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, pat...
"EDO TENSEI NO JUTSU!" Sakura slammed her hand to the floor. She watched in wonder as beings that look awfully a lot like Itachi, Obito, and Minato began to form.
Itachi's widened eyes scanned the room. "This is-"
"Edo Tensei, yes," Sakura interrupted , "I'm Sakura, Naruto's teammate," and sasuke's she wanted to add, but bit the inside of her cheek to refrain from doing so, "do you all remember me?"
Obito briefly nodded, while Itachi narrowed his eyes at her in suspicion, before recognizing her, offering a stilted nod.
Minato looked at her questioningly until a moment later, it seemed as if a light bulb lit up in his head. "oh! i remember you! You're the girl that healed naruto right?"
"yeah" if only he knew how useless she'd been to him, she hadn't even been able to heal him the last time. He was gone, and it was all her fault. If only she had been quicker or stronger, more useful, he would have been here right now.
Sakura mused that maybe naruto would have been able to save them all if she were the one to die instead of him, maybe-
"-kura? sakura!" a person calling her broke her internal musings, and she looked up. "sorry, i got distracted, was there a problem?"
"I was wondering where my son is..?" Sakura's breath hitched, "He's.." dead — she wanted to tell him, but it seemed as if something was drowning her, making her unable to talk, unable to breathe. She vaguely registered it as an incoming panic attack but before she could spiral, a warm hand touched her shoulders, grounding her.
She breathed out a shaky breath, and put her hands over theirs, squeezing it tight. The person smelled faintly of cigarettes, cedar trees, dirt, and blood, confirming who it was.
Struggling to compose herself, she managed, "He... he died in the last major battle with orochimaru, i-"
Her vision began to blur, and her heart ached painfully, but she refused to let them see her break down.
She has to be better than this, so she sucked it up and blinked back her tears, "I couldn't save him, his injuries were too fatal, and I was suffering from chakra exhaustion. I- I failed him"
She could feel the hand on her shoulder squeeze her tighter in a silent protest, but she found that her vision was stuck on her late best friend's father, anticipating — anticipating what, exactly? a flurry of angered and disappointed words thrown her way? Maybe, that option seems the most viable considering she had failed his son, had failed to heal him, had failed to save him, and had failed to be of use to him.
Minato stayed quiet for a moment, "It wasn't your fault, you did your best."
She blinked in surprise, "but i-"
"No, you didn't fail him," he sighed, "it must have been a tough battle, ne? that's alright, you cant save everyone"
She could faintly make out the softness in Minato's eyes, and in that moment, she felt as though she could carry any burden they put on her; any expectations, any past or present dreams, any goals — anything.
Resolve was set hard in her eyes, and she swore that she would do whatever it takes to ensure a better future for them, a future where peace reigns. A future where they won't suffer through war — won't be burdened with the decision to sacrifice so many comrades in the name of winning a losing war. A future where they wouldn't have to grieve and mourn for friends that they couldn't even give a proper burial to, much less retrieve their bodies.
As if sensing her resolve, the former uchiha heir in the room spoke up, "hn, why are we here anyway?" She found that his eyes briefly flickered to obito and minato in a silent question.
"I was hoping you all would train me, and help me prepare for a mission"
Itachi furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, "and that mission is..?"
She steeled her gaze and looked up at him, "to go back to the past"
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Hello! First and foremost, thank you for the support and constructive criticism. I was pleasantly surprised that people read my writing, even though I consider it subpar. I hope to improve gradually over time.
I must admit, i regretted this chapter and the chapter before this, i realized i had rushed their development on edo-tensei and the subsequent time travel seal sakura made due to taking long breaks between chapters, causing me to forget my original plans and what I had previously written.
Nevertheless, I decided to post this chapter and didn't revise the chapter before this because I don't have the time or motivation to rewrite any of the chapters I've posted, so i am planning to delve a little bit more on edo-tensei and time travel seal in the next chapter.
The pacing is quite fast as of now, but I'm planning to slow it down a bit, so i am able to explore a little more on the characters and expand upon the plot further.
However, please don't anticipate another update soon. I've taken on the role of Vice President in the Student Council, and my life has become busier with school related responsibilities; planning events, school work, and my duties at the student council. I also have various upcoming performances, competitions, etc.
I'm also striving hard to secure a scholarship to study in another country — which is a goal of mine— wish me luck!
