Another path

Realisation

< Did I miss something ? Last time I checked, the story was at 7,8k views and now it's 8,4k ? What happened ?! I'm very happy nonetheless, gotta keep writing to entertain you guys (and myself cause I love to) !
Anyway, one of my dear readers commented that Sakura's treatment was unfair regarding how she was always neglected, including by her own team. That's a great coincidence cause I was planning on explaining that part of the story with this chapter. So here's why Sakura behaves the way she does and why I wrote her character development this way. Enjoy ! >

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A little girl was crying. She wasn't loud, no it was more sobbing than actual wailing.
As if she wanted not to be noticed.
As if she wanted to be forgotten.
As if she wanted to sink into the ground and disappear.

Her head snapped up when she heard rustling behind her. Her eyes frantically searched for the bullies. They sometimes liked to attack her by surprise...
But she found none. No child to make fun of her forehead. No child to tell her how someone as plain as her shouldn't even be trying to become a shinobi. No child to put dirt on her face and spat in her hair.
Instead, she found a little box. It was a soft blue with white flowers engraved on it. She opened it and found biscuits inside. Along with those was a note with a slightly messy but delicate hand writing.

" My mom made these, I hope you'll like them ! Besides, I really like your hair. "

The little girl cried anew but for a completely different reason now. That was the first time another kid beside Ino was nice to her. Her heart was fluttering in joy ! Could she call them a friend ? She pondered on the subject while gleefully munching on her treats.
She didn't notice the other little girl smiling as she watched her from a nearby tree.

***

A girl was crying. She was loud, literally screaming as if to tear apart her lungs. The reason ? Her shoulder was bending in a most unnatural way.
The girl that did this to her was looking down at - and on - her with cold eyes.
They had known each other for years. They had despised each other for years.
Green teary eyes met with unfazed blue ones.
What once could have been had disappeared from both of their memories.
At this moment, the green eyed girl realised something. She had looked up to the other girl. She still did in fact. And it was why she couldn't stand her. She was everything she couldn't be.
When they first met, the green eyed girl was a bit wary of the blue eyed one. Rumours had it she was a monster in disguise. But quickly, that apprehension morphed into pity and understanding. She too had been harassed her whole life. She knew what it felt like. And she decided she would support the other one and be her first friend.
But she was oh so wrong. The blue eyed girl wasn't harassed, she was feared. She didn't want pity, she wanted strength. She didn't cry, she fought. She hadn't bowed, she stood proud. The blue eyed one was everything the green eyed one wasn't.
And that realisation was tearing her heart apart, reminding her how pathetic she just was. She was so persuaded there was nothing she could do that she had given up. And now she knew she wasn't able to change.
She had been like this, in a stagnant state for years. She never evolved, never changed, never even regressed. She was frozen in that state. And watching everyday how the blue eyed one would grow was as much reminder as she needed to know she'd never be able to make a change.

The most painful part was to end up on the same team as her. The green eyed one could only watch in distress the spark in her crush's eyes when he realised he was on the same team as the blue eyed one. It hurt. It hurt so bad she felt like throwing up. In everyway, she stood so far above her that she felt crushed.
Seeing her was painful. Hearing her was painful. Just knowing she existed was painful !
And she hated herself. The green eyed one began to loathe her own existence. Cursing herself for being so weak...
Somewhere along that path, she started to hate the blue eyed one. Her very existence was irritating, like her skin itched from the very fact. She lashed out at her, insulted her, belittled her, anything she could to prove to him she was better.
Because if he acknowledged the green eyed one was better than the blue eyed one, then she would have won, right ?