"I actually put the quote at the end of the chapter, jw who reads these."

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

Warning: To hell with logic.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

We made our way to the arena as a team, bumping into our former classmates along the way and exchanging pleasant greetings. When we arrived in the arena, my eyes zoomed around to find Kakashi. I was disappointed that I couldn't find him, though.

Then a flash of red caught my attention, just as Hiruzen began his speech.

My eyes zoomed in on a team I did not expect to see. When they hadn't shown up the first couple of days, I feared they had lost both scrolls I had managed to sneak onto their person while I hugged them.

Lo and behold, though, looking extremely battered was one Kusagakure Genin team with a shy Karin who fidgeted nervously. She must have sensed my gaze on her, because she turned around and met my stare. Her eyes lit up with recognition and a smile bloomed across her face.

I instantly smiled back at her, as warmly as I could, hoping she would understand that I wanted to be her friend.

When the Hokage's speech was done, and Hayate motioned for each of us to head up on the balcony before he would announce the first matchup, I reached across the room and grabbed Karin's hand. Both her teammates turned to glare suspiciously at me, before they recognized me.

One of her male teammates whose name was entirely unimportant said, "Hey! You're the one that placed those scrolls on us."

I smiled at Karin, ignoring the male that would never make the cut to be apart of my harem."You should come and join our team, Cutie."

She blushed. "Um—"

"Don't listen to her Karin," the other teammate said. "We should stay together."

"Teams are over by this point. No need for teams to stay together unless they want to," I told the boys. "So Karin-chan can come hang out with me and my friends. Unless you'd rather stay with these two boys?"

She hesitated, fidgeting under her teammates' glares before she shook her head. I shot them both triumphant smirks before I tugged on her hand. Hinata and Naruto were waiting for me at the base of the stairs, both smiling warmly at Karin and myself.

"I'm Hyūga Hinata," Hinata introduced herself to the rosy-haired girl.

"U-Uzumaki Karin," Karin replied.

Naruto's eyes widened. "What? Did you say Uzumaki?"

Even Hinata was surprised. "Are you Naruto-kun's cousin?"

Karin tilted her head at that, her brow furrowed. "Wh-Who?"

"Talk while we walk, dearies, they want to start the matches," I said, guiding everyone up the stairs. Sasuke looked over at us, his hands stuffed in his pocket as he waited for us to join him. Kiba and Shino gravitated towards our group, and soon Ino's team followed.

Once everyone had arrived, I introduced Karin once more. "Everyone, this is Uzumaki Karin from Kusagakure."

"The idiot has a cousin?" Sasuke asked.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto," Naruto said quickly to the growing more confused Karin. "A-Are we cousins?"

"We might be," Karin said slowly. "Do you not know a-about our clan?"

"I have a clan?!" Naruto exclaimed, excitement lighting up his eyes.

"The Uzumaki Clan was one of the most powerful clans during the Warring Clans period," I explained to the hero. "They were one of the founding clans that helped create this village. Their hime, Mito-sama, married Hashirama, the very first Hokage Konoha ever had. Unfortunately, during the end of the Second Great War, they were destroyed."

Karin nodded at my explanation. "We had to scatter all over the lands. My family went to Kusagakure. Um. I'm the last member, th-though."

Naruto's face had fallen from our explanation. "Oh." Then it brightened. "So we are cousins?"

"Very likely," Karin tentatively agreed. "S-So you really don't know anything about our clan?"

Naruto shook his head.

"The Uzumaki Clan was renowned for their fūinjutsu," Shikamaru slowly said. "As such, most of their work is classified for Chūnin and above, unless given special permission by a Jōnin."

Before we could continue our conversation, Hiruzen cleared his throat. "The Bye will be given to Uzumaki Karin."

Our eyes drifted up to the screen where Karin's name flashed.

"Oh Thank God," Karin breathed out, her shoulders sagging with utter relief. "I am too exhausted to fight."

"Why is that? I know I put one Heaven and Earth scroll in your bag before the exams started."

"We didn't realize it until the fourth day," Karin admitted sheepishly. "We lost our original scroll, and... and when I realized I had two in my bag we rushed as fast as we could to the tower, but by then we were already so exhausted from trying to get back our first scroll. We only barely made it in time."

"Why did you give them two scrolls and not us?" Ino asked me, glowering.

"Because I had faith in your abilities," I honestly answered her. "I did not have faith in Karin's teammates. Plus she looked like she could use a little help, and I could never turn down a cutie in distress."

Ino's face screwed up, before she smirked and tossed her hair back. "I am pretty amazing, and you were absolutely right to have faith in me. Despite your decoys, we still passed."

"With style and beauty, undoubtedly," I added, giving her a flirtatious wink. Ino giggled and lightly hit on top of my right shoulder.

"Stop it, you," Ino said, giving me a mock-smoldering look and batting her eyelashes.

Hinata stared at the exchange before a snort escaped her lips, and then the three of us burst out into laughter, with some of our teammates alternating between chuckling and looking embarrassed by us.

Then there were some puffs of smoke, and our senseis had arrived to join us on the balcony.

I screamed with happiness before launching myself at Kakashi. "OH MY GOGGLE GODS I MISSED YOU SO MUCH."

"I figured," Kakashi said, patting my back. "A little birdie told me what happened during the forest. Sasuke, when you're finished with your match you'll have to come with me."

Sasuke shrugged, and I tried not to happy-cry because I was so dang happy to see Kakashi and to hug him again. He pried me off him soon enough, though, because Hayate cleared his throat to gather all of our attention.

"The first round will be Sabaku Temari and Nara Shikamaru," Hayate declared.

"GOOD LUCK YOU SEXY WIND-HIME," I called out, making Temari smirk at me from across the room. "KICK HIS ASS."

Shikamaru glared sullenly at the floor of the arena. "I would be first."

"If you lose I will wake you up every day at four AM to go shopping with me," Ino threatened.

Shikamaru paled at his determined teammate.

"I'll help her," I put in.

"Me, too," Hinata giggled.

Shikamaru glared at each of us, before sighing and starting to make his way down to the arena.

Temari taunted him, and Shikamaru ignored her, shooting us tired glares instead. When the match began, Temari half-heartedly threw wind-style attacks, and Shikamaru dodged them every time.

Shikamaru couldn't do anything aside from dodging at the moment, since Temari kept throwing basic ninjutsu at him. I doubt she took the match all too seriously, to be honest (and why would she? She would be promoted to Chūnin regardless of what happened).

Then, Shikamaru actually attacked.

And by that I mean he threw kunai at some of the overhead lights, immediately making the arena darker. She laughed at his poor aim, and then she froze, and we all knew Shikamaru had the match, then.

He knocked her out the same way he knocked out Kin in canon, and Hayate called the match in his favor. Temari woke up shortly after, and gave him the most hateful glare she could before marching right back up to her brothers.

"Good job, you have earned the right to sleep in," I told Shikamaru when he returned.

"Thank—"

"Thank the Goggle Gods for this mercy," I told him.

"Okay. Thank the Goggle Gods," Shikamaru easily agreed.

Hayate coughed loudly. "Next match will be Sakura Haruno against Dosu from Otogakure."

I looked up at Kakashi, my eyes bright. "Kakashi-sensei, if I win my match, can I have another hug?"

"Are you going to throw the match if I say no?"

"No," I admitted quietly, cursing myself for my inability to lie about hugs to Kakashi.

"Then no."

I pouted.

"You can hug me," Hinata and Naruto offered immediately, which made me brighten up and kiss both their cheeks. They both blushed like the cutie patooties they were, and feeling energized I decided to leap down into the arena.

I took a bow. "Hello, person who will lose."

Dosu sneered at me, and Hayate called for the match to begin. Dosu immediately leapt towards me and I danced away from him. With a snarl, he threw himself at me again, and again I leapt away.

The third time he tried to catch me, I leapt away and held out my hand in a gesture of pause.

Dosu eyed me warily, as I relaxed my battle stance, smiling widely. "Hey, um, you know this place used to double as a training ground for ANBU!"

"Your point?" Dosu drawled out.

"I thought it would be fun to leave little gifts for the ANBU," I explained. "Bye bye!"

I remotely triggered two of the explosive tags Hinata and I had buried into the arena. Those said tags happened to be underneath the spot I had corralled Dosu into.

The explosion was immediate, bright, and beautiful. The Genin had no time to react, and endured the entire brunt of the explosion. He soared high up into the air, hit the ceiling and crashed back down like a ragdoll.

The winner was obvious when he didn't move again.

I took a bow as Hayate called the match in my favor before heading back up to my friends.

"Shouldn't that count as cheating?" Karin asked hesitantly when I returned.

"I'm a kunoichi, though," I said as if it explained everything. In my mind, it did.

"Good job, Sakura-chan," Naruto cheered happily.

"Very quick," Hinata praised.

Lapping up their praise, I then turned my hopeful gaze towards Kakashi.

"Well done," Kakashi praised.

I squealed.

Praise whore.

To be frank, most of the matches went on like that—quick, and entirely not dramatic, and a little boring. I mean, not to be mean or anything, but most of us didn't really have some kick ass arsenal up our sleeves. We were Genin.

Besides, only one match would have any level of killing intent involved, so there really was no reason to pay super close attention to all of them. Instead, I preferred to talk with my friends, and try to include Karin in as many conversations as humanly possible. Ino quickly got the hint that I wanted to include Karin, so she began to actively ask her questions and whatnot, which got Naruto all excited about having a cousin again so he asked her loads of stuff about the Uzumaki clan.

The third match was Kiba against Chōji, with the Inuzuka barely winning. Next was Gaara facing Zaku, with Gaara turning the fella into a blood smear on the floor. I, of course, cheered for Gaara and called Shukaku-sama a cutie patootie, which earned me a small nod from Gaara.

The fifth match was actually the only dramatic match during the preliminaries.

It was Hinata against Neji.

When Hinata saw the match up, her back straightened and she took a deep breath.

I rubbed her back. "I love and support you. Naruto, tell her you love and support her."

"I like you a lot, and I support you," Naruto added, rubbing her back with me.

Hinata started squeaking, her face red.

"I like you, too, and I support you," Ino chimed in, patting Hinata's head.

"You know I like and support you, too," Kiba said, patting Hinata's shoulder.

Shino patted Hinata's opposite shoulder. "I like you, as well. Why? Because you are a good person. And I support you. Why? Because you are my friend."

"E-E-E-E-E-E-Every-y-yone!," Hinata half-squeaked-half-wailed as tears filled her eyes and she buried her face in her hands.

"I don't know you very well, but you seem like a nice person, so you have my support, too," Karin hesitantly put in, patting Hinata's arm.

"Hyūga-san?" Hayate inquired politely.

Hinata took another deep breath, her face still as red as Kushina's hair, and wobbly made her way down.

"Are you prepared to meet your destiny, Hinata-hime?" Neji spat. "Today you will lose, as the weakling you are."

"I—" Hinata began, then took a deep breath and smooshed her cheeks together. "I am not weak."

"Begin."

He lunged at her with every ounce of hatred he had.

Their punches and kicks were a blur as they rapidly engaged in a terse battle of taijutsu. Neji definitely landed more blows than Hinata, but Hinata had grazed him successfully more than once.

Neji was slowly forcing Hinata back, and after another minute of fighting, Hinata had to leap away, her breaths ragged. Her right arm dangled listlessly at her side, and I noticed that Neji's own left arm was twitching.

'She must have grazed one of his tenketsus. Not enough to entirely limit his mobility, but enough to make it difficult to utilize.'

Atta girl.

Then Hinata smiled at Neji, and said, "Now I know why the Goggle Gods told Sakura-chan to have me practice that for so long."

Neji's glare never wavered, until Hinata's chakra flexed and her once useless arm jabbed out and she clenched her right hand into a fist.

Neji's face transformed into shock, before utter frustration took ahold in his eyes. "How?"

"This is a battle that we should have had a long time ago," Hinata said softly. "I'm sorry that only now I am able to face you."

"It doesn't matter," Neji snapped. "You will lose today because that is your destiny."

"Our destinies are greater than a simple exam," Hinata told him. "Our destinies are whatever we can reach for. I know you can do better th-than worry about a silly test. You are so much better than that Neji-niisan." Hinata paused and smooshed her cheeks together. "I am bwettah than that."

My heart melted then and there, I swear.

"Shut up," Neji snarled, throwing himself at Hinata with renewed strength. His blows were brutal and the sounds of chakra slapping against chakra echoed throughout the arena. He forced Hinata step back, after step—

No.

Wait.

He's not forcing her back.

'She's guiding him somewhere. She's guiding—'

Then Hinata jumped high up into the air and landed a little ways from Neji, relaxing her posture.

Neji's face contorted when he realized her posture, and he shifted his stance, preparing to leap at her again.

"Um, Neji-niisan," Hinata said softly, a spark in her eyes, "fair warning, but... I helped Sakura-chan plant the explosions."

Neji's eyes widened comically as Hinata remotely detonated another explosion. Neji had a greater reaction time than Dosu, though (he understood Hinata's warning as soon as she said helped Sakura-chan) and was already on the move.

Unfortunately for him, the explosion was simply to great to entirely avoid. The force knocked him off his path and he soared through the air uncontrollably.

Hinata took that chance and leapt at him as soon as he landed, disabling the rest of the tenketsu in his arms. She kneeled beside him, smiling softly and warmly. "You did wonderfully, Neji-niisan. I am proud to be your c-cousin, and I truly am sorry for all the h-horrors you had to endure throughout the years. You may not believe me, yet, but I h-hope in time you will. I swear, Neji-niisan, as I have won today, I will win against all those out of date traditions in the Hyūga family. I will change it for the best."

Neji continued to glare at the shining kunoichi stonily, refusing to say a word. Hinata's smile took on a sadder turn, and she reached out and patted his cheek. "I will gladly take on your hatred now, Neji-niisan, if that's what it takes. I'm sorry I was not strong enough before."

His glare faltered for a moment, and the wounded child looked away from the bright princess.

Hinata looked up at the proctor. "He will have to be taken to the urgency care to treat his injuries. May I go with him?"

Hayate nodded. "Yes. You have my permission."

When the stretcher took Neji away, Hinata followed after him, the warmth never leaving her smile as she looked after him.

'Hail the Therapy-no-Jutsu via Hina-chan!'

"Hinata's a badass," Naruto exclaimed.

I nodded my head. "Yep. 'At's my girl.

The next match was Naruto against Shino, and I think we all know how utterly unfair that was for Shino. Naruto won, then it was time for Sasuke's match. The Uchiha was still fairly groggy, but luckily for him he was against Ino who was reluctant to really harm him.

That being said, she did honestly try. She knew she wouldn't stand a chance in taijutsu, so she threw kunai after kunai at him, with some bombs added in occasionally. She made him keep his distance for a while, but unfortunately for her that wasn't enough to defeat the determined boy with duck-ass hair. Sasuke won his match, and then was ushered away by Kakashi and several other Jōnin.

Ino pouted at losing, but took it fairly well. Next match was Kankurō against Lee, and that one was actually rather funny after Lee demolished Kankurō's puppet with one kick thinking it was Kankurō. The puppet master forfeited immediately afterwards, which left Lee a little disappointed.

Lastly, was Kin against Tenten, and that fight was much more evenly matched than the other ones had been, with Tenten scoring a solid victory with a few scrapes and bruises. Kakashi came back about halfway through that match and accepted my hug without much resistance, while I continued to talk with those around me.

Our latest talk had devolved into an argument over what was the greatest movie of all time, with the Yuki-hime movies being pitied against some weird dragon movie that had absolutely no romance in it whatsoever. Then again, neither did Yuki-hime movies, but at least she had a nice butt to admire during the entire movie.

When the last preliminary was over, Hayate called for our attention back up on the screen.

Round One

Hinata Hyūga VS Shikamaru Nara

Round Two

Sakura Haruno VS Tenten

Round Three

Naruto Uzumaki VS Kiba Inuzuka

Round Four

Karin Uzumaki VS Lee Rock

Round Five

Uchiha Sasuke VS Gaara

Round Six

Winner of Round One VS Winner of Round Two

Round Seven

Winner of Round Three VS Winner of Round Four

Round Eight

A free-for-all of the winners of Round Five, Six, and Seven.

"The final part of the exam will be held in one month, tournament style. The screen shows who you will be facing for your first match. Further information will be provided by your senseis within a week. Dismissed."

I leapt towards Kakashi, throwing my arms around him and burying my face in his side. I felt him sigh, then proceed to ignore me as he addressed Naruto. "We'll meet up tomorrow around noon, same training ground. Grats on all of you making this far."

"Will you give me private lessons, Kakashi-sensei?" I pleaded, batting my eyes at him. "I promise I'll be a good girl. Unless you would rather I be a bad—"

"Bye," Kakashi said abruptly before substituting himself with Naruto and disappearing in a puff of smoke. I sighed as I began to absently stroke Naruto's fluffy hair. Naruto immediately draped an arm around my waist and started to pet my own hair.

"Well," I began, then cleared my throat, "all beautiful people look my way, please."

Ino's head turned towards me, along with Kiba.

"I said all beautiful people. Shikamaru, Chōji, Karin, Shino, turn your heads my way."

After they complied, I beamed. "Let's have a party at my place right now! To celebrate surviving the exams so far."

"That doesn't seem like much of an accomplishment to celebrate," Kiba said dubiously.

I pointedly look at the blood stain that was all that was left of Gaara's opponent.

"I'm okay to party," Ino declared. "Shikamaru, Chōji, you two better come along or else."

"But—" Shikamaru began, but was cut off from Ino's fiery look.

"Can we have pizza?" Naruto asked.

"Of course, dear," I said, "in fact, why don't you go invite Hina-chan for me, and I'll go get the party set up. Everyone be there in an hour, or face my wrath. Muahaha."

"Okay," Naruto agreed, releasing me and hurrying off.

Ino smiled at me. "Will it turn into a sleep over?"

I winked at her. "You can sleep with me any time you want, honey."

"Um," Karin began hesitantly, "I'm really flattered, but I have to stay with my team. Since we don't live in Konoha, we have a curfew while we stay here during the exam."

"Boo. Fine."

"Let's hang out some other time, then!" Naruto declared. 

"EVERYONE. MEET UP AT MY PLACE IN TWO HOURS."

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

A few hours later and the party had started off. We decided to change into pajamas because Ino made a rule that I couldn't pants people if they wore pajamas, so everyone rapidly went back home to grab pajamas. They would be back shortly, though, and while I waited for them I did a few yoga stretches in my bedroom.

Because when they did return, I would initiate a rousing game of Killer (one person plays the serial killer and everyone else has to run away and not get caught by the killer. No one attack the killer, but the killer can man-handle everyone else. Basically like tag and hide and go seek, but with serial killers and victims. Special rules could be added to the mix, such as the killer can place booby traps, and only certain victims are able to disarm them, etc. Or light can "weaken" the killer.).

During one of my poses, I paused, though, because someone special grabbed my attention.

I felt him before I saw him. As soon as I felt his presence, I threw open my window and halfway hung out of it in excitement. "Kakashi-sensei!"

Kakashi, who was crouching vertically on the wall beside my window gave me an eye-smile and small wave. "Evening, Sakura-chan."

"Are you here for the party?" I asked him, twisting my body around so I sat on the windowsill with my back facing outwards. I stretched my arms out to him, in hopes he might accept my hug despite the fact that I had already used up my allotted physical contact of the day.

"Do you have a moment to talk?" Kakashi asked instead.

"Always for you."

He eye-smiled once more before leaning forward. My arms snaked around his neck and he immediately picked me up before leaping off my house and taking us to the rooftop of the nearest tall building. Once there, he released me and I plopped onto the concrete roof, tying my fluffy pink robe tighter. My back was pressed up against the small stone fence that surrounded the roof, and Kakashi took a seat beside me, his legs stretched out.

Entirely unabashed, I leaned into him.

He shoved me off.

I leaned into him again.

He shoved me off, again.

I leaned back into him.

He gave a sigh.

"What did you wanna talk about?" I asked him, my right hand slowly inching towards his left hand that was in his lap.

"Do you know someone by the name of Obito Uchiha?"

"Of course," I told him, nodding my head. "He's a fellow disciple of the Goggle Gods. When the time has come, and I proved myself worthy, he shall descend from the Rosy Moon and share with me the Rainbow Stick Story."

Kakashi turned his head and for the first time I saw a look of genuine disbelief on his face. "What."

"It's true," I told him. "The Goggle Gods whispered it to me in a dream."

"That's how you know him? You... you dreamed about him?"

"Yeah," I confirmed. "I've dreamed about you, too. The Goggle Gods granted me enlightenment through Kishimoto-ue."

"You dreamed about me?"

I nodded. "Of course."

He shook his head, looking up at the stars. "Why do I feel like you honestly believe this?"

"I would never lie about the Goggle Gods," I answered. "And I would never lie to you, Kakashi-sensei."

"Really."

"About important stuff," I amended. "I would totally lie to you if it gave me the opportunity to steal your shirts and pants, or for a fantastic prank."

"Thanks for the warning," he muttered dryly.

I gently took his hand, giving it a firm squeeze before releasing it and placing both my hands in my lap.

"Is that all you wanted to ask about?"

He was quiet for a couple of minutes before he gave another sigh and said, "Yes."

"Okay." I gave his arm a quick kiss (since it was the only thing at my eye level and I doubt he would be okay if I kissed his cheek) before I stood up and stretched. I brushed off the bits of dirt that had gotten onto my robe. "You're welcome to come to the party with me."

"I'll have to decline."

"For now," I allowed, then I smiled at him as brightly and warmly as I could. "I love you, Kakashi-sensei. I sincerely hope you have a good night."

"You can't say that so easily," Kakashi told me, finally looking away from the sky and back at me. "You take that word too lightly."

"No, I don't," I disagreed, frowning at him. "I say I love you because I do. I've seen you for who you are, Kakashi-sensei, and I love what I've seen. Even if you return to a rule-obsessed angsty little preteen, I'll still love ya. I'll still be by your side, and I'll support you however I can."

He stared at me, then stood up, clearly getting ready to leave.

"I don't love you the same way I love Naruto," I clarified for him. "Be prepared to be pursued heavily when I'm old enough."

"What the hell do you call this, then?!"

"Harmless teasing," I said with a saucy wink.

He made a funny frustrated noise, then disappeared in a puff.

I gave a woeful sigh. "Well. If it doesn't work out I'll have to find a way for Kisame-sama to agree to be my backup plan, or better yet, live it out harem style."

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

31 Days Until the Tournament

I woke up in between two warm bodies and I gave a blissful sigh. The girl on my left gave a mumble, while the girl on the right curled closer. My eyes slowly opened, and I looked over to find Ino body hugging a giant fluffy cat pillow on my left, her back pressed against me and only the top of her head peeking out from under the covers. On my right was Hinata, using my stomach as a pillow and curled up into a tight little ball of cuteness.

I relished the moment.

'Waking up surrounded by awesome and adorable people is how every morning should start,' I thought decidedly.

There was a snort, and a sigh and I looked up to find a curled up Naruto hugging his pillow and snoring lightly.

I knew Shikamaru was likely on the opposite side of him, with Chōji right beside him, relishing being able to sleep in. The poor Nara would never be allowed to sleep in as late as he wanted if he stayed at home (which ws likely why he all too easily agreed to stay over, and encouraged Ino's idea of a sleep over).

I knew Kiba and Shino were sleeping somewhere nearby, but I couldn't see them with my current angle since I was still on the floor being cuddled by two of my dearest friends.

Some time around three last night, everyone realized how late it was and how tired they were. Kaa-chan had stayed up with all of us, creating snack after snack, followed by some cake and brownies, and all sorts of sugary goodness that I would never be allowed to eat so much of in one night if it weren't for having a party. She insisted that all of us stayed over for the night after Ino mentioned a slumber party, and proceeded to grab a plethora of blankets and pillows (more than I even knew we had). We all moved the furniture in the living room around to give us some space, before we laid everything out and tried to fall asleep.

Obviously we didn't fall asleep until, like, five, but still.

The smell of bacon had been what originally woke me up, and I knew the others would be waking up, too.

No one could resist Kaa-chan's bacon with pancake batter poured over them and cooked to a perfect golden brown.

No one.

There was a quiet bark, and I heard some moans slowly fill the room. Ino mumbled and I felt her stretch beside me, tugging on some of the blankets we shared. Hinata sat up slowly, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and yawning widely.

"Good morning beautiful ladies," I greeted, sitting up and hugging Hinata. The princess mumbled a soft reply, groggily hugging me in return. Ino sat up by that point, and leaned heavily on me.

"I smell bacon," Naruto whispered, sitting up and rubbing his face.

"You would be correct," Kaa-chan called out from the kitchen. "Bacon, pancakes, eggs, hashbrowns, toast... I've got breakfast ready for everyone."

"Praise be to breakfast," I heard Chōji declare.

Like one mob of groggy preteens, we got out of our sleeping mats, bags, and nest of blankets and congregated into the kitchen to help ourselves to the buffet-style breakfast Kaa-chan had set up.

Once we had all grabbed food, we gathered on the floor of the living room and ate, quietly talking with one another as we still woke up.

Kiba took a long swig of orange juice before he grimaced. "Last night was crazy. I can't believe how intense that game of Killer got."

"I take everything up to an eleven," I said. "Every night is wild with me."

"I believe it," Kiba agreed, shoving a pancake in his mouth. "Fucking intense."

"Watch that mouth of yours," Ino immediately scolded. "Don't fucking use that foul ass language in the presence of a lady."

She then giggled at her irony, which made Hinata and me giggle, too.

Naruto, who was sitting on the opposite side of me, reached over to grab some of my bacon and I immediately swatted his hand away. He grabbed some more anyway. I gave an offended noise, and Hinata immediately placed some bacon on my plate, and I gave her a bright smile in return.

"What time is it, anyway?" Naruto asked, eating my bacon.

Kaa-chan poured me another glass of strawberry milk. "Almost noon."

"Ah, we have to go meet with Kakashi-sensei," I remembered.

Naruto moaned. "Ugh. He'll probably be late anyway. Even if he isn't, bastard deserves to wait on us for a change."

"I don't want to keep him waiting," I fretted.

Ino reached behind Hinata and patted my shoulder. "Sakura-chan, think of it this way: he'll have to think about you while he waits for you. Don't you want him thinking about you?"

"Ooo. You make an excellent point." I then nodded. "Very well, we'll eat then go meet up with everyone."

"Woo!" Naruto cheered.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

We met up with Kakashi about an hour later, and I hug-tackled him per usual. I was surprised that Sasuke wasn't there, but then when I thought about it, it wasn't all that surprising.

Kakashi pried me off him. "I have a sensei scheduled to meet with you both and help you train for the tournament. I will be taking Sasuke away for private lessons."

Naruto glared. "What the hell? Why does he get special lessons while you pawn off on someone else?"

"I'm the only one who can teach him to use the Sharingan," Kakashi began, "in addition, you both know about the Curse Mark so you should understand why it's important for him to be isolated."

I whined. "Kakashi-sensei, I can't go a whole month without you, though. That's too cruel."

"Sakura-chan," Kakashi said, his tone firm, but taking a gentler tone, " You can't come with us, and I need you to not try and find us through your sensing ability. I have no doubt that if you put your mind to it, you could track us down, but the entire point of us leaving is to avoid contact with others. Not only for Sasuke's sake, but yours, as well."

An entire month without Kakashi would suck, but given that it was during the exams, it was fine by me. I understood very well why it was important for Sasuke to stay away from others while the seal had time to mature and properly prevent Sasuke's Curse Mark from spreading. If Sasuke were to completely lose control, Kakashi might have to repress him and I was certain he wouldn't want either of us to see that happen.

In addition, the Jiraiya would be coming into the village and I was beyond stoked to finally meet, hug, and fangirl over him.

So, yes, I could deal with Kakashi running off for a month (even if it would be one of the longest months of my life, and that was counting during my first life when my mother took me off her trial medication to see what kind of symptoms of withdrawal I experienced).

But I couldn't resist the potential bribery practically begging me to take advantage of.

As a Haggler of Life, I took it upon myself to make the most out of every opportunity given to me. It would be utterly shameful of me to ignore such an easy situation.

I gave him a wide-eyed puppy dog look. "But... Kakashi-sensei! Oh, fine, but only if you give me a kiss on the cheek when you return. I won't accept anything less."

I knew that was probably never going to happen, but I had to highball now with a kiss on the cheek in order to get the perfectly reasonable two hugs when he returned.

"Fine," Kakashi agreed, "now that that's settled—"

I gasped, my heart soaring.

"—Ebisu will be arriving here shortly. Behave. No butt grabs. Don't try to look for us. Bye!"

Then he was gone, and I never felt more happy in my entire life.

"Sakura-chan? Your face is a little red, are you okay?"

"Mm-hmm!"

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

I chose not to stick around to meet Ebisu. I had nothing against the man, of course, but I knew he would only want to enhance the basics, and I was already doing that on my own. I needed someone who could actually help me in the upcoming tournament.

That, and I didn't want to chance ruining Naruto's meeting with his godfather.

So, off to the library I went in search of ninjutsu I could learn and use for my upcoming fight with Tenten.

The librarian greeted me with a warm, tired smile, instantly recognizing me. I returned a few of the medical texts I had finished thoroughly memorizing before inquiring where I could find ninjutsu scrolls for Genin rank or below.

Elemental jutsus were forbidden from academy students, but some were allowed to be checked out for Genin.

My nature was earth—doton—which was fan-friggin-tastic since I was going for a poison-support-iryo/medical thing. Ideally I could hide behind some bomb-ass walls while peppering the battlefield with poisons and waiting for them to take effect. At least that was the end goal I had in mind for my offense.

I searched the library for any form of wall-like-jutsu I could use, and after an hour of searching I found what I was looking for. I checked out the scroll, and headed to our usual training grounds.

I wasn't too surprised that Naruto and Ebisu were no longer there—likely Ebisu wanted Naruto to "perfect" water-walking (which wasn't a bad idea, since Naruto and Sasuke both still struggled to fight while water-walking at the same time) and took him to the hot springs.

After looking over the instructions for the jutsu several times, I began the process of learning to draw upon my elemental chakra. I had plenty of experience of manipulating elemental chakra, since I had to purge it from my own chakra before I could use Shōsen. It was simple enough to focus on it exclusively.

Of course that didn't mean I mastered the technique instantly, or with a lot of ease. It was something new, and a lot of ninjutsus worked like muscle memory (with your chakra acting as a muscle). It took time and a lot of practice before your body and your chakra could create the technique without much thought.

Not to mention that while I had been steadily increasing my reserves, they were still below average for Genin. My civilian background prevented me from having the genetic advantage like many of my friends; and consequentially I had to work twice as hard to have an "average" amount of chakra. On the bright side, thanks to my amazing chakra control, I could utilize what little I had for maximum impact.

I worked on jutsu throughout the day and well into the night. I decided that I would work on it for a few more days before I checked on Naruto, and hopefully meet Jiraiya.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

Twenty nine days until the tournament.

'I knocked on Naruto's door well before sunrise, one breakfast for five (courtesy of Kaa-chan) in hand. There was a minute of silence before the door opened and a groggy Naruto stood before me.

He beamed as soon as he saw me and hug-tackled me. "Sakura-chan!"

"Good morning, my son," I greeted him, kissing his cheek. "How has your training been?"

"It's okay," Naruto said, pulling away from me and ushering me inside. "I'm actually training with this huge pervert now. He reminds me a lot of you, actually, except nowhere near as fun and cuddly."

"Aww. You say the sweetest things," I cooed, holding up the giant bento box. "Kaa-chan made us breakfast. Howsabout ya introduce me to your new sensei today?"

Naruto agreed immediately, all too happily accepting the bento box and beginning to eat three out of the five meals, while I ate the other two.

Hey. Shinobi / Kunoichi metabolisms combined with puberty was nothing short of demanding. Akimichi literally had to be constantly eating extremely fatty foods in order to gain weight, and keep a decent amount of fat in their system.

We ate our breakfast, and Naruto put on a pot of tea for us. Once we were satisfied, he went about getting ready for the day and by about eight hundred we headed off to meet Jiraiya.

It was a bit of walk to get to the secluded forest on the outskirts of Konoha, but it was enjoyable since Naruto had plenty to talk about.

When we arrived, Jiraiya was already there, sitting on a tree stump with his arms folded across his chest.

I squealed upon seeing him, causing him to jump, and then I threw myself at him with my arms outstretched. "JIRAIYA-SAMA!"

"Whoa this is a first," Jiraiya said, accepting my hug-tackle, and patting the top of my head. "Who's the cutie?"

"This is my best friend Sakura-chan," Naruto explained. "She wanted to meet you."

"I love you," I told Jiraiya. "I am a huge fan of yours. I haven't read your Icha Icha, yet, but I want you to know that I am another Mega Super Pervert in the making."

"Really," Jiraiya chuckled.

"It's true," Naruto said, "she has her own harem."

"Really?"

"Ah, also, I have a big of a favor to ask you," I began, blushing in embarrassment. "I'm not allowed to leave the village over personal missions since I'm a Genin, and the Goggle Gods told me you would be heading towards that direction when you looked for Boozy Princess."

"What," Jiraiya deadpanned.

Naruto frowned. "What did the Goggle Gods tell you now?"

"I need the Salamander Summons," I explained, pulling out a small map I had drawn and giving it to Jiraiya. "The Goggle Gods told me that Hanzo-sama disowned his Salamanders during a fit of paranoia and hid them away here."

"What," Jiraiya repeated.

"When you rescue the Boozy Princess," I continued, nonplussed, "you'll pass by where he put the scroll. If you could bring that back to me, I can make it worth your while."

Jiraiya squinted at me. "You make absolutely no sense. For starters, why would I agree to this?"

I smiled at him. "I'm the greatest wingman you will ever encounter. You will never be without research with me around."

"I highly—"

Naruto shook his head. "She's not someone you doubt, Pervy-Sage."

"Let me prove it to you," I offered. "I'll come back here around seven tonight, and I'll treat you to a night out. If, for some odd reason, you don't get a swarm of women around you or have the time of your life, then I'll buy you lunch every day until the exams are over. If I do fulfill my end of the bargain, though, you bring me the Salamanders."

"You're a box full of crazy aren't you."

"And fun."

"Okay. If I get bored an hour in, though, I'm taking my food and leaving."

"You have yourself a deal."

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

3 AM the following morning

"So do we have ourselves a deal?" I asked Jiraiya, looking down at him while he was being hand-fed and doted upon by three beautiful darlings who cooed at him.

He looked up at me, a little drunk, but with a wide, wide smile on his face. "Sakura. You and I are going to get along great."

"I know. Praise be to the Goggle Gods."

"Praise be to the Goggle Gods."

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

Twenty five days until the tournament.

I sat beside Hinata while she worked on her calligraphy, filling her in on what Naruto was doing for training. Today she was resting from the intense training her father was putting her through in preparation for facing Temari.

"Naruto-kun is amazing," Hinata declared when I had finished. "To be trained by a Sannin, no less. He must be so strong."

"Jiraiya-sama is the super-powered male version of me," I told her.

"Jiraiya-sama must be wonderful," Hinata decided, setting down her brush and turning to face me fully. "How is your training going, Sakura-chan?"

"Pretty well. I've got a sturdy wall, but not sure if it'll hold up under Tenten's attack. How about you?"

"Well," Hinata said with a bright smile. "It is a poor match up for me, since my style is taijutsu dominant and that would make it exceedingly easy for Shikamaru to capture me with his technique, but father has a plan and we've been working on it for a while."

I felt genuinely happy to see Hinata look so at ease, confident, and sincerely happy. She was nothing like she was just a handful of months ago, and the fact that I was part of the reason for that change warmed me like a gentle fire on a cold day.

"Excuse me," Hiashi said, as he opened the door to Hinata's room. He gave me a terse nod, and a thin smile to Hinata. "Will you be accompanying us for lunch and a spar, Sakura?"

"I never say no to free food."

Seventeen days until the tournament.

I gave Karin's hand a squeeze as I guided her through Konoha and gave her the grand tour. We hadn't been able to meet up much, as her instructor didn't want her wandering off without supervision (especially since she was the only one from their village to make it to the finals, which made her all levels of nervous). It took much needling on my part before her instructor would allow her to walk around the village with me.

Karin took every sight in with bright eyes. There were a few times she felt anxious, since Konoha was so big in comparison to Kusa she wasn't use to large crowds of people, but when that happened we always took a break.

I met up with Hinata and Ino with Karin, and the four of us spent part of the day touring Konoha, and the other half of the day doing mock-spars. When it was time to return Karin due to her curfew, we left the young Uzumaki feeling happy and hopeful.

I sincerely hoped she would stay in touch in the years to follow, and that I did enough to keep her happy when (if?) she left with Orochimaru.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

Ten days until the tournament.

I slept in a bit that day, only getting up when Kaa-chan came up to wake me up with kisses and tickles. I decided to spend the day recovering, since I had been working nonstop on my plan against Tenten. I figured the invasion would probably still happen around the same time as canon—during Sasuke's and Gaara's match—and there wouldn't be much point preparing to fight Hina-chan (I had absolute faith in her ability to defeat Shikamaru).

Even if, for some reason, I did fight her, I would likely forfeit. Winning was way more important to her than it was to me. Icha Icha was nice, but making Hinata smile was priceless.

I had picked up one other ninjutsu to learn for my fight with Tenten, and I found it was pretty easy to get the hang of. It didn't require nearly as much chakra as creating thick walls.

Kaa-chan patted my hair, and motioned for me to sit with her on the couch. "What are your plans today, Sa-chan? More training?"

"I'm going to rest today," I told her. "I need to figure out how to make one of the poisons I wanna use. It's a fast acting sedative that the enemy only has to breathe in."

"Like a sleeping gas?"

"Yeah. I'm not very good at chemistry, though."

Kaa-chan tuttered. "I don't believe that for a second. Cooking is chemistry, you know."

"Cooking is a different kind of chemistry than making poisons."

"I bet not," Kaa-chan declared. "Tell you what, why don't I help you with it today? I bet I could show you a thing or two. You may be good in the kitchen, but you still have a lot to learn, little Sa-chan!"

Rolling my eyes, I kissed her cheek. "I know, I know. But, hey, if you wanna help I won't say no!"

Kaa-chan beamed.

And what do you know.

Kaa-chan could make poisons.

Guess it wasn't too different from cooking, after all.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

Day of the tournament.

On the day of the tournament, I woke up to a glorious breakfast and Kaa-chan and Tou-chan doting on me. The sheer pride rolling off the two of them made my tummy flip-flop pleasantly, and my chest feel warm with their love. The three of us walked to the tournament together, before I had to go.

"Bye-bye," I told them, kissing each of their cheeks.

"We're so proud of you, Sa-chan," Kaa-chan told me, kissing my forehead.

"Kick some ass for us, okay?" Tou-chan ruffled my hair and kissed the top of my head.

"I will," I promised them. They went off to find their seats, and I went off the competitor balcony where Naruto and Hinata were already waiting for me. Shikamaru arrived shortly afterwards, followed by Karin, then Tenten and Lee. Gaara came next, and I greeted him with a cheerful wave and introducing him to my precious people. Kiba was the last to arrive, and he was as boisterous as he could be.

We talked quietly with one another until Genma called for the exam to begin. He launched into a speech to get the crowd going, and Naruto asked me quietly, "Sense Kakashi-sensei and the bastard?"

I shook my head. "No. They'll come, though, don't worry. It'll just be fashionably late."

Naruto snorted at that.

Genma's voice carried over our conversation, "... our first match today will be against two of our very own. The Hyūga heiress, Hinata, and the Nara heir, Shikamaru."

There was some excited cheering, while said people began to head down.

"KICK HIS ASS HINA-CHAN," I screamed out at her.

"I LIKE YOU BOTH AND SUPPORT YOU BOTH," Naruto shouted.

"HINA-CHAN IS WAY CUTER!"

Shikamaru sighed. "We have loud friends."

Hinata giggled before she bowed graciously to Shikamaru. "Good luck, Shikamaru-san."

"You, too," Shikamaru mumbled.

Genma motioned for them to begin, and right away Hinata danced away from Shikamaru's shadows.

She maneuvered gracefully away from each of his attacks, fluttering about like a butterfly. There wasn't any bit of hesitation from her, and each of her movements were fluid and confident. Several times she would throw an explosive note towards Shikamaru to keep him on her toes, but for the most part she danced.

After many minutes, Shikamaru with his shadows, leaving the princess to stand alone in the center of the arena. Then a smile bloomed across her face and she moved with a speed I had never seen her possess. She crossed the distance between the two in a matter of seconds, twisting her body and shadow just barely out of Shikamaru's reach.

Her hands moved and a flash of light filled the entire arena.

'She used a flash bang!'

When the light cleared, Hinata was already creating distance again, and Shikamaru's arms dangled uselessly beside him.

He gave a low groan. "Forfeit. There's no way I could overcome this without serious damage to myself."

The crowd roared its approval, and Hinata immediately went over to Shikamaru to unblock his tenketsus. The two of them returned to our balcony, where I hugged Hinata and congratulated her.

"The next match-up is against two of our aspiring Kunoichi. Tenten Higurashi against Sakura Haruno!"

I swung over the railing and dropped down into the arena, while Tenten followed behind me using the stairs at a much calmer pace.

I took a bow towards Tenten, and she amicably returned it with one of her own. She looked up and smiled at me. "Let's both have a good fight, ne?"

"Yep!" I agreed. "May the Goggle Gods watch over us."

"Uh, sure."

"Begin!"

Right off the bat Tenten threw open one of her scrolls and began to throw a barrage of weapons towards me. Anticipating that, I had already summoned up a decent sized wall to protect myself from the barrage. Within seconds, I pulled out one of the gas bombs I created and buried it inside the ground.

Another few seconds and I leapt away from the wall, just in time for her to toss in a bomb to completely destroy my once-safe spot. She noticed me immediately, and began to focus her long-ranged attacks from me, but I was already calling up another wall.

By the time I planted another gas bomb, she had destroyed my wall again. Our dance continued for three more walls (I was slowly circling her, and now her back was turned to where I had planted my first two bombs), before she let out a growl of frustration. "Enough! You won't be able to hide or defend from this...! Sōshōryū!"

Tenten summoned two scrolls from her side and leapt up into the air.

I gave a wince, knowing I wouldn't be able to entirely hide behind a wall for her attack. I had to do my best dodging on my own, and what injuries I gathered I would have to heal somehow throughout the match.

Using every inch of my reflexes and honed skills, I began to focus entirely on dodging weapon after weapon. They flew with enough force that that they dug into the ground with small bits of explosion, obscuring both our views. Many of them still grazed me, though, and I could feel blood drip down my arms and legs.

I heard Tenten land on the ground, and I knew that she would soon pull upon the wires and begin her second barrage.

I had only a second to react.

"Doryūsō!" I shouted out, creating the bird seal. My chakra lashed out instantaneously to three of the gas bombs I had planted (now behind Tenten). Doryūsō was a high C-Rank ninjutsu that created small spears from the ground that launched themselves at a target. The range and power behind the spears weren't significant enough to use often in combat, but they could be used underneath the user to give them a boost, or to launch something else.

I used them to launch the gas bombs directly at Tenten from behind her.

Her head snapped around, but she couldn't fully dodge the three poisonous explosions that bombarded her. She gave a gasp, dropping to her knees and clutching at her throat.

While she struggled to breathe (it only hurt to breathe in, and wasn't toxic), I called upon my Shōsen and healed the worst of my scratches. By the time I had healed up five injuries, Tenten had effectively passed out.

Genma nodded at her. "Winner, Sakura Haruno."

The crowd roared and I took a bow. Medics came out to carry Tenten away, and one of them turned to me to inquire about the poison.

"Sedative," I reassured them, "she'll wake up in an hour on her own."

When I returned to the other contestants, Hinata and Naruto gave me congratulatory hugs. "Great job, Sakura-chan! I knew you could do it. Hey, hey, that was a poison, right? Does that mean you can make your own poisons now?"

"That poison I actually made with my kaa-chan," I told Naruto.

Naruto gasped. "Your kaa-chan knows everything."

I nodded. "She's almost as knowledgeable as the Goggle Gods."

"Wow!"

"Our third match will be Kiba Inuzuka against Naruto Uzumaki," Genma called out. Naruto and Kiba both let out joyful yips and jumped off the balcony in a scramble to reach the center of the arena first.

Genma called for it to begin, and Naruto created about forty clones.

Their match was nothing but a slug fest. Not once did Naruto go in himself, but he kept sending clones, after clones, after clones to fight Kiba and Akamaru. Unfortunately for the partnered duo there was no real way to tell the difference between the real Naruto and the clones without the Byakugan or making the clones dispel.

So while Kiba was fighting hoards of clones (and growing increasingly frustrated), Naruto started setting up booby traps (burying explosive tags, for example) and guiding his enemy to them through the clones.

It was rather funny, and a little sad, to watch the entire match. It was completely one-sided and surprisingly cunning of Naruto.

One explosion was enough to throw Kiba off his balance for the hoards to dog pile on him and knock him out.

"Winner, Naruto Uzumaki!"

Naruto bowed repeatedly towards the cheering crowd before making his way back up towards us and giving me a thumbs-up. Kiba had to be carried away in a stretcher.

"You're my little trapper, aren't you," I cooed, rushing towards him and patting his head.

"As the King of Pranks, I can't have you be the better booby trapper," he told me seriously.

"As the Queen of Pranks, I accept your challenge."

He stared at me. "This is a war you won't win, Sakura-chan. I won't have mercy on a rival, even if it's you."

I winked at him. "Honey, you can't handle my level of madness."

"At dawn tomorrow we go to war, then."

"To the victor, the spoils."

"What am I going to do with you two?" Hinata sighed, looking at us both endearingly.

"Love us," we said in perfect unison then grinned at each other.

"Our next match will be against Karin Uzumaki, and Lee Rock..."

All of us turned towards the extremely nervous Karin, and we started to wish her good luck. Lee gave her an encouraging smile. "Not to worry, fair maiden. Let's have a good fight."

"Y-Yeah," Karin stammered, looking sick.

The two headed down to the arena, and Hinata, Naruto, and I moved over to the balcony to watch. Shikamaru joined on the opposite side of Naruto to watch.

"Begin!"

My heart skipped a beat when I sensed Kakashi (and Sasuke, I guess). They both appeared in the contestant booth while Karin struggled to keep pace with Lee. Lee could see his opponent was clearly below his level, and he was taking care not to severely injure her. He gave her time to recover between each attack, while throwing in some encouraging words for her to not give up.

There was a swirl of leaves and a puff of smoke, and Kakashi and Sasuke appeared behind us.

Naruto beamed. "Bastard! You made it."

Faster than what my eyes could follow, I felt a pressure on my right cheek, and then it was gone and Kakashi was giving me an eye-smile. "Thanks for leaving us be."

I spluttered. "Wait—did you—OH MY GOD THAT DOES NOT COUNT. I DID NOT HAVE TIME TO PREPARE!"

"You didn't specify when," Kakashi told me.

"Damn my inability to be specific," I cursed myself, then I latched onto him and hugged him as tight as I could. "I have thirty hugs to make up for."

Kakashi patted my back. Sasuke cleared his throat. "So what did we miss?"

"Hinata-chan won her match against Shikamaru," Naruto began, making Hinata blush when he gave her an appraising look. "Then Sakura-chan won against Tenten. I, of course, beat Kiba with my awesomeness, and now we're watching Karin fight Bushy-brows."

I nuzzled Kakashi's chest, relishing the fact that he wasn't pushing me away.

Sasuke looked over at Gaara, who leaned against the wall and watched everyone with half-lidded eyes and barely restrained killing intent.

"Winner, Lee Rock!"

Our eyes drifted back towards the arena where Karin was being carried away in a stretcher, entirely unconscious (not not actually looking too bad, considering). Lee gave her an apologetic look before he returned to the balcony.

"Guess I'm next," Sasuke said, hopping over the railing. Gaara was already moving towards the center of the arena, an excited smile on his face.

"Then it will be me and you, Sakura-chan," Hinata said, smiling warmly at me. "Let's both do our best, okay?"

"You're too cute to fight," I protested. "But if you really want me to give it my all, you know I could never refuse you."

"I would appreciate it," Hinata told me.

I turned my face back into Kakashi, already knowing exactly how Sasuke and Gaara's fight would go. Fate-no-Jutsu would strike again, I bet.

Kakashi absent-mindedly rubbed my back, and then I felt Naruto inch towards us and I wrapped him to our hug, and the two of us hugged Kakashi with him patting both of our backs.

"This counts as all thirty hugs," Kakashi told me, "if I let you both hug me for another five minutes."

"Deal."

"Hugs are addictive," Naruto whispered.

"You guys... are really close," Shikamaru commented.

Hinata giggled. "Isn't it adorable?"

"That's one way of looking at it, I suppose."

"It's wonderful to see such passion students have for their teachers," Lee declared excitedly. "I embrace Gai-sensei as often as I can!"

Then the piercing scream of Gaara filled the arena, and hell broke loose.

( ｡◕‿‿◕｡)

You can't make me write out a serious / long fight scene. Fuck that shit. And yeah, I decided to do the exams in 3 chapters. You'll see why I hadda cut it off right before the invasion in the next chapter.

Get your tissues and comfort ready for the next chapter because it's time for that good old angst seasoning.

I think I spoiled the three optional endings I'm doing for this story if I decide not to pull a Nao. WHOOPSIE.

SarahGarciaDonaire (deviantART) drew the wedding picture of Kakashi and Sakura. Kakashi's expression is priceless.

Curlyfryarmagheddon (deviantART) also drew a chibi fanart of Sakura.

Both fanart links on on my profile, or you can view them on their deviantART accounts. :)

Kakashi: Making my way downtown, walking fast—

Sakura: Sensei!

Kakashi: wALKING FASTER

I had another episode so I haven't had the time to edit this. Please let me know if you see typos.

Reviews are love.