As Sakura rode on Sumire, the wind whipped her hair to the back. For once in her life, she felt free. She looked at the faces of her teammates, they felt the same. The three of them raced in the forest with Sasuke in the lead.

"I am NOT letting you win this round!" She yelled.

Sasuke looked back with a smirk, "Come and catch me if you can!"

"Hmph! We will alright." Neji yelled back, growling playfully. "Come, Raimu!"

The two caught up with Sasuke and beat him, but Neji was in the lead.

"Tell the boys who's boss Sumire!"

"ROAR!!" Sumire replied which she giggled to.

Sumire picked up her speed.

Almost there..

Closer..

Closer...

...Got it!

"CHA! BEAT THAT!" Sakura shrieked and punched a fist in the air.

They were having way too much fun that they had forgotten they were in the middle of a test. At long last, the day is coming to an end and they only have 6 more days to collect 2 more grams and find that tower.

They settled themselves in an area where it's dense with trees. Nearby was a river as their source of food and water. It was getting dark, they quickly prepared for the night while they could still see their surrounding. Their little companions turned into cubs and hopped onto their heads while they did their business. Neji looked for dry sticks to build a fire; Sakura collected water while Sasuke hunted for food.

After their job was done, they built a bonfire next to the river. They quietly ate the fish Sasuke caught from the river and gave some to the cubs.

"I'll take the first guard." Sasuke volunteered.

"I'll take second." Neji uttered.

"Which leaves me the third." Sakura said.

She looked over to their little tigers and caught them cuddling with each other as they slept. "They're so cute!" A light blush spread over her cheeks as she chuckled in joy.

"It's good to see you so happy, Sakura. It has been a long time since I had fun without worrying about my clan's reputation." Neji smiled.

Sasuke nodded, his lips curved upwards. "As heirs, we always have the burden of our clan."

"Yeah.. It kinda sucks to come from noble clans, especially as prodigies.. Being given the pressure and all. And people think it's a fancy experience." Sakura muttered.

Sasuke sighed, "Among all of us, I'm sure you had it harder. I heard about the legacy behind your name."

The Haruno heiress shot up her gaze, no one was supposed to learn about it. It was Neji's first time hearing about it, so he was curious.

"What legacy?"

Finally, Sakura heaved a sigh. Telling them would do no harm; it was a matter of time before they found out anyway. "If you noticed, the people from my clan have pink hair of different shades. But I was the only one in this light shade." She said while holding a strand of her hair which could bring her both fortune and misfortune. "There was a message passed down from the founder of our clan, it wrote: should a descendant be born with hair in the colour of a cherry blossom, she must be named Sakura."

"But why?" Neji asked once again.

The Haruno shook her head as it hung low. "This is embarrassing but... I don't know. My father never mentioned it and I don't think anyone else knows."

Silence greeted them like the cold air. Only at that moment it occurred to the pinkette she hadn't learned about the secret behind her name.

The Sharingan user hesitated, but he mentioned all he could remember about the Haruno clan. "I don't know if it's true.. but I heard the birth of the second Sakura Haruno means the rebirth of the Haruno clan. It can very possibly be linked to a war that may happen in the future."

"How did you know?" Sakura questioned; she was a little bit alarmed and suspicious about the knowledge he possess. She wasn't sure if she felt relieved or she felt more pressured by the responsibility she's carrying.

Neji was curious as well. He glared suspiciously at his male teammate. How could he know so much about a clan's secret when even the heiress knows nothing about.

"It was Itachi...who told me. Back when I was still a child." His harsh stare burned the ground. "I don't know how he found out or why he told me." He thinks Itachi is using him somehow. There isn't anything that he would do without a purpose, that was for sure.

The night was long and quiet. All three of them took turns being on guard, but they had little sleep with much to think about. Sakura pondered about the information Sasuke had about her clan; Sasuke cracked his head about what Itachi had in mind when he told him about the Haruno clan; Neji had his own secrets to solve with zero intention to share it with his teammates.

By the last shift where Sakura stays as a guard, she sat on a tree. What she did not know was a pair of colourless eyes watching her bathe under the luminescent moonlight.

==

Dedicated to user05080706 for your votes on this story!

Published: December 2014
Rewritten: 7 May 2018