Rewrite the threads of fate || Sakura time travel AU

Prolouge

Blood.

For a moment, she let her eyes wander as she ran, corpses of shinobi scattered across the battlefield, some she recognized as her friends, Shino, Hinata, Kiba, and Lee, and some she recognized as her comrades.

She began to panic as she raced through the dead bodies, her mind racing with all the possibilities and trying to find signs of life. Then she saw it, bright yellow hair, propped up on a rock.

"N- Naruto?" she cursed herself for being weak and slow, for not getting there in time, for being useless.

"y-you need to g-go sakura, don't waste your chakra on me". Naruto removed her hands from him and coughed up a lot of blood while the light in his eyes seems to dim considerably.

"NO! Naruto look at me, please. You'll be fine, I promise" tears streamed down her face as she let out a strangled sob while pumping healing chakra into his lifeless body.

"Please, don't leave me alone, I need you"

She jolted when she felt a hand around her arm, "ka...Kashi?"

He smiled, not his usual crinkled-eye smile, but a sad smile.

"We need to go back to the base sakura. Orochimaru is closing in."

Sakura was distressed, she didn't want to leave them, and she didn't want to leave Naruto, her surrogate brother.

"what- what about Naruto and the others? We need to save them"

Kakashi's eyes softened, then began pulling her away from Naruto and carrying her bridal style, much to sakura's dismay.

"sakura... they sacrificed their lives for us. If we stay here, their sacrifice would be meaningless," he mumbled.

He taps sakura's shoulder as a sign of comfort.

"beside... it's a bit cruel to bring them back to this hell, isn't it?" his laugh was rather hollow, but he smiled nonetheless.

She hadn't thought of it like that. She just desperately wanted her friends back at any cost, but reluctantly, with tears in her eyes, she let Kakashi carry her back to their base, too tired to stand up because of chakra exhaustion.

"I DID IT"

Years later, and with a lot of bloodsheds, she finally finished the time travel seal, she won't know 100% whether the seal works or not, but she's desperate enough to put her life on the line for a sliver of a chance to save the world.

The world is a disaster. Following the war, Orochimaru seized control of Sasuke's body, causing widespread devastation across the globe, claiming dominion over nearly every corner except a handful of small villages. His soldiers were ubiquitous, patrolling the lands relentlessly in pursuit of any remaining resistance.

They were currently hiding in an old bunker under a mountain, but sooner or later, Orochimaru would find them, and they need to act fast.

Sakura looked up as Kakashi ruffled her hair.

"Good job, what else do we have to do".

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows. Next would be reanimating Itachi, Obito, and Minato by Edo Tensei, but she knows she has to sacrifice a mortal soul for it... which was overwhelming. It's not like she hasn't killed anyone, she surely has, but sacrificing people is...

Sakura shook her head. Never mind, she can't think of that right now. She needs to do everything necessary.

"I need to learn Edo Tensei, so we can learn as much as we can about the past"

Kakashi's eyes crinkled as he smiled. "Aye aye, captain".

"it's three in the morning. You should quiet down sakura"

her eyes landed on a lazy genius with a pineapple hairstyle and instantly brightens, not minding the fact that he called her a troublesome woman under his breath.

"Shikamaru, you're back. "

She smiles tiredly, motioning for him to sit down next to her. He approached her and hugged her.

"I wanted to be back as fast as I could for you," he murmured against her neck.

"And, I ran into a few of Orochimaru's soldiers"

"WHAT-" sakura didn't expect to raise her voice so much, but she was in a panicked state. She frantically checked Shikamaru for any injuries, Only letting out a ragged breath as she realized there were no concerning injuries, just a few scratches here and there.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, I ran away as soon as I sensed them"

Sakura's mouth formed a frown. She was still very anxious. What if the soldiers tailed him? What if they found their base? What if...

Sakura shook her head. She has no room for overthinking; they were in a dire situation.

"Are you sure they didn't tail you or noticed you?"

Shikamaru sighs and pats sakura's head reassuringly.

"Yes, I'm sure they didn't,"

Sakura was still visibly tense, and Shikamaru didn't like that. Over the years, Sakura began to lose her cheeriness. She slept less and trained vigorously. It's not bad that she trains, but she trains 24/7.

Shikamaru sighed and shook his head.

"Don't worry Sakura, you should rest, you haven't slept in days."

Kakashi knelt beside sakura and ruffles her hair.

"Shikamaru is right, you've finished the seal, and you've done so much for us, now it's time you rest"

Sakura doesn't want to. There's so much she has yet to do. She needs to go over the time travel seal and make sure there aren't any mistakes. She needs to learn how to do Edo Tensei, and much much more, but she relented after seeing their pleading eyes.

"Alright." she stood up and made her way to their sleeping area.

Hello this is the author! uhm, I'm not sure whether I'd have enough motivation to continue this fanfic, but no worries! Tell me if you want the fan fiction to be continued. Oh, also, there will be a pairing with Sakura here (shikasaku) but romance wouldn't be the focus (I'm not good at writing romance anyway, but I'm trying out something new) . I would still write moments here and there, but overall, this fan fiction would just focus on sakura's experience and such. Constructive criticism is very much appreciated, and don't forget to give me feedback! Author out.