a village with(out) me ━ naruto fanfic

5.

Chapter Five: 

Morning comes a little too quickly for Sakura. She pushes her window open and yawns, basking in the gentle heat of the sun. Below on the streets civilians and ninja move quietly and efficiently, opening their shops and heading out for missions. Tilting her head out the window and back, Sakura glances at the red rooftop. She's greeted with the sight of her summon, the white wolf; Shiro, as she had introduced herself yesterday, perched upon it lazily. 

"Good morning, Sakura,'' Shiro greets quietly, white tail moving to brush against the girl's shoulders.

"Morning," Sakura mumbles. "Were you really here all night?"

"Of course," Shiro inclines her head, "It's my job to protect my summoner while they're resting." 

"Right," Sakura says, pink brows furrowing. She ducks back inside her room, a look at the clock shows her that it's nearing five am. "Remember what I said yesterday?" She asks.

"To stay quiet." Shiro answers. "My presence is to be kept a secret so as to not alert your parents," She sounds displeased, but like last night, she doesn't press for further information on Sakura's so-called family. 

Sakura hums, satisfied. She leaves her room in lieu of going downstairs, steps carefully quiet. She makes quick work of cleaning the kitchen, motions practised from years of experience. Once she's down with that, she moves onto the living room. She takes extra care in ridding the space of dust, watering the plants and wiping down vases. She eventually sweeps the floors and mops them, leaving them shiny in the wake of her hard work. 

Moving back upstairs, Sakura pauses, the hairs on the back of her neck and arms standing to attention when the door to the bathroom slides open, showing her mother. She smells sour, like lemon drops. "Good morning, Sakura-chan,'' the woman smiles, hair damp from her shower, "have you just finished cleaning downstairs?'' 

Sakura nods. "Yes, mama.'' 

"That's good." Mebuki says, moving past Sakura and down the stairs. "Take a shower and then meet me downstairs, we'll check your weight. It looks like your father has already left for his job, so let's not bother with breakfast today." Or ever, isn't said out loud, but it's clear in the woman's words. 

Sakura wraps her fingers tightly into the worn out material of her sleeping shirt. "Yes, mama." And then she's moving on autopilot, grabbing her clothes from her closet, taking a shower, getting dressed, brushing her teeth, combing out her long, pink hair and making her way back downstairs. 

Her mother is standing in the hallway, waiting for her with a weighing scale beside her feet. 

Sakura steps onto the scale, feels the familiar whirring noise under her feet and looks down to stare at the red arrow moving from one number to another. Something in her brain clicks, a distant echo rings through her ears and then she's looking back up at her mother, grinning brightly. "Look mama!" She exclaims. "I've lost some weight again!"

Mebuki smiles. "That's good," she says, "you're getting prettier and prettier by the day." 

"Really?" Sakura asks, green eyes widening with childlike innocence. She brings her hands together in front of her chest, cheeks reddening. "Maybe Sasuke-kun will notice me now!" 

"Definitely," her mother nods. "With hair that pretty, who wouldn't? Although," Mebuki frowns, "that forehead of yours…"

"I'll fix it, mama!" Sakura hurries to say, stepping off the scale. "My headband can cover it now." 

"I suppose so," Mebuki sighs, "go on," she motions at Sakura to leave, "finish your other chores and go outside. Socialise with that boy you like so much.''