Disclaimer: Hehe, I forgot the disclaimer in the first chapter. But yeah, I'm not so delusional as to think that Naruto or any of it's characters belongs to me. Although I'd love Sasuke to belong to me. Droool. Or Neji. Or Gaara. Or Kakashi! Super Drool. Down rabid fangirl. Down. Hehe. Gotta keep reminding myself that P

Anyways, on to the fic. D

The Blossoming

Chapter 2: A New Start

Sakura woke up the next morning feeling refreshed and revitalized. As she stretched out her arms, getting out those early-morning kinks, she caught a glimpse of her new scar on her hand. She suddenly sobered up. What she had done yesterday, she had done without thinking things through. She had been too caught up in the moment. Naruto's guilt at failing her and determination to dedicate his life to fulfilling his promise to her had set off a myriad of conflicting emotions: sadness that Sasuke was gone, guilt at pushing Naruto to risk his life to bring him back, self-loathing at her weakness and incompetence as a ninja. All this emotion transferred into anger and hatred at Sasuke in that moment. She had never been so motivated as then to become strong in her own right. She might never catch up to geniuses like Sasuke or Neji, or be as powerful as Naruto or Lee, but she would try. At the very least, she never wanted to hold her teammates back ever again. She would take care of herself and one day she might be able to pay Kakashi-sensei and Naruto back for all the times they had protected her and saved her life.

But Sasuke-kun. She sighed. She really had loved him. It had started out as a crush, but had developed into more. Even though he hurt her and ignored her, he did care about her somewhat. He had always protected her. They were teammates. But how could she excuse what he had done? He had left them, left his village. That couldn't be taken lightly. It was a crime, a crime whose punishment could be as severe as death. Could she love a criminal? Could she love a traitor? Could she love someone so addicted to power that he would leave behind his teammates and friends? No, she had to draw the line somewhere, and that was where she would draw it. Sasuke had crossed that line, and finally woken her to the fact that he was exactly how he seemed: cold and untouchable, with a heart of ice. And she had grown up enough to realize that although the dark and mysterious guys were attractive and cool, that wasn't something to build a relationship on. She had always thought she could change him somehow. That eventually, he would get his revenge and then finally look back and see her waiting for him and he would realize that she loved him and that he loved her. Happily ever after.

But life isn't a fairy tale. Especially not hers. There were no princesses with big-foreheads. Nor were there emotionally-challenged, power-hungry, vengeance-driven princes. She'd been living in her own little fantasy world for far too long. A guy that paid her little to no attention wasn't worth all that she had had to give up any longer. Losing her first and best friend, her identity, her goals and dreams, years of her life. Sasuke had, in a way, stolen all that from her. Take Sasuke away, and her life seemed void and meaningless. She was a worthless shinobi. She had few friends, especially after she replaced Ino's friendship with their rivalry over Sasuke. Worst of all, she had no goals, no dreams, no hopes, no interests. She was like an empty, lifeless doll without Sasuke. And that's how she knew that her love for him wasn't right. Love wasn't supposed to bleed you dry, taking all you had to give. Love was about give and take. Even one-sided love should make you feel giddy and light-hearted, seeing the person you love happy or knowing that they cared at least as a friend. And love wasn't supposed to be all-consuming. It wasn't supposed to be some sort of disease that came and took over your life. But that was what it had done.

Love? Screw love, and screw Uchiha Sasuke. If that's what "love" did to somebody, Sakura never wanted to love again. The only thing Sakura wanted to do now, was to get back her lost time. From now on, she would do what she wanted to do, when she wanted to do it, and say what she wanted to say, without holding back or worrying what Sasuke would think. She was a new person, and it felt damn good.

"SAKURA! What are you doing still in bed? It's 11 o'clock already!" her mother shouted.

Sakura checked her beside clock. Holy shit! It was 11! How did I lie in bed for so long just thinking! Well, I suppose I had a lot to think about. It isn't everyday that a girl decides to change every aspect of her life.

So with a slight grin, Sakura moved to jump out of bed, when her mother barged in, startling her.

"Sakura! It's time to get up. Don't you have work to do?" Sakura's mother scolded.

"Yes mother. I'm getting up right now. I'll be right down." Sakura replied, barely reining in her annoyance. Inner Sakura was much more liberal in what she said, fortunately not out loud. GRRRRR! I was just getting up! Ruining my damn mood, and so early in the morning! #&(&#!

But it seemed not even her mother could bring her down. The sun was shining, and Haruno Sakura was going to go out there and KICK SOME ASS! HELL YAH!

And that called for a new wardrobe. She felt like a whole new person on the inside, so she obviously needed to look like a whole new person on the outside right? Right! Well, any excuse to go shopping was a good one. And what better way was there to win back Ino than with a special present to represent a new start to their friendship?

Yes! Plan Rebuild-My-Life-And-Train-And-Get-Strong-And-Be-A-New-Person is underway! Heh, I'll work on a better name later.

So it was with newfound zeal and an extra bounce in her step, that Sakura left her house to start her new life, with Sasuke finally out of her mind and heart, or at least hidden so deep that not even she knew what she felt for him anymore.

To Be Continued…

A/N: Weeell, another chapter done. Hopefully I'll keep updating quickly like this. And, wow, if I keep going like this, Sakura might get down the road the next chapter. Kinda slow. S But I'll try to speed it up a bit. I think I just needed Sakura to think through what she was doing, and clarify her actions a bit.

Anyways, time for me to go. Ciao.

Read and review please. Pretty please? Sugar on top?