Hoshigaki

Forced Silence

Sakura woke up to shouting and fists pounding on the door the next apartment over. The only neighbor she could figure could accrue that much noise was Naruto, and to be honest, she wasn't that surprised something he'd done or was doing acted as her alarm for the day. Really, it was only a matter of time.

She rolled out of bed and threw on one of Kiba's old jackets he left hanging on the back of her door. By the time she cracks open her own door, leans against the frame, and observes the two genin standing off just to the side, a comment was already sliding off the tip of her tongue. "You could try using the door knob. Sometimes he doesn't lock it."

Uchiha Sasuke and Hyuuga Hinata jumped and whirled around. 

Hinata muttered out a polite hello. Sasuke, in all the indifference he showed her their entire Academy career, huffed and crossed his arms in his customary fashion. "Hn. Sakura. I didn't know you lived here too."

She shrugged and glanced at the clock in her living room. 6:55. Still early. She turned back to them and gestured towards the door. "Like I said, try the door knob."

He donned a mildly doubtful look but tried regardless and—to his utter exasperation—the door swung open.

"Idiot, stupid excuse of a damn shinobi—" He stormed in a flurry of shouts and curses while Hinata hung back nervously as she wrung her hands together. Her pale eyes darted back and forth on the floor before she raised them and shyly met the other girl's neutral gaze.

"Th-Thank you for the suggestion. Naruto-k-kun's a bit late, you see-see."

Sakura waved her off. "No worries, everyone has their off days. Hope you have a nice rest of your day, Hyuuga-san."

"You as-as well, S-Sakura-san," she replied, face tinted pink.  Sakura smiled slightly and shut the door and walked to the bathroom to get ready for the day. She shucked off the jacket and tossed it on her bed before changing into her clothes for the day. On her desk lay the test puzzles she made for Kiba the night before; she placed them in a plain folder and slipped it into her pack along with a few protein bars, bottles of water, and a couple of the books Kurenai suggested.

As she slung a strap over her shoulder, she took one last look at her room before leaving.

Above her bed were four, thin, white wall scrolls of her own calligraphy, each with their own select phases.

"Remember what you witnessed here. This is what happens to fools who think they can change the world."

"Did you understand that, girl? You're their homegrown advantage. How does it feel to be used?"

"Because I'm not a good man."

"You will be an exemplary shinobi or you will be nothing at all."

Her gaze had sunk slightly after she turned away. "To remember," she murmured. Even though she didn't need to see the words to know them, it was nice to have something to look at when she thought of how to be better, stronger.

Exemplary.

::

Kiba sauntered down the stairs of his house, brandishing a wide yawn and wearing one of Sakura's old purple shirts. Akamaru trotted by his feet in a similar state of half-awareness as his partner slumped at the table beside a snoring while mumbling 'good morning' to his mother preparing breakfast in the kitchen.

"Glad you don't look like shit the way you did a couple of days ago," Tsume greeted. "You never did tell me how your mission went yesterday. You guys pass?"