Sakura stopped. Stared. Then quickly moved on.

Sasuke, who had been hauling three baskets of tomatoes, frowned. Why was Sakura running away?

The vendor happily gave Sasuke his change, telling him to come again soon.

In the clearing, Sasuke saw Sakura again. "Hey Sakura. What was that earlier?"

Sakura looked uncomfortable. "I…have a bad experience with tomatoes."

Sasuke squinted at her. "Are you serious?"

Her face was completely serious.

There was a silence.

Sasuke felt compelled to make some excuse for his buying habits. "I only bought this much today because my usual vendor had been out for a few weeks already. I wonder if that lady is okay…"

Sakura startled. "…Does that lady happen to have straight purple hair and a really loud voice? Penchant for complaining of genin traveling by roof?"

"Yeah, why?" Sasuke frowned. That was an oddly specific example.

"Nothing."

.

A/N: Hey there everyone :D

Guess who updated late again ;-; sorry but for a long time I felt disconnected from the characters, and I disliked almost every scene I wrote. I don't think I can continue this fic. But in that time I was gone, I also reviewed the plot (discovering several plotholes in this fic). I read a lot of other fanfic, I started rewriting this fic, and I liked it a lot better.

I've planned out a considerable chunk of the rewritten plot, and it's going to be really epic! Before, I didn't know what to do with this fic, and I just lost all sense of direction and motivation. I think you all deserve to know why I haven't updated, and to have the one scene I wrote that I did like.

The new fic is called "When the day grows dark," and I hope you will consider it :D

Thanks for all your support so far. I know this is the internet and I'm only writing fanfiction, but doing this and receiving all your reviews—it's something that I will never forget. This whole experience has legitimately made me a better writer. I had such a great first time writing for a large audience, and I've gained a lot of confidence during this process :D

So thanks everyone!