Kiba mimicked it.

"Whether I kill you quickly, or Hidan performs his long, ridiculous ritual depends on the outcome of our conversation here," Kakuzu threatened. "Will you tell us, or will we have to waste our time making you scream?"

None of them spoke though, and the man growled slightly at them.

"You're making this difficult," he scowled, before sighing a moment later. "Fine, Hidan, do what you will."

The second man's expression took a full one-eighty switch from bored, annoyed and murderous to excited, grinning and murderous, at that.

“Stall,” was the only thing she could get out, before intercepting the rogue. Her arm shook under the weight and strength put behind his scythe, barely blocked on time by her Chokuto.

He pulled his scythe back, and made another swing, blocked againn, but only just barely.

Then another, and another. Then another, and the steel of her month-old sword warps slightly.

One more, and the blade snaps, flying past Sakura's face and leaving a shallow cut on her cheek, just below the scar she had received fighting Sasuke.

Then another comes, even faster and harder than the last, and she grunts, barely catching it with the little blade she had left.

Then another, and it slices through the guard, making the weapon useless. She threw it to the ground in response, scowling.

Shino attempted to join the fray then, but received a harsh kick to the stomach for it.

"Wait your goddamn turn," Hidan snaps, a wild grin taking over his face. "I'm having a lot of fun with you! I'm taking my time, damnit!”

Hinata wasn't about to listen, though, watching as Hidan went to swing down at Sakura again, only to be pushed back by a blast of air, slamming into his side, and making him miss.

"Shit," Hidan mutters, the attack clearly having caused some amount of pain. "That's gonna get annoying quick.”

So, he changed targets, pushing his feet off the ground in a charge towards Hinata, but Sakura barrels into his side before he gets there, the same spot he was hit by the 'Eight Trigrams: Air Palm' technique.

He doesn't fall however, instead making a grab for the girl's hair.

Only for the sharp wire entwined in the bun she wore to dig into his hand, making him recoil in surprise as she jumps back.

Then, as he approaches her again, another of Team Three, alongside his ninken, barrels into him, this time in a much more deadly manner.

"Fang Passing Fang!" Kiba roared, and Akamaru barked loudly as well as they rotated through the air towards their opponent.

They only hit him once, drawing a little blood from the missing nin before Hidan dodged the second pass, however.

"Little shits," Hidan complained loudly from beside Kakuzu, causing a low chuckle to come from his partner.

"Can't handle a few genin?" Kakuzu mocked, "that's a new low, even for you."

"Shut it, you old sack of shit," Hidan spat with a glare, "they caught me off guard, and one of them isn't a genin."

Kakuzu squinted his eyes slightly at that before nodding, "so it seems. This is a four man cell, so one of them is the leader."

"Which one of you is it, then?!" Hidan growled, "I'll take you out first!"

None of them responded though, and Hidan's glare snapped to Kiba, who had landed beside Sakura with Akamaru beside him.

"Then I'll deal with you first, instead!" He roared, hoisting his Scythe over his shoulder before he shot forwards.

But he didn't make it before an invisible attack came at him, smashing into the side that had already been hit multiple times with a cracking sound.

Sakura's eyes widened, realising it wasn't an Air Palm that caused it, and carefully avoided looking in the direction she imagined Nanako's summon to be.

She didn't know which one the girl had sent after them, but she wasn't about to complain about a hidden ally.

In fact, more allies sounded fantastic, she weaved her hands through a series of hand seals, Hinata noticing and doing the same before Shino noticed as well, and surprising them all, followed up with the same jutsu.

"Summoning," all three called out, and before them stood four creatures.

Sakura had summoned Dokuka, the same summon she had used against Sasuke, whilst Hinata had summoned her pair of owls.

Before Shino stood a giant insect with a red hide, yellow midsection and black head.

"Find Nanako and Masato," Hinata ordered in a whisper at her owls, thankful she'd introduced them to her teammates before. "Take them, alongside the Daimyo and his men, and follow whatever orders Nanako gives you. Do not return here with the Daimyo under any circumstances."

The owls nodded and took off.

Not without issue, however. A roar of flame emerged from Kakuzu a moment later and barely missed one owl, singing its left wing.

Hinata knew he could smfl still, but without a doubt with more trouble than usual.

"Brats," Kakuzu muttered, realising that they were planning his target's escape. "Hidan, handle them here."

Kakuzu began to dart away soon after and Sakura knew none of them could stop him for long.

Except...

"Dokuka, you told me you were training your speed?" Sakura asked, receiving a quick nod. "Go after that man, stall him as best you can."

The scorpion nodded again soon after and sprints away, much faster than before. Shino began muttering at his own summon a second after.

"Follow the scorpion, assist her with long ranged attacks," he ordered, and the insect began flying away after the other summoned creature without a word.

"So, it's just us against this one?" Kiba muttered, glaring at an angry yet somehow also amused looking Hidan.

"Seems so," Sakura said, glad nobody had mentioned the hidden ally they had with one of Nanako's summons hiding.

"Your little friend may as well reveal themself, then," Hidan growled, but nothing happened. "Fuckin' coward. Suit yourself!"

Then, the missing nin charged forwards, and Shino managed to intercept him.

His Katana, unlike Sakura's now useless, shattered Chokuto, was in good condition. He still had no chance, but he could hopefully block enough attacks to give them time to counterattack.

Hinata took a step back, preparing to Air Palm when the time was right whilst Kiba did the same, crouching down and getting onto all fours, transforming Akamaru into a clone of himself as he did.

Sakura flashed her hands through various seals before blades of water emerged from her palms. It was times like this she wished she knew some sort of high level Ninjutsu like Naruto's Rasengan or Kakashi's Chidori, but instead she had to make do with what she had. If she attempted one of the high level techniques she knew it would surely lead to her chakra exhaustion, after summoning Dokuka.

Then, she decided to rush in too, managing to get a shallow cut into the man's left before he smashed his foot hard against her chest.

"Stop fucking interrupting me," he growled, and despite the pain Sakura couldn't help but chuckle softly. His attitude towards them showed he wasn't taking them seriously, even now.

She could work with that.

“Just… Let… Me… Hit you!” Hidan roared, both irritated and maniacal as he swung his scythe over and over.

If Sakura had to guess though, she'd say he was actually loving his time throwing them around, as they barely dodged his scythe.

Shino didn't let up his continuous blocking either, though. Whilst Hinata peppered the man with Air Palms, Akamaru and Kiba occasionally barreled into him with Fang Passing Fang, too.

Sakura meanwhile did the same, occasionally switching places with Shino, dodging backwards and striking if an opportunity arose.

Her ribs protested at the movement, but she pushed through the pain with a grimace as she avoided the man's attacks as best she could.

Their invisible ally occasionally made an attack, but Sakura knew they couldn't do much. If they were too aggressive, Hidan would deduce their location easily, and they would become useless.

But Team Three could only dodge and block for so long. Shino's blade had slowly become broken and destroyed whilst Hidan's own looked pristine, all of them were panting and out of breath whilst Hidan's angry grin only grew more and more as he danced between them.

He may have been more injured than they were, but Sakura was starting to realise it wasn't because of his ineptitude or their lack of skill, but because he didn't care.

Eventually, Hidan's scythe sliced into Shino's leg, and for reasons unknown to all of Team Three, the air went ominously still.

A circle of blood, a triangle drew within, and Hidan's skin went pitch black with white accents.

Then, his malicious grin changed into a malicious cackle, before full blown maniacal laughter filled the air around them.

They were frozen still, the Killing Intent flooding the area surrounding them was suffocating.

Then, Hidan gripped his weapon and plunged it deep within his arm, making it come out the other side with a sickening crunch.

When he did, Sakura's head barely managed to snap towards Shino's form, which had crumpled in on itself as he writhed in pain, blood pouring from his arm.

Sakura forced herself to move then, remembering her lessons from the academy about killing intent.

The best motivator is pain.

So, she slashed the blade of water still present in her palm against her leg, careful to avoid any arteries, before surging forth.

Hidan's eyes widened a fraction as she charged forwards, and he scowled.

Taking his weapon again, he went to bring it to his own heart.

But Sakura made it just in time, her palm blades forgotten in favour of pure Taijutsu as she slams into the missing nin.

Even if it was a suicide attack, she wouldn't allow Shino to die for the mission. She somehow doubted it was though.

Pushing him out of the circle of blood, Hidan growled as his skin returned to its normal colour. Sakura heard Shino grunt as he too felt the impact, but better he fell to the ground temporarily than permanently.

"You fucking brat!" Hidan roared, gone the look of amusement from before as pure rage filled his expression. "I'll kill you for that!"

"Better me than my team," Sakura muttered with an intense glare.

But Hidan was faster, stronger and more experienced than her, and she barely managed to avoid a swift swing of his Scythe before he was onto her like a predator chasing its prey.

Sakura knew running was not an option, and so she stood her ground. Killing intent made it hard to move, reminding her of Momochi Zabuza.

As she saw the demon's face flashed through her mind, another thought rushed through alongside it.

His jutsu, one she knew in theory how to perform but had never trained in its use.

But now was the perfect time for the Hiding in Mist technique. All her teammates were capable trackers, and would be able to navigate the mist with ease whilst she herself, if done correctly, would be able to sense everyone within.

Hidan had shown no signs of being a sensor nin, or having any particular skills outside his ritualistic jutsu and scythe.

It was a risk she was willing to take as she jumped over a swing of the mad man's weapon, her hands carefully going through a set of seals.

There was no water source nearby, so it would drain her chakra more than if there was, but she was willing to make that sacrifice.

As mist rolled in around them, she smiled wide when she began sensing everyone within. She had done it correctly.

Hidan however did not seem so happy, "this is Kisame's stupid technique," Hidan growled, and Sakura took note of the familiar name.

Then, she sensed both Hinata and Kiba approach the enemy, and Sakura followed along, reactivating her Water Palm Blades in either hand and approaching.

"For Jashin-sama's sake," Hidan cursed, "If Kakuzu was here he'd just blow this stupid shit away."

That made Sakura smile even more as she got closer, slashing out and feeling her technique hit flesh.

Hidan didn't speak, but Sakura barely reacted in time as he swung out his scythe, parrying with a hastily drawn kunai as she deactivated her water blade in her right hand.

Then she changed angle and charged again. Kiba and Hinata followed her lead and began attacking in the opposite direction to the man's focus after each attack.

But no matter how many attacks landed, he didn't go down. They couldn't simply decapitate him either, or lop off a limb- he may have been practically blind but his reaction speed was fast enough to not let cuts get much deeper than an inch.

Sakura imagined the man should have been dead of blood loss after five minutes of the same, her chakra was running very low and she imagined both Kiba and Hinata were the same. Shino had sent out some insects to drain the man's chakra a little, but he stood back, the pain of the quickly bandaged hole in his arm making him all but useless in hand to hand combat.

Then, another minute later she had no choice but to let her mist go, and she watched as Hidan smirked, his eyes anything but amused however.

"Finally," Hidan growled through his teeth at her. "You brats have wasted more than enough of my time now!”

But before he could raise his weapon and charge, Sakura watched as a figure fell from the sky atop him.

Nanako's wire latched onto his neck, and dug deep. Her eyes were narrowed and a scowl present on her face as she surveyed the area, focusing briefly on Shino's bandaged, bloody arm and Sakura's laboured breathing.

Then she pulled tighter, and the man's face went pale as he swung around wildly.

But Nanako's legs wrapped tightly around his torso, and she didn't let go. Slowly she pulled tighter, and eventually, Hidan's head fell to the ground with a thud.

Sakura let out a breath of relief at that, carefully avoiding falling over as she did in exhaustion.

"What's the client's status?" Sakura asked Nanako, but before she could answer she heard the flapping of Giant wings.

One of Hinata's owls, the one with a slightly damaged wing, lowered to the ground, and upon landing Masato climbed down from its back.

"Riku-sama has been delivered to his destination," Masato reported, rushing towards Shino as he spoke, "Kusagakure shinobi acting as bodyguards for the Grass Daimyo have been charged with his protection, he ordered we come and assist you."

Sakura nodded at that, "stop Shino's pain as best you can, we need to leave as soon as possible."

"Does anyone have a body scroll?" Nanako questioned a moment later, receiving a round of shaken heads.

"We don't have time for Masato to make one, either," Shino groaned as green chakra washed over his arm. "We just need to leave."
A moment later they were all loaded onto the owl's back, flying away faster than Sakura thought the bird would be able to fly normally, nevermind with a burnt wing.

Sakura sighed in relief as she felt the connection between Dokuka and herself severe as well, meaning she had just returned home. Shino let out a similar sigh, and Nanako carefully pet an invisible chameleon on her shoulder.

Chapter Text

“I'm happy to see you're all alive,” Ginmaru greeted them, as they landed at the gates of Grass’ capital city. It was much larger than the capital of Mountains, and the palace at the center was much more grand than Riku's residence.

“Find us somewhere Masato can treat our wounds,” Sakura said, instead of a greeting. She wasn't in the mood for small talk.

Ginmaru nodded, and quickly began leading them onwards, and into the palace, which was as grand inside as it appeared outside.

Eventually, they ended up in a larger room, with various beds reminiscent of those in Konoha's hospital. A doctor and a few nurses were around, although just the civilian kind.

"Riku-sama ordered that these shinobi be treated well upon their arrival," Ginmaru informed the doctor, then pointed at Masato, "this one is a medic, follow his orders to help heal them."

Then, Ginmaru left. Sakura assumed it was in order to inform Riku of the situation.

Masato set to work then, laying Shino and Sakura down before digging through his pack. A moment later he pulled out a couple of pills.

"They're chakra pills," he explained, handing one to each member of the team beside Nanako, who had used little chakra beside enhancing her strength when slicing off the missing nin's head. "They will stimulate your chakra regeneration system, but they'll take a while to take effect."

All of them took them into their mouths and swallowed, before Masato had one of the nurses undress Shino's wound.

Slowly, he began to push his own green chakra into Sakura's chat, where she was certain multiple of her ribs had been broken.

“You're lucky they didn't pierce your lungs, with how much you must have been moving,” Masato nodded, confirming her suspicions.

Her ribs were set into place quickly as he slowly began the healing process. They still felt tender and had a dull ache, but Masato assured her that they would feel normal within a week.

Shino's healing took longer, and Sakura actually began to assist once the bone itself was mended, helping Masato sew the skin back together with her chakra. The most basic of medical Ninjutsu, she had learnt from Anko a while back.

Overall, Team Three counted themselves lucky, especially upon Sakura pulling out her bingo book.

It was a couple of editions old, but it still held the information they needed.

"Hidan, Missing Nin of Yugakure- Unnatural durability, Bukijutsu and Kinjutsu techniques. Reportedly capable of an unknown regeneration technique." The entry said, although it lacked an image of the man.

"Kakuzu the Bounty Hunter, Missing Nin of Takigakure- Reportedly over seventy years old, incredibly powerful Ninjutsu, all five natures. Holder of the Earth Grudge Fear Kinjutsu."

Sakura knew nothing about the Earth Grudge Fear technique, but she knew anyone capable of using all five basic chakra nature's was someone she had no interest in fighting.

Her spars with Hiruzen were enough. She didn't want to deal with anyone else on that level.

Both of their bounties were relatively high, but Kakuzu's was significantly more. Sakura imagined living so long, despite his appearance, had that effect on a missing nin.

“Speaking of bounties,” Masato brought up a moment later. “You killed that Usoko woman, right? Did you collect hers?”

“I did,” Sakura nodded. “I sent the cash back home with a scorpion summon. Ibiki-sensei looks after my money.”

“Hm, a smart idea, since you're away.” Shino nodded, humming.

Later that day, Sakura and her team bowed as they entered the room Riku was staying in, having been called for.

"I'm relieved to see you are all unharmed," Riku said, "I thank you for the service you provided in my protection this day, I have sent a message to your Hokage already to detail your heroism."

Sakura bowed again in response, "we are at your service, Riku-sama."

The man nodded in recognition at that, "then please, rest for today and return to that service tomorrow."

Sakura smiled a little and bowed again, "thank you, my lord.”

"Riku-sama will mainly be remaining within the palace grounds for the duration of his stay, due to the recent attempt on his life," Ginmaru explained to the group, once their talking was done. "He has made the request that only two of you at a time guard him, if that is acceptable?"

"So long as we remain within the palace grounds, I see no issue," Sakura nods. The Kusa nin guarding the place were powerful, according to Hinata, Masato and Shino, around Jonin level supposedly. Sakura was relieved to hear as such, since if Kakuzu came after them afterwards she doubted Team Three alone could handle him. Hell, they only managed to defeat Hidan because the man underestimated them for their entire fight before being caught by surprise.

"Good, then in the morning please have two of you come to me, and I will escort you to wherever Riku-sama will be.”

“Understood,” Sakura nods in response, before she and her team leave the room. She let's out a sigh, glancing at her teammates.

"Remember, Grass Country are only tentative allies in reality. Do not reveal anything more than is necessary," Sakura warns, and the four genin being left behind nod.

Guarding a Daimyo is relatively boring, Sakura finds out quite quickly. His day revolves almost entirely around meeting with important officials and members of Grass' Daimyo's family.

She could only sit through so many tea ceremonies.

It was after a chat with one of the Grass Daimyo's daughters that a knock came on the door. Opening it, a job reserved for bodyguards in case of attack, Sakura found one of Riku's servants.

"A message has arrived from Konoha," the man declares, and Sakura nods and takes the scroll. It is addressed specifically to her.

"It is for me, Riku-sama," Sakura informs the man, "If possible, could I take my leave, and have one of my team members take my place?"

The Daimyo agrees easily enough, and the servant is sent off to retrieve Nanako. A moment later the kunoichi arrives and Sakura leaves with a nod of greeting and a wave of the scroll.

Sakura read the scroll twice, eyes wide and mind racing as she did. She couldn't believe what it was.

She had expected to get this message near the end of their mission, if at all. Definitely not a month and a bit after having left Konoha.

But there it was, a scroll of promotion. Not just noting her own, but also that of each of her teammates, not one of them left behind.

It seems Riku's message to the Hokage had arrived, as well as Sakura's own and that of Shikaku's secret reporter. Sakura suspected it was Ginmaru, tasked with reporting their progress by Riku as his best warrior. She imagined the man had reported the names of their opponents after being told by Team Three and sent a report off to Konoha alongside Riku's message.

Sakura wasn't about to complain, aged thirteen and already a Jonin, but she definitely didn't feel ready. Even against Usoko, a firmly jonin-level opponent, she needed help.

She remembered back to her first lunch, more dinner than lunch though it was, with Hinata. About their shared feelings of inadequacy over their situations, and how they helped one another through it.

She still didn't feel good enough sometimes, especially since the disastrous mission to retrieve Sasuke, but whenever those feelings slipped to the forefront of her mind, she just remembered that day. Hinata was a good friend, she tried hard to remember that fact, even when they couldn't spend casual time together like that, on the mission.

So, she forced herself to stand and held her head high. Jonin were the elite of the elite after all, and so long as she had the rank she would act the part.

When she returned to her quarters, she made sure to finally actually wear her flask jacket. She wouldn't pretend anymore, and make enemies guess who was their leader. She would take the role seriously, and with pride.

"Holy shit," Kiba gaped as he read through the scroll, "congratulations, taichou!"

Hinata echoed the sentiment alongside Shino then, and Sakura smiled at them.

"Congratulations to you three as well," Sakura replied, handing them the chunin vests she had unsealed from a storage seal on the scroll.

Sakura watched as they all filtered away to change, all proud of their achievement and wanting to show it off a little. Sakura couldn't wipe the grin off her face as she made her way back to the Daimyo.

When she arrived, and shared the news with the Daimyo, Nanako and Masato, Riku was of course the first to speak.

"Well congratulations," Riku smiled, "you are surely deserving considering the recent attempt on my life."

Sakura bowed, "thank you, my lord."

The man waved her away a moment later, and she did as commanded, making her way out of the room and back towards their accommodation.

The remainder of their three month stay in Grass country was as boring as Sakura knew it would be.

Training was sadly slow due to having to guard the Daimyo the entire time, and what little they could do amounted to simple spars.

It was as they were about to leave that Riku called her towards his litter. It was retrieved by Hinata's owls some time during their stay and then repaired of the minor wear and tear after having sat hidden near a road for weeks.

"Sakura," Riku said, surprising her. He rarely used their names directly. "I heard both you and one of your companion's weapons were destroyed during your confrontation with my attempted assassins?"

Sakura nodded in response, "yes, sadly we haven't had the time to purchase replacements yet either."

The man chuckled then, "well don't worry about that," he said, waving over a servant from a few feet away.

The servant then presented three sheathed swords. Two of them were Chokuto, although they looked thinner than Sakura's, whilst the third was a Katana.

"I was recommended a smith by the Daimyo of Grass during our stay, and I had these pieces commissioned as rewards for your stellar performance," he explained. "Supposedly they are made of some form of metal ideal for shinobi use, and take to chakra exceptionally well."

"You should ask Ginmaru for details if you're interested," Riku shrugged after a moment.

Sakura took that as her que to take the weapons, and she immediately was drawn to the ornate designs covering the hilt of her Chokuto, as well as the sheath of all three.

One Chokuto had a blue dragon engraved into the sheath and hilt, its tail at the tip whilst its head emerging at the very hilt.

The second had a brown dragon, with the same design. Sakura realised they were in relation to her chakra natures, and wondered if they meant anything more about the chakra flow into the weapons.

Shino's design was more straightforward, with dulled silver engravings in various patterns across the sheath whilst the hilt was wrapped in the same way Sakura had seen his previous weapon, although the material looked much more quality.

She made her way towards Shino after attaching the pair of swords to her waist. The Aburame noticed her approaching and turned to greet her.

"Riku-sama asked that I give you this," she said, handing the boy his Katana. Shino took it with a shocked expression.

"I didn't think he would be the type to give his employees gifts," Shino muttered, but attached it to his hip regardless.

"I imagine the fact we were given to him as a gift has something to do with his kind treatment," Sakura shrugged, "he also seems to be somewhat honourable, in a sort of samurai way.”

Shikaku sighed as he finished reading the newest report to land on his desk. He had already made the decision to promote all of Team Three, and sent the message already, but reading this made it clear that the decision was the correct one.

It had come into his office on the back of a scorpion summon and when he read the account of Haruno Sakura and her team's fight against a member of the Akatsuki, he knew that despite not being particularly experienced, she was ready.

She was prodigious, if anything. Having only read about the Hiding in Mist technique and seen it used a few times in her life, she managed to make use of it flawlessly during prolonged combat with an S rank Missing Nin. Not to mention her ability to lead the combat and how well their team reportedly worked together.

Chapter Text

The trip back from Grass was much less eventful than on the way there.

Shino remained with the group this time, instead one of Hinata's summons was sent to scout ahead. Nothing extraordinary came up, though, and they made it back slower than they had arrived thanks to walking the whole way.

Sakura wanted to suggest Hinata's owls take them, but she imagined the owls, Hinata and Riku would take offence, maybe.

"You can all go and get settled back into your barracks," Ginmaru said as they made it back within the gates of the Daimyo's residence.

Sakura smiled and nodded before leading her team back to the familiar bedroom.

"What are you doing?" Kiba asked as he entered the barracks the next day, after having checked the perimeter of the residence.

Sakura was sitting on her bed, a number of scrolls taken from Kakashi's gift strewn about as she worked.

"I need to get stronger," she sighed honestly. "Think of every Jonin you know and tell me that you can think of any of them that doesn't have a signature technique."

Kiba pauses for a moment before shrugging, "I guess, but you're plenty strong already," he said, "I mean, you're the best water release user I've met, and your Genjutsu is pretty great too."

Hearing that from a student of Konoha's Genjutsu Mistress meant a lot to Sakura, but she didn't mention it

"Yeah, but my strongest water release jutsu is the Water Dragon Bullet, and every Kiri nin worth their rank can use that," Sakura complained, "plus my strongest Genjutsu is the Bringer of Darkness."

"That's an A rank Genjutsu, though," Kiba mutters, "Kurenai-sensei said that she didn't learn it until she was already a Jonin."

"Yeah, but I'm not a Genjutsu master. She can use it and still take part in a Jonin level battle. I use it and my chakra is being drained so fast I have to focus almost entirely on it or I'll die," she groaned, "it's why Sasuke got away."

Kiba stayed quiet at that, but moved a little closer, glancing at the scrolls laid out.

"So are you planning on making your own jutsu?" Kiba wondered, "I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be really hard."

Sakura nodded then, already knowing how difficult it could be.

"Yeah, I figured that if I couldn't find anything in here that I felt was good enough, I'll just make my own." She shrugged.

Kiba nodded at that. If anyone could make their own jutsu without real instruction, it would be Sakura after all.

"What if you tried adding nature transformation to a technique that doesn't usually have one?" Kiba suggested a moment later. "Like adding water to your Samurai Sabre Technique?"

Sakura hummed at the idea but shrugged a moment later.

"I don't know, it doesn't sound strong enough." She sighed.

Minutes pass in silence then, both of them rummaging through the various scrolls before Kiba stands and begins to stretch.

"Well, let me know if there's anything I can do to help," Kiba eventually said, having come up with no new ideas. "I'm gonna go patrol the perimeter again.”

It takes Sakura a full month, to finally decide on her idea. One that begins with a chat with Nanako, the most adept with elemental Ninjutsu out of the rest of Sakura's team.

ItA Nanako who was in the process of raising a full power Earth wall, a single hand formed into the final seal.

"Holy- Nanako!" Sakura cheered, causing the surprised girl to spin around and face her, "you did it!"

Nanako gave a small smirk at that and nodded, allowing the wall to crumble as she did.

"Yeah, I figured it out this morning, and I've been practicing the jutsu I know to make sure they all work," she explained, clearly proud of herself, even if it was hard for Sakura to really tell.

"Nice, well I'm proud you managed it," Sakura said, patting her teammate in the back. "I actually came to ask for your help."

"Oh, with what?" Nanako questioned and Sakura smirked, beginning to explain her idea.

"Well, do you know the Water Prison technique?" Nanako asked, to which Sakura nodded.

"I can use it with only one hand seal, I've been practicing really hard," Sakura told her excitedly. Nanako's face betrayed her own intrigue at the proposed new technique, too.

"Then let's get to work," Nanako replied.

Sakura groaned, as she slumped down onto her bed, a few months later. She'd been working on the technique for months now and her progress was slow.

She had even contemplated giving up, maybe focusing on Genjutsu again, or Kenjutsu with Shino, but in the end she couldn't abandon her idea.

She was a Jonin, but at the moment it only felt like a fancy title and a pair on the back. She hadn't earned it, she felt.

Not until she had something that truly set her apart from a regular Chunin.

And to her, that thing had to be this technique.

She knew how devastating this technique could become, and the practicality of it was unmatched, too.

But it was difficult, even with Nanako's help.

She hadn't slacked off with her other training, her Kenjutsu especially. Chakra flow was tough when using elemental manipulation but it panned out. She could now use her Water Palm Blade through her blue Chokuto, increasing its length and sharpness, and also use Earth Release to increase the weight of her brown one by several times.

She even asked Masato to add durability seals to both, after what happened with Hidan tearing her old one apart like butter. The boy went even further however, and added a storage seal to the water blade to store the earth blade, in case she wanted to only use her primary element.

She decided to name them both, too. Aokiri for the water elemental Chokuto, and Ganryu for the earth. She found them quite fitting.

"We'll be leaving in six months," Sakura declared to her teammates, all now aged fourteen. They had stayed in Mountains country for a little over a year, and had finally received word of their exact return date.

"Finally," Kiba yawned, having just woken up. "I miss the compound."

Hinata, surprisingly, nods alongside her Inuzuka teammate, as does Shino.

"I miss having half decent Fuinjutsu supplies," Masato complains. He'd been making do with homemade inks and civilian brushes for a few months, and it was tiring him out having to redraw each seal a few times to even make them usable.

"I don't really miss much," Nanako shrugged then, "I mean, you guys are all here, and you're the only thing I'd really miss. Oh, and Anko-sensei I guess."

Sakura smiled at her team as they turned slightly to look at her. "I guess the thing I miss most is Ibiki-sensei," she said. "And Anko, Izumo, Kotetsu and Yugao-sensei.”

“Not the Third Hokage?” Nanako asked, tilting her head, and Sakura shuddered.

“No way! He's just gonna start making me spar with him over and over again!” Sakura said, but it was clear she wasn't being too serious. She did miss Hiruzen, too.

“I always forget you train with him,” Kiba barks out a laugh. “It's no wonder you're so strong, with the teacher of the Sannin training you!”

Sakura rolled her eyes at that, giggling slightly. “It's not like I'm comparable to a Sannin, Kiba…”

“Maybe all six of us together could take one of them down,” Masato hummed, shrugging softly. “Tsunade-sama is really strong, though, so I dunno.”

“I just hope we never have to find out,” Shino said a moment later, and everyone agreed. The only reason they'd all be fighting a Sannin anyway would be if they happened across Orochimaru. She did not want to happen across Orochimaru.

Even if it would be fun to gloat about how Ibiki mangled the man, last time he had tried to combat Konoha.

“So, our final trip with you Konoha shinobi,” Ginmaru noted as he walked alongside team three, beside Riku's litter. “I'll miss having the six of you around. The peace of mind you provide is most welcome.”

Sakura let out a small laugh at that, nodding. “Your own skills as a swordsman haven't dulled any, since we have been around. I'd guess you've only improved.”

The man smiles kindly at that, and Sakura returns it. The man wasn't a mentor, but he was a comrade during their time in Mountains Country, and she enjoyed his company enough.

They continued walking for some time after that, headed towards Earth Country, making Sakura particularly nervous.

Earth country's capital would have been nerve-wracking enough, but she imagined it would have been manageable.

But instead, their destination was Iwagakure, a place no Konoha shinobi had stepped within freely. Not since Uchiha Madara, at least.

Supposedly, the Daimyo was ill, and the Tsuchikage was taking over some of his duties for the time being.

And somehow, Riku had gotten them permission to act as his bodyguards for his visit. Konoha shinobi, invited inside of Iwa for the first time.

Supposedly, it was to alter a trade deal they had previously made. Mountains were capable of getting many of the things Earth produced locally, and what they couldn't was usually cheaper from Fire country.

Sakura guessed the Fire Daimyo and Hokage had pressured Riku into altering the contract rather than waiting it out, in an effort to recoup their losses after the invasion by selling to Mountains. Even over a year later Konoha was weaker than it was before, and parts of the village were still in disrepair.

That's according to the letter she'd received from Ibiki about three months prior, at least. She doubted the situation had changed much since then.

"What do you think the Tsuchikage's like?" Kiba asked from his place at the front of the formation.

"He's supposedly a stubborn old man," Nanako said from the other side of the formation to Sakura. "Although a very, very powerful one."

"I imagine all Kage are powerful," Sakura chuckled in response, listening to her team talk.

"Who do you think would win between our Hokage and the Tsuchikage?" Kiba asked them, and Sakura laughed at the question.

"I've only heard about both of their strength from others, I have no real gauge of their power," she replied, "although the Tsuchikage can fly, supposedly, and Hokage-sama requires his shadows to reach his target's to be effective."

"I'm sure Hokage-sama has other abilities, as well," Hinata mentioned from the back of the formation, and Masato nodded in agreement from beside Nanako.

"I reckon Hokage-sama would win," Masato said, tilting his head back slightly proudly. "I heard that the best Nara clan members can melt into the shadows themselves. Hokage-sama would get the Tsuchikage before he even knew what hit him."

Sakura laughed at her teammates' pride in their village, but it soon stopped as the mountains surrounding Iwa sprung up on the horizon.

A moment later, a pair of Iwa shinobi landed in front of them.

"You must be Riku-sama’s escort,” The larger of the two said. His size was intimidating but his demeanor was anything but. "My name is Akatsuchi, and my comrade is Kitsuchi."

Sakura's eyes widened a little at the names, both she had memorised from the Bingo Book, but quickly returned to normal. She was a jonin now, even if she didn't feel like one. She had to act professional, or at least like she wasn't intimidated.

"I didn't expect the Shield of the Tsuchikage to show up to escort us," Sakura said, forcing her voice to sound as confident as she could manage. "Or his son, for that matter."

Kitsuchi’s, the son of the Tsuchikage, eyes moved to look her over then. He held no obvious disdain in his gaze, but Sakura knew the hatred for Konoha was ingrained in most Iwa shinobi.

"I didn't expect the Mountains Daimyo to have children in his employ as bodyguards, but here we are," the man shot back, and Sakura sent him a smirk.

"I can assure you we are more than capable of protecting Riku-sama should the need arise," she said, a silent insult- implying that were Iwa to attempt to harm the man, her team could handle it."

"I take it you're the leader of this team, then?" Akatsuchi cut in, and Sakura nodded.

"Haruno Sakura, Jonin, Captain of Team Three," she said, adding her rank just to mess with them. Neither reacted, but she supposed that was to be expected.

Akatsuchi nodded at that, he was clearly the assigned leader for their little escort mission, and began to lead the group forward. Once they reached the gate, all of them were let in without issue after a quick bit of paperwork, and Riku Left his litter to walk instead, whilst the servants left to prepare his accommodation and other such things.

Iwagakure was big, although slightly smaller than Konoha. The architecture was dull, in Sakura's opinion, but the mountains rivaled those of the Land of Mountains themselves.

If it wasn't such a cloudy day, she would say it would make a nice picture. As it was, everything was just grey.

"We'll take you to the Tsuchikage now, if that's alright?" Akatsuchi said, and Sakura's gut twisted slightly. She had no reason beside their differing allegiances to not trust this man, but for whatever reason, her instincts were screaming at her.

She recalled briefly Ibiki telling her that instincts are a Shinobi's sharpest weapon, and if she didn't trust those words, then she trusted nothing.

So, she stepped forward and glared upwards at the pair of Jonin.

Both had off a powerful aura, but without asking one of her teammates she had no way to sense them.

"Lead the way," Sakura said a moment later. She found no hint of a lie in their expressions. Akatsuchi was calm, almost jovial looking whilst Kitsuchi was almost seeming bored.

Her gut still wrenched at the thought of meeting the Tsuchikage, and she wished more than ever that she was as good at telling when others lied as Ibiki.

But she wasn't. Ibiki was an interrogation specialist after all, whilst she was a frontline combat type. The member of their team closest to Ibiki's skillset would be Nanako, but she specialises moreso in torture than interrogation anyway.

Torturing two famous Iwa Jonin didn't seem like a possibility at that moment. Not in the middle of their village.

Slowly they moved through the streets of Iwa, heading forwards towards the largest building, the symbol of 'Earth' emblazoned on it, similar to 'Fire' on the Hokage tower.

Eventually they made it. It took hundreds of scowls and glances from the civilians they passed, and even a particularly angry teen attempting to throw a rock at them, but they made it inside. A small crowd almost began to gather outside the doors before some chunin guards made them disperse.

"The Tsuchikage is upstairs, we've set aside a meeting room for your discussion." Akatsuchi explained, looking at Riku "He will have us two as bodyguards for this meeting. He suggests you do the same."

The twisting feeling in her gut was worse then, but she could do nothing about it now. They were in deep, if they wanted her, or her client, dead, it would happen. Even if they escaped this building, it was hundreds of Iwa nin versus the six of them.

"It will be myself and Kiba," Sakura declared at that, knowing that Kiba would be able to sniff out any spies, or hidden assassin's. He was also a fantastic close combat combatant, although all of Team Three were, beside Masato who focussed more so on medium ranged combat with thrown kunai with Fuinjutsu tags attached.

"That's acceptable," Akatsuchi nodded, which calmed the sinking feeling a little. If there were hidden assassin's, they would try not to let an Inuzuka in, surely.

So, Sakura followed alongside Kiba and Riku as they made their way inside. Riku was clearly nervous, but Sakura could hardly blame him.

She recalled the time a group of shinobi had approached her mother for her merchant services. Mebuki had been terrified at first. Shinobi and civilians rarely mixed, after all. Especially for positive purposes.

Entering the meeting room, they found it empty. Sakura immediately went on guard before the door on the opposite side opened, revealing the short Tsuchikage entering.

"Riku-dono," he said simply, although his eyes locked onto the Konoha nin, "it is good to see you, although I wish you kept better company."

"Who I choose as my bodyguards is none of Iwagakure's business," Riku said firmly, waiting for the Tsuchikage to take a seat before he took his own.

Akatsuchi and Kitsuchi took their places standing behind the Tsuchikage, whilst Sakura and Kiba mirrored them, behind Riku.

The talks were long, and Sakura was on edge the entire time. Every movement of the Iwa nin made her flinch internally, and she had a feeling that Kitsuchi knew it. The man would make tiny movements, twitching his hand, taking a tiny step backwards, and Sakura was sure it was to freak her out. A distraction?

When, a moment later, a Kunai started sailing through the air towards Riku's throat, her suspicions were confirmed.

Kiba was the one to catch it, whilst she burst forwards with both Chokuto in her hands. Kitsuchi and Akatsuchi stood before the Tsuchikage, who himself had floated out of his seat and took a combat stance, although a loose one.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Sakura asked loudly, her eyes glaring as the two Iwa nin bared their teeth at her.

"Iwagakure owes Konoha scum no explanation for our actions," Kitsuchi declared a moment later, and then everything clicked.

Kakuzu and Hidan, all those months ago, were hired by someone.

Iwagakure wanted her client's head.

"Iwagakure will owe Konoha a lot more than an explanation if you go through with this," Sakura replied, her tone even but her mind racing.

The Iwa shinobi made no move however, and Sakura let out a soft growl.

Their chances of escape were next to none, but she had a way for Riku himself to escape, although it would be alone. God, she wished she left a larger scorpion in Konoha as her messenger.

Her hands began speeding through a string of seals then, slamming it onto the head of Riku before anyone else had a chance to move.

"Reverse Summoning," she said, and watched as Riku disappeared in a puff of smoke, replaced by a familiar creature.

"Oujimaru," Sakura greeted him as the Iwa nin surged forth, dodging backwards as she did, "I apologise, but I request you assist me."

The scorpion didn't answer verbally, but crawled up into her hair regardless, ready to be of use when needed.

"We need to escape," Sakura declared a second later as the rest of Team Three burst in, Masato must have sensed the disappearance of Riku.

"Hinata," Sakura commanded, barely avoiding a literal boulder being shot towards her as it crashed into the wall.

The Hyuga heiress simply nodded in response and lowered her stance.

Aiming a palm upwards, she grunts with effort, "Air Palm!"

A giant blast of air bursts through the roof, and as it does Sakura notices the Tsuchikage begin to move.

Sakura refused to let the man join the battle however, and sped through a set of seals quickly.

A genjutsu capable of affecting even the Third Hokage, "Bringer of Darkness Technique," was cast, ensnaring all three Iwa shinobi.

But Ohnoki was a much stronger opponent than Sasuke, simply standing still and focusing. The two Iwa Jonin had thrashed briefly but soon began focusing too.

Sakura felt the Genjutsu begin to unweave itself from their minds as she struggled against their will, ten or so seconds, and they would break out.

She made a note to improve her Genjutsu abilities, if she were to survive.

A second before Ohnoki was to break free, a cloud of smoke appeared and one of Hinata's owls appeared. All of Team Three climbed on quickly as the Iwa shinobi's eyes snapped open.

The owl took off a second later, and Sakura cursed as Ohnoki took off after them.

The man was faster than she expected and Sakura turned to Shino quickly.

"Bring out your summon," she ordered, and Shino did as he was told. The giant insect charged forth at Ohnoki without a single word from its master.

But Ohnoki didn't slow down, a beam of white light erupting from his hands as he called out.

"Dust Release: Atomic Dismantling Technique," he said, and Sakura watched with widened eyes as a quarter of Shino's summon disintegrated, then disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

"She'll regenerate," Shino muttered, but his voice carried his sadness regardless.

Ohnoki was gaining on them now, and Sakura couldn't help but be thankful flight was not a common skill, even in Iwa.

Imagining an army of flying shinobi following them behind their Tsuchikage made her shiver.

"Higher," Sakura commanded at that point, and the owl listened. It was hopeless though, as Ohnoki simply rose with them.

At that point, she knew death was inevitable, without drastic measures.

The difference between a Jonin and a Kage was massive, and the difference between a Kage and a chunin was larger still.

So, she turned to her team and sent them a small, sad smile, gripping her dual Chokuto in white knuckles.

"Escape, I'll buy you time." Was all she said as she moved.

A burst of chakra into her feet and a leap of faith as she forced herself onto the Tsuchikage. The owl didn't stop, despite even Hinata's shouts. The owl knew the situation, and his goal was the protection of his master.

Chapter Text

Seconds felt like days, as Sakura jumped forwards towards Ohnoki. The Tsuchikage suppressed a surprised look at the Konoha Jonin, a very young one at that, jumping right at him, despite how high up they were.

Sakura moved with nothing but efficiency, as she unsheathed her blades, the pair of Chokuto practically sparkling omunder the sun.

Her chakra sparked to life, surging through her blades. The first, Aokiri, grew noticeably longer, the extra length made of highly pressurised water and chakra, sharpened to the extreme.

The second, Ganryu, visibly changed to a darker shade of silver, and grew noticeably heavier, making Sakura need to enhance her arm's muscles with chakra just to wield it.

Then, she landed, only seconds having elapsed, as she stabbed down hard with Ganryu, the weight of the blade making contact with the Tsuchikage’s shoulder, the sensation of steel slicing through skin and flesh vibrating through her.

She couldn't hide her surprise at having made contact, before her face changed from shock, to a maniacal, crazy grin that would have put Hidan to shame.

She was certain her death was near, but the chance to take out a shinobi of the Tsuchikage's caliber made it worth it. She would be good enough, worthy of being Jonin, if she managed it.

So she hung from the blade, lodged into the Tsuchikage, and focused. She pushed her regular chakra through the blade, acting as an adhesive, clinging the blade inside of him as if it were performing the tree walking exercise.

It would not dislodge, so long as she held onto it.

Ohnoki swled, at the feeling of pain shooting through him, his hands clasping together and begining to perform a set of seals.

Sakura wasn't about to let them at happeny though. Swinging upwards and slashing out with Aokiri, the man barely able to lean backwards out of the blade's path.

Sakura noticed easily that close combat wa the man's weakness. Maybe when he had been younger he was better,but now he was just a stubborn old man capable of throwing around Ninjutsu that could erase you from existence.

But he couldn't use that jutsu at such short range in fear of damaging himself.

So, Sakura began to push her small, tiny advantage over the Tsuchikage, slamming her feet into the man's stomach, forcing herself into the air, just above him and flashing through hand seals.

A moment later, a dragon made of water burst from her palms, crashing downwards towards Ohnoki, who managed to dodge sideways.

But Sakura was not finished.

Another set of seals saw the dragon burst into a thousand Shuriken, blades spinning harshly and switching direction towards her opponent.

Sakura had fallen below Ohnoki by now, but she wasn't giving up. The shuriken soared right past the Tsuchikage but another set of seals saw them converge.

Into another dragon, but this time coming for her. As it reached her she carefully grabbed on, chakra coating her limbs, making her stick.

Sakura thanked the heavens, for her perfect chakra control in that moment. If she were anyone else, she knew hanging off of a flying water Ninjutsu would be next to impossible.

Ohnoki scowled down at her then. The water dragon wouldn't last long, and she could only do it once or twice more, but now she had a way of staying level with him for at least a moment.

So, she had the dragon surge towards the man again, who was preparing another Dust Release attack.

She pounced. The man's attack was disrupted by the dragon as she gripped her earth sword, still stuck within the man.

"Like a feral animal," Ohnoki insulted her as he brought his hands together in a set of seals.

Then a mass of earth climbed from his jaw, a floating earth golem.

Sakura's eyes widened at that. Ohnoki may have a weakness for close combat, but the golem certainly didn't. Without her new technique, the one she had made little progress on, this battle was one she could not hope to even force into a draw.

So without a second thought she did the only thing she could.

Jumping off of her own earth blade, dislodging it and keeping it attached to her foot with chakra, she kicked into the golem's chest.

The blade stuck, and Sakura reached down for the creature's head.

She knew the theory she had for the technique, but she'd only had any success with it in reverse. This would be much more of a challenge.

So, she pumped the last of her chakra into the golem, before performing a single hand seal.

The golem was first dampened slightly, a mud golem rather than that of stone. Then, it began to sag. A moment later, the earth had entirely transformed into water, falling to the ground below.

Sakura's technique worked, at the cost of the remainder of her chakra.

Ohnoki let his impressed expression show as she began to fall, soaked in the water she had reduced his creation to. He was content to let her fall take her to her final resting place, and have a team locate her corpse later.

To think a child had done such a number on him, he almost laughed.

A technique to transform the nature of a jutsu outside of the body. Turning earth to water, could it do the reverse? He was furious. Too bad she would not live for him to find out, he thought.

Shikaku's eyes widened, as Ibiki entered his office. By his side, a man he very much recognised.

“Riku-dono?!” The Nara asked, concern overtaking his shocked tone. “Are you alright? Where is Team Three?”

The explanation did not fill him with hope.

“Then there's little time.” Shikaku declared, after hearing the story. He didn't panic, but his mind raced. This was big. Likely to have lasting consequences. “Ibiki, take Izumo and Kotetsu from the gate. Take no rests until you recover Team Three, do you understand?”

Shikaku knew Ibiki wanted the mission. He personally trained Sakura, and had a hand in Masato and Nanako's training as well. It was his genin team, in all but name and rank.

The man left immediately without a word, just a nod, and Shikaku stood soon after. "I will find you a bodyguard for your stay here, Riku-dono. Then I am going to call for a meeting with my advisors, you may be present if you wish."

Everything moved quickly from that point onwards, as Shikaku left Riku with a very confused Shiranui Genma before going to call for his advisors.

Then, an eclectic mix of people had gathered.

Riku, Daimyo of Mountains country flanked by a confused but serious Shiranui Genma as his guard, mainly for the Daimyo's peace of mind.

Hatake Botan, sat beside Shikaku as his primary advisor, as well as Yamanaka Inoichi, Head of the Intelligence Division and Akimichi Choza, Jonin Commander.

Shikaku was thankful that he'd removed the Third's old advisors from their positions soon after he came to take the office of Hokage. They were old, and their ideals outdated.

Once Shikaku explained the situation, everyone had concerned looks on their faces.

"This is not something that we should take lying down," Choza declared first, and Shikaku both agreed and disagreed.

"We do not have the manpower to wage war against Iwagakure after the invasion," he said, "it is a conflict we would lose."

"Especially if Kumo piles on," Botan agrees, "they have plenty of reasons to move against us."

"Kirigakure would likely remain neutral, as of right now," Choza added, understanding their argument but unwilling to let the insult go unpunished. "They are dealing with the aftermath of their civil war."

"Sunagakure could be persuaded to our side, also," Inoichi added a moment later, "and relations with Kusa are back on the up. They at the very least will not move against us."

Shikaku got the impression that Inoichi was in the middle, whilst Choza was strongly for retribution. Shikaku himself was undecided whilst Botan seemed to want peace.

"What do Mountains think?" Shikaku asked then, "An attempt on you is an attempt against your nation."

Riku stuttered a bit, clearly shaken, before speaking. "Were Kagero Village still standing, we would wage war."

Shikaku nodded at that. Kagero Village was a small but powerful shinobi village that fought Konoha to a stalemate thirty years prior, if it existed this would be a much more cut and dry situation.

"I believe the best course of action is to wait and see if Team Three returns." Shikaku said, "if they were attacked by Iwa nin after Riku-sama had escaped, then that was a direct attack on Konoha and her people."

Then, the room burst into action as Ibiki entered, a grave expression on his face. Izumo and Kotetsu followed close behind.

"Report," Shikaku ordered immediately, and Ibiki began to speak, anger evident in his tone. Anger and sadness.

“Team Three used Hyuga Hinata's summoned owl to escape the conflict. There was a single suspected casualty.” Shikaku watched as Ibiki's eyes darkened, and he knew immediately who that potential casualty was.

"Upon flying out of Iwa, they were pursued by the Third Tsuchikage," a collective, quiet gasp sounded out then from many present. "To buy the team time to escape, Haruno Sakura stayed behind."

"How the hell did she plan to fight him in the air?!" Inoichi burst out then, his own anger in his voice. He wasn't as close to the girl as Ibiki, but his daughter was her friend once and she had served as his subordinate for a time.

"She reportedly managed to lodge a weapon within the Tsuchikage's shoulder, and used it as a handhold," Izumo spoke up, "along with that, her chakra control was near perfect. She could cast Water Ninjutsu and use the water walking technique as they moved through the air."

"That would bring the girl near death on its own," Botan spoke then, "the amount of chakra control necessary would be impossible even for Tsunade- she had to be somewhat wasteful."

"Her Hyuga teammate watched the confrontation for as long as she could before Sakura was out of her Dojutsu's range," Kotetsu replied, "she supposedly opened the first of the eight inner gates, entirely subconsciously."

Another quiet gasp.

"What injuries did she sustain?" Shikaku asked, "was her death witnessed?"

"She had surprisingly few injuries besides general bruises from their confrontation on the ground of Iwa," Ibiki reported, repeating Hinata's words. "But she had run entirely dry of chakra before beginning to fall to the ground. Hinata said she could no longer see Sakura after she fell too far."

Shikaku nodded then, "thank you Ibiki. Kotetsu, Izumo."

"With this information, it is undeniable that Iwagakure has made a deliberate, unprovoked attack not only on an ally of Konoha, but on Konoha herself." Shikaku declared. Choza's eyes held a raging inferno, whilst Inoichi were angry themself. Botan looked more concerned than angry, but his resolve hardened and he nodded seriously.

Ibiki's eyes held nothing but rage and sorrow.

Chapter Text

Sakura's eyes shot open, when she finally woke up. Her surroundings were dark, warm, and the familiar smell of her scorpion's venom was heavy in the air around her.

She felt like death itself had taken her for a dance, but she was alive.

“Thank goodness,” a voice Sakura didn't recognise spoke aploftly from beside her.

Then, a voice she did recognise. “Sakura! I'm so glad Oujimaru got you here in time.”

"Chosuke?" Sakura's voice rasped out.

“Yes, it's me.” The large scorpion said, the sound of his carapaces shifting as he nodded following.

Sakura couldn't see anything. It was far too dark.

"This is your realm?” Sakura deduced, and the new voice spoke up in response.

"The scorpion realm, my dear, yes.” She replied, "I'm the one tasked with your care. Dokana is my name."

Sakura tried to nod in respect at the scorpion, but found herself totally immobile.

"Don't try to move, dear." The scorpion said, "you're suffering from the worst case of chakra exhaustion I've ever seen. One wrong move and you'll die."

That made Sakura's eyes widen, memories returning through her daze. Memories of combating a Kage, of fighting like a wild animal without care for her own life.

Fighting to protect comrades who she cared for more than her own life.

Completing the technique she worked so hard to create…

Time continued to pass, as it always does, and the conflict had begun.

Small skirmishes marked the begining of the fighting, then an invasion of a Fire border city by Iwa kicked off the war in full-force.

Suna agreed to an alliance with Konoha easily, whilst Kumo began their own opportunistic skirmishes at the border with Fire.

Shikaku was stressed already. The Fourth Shinobi World War, and during his time as Hokage, too.

He almost envied Minato's short reign, then. Almost.

Instead of wallowing in self pity though, he made plans. He wasn't going to the front lines, not unless he was needed. Tsunade was placed in charge of the field medical corps whilst Jiraiya was commander of the Iwa front. Choza was sent to Kumo, but that was the calmer front at this point.

He heard word from Suna that a Kazekage had been chosen. They had been making do with a council in charge up to that point, until such a time a suitable candidate became available. Despite Gaara's young age, the village had decided he was their best choice for the position.

Shikaku had no real interaction to go off of with the Jinchuriki, but he was not about to complain. His ally having a leader they believed capable was better than them having none at all.

His mind wandered to Team Three, as he continued to work though. The last he had saw them, their eyes each promised murder.

So, he sent them to the Iwa front.

“No sign,” Hinata frowned, as they searched. They were supposed to be protecting a nearby outpost, for the time being, but they had begged their superior officer to go out and search for Sakura's body, if Iwa hadn't already took it away. Or if she had even died.

Shiranui Genma was easy enough to convince. He himself had doubts that the girl would die from something as simple as a fall, although he was less optimistic that she had survived total chakra depletion.

“There's a super faint scent. Scorpion venom,” Kiba mentioned quietly. They were in the exact spot Sakura would have fallen, dangerously close to Iwagakure.

“My allies are picking up the same.” Shino nodded, humming. “It's recent. As if someone left it today.”

“Probably a sign from her summons then.” Nanako mentioned. “Maybe she's with them?”

It was wishful thinking, but all of Team Three cling to the idea pretty easily.

They wanted to hold on to hope, more than wanting to be logical.

"Thank you, Dokana, Chosuke," Sakura bowed to the pair. She had regained enough strength to be reverse summoned back and stand a chance at escape, finally. It had been a month already, and despite Dokana wanting her to stay for longer, she just couldn't.

Oujimaru charged his chakra atop her head and performed the jutsu.

A plume of smoke appeared before she arrived on the ground, directly below where she'd been reverse summoned to the scorpion realm from in the air, on the ground.

And right in from of her team, their eyes widening.

“Sakura!” Hinata was surprisingly the first to react, practically pouncing at the girl, hugging her.

“Hey,” Sakura laughed gently, hugging the girl back before pulling away, very aware of where they were, so close to the enemy. “We need to move. I can explain everything on the way.”

Sakura knew war was a possibility, the moment Iwa openly made attempts on Riku's life it solidified in her mind as a strong one, even.

But she hadn't really acknowledged it as something that could effect her. It was always something that happened in the past, not anywhere near her.

She never thought about the consequences on her life. On the people close to her.

But now she had found herself in enemy territory, surrounded by Iwa nin with no escape route in sight. Her team surrounded her protectively, knowing she wasn't at full-strength still.

“Don't fuss over me,” Sakura said simply, easily taking command of her team again. “Nanako, Kiba, take the front. Hinata, support them with Air Palms.”

“Shino, you and I will protect Masato.” She said simply, drawing Aokiri and Ganryu. “No use winning the battle if our medic dies.”

Shino nodded, drawing his own blade.

Five Jonin, ten Chunin. Not a force a normal group of five Chunin and a Jonin could face.

But they were far from normal, they were Team Three.

Immediately, the Iwa Jonin slammed their fists into the ground, ripping up the dirt to form gauntlets of earth around their fists.

The Jonin all charged first, none of whom Sakura recognised from the bingo book.

"Close combat specialists," she murmured, carefully dodging away from their attacks.

Compared to Hidan though, they were slow. Sakura evaded their attacks easily as she thought up a plan.

"This'll teach you for daring to hurt Tsuchikage-sama!" One of them roared as he charged again, aiming for Sakura.

It was a surprise to hear she was upgraded to an A Rank threat, in the Bingo Book, but it made sense. They hadn't found a body, and as such made an assumption she was alive. A Konoha shinobi capable of hurting the Tsuchikage was a threat. A Rank at least.

She wanted desperately to use her Metamorphosis technique, as she watched Kiba and Nanako take the front, Golding off all five Jonin surprisingly well, both excelling at close ranged combat as well.

But knew it wasn't the time to test it again. It drained way too much chakra for it to be reliable.

So, she stood in front of Masato, as the Chunin of Iwa broke through, and began to fight them. They were of average strength. Not some kind of specialised squad.

This was likely a force simply moving from Iwagakure to their post, she realised. Not a team used to fighting together, except maybe the Jonin, considering all five chose the same tactic.

But Sakura knew that the numbers advantage they were sorely lacking was going to matter most. She, Masato and Shino had to eliminate the Chunin quickly, and assist against the Jonin. Because as skilled as Kiba and Nanako were, they weren't powerful enough to take down five enemy Jonin.

So, with a dance of movement, Shino and Sakura's blades sang, the sound of them zipping through the air almost mesmerising, along with the moon-like afterimages the wide swings of their styles created. The Chunin didn't stand a chance. Especially once Masato joined in the fray, a chakra scalpel buzzing in his hand, crippling the Chunin before letting Shino or Sakura end them.

Even after time apart, their training together worked wonders. Team Three was incredible at working as a unit.

Then, the trio turned their attention to the Jonin.

“Masato, switch to long range support. You need to remain uninjured.” Sakura said, gesturing for him to stay near Hinata, to which he nodded easily.

“Shino, take one of the Jonin.” Sakura ordered a moment later. “Nanako, Kiba! take one each. I'll handle two.”

Separating them was easy, with clever footwork and earth Ninjutsu, forcing each into individual battles.

Sakura glared at her two opponents carefully, scowling.

Then, she burst forth with chakra enhanced speed, muttering her first technique's name as she did.

"Secret Sword: Moonlight," she murmured, and watched as the Jonin she had slashed her blades through had fallen to the ground, dead in an instant, not expecting such speed and power.

The second scowled back and made an attempt at charging her, but Sakura simply smirked as he did.

Swinging her water blade downwards before the man even got close, a pressurised blast of water emerged, slicing cleanly through her opponents shoulder, his arm falling to the ground with a thud.

"Samurai Sabre: Flash," she muttered, and smirked as the Iwa Jonin grit his teeth.

Raising his remaining arm he made another attempt to hit her, but she didn't let him. Instead she leaped upwards, landing on the man's arm before springing into the air, falling with her earth enhanced Chokuto pointed directly downwards.

A moment later, his skull had a hole from the top though to the jaw.

She was ready to body flicker towards her teammates' opponents then, to finish them off, but she realised they were already dead, too.

“You haven't slacked off on your training,” Sakura laughed softly, as they all regrouped. “Good.”

Ohnoki growled, as he received the report, his shoulder aching, even after being healed fully by a medic. The effects of that girls blade stabbing through his still causes the old man great pain.

He had tried his best to keep his confrontation with the girl under wraps, but Akatsuchi had told Kurotsuchi, and that girls wasn't known for her ability to keep a secret.

So instead, he labeled her a high level threat in the Bingo Book and put a bigger bounty on her head. He was fairly certain she was already dead, but given the off chance she wasn't, he would prefer his shame of letting her live be rectified as soon as possible.

So when one of his Jonin entered and spoke of her, alongside her team, taking out an entire squad of his Jonin and chunin, he was furious. The only reason they knew was one of the Chunin miraculously surviving a near-fatal blow from a blade.

First she had the audacity to injure him, and then she reappeared a month later and destroyed an entire group of fifteen shinobi. five Jonin and nine Chunin dead.

He knew that increasing her rank in the bingo book yet again was likely to become necessary.

“It's uhm… g-good to have you back," Hinata whispered as they settled down at the small outpost. It was manned by a few teams of chunin, lead by a jonin each, with Shiranui Genma in command, and its primary purpose was as an early warning system. Most of the shinobi present had talent in tracking, scouting and reconnaissance.

"It's good to be back," she mumbled back tiredly. "I wish it wasn't under the weight of an entire war."

Hinata nodded at that, but hummed quietly. “A-are you… Blaming yourself?”

Sakura hummed at him, "I could have attempted diplomacy."

"Riku-sama h-had already tried that. Iwa nin made the first move," Hinata shook her head. “I… y-you were incredible. The fact nobody died during the confrontation was miraculous…”

"I died," she chuckled, to which Hunata pouted, and swatted her arm playfully.

"We thought you did," she breathed. "Even I thought you did… E-everyone else on the team seemed hopeful though.”

"They would be," Sakura chuckled. "It was probably Kiba and Masato, keeping them positive. You… You kept to yourself, didn't you?”

“Ah, I… I guess I did b-become slightly isolated.” Hinata nodded, flushing a bit that her actions were easy to read. “I… I tried talking to Masato about how you probably died once, a-and all he said was that y-you would die so easily.”

"So easily?" Sakura smirked, "I was fighting the Tsuchikage."

"His faith in you is astounding." Hinata smiled and nodded, and Sakura giggled a little. "I… I don't know if I could have faith in anyone l-like that.”

“Hm, sometimes realism is just as important as believing in the improbable.” Sakura nodded, smiling gently at the girl, shuffling to sit a bit closer. “I'm not mad, that you didn't believe I would still be alive.”

“I… thank you.” Hinata sighed a bit at that, and it was clear she was worried, leaning a bit closer to her team's captain.

"I see," Shikaku said, watching the pink haired girl stood opposite him. She had arrived in the village alongside her team, who had been sent out in the hopes of finding her corpse. "That's an interesting story."

Sakura nodded then, still in a slight daze. She hadn't been back in Konoha for some time, after all.

"Well I for one am glad you're alive," Shikaku smiled slightly. “Ibiki will be happy, as well.”

"Anyway, I've had him informed of the situation," Shikaku declared with a small cough to clear his throat. "You're to meet him in his office, as soon as you can.”

"Understood," Sakura gave the man a smile and nod, "thank you, Hokage-sama.”

“Thank you, Sakura.” Shikaku chuckledy smiling back as he went back to work on the papers at his desk.

“You're an idiot.” Ibiki said, glaring at Sakura as she entered his office.

Sakura snorter at that, smiling, ”Lovely to see you too, Ibiki-sensei.”

Ibiki huffed, shaking his head gently. “You could have died. Everyone thought you did die.”

“If I didn't fight him, my team would have actually died.” Sakura said simply, watching him carefully.

“Ans the fact you survived is utterly ridiculous.” Ibiki relaxed a bit, sighing. “I'm glad, obviously. Just utterly confused.”

“Me too.” Sakura nodded, giggling as she sat down opposite her sensei. “I wasn't planning to live. I totally forgot that Oujimaru could save me.”

“Hm, I thought as much,” Ibiki sighed, a hint of sadness on his face. “You're truly one of the best team leaders I can think of, Sakura. I'm very proud.”

Sakura smiled at that. That one simple phrase meant more to her than making Jonin ever would. More than her A Rank bounty ever could.

Her sensei was proud of her. The same sensei who had saved her from Team Seven.