Naruto: The new beginning

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In the days that followed, Sakura endures Tsunade's training and beatings every day while learning medical ninjutsu. 

However, she grits her teeth and refuses to give up. She truly wants to become stronger, from the bottom of her heart.

One night, Naruto knocks on Sakura's door, seeing how exhausted she is, and says, "Let's talk?"

Sakura nods and lets him in. The two sit opposite each other at the table.

Naruto, without hesitation, pours himself some tea and asks, "Sakura, do you regret it?"

Sakura shakes her head, replying, "This is an opportunity you helped me get. I won't give up that easily."

"For Sasuke?" Naruto guesses right away.

Sakura hesitates for a moment, then smiles. "Maybe at first, but not anymore."

Naruto is taken aback. "You don't like Sasuke anymore?"

"Of course I do," Sakura quickly denies it.

Naruto eyes her suspiciously. "Then why did you say that?"

Sakura sighs, feeling the need to talk. "I've realized something lately."

Naruto sits up, interested, and pours her a cup of tea. "I'd like to hear more."

Sakura, used to Naruto's quirky behaviour, begins, "When I first graduated from the academy, I had no real goals. My only dream was Sasuke."

She reminisces. "Sasuke was handsome, confident, strong... everything about him seemed perfect."

Naruto sets down his tea, interrupting, "I didn't come here to listen to you praise him."

Sakura chuckles. "Alright, alright. I always admired him, but I never really knew him. To him, I might just be a familiar face. Maybe in his heart, your sneeze would worry him more than me getting injured."

Naruto laughs internally, thinking they share a deep friendship and brotherhood, but now he understands Sakura better. 

Sakura seems like a fan who fell for Sasuke as if he was an idol. Without knowing why, she developed those feelings and suffered for it. She fell in love with someone who didn't reciprocate.

Looking at the ceiling, Sakura continues, "I'm like a cherry blossom petal blown by the wind. I saw a tree I liked and wanted to reach it desperately, without ever considering if he liked me back or needed me. I didn't even know if I could get there."

Naruto feels a bit out of his depth, sipping tea to cover his embarrassment. His love story was far simpler—he liked someone, she liked him back, and that was it.

"In that sense, I've been outshined by Hinata."

Wait, Hinata?

Sakura smiles wistfully. "Hinata always had her own goals. She worked hard to become stronger. To be honest, I was amazed by her during the Chunin Exams. If I were a boy, I would have liked her too. She's gentle, beautiful, strong, and hardworking."

Naruto beams internally, proud to hear those words. But sensing Sakura's regret, he wants to comfort her until she speaks again.

"But now I have a new goal."

Sakura's voice grows firmer. "I want to become a powerful ninja-like Tsunade-sensei. I don't want to be just a petal in the wind."

"I want to grow into a full cherry tree! If one day, Sasuke stands by my side, I want it to be because I'm worthy of him, not because I waited or because I moved him. I am Haruno Sakura, a strong Konoha ninja first, and then a girl who loves Sasuke."

At that moment, Sakura radiates confidence.

Naruto is impressed. If Sasuke doesn't appreciate this girl, he'll be single forever!

Naruto glances at the door and says, "So, Sasuke, do you understand?"

…

After three seconds of silence.

"Huh?" Sakura's expression freezes. She slowly turns toward the door, only to find it closed.

She turns back, glaring at Naruto, who is laughing awkwardly.

"Ha... ha..." Naruto scratches the back of his head. "Well, I just thought it was too serious, so I wanted to lighten the mood..."

*Boom!* The table shatters, spilling tea everywhere. Sakura's forehead bulges with veins, and she seethes, "Naruto!"

Naruto bolts to the door, opening it just a crack to peek back in. "Wait, Sakura! When did you gain superhuman strength?"

"Tsunade Sensei has been teaching me techniques recently." Sakura cracks her knuckles with a malicious grin. "Wanna practice with me?"

"No, no, I have something to do! See ya!" Naruto declares, fleeing.

Three seconds later, his head pops back around the corner. "Uh, Sakura? You broke the table. You'll have to pay for it."

"Uzumaki Naruto!" Sakura yells, shattering the table further, before chasing him to the door.

This time, Naruto makes a true escape. Sakura clenches her fists and mutters, "How has Sasuke put up with him all these years without killing him?"

[Sasuke: Maybe because I couldn't beat him?]

Sakura calms down, preparing to clean up the room. After venting and sharing her thoughts, the frustrations from the past few days ease. 

She laughs thinking about how Naruto came to talk to her and lighten her mood.

"It's nice," she whispers.

…

As time passes, Jiraiya's injury heals, and Sakura's training intensifies. She gets hurt less by Tsunade, who is pleased with her progress, feeling that Sakura is more suited to inherit her techniques than Shizune. 

Perhaps, after gaining more experience, Tsunade may even teach her the Yin Seal.

Jiraiya watches Sakura smash a boulder with one punch, and with her long pink hair, he briefly imagines a younger Tsunade.

Wait—pink? Jiraiya looks again, only to see Naruto using the messy lion's mane technique to stretch his hair into nine strands, looking like Kushina.

Naruto gleefully plays with his new ninjutsu and asks Jiraiya, "Hey, Pervy Sage, do you think I can pull off something like Hair Needle or something like that?"

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