Heroes
SasuSaku Month 2018 - Day 1: Heroes
Rating: T
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Sakura Haruno had been called many things in her short, young life - some especially hurtful things behind her back, she’s sure, but she’d learned to let them roll off her shoulders. One lesson her shishou had drilled into her was that labels and titles did not define a person. It did no good to dwell on how other people defined you and since then, Sakura had made sure to let her actions speak for her. After the Fourth Shinobi War, much had changed afterwards, but what she absolutely did not expect was to be singled out as one of the greatest medical nin and kunoichi in the five nations. In fact, she’d just about fainted on Ino when the bubbling blonde had cornered her in her office and relayed the news, which she had heard from some traveling civilians in one of her recent missions to the Land of Waves.
She kept a level head and gracefully accepted that her growth as a shinobi had been acknowledged. Something that she had been chasing since her resolve to catch up to her two teammates ever since she was a genin. She had truly thought that nothing would be better, but here she was, standing frozen in the middle of the early morning marketplace. Her mouth dropped open in a small ‘o’ as she stared at the old woman handing her a small bag of bright red tomatoes.
“Sakura-san?” The older lady nudged her slowly. “Are you okay, dear?”
The world caught up with her again. She shook her head slightly and smiled apologetically for her rudeness. “I-I’m sorry. You caught me off guard.”
The older woman laughed good naturedly and patted her hand gently to accept the bag she was trying to hand her. “It’s quite alright, dear. Like I said, I wanted to show my appreciation of your courageous services during the war. Without you, many of our own would have perished. You’re a hero.”
A small blush tinted her usually pale cheeks as a sliver of embarrassed bashfulness fluttered around in her stomach.
“I’m no hero,” Sakura replied truthfully, averting her gaze. “I simply could not let good men and women die, not if I could help it, and I certainly was not about to stand by and watch as our world ended.”
“My dear, one who fights for others that cannot fight for themselves is a hero,” the older woman stated confidently. “Now, don’t fight your elders on this one. Please accept this token from this humble old woman.”
Sakura bit her lip before smiling softly and nodding. She took the small bag and held it close to her chest. For a fleeting moment, the ruby red eyes of the boy she loved flashed across her mind and with it, her heart raced in response. The blush on her cheeks intensified as she became flustered, then cursed herself silently at the strong reactions he could get out of her. And he wasn’t even there.
“T-thank y-you,” stuttered Sakura. Great, I’m stuttering now…
The old woman bowed lightly and grinned at her, her steel grey eyes twinkled playfully. “Perhaps they may guide your sweetheart back to you.”
“Sweetheart?!” Sakura squeaked and almost dropped the bag startled. “What? No! I don’t have a-a… sweetheart.”
“Oh, do forgive this old woman,” she chuckled, waving her hand around dismissively. “I assumed you and that handsome Uchiha were together at last. It certainly seemed like it before he left.”
Sakura… thank you.
Her heart fluttered and her stomach churned, like a thousand butterflies had suddenly taken flight inside her. She dropped her gaze down to the floor shyly and a tender smile danced upon her lips as she remembered Sasuke on the day he left for his journey of redemption.
“We’re not together,” Sakura sighed softly.
The old woman clicked her tongue, then smiled. “You listen to me, dear. That boy, however many wrong decisions he made in the past, he paid for them on that battlefield and he became a hero too when he decided to save our home. He’ll be back soon.”
Sakura’s throat tightened with unshed tears as the older woman’s words sunk in. She knew people had not forgotten about any of the transgressions made by the young Uchiha and were even less likely to forgive, but to hear that someone, at least one person, thought him a hero was all she could ask for. A small, tentative smile erupted on her face as she thanked the older woman and began making her way back to her apartment with her fresh ingredients. She had nearly forgotten she’d promised to drop off a box of warm breakfast for Kakashi before she headed to work as a small thank you for all the paperwork she had been sending his way because of the children’s clinic. It’s been almost six months since the clinic was fully operational, but it seemed the paperwork would never end. She laughed quietly under her breath as she remembered Kakashi’s look of betrayal when she walked in with the first stack.
As she walked by the main road leading to the gates, she found herself stopping and staring off into the distance. She could make out the guards in the distance and even further, past the gates, an empty road. A crushing feeling of loneliness started up in her heart as she couldn’t but wonder when Sasuke would be back.
“Please, be safe,” Sakura whispered to the wind like a prayer. And come back to me soon.
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Author’s Note:
Happy SasuSaku Month 2018 to everyone!