S A K U R A ( The Flower Of Leaf ) [ ON HOLD ]

Chapter Eight

[ The picture has nothing to do with the story, though it was too cute not to be used ]

"Are you sure that you are okay, Sakura-chan?" Kakashi asks me worriedly. I shrug his worry off and yawn, stretching in the process. "Sakura." I look up at sensei, blinking my sleepiness away.

"I am fine, Kakashi-sensei." I grin at the man in front of me. "As Naruto and Sasuke are learning...eh, chakra control..." I trail off feeling unsatisfied that my teammates are still learning the basics. But I know that they will reach mountains in their lives. So, I like to believe that this minor setback will not last long. "And you have to supervise them..." Kakashi rubs his head, chuckling uncomfortably. "I guess, I have to guard Tazuna-san. Nevertheless, I can't stay home forever." I add with shrug of my shoulders.

"Just be careful, okay?" Kakashi whispers nervously. "You are not fully recovered, Sakura. I don't want to risk your health."

"Ne, Kakashi-sensei." I chuckle at his face. "We are ninjas." I add without hesitation and sigh. "Risking our health and lives is our job."

***

Kakashi watches horizon as Sakura disappears on the road with Tazuna. The worry starts bubbling at the pit of his stomach, urging him to follow the two behind and keep a close eye. But he has Naruto and Sasuke on the other hand and the terrible need to help them out and give them pointers.

"Kakashi -sensei!" Naruto shouts loudly, gaining his sensei's attention. Kakashi sifts his gaze to his other two students, trying his best to ignore the sinking feeling inside of him. Kakashi sighs, seeing Naruto falling from the tree.

"Naruto..." Kakashi shakes his head, approaching Namikaze-Uzumaki and Uchiha, completely forgetting about his pink haired student.

***

Guarding the bridge is boring, considering the fact, that nothing is happening. I try to help the workers as much as possible, but I can feel that I am not much of a help to them either. With another deep sigh, I sit on the ground, letting my chakra wander around to spot anything that might be out of the ordinary.

"Everything okay?" I look up and smile at Tazuna, who is looking through some papers. I nod and he smiles satisfied.

Tazuna continues looking through some papers, completely ignoring my existence as I stand up and start walking around the bridge. The feeling inside of me keeps telling me that something is wrong, that I must evacuate these people and call Kakashi atop my lungs.

Maybe you should believe your gut's feeling?

Inner? I haven't heard from you for a long time. Where have you been?

Nowhere. Listen, Sakura... Something is wrong. I can feel it. Tell others to stand together. Someone is going to attack soon.

"Tazuna!" I call out loudly, gaining everyone's attention. "Stand together. Someone is coming." I whisper through gritted teeth. The man nods and calls out other workers, crowding together, creating small ball.

Two rogue ninjas appear in front of us. One of them has triangle face with large scar going down from his left eye to his bottom lip. He has spiky black hair with sinister brown eyes. I can see the bloodlust inside his gaze. The second one has diamond shaped face with soft lips and broken nose. His blonde hair is long, accompanied with icy blue eyes. Neither of them are wearing any headbands.

"Hand over the bridge-builder, girl." The first one states annoyed. "We don't want to play ninja with you." He adds a bit more agitated, when I don't move.