What could have been (one shot)
She had wasted years chasing a dream that was never meant to be.
Sasuke Uchiha is dead-killed by Naruto in their final battle. Sakura Haruno should hate him for it. She should blame him, curse him, and despise him for breaking his promise. But she can't. Because deep down, in the hollowed-out remains of her heart, she knows the truth: Naruto was never the one who failed her. She was the one who failed him.
Once, he had been hers to claim-the one boy who saw her, recognized her, and cherished her without hesitation. But she had turned away, blind to what she had until it was gone. And now, as she watches him in absolute love with another-with the fire, devotion, and tenderness she once craved-Sakura is left to drown in the weight of her mistakes.
For once, she reaches out to the only friend she has left. But as the hours pass and the truth becomes unbearable, one question lingers in the cold Konoha air: What does a person do when there's nothing left to hold onto?
Tonight, under the quiet glow of Konoha's bright lanterns amongst the cold winds, one last mistake waits to be made.
Canon Divergences: Sakura never trained under Tsunade, never reached her full potential, and remained a low-tier kunoichi under Kurenai's genjutsu tutelage. Her obsession with Sasuke only worsened over the years. Naruto, no longer the boy who once begged for her affection, is soon to be Hokage and devoted to Hinata, the soon to be Hyuga clan head, the woman he truly loves. As the past and present collide, Sakura is forced to face the life she could have had-and the one she threw away.
