--Bloom Again--

"In the end, we are just a bunch of lost souls trying to find the purpose of our life."

----------

Red, that was all she could see. Everywhere she look-Red. The metallic smell of blood hanging in the air could be smelled from miles away.

She stood in between bodies; bodies that were already starting to rot as she tries to catch her breath. Her head aches a little as she tries to recall what had happened to her.

::

Weakling

Useless

Worthless

The one to be protected at all cost

Unable to protect self

For years now labels had been thrown to her face. For years, she had suffered from these labels trying to prove that she was different; that she had changed to a better person. She wanted to prove not only to them but to herself that she is strong enough to protect her loved ones.

However, all her efforts seem like it has gone to waste. Everyone she knew was gone. Slaughtered.
Their bodies could be seen on the ground; some with their eyes that still held so much pain in them while others were barely able to be recognized only if it wasn't for her medical skills.

::

"What else is there to live for when everyone you once love, knew, grow up with is gone? "

::

Sakura took a step forward, her hands were still filthy from all the grave she had dug earlier. She had buried them all. One by one. Some couldn't be buried in one piece so she tried to salvage as much as she could.

Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh as she suddenly feels like breaking down again. No matter how many days had passed, it still did not help her to cope with the loss of her beloved and friends. It was already hard enough to see their bodies on the ground but to bury them one by one is on another level.

The last one she had to burry was the most painful one. It consists of the number one most unpredictable ninja who had blonde hair and ocean blue eyes that she love. It didn't help her that Naruto's body was one of the worst mutilated bodies out there.

A choking sob escapes her lips as she eyes the place she had buried Naruto, and soon she couldn't take it anymore. She burst out crying, hot tears stream down her cheeks. She fell to her knees and cried for the lives she couldn't save from the monster.

"Why?" was the only thing she managed to say before the world around her became black.

::

"Sakura Haruno, wake up this instance!" A voice, a familiar one calls out to her.

Sakura blinks slowly, her eyes taking in her surrounding. Pink ceilings with cherry blossom stickers. Her body scrambled upwards seeing that familiar ceiling in recognition.

"W-what? Where am I?"She sputtered out, lost at words for what has happened to her. She swore one moment she was crying on Naruto's grave and the next she was here, in a room that creepily looks identical to the room design she had when she was a genin.

That was when she looked into her wardrobe mirror and realised she was looking back at the reflection of her younger body. Her eyes caught the reflection of the calendar hanging on the wall. She was 11 in that particular year.

She screamed.

::

Sakura's body shivers involuntarily. The room was hot, yet her body felt as cold as ice. It wasn't a genjutsu. She had tried to dispel it more than 10 times when her mother had heard all her screams (her efforts at trying to dispel the "genjutsu") and ran upstairs only to find Sakura sobbing.

The second Sakura saw her mother, Sakura burst out crying even louder again. It had been way too long since she had last seen her mother. The last time she saw her was before the war because little did Sakura know that her village was destroyed in one swiped by The Akatsuki.

It was a fact that was rather hard to believe unless seen with your own eyes, which she did. She was running towards her village at that time, her boys right at her tail. The explosion that happens was so strong it had knocked her out for a few hours. When she regained consciousness, the smell of burned ashes was still in the air. She immediately demanded to know what had happened to her friends and family.

She had lost Tsunade, her parents and Shizune that day. Realising that she was unable to grief, she put on a mask to cover her emotions that day and slammed the Zetsu clones into the ground, imagining them as the Akatsuki.

"Sakura, what's wrong honey?" Her mother's usually stern voice was soft this time. She was probably shocked to see her daughter suddenly crying.

"I'm sorry mom, it's-"Sakura clears her throat, "just a nightmare, " She finishes and did not hesitate to leap to hug her mother she haven't seen for so long.

"Sakura..."Her mom trailed off unsure on what to do. It was the first time Mebuki saw Sakura reacted to her dreams this way.

"I don't want to talk about it,"

Mebuki nods and offers her daughter a small sad smile as she comforts the child, who at the same time was clinging to her clothes like it was her lifeline.

::

Sakura was still confused about her surroundings but so far from her one week of research, she had come to a few conclusion.

She is an 18-year-old inside an 11-year-old body, meaning one more year before finally graduating the Academy and put into the teams with Naruto and Sasuke. One more year till Sasuke's defection.

Everything seems to be like what she remembered it to be. No weird playboy Sasuke, no crazy, maniac Menma, no cat loving Kiba and so on. Everyone was acting like how she remembered them to be. She still had to be sure though, she could still be trapped inside someone's genjutsu. A genjutsu that was like Madara's Tsukuyumi Plan.

"Oi! Forehead!"

The sound of a screeching voice snaps Sakura from her thoughts. Her immediate reactions were to reach out for her kunai that is hidden underneath her red qipao but she relaxes after discovering it was only Ino. Then the thought of her meeting her dead best friend tenses her up immediately again.

"Forehead! Are you deaf? I've been calling out to you!"

Sakura turns to meet her blonde haired ex-best friend. Apparently, whatever time period she's currently in is after the Rival declaring because Ino was already calling her 'forehead'.

"Ino-pig, what do you want?"

For a moment concern flashes in Ino's eyes, "What happen to—No, I mean Iruka sensei is worried about you. You have been absent for a week now, forehead!" Ino replied and Sakura had to resist the temptation to raise her eyebrow at Ino's correction

"I notice," Sakura calmly said.

Sakura knew that her actions of skipping the academy would surely be noticed by someone, but she did it anyway. She needed some time to get used to seeing the faces of the people she loved. Her heart clenches painfully at the thought of her loved ones.

Sasuke

Naruto

Shikamaru

Neji

Kakashi

Shizune

Yamato

Tenten

Gaara

Ino

Sai

Tsunade

"Wha-What about Sasuke-kun?You know since you are absence I guess Sasuke-kun is all mine now!"Ino proudly screeched, smirking as if she had just won the lottery

"Take him, I don't want him,"

"That's right forehead, Sasuke is going to be all-Wait what did you say?!"Ino smirked even wider before finally the words that Sakura said finally sink in.

"Take him,"

Sakura was 18 and she had long grow from the frantic fangirl self she used to be. She had learn to priotise, and for now, who Sasuke belongs to wasn't it. Although it was mainly because she knew Sasuke at this age was too antisocial to even understand romance.

Sakura turns and walked away.

"Hey! I'm not done talking yet, forehead!"

Sakura paused. She had forgotten how annoying Ino was when she was a child. Was she this annoying when she was a child too? Is this why Sasuke called her annoying? Sakura inwardly apologises to Sasuke and everyone she had annoyed when she was a child.

Sakura turns around and waited for what Ino had to say.

"Y-you!"Ino growled in annoyance and calmed herself down, "Anyway, Iruka sensei said that he's going to meet your parents if you are still not going to the academy, so please continue not going to school Forehead, because only then I do not need to see your big forehead in the academy again!"

Sakura thanked the gods inwardly for giving her the maturity to withstand Ino's poor insults. Instead of fighting back like what Ino expected Sakura to do, Sakura continued walking leaving behind a stunned blonde haired girl.

Unable to move from her spot, the blonde haired girl holds her fist against her chest worriedly muttering the first thing that came up to her mind.

"Sakura....what happen to you?"

::

Two days-Two freaking days of not going to the academy. Two days to think more logically about what she should do.

In those two days, Sakura had come up with a plan. A plan she would follow. She had already accepted the fact that wherever she is, she would just live it out as if everything was normal-As if she didn't just bury Naruto less than two weeks ago.

First, she would assess herself, in terms of strength, speed, and skills.  Then she would come up with a good plan to start training herself and improve. She would not let herself get left behind again.

Next, she would need to gather allies-as much, and as fast as possible. Madara's eye of the moon plan is only in just a few years time and she had no time to just sit around and play ninja anymore. So for that, she would have to try and prevent Sasuke from leaving Konoha. Sasuke would be a good ally in her plan. She would also need the older Uchiha brother.

In the future-or the world she came from, she had found out the truth of the Uchiha massacre a year and a half too late after the death of Uchiha Itachi. He was already dying, yet he wanted his little otouto to avenge the clan for him. He was the most selfless person she ever knew and if she can prevent his death, then other stuff be damned because she is sure as hell not going to let this opportunity to be wasted.

Other allies like Zabuza Momoichi and Haku, Sasori, Hiruzen Sarotobi, Nagato, Konan are also worth saving in her view. All she needs is to convince them. Which is easier said than done since most of them are actually rouge nins.

Sakura sighed, she could already feel the headaches that are going to hit her like waves after waves just because she needs to figure out how to convince them.

This is all so troublesome.

"Great, now I'm starting to sound like, "Sakura paused, a sudden realisation hit her then.

Bingo, she smirked to herself

-To be continued-

What do you think happen to Sakura?

Why is she back in the past?

Is it really the past?

»«

Hope yall can send some love for this chapter, and overall this story.
⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄

The next chapter will be published soon~ >•<