Chapter 10
Chapter 10: How Ninjas Deal with Bullies
Somehow, like canon Sakura, I got bullied by kids for my big forehead. I ignored them. Shino wasn’t there, of course—he was at the Ninja Academy—and my awesome ANBU friends or the Hatakes were probably on a mission. When do I need them the most? Useless ninjas!
Amy, the bully, pushed me. It started about half a year into my civilian school. Amy and her friend were from the Ninja Academy, and they enjoyed toying with me—tripping me, spitting near the ground I walked on, or making nasty comments as I went to school or worked at the hospital. It was becoming routine. The civilian school wasn’t so far from the ninja school, so running into her was constant.
She called me names, tripped me, and even called me “bubble gum bitch” and an “orphaned whore”—the whole alphabet of insults.
Lately, though, she had been using me as kunai and shuriken practice.
I was running through the forest thicket one afternoon when she threw a kunai at me. It hit me good, and I stumbled, terrified. I had come from a world where fighting and killing weren’t normal, so the idea of combat scared me. My legs shook as I reached for the cut, trying to heal it with my green hands.
Then, I pulled a shuriken out of my leg, the sharp metal embedded deep in the flesh. I started healing it, but I was hyperventilating, my breaths quick and shallow.
I wasn’t a ninja, but I could hear myself. I stumbled to a clearing, where I spotted Shino and Kiba, along with some of the other Rookie 9 characters from Naruto. They were being lectured by a woman who seemed to be Anko, from the way she spoke. She was standing in front of them, rattling off something, when she turned and saw me.
“Sakura?” she asked, her voice full of panic. “What are you doing here? Why are you bleeding?”
How did she know my name?
Shino and Kiba stood up and ran toward me, stopping the kunai and shuriken that Amy and her goons threw in my direction.
Anko quickly summoned two snakes that restrained Amy and her group. “You five come with me to the headmaster,” she ordered. They looked like they were done with the whole situation.
I collapsed into Shino’s arms, crying, horrified. He patted my head, and Kiba crouched down beside us, Akamaru by his side.
As I slowly calmed down, I realized how similar Anko sounded to the ANBU with the snake mask... It couldn’t be.
As I sniffled, the other kids spoke up.
“Maybe she needs some candy?” one said.
“Yeah, Amy’s such an ass, what a drag,” another added. That sounded like Shikamaru.
“I know her. My brother says she’s cute,” I heard a voice.
I looked up to see Sasuke Uchiha standing there. He stepped closer to me, offering some candy. “Here. It’s candy. I’m Sasuke Uchiha.”
I made a sound of disgust and slinked behind Kiba and Shino. Kiba barked and laughed with Akamaru, while my small, 8-year-old body trembled behind them. Sasuke pouted, looking disappointed.
“She doesn’t like me!” he muttered.
Shino smirked, and Kiba snickered.
“Baka Uchiha,” a voice snapped.
A girl with blonde hair and green eyes stepped forward. It was Ino. She took the candy from Sasuke and came to me with a soft smile.
“Here, Sakura,” she said gently. “You can have it if you want.”
I hesitated for a moment, but then I took the candy from her, giving a shy smile in return. Despite everything that had happened, there was something comforting about being treated kindly for once.
That’s how I ended up being adopted again by ninjas-in-training. What was with me and getting adopted by deadly people?
Later that evening at the ANBU base, the ANBU with the snake mask let me play with her summon, Kage, for a bit longer than usual. I didn’t question it. I just enjoyed the company of the snake, letting myself forget about the bullies and the chaos of the day.