Story to Tell

"We all have a story to tell.

The only matter is if people are willing to share."

"You should be proud of the kunoichi in your clan, Yamanaka-san."

Sakura stated as she stares at the clan leader of said clan during the Sengoku Jidai Period. It's almost been three months since she was found at the gate, bloody, bruised, momentarily blind and determined, demanding to see Tsunade.

She had screamed a good half an hour in demanding what happened while she was gone, and why did the village feel different. Even when Sakura realized she was blind, she was quick to find a method of seeing people and that was honing her chakra sensor.

When Sakura finally passed out because of blood loss, the Senju and Uchiha Head were quick to make their way to the front gates.

After all, who would believe the idea of a screaming pink haired person that was described to be dead on their own feet?

When the two men finally arrived at the scene, people were already gathered around and Hashirama was fast to see his own brother inspecting the person closely.

"Hashirama. Look."

Hashirama immediately directed his attention towards the bloody pinkette being taken care of on the ground by Senju healers when his younger white haired brother directed him to.

The medics weren't even touching the woman yet and so when the wounds seemingly burn away and smoke rise from the cuts and the bruises fade away like war paint, the people and shinobi present were instantly cautious.

"Oh my kami..."

Hashirama subconsciously heard someone call out to Kami but he was too fixated on the woman in front of him to even bother. It wasn't that her body is healing itself quite rapidly that caught his complete attention, he noticed that too, but when he saw the shiny modern looking hitai-ate on her right shoulder it felt as if someone just placed his world on pause.

Shinobi Alliance

It says, written on kanji. When the world returned to Hashirama he quickly barked orders to his people to take care of the woman. Bath her and place her in proper clothing now that he noticed more than a few rips and tears on the masculine clothes the woman seemed to be wearing. A bright orange jacket, the most salvageable looking piece of clothing there is, a navy blue long sleeved that seemed to large for her and mostly male, it looks to be salvageable but the entire right long sleeve was missing (Most likely ripped off, Hashirama presumes.), and the most tattered shorts that were supposed to be pants Hashirama has ever since. The piece of clothing barely covers her ass, it was more underwear like so it was a good thing the long sleeved the woman was wearing reached down to mid thigh.

Hashirama coughed and blushed lightly. Tobirama was quick in zoning on his brother's face. Tobirama's questioning stare wasn't lost on Hashirama, as another questioning stare was directed to him by his Uchiha friend.

"What are you thinking, Hashirama?"

Madara questioned his friend, not even sparing the white haired man another glance so he could keep his anger at bay.

Hashirama turned his head to the side and grinned at the Uchiha. He lowered himself on the ground and reached for the woman's biceps. Madara's eyebrows rose at the bold moves his Senju companion actions. Tobirama was in a similar state with his white eyebrows rising, he never thought his brother would have it in him to touch a woman without blubbering like an idiot.

But their face quickly returned to normal when both men realized that the brunette was reaching for a hitai-ate on the woman's right bicep.

"Look at this, you both."

Madara and Tobirama focused their eyes on the battered metal clothing with a single kanji inscribed that was still visible through the drops of blood that was splattered.

"Shinobi Alliance?"

Madara muttered, mostly to himself meanwhile Tobirama snapped his head at his brother and looked at Hashirama in the eye.

"Don't be so quick to assume, brother. This could be a hoax for all we know."

Hashirama's grin dimmed a little and his wide grin turned into a small but determined smile. The bloody and sleeping woman was already being carried to their compound.

"I know. But won't it be great if there is truly a place where people have bonded together enough to make an alliance of every single of their Shinobi to create such an alliance?"

And just like that Hashirama was back to grinning.

"Nonetheless! We should never leave an injured woman outside our gates and wait for her to die!"

Hashirama proclaimed as he jogged to catch up with his younger brother and raven haired friend. When he finally caught up and slowed down to a walk and matched their pace, since Hashirama was in the middle and Tobirama to his left while Madara was at his right.

Hashirama grinned at both of them once more, slapping both of their backs, making both men stumble a tiny bit forward as Hashirama laughed at their antics.

At the time, when the woman finally woke up and saw the grinning face of her first Hokage and the stoic faces of her Second Hokage and world destroyer, Sakura could only faint while uttering curses in her chakra exhausted state.

Sakura tiredly opened her eyes and blinked away the sleep in her bleary eyes. Remembering what just happened before she lost consciousness, Sakura snapped her eyes back wide opened and moved into a sitting position.

She was aware that there weren't any machines or cables attached to her that she would have quickly removed and she wonders why.

Feeling a painful sensation on her head, Sakura placed her hand on her scalp and used her healing chakra to ebb the pain away but flinched all the same. It felt as if thousands and thousands of Naruto were talking to her all at once, and Sakura literally first hand experienced that when the blonde offered extra hands during the war.

The war!

Sakura moved her legs to the side so she can stand up but she instantly sat back down and rubbed her head, it was aching like no tomorrow.

Sakura eyed the tent, she assumed, she was in. She was on top on what seems like a wooden table layered with a somewhat thin and yet thick cloth and a gathered thin cloth as a pillow to rest the patient's head.

Sakura new they were in war but wasn't this to old?

"Oh hey! Look she's awake!"

Sakura heard a loud and bright voice and then the opening of her tent, turning to face the person and fully expecting it to be Naruto or Ino but mostly her teammates to be there and she was greeted with her Shodaime's grinning face.

Wait, let me rephrase that.

She was faced with her Shodaime's grinning and fully alive and well with normal eyes face.

Suffice to say, Sakura's brain short circuited and then fully exploded when she saw the First's younger brother follow the Shodaime and went inside her tent.

Sakura fully inspected and observed and then concluded that yes, their bodies were warm and fully alive.

Their eyes spoke the truth.

Oh but that wasn't all.

Sakura finally lost it when the man she and her friends have been fighting for near a decade showed up and looked relatively humane and not insane with a psycho crazy face thirsty for world domination.

Sakura stared at them for a good five minutes before laughing slightly and quietly.

"Kakashi-sensei, I think I finally died and went to another batshit crazy dimension."

Hashirama, for the most part, looked concerned while his two companions looked as cold and stony as ever.

"Are you okay? What's your name, miss?"

That's when Sakura snapped and she realized that this really wasn't a dream and that the First was talking to her with Madara and Tobirama behind him.

"Oh my fuck, Naruto."

Sakura groaned deeply in her hands that were covering her face. Making the men present tense, with the exception of a certain brunette who blushed when the woman cursed like a man.

"Just what the hell did he do to me this time? The fucking idiot's gonna die when I get my hands on him."

And just like that the woman fainted because of chakra exhaustion that Hashirama wasn't well acquainted to since he has a fairly large chakra reserve but he knows what exhaustion and stress is, being a clan leader and all.

And Hashirama chose that as the right moment to comment the sleeping woman.

"You think her hair is natural?"

The other two men sent him a look that say, My god, I can't believe I'm friends/related with this idiot.

"What? Just curious, no?"

Hashirama countered.

"Did you just see this crazy woman speak and break down in front of you and all you talk about was her hair?"

Hashirama shrugged awkwardly, feeling kinda guilty now.

Tobirama turned to Madara.

"I can't believe how you handle this daily without breaking him."

Madara shrugged, momentarily forgetting his rage at the white haired man. Tobirama stated this because he was sure that his brotehr hangs out with the Uchiha more than him these days to mend the rift and settle the village's problems out.

"I beat his Wooden Clones too."

Tobirama turned back to his brother and nodded, acknowledging the Uchiha's answer even though he loathes them like the plague.

The second time Sakura woke up she was down right silent the whole time to process the sudden information of being back in time. She resolved to herself that maybe she can change things for the better? Even though she knows that she most probably won't even see her friends again, she tricked her mind to think she was okay with that. That she was okay to be forgotten so as long her friends and family were safe.

And with the resolve firmly fixed, she had prepped herself for the interrogation to come in the form of Madara, Tobirama, and Hashirama. Although, Sakura was sure that Hashirama felt uncomfortable about this but was determined nonetheless to push forward in her questioning. It was painful to be near the brunette, Sakura admits in her mind. He reminds her so much of Naruto that she founds herself smiling at him during her questioning and catching herself from making a mistake like saying her blonde idiot's name.

So, she introduced herself as Sakura. No last name, no clan backing her as a ninja. She explained that she was an orphan in her village and she never bothers to learn the last name of her parents, also adding that even if she tried she wouldn't be able to find her last real name with all the orphans from the war.

Sakura didn't bother much to tell them about her village, just saying with a faint smile and hollow eyes.

"It's gone now."

But still, Sakura explained her position as a kunoichi, which was rare during these times. Sakura explained that she was fighting on the front lines with her teammates to finally end the war when a surge of opponents entered the battlefield.

Sakura explained that her blonde and raven haired friend sacrificed themselves to save them, to save their home.

Sakura admitted quietly that she fainted during the battle because of blood loss and chakra exhaustion. And that when she woke up, the battlefield was a massacre.

Sakura said she tried looking for survivors and found none but the dead bodies of her people.

Sakura told them she stabbed herself, committing seppuku, and she remembered falling into the river that she went near to, to see her reflection.

After that Sakura continued to tell her story that she was a field medic, surprising the three men.

"Field medic, you say?"

Madara asked, he was intrigued, he never heard of a woman fighting in the front lines and being a medic at the same time. During the Sengoku Jidai, mostly all medics were at the back camp, healing soldiers that actually fought.

Hashirama was amazed, even though both men at his side were reluctant to believe the woman's story Hashirama can see the loss and pain hidden in her eyes.

Sakura smiled, Tsunade-shishou told her many things about her great grandfather.

"Hai. I was taught by a great healer."

Tobirama hums, his gears turning. Maybe the girl can be proved useful if trustworthy?

"Who is he?"

Tobirama questioned her and Sakura raised an eyebrow at the audacity of assuming her teacher to be male. Tobirama and Madara saw the slightly mocking look the pinkette was sending the white haired man and Tobirama raised his eyebrow in expectation as well. Madara tried his best to hide his smirk but proved to be futile and Hashirama was just grinning although he saw the pinkette's look.

Sakura smiled, to the men present it looked to be a challenging smirk.

"Ah. She was a great healer indeed. The old woman took me in and helped me into becoming what I am today."

Her eyes grew duller and the smile left her lips. Sakura was mulling over her thoughts, wondering what's the harm of telling her shishou's name. Sakura stopped thinking, she needs to vent out right now. It's not like she's telling the truth, Ino drilled into her that to trick a person you must spin an intricate web filled with mostly lies and parts of truth. And that was what she was doing, she did remembered Madara's forces and white Zetsu fill the battlefield and Naruto and Sasuke fight them all with the Shinobi Alliance. Sakura remembered after that Naruto and Sasuke fighting themselves, but after that her memories get a little blurry.

The three men patiently waited for the pinkette to continue, they could see it in her eyes that she was lost in some memory and with the small frown on her lips, they can tell that it wasn't a happy one.

"Tsunade-shishou."

The soft utter of the name was almost lost to the three men if they weren't paying close attention. Sakura eyes glimmered with unshed tears and yet she smiled nonetheless.

"Her name was Tsunade, and she was the best medic nin around the world. She's a hero and mother to me."

The men didn't comment on the past tense of the first sentence and just continued to question her.

It was mostly Hashirama's turn with the questions.

What was her favorite color?

White.

What was her favorite food?

Anything sweet.

Hashirama smiled at that, it was cute.

"Who are your teammates?"

After that question, Hashirama knew he hit a sore spot and quickly regretted it when he saw her eyes dim.

But they needed to know, what kind of two people were strong enough to defeat a man that has powers of those of a God and then defeat his troops?

"Naruto and Sasuke."

"Sakura-chan! Let's have ramen, dattebayo!"

"Hn, dobe. You're too loud."

"Whatever, Sasuke-teme!"

Hashirama was astounded and curious when Sakura told them about her team's antics, including their sensei and other two people that joined their mixed group.

Sakura explained to them that Sasuke belonged to a clan once but they were gone now since Sasuke was the surviving memeber left after his older brother massacred their entire family.

Out of the three of them, Madara was the most disturbed about this revelation. Tobirama's face was shocked when he heard the story and his head was quick to wonder what would that be like if he were in that situation while Hashirama's face was horrified and drained of it's colors.

Sakura lightly laughed at them with hollow mirth.

She explained that Sasuke was so caught up in revenge at that time and nearly killed them because of his hatred.

This made Hashirama pale even more. And Madara looked lost in thought while Tobirama seemed a tad bit uncomfortable.

She said that even then when he tried to cut their ties and throw them away, his team was always there.

"Sasuke was just going through a phase because he missed his family. He was always the dramatic and arrogant asshole type but he was family to us. We couldn't forget him even if we tried. Besides, Naruto was there. If anyone could change that asshole's mind, it was Naruto. Naruto can achieve anything because he never falters in his belief."

Sakura smiled when she remembered her knuckled headed idiot and friend. During the last parts of the war, Sakura gained a somewhat crush on the blonde but she kept them at bay and just act like a sister to the blonde. Besides, Naruto deserves better, Sakura thought. And a certain Hyuuga can be that special person that Naruto deserves.

Sakura giggled suddenly, like a school girl, scaring the shit of the three men in the room.

'Women.'

They all thought. You never knew what they're feeling, one moment they're sad, and then one minute later they become happy then mad and then the woman gets sad all over again. It was weird and complicated to the human male species.

"Naruto, you can count on him to succeed. Even if he loses his arms, legs, and even eyes to the enemy, he still won't ever give up. I remembered that happening once, his legs were ripped off of his body in front of the village gates where the mercenary were taking their sweet time slicing Naruto's arm off."

Sakura's eyes darken at the memory, she was one of the first one to see him like that with the enemy ripping and slicing his limbs off as the people questions him about weaknesses of his village. The mercenary group were quite good at sealing and managed to seal Naruto's large chakra.

Sakura grinned with her fangs showing making her look feral, she remembered crushing those idiots skulls when she came for Naruto.

"Those idiot got the guts to do that in front of the village. I must say though, they were quite good at fuuinjutsu, no wonder they were cocky. But even then, with his limb ripped out from their sockets and laid in front of him, Naruto didn't scream in pain. He didn't even shed a tear."

"Fine go ahead! Rip out everything you want but I'll never say anything! Even if you gouge out my eyeballs I'll fight you with everything I have!"

Sakura grinned at the surprised faces of the three men in front of her when she ventriloquized Naruto's voice and speech at that time.

Madara's mouth immediately clamped down shut when he realized he was gaping at her. Tobirama blinked, as if registering what just happened and Hashirama full out laughed at her.

"What a truly great friend you have!"

He said when he instantly remembers that her friend might not even be alive anymore, Madara and Tobirama shoots Hashirama a look that says, Look at what you did, idiot.

Before any of the men could even utter a word, their breath were taken away with a most sad and soft look on the woman's face they have seen all day. With the woman's green eyes and pink hair along with her other soft features, it looks as though as if she came right out of a fairy tale.

Sakura smiled.

"I know."

Silence reigned after that, it was as if when she told those two words she was implying she knows a lot of things and that made the three men a bit uncomfortable because it felt as though they were chastised by their mother who was tired at yelling all the time and just told them to clean up their mess.

But Sakura continued in telling them stories about their adventures as Team Seven or Team Kakashi. For a moment, the three men wanted to bask in the returned comfort and a part of their mind wanted to forget the outside world.

After explaining Sasuke's position as a child, Sakura explained Naruto as well but while hiding the fact that Naruto was a Jinchuuriki.

Which was a quite a tad bit difficult.

So she explained the fact that her friend has some sort of beast inside him.

"When we were kids, I have to admit, I was a bad person to Naruto at first and I truly regret that."

The three men continued to listen to her stories, it was well into evening now and soon it would be dinner time. They had ate their meals in Sakura's tent as they have stayed almost the entire day inside the tent with Sakura telling them her adventure and with Hashirama exchanging some of their childhood stories in return.

"Years before when Naruto was just born, a beast came and destroyed almost half of our village. The leader of our village during that time along with the past leader of the village managed to defeat the beast but not vanquish it. So they made a cage, a seal, and sacrifices."

Sakura looked at her hands, wondering how come they were still so tiny even after all these years of killing and bringing back people from death's door.

"Naruto saved the village by being alive and keeping the demon at bay but the villagers didn't realized that."

Sakura clenched her fists.

"Naruto was shunned and even kicked out of the orphanage. I didn't even try to befriend him during training when I knew he had a crush on me."

Sakura smiled wistfully, wondering at what could have been if she had accepted Naruto's love.

"When we were assigned to the same team, I got to know Naruto. And as we grow older, I see him as a dear friend I would gladly offer my life for."

Sakura chuckled weakly, the three men in the tent were silent. They were there to question at first but they just listened.

"Naruto was always going on and on about, 'Just wait and see! I'll become the next leader of this village, Dattebayo!' and then he would go and challenge Sasuke to a fight yelling how, 'Sasuke-teme is too much of a teme to not beat up!'. He was always like that."

Hashirama smiles at her friends antics and meanwhile Tobirama and Madara were deep in though wondering who sounds like that in their life since their very sure they have someone like that.

Sakura looked at Hashirama with lost eyes yet a small and tired smile.

"You remind me very much of him, Hashirama-san."

Hashirama blushed, he quite remembers the fact that the person the woman was referring to had a love interest on said woman.

"I sometimes hate my village."

Sakura admitted quietly.

"They shunned Naruto for all his worth and never saw him for who he was until the whole village was getting massacred and needed help."

Sakura fiddles with her fingers and she is distantly reminded of Hinata as she do this.

"But Naruto didn't care if the whole village hated him. To him the village was his home and he protected his home."

Sakura sighs.

"He protected his home from a person proclaiming themselves to be Kami but got their ass whipped by my blonde haired idiot. Some Kami that was."

Sakura mostly muttered the last part to herself but she knew without a doubt that the other occupants of the room heard her.

"After the battle, the village looked like a wreak again. And people moved and helped rebuild the whole village since that was the parts destroyed."

Sakura snorts to herself.

"And yet, that self proclaimed God atoned for his sins."

The three men looked confused at that. Sakura surveyed them, she wonders what kind of reactions would they present?

"There were no casualties."

A beat of silence followed before Tobirama decided to comment.

"Impossible. You said the whole village have been decimated. How could there be no casualties?"

Sakura glanced at Tobirama and smiled.

"Naruto did it. He convinced a man that only thought pain can heal the world for a very long time to rethink his ideals, his belief. Naruto convinced the man that pain wasn't the only thing in the world and I have never been so proud of him at that time."

Sakura's eyes took on a glassy and far away look.

"Pain-san gave up his life and fixed his mistakes. His life in exchange for the lives he had just killed."

The three men didn't know how to react at this, they have been hearing stories of God-like shinobi all day but bringing back the dead? That's impossible.

"I've always wondered how he did that. After the battle I was so worried about the blonde idiot that I didn't think of anything else. I smacked him in the head and healed him in the end."

Hashirama smiled cautiously, bringing back the dead? The people she's been talking about are close to God-like powers more than not and it scares them. What scares them the most was her friend, defeating enemies like those... it's either miracles or insane power.

Tobirama's mind was already conjuring up methods and theories on how the hell that was possible while Madara looks as if he's contemplating something.

"You love him."

Hashirama looked at his friend, surprised that Madara would say such things.

The Uchiha didn't look affected, his statement was a statement, not a question.

Tobirama also directed a curious glance at the Uchiha but didn't bother to say anything.

"Yeah, I do. But I was too stupid and more of an idiot than Naruto to realize what I wanted back then."

After answering a few more questions, the three men bid goodbye to Sakura that night. Sakura was fine with that, it felt as though something was lifted from her shoulders by telling other people her past, or future. She doesn't know what to think about it now. So when the three men left, Sakura finally took that moment to cry a river.

The following day, Sakura was sure that she was feeling better but her chakra reserves were still low, Sakura could say she was somewhat lower than half of her chakra reserve.

The Senju brothers and Uchiha head had came to visit again and inform her that if she wants to stay, she can stay but if she wants to leave she can go as well. What surprised Hashirama and to an extent Sakura, the most was that Tobirama was the most reluctant for her to leave. The albino man blushed at that time and reasoned if she really was a skilled medic it would be a waste for her to leave.

Sakura couldn't help but giggle at the man, which didn't help his predicament.

Sakura stayed and helped with the injured while helping Hashirama and Madara stuff around the village.

After two weeks of staying, proving her worth, ignoring bitchy co-workers, healing wounds and bruises, proving that bone can be mendable and can be set back, proving that this and that disease is curable, proving that a burnt leg or arms can be salvageable, and teaching other medics her way of healing, Sakura can say some people respect her now but she knows she isn't that trusted yet.

The first day she was to heal, which was actually supposed to be the day she relaxes since she just came out of from her tent, she was accompanied by Tobirama.

Sakura could say that being stared and scrutinized at was part of teaching but being stared at by Tobirama sent shivers on Sakura's spine.

The following days, Tobirama doesn't tag along anymore after showing Madara and Hashirama her skills when she saw a patient with a detached arm on the table near him.

It was fun to do the impossible.

"When I say that that hand can be reattached to this body, it can. We are healers, it's in our job to heal and help a patient to the full extent. If you don't believe that he can be healed and continue his life as a shinobi, what's the point of healing him anyways?"

Sakura stated, she forgot that this period wasn't as advance in medical text as she was.

'Well that's about to change.'

Sakura thought. She will improve the village's medic even if it meant changing the course of Medical History.

She didn't even notice the other three spectators watching her closely as she reattached the hand like child play.

Sakura couldn't help but smile at that time since Madara gave her an approving nod while Hashirama was talking a mile a minute. Tobirama smirked at her, and for what she didn't know.

After that, the bitchy comments and sadist comments from her other more bitchy co-workers stopped.

One day though, Madara asked her for a favor and Sakura had looked at him like she was seeing him for the first time.

"What."

Sakura couldn't help it, she giggled and immediately regretted when she felt more than saw Madara's mood darken. Madara was just about to leave when Sakura realized her mistake and made a move to stop the Uchiha.

"Wait. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have laughed at you."

Sakura said as Madara turned back to look at her. Why the Uchiha Head was suddenly sensetive, she didn't know but to her Madara looked like a lost puppy right now. Sakura pursed her lips a little.

"It's just that... you remind me of a friend. And he was an ass but when he asks for help his face was always priceless."

Sakura almost wanted to laugh again if not for Madara suddenly became so close and Sakura was hit with the smell of alcohol.

'Most likely Hashirama's fault.'

Sakura thought as she looks up at the Uchiha with anticipation in her wide eyes.

Sakura blinks and then smiled.

"Sure, I can do you a favor. Just find me."

Sakura didn't know what she just accepted and just offered but Madara just stared at her for a long time while Sakura did her best to avoid eye contact.

After a few minutes, Madara just hummed at her before nodding and turning back to his path towards the Uchiha compound.

Sakura lets go of a breath she didn't know she was holding in.

'What just happened?'

Sakura, at first, was greatly confused about that night and they were gaining stares from Tobirama and Hashirama alike when they were in a conversation. It just became awkward between her and Madara, even loud and boisterous with out a care Hashirama was quiet.

But then a week later, Madara finally confronted her about the favor. Sakura blushed but nodded anyway at that time when Madara said he needed her to heal someone. After that, Sakura became stuck in medic mode since.

Izuna Uchiha.

Sakura had never heard of him before and that made Sakura worried. She concluded that this brother of Madara must have died from the injury she is healing.

"Do not worry, Uchiha-san. I am very capable of helping you heal. You're medics though needs a reevaluation, this gash and fever of yours became like this because of a damn infection."

"Is that so... please just call me, Izuna. Uchiha-san was my father or now, I'm guessing it's Madara..."

The bare chested male said to her. Sakura smiled at him at his words.

"If you think you can heal me, be my guess, miss...?"

Sakura turned to him after setting down her medical supplies, she already chakra scanned his body earlier.

"Oh? Madara-san didn't tell you? My name is Sakura. Nice to meet you, Izuna-san."

Sakura made Izuna lie down from his seating position as she cleans the large cavity on his chest. At least their medics were wise enough to heal the other less life threatening injuries.

"I don't think I can, Izuna-san."

Izuna couldn't help but frown at that, earlier the woman sounded so warm and determined... was that just a lie to impress the Uchiha Clan?

"I know I can heal you, Izuna-san. I don't really let go of my patients easily."

Izuna's interest was piqued by his healer's attitude.

"Oh? How many patient have you had, Sakura-san?"

Sakura hummed as she continues to clean the wound, she's amazed that the man beneath her can still talk with all the pain he's going through, even with the herbal pain relief she made.

"I've lost count."

Izuna paused mid thought while Sakura finally finished cleaning the large gash on his stomach and is now moving to the internal damage.

"How old were you since you started healing people?"

Sakura surveyed the damage of his organs once more and curses the medics attending him while thanking the gods that at least his stable.

"Since I was fourteen."

Izuna hums at that. It wasn't that young to start helping out in the war and if she thinks she can heal him then she must be an excellent healer.

"How many patients have you lost?"

Sakura paused and actually turned her head to her Uchiha patient.

"Before or after the war?"

Izuna was silent for a moment at the pinkette question.

"Both."

He wanted to know, how many death had she witness by her own hands that were supposed to heal.

Sakura was quiet for a moment, she was using chakra scalpels to do some incisions on the raven's organs since some of them were dead already and since there was already an open hole on the stomach she would just remove them there by just cutting through the raven's torso.

"This is going to hurt, are you ready?"

Izuna nods, bracing himself as he felt a dull sensation of knives cutting his chest open. He guessed that the herbal concoction he first drank was working to dull the pain.

All was quiet except for the sounds of the pinkette doing surgery and for a moment Izuna wonders if he shouldn't have asked that when the pinkette finally made a sound.

Sakura sighs.

"Before the war, when I was sixteen, I lost two patients."

Izuna waited for her to continue but she didn't and Izuna couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. Two years and only two patients lost.

"When the war began, I can estimate around ten patients dying daily when it was either too late for me when I reached them on the ground or when it was too late when they reached the Medic Camp."

Izuna stayed silent, wondering if the words she spoke of were true. It's either she's a very skilled medic or the war they fought were so small that the fighter and soldier population were skilled and that of small quantity. Izuna doesn't know since he can't tell which but he knows that this girl healing him was skilled if she was that confident in healing him.

After all two weeks of physical therapy and daily check ups, Izuna was finally allowed to walk around by himself but Madara would have none of it and always made sure that a person or another would tag his younger brother.

After the surgery, Sakura was dead tired. She was still kinda amazed that Izuna was still breathing when she got here.

When she informed that Izuna would be fine to Madara, Tobirama and Hashirama were behind him. After informing her that, Madara surprised them all when he hugged Sakura like no tomorrow. Sakura, at that time, felt as though she was a mother to the raven haired man but refrained from thinking of that anymore and just felt like a sisterly bond opened up between her and Madara. Their awkward problem went out the window.

Back to the present.

"Are you questioning my leadership, Sakura-san?"

Sakura smiled, she didn't miss a beat.

"To put it bluntly, yes. Yes, I am. Do not be a sexist and treat the women of your clan like how you treat your men. With respect."

Sakura's eyes were cold and her smile was terrifying to the Senju brothers but Madara made no comment and just sat there at the right side of Hashirama like a statue.

Hashirama was at the other end of the head table, with Tobirama at his left. Since Izuna wasn't that well yet, and he just really didn't want to go to meetings in the state he was in, he wasn't present.

With Madara and Tobirama at both of his sides, Hashirama just awkwardly grinned there and tried to placate both blonde and pinkette only to receive a harsh glare from green eyes which made Hashirama gulp his words down.

Tobirama didn't comment but the smile she has made a shiver ran up involuntarily his spine.

Inoji, the Clan Head of the Yamanaka Clan, glared at the pinkette. Who was she didn't matter to him, why she was here he couldn't even understand why.

"Excuse me, Sakura-san, but at what ground can you say and order me like that?"

Inoji grounded out and this made Sakura's eyes dance with mirth.

"I have a blonde friend once."

Inoji raised an eyebrow at her but Sakura just continued.

"She was an amazing kunoichi. She was an heiress to a clan that were proud of their interrogation technique. They were able to bend people's minds to their will and break it with the snap of their finger."

Inoji furrows his eyebrows at this while Hashirama raised his in wonder and amazement. Tobirama and Madara looked at her with a questioning stare but she didn't mind them, after that day of story telling Sakura never mentioned her past life that much anymore.

"When we were children, we became friends when she helped me with some bullies."

Sakura looks down at her hands at this.

"We made mistakes and fought with each other a lot like every other girl."

"I love him Forhead, how could you!"

"We fought over a boy."

Sakura snorts to herself while Hashirama tensed. This made Tobirama turn to his brother who waved it off like it was nothing and Madara just kept listening.

"After that we became enemies. When were children, we only cared about our looks and boys but then we grew up."

Inoji and the other clan head just listened patiently, while they knew that currently she is the best healer this Era has ever had Inoji can't understand why this meeting matters her.

"She was there when my teammate left for power. I was there when her teacher got killed. She grew up to be an amazing kunoichi, following her father's footsteps and led her clan during the war. When her father died, my friend never once cried. She didn't cried when her father was buried along with the other victims of the bombing, she didn't cried in front of the people who expected her to. She didn't cry in front of her people even once because Himawari knew that she needed to keep her shit together for her clan... When we kids, we called each other nicknames. I call her Himawari, Sunflower. But she still calls me Sakura since that is a flower."

Sakura joked but then her smile dropped and she gazed into the same shade of blue pupiless eyes her friend had.

"I'll be there for you Forhead. I would always have time for you."

"Well, she's dead now. Along with her clan since every clan that fought during the war died."

All was quiet around the table. Hiro, the Sarutobi Clan Head, just placed his on top of his hands that were folded over the table. Sakura was reminded of the Third, Hiruzen-san. Cho, the Clan Head of the Akimichi Clan, looked friendly as ever and unsure about the suffocating atmosphere.

"What is the population of you village is exactly?"

Sakura blinked at the Yamanaka's question and calculated in her mind. Sakura shrugs and grins at them, the heavy atmosphere immediately disappeared.

"I'm not sure, I'm guessing 15,000 in the civilian sectors and around... 25,000 shinobi on active. I don't know much about the retired shinobi since there must be more than two hundred but less the five hundred."

The Clan Heads gaped at her.

"W-What? T-That's impossible! How can you fit that much shinobi population and civilian population together in a single village!?"

Hiro exclaimed, his mind already excited at such a village exists.

Sakura paused and thought for a moment.

"Well, not all active shinobi were inside the village. I'm guessing around 20,000 are inside the village if all of us are not on missions but mostly all of us are on duty so half of the shinobi population stays inside the village walls. There are many of our bases and posts around the country, our shinobi are spread everywhere. Besides, the village is huge. There wasn't a problem at all, the trading route and farming mechanisms and routine fed our village while the shinobi brought in the income and safety. Hell, even though Tsunade-shishou was a drunk she can lead the village pretty well if you ask me."

Silence was what greeted Sakura in her explanation but Hashirama's face soon drain it's color.

"S-So you mean to tell me, that that many died?"

Sakura turned towards Hashirama, she lost all her childish and joking attitude that moment Hashirama spoke and silence ensued once again.

Sakura turns down to look at her hands again.

"Yeah, I guess so. If you multiply our population five times more since four similar villages fought beside us to protect our home."

Sakura said softly. The clan heads tensed, what kind of force could decimate that much power.

"But hey, at least the guy's dead now."

Sakura perked up, her hands weren't visible as it were under the table. Sakura couldn't help but rub her hands vigorously while not making it noticeable, it feels as though blood was still covering her hands.

"Where are these lands you speak of?"

Cho, the quiet and friendly Akamichi, spoke. When an Akamichi speaks, people listen since they were so soft spoken people that most of the time you need to listen or else it might endanger your life.

Sakura laughed, it made the other occupants cringe. It was hollow.

"I really don't know now. A friend of mind must of used some type of Jutsu and now I'm here and so very far away from home."

The Clan heads didn't even bother to comment that a village that large leader was a woman.

"Hashirama-san?"

Sakura stared at the brunette in front of her. Well, his back was in front of her. She thought it was an emergency and immediately abandoned her training to check her front door.

Hashirama jumped and yelped in surprise because of his nervousness and swiftly turned around to greet Sakura only to gape at what she was wearing.

Sakura was only wearing her chest bindings and black spandex short that were so difficult to come by at this period.

"What are you looking at?"

Sakura questioned and looked down, her face exploded with a pretty shade of red when she realized she had just answered her door and met the first in her underwear.

"I-I uh..."

Hashirama stammered and just settled with turning his eyes away even though he was still facing the pinkette, who was completely mortified at being seen half naked by her teacher's great grandfather no less.

Hashirama couldn't help himself and just peeked to see Sakura staring at him with wide eyes, an open mouth, and red cheeks that made Hashirama want to devour right there and then.

'Wait. What.'

Hashirama couldn't believe what just crossed his mind!

"Oh my kami- H-Hashirama-san, I will be r-right back after a m-moment."

And with that, Sakura slammed the of the house the man in front of her a moment ago built for her ever since she decided to stay. Sakura groaned into her hands.

'Kami, I'm an idiot...'

Meanwhile outside, Hashirama placed his hands over his face to pathetically hide his blush.

She was cute, flustered and all, like a small kitten.

'Did I just thought of that?'

Hashirama inwardly asked himself in horror.

But then an image of a Sakura greeting him on his bed with a white tail and white ears wearing only his shirt appeared in his traitorous mind and Hashirama's face was redder than Mito's hair.

After a few minutes, Hashirama heard footsteps coming down from the stairs and nearing the front door.

When it opened he was greeted again by Sakura, who this time was wear a cute white shirt with her spandex shorts. Hashirama inwardly slapped himself when he almost, almost eyed the pinkette's legs while being in front of her.

"What is it that you need, Hashirama-san?"

'You screaming my name.'

Hashirama blinked at the sudden thought. Before his eyes widened in realization but he forced his blush to keep out of his face less the pinkette think of him as a pervert.

Hashirama weakly chuckles.

"Ah, well I thought of informing you to tonight's party at the heart of the village between the Senju and Uchiha compound to celebrate the three new clans joining our village. Also, Mito said she would skin me alive if you don't attend. So please, Sakura-chan, help me."

Hashirama just let the name slipped by accidentally but it's not like the pinkette noticed it anyway.

Sakura giggled, it was so Mito for her to threaten Hashirama for her to go to a party.

"I would love to, Hashirama. So, did Mito told you to pick me up?"

Hashirama scratched the back of his head, Mito didn't say anything about picking the pinkette up but he wanted to. Oh, how he wants her to be with him during the celebration.

"No, but I can if you want me too?"

Hashirama offered and he was a bit scared at being rejected but Sakura seemed to be in deep focus to even care, probably sorting out her schedule.

Sakura smiled then nodded at Hashirama.

"Sure! When does the celebration start?"

Hashirama felt as though his heart just made a leap into his throat but he answered, although in a somewhat strained voice, nonetheless.

"As soon as the sun sets, which is usually seven but the real celebration starts at eight I'm guessing."

Sakura looked at Hashirama and inspected him for signs of any injury, his voice sounded strain just now.

"Pick me up at seven?"

Hashirama grinned.

"Gladly."

Just as Hashirama was about to bid goodbye Sakura beat him into saying something first.

"Would you like some tea, Hashirama? It is still early in the morning."

Sakura guessed that Hashirama must've decided to come now since he won't have time later, she also knew for a fact that Hashirama was stressed out as she was so he needed a break. And tea was good for sore throat if Hashirama has one from the strained voice she heard.

Hashirama wanted to pinch himself to see if this was all just a dream or a genjutsu Madara set him to. But a part of Hashirama thought that he doesn't want to wake up either way.

"If I'm not imposing, Sakura-chan."

Hashirama might as well use the name, since Sakura dropped honorifics already.

"Of course not, Hashirama. You built this house."

Hashirama smiled.

"For you, Sakura."

Hashirama muttered to himself but Sakura heard something.

"Did you say something Hashirama?"

Sakura said from the modern kitchen Hashirama made her. Hashirama was already sitted on the couch in her living room with a coffee table filled with scrolls in front of him.

"I said nothing, Sakura-chan!"

With that Hashirama proceeded to eye the scrolls in front of him with mirth and curiosity.

Sakura is a determined and hard working shinobi.

"Well, here's tea, Hashirama. Oh don't mind those. I'm just rewriting some of the scrolls I memorized back when I was a kid."

Hashirama turned to see Sakura suddenly very close to him as she moved the scrolls, ink and brush to the side so she can place a pot and two cups on the table.

This, Hashirama could get used to.

To be continued~

Sorry I didn't leave a note earlier, for those who read this before I updated the chapter but I was to excited to even think about an author's note and just posted.

This is just the first part of the story, I decided not to do a only a one-shot sorry, I wrote for Dislami-chan, who provided support to my other story, The Break of Dawn. Sorry for the late story, Dislami-chan.

Thanks for reading! Leave a review!

Anymore request, by the way?

- Torikki J. ~