Catharsis in the Interlude

Jaded Entity

Konoha had changed so much, more so than she would have ever believed it. She herself had changed so much, more so than she would have ever thought possible. Everyone had left her.

Tsunade had been taken during the Fourth Ninja War, when Sakura had just turned 21. The war had escalated until the Hokage herself had to take part in combat, sacrificing herself to protect Konoha. The numerous battles and encounters with countless powerful shinobi had finally taken a toll on the fifth Hokage. Ino had also been lost later that day after being poisoned by an enemy shinobi. Sakura hadn't been there to watch them go down; she didn't think she would have been able to stand it. A part of Sakura died along with them that day, and she had been wrecked, running harder than she had ever run in her life, praying that she would be able to make it in time. But she didn't. She'd sobbed hard while pumping whatever chakra she had left into their lifeless bodies, finally passing out, slumped over the two important women that she'd long come to love and admire, her face still stained wet with tears. No one ever told her that it was Kakashi who found her, and had carried her to the hospital.

More pointless fighting went on, what with the war being prolonged because of continued strained diplomatic relations between the hidden villages. The second hard blow came when Sai never returned from a mission that he was assigned to. When Sakura found out that it was a suicide mission from the start, she had raged and stormed and cried, but she knew that there was nothing she could do that would ever bring him back to her, to Konoha. Yet another piece of her heart was gone with him on that day, and she'd been angry for a long time after that. Even though she should have known better as a kunoichi that such things would happen sooner or later, she couldn't help but feel disillusioned, feel that things were far too unfair somehow. Sai had just begun opening up to her and the people around them, starting showing emotions, when she previously thought it impossible for him. It was just too unfair.

Still, everyday she carried on fighting, clinging to the last shreds of light in the hopeless swamps of the killing and dying. She took whatever comfort she could in the fact that Naruto and Kakashi were still standing beside her, still fighting and still hoping against hopes that the Fourth Ninja War would end soon. By then, she'd long stopped taking the trouble to keep up with what Sasuke was doing, where he was and wondering if he would ever come back to Konoha. Inwardly, she'd known for a long time that he was a lost cause; she just never had the heart to face Naruto and tell him straight. But Sasuke was far from her mind, because even then, in the heart of the war, she could tell that however subtly, things were changing.

Perhaps it had all to do with the war. Perhaps if things were still sunny, peaceful and calm, it would have never amounted to that. Perhaps... perhaps. But each lingering moment spent with Kakashi caused her to think otherwise. It made her wonder if he would have been feeling that way towards her regardless of the fact that any one of them could very well die on the next mission that they were being assigned to, or the next surprise attack that the other hidden villages would spring on them. Thinking back, she couldn't say for sure when it had started, but each time she found Kakashi's hands around hers, or cupped around her cheek, or his arms around her, she found herself falling harder and harder into this whirlwind of emotions that were threatening to spiral out of control.

Every time she lost a friend in the war, Kakashi would be there beside her somehow. It seemed he always knew what she needed, and always took on the role of her protector. After all, he was always the one to save her, even back when they were still Genin, and back when team 7 still comprised of Naruto, Sasuke and her. No words were said. No words needed to be said. Not in that tumultuous time of war. Words did not amount to anything, not when promises could be broken so damned easily. All that mattered to Sakura was that the two remaining most important people in her life were still there physically, if only for one more day. She'd never expected to be jaded so early on in her life. The war only showed her how relatively sheltered her life had been up until then.