Sakura's words are quiet, but the silence that follows makes her wish she had shouted. Or screamed. Anything to fill the gap. Her courage quickly fails, and she looks away. She catches Kakashi's gaze out of the corner of her eye. His eyes ask her if she needs an out. And maybe this is a terrible idea, but she knows that if the boys react badly the results may be worse. So to ensure she can become more confident in the Haruno Sakura that she is becoming, she nods her chin just the littlest bit. Kakashi immediately stands with a clap, drawing the boys' attention. It will be easier to show them than to explain. Sakura mentally chants to herself. It's what she had done with Kakashi and Tazuna's family. But perhaps the boys were different. Perhaps they would hate her for it. They were both orphans longer than her after all. Naruto might've understood should his islander parent have survived, but they didn't. And Sakura cannot remedy that right now.
"It's past midnight, my little genins, and I'm sure you'll want to rest before training at eight." Kakashi reminds the boys of the time. Naruto looks like he wants to protest at first. But then he submits, half-heartedly asking one last question.
"Why aren't you curious sensei?" Naruto's voice is half-sullen, half-searching. Kakashi rolls his shoulders, throwing a look over his shoulder as he replies.
"I was there." Kakashi answers simply, before he disappears into the house. Sasuke and Naruto quickly follow, leaving Sakura alone outside. She closes her eyes, taking a deep breath. Sakura doesn't know how to feel about the situation. She is closer to her sensei, as he has yet to break her trust. But the boys on the other hand... Despite constantly leaving her behind, this mission has seemed to split them even further apart. She doesn't know if she can mend the rift in the little time they have before Zabuza's inevitable comeback either.
Suddenly, a warm hand grasps her own, pulling her. Her eyes snap open. At the sight of Naruto standing in front of her, she instantly relaxes a bit. If he was the one pulling her, it would make sense that her field wouldn't alert her. Naruto tugs her inside. As they enter, she spots Sasuke just beyond the door. He turns to look at her, limbs sagging as his face twists with a tired expression.
"Sensei said that you want us to come tomorrow," Sasuke tells her, grabbing her other hand lightly. His grip is weak enough that should Sakura pull away, his fingers will simply slide off. Sakura is viscerally aware of the fact and turns her hand slightly, sliding her own fingers through his as he continues to speak. "You mentioned two days of burning?" Sasuke ends the statement with a questioning lilt, upturning the tone as the three of them make their way to the stairs. Sakura coughs a little.
"Yeah." Sakura confirms. Sasuke grips her hand tighter at the reply, breathing through his nose harshly.
"So you burned the children today," Sasuke assumes, voice hard. Naruto stiffens slightly at Sasuke's statement, but doesn't let go of Sakura. He just keeps leading their little pack. Sakura isn't really surprised at Sasuke's knowledge of the island rights. He has had the whole of the Uchiha library at his finger tips since he was seven, after all. It seems callous thinking that way, but Sakura knows it to be the truth. And really, she doesn't know how to phrase it any other way. Sakura belatedly realizes that they are heading for her and Kakashi's room. She also realizes that the boys had noticed her little trick, and weren't going to let her get away with not telling them anything that night. A warm feeling bubbles up within her at the thought. For some reason, the distance that had just stretched between them was almost nonexistent. Sakura's forehead lightly bumps into Naruto's back as he stops and opens the door.
"Hey sensei," Naruto greets, a wry grin on his face. Sakura isn't really surprised at the sight of their sensei sitting up on his futon next to the wall. She had a feeling that Kakashi wouldn't have let her flee the conversation. Especially with the way she had collapsed into his arms after the initial burning. Sasuke and Naruto simultaneously guide to where Kakashi is sitting, the three of them gently toppling like dominoes. When Sakura gathers herself afterwards, her head is pillowed by one of Kakashi's thighs with Sasuke and Naruto laying down on either side of her. She giggles breathlessly and then spends the next few minutes collecting her breath. At some point in that time Kakashi begins carding his fingers through her hair. It's comforting.
"On the islands, mass burials are so rare, there are only three known documentations of them. One burial for each document," Sakura begins, voice soft and sad. The day is done, and all that is left is recollection. She cannot put it off anymore. So she explains the connection between the children and the sea. Tells her teammates and sensei of the importance that the children be burned first. That when island children are lost early, the ocean expects their names to be returned. That they must have their named stones thrown first, no matter what. Sakura talks until she can no longer speak, voice hoarse. Then she stops. She stops and just breathes, hoping beyond hope that somehow the boys will understand. She already knows that Kakashi has. Or at least accepted her need to complete this task. If he hadn't, he would have left her to burn the bodies alone. And she was so, so, happy that he hadn't. That Kakashi has stayed and even comforted her. Naruto breaks the quiet first.
"How many?" Naruto asks, his voice hanging in the air long after he finishes speaking. With the way that both Kakashi and Sasuke perk up, Sakura can tell that they want to know the answer too. She swallows, croaking out the answer like it was pried from her lips with an iron. And when it comes to the people she cares about, there is nothing stronger than what they want. Especially with something as benign as Naruto's question. Even if she wants to spare Naruto the pain of knowing. He has somehow been so happy and positive through everything that's been thrown at him. And so nice to Sakura despite all the things she's done to him. But she she tells him anyways. Even if it's only making-up for earlier.
"One-hundred." Sakura brings the number to light. And despite the fact that they are shinobi, that they are on a mission, and she definitely shouldn't have continued the burial rites past her sensei's awakening—despite all of that, despite any of that—Sasuke is the one who breaks her assumptions. Tears them down with one sentence she never expected to hear. Especially out of the boy who has only ever seemed to have one focus the majority of the years she has known him.
"So that was your training?" Sasuke's words are a cover-up, the same excuse she used just the night before. They are the result of Sasuke accepting what she has done. And they are a promise. A promise to keep her actions a secret should a troublesome situation arise if someone else knew. Sakura knows this, and cherishes the trust she has just been given like it is a necklace of jewels given to her by the Daimyo. She knows that if she breaks it, she will never get it back. Sakura swallows, clearing her throat and mouth.
"Yeah. I used the Doton jutsu to carve the names." Sakura admits. It was kind of funny actually. After practicing the jutsu over a hundred times she was finally pro efficient enough in her own creation not to be an embarrassment to herself. Naruto takes the opportunity to join the conversation after Sakura is quiet for a few seconds too long.
"You gotta show us sometime Sakura-chan," Naruto comments, "Maybe after the bridge is done?" Sakura nods again, her mouth stretching in a large yawn. She means to agree out loud, but she ends up staying quiet. It is fine, however, since no one else continues talking either. Instead, Sakura falls deeper and deeper asleep, her sensor range expanding to encompass the entirety of Tazuna's house as well as a hut of the forest surrounding it. She may trust Kakashi and her teammates, but that just doubly meant that she wouldn't be able to bear it should they get hurt on her watch.
Sakura adjusts her sleeping position, nuzzling into Kakashi's abdomen. He is warm, and more importantly, safe. With that, Team Seven is blissfully asleep. Asleep in a way none of them have been for years. Left unattended by their usual demons. The plague of their nightmares lifted for the night. They simply sleep, curled up together on mismatched tatami mats.
Sakura's echo keeps watch, scanning their sensory net every few minutes. Hibiki, Sakura once called her. When she was stronger, and more than just the echo she was named after. But even with Sakura's faded memory Hibiki cares for her. And so she stays awake through the night, warding away any dangers to keep Sakura safe. Keep safe her best friend, and those beloved by her.
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Fanfiction"A hundred stones sink beneath the waves, imperfect and uneven kanji chipped into them by an unpracticed hand. The owners only recently buried as ash and dust beneath coarse dirt and sand. And Sakura, the one behind it all." A Different Wave: Book O...
