A/N: This story will take place after the war in the Naruto Universe; however, for the purposes of the story, there will be a different "end" of the war, there are spoilers if you have not read the end, be warned.

~Dawn of a New Era~

Prologue

"Sakura! Hang in there! Sakura Haruno don't you dare give up! Please… Please… don't leave me…" Sakura looked up, she saw a man in front of her, too blurred to see. She felt something wet fall on her face. Was this man crying for her? She felt someone carrying her, perhaps this unknown man was.

She felt at ease, peaceful; she could hear many noises in the background. Voices and explosions. She smiled slightly, to tell the mysterious man that she was fine, but it made more tears fall onto her face. She could hear someone calling out to her.

"Hang on, we'll get you fixed!"

"Sakura!"

"SAKURA!"

"Sakura."

"Sakura!"

Sakura aroused from her slumber, she turned to look at Shizune with a blurred vision, surprised and confused. Was it just a dream? It felt so real, like a shattered memory…

"Are you okay?" Shizune asked with a pursed lip. Her eyes filled with a bit of worry.

"Uh, yeah, what did you need Shizune?" asked Sakura, who shook her head and sighed from exhaustion.

"Sorry Sakura from waking you up from your nap, but the hokage needs to see you, it's urgent." Shizune said with a sympathetic smile. She understood what it was like to do an 18 hour shift without a break. Sakura replied with a weak smile. She got up and formed the ram hand seal. She then disappeared from the room in a poof leaving a few red colored begonia petals.

Sakura appeared in her mentor's old room, with a bit of smoke in her appearance. Kakashi was there, leaning against the desk; his head stuck in a perverted book.

"What am I needed for Hokage-sama?" Sakura asked.

"I'm sending you on a mission, A-rank, do you accept?" Kakashi asked.

"Hai."

Kakashi continued, "You will need to investigate some disappearances of some locals near a village. There are some rumors of kidnappings taking place; however, there are no signs of it. You will leave immediately." Kakashi finished and threw a scroll at Sakura. Sakura caught it and bowed. She disappeared from the scene with a poof.

Kakashi sighed. He looked up from his book and stared at the ceiling. He thought back to moments before and saw before him not his precious student, but a strong dependable woman, one who had grown over the years when he had become hokage. He smiled a little.

"Hokage-sama, there is someone who wants to see you."

"Hai, hai."

Sakura went home and packed her normal gear. She had joined ANBU over the course of two years and had become the excellent ANBU. She wore a tiger mask with the stripes painted in red. She raced toward the village gates and disappeared into the darkness.