Disclaimer: I own 3 un-matching socks and several band posters but nothing more.

Cry For Me

Chapter 1

Couch Surfing

Hi, I'm Sakura Haruno. On with the story.

What happened that afternoon is a prime example of why parents should beat their children. They should beat them fucking senseless.

Anyway, (before someone calls child services) there is a reason I hate kids (you may put down the phone now).

It is because a particular one ruined my whole fucking life.

At the time it occurred, I loved kids. That is right, LOVED them. I even wanted a few of my own someday. However, no, that day I learned that they are tiny little monsters.

Here is how it pretty much went down:

It was around noon when it happened, I remember because my 16-hour shift had just ended at the hospital (I needed the cash). It was then that the little piece of shit approached me. At the time, I briefly considered him cute (the fucking demon in sheep's skin).

"Please help my friend, he's really badly hurt." The boy pleaded. He could not have been older than ten.

"Okay, where is he?" I assumed he was probably exaggerating so I was not in any big hurry and I was already wiped from work.

The kid grabbed my skirt and started pulling me. We went into an alley, then another, and another, until we found his friend. His friend was considerably older than the kid. His 'friend' was older than me (at the time I was 17). His 'friend' could pass for 20. His 'friend' could pass for a thug. Which, by the way, he was. Damn you friend! I'll hunt you down too!

Loose jeans, white beater, and one aluminum bat.

"Good job, kid. She looks like she's got some cash on her." The friend smiled to the munchkin who had released my skirt and backed away.

Great, a mugging. Peachy, right?

I played citizen when the guy charged me and switched into ninja mode just in time. He's just a thug, so what's the problem? That's what I thought. I was wrong, oh so freaking wrong.

My chakra-laden hand stopped then bent his bat until it was useless. If he was a normal guy he would have realized it was over when suddenly his hands were surrounded by chakra of his own and it solidified into knives. Chakra scalpels. Caught off guard he got a nice cut on my stomach. On pure instinct I kicked him in the groin with super chakra-laced strength. He doubled over (score one for chicks everywhere).

I considered the threat over until the kid jumped on my back. And this is where I started hating children. The brat bit my neck. Like he was playing vampire or something. And shit did it hurt. He drew blood. His arm came up while I struggled to remove his teeth from my neck the hand came down and shoved a needle in my arm. The shot drained into my bloodstream.

And goddamn did it hurt. I screamed like crazy. Pain slithered through me from where it was administered and I threw my head back in pain, screaming bloody murder.

White hot pain erupted and blocked my vision and all other senses before it turned black.

When I woke up again it must have been several hours later, the sun was going down, and I was still lying on the ground in that alley. My wounds from the fight had stopped bleeding but a dull ache was pulsing under the new thin scabs. My entire stomach (worst wound) was entirely numb.

Besides that and my messy hair, everything seemed fine. Whatever that shot was I wasn't feeling any effects. Not yet.

The medic in me kicked in and I knew I needed to find some place to dress my wounds. Coincidentally I was closer to Kakashi's place than the hospital.

Shit, if he finds out how much of an idiot I was I'm in for one hell of a speech.

I decided to risk it. When he opened his door and saw the dried blood he stepped aside.

As I was walking past him he asked, "What did you do this time?"

"Nothin'," I answered in a baby voice and gave him the puppy eyes. He sighed and gave in, didn't ask anymore while I dressed my wounds in front of his bathroom mirror, and let me leave without any further questioning.

He even gave me some cash for a ramen dinner.

"Thanks," I called over my shoulder on the way out.

It was dark within the next five minutes and then it began to rain (my day was going GREAT so far, huh?) so I sought shelter from the closest living person I knew. Ino.

Sleeping on her couch that night began a long line of couch surfing began before I told anyone besides Tsunade what had happened. This happened to be the most stressful stretch of time in my life during which I prayed to any lord, god, or demon that was listening. I prayed no one would notice as I, very slowly, began to die. The funny thing is that during that overnight stay I slept well, deeply, like I would never wake up…