Team Badass (A Naruto Fanfiction)

Beginning Of Friendship

Five year old sakura was crying. She was so sad, sad, sad...and her heart hurt so much she felt as if the pain wrapped around her from all sides. She sobbed uncontrollably as she watched her tears soak into the playground sand. Sitting on the curb, she hugged herself tight and tried to stem the tears, but failed.

Today was the day sakura's mom died. She was now completely alone.

Her father had died long time ago before she was even born, in an accident during a trading trip. Their parents had been merchants, and well to do ones too, but after her father's death, her mother couldn't handle the business as well as she once could, and finally, died of sickness just in that past hour.

Sakura cried and cried, thinking of her mother's gray face as the tall, unfamiliar people took her away.

"NO!" She had screamed. "Stop! Don't take her away from me! Mommy! Mommy!" But those strange people just gave her a pitiful glance and shook their heads, and took mommy away.

The ground was sinking now, though she knew it was just a play of light through her tear filled eyes. Light refraction... she knew it all. But it didn't matter, because she really did feel like she was sinking into a pool of dispair. She wondered if she would ever come out.

"Are you okay?" A small voice, far away asked.

She jerked up. She wasn't aware that anyone other than her was in the playground. It was sunset and all the kids were gone.

But he wasn't.

From ten yards away, where the big tree stood, a little boy about her age peered out from behind its trunk, eyes and face shadowed from the shade. The most soulful, blue eyes shyly scanned her face, too meek to do anything other than peek from far away. Sakura blinked.

"Who are you?" She asked, feeling stupid now that she realized she had been bawling in front of an audience. "What do you want?" She forcefully wiped the tears from her face as she stood up.

"I don't want anything. I just asked if you were okay. You looked sad. You still do." The boy hid behind the tree again.

Sakura sniffled. "I don't know why you should care. I'm just a stranger to you."

The boy peeked out from behind again. "But people are supposed to help each other out right? I want to help you..."

"My mommy's dead." Sakura clenched her fists and they started to shake. Angrily she raged at the blonde boy. "What can you do? Bring her back?"

....

"My mommy's dead too."

Pause.

"I never knew any of my parents. Ever since I was born."

Sakura felt the anger drain away.

"I think you're lucky that you at least know what your mom looks like. I don't even have a single picture."

Sakura felt tears welling up again.

"...maybe...maybe we could be friends? We both understand each other."

She was outright sobbing again, much to her chagrin. But she couldn't stop. She really couldn't, no matter how hard she tried. All she could do was keep herself from running to that little boy and hugging him tight. Somehow the words he said broke a dam in her, and she realized how utterly, helplessly full of sadness they both were.

The boy carefully stepped out of the shade, and tread lightly across the sandbox, as if too afraid that he would make a dent in the smooth sand. Despite her wailing, Sakura felt her eyes widen at his gracefulness. He shyly reached her, and awkwardly patted her on the arm, then pulled away, almost as if he thought she would hit him.