Time

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Note: Apologies for the wait, patience yields focus and all that, I give you words.

In which Sakura realizes some things, events occur, and the author makes some bad choices.


It was slow at first. She barely noticed as she spent more time with the Uchiha. Her morning were occupied with her running to Itachi's for early training. Then, in the afternoon, because occasionally they attended classes still, they would go for a run and get some dango or anmitsu. She'd arrive home late and tired, if she made it home at all. Mikoto was very insistent she stay at the compound many nights after she ate there, but was understanding when Sakura argued her way back home.

The room she occupied there was slowly filled with more of her things. She left several school books on the shelves, her clothes were in the closet, next to spare blankets and several dresses that Mikoto had bought her. She even had a personalized placard on the door, given to her by Fugaku of all people, detailed with sakura petals falling from one side and a small, smudgy green handprint from Sasuke.

With graduation a good two months away, Sakura realized she spent more time at the Uchiha Compound than with her own parents.


She was glad she attended the academy today, instead of training with Shisui and Itachi, because, as it turns out, Shisui got called out on a mission mid session, and Itachi ended up having to sneak close enough to the school without being swarmed by girls to switch places with his clone, which took almost an hour.

That, and Mikoto came to pick them up today to take them out for an after school but before training snack.

She started them towards the ever busy Ichiraku Ramen, walking slowly, as if this was something special for her.

Mikoto was reminiscing of all the times Kushina dragged her here, making her try all the different types of ramen each time, leaving their stomachs full, and their wallets empty.

Sakura was remembering her knuckleheaded teammate, and all the attempts he made to get with her, and the war, where he stood at the front lines, keeping the enemy at bay. She wondered if he ever managed to forgive her for killing Sasuke so brutally, so mercilessly in front of him.

Itachi was trying to figure out why going out for ramen was making Sakura cry.


"Thank you for the meal, Mikoto!" Sakura smiled up at the black haired woman as she finished her third bowl.

"You're welcome." She pulled out her money, paying for her last bowl before getting up. "Now let's get home, shall we?"

They made their way towards Sakura's home, with Sakura in the lead, ranting on the way the academy teachers taught their classes.

"-And the girls never get to try against the teachers in taijutsu class. It's not fair."

"Maybe it's because they're scared they'll get beat by a fangirl or something."

"That's fair." She said, and solidifying Itachi's point, "They can be scary sometimes."


"Scary?" He stared at her. "You punched one in the face because she said that your fo-"

Sakura clamped her hand onto his mouth. "I did no such thing."

"You broke her jaw."

"It wasn't that bad."

"You broke her jaw."

"She deserved it."

"Her jaw, Sakura. Her jaw,"

Mikoto mover in closer to them. "You broke someone's jaw?" She said incredulously, staring at her son and her almost-but-not-quite daughter. But Sakura didn't respond. Her eyes were focused on a plume of smoke rising from the direction they were headed.

She took off, running forwards, enhancing her speed with chakra and dodging the civilians in the street. She ignored the burn of her lungs, and the uneasy feeling in her chest. She did not hear Mikoto call after her.

Mikoto pulled Itachi onto her back easily, as though he was a light bag, and took off after her, scanning the streets for a flash of pink, attempting to spot her.

And spot her she did, amidst smoke and ash in the civilian housing developments, past a line of familiar uchiha, clad in the uniform of the Konoha Police Corps.

She let Itachi off her back, and he stared at the ash and the smoldering ground surrounding his friend with wide eyes. She moved towards the closest Uchiha, who made no move to prevent her from entering, but stopped her to brief her on the situation.

"We think it was a faulty wire, but the house caught quickly and there isn't much left so we can't be sure."

The stones hit Mikoto, and she glanced back at Sakura, who had sunk to her knees, hand over her mouth, probably muffling sobs. "Injuries?"

The officer caught her eyes. "One had major burns, but the other..." He trailed off, looking down.

Mikoto returned her gaze to Sakura, and, before she knew it, she was knelt beside her and gripping her shoulders, pulling her into her arms and away from the body of her charred mother.

The medics made their way to the corpse, pulling it onto the stretcher to take to the hospital to prepare for the funeral, and Mikoto got up, Sakura in her arms as she made her way back towards her son.

"Wait." It was so soft, spoken in such a broken voice, and Mikoto almost missed it. She paused, and Sakura tumbled from her arms, walking towards her mother.

She moved the unburned hair from her mother's face, before shuffling back to Mikoto, grabbing her hand with a quiet, "Thank you."

Itachi couldn't see much from behind the police line, the Uchiha near him intent on keeping him from seeing him, but his mother came back out ten minutes after going in, and Sakura was gripping her hand and staring at the ground, with tearful eyes. He glanced back at the rubble behind them, then made eye contact with his mother, who just silently nodded.

It was sudden, Sakura stopped, and as Mikoto reached towards her, she was gone.

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