What It Means…
[A/N] What it means is a mix between the Narutoverse and my own imagination. It is actually a story about an OC and Sakura, so if you came to read a story about SasuSaku and Team Seven, it is one, but it is also more than that. I hope you will enjoy the storyline! Please Review/Follow/Favorite.
Thanks for reading!
Obviously, I do not own Naruto, but Hana is truly mine.
Oblix.
.
.
.
Prologue – When the Unpredictable Happens
.
.
.
In the pitch black of a cell, nothing is visible. Only the sound of chains against the cold hard ground can be heard on occasion. At times, a sob resonates on the concrete walls, quickly followed by a cry that even surprises the person who let it escape. In this infinite darkness, there is no place to go to, no place to hide, no heat or light to cling to.
.
.
.
.
.
Despite the quiet of the room, the birds chirping just outside the window tells Hana it is almost time. She shifts her head to the side and slowly opens her eyes, letting her gaze follow the ray of light filtering through the curtains. Yes, it is a question of seconds now. The girl sighs and turns to glance at the ceiling. Every morning of every day, she is faced with the fact that she is not going anywhere, that no one really wants her and that she is doomed to live here until her majority. And honestly, these facts are not helping her getting out of bed at all.
At the sound of the door creaking open, Hana quickly shuts her eyes. If they see her like this, maybe they will let her sleep this time. After all, it is Sunday…
Suddenly, her covers are roughly pulled off and after receiving a vicious slap on her uncovered thigh, Hana promptly gets out of bed with a sigh and turns to face the window, completely ignoring Mrs. Fubuki's harsh words. Outside, the sun is low, its light hardly piercing through the trees, but one ray still reaches her face as a gentle breeze brushes her tanned skin, effectively taking away the remnant of sleep from her eyes. She inhales deeply and looks at the blackboard beside the old wooden door, assessing the list of chores she has to do for the day. After one last glance at the beautiful morning playing just outside her room, she grabs her clothes and heads for the bathroom.
When she was a little girl and her father was still alive, Hana never really had to do chores. He spoiled her, some might say, but at least, she was happy, every day being another chance to discover the world with him, her mother staying away from them at what she probably assumed was a safe distance from love. But when Hana unfortunately moved to this orphanage, she finally understood what it really meant to be alone – not everyone has the chance to enjoy life.
Closing roughly the door behind her, Hana quickly makes her way to the sink, her eyes clouded with thoughts. In front of the mirror, her gaze locks on her own reflection and she takes a second to notice the crease that has formed between her two brown orbs. Sometimes, it feels like she is not thirteen at all. She shakes her head, reaches for her toothbrush, and begins to wash her teeth at a dangerous pace, the bristles rolling up in all directions under the hectic movements. Then, after spitting, she stares at the sink as the white and red foam slowly mixes with the water flowing from the faucet. After a while, she glances up at the mirror, takes a deep breath in and brushes a finger between her eyebrows, soothing her frown. It is not worth the frustration and anger, she decides. With that thought, she splashes her face two times with cold water before pulling out the sponge and household products from under the sink and turning away to face the bathtub. She kneels on the bathroom floor after one last sigh and begins to scrub the white porcelain as stray strands of brown hair stick to her forehead. Suddenly, she raises her head. Through the open window, she can still hear the faint chirping of birds. With a small smile, she returns to her task, determined to find time and enjoy this beautiful day before nightfall.
After finishing all her chores and helping the older girls with the lunch and the dishes, Hana finally gets the permission to go outside. A proud smile never leaving her face, she exits the building and reaches the front yard, where she promptly lies on the ground, her face toward the sun. She is slowly drifting away, appreciating the faint sound of the leaves moving and the touch of the sun on her skin, when someone clears their throat. She opens one eye. In front of her, the boys are waiting, their arms crossed over their pumped chests. One of them has a soccer ball in his hands. She rolls her eyes, slowly gets up, and after dusting her pants, she shows them her middle finger – a bold move even for her – and leaves hurriedly in the direction of the street. When she is sure no one is following her, she slows down her pace to a jog and lets a small smile spread on her face as she enjoys the warmth of the sun on her skin, her attention focused on the sound of her breath, the noise of her feet against the sidewalk, the feeling of beading sweat on her forehead. It is always the same with the boys. They can do whatever they want, and yet, they will always find something to complain about. At first, she tried to be their friend, but they had already made up their minds on what girls were supposed to be like, and they never gave her the chance to prove them wrong. Soon, she learned to ignore them, but at time, the frustration is harder to repress; just like today.
After running for a while, Hana finally stops in a beautiful park and falls unceremoniously on the freshly cut grass, a smile still adorning her features. Despite her chores, the orphanage and the boys, she is feeling great today; running has that effect on her. She is feeling free – for now, anyway. While inhaling the smell of nature, Hana looks up at the sky and watches as the clouds above her head turn into foxes and ravens. Minutes pass and her eyelids become heavy. This is what she was looking for: peace. And as she ponders on the simple yet beautiful thought that is peace, she slowly falls asleep, the sunlight filtering through the leaves creating shadows on her little round face, and a light warm breeze caressing her tanned skin tenderly. She would have never believed that this simple change in her routine was to completely alter the course of her miserable existence, and yet…
.
.
.
.
.
The woman tries again to see something, anything in the darkness of the room. Her cracked lips slightly open in the shape of an "o" when she notices some light coming from under a door just in front of her. She shifts with difficulty and finds out that her shackles have become too big for her wrists, now reduced to bones and skin. With a little twist of her hands, she releases herself. Then, desperation comes over her and she begins crawling in the direction of the light in hope of recovering her life, her freedom. Now in front of the door, she gets up on her knees and grips the handle, her legs too weak to support herself. Surprisingly, it is unlocked. As she pushes the wooden surface and welcomes the heat of a ray of sun, she stretches her ears and catches the faint chant of birds.
.
.
.
.
.
Haruno Sakura never really liked her forehead. It is bigger than most and people are always making fun of it. So, every morning, at dawn, she leaves her bed and stares at her reflection for a while, trying to find a way to hide it subtly, not that she has ever succeeded before, but still. Then, after a long, scalding shower, she comes back to her room and begins to brush her long pink locks – her pride. Actually, she always wakes up early for the sole purpose of trying to look prettier than the day before. It is a challenge, and she likes it. Taking care of her pretty hair, applying a subtle make-up – hoping her mother will not notice –, and putting on her stylish red dress, this is exactly why she will deprave herself from sleep.
But today is different. Yes, today is different because it is her last day as an academy student and she is proud to say she passed all her classes. Of course, being pretty is important to her, but her mother always taught her that being smart was a part of being pretty. Not that it was hard for her, really. Everything that involves cold logic and precise knowledge is her forte. But she still had to pray a bit for the physical part… and at the end, Iruka-sensei probably let her pass because of her excellent grades in everything else. She swears, being a shinobi is not easy. At times, she even wonders why she chose that life in the first place, her parents being civilians and all... The first thing that comes to her mind is Sasuke-kun, although if she recalls correctly, she did not even know the boy at the time…
She glances at the clock and notices she is running late, so she promptly leaves the house, blurting out a quick goodbye to her parents and skipping breakfast altogether – as always. She runs at high speed through the streets, trying to avoid the lazy people slowly making their way through life. When she reaches the academy, she jumps the stairs in one stride and stops in front of the open door of her classroom, the first thing catching her eyes being the back of Yamanaka Ino, her rival, casually approaching the famous desk beside none other than Uchiha Sasuke. Still panting from her run, Sakura swipes the sweat from her forehead and lunges forward, successfully beating the blonde girl and stumbling to the chair next to the black-haired boy, accidentally hitting his arm with her head as she does.
"S-sorry," she mutters, slowly lifting her face and trying to meet his eyes, but instead, successfully knocking the side of her head on the desk. "Aow."
"Clumsy as usual, Forehead." Upon hearing the high-pitched voice of Ino insulting her, Sakura gets up abruptly and turns to face her rival.
"You, Pig…" When she finally focuses on the blonde, she notices there are actually three of them dancing around her, a mocking smile on their painted faces. The pinkette grips the desk and tries to steady herself, her brows knitted. "I…" Suddenly, everything turns black and she feels her body falling forward until she hits the ground in a loud thud, unconscious. At that point, everyone, even Uchiha Sasuke, is looking at her unmoving form.
Little did she know that skipping dinner and breakfast altogether would lead to the beginning of her unpredictable story.
.
.
.
.
Incessant jabs on her forearm makes her stir in her sleep. Slowly, she blinks a few times before staring at a gray ceiling between half-closed eyes.
"Forehead? You okay?"
Suddenly, Hana glances to her left where a blonde girl she has never seen before is hovering over her lying form.
"Sakura, I swear! If you don't get up right now, I'll kick your ass. Iruka-sensei should arrive at any moment now! And I'm sure you don't want him to start questioning your diet. I know I don't."
Hana grunts once before sitting and looking around in complete incredulity. Then, she takes note of the people surrounding her, some leaning over desks, others standing on their chairs, trying to have a better view. Strangely, the last thing she remembers is falling asleep in a park, but then, why is she currently in a classroom, she has no idea. Her eyes dart left and right, trying to find a familiar face as her heart begins to beat furiously against her ribcage. Panic settling in, her breathing becomes harsh and her hands jump to her throat, her eyes widening.
"Hey, Sakura-chan, you okay?" A boy approaches quickly and kneels on the opposite side of the blonde girl, one hand instantly starting to rub Hana's back in a soothing manner. "You need help? Maybe a CPR?" Slowly, he leans forward, his tanned skin and blond hair obscuring her vision for a moment. Her eyes linger on the whiskers crossing his cheeks before she realizes what he is trying to do. His azure eyes now inches away from her own, she jerks in surprise when their lips connect. The next thing she knows, the blond boy is lying on the floor as she is getting up abruptly, the classroom bursting out laughing.
"Now Forehead, how was your first kiss?"
She glares at the blonde before putting a hand on her mouth.
"I'm – I'm okay now… Okay?" She turns to the boy on the floor with a warning look as he gets up slowly, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish smile.
"If you say so, Sakura-chan… But you look so pale… Maybe you should eat something…"
"Naruto! She's on a diet, she can't eat breakfast, it's a rule every girl knows," the blonde girl says, matter-of-factly.
"It's stupid, why dieting, she's tiny."
"That's something we have to do in order to keep our beautiful figure, Naruto. Now, enough with your stupid questions and go back to your place."
As the blond boy makes his way back to his desk, the door opens and a man with brown skin and brown hair enters the room. Without having to say anything, he observes his loving students as they sit back on their chairs, a satisfied smile tugging the corner of his lips. Then, he turns momentarily and starts writing something on the blackboard, his high ponytail bouncing after every added word.
"As you know, today, we will review one last time the basic knowledge every good shinobi must remember in preparation for your genin days that will start tomorrow morning." He turns slowly, his eyes closed in a warm smile. "I must say that I'm extremely proud of each and every one of you. You're all… Sakura, what are you doing?"
Hana, still standing in the middle of the classroom, was playing with her fingers nervously when she suddenly feels the brown eyes of the teacher landing on her. Then, as blood gradually creeps to her face, her mind registers one thing: she, for some unknown reason, is Sakura. At this realization, she opens her mouth, her eyes blinking furiously many times before quickly squeezing shut, her hands becoming little fists on each side of her legs. Laughs explode again and Hana swears she has never been so red in her entire life.
"Sakura?"
She snaps her eyes open and stares bewildered at the man now in front of her. Then, his hand gently brushes her forehead and a frown appears on his kind face.
"S-sorry… Sensei," Hana says awkwardly, glancing to the side in search of a place to sit. On her right, she notices an empty chair and clumsily walks in its direction after one small smile directed at the older man, who, in turn, reverts to the front of the class, concern still apparent on his features.
"Thank you, Sakura… Now, as I was saying, I'm really proud of you. Even you, Naruto, managed to pass!" At this, the blond boy jumps in his seat, fists extended in the air. Iruka chuckles, but hides it with a cough. "As you know now, the life of a shinobi isn't easy. It's dangerous, demanding, but also necessary and rewarding…"
As the teacher begins his lesson, Hana looks to the side at her black-haired neighbor. On the sheet in front of him, she can read Rules of a shinobi. With every new sentence her eyes land on, the girl begins to understand a little more of the situation in which she landed. Shinobi, she learns, is just another word for ninja. So, she guesses that every single kid in this room is hoping to become a ninja... The thought makes her frown. As unbelievable as it sounds, what disturbs her the most is not the fact that she strangely appeared in another world. No. It is the fact that those girls are dieting instead of working on their strength. Clearly, there are things that will never change, no matter the life you are living, she thinks grimly.