THINGS WE LOST TO THE FIRE Chapter 1

Things we lost to the flame
Things we'll never see again
All that we've amassed
Sits before us, shattered into ash

Years later, living alone in the woods with half a dozen dogs, questionable reading material, and crippling attachment issues, Sakura realizes she turned into her teacher. Agebent Sakura Sensei

The dogs need to be walked early, first thing in the morning, and it's the only reason she gets out of bed. They can come and go as they wish, but won't run themselves out unless she goes with them and makes the laps like one of them. They're excited for her and their time together, and Sakura's just happy to be wanted, so she rises early every morning without fail to race them through the woods and back again.

People don't come out so far that they can visit her, and the few who are actually purposeful about it don't stay long, so it's always disorienting to look up when the dogs start barking to see someone coming down the gravel to the front door.

Sakura looked up and saw further back, hiding behind a pair of trees, two other boys crouch low and watch the third figure approach the house. Both boys were as pale as snow with dark hair, but their bones were all wrong to make them related. The third boy was brighter with a tan that made his blue eyes pop and his blond hair shimmer in the broken sunlight.

'Ring the witch's bell and run and you'll be brave.'

Sakura wasn't a fool. She knew the reputation her house had. Before she ever moved into it, the house had belonged to a great aunt or some old, crabby relative that was ugly and mean enough to spur on an urban legend about a witch in the woods. It didn't matter that for the past year Sakura had been living in the cabin. Legends needed longer to die out than that.

The boy drew close but Sakura raised a hand to her dogs and they all held their voices back, some whining about it more than others.

"Hush," she whispered to them while keeping her hand up in the signal for quiet.

It was dark inside and she was far back in the hallway. He wouldn't see her but she could make out his figure well enough as he drew even closer. She could see him hesitating.

"Sasuke," the blond boy whined, sounding plenty afraid.

"Do it, moron!" another boy hissed out, too loud to be a whisper. Sakura guessed this was the boy called Sasuke. "Or I'm not playing with you again."

"It's not fair. You already play with Sai."

"Shut up and just ring it or you're a baby. I don't want to hang out with a baby. I'll catch it."

The blond boy made another sound of dissatisfaction and Sakura thought she heard him flap his arms or stomp his feet. "Did you make Sai do it too?"

"Idiot, of course. Everyone has to do it. Just shut up and quit stalling or else I'll go home without you."

There was silence and then in a moment of courage the boy drew close enough to reach the door. Sakura watched as his hand went for the bell and pushed at the button quickly. There was a cloud of dust as the sound chimed out throughout the house and Sakura dropped her arm, allowing her dogs to do as they pleased. The bell drove them nuts and they howled at it, barking and carrying on loud enough for the kids outside to hear.

Sakura stood up and crossed the hallway to the windows alongside the main door and pulled back the sheer curtains to look out and see a trio of boys, maybe no older than seven or eight, running back up her gravel like it was the devil on their heels. For all they knew, maybe he was and it was only the hounds of hell they could hear.

"I hope you're all happy," Sakura loudly declared to her house full of dogs. "Now there are going to be that many more rumors about this place."

The shaggy gray dog named Mop bumped at her legs and whined, begging for attention she readily gave. Sakura knelt down to run her nails through his fun and scratch behind his ears where he was most inclined.

Mop ducked his head to let her hands better reach the best parts and when she was done he pulled his head back so he could lick at her. When she knelt he was almost taller than she was and she nearly fell backwards from his attentions.

"Enough of that," she chastised with half a heart.

After standing she beckoned him and the others into a different room of the house where she was working on rebricking the fireplace. They were good enough about being lazy around her while she worked which was good. There were enough things wrong with the old house that needed fixing and most things didn't get done until she got off her butt to buy supplies.

One of the end tables had been knocked over in the earlier panic and Sakura saw a photo in a frame laying face down. She clicked her tongue in disapproval before bending down to pick it up and turn it over.

Kakashi started back up at her, making bunny ears behind her smaller, younger head. On either side of him were his long passed teammates Rin and Obito. Sakura remembered taking the photo but very little else from those early years. It was back before Kakashi lost his whole squad and turned into a emotionally deficient soldier in the Hokage's private army.

In the photo Sakura had been maybe no older than any of the boys who played ding dong ditch on her earlier, and it was strange to think about how much Konohagakure had changed since peace times settled in.

She had been rushed through the academy and promoted to early graduation to fill in the empty slots left behind by teenage soldiers like Rin and Obito. None of them had had childhoods, but at least Sakura lived long enough to see her adult years.

Sakura set the photo down alongside the newer frame that held the photo of her with her first, last, and only squad. Kakashi was back in the photo, standing over her and making bunny ears once more, but instead of being flanked by his teammates, Sakura was flanked by hers. Under Kakashi's supervision, she and her two teammates helped bring her village hidden in the leaves through another bloody war that promised to hold peace longer than the last one.

In the photo Tenzō hung on her shoulder and Hana Inuzuka grinned broadly over at the two of them from Sakura's opposite side. None of them looked like they knew what they were getting into. They were all just too damn happy to be adults, to make money, to earn their own keep, and wear a shiny silver headband that made some people respect them a little more.

That felt like forever ago. Respect from total strangers was the last thing she got up out of bed to worry about in the dark hours of the morning.

Speaking of bed, Sakura remembered that one of the dog beds was still a spilling mess of fluff trailing through the halls. She had been meaning to patch it up and restuff the bed, but constantly caught herself in a new distraction or side project. The house had too many of them for her, and that was fine since it kept her busy.

A white, long haired Borzoi named Souta watched her from the hallway, waiting for her to reach him and run her fingers down his spine. He turned to follow her when she passed and stopped only when she bent down to pick up the stuffing he had dragged out into the hallway. Sakura heard his whine and knew he felt guilt for his actions, even though she hadn't said anything about the mess.

"It's okay, this will be fixed," she said out loud, even though Souta wasn't a summon and couldn't understand her human speech so well. He still understood, just in a different way.

"He's just going to tear it up again, why bother?"

Sakura huffed at Dango, a smart looking Doberman Pinscher with a wide collar studded with chakra pills. He wasn't wearing the medical vest with first aid supplies, but it was easy enough to imagine him in uniform again, running alongside her as a medic dog. He was the only one of her pack who had been summoned and the only one who could speak, but that didn't mean he was the only one with intelligence.

"It needs to be fixed. You really okay with Souta sleeping on the cold floor?"

"He wouldn't sleep on the cold floor, he'd just crawl into bed with you again, like the others do every night," the Doberman Pinscher huffed.

"You're just annoyed because you don't join them, Dango chan," she teased, knowing he hated being called out almost as much as he hated her name for him.

"You spoil them too much," Dango snapped before turning away and taking a few steps before sitting down and falling the rest of the way into a curl on the floor, ears laid flat.

Sakura went back to gathering the stuffing and found the torn up bed. There was extra stuffing in the storage closet she had pulled out earlier for this exact reason. Souta stayed close to her as she stuffed the bed back up until it was firm and full. A few minutes later she was sewing up the tear with a simple needle and thread. It looked horrible and crooked, but it was a tight stitch that wouldn't leak anymore.

"Promise not to tear this bed up in a nervous fit?" Sakura cooed, reaching out to scratch her dog behind his ears when he went in to lick her face. It made her hum in appreciation, but she didn't laugh anymore.

With the bed stuffed and the sun sinking, Sakura fed her dogs their dinner and set to making up something for herself when a heavy weight settled on the branch outside her kitchen window. It flared with chakra making her stomach clench, but Sakura still looked up and slid open the pane to allow the monkey in. The red faced primate leapt in silently and discarded something black and long onto the table before poofing out of existence like the rest of the old man's summons.

"You can't ignore this one," Dango growled in agitation as he read the characters on the outside of the scroll. "It's from the Hokage."

"I figured that much with the monkey summon. Ugh, this is going to suck if it's what I think it is," Sakura answered, reaching for the scroll and hooking her thumb under the lip. It came open easily, reading her chakra and bleeding the characters of its message back onto the paper.

Chainsaw, a brown and white Jack Russell Terrier that liked to run underneath Mop barked at her before pawing at her leg. She reached back with her foot to play with his paws and he nipped at her toes, doing nothing to hurt her intentionally. Chainsaw's play was a little rough like that. Seconds later, the smallest of her dogs went from snapping at her toes to leaping up onto the counter to sniff at the opened scroll.

"Summons for an audience to discuss conditions of my retirement, wonderful. That sounds great."

Chainsaw jumped up to place his paws on her arm, a nonverbal ask to be carried along. When she wore her flack jacket he would often nestle against her chest due to his inability to climb and jump as well as the others. He was a sensor type more than the others and had saved her life more than once.

The last line of the message said attendance was urgent. Not Highly Urgent, but just regular Urgent. He wanted her to come in with the night.

Sakura left the scroll on the counter and slipped into her bedroom to change and don the proper uniform for an attendance with the old hokage; black pants, a black turtleneck, an olive green flack jacket left open enough for Chainsaw to fit. It was mechanical how she dressed.

She heard Dango and Mop at the door and looked back to see both dogs with Souta pacing further back. They all knew she was going out and it wasn't for a simple run or training routine. She was getting dressed up and they were eager to go along with her.

"You might not be allowed inside," she sighed, watching their ears lift in eagness.

"We'll be going into village, that's enough for us. We can keep watch from outside for you, all of us."

Sakura grumbled, but pulled out the silver whistle, thinner than her pinky, and blew into it. The air was sharp and nearly silent, but she could hear it and so could the last member of her pack.

Waffles came down from tree tops on graceful steps even veteran nin would be apt to miss. Hana's puppy present to Sakura was bigger and meaner than the others, but Sakura trusted the ninken wolf-dog more than most humans.

"We're going into the village," Sakura said while stuffing the whistle under her shirt's collar.

Waffles' ears twitched in acknowledgment and she leapt over to flank Sakura's right while Dango took her left. Mop and Souta fell into formation behind her and Chainsaw slipped into her jacket.

The pack moved like an arrow's point down the mountain, fast enough to be a blur, and strong enough to be lethal. Civilization came into view just as the sky started to bleed hues of burning orange. Shop lights were turning on as they touched down on level ground.

Sakura flared her chakra and the sentry guards backed off, recognizing her. Dango's nose was pointed in their direction after a bark from Chainsaw, but the rest of her pack was watching the other sides.

"You don't have to be so tense, it's still our village."

"We may be mongrels but we can remember what happened last time you were here. We'll be at your side the second we sniff out Danzo," Dango said.

Behind him Mop and Souta both growled low. Waffles didn't make a sound, but Sakura could tell the large wolf ninken was just as ready to rip out the council man's throat as her packmates.

Sakura found the Hokage Tower and signaled for Mop and Souta to wait outside. Both settled down in a show of false nonchalance. Dango and Waffles trailed her in and had to stop outside the door to the Hokage office, but they let her take the smallest and most harmless looking ninken in with her. Dango growled at Chainsaw's teasing yip.

"I'm pleased to see you're punctual. At least that's one habit that hasn't rubbed off on you," Sarutobi Hiruzen greeted with a ageless smile.

Sakura pretended it didn't bother her, because he never meant it to, but bowed low with one hand holding Chainsaw in her jacket. "Sandaime sama, you said you wanted to discuss the matter of my retirement."

He frowned at her, but got up from behind his desk and gestured to a small table in the corner already set up for tea. "Indulge me first."

Outside the sun sank lower and Sakura felt the heat of it as it painted the room in different shades of gold. She pretended this didn't make her anxious, but inclined her head dutifully to her elder.

"If you insist."

They sat and he left her to pour the tea for both of them. She could smell it before she saw the pale color pouring into the cups, it was a high quality white tea and her favorite. Chainsaw whined low when he felt her heartbeat spike.

"You're not going to kill me after this, are you?" Sakura asked before their tea could cool. She knew he wanted her to wait, but she couldn't be patient for him anymore.

His calm expression turned sour and his lips pulled down. "That is a poor joke."

Sakura didn't let her own expression change or shift and she didn't apologize. Hiruzen saw this and huffed, looking away and shifting in his seat before addressing her again.

"The incident with Danzo was resolved as a misunderstanding and I have no intention of bringing you any more grief or harm in this life. I summoned you here in hopes of alieving some of the sorrow in your heart."

"With white tea?"

"Impatient as always I see."

"You either get me impatient or tardy, pick one," she quipped back easily. "What am I doing here?"

"Wait for the tea," Hiruzen said, and there was no arguing with his tone. He was the Sandaime and her superior and he wasn't about to let her forget it, no matter how much harmless teasing he let her get away with.

Sakura knew that tone well enough and bit back her words, closing her eyes and counting to 100 before opening them again.

Hiruzen held his tea cup in one hand, supported by the other. His eyes were closed but he lifted the rim to his lips and sipped. She could see the tea settle in his mouth, rolling over his taste buds before being swallowed. His eyes opened and he sighed.

"Ah, now that is an excellent blend. I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

As much as she would like not to, Sakura found herself savoring the tea just as well. It was a good blend that made her nolastagic in the best ways.

Sakura left a small amount behind in her cup before placing it back down. "It was delightful."

The room was lit by lights as the sun was a dying pinprick of red on the horizon. Layers of the sky were left in shades of purple and blue and black. More neon signs were turning on outside.

"I'm glad you liked it. It was a gift from one of my chunin from his garden. I'll have to inquire about purchasing some from his wife."

"My retirement, Sandaime sama. Are you going to draw me back into active duty?"

He deflated but didn't chastise her for her eagerness, he couldn't. They've already had their tea and there is no more use in stalling. Her mood wasn't going to get any better and they both knew that.

"Yes, you're too young and no longer recovering. I would like to instigate a gradual return to active duty, not ANBU, but jounin status. We're a bit lacking these days it seems."

"Are you considering me for ANBU eventually?"

He eyed the one gloved hand resting on the edge of his table. "How is your arm?" he asked instead.

Sakura pulled the hand back under the table and out of sigh. With a long black sleeve and a just as black glove, there was no way to see what was underneath.

"If you're concerned about that, I'm able to channel chakra normally and my hand seal speed is back up to what it was before retirement. My pack too, is up to snuff. We're all able bodied."

"ANBU is a bit much for just now, and her ranks are as filled as I need them to be." He held a hand out as if to brace her from standing up and leaning forward too suddenly, even though Sakura hadn't moved. He could still see the tense lines running through her.

"Jonin duty then? Domestic work?"

He winced. "Not exactly what I had in mind. We're actually needing some help at the academy level."

Sakura felt her heart spike again and Chainsaw whined louder than before, pawing at the underside of her jaw in worry.

"You want to make me into a babysitter."

"A sensi isn't a babysitter, and is a role I reserve only for those who I believe have what it takes to build up the next generation into the best it can be. I would not expect you to fit into this role so soon, but maybe in a year or two when the current academy bunch graduates-"

"I refuse."

He blinked, startled by her words and how they cut off his own, so Sakura lowered her head.

"Respectfully, I wholeheartedly refuse. I am not suitable for taking care of minors."

"Academy graduates are not minors, and the graduation age has increased since your time. They're not six year olds."

Sakura felt her lip curl. "They're still kids. Ten-twelve year old brats are still just brats who haven't grown up enough."

"Which is why they need a guardian and teacher who can mentor them through those difficult years into maturity."

Sakura grabbed the fabric of her pants between her fingers until it wrinkled. "You should know better than to ask such a thing of me. You know what I did and what I was. You can't expect me to step back after being bred for death squads and hunter teams and then asked to...work with kids unless you're really rearing them for something like ROOT."

"ROOT has been long disbanded."

"Then why hasn't Torune of the Aburame clan come home?" Sakura didn't care anymore and glared openly. "You're a nostalgic old man if you believe that. Danzo-"

"Haruno."

It was a single word, but it was firmly formed and cutting. Sakura flinched and looked down, redirecting her glare to the wood of the table. Her face burned and her jaw was all hard angles, tense like her shoulders.

Across from her Hiruzen sighed and shook his head, staring into the empty bottom of his tea cup. "Your history with Councilman Danzo Shimura is unfortunate, but reprimations have been made and he is still an esteemed councilmember and I am still the Sandaime."

"Am I to become a jounin sensei per your order, Sandaime sama?" she asked cooly, keeping her eyes downcast. There was no edge to her words, but there didn't need to be. Her words were sharp enough on their own, she didn't need to make them biting.

"I'm not going to force you into it. If your heart isn't willing it won't do anyone any good."

"I'm not opposed to coming out of retirement, but there are things I am good at and things I'm not. The Inuzuka clan mentioned being unable to go out on long distance recon for tracking Orochimaru and my pack is-"

"Not as suitable for tracking as you would like to believe. You have a brute force pack and the matter of Orochimaru is being addressed at higher levels than the bulk of the Inuzuka qualify for."

"Wouldn't that be where I could come in?" Sakura asked.

Wordlessly he eyed her arm under the table and she inhaled sharply. His eyes slowly lifted to hers and she refused to look away or lower her gaze anymore. It was true, he was her superior, but there were things in her heart she couldn't settle and one of them was the anger she felt when he thought she couldn't keep up on a squad set to take on Orochimaru.

"There are already people put in place for those sort of things. You do not need to concern yourself with matters so far from home," he answered. "But if you feel you are being wasted in the highlands of Leaf, then I'll speak with some of the recently decommissioned ANBU jounin and see if any of them have need for an able body with your skill set. Would you be willing to take up a post at the hospital by any chance? I know your training with Tsunade was cut short, but it's not too late to learn a thing or two more."

"It's been too long since I've been a medic," she lied. "I'm afraid I'm not up to snuff in that category."

He watched her for a long moment, likely suspecting her words to be far too modest for her true capabilities, but unwilling to force her into anything. Medics were sorted to the rear guard and protected too much for Sakura's pride. If she had any medical talent it would be kept an open secret that stayed off her documentation.

Sakura looked outside and saw the sky a dusky black with traces of blue fading into the folds of color. "I think it is time I take my leave. It is late."

"You have something you need to wake up early for?" the old man joked, sounded more exhausted then he had when she first entered.

Sakura stood and stared down at the Sandaime and hated how she felt a sick sort of vindication for exhausting him. There were a lot of things wrong with the village she saw as his fault but that sort of conviction would never fall on his head for reasons of status and whatnot.

The fact that he chose to forgive assassination attempts on his life, the fact that he chose to forget the experimental death of over sixty children who still cried out for justice, and the facts about how he mishandled the Nine Tails attack all compiled in her heart into a bitter seed that no amount of white tea could wash out. Even the way he failed to handle public opinion in regards to the Uchiha made her stomach roll.

'I'll help you find that justice, Tenzo.'

Under her chin she felt a wet tongue lick at her throat and knew it was Chainsaw trying to comfort her. He was the most sensitive to things like her mood or feelings and she appreciated how he kept himself from whining.

"I have training with the pack at sunrise. If you need me you know where to reach me. I look forward to being put on the active service roster, even if it is for jounin." Sakura forced herself to bow to a man she barely respected. "Thank you for the tea."

"It was nice tea."

Sakura didn't raise from the bow but kept her eyes downward, back bent. "Yes, it was."

The Sandaime sighed loudly and grunted at her to rise. "You're dismissed. Don't rush home too early. See if you can find some friends to say hello to. That's not an order, by the way, just a friendly suggestion."

Sakura rose slowly, one hand supporting Chainsaw. She didn't say anything more, but turned on her heel and left the way she came, picking up the members of her pack as she went.

"What did he say to you?" Dango asked, butting his head up against her thigh. He whined when she didn't immediately reply and she reached down to scratch him behind the ears.

Sakura bent down to let Chainsaw out of her jacket and scratch down the length of Dango's neck. "Nothing important. He's looking to transition me out of retirement soon. He wanted me to be a sensei but I told him no way."

"Kids are annoying," Dango agreed.

Sakura was about to say something more but a shouting cut through the quiet before she could.

"A youthful rival appears!"

Sakura ducked on reflex as Guy senpai sailed over her head and landed in the dirt, kicking up a cloud. He turned sharply and flashed a bright grin that was painfully out of place in the middle of the street after dark.

"I see your training has not lessened for your reflexes to still be so youthful. I am impressed my younger rival!" Guy struck a pose, fists fit over his hips in a heroic stance. "Have you come to challenge me at last?"

Dango growled low, more from irritation than anything else. Guy wasn't a threat, but he could be annoying when he wanted to be. The rest of her pack seemed to not care as much as Dango, but that was likely because Guy didn't adress or talk to any of Sakura's summons apart from Dango (who could talk back.)

"Senpai, I didn't know you would be out so late. Isn't it time or you to be in bed?" Sakura calmly stated.

"Nonsense," he boomed. "I shall fight under the light of the moon for the sake of youthful combat. Come, say you will join me."

"I was actually heading home. I just finished my meeting so there wasn't any other reason to stay behind." She reached for Dango's head and scratched him behind the ear. "These guys are tired too and need to get to sleep so they can wake up early tomorrow."

"You are leaving?" Guy asked, exuberance draining out of him. "But you haven't been in the village in months."

That wasn't true, she had been back to buy food and check up on the memorial stone, but she had been careful each time she visited to keep her presence unnoticed. Guy senpai was easy to avoid with the right sort of effort.

"It's late and the sun is already set. Don't you also retire early?" Sakura asked instead.

"But what is a little night when faced with catching up with friends? Iruka was just talking about meeting for late night barbecue with some of the others. Have you heard, they've asked him to be an instructor at the academy? They've all gone out to celebrate."

She blinked, looking away and avoiding his face."I heard they were looking into revitalizing the academy with new instructors. Have they asked you?"

Guy stuck a signature pose. "I am getting my own youthful team next year upon their graduation if all goes according to plan. For now it's domestic missions for me!"

"You too eh," Sakura murmured. She felt a bud of curiosity and hated how terrible she was at resisting temptations that always led to something unpleasant. "Are there many others who have been restricted to the village or put on domestic rotation?"

Guy looked thoughtful for a moment, resting a hand under his chin and folding his arms. "Oh there seems to be plenty like that, but it seems like missions are in that dry season."

His thoughtfulness melted and Sakura thought he would go back to the booming over excited Guy she was most used to, but his expression was instead serious. She remembered in that moment that for as much as a goofball he seemed to be, he was still a respected jonin with unparalleled skill in his chosen speciality. He was not someone she could dismiss.

"Why do you ask?"

She almost forgot he could sound like that.

"I think he has leads he doesn't want us following because they would lead us to Orochimaru." She was careful not to mention the Hokage or name him to keep herself innocent from treacherous slander.

"If he's keeping units out of the Snake's way it's because he doesn't want to risk their lives. Orochimaru isn't someone you can survive with anything less than a S-Class squad, much less apprehend."

It bothered her that there still wasn't a kill on sight order, just one for his apprehension. Orochimaru was too dangerous to let live even in captivity. He was a snake in all its incarnations, and any effort to hold him would results with just another skin shed. He had done it before and he would do it again if they didn't take his head off his shoulders.

"I've seen our death squads. We're not an incapable village."

Guy stared at her, almost sadly. "No, but we are a village at peace. Are you sure you will not meet with your old friends? It would make their night and I think it would do you some good too."

"I'd rather not." Anger made her words tight. He was looking down on her, pitying her.

He stared behind her and then grinned. "Then how about a spar? The training fields haven't been locked up and you look like you'd much rather take off my head then sit down at a table. See if you can keep up with the most beautiful green beast and I'll let you go, youthful student."

"And if you win?" Sakura asked, already weary.

"Dinner with the others!"

Sakura clicked her tongue. "I should have known better."

"You must accept, or I will be forced to pester you for nights and days on end!" His eyes seemed to burn in his eagerness. "I will have you spar or I will do 500 jumping jacks outside your house throughout the night."

The thought made her recoil in horror. Guy was the sort of person to do exactly what he said, and she had been the sad recipient of his training routines. She didn't want Konoha's Green Beast bothering her dogs all through the night.

"Fine, one spar." Sakura relented. "Should I guess it's a taijutsu only bout?"

"We wouldn't want to wake the village with flashy jutsu, would we?"

"We'd wake them with your hollering. Let's do this before it gets too late and people really do turn in for sleep."

From her side Mop whined and Dango huffed a translation. "You shouldn't have to do this. It's not a fair fight. He's the expert."

"Yeah, I'll probably lose, but I think that's fine, if only to see how far I've come." Sakura passed behind Guy into the fenced training field and rolled her arms. "There is only so much you can grow when training with your shadow. This will be good for me."

"Yosh! I am burning up for this!" Guy hollered from across the field. He started to hop in place before falling into his stretches. He sounded giddy.

Sakura started to stretch her own legs out in front of her before sparing Dango a meaningful stare. "I'm pretty sure it's one on one, you guys wait off to the side."

Waffles was already laying down at the edge of the fence on the inside, watching with tired eyes as Chainsaw trotted over, followed by Mop and Souta. Dango was the last to leave and every inch of his body language expressed his dislike of the current situation.

"Till first blood or first yield?" he hollered across the field to her.

She didn't bother saying anything about how they wern't using weapons for the spar, because both of them know well enough how easy it was to draw blood with just your fists.

"First yield and no chakra enhanced strength, check!" Sakura called back.

Guy laughed louder and Dango barked in annoyance at the sound. Sakura fell into position and raised her arms, feeling her shoulders shift and loosen for the speed she would need if she planned on keeping up with Guy.

"Start!"

Both bodies flickered into blurs half forgotten by the partly streetlights. In the dim of the training field it was worthless to try and track with only the eyes, there wasn't enough light and the bodies were too fast. Sakura had to rely on the summation of all her senses to track her opponent when he moved. Darkness gave him just one more advantage.

He came at her with standard form, less personal and more mocking. Sakura didn't let him stay in the standard form for long, catching his uniformed punches easily and countering the jabs they taught every academy student.

She grabbed his elbow and moved it up, diverting the momentum to leave the side of his body under his arm exposed. She reached with her other hand to jab there, maybe break a rib or two, but instead of countering he moved faster than her into her with her knee and she was too close to miss the Strong Fist Style switch.

'Leaf Hurricane!'

Like water mixing into water, his transition was seamless. She couldn't catch where the standard form ended and his signature Strong Fist style started. Instead of cracking his ribs Sakura was sure she had suffered some damage to her own.

The strike pushed her back and her feet dragged dust as she skid to a halt, holding her side and glaring. Guy smirked over at her and then fell into the familiar stance that seemed so open and mocking, one arm extended, palm up, he beckoned.

"I'll help you find that justice."

Faster than before, Sakura met him for blows, barely managing to keep up with his own moves. He wasn't holding back anymore and she was bruising because of it, but she didn't care. She was starting to see the 'before' of his attacks. She was starting to see the way his body betrayed him before a dynamic lunge or kick. They had spared enough in the past that she knew his tells, bt it always took a stretch of time before she could make her eyes keep up and see the tells that other ninja refused to believe in.

Strong Fist Style was, after all, the purest form of her own variation, Hard Fist Style. Without her chakra, the impact wasn't as impressive, but the training she had bleed and sweat for wasn't going to betray her. She was avoiding most of his attacks, even if she wasn't able to land a hit or follow through with a decent counter.

He hit low and instead of ducking under him she moved to the side like what anyone else would have, she moved, around the kick to the side which kept her from having to move out of striking position. It was barely any effort on her part to lean in and swing.

She saw it like slow motion, but there was no way for her to make her fist fast enough to catch him. With godlike speed he recovered from the kick she thought he had overextended on, and flipped back out of her reach. She followed through with another wild Haymaker that pulled the rest of her body forward into a spinning roundhouse kick he had to steer clear of.

Even without chakra the field seemed to shake when she brought her heel down, and there was enough dust to cloud her ankles when she moved again.

Guy laughed with unbridled glee as she came with faster swings. She had moved beyond reading his body language, now her brain was processing a pattern to his style and predicting his moves before he even planned them. Based on what she knew of Guy and his personality, and based on what she knew of the style, and based on all the past experience she had from her fights with him and others, her brain burned a prophecy for her that was more right than wrong. It was enough to give her a little edge. It wasn't hard to predict Guy, it was just nearly impossible to catch him.

He roared into a blur she almost missed as the lights over the training field flickered with age. In less than a heartbeat he was gone and she panicked, but threw herself forward into a roll before she knew why. Her body moved before her mind could rationalize it. Behind her the earth coughed under Guy's heel. She rolled sideways and came out of the tumble with her ankles spinning.

Sakura felt the sweat under her collar but ignored it as she turned her body over, matching blow for blow once more. She pivoted on her heel, leaving her back exposed and in his strike range, but he didn't fall for it. She fell back into a different stance, knowing that for as fast and strong Guy was, he was also several years her senior with far more battle experience. As well as she knew him, he probably knew her better.

Guy senpai was still her senpai after all.

Growling low to herself Sakura went low and aimed for his ankles, swiping with one leg and then turning over to swipe with the other, knowing he would leap high enough avoid both. She chased him into the air where he had less mobility. With friction he had traction and speed, but he falled just as fast she she did and he had no way to change it.

She tried to catch him in the air but noticed the lose bandages curling around her too late. He drew her close to him and turned her body over his and she braced, knowing he wouldn't let go until the impact.

Shadow of the Dancing Leaf to a Front Lotus!

She thought she felt the ground under her shatter, and prayed it wasn't really just her body that came away broken. The dust settled and she rolled over, feeling the first traces of sensation come back to her after the shock of impact. His fighting intent was gone from the air, and the sense of urgency that made her heart hammer wasn't there anymore.

Sakura coughed and stood, greatful to find herself more shocked than broken. She was still in one piece, so she raised her arms and curled her fingers into a fist.

Across from her Guy was still smiling, but it wasn't a teasing or mocking smile. He was breathing deeply and leaning back, half out of his style. She refused to believe he was truly tired after that, since he was only more well known for his stamina after his speed and brute strength. He could outpace her without chakra easy.

"You planning on going to dinner looking like that?" He teased, smile bright enough to catch the only light in the area and shine just as brilliantly.

"I've never been accused of vanity," Sakura teased back.

Guy laughed and pulled himself back into his signature style. "Far be it for me to escort a lady to dinner looking like I just pile drived her into the dust."

"That's exactly what you did, old man," Sakura mocked back.

"Well I don't want them knowing that. Iruka san would be aghast!"

Sakura refused the temptation to roll her eyes because she really didn't care what Iruka thought. He was just a silly ninny who was suited to training and teaching kids.

Keeping her hands in front of her face so she was sure Guy wouldn't catch the blush, Sakura bent at the knees and dragged up what she had left of her energy to charge him. He met her blow for blow, blurring like he had at the start of the fight. It was almost harder to keep up with him than before.

She thought she smelled his skin burning but before she could be sure her head was caught and forced into the dirt. She rotated her hips to get a leg up behind her, but he was faster by a fraction. Her hands were pinned down along with her one leg, leaving only one limb with limited reach the ability to flail around.

"Enough?" he cheered.

Sakura snarled into the dirt, hating how she couldn't use chakra. If only she could make herself stronger his hands on her wouldn't be a problem, but without chakra she was at his mercy. All she could do was scream into the dirt and then go limp.

"What was that?"

"IsaidIyeild!" she hissed.

The pressure was gone from her back and Sakura rolled over before sitting up. The smallest of of her pack, Chainsaw was already running for her, barkin and pawing at her front until she reached to tug him into the front of her jacket where he curled up content and warm. She felt him lick under her jaw.

"Does this mean we can't go home now?" Dango asked.

"Dinner first," Sakura grumbled, looking back at Guy who still looked fine and smiled brightly still. It made her mentally gag before facing the other members of her pack. "Sorry guys, just a few more hours and then I promise we'll be back in our beds."

Dango was the only one who seemed to mind. Even Waffles, the largest and meanest looking in her pack, didn't seem upset or perturbed at the fact.

Dango sniffed loudly at the dirt patches around her shoulders. "You look like crap though. What if Umino really is there?"

Sakura hissed loudly and swatted at Dango before climbing to her feet and patting herself down. It didn't fix everything, but it did help.

"Shut up, I look fine." Looking back over her shoulder she called to Guy. "Right, senpai? I look decent enough for dinner."

"You radiate the springtime of youth my dear Sakura. Who could doubt your enthusiasm for life in such a state?"

She felt herself sag. "Damn it."

But a promise was a promise, and Guy was not the person who would let her get away with breaking a promise, so she went with him, down to the barbecue grill where a small group was already gathered, made up of familiar and semi familiar faces.

"Look who you dragged!" Genma exclaimed, rising half out of his seat to toast his beer at her. "As I live and breath, the ghost emerges."

"Don't tell me that's what they're saying now. How unoriginal," Sakura said with a sneer.

She reached out and took the beer from his hand before tipping it back to finish off. When he reached to reclaim it she let him, grinning when he turned it over and saw nothing left for him.

Guy pushed Genma down to make room for himself and Sakura, loudly cheering a greeting to Asuma and Kurenai. Anko sat at the far end of the table talking to maybe the youngest member that Sakura didn't recognize.

Sakura looked to where she was supposed to sit and see who else she would be beside. Across from her Shisui Uchiha hung on Iruka's shoulder. The Uchiha was going on and on about something that had started as a conversation before she had ever entered the room.

"-But he's really cute and he'll be bothered by all the girls, we're seeing it already," Shisui slurred, pink in the face.

Sakura clicked her tongue loudly. "It's not even late and you're already this sloshed, Uchiha? What are you doing being allowed a drink?"

Shisui rolled his head back and the color on his cheeks was high but not strong. He grinned and it made his eyes crease. "Saaaaakura chan," he sang. "You're here to see me?"

"Yeah, I needed a reminder why I chose to become a hermit so I came looking for you," she sassed calmly. Sakura didn't bother greeting Iruka or making eye contact.

"Mean!" Shisui started to reach for her but kept one arm around Iruka. "Look I'm trying to bribe my cousin's teacher before he's even his teacher!"

Sakura forced herself to look at his face and not remember how the last time he had seen her she had been a snotty, crying mess. She managed a softer, honest smile. "I heard about it from Guy senpai. Congratulations, I think you'll make a fantastic teacher."

Iruka laughed nervously and rubbed the back of his head. "Thank you, I'm ready for the change of pace, even if it does seem daunting."

"You'll be fantastic at it," she answered easily.

It wasn't hard to force the words, since she thought his soft heart was perfect for mentoring and caring for young ones. He was a better person than she was, and ANBU wasn't for him. He wasn't meant to be a killer or a monster.

"It's been a long time since you've been back. Has retirement really been that good?" Iruka joked.

Sakura reached down to scratch a tired Chainsaw behind his ears. The rest of her dogs were laying down outside, content to wait.

"It's the best. I can't wait until they pull me out of it and give me something to do though," she huffed, not really meaning it. She hoped Iruka got that impression from her tone, but wasn't willing to ask him such a weird question directly.

"You need to come back to my squad," Shisui interrupted, finally slipping off Iruka and slumping against the table. "It's all real casual these day, we're not even wearing polish anymore."

Sakura glared at the rest of the room, but as she hoped, they had the large room to themselves, sectioned off and taped up with silencing seals. 'Polish' was a term used to refer to the polished white masks they wore in ANBU, but to anyone else, it would be an empty phrase.

"How much have you had?" Sakura asked, reaching for his empty glass. She pulled it to her nose and sniffed. "What is this stuff?"

"The best, I just had two cups of it and wow, it's been fun but...wow." Shisui waved his hand at the empty glass. "Baijiu I think."

Iruka leaned forward to supply additional information. "It was a gift from the owner, we all had a shot but I gave him mine and then on top of the beers..."

"I get the feeling we were late to the party," Sakura said.

"Not too late. We're all still here, after all." Iruka looked around but his gaze went back to Sakura. "I'm glad you decided to come. It's been a while since we could chat."

"O-oh, yeah," she answered lamely.

Sakura set the glass back down and grabbed for a plate to put food onto while ignoring the way her ears burned. Dinner had already been served and there were several different main plates with food still left, but like the night, the party seemed to have gone extra late.

Shisui reached for her before she could get any foot and stood up suddenly, dragging her arms with him. "I have to show you something," he loudly declared before dragging her around the table to the opposite end where Anko sat alongside the dark haired kid. "Look at him, isn't my cousin cute?"

"The one you're trying to bribe the academy teacher for?" Sakura sighed.

Shisui made a face. "No, that's Sasuke. Look Sakura, this is Itachi, my best friend and a newly appointed animal companion. We're breaking him into the polish ranks gradually you know."

Sakura blinked and stared down at the kid, noticing how he squirmed under the scrutiny. She felt something roll in her gut and tried to hide it but couldn't.

"Animal ranks? Itachi, how old are you now?"

He jumped at the question, having not even been addressed by her yet. She saw Anko, sitting beside him, snicker at the way his face flushed with embarrassment.

"I am twelve years old, Sakura san." He swallowed and looked up at her confidently. "How old are you?"

Sakura narrowed her eyes at the polished young boy and knelt down in front of him with an expression hard enough to convey how uninterested she was in being funny. He didn't back down and met her stare head on, even when she tilted her chin up to stare down her nose at him.

"Old enough to know you're not supposed to go around asking older sisters their ages, especially when they're your senior in rank."

"Yet who was the one calling me an old man?" Guy interjected, leaning over and winking to Itachi.

"I'm a delicate lady, there's a difference, old man."

Anko snorted but it was Genma who howled and lifted his drink in her direction. "What sort of delicate lady makes craters larger than small villages?"

"The kind you shouldn't tease," Sakura bit back. She playfully snapped her teeth at him and Anko laughed louder.

"Look at that, you made the mama wolf angry," Anko cooed at Genma.

The older woman's steely eyes slid back to fix on Sakura, and she saw a glimmer of something mischievous. With Anko that could mean anything.

Sakura chose to ignore the teasing from her seniors and friends to look back at Shisui and Itachi, the younger of which was watching her intently. There was an air of intelligence around him, and Sakura didn't doubt he was another Uchiha prodigy like his cousin.

'But at least Shisui knows how to smile. This kid is an icebox.'

"If you're new in the ranks you'll probably be put on something basic for a while. Don't hesitate to bother Shisui if you have any questions. I'd bet you're too polite to think about bothering anyone else, but don't hold back. ANBU is a whole different beast and you can get swallowed up real easy. I don't doubt you'll do well with your duties, you seem like the type that's allergic to failure, but a lot of time newbies forget to take care of themselves mentally."

She expected him to nod politely and thank her with a plastic sort of smile and then pay her some lip service. It was the sort of thing clan heirs and stuffy first sons were good at and Itachi fit the bill to a T. People had likely been giving him the same sort of advice all night after congratulating Iruka.

Itachi surprised her though. "Then, did you have someone you talked to?"

"Yeah, it helped… especially after I learned he was also fighting a lot of ghosts of his own." Sakura swept her arm out and gestured to the others at the table. "It's the open secret of all accomplished nin, no one has it together and we're all patchwork messes just holding each other up and hiding behind a mask."

"Even Guy?"

Sakura snorted. "Okay, maybe not Guy, but everyone else. Guy is a different sort of beast. Don't use him as an example or a comparison for anything."

Itachi glanced from Guy to Shisui and hummed thoughtful to himself before sipping from the clear drink that didn't smell like anything. Shisui looked less pink in the face and was swaying less, but his eyes hadn't lost their hazy sheen.

"Maybe not Shisui...I don't think he'd be the best keeper of secrets," Itachi finally admitted, abit with a teasing tone.

Shisui clicked his tongue and sat back, leaning into Sakura. "My cute little cousin is teasing me. He even said we were best friends earlier, what am I supposed to do, Sakura chan?"

"Leave me alone about it and quit acting so familiar. I'm your senpai."

Sakura shoved at his shoulder but he leaned further into her space, grinning broader until his grin was half his face and he had his head in her lap.

"You've been gone waaaay too long, Sakura senpai, so don't ask me to leave you alone just yet. You didn't call, you didn't write, what do you think that was like for your friends?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure if I asked Guy he would tell me."

"Cruel," he whined, rolling into her stomach and grabbing her around the waist to hug her. He didn't seem concerned about the dust or dirt that still dirtied her jacket from the earlier spar.

Chainsaw barked from under her chin, peeking out from the jacket and twisting around to stare down at Shisui. Sakura heard a sharp intake of breath and looked up to see Itachi staring at the small dog.

"You use ninken?" he asked. His eyes went to her face, searching for tattoos she didn't have.

"Yeah, but I'm not a part of the Inuzuka clan. Chainsaw is a sensor type, so he works with me to let me know about long distance chakra signatures and some close range signatures I might miss."

Sakura pulled the terrier out and set him down. Chainsaw turned around and went straight for the back of Shisui's hair, clawing at it angrily before Sakura pushed him away. Itachi stared.

"Want to hold him?"

Itachi looked up suddenly. Sakura didn't wait for his answer but grabbed the scruff of Chainsaw's neck and pulled him up, supporting him from underneath while carrying him across the table to where Itachi sat. The younger Uchiha reached out immediately to accept the dog and cradled Chainsaw in his arms. Sakura felt Shisui turn around, rolling over just enough to see. He smirked and then rolled back to how he was, shoulders sagging as the rest of his body fell into a melted state of relaxation.

"How old is he?" Itachi asked, scratching Chainsaw's belly. "He looks so tiny."

"He's the runt of a litter, that's why. He was actually a pup from my former sensei's last litter and I'm hoping that when he's a little older he'll be able to better communicate with me. But Chainsaw is eleven months old."

"If he's a summon isn't it a big drain to keep him out all the time?"

Sakura shook her head. "His mother was just a regular mutt. His dad was the summon, so he was born out here in the current world, not as a summon. I don't know if that means he won't be able to talk or not, but I'm hopeful. He's already smart as a lick and I can understand most of his primal language so it's okay."

"I haven't signed a contract with a summon yet." Itachi looked up to Shishu and frowned. "That should be something I work on though."

Sakura chuckled, picking up on the message 'underneath the underneath' and flicked at Shisui's ear with a little more force than necessary. He jerked at the contact and before he could roll back into place Sakura stood up, leaving him sprawling at her feet.

Seeing her up Chainsaw also squirmed free and darted for her, launching off of Shisui's chest like it was a ledge meant just for him. Sakura caught her dog and unzipped the front of her jacket to allow Chainsaw a perch which he happily accepted.

"You're leaving so soon?" Guy asked from across Anko. Between the two of them fresh entrees had arrived and Guy gestured to the fresh food. "You haven't eaten anything."

Sakura held up her empty beer and grinned. "I stayed for a drink. You never stipulated how long dinner was anyway."

"Ah, next time I'll have to."

Sakura kicked at his side teasingly. "Don't forget I'm up way past my bedtime. I need to get my pack back."

"You should just get an apartment here in the village proper," Genma interjected, leaning forward to enter their conversation. "I heard rumors they're pulling you back."

"I'm weary of rumors myself. I mean, there is that one about you and the fact that you lost a ball sack on your first mission to Wave."

The incident had been widely discussed since he came back from that particular mission to Wave heavily injured below the chest. The medics working in the hospital at the time were gossiping fawns who 'lamented' the loss a bit too much because someone told them to. Genma was still looking for the perpetrator of the rumor.

"You're such a comedian," Genma mocked with a thin smile.

"Someone has to rest of you are a joke without me."

Sakura bent down to kiss the top of Guy's head and whisper a quiet 'thank you' into his hair. He reached up before she pulled away and pat the side of her face, not unlike how Kakashi once did.

"You'll not stay away for a year this time."

"No I won't," she agreed.

Sakura said her short goodbyes and waved to the rest of the party. She offered Iruka congratulations once more and promised to visit his classroom once he was settled in.

"None of these kids know the first thing about first aid, but we'd appreciate a visitor to demonstrate anything." He smiled brightly at her and she felt herself melt like butter just a little bit.

"I-I'll do whatever you need me to. Haha, you know me, always eager to help."

She turned abruptly and left before she could sound any more stupid in front of him. Outside, most of her pack was waiting for her and she only needed to blow her whistle for Waffles once. The largest dog came bounding out of the shadows and touched down at Sakura's side, sniffing loudly.

"All friends," Sakura supplied, knowing they likely smelled Shisui more than anyone else.

"Home?" Dango asked, shifting the weight of his body from one side of paws to the other.

She was about to say yes when someone calling her name from the restaurant stopped her. She turned around and saw Shisui jogging over to her. There was still color on his face but his jog was straight and he didn't have any trouble speaking with her. The haze from his eyes wasn't there anymore.

"Is it true what Genma said, that the Hokage was thinking of putting you on his jonin squad?" he asked, stopped directly in front of her.

"He's blowing smoke out his ass, don't listen to anything he says."

"But you're coming back for someone, right? Hokage must have said something about putting you in a unit or something. Do you know if he'll make you go Jounin or might you come back to ANBU?"

Sakura thought absently about how much of a little shit Shisui could be, because even with the extra strong drink, he hadn't been nearly as drunk as he played it up to be.

"Shisui, I don't know. He'll let me know once he makes up his own damn mind and then you'll find out the same as everyone else. Don't hound me 'bout it now, it won't do you any good."

"Do you need someone on ANBU to recommend you?"

"Not you," Sakura snorted with an amused grin.

He flushed a little behind the ears. "Hey, I may be just a little bit younger than you, but don't underestimate the pull an Uchiha can have in these matters."

Sakura reached out and flicked at his forhead. "Whatever. You should just worry about yourself and that cousin of yours. Share your crows with him for starters and make sure he defrosts a bit. Poor kid is a stiff as a board."

Shisui reached up to rub the flicked spot on his forehead and grinned. "I'll take care of him. Promise to check up on us?"

"Nope," she said, popping her 'P' loudly before turning away.

Her pack fell into step along and behind her. Seconds later they were flickering into blurs in the night.

Shisui watched them as long as he could, using his sharingan when regular eyes could no longer see that far. When they were finally out of sight he turned and caught sight of Itachi, watching from the window, his own red eyes spinning lazilly up the side of the far off mountains.

AN:/ A story about loss and about what we do when we're left to pick up the pieces from said loss.

This was a fun little break from the usual projects that I needed to work onto just give my brain a break from other stuff. But more than anything, it's wish fulfillment by giving Sakura a bunch of dogs. I just really wanted to give Sakura dogs because dogs are great. That and I just go kinda caught up in the idea of Sakura taking Kakashi's place and what would that look like, she's got the pack, she's got something added to her body from a precious person, she's got the issues...there you go, another Kakashi.

There is no pairing designated to this story at this time, but of course, if you know me, there will be hints and parts where you can see pining and the occasional flashback to when Sakura was happier. But mostly this is about Sakura and her little friends.

There are seven-ish chapters to this story (maybe eight depending on how I break it up) and they're all mostly done, so I'll be able to keep updating semi regularly. The other chapters are shorter I think. They're not all huge like this one because that would kill me.

Sakura's Pack!

Mop- Irish Wolfhound He's the teeth of the pack
Souta - Borzoi (Russian Wolfhound) He's the speed of the pack
Dango- Doberman pinscher- He's the voice of the pack
Chainsaw- Jack Russell Terrier He's the sensor of the pack (and the baby)
Waffles- Wolf She's the terror and the stealth of the pack