Chapter Text
The third stage of the exams had ended, and tonight was the closing ceremony. She, along with her teammates, had gotten promoted. As the iryō-nin, genjutsu mistress, and tactician of her group, she had to play to her advantages. She certainly had some ninjutsu in her pocket, but considering their team was for infiltration and rescue, she knew her job was to showcase her specialties.
Meaning, she used little to no taijutsu, even though it was something she specialized in more than her teammates. Her chakra control allowed for speed and strength to mean nothing in the face of stronger opponents.
Such a decision left many questioning her worth when she accepted her flak vest. Her team, the Suna Team, and the Konoha teams were the only ones to pass immediately. The other villages' genin would find out back home.
In particular, one particularly loud and snooty newly minted chūnin from Konoha, clearly an Uchiha by the looks of him and his clan kamon, felt the need to say what everyone else was thinking or whispering about.
“Excuse me?!” Sakura growls, fists clenched.
The asshole Uchiha looks down at her, eyes unimpressed, “You’re deaf as well as useless?”
Haku and Chōjūrō step closer, well aware of her temper. A righteous thing in Kiri that very few ever dared to risk. Kisame-sensei has told them to behave or he’d make them swim back to Kiri.
The blonde and other pale-looking boy stepped back, clearly wary of the vein throbbing in her forehead. Though the Uchiha wasn’t, or thought he could handle her. She could see Kisame-sensei across the banquet hall, speed walking in her direction with another jōnin sensei. The man had gravity-defying silver hair.
“I said you’re annoying. I doubt you can even throw a punch,” He sneered, looking down at her, literally. Sakura is very small, but that doesn’t mean she’s about to let this disrespect slide.
Haku and Chōjūrō, spying her fist tighten and flex, step even closer, their faces pale. But Sakura isn’t looking in their direction.
The Uchiha, clearly thinking the conversation has ended, turns around to his teammates, about to leave.
Not one to let this blatant disrespect and dismissive nature get her down or let the ass think he won, Sakura stomps forward.
“Sasuke-kun?” She calls, voice sweeter than sugar.
When he turns around, Sakura’s fist is already in motion, a blur far too fast for him to see. Especially without his precious dōjutsu on.
Her fist makes contact with his nose, crunching under the pressure her chakra-less fist packs. He flies between his two teammates and crashes into a cocktail island. Several drinks splash over him, and he has a few scorpion fritters in his hair and collar.
His head sways as he tries to recalibrate and figure out what happened.
“How’s that for a punch, asshole!?” Sakura growls, being held back by her teammates.
The blonde on Sasuke’s team is howling with laughter, “That’s what you get for talking shit, teme!”
The other pale one smirks as he walks over to his teammate, “Princess, I’ve told you multiple times. You need to watch what you say.”
“Fuck you, Sai,” The Uchiha slurs, hand drifting to touch his broken nose and black eye.
“Sasuke.” A deep voice sighs in exasperation and reluctant acceptance.
“Sakura…” A deeper voice growls as she finds herself lifted up by the back of her flak jacket.
Sasuke, being helped to stand by his teammates, and Sakura, dangling in the air by her new flak jacket, simultaneously huff.
“Hmph!” Sakura crosses her arms and points her nose in the air, unbothered.
“Hn.” Sasuke glares in a different direction from her.
They don’t see the look of commiseration that their senseis share.
“I’m sorry about my little guppy,” Kisame-sensei apologizes, forcing Sakura to bend down at a perfect 90-degree angle.
“No worries. My pup is the one in the wrong. You’d think with how scary his mother and aunt are, he’d know better than to insult a kunoichi.” Replies Hatake fucking Kakashi, who also forces Sasuke to bow down at the same 90-degree angle.
They stand outside the gates of Suna, in one large group. Though Kakashi’s team stands away from the rest of the Konoha team.
The blonde Uzumaki and Haku bond so fast, Sakura gets whiplash. Chōjūrō and Sai watch them amused.
“Are you ready to apologize, guppy?” Kisame-sensei phrases it like a question, but she knows it's an order.
She stands up, scowling at the Uchiha, who is glaring at her heatedly as well.
Both spit out an insincere contrite, “I’m sorry,” and duck beneath their senseis’ hands to go join their teammates.
And when Sakura gets closer, she understands why her eyes keep going back to the blonde.
He looks like my cousins on mama’s side and feels similar too…
“Haruno Sakura,” Sakura greets, smiling at the blonde (whose name she still doesn’t know) and Sai.
“Hiroshi Sai,” Sai responds, nodding with an amused look in his eyes.
“Nice to meet ya, Sakura-chan. Thanks for punching, teme. I can’t wait to tell Mikoto-ba and Fugaku-ji! My name is Uzumaki Naruto!”
Sakura pauses and furrows her brows, “Uzumaki?”
Understanding her confusion, he grins bright and wide, “Yeah! My kaa-chan is the Uzumaki Clan head, and she married my tō-chan. Even she was surprised by the blonde in my hair. But tō-chan jokes that the Namikaze genes are just as strong as Uzumaki.”
Sakura’s eyes widen, “Did you say ‘Namikaze’?”
Naruto opens his mouth to say something, but is interrupted by a shout from one of the four Konoha jōnin standing a ways away. All six of them turn to look at the adults.
“Gather up! Time to head out.”
Naruto, Sai, and Sasuke turn to look back at Sakura and her team, with varying expressions.
“See ya! It was nice to meet ya, 'ttebayo!” Naruto exclaims, jogging back to the Konoha group.
“Likewise, Naruto-kun!” Haku calls out.
“I hope we meet again soon, I have not had such a riveting conversation in a long while,” says Sai before he nods at their group and turns to walk after his blonde teammate.
“It was nice meeting you, Sai-san.” Chō-nii nods.
Sakura and Sasuke get in a glaring contest, but Sakura beats him to any farewell, “Bye, Sasuke-kun. Hope your eye heals quickly.”
He glares at her harder and scoffs, strolling back to the Konoha group.
“Is ‘Namikaze’ important, Sacchan?” Haku asks as they watch the Konoha shinobi take off in the distance.
Sakura tilts her head in contemplation before turning around to walk back to where Kisame-sensei is waiting for them. They won’t leave until next week.
“Namikaze is my mother’s maiden name.” She shares.
Both her teammates look at her shocked.