They leave with the entire country cheering behind them, and Sakura is saluted by the ashioto as they walk past. Haku and Zabuza are gone as soon as they finish their farewells, off to wherever life had planned for them next. For Team Seven, they have always known where they would go after Wave. Home. Konohagakure. And for once, Sakura doesn't feel anxious about it. About returning to the village she has sworn her life to, about returning to an empty apartment with no one waiting for her. Because the people Sakura has grown to cherish are right beside her, leaping from branch to branch in time with her. She knows that the smile spread across her face is a little out of place, but Sakura can't help it. She is excited about having new people to dote on. She hadn't let anybody into her heart for so long. Her and her echo both. And yes, maybe letting herself create a family with these three boys may tear her apart one day, but to Sakura? It was worth it. Any terrible thing that might happen in the future was blurred by the happy memories of the now, and Sakura had other things to do than worry about a future that might never happen. She just had to secure these sprouting bonds, tie her team to her in an unbreakable way. Even death wouldn't break it. After all, as her father once said, 'Death is just another door. We will wait for you on the other side until you pass through.'
Safe enough to say, immortality wasn't a goal of Sakura's. She was a Haruno. Sakura's smile melted from her face as the village came into view. The walls seem a little taller than she remembers, and the vibrant red of the gates gleam in the afternoon light. Konohagakure. The place where her newfound strength would be tested. Where her newfound bonds would be plucked at and criticised. Determination courses through Sakura, and she bumps shoulders with Naruto as she lands beside him on the main road. Kakashi is behind them, Sasuke on Naruto's other side. She will weather whatever comes next. Their experiences in Wave may have forged their bonds, but Sakura is the one who will keep them. She will never be the girl she was before. That girl had far too many flaws, flaws that she was too invested in herself to see. Naruto returns the bump, grinning at her. They see the customary two chūnin stationed at the gate. Sakura actually recognises them. They're her neighbours, Kotetsu and Izumo. When Team Seven finally make it up to the gate, just behind some merchant group, Sakura waves to them.
"Tadaima. Kotetsu-san, Izumo-san." She greets them each in turn. They smile back at her before Izumo pulls a pen and clipboard from their station. Kotetsu approaches them with an easy grin, putting Sakura on the back of her shoulder.
"Okaeri Sakura-chan! Identification please?" Kotetsu requests, brightening a bit as she pulls her shinobi ID from its usual place in her thigh pouch. Naruto pulls his from one of his jumpsuit's many pockets while Sasuke and Kakashi had already pulled theirs out a tad bit before they arrived at the gate. Kotetsu taps each with a chakra laden finger, then nods towards Izumo.
"All good here, Izumo!" His partner nods, marking things off on the clipboard. He then put the clipboard down back in the station. Izumo turns, looking over at Team Seven. His gaze focuses on Sakura. She shifts, giving Izumo her attention.
"Hey blossom, was your mission successful?" Izumo inquires, while also tilting his chin respectfully towards Kakashi. Sakura would really need to research her sensei when she had the time. There was more reason than just being a jōnin to getting respect everywhere he went. And Sakura would know. She lived in an apartment complex full of jōnin rank shinobi. Sakura grins up at Izumo, giving the chūnin a thumbs up.
"Yup! a C rank!" Sakura confirms. Kotetsu pats her head, ruffling her hair.
"Congratulations are your first C rank kiddo! Wanna go to Yakiniku Q to celebrate?" The chūnin offers, stepping back as she paws at his hand for him to stop. Sakura glances at her team. She kind of wants to celebrate with them. She... doesn't want to leave them just yet. And honestly? Sakura doesn't know how well she will be able to handle how far away Kakashi's signature will be in a village as large as Konoha. Kotetsu immediately notices her uncertainty, and makes eye contact with Kakashi.
"Along with your team, of course. After you report to the Hokage?" Kotetsu amends, and seems to perk up a little. Sakura can't see her sensei's expression do to his position behind her, but she takes his sudden ruffling of her hair as a good sign. Kakashi only confirms her assumptions with his next words.
"I'm sure we'll all be able to make it. When are you off the clock Hagane-kun?" Kakashi's emphasis isn't lost on anyone, but the one it's meant for also doesn't seem that bothered by it. Sasuke looks rather calm instead, nodding at Sakura when she glances at him. Kotetsu looks over at Izumo with the question, whom sighs in response.
"We switch out at six, you idiot. Seven a safe enough time for all of us?" Izumo addresses the group with his question, receiving nods. "Alright then, head on in. You're all clear." Team Seven does just as instructed, though Sakura hisses when Izumo ruffles her hair as she passes. It's the third time it's happened in less than five minutes and her hair is probably a terribly tangled mess. Naruto snickers at her predicament, so she grabs him into a headlock and noogies him. The blonde may never know the frustration of infinity knots with how short his hair is, but she can introduce him to the horrors of a sensitive scalp. Team Seven makes their way to Hokage Tower in this manner. Teasing, laughing, and getting small acts of revenge. Even Sasuke joins in, his eyes bright and cheery. It's an expression Sakura hasn't seen on the boy since he was seven. It makes her feel warm inside that they were the ones to cause it.
The Hokage's office is quiet, and Sakura almost physically cringes at the tense atmosphere. She had forgotten that their original mission was supposed to be a C rank. That despite mentioning it to Kotetsu earlier, their mission was originally a C rank. Except those kinds of missions did not usually include B rank to nearly S rank nin popping out of the woodworks. The Sandaime lifts his pipe form his mouth, blowing the smoke out in such a tired way Sakura didn't think it was possible.
"You all agreed to continue moving forward?" The Hokage questioned once more, placing the pipe down and folding his hands on his desk as he leaned forward. Kakashi nodded.
"Yes, Hokage-sama," The jōnin confirmed respectfully. Sakura is not the only one in the room to notice their sensei stepping closer to them, herding them near him. The Hokage sighs and glances at one of the papers on his desk. Sakura presumes it is the paper Tazuna had given them the night before they left. The official document that promised Wave's fulfilment of any pay required of the mission's upped rank.
"And the country legally promised to pay the missing money for a substantially higher ranked mission?" The Hokage summarises the paper, looking back up at Team Seven.
"That's correct, Hokage-sama." Kakashi, despite his cool exterior, has his chakra churning nervously. The feeling heavily influences Sakura's own emotions, though it probably influences Sasuke and Naruto as well. Even if just a bit. Despite her sensei's supposed confidence, one can never truly know what the Hokage will decide. The Hokage sighs again, pinching the bridge of his nose. A few more tense minutes pass, Naruto shifting anxiously.
"Understood, jōnin Hatake. The mission's rank will be upped to an A rank due to the presence of Demon Brothers and the Demon of the Mist. You may collect your pay tomorrow, and your team is on mandatory rest for the next week. Dismissed." The Hokage waves them away, and they leave. Another team enters in after them, but Sakura doesn't really know them. They were probably a team that had graduated the previous year. By the looks of them, they have remained genin throughout that entire time. Team Seven leaves the tower, and none of them speak as they head to their usual training grounds. Sakura has a feeling they won't actually be training once they get there.
And they don't. They all gather at the trunk of a large Hashirama tree and sit down. Kakashi goes first, sliding down the tree a bit before looking up at the sky. He takes a deep breath in, letting it out slowly. Sasuke and Naruto are next, sitting down on either side of Kakashi and leaning on the jōnin's shoulders. Their eyes close. Sakura is last, wedging her way next to Naruto and resting her head on Kakashi's thigh. Naruto's furnace heat keeps her warm despite the cool wind, and eventually, Sakura closes her eyes too. This far away from the ocean she can't hear it's song, but the streams and rivers that flow throughout Konoha have their own melody.
"Wind and sky, water swift. Hold close and love your cherished gift."
YOU ARE READING
erode
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...
