Sakura Haruno (Child Prodigy)

100+ Followers Special

Sakura looked at her reflection in the mirror. Mikoto Uchiha had invited her to join the main family of the prestigious clan at the Sakura Festival. Despite its name, it wasn't a festival that celebrated her. It was one that celebrated the blooming of the cherry blossoms. She had been the previous years with her parents and had originally been planning to not go this year, but it would have been impolite of her to decline the invitation so she ended up accepting. Apparently, the Uchiha main family had reserved a spot and Mikoto had said that they would meet Sakura there at around midday.

The pinkette had spent all morning cooking and baking, she knew that Mikoto had also probably prepared food and drinks for them to share but Sakura wanted to do her own part. It was now about eleven and the young girl had gotten dressed into her kimono and was checking her appearance in the mirror.

The kimono she was wearing was a pale green, almost exactly the same shade as her eyes. The Obi was white and at the bottom of the kimono were white Sakura petals. The Obijime was a light grey and the Obiage was white along with the Nagajuban. The sleeves of the kimono covered the pinkette's small hands and the Tabi socks she wore were white. Sakura also donned Zouri sandals on her feet.

The kimono was one of the many things she had bought on her shopping spree with Yui. The brown-haired woman had insisted on her buying it and they had also purchased a pink kimono that matched her hair. Personally, Sakura thought the pink clashed with her hair but the woman had managed to convince her that it would look 'adorable' on her, so Sakura ended up relenting. The four-year-old had decided to don the green kimono rather than the pink one since she thought that if she wore it then she would be an eyesore. There was such a thing as too much pink, after all. Just imagine her wearing a pink kimono with pink hair, watching as the pink cherry blossoms bloomed.

The girl sighed. She hadn't done anything with her hair, just brushed it and left it down. She had had a shower when she woke up and her hair had dried since then. Sakura checked her appearance once more before exiting her room.

She made her way downstairs and entered the living room, picking up the book that was laying face-down on the coffee table. The book contained information on medical ninjutsu and she was about halfway through it. The pinkette had learnt quite a bit from it so far and hoped to test out the techniques soon. She knew she probably wouldn't finish the whole of the book by the time she had to leave to meet up with the Uchiha family but she hoped she would make some progress.

'I've told you this many times before and I shall tell you again: I can help you memorise this whole book in a second. Cha!'

'And I've told you multiple times that I want to do it my way.' Inner huffed in their mindscape, stubbornly crossing her arms and turning her head to look off to the side, her lips forming a pout.

Sakura sighed, both she and Inner were extremely stubborn and as a result, tended to disagree on multiple matters. It was tiresome, having to constantly debate with yourself about what to do next but both she and Inner were sentient and she believed that they both had a right to make decisions. Others (as far as she was aware) were able to decide what they were going to do for the day without a second thought- most of the time- but she and Inner shared a body and so they had to make sure that whatever they did worked for them both. That was partly why on some days Inner was in control without her even being anywhere near the front of their mind- and why sometimes Inner retreated when she was in control as well. They made sure they both were able to have some days in control of their body and some days completely on their own without the other at the front of their mind, commenting and watching everything they did. It allowed them some privacy (though they always knew what the other did even when they had been sleeping) and also showcased their trust in one another.

The young pinkette sighed as she sat down and started to read. She wanted to leave early since she didn't want to arrive late so she made the decision that she would only read for a small while; somewhere between fifteen minutes and thirty minutes.

Sakura got quite a way through the book and would have carried on reading well into the evening if not for Inner screaming in their mind that she had to stop lest they be late.

The young pinkette placed the book back down on the coffee table and stood up, stretching. A yawn escaped her mouth and Sakura made sure to smooth out all the creases that had formed in her kimono. She then entered the kitchen and picked up the big basket that was sitting on the kitchen table. It was extremely heavy and the little pinkette grunted at the weight.

'Send chakra to your arms!' Inner exclaimed from their mindscape. 'If you dare drop the food I will give you an eternal headache, cha!'

The four-year-old internally winced and focused on sending chakra into her arms to help strengthen her muscles. Sakura could tell that she might have overloaded the basket with food. She originally hadn't realised just how much she had packed but the sheer weight of the basket of food she was now carrying told her just how much she had made.

'I think I may have made too much food..'

In her defence it was kind of Inner's fault that she had made so much food; the noisy life form that she shared her body and mind with was extremely demanding and had been watching carefully as she made everything. Sakura had wanted to stop at several points but Inner ended up requesting more types of food and for some reason, she had relented each time.

'Nah, if anything you've made too little!' Sakura sighed. How in the world had she ended up stuck with someone who had an endless pit as a stomach? 'Chop! Chop! C'mon Outer! We're going to be late!'

The pinkette's eyebrows drew together as she made her way out of the house. Inner was extremely eager to arrive at their destination as soon as possible since on multiple occasions whilst Outer Sakura had been preparing the food, Inner had been begging to have a taste. Sakura had told her to wait until later though and refused to let her other half have control over their body. Sakura just hoped Inner wouldn't go too mad with the food when she let her have control.

A small smile made its way onto her face as she walked under a row of cherry blossom trees. Each blossom was on the verge of blooming and the pinkette looked up at the pretty trees with an expression of awe. A small breeze passed through the area, blowing a few petals off the Sakura tree's branches. The soft pink-coloured petals rode the gentle wind, a few floating down and resting on the ground around Sakura.

The young girl was so enchanted as she watched the pink perianths fall like snow she didn't notice the small figure running towards her.

"Sakura-chan!"

She blinked out of her daze and was about to move her gaze to whoever had called when a large body crashed into her own. Two strong arms tightened around Sakura's body and the pinkette had to admit, whoever she was in the arms of was beginning to cut off her airway.

"Shisui!" The voice from before whined. "Stop crushing Sakura-chan!"

If the four-year-old could she would have sighed, however, she was unable to because her windpipe was getting squeezed.

"I'm not crushing her, I'm giving her a hug!" Sakura could practically feel the glare targeted at the male holding her. "And how many times do I have to tell you? Chibi-chan loves my hugs!"

As if to prove his point, the curly-haired Uchiha tightened his embrace, a strangled noise coming from the suffocating pinkette.

"She can't breathe!"

Shisui let her go and Sakura greedily inhaled the air that she had, just a moment before, been deprived of. The preteen crossed his arms over his chest, meeting the other person's glare with one of his own.

"If Chibi-chan couldn't breathe then she would tell me!" He huffed.

"How could she talk if she can't breathe?"

Sakura was stood off to the side watching Shisui and Sasuke argue. The pinkette was slightly confused and hoped that they would stop their bickering soon, she didn't want to end up having a headache for the rest of the day, it would be extremely annoying especially since it was the Cherry Blossom Festival.

'Jeeze, just how childish are these guys?'

'Good question.' Sakura sighed before walking in the direction the two came from.

"Sakura-chan?" She turned around, her green eyes landing on Sasuke's form. "Where are you going?"

She blinked. The duckbutt-haired boy's question seemed to have caught Shisui's attention and now both boys were staring at her, awaiting her response.

"I am going to find Mikoto-san."

'In other words, we're just trying to escape the two of you buffoons.' Sakura's expression didn't change, even after her other half's statement. She was used to Inner's antics and not reacting to her comments was becoming second nature.

"I'll come with you!" The dark-haired boy ran over to her and grabbed her hand, pulling her along as he raced over to where his mother was.

Sakura could hear Shisui yell something from behind but whatever he exclaimed was unclear.

"I'm so excited Sakura-chan! We're going to hang out together for the whole day! Can you believe that? This is going to be the longest we've ever hung out since- since.. well since we first met!" It was clear that the young boy was beyond excited and Sakura allowed a small smile to grace her features as she listened to him talk. "Did you know that Nii-san is also going to be with us? He doesn't have any missions today, isn't that amazing? Maybe he can train us! My big brother's the best Sakura-chan, he's so cool! One day I'm going to be a great ninja too! I'm sure you will be too Sakura-chan, you're so smart after all!"

The pinkette quietly listened as the dark-haired boy rambled on.

'He sure likes to talk a lot doesn't he?'

'Reminds me of someone..' Inner huffed.

'Whatever!' She yelled. Sakura cringed slightly as her ears rang.

'Quieten down Inner!' Sakura's other half rolled her eyes.

'Just get to the Food Queen so we can eat!' Sakura sighed.

She was brought out of her head by the sound of a female's voice.

"Oh! Hello Sakura-chan!" Mikoto Uchiha smiled at the pinkette pleasantly. The dark-haired woman was sitting on a picnic blanket, an array of food laid out on the material covering the ground. There was also a packet of juice cartons by a large basket and a few pink petals were resting around the set up.

'All hail the Food Queen!' Inner bowed, her head resting on the floor as she dramatically waved her arms up and down as if she was worshipping Mikoto from the depths of their mind.

Sakura ignored her other half and inclined her head slightly. "Mikoto-san," Her gaze moved to the males sitting with the older female. "Fugaku-san, Itachi-san. Thank you for inviting me to join you today. My parents are not in the village at the moment so it's nice to have some company."

"Of course Sakura-chan! You're always welcome to join us. Do you know how long your parents are going to be away for?"

Sakura let out a hum. "Oh, not long.. maybe a week or two."

The young rosette ignored the wave of guilt that washed over her. The lies were becoming almost natural at this point and Sakura severely hoped that it wouldn't become a habit.

"Now that Sakura-chan's here can we eat?" The boy with the duckbutt hair spoke as he moved to sit next to his brother.

"Sakura-chan, come sit down." Mikoto turned to look at her youngest son, giving him her attention as she answered his question. "Let's wait for Shisui-kun.. speaking of him, where is he?" The female's expression morphed into a frown.

"Right here!" A cheerful voice spoke from behind Sakura as she moved to sit down on the picnic blanket.

"Well come sit down then, we're going to start eating now!" Mikoto said to the preteen.

The curly-haired Uchiha sat down next to Sakura and looked down, pinching the picnic blanket as he inspected it.

'..What is he doing?'

'I don't know..' Sakura sighed internally before realisation hit her and she turned her attention to Mikoto. "Mikoto-san, I made some food this morning that we can eat as well." The pinkette held up the heavy basket that she had brought and the woman smiled, taking the object full of food from her.

"Oh, Sakura-chan!" She exclaimed, holding one of her cheeks with one of her hands. "You really didn't have to!"

The four-year-old looked down sheepishly as she fumbled with her hands.

"I'm sorry.. I don't mean to be rude.. I knew that you no doubt prepared food but I just wanted to do my own part.. I'd feel bad if I didn't do something for you when you went through the trouble of inviting me and making extra food." Sakura rambled nervously. Pink dusted her cheeks as she looked anywhere but at the pretty woman.

'Cha! Why are you apologising?'

"No, Sakura-chan you misunderstood what I meant! I think it's very nice of you to make some extra food and it wasn't any trouble to invite you at all!" The older female assured her and the pink on her cheeks faded slightly as she looked up at Mikoto.

'Hello? Outer-chan!' A tick mark popped into existence on Inner's head. 'Are you ignoring me?'

"Oh, wow!" Mikoto exclaimed as she looked through the contents of the basket the pinkette had handed her. "No wonder it was so heavy! Sakura-chan, you really didn't need to make so much food!"

"I admit.. I might have gone slightly overboard.." The four-year-old bit her lip. 'I wouldn't have made so much if it weren't for a certain someone being so insistent!'

'Hey!' Sakura's other half roared. 'You'll thank me later! Your food is no dish of Food Queen's but any and all food is delicious.'

The young rosette sighed.

"All this food will last us through the next few days!" The Uchiha Clan Matriarch smiled, her gaze fixed on the large amount of food that sat before her.

'Heh, we'll see about that.' Inner rolled up her sleeves and rubbed her hands together. 'Challenge accepted! Outer, let me have control!'

Sakura sweat dropped. 'Yeah.. no.'

'What!' Inner screamed causing the pinkette to wince. 'I thought we had a deal? You said I could eat once we got here!'

'And I will let you have control, just let me eat something first.' Outer Sakura could tell Inner was fuming but her other half stayed silent.

The curly-haired Uchiha was about to take a bite out of the egg sandwich he had picked up when Sasuke spoke up.

"Aren't you supposed to be on a mission?"

Shisui froze, the sandwich he was holding stopped in front of his open mouth. He blinked his dark eyes and lowered the sandwich. His eyes narrowed as his eyebrows furrowed, his lips pursing.

"Ah." The pinkette blinked at him owlishly. "I should go.."

Sasuke and Sakura deadpanned at him whilst Mikoto grabbed some food from the collection in front of them.

"Here Shisui-kun, take some of this food, make sure to share some with your teammates too." The woman said as she put the food in a small basket that Sakura hadn't noticed before.

"Thanks, Auntie!" The male grabbed the basket she held out for him before turning his attention to the rosette. "I'm glad I got to see you Sakura-chan! Sorry I have to leave so soon."

Sakura waved him off with a small smile and with one last goodbye, the male disappeared. A frown made its way onto her face as she stared at the spot Shisui had been moments before.

'How does one forget they have a mission?' Sakura shook her head, her lips parting ever so slightly as she searched for a response.

'I.. I don't know.. I really just do not know.'

She took a bite out of the onigiri she held in her hand, her green orbs still fixed on the spot where the Uchiha had been before. She honestly wasn't sure how the fact that he had a mission escaped his mind. Maybe he just wanted to have some fun before he left? It was the Cherry Blossom Festival. She sighed and decided to not ponder on the subject any longer.

She made quick work of the rice ball and moved on to an egg sandwich. Once she had eaten that she turned to Mikoto.

"Mikoto-san," Sakura said, "may I try one of the dorayaki I made?"

"Why of course Sakura-chan!" The Uchiha picked one up and held it out to the pinkette, a smile on her face. "Here you are!"

Sakura took it and thanked the dark-haired woman. She took a bite out of the confection and hummed in satisfaction as the sweet filling made her tastebuds sing. The pancakes were perfectly cooked and the dish wasn't overbearingly sweet. Her mother had spent many hours teaching Sakura how to make dorayaki and the pinkette had found it quite challenging at first. She had never been able to cook the pancakes just right and the filling always ended up being sickly sweet.

Her mother had taught her a lot. The blonde had helped her learn many things and Sakura would be eternally grateful. She just wished that her parents were still alive, that they were with her, that they would forever be beside her, holding her hands.

"Wow, Sakura-chan!" Mikoto exclaimed causing Sakura to snap out of her depressing thoughts and turn her attention to the dark-haired female. "Where did you learn to cook?"

The petal haired four-year-old blinked as she noticed that the Uchiha Clan Matriarch was eating one of the bentos she had made. Sakura had decided to not eat any bentos since she knew that Inner would adore devouring them. Her other half would also most likely coo at how adorable the little animals she made out of the rice balls were. She didn't want to face a headache for eating a bento that Inner wanted.

"My mother taught me." She swallowed, suddenly feeling a large lump form in her throat.

"Really? Well, I must say she did an excellent job! Did you make all this food by yourself or did someone help you? I know that you said your neighbours often look after you when your parents are away."

'Good luck telling her that I helped you without sounding crazy!'

"Nope! I did it all by myself!" Sakura smiled.

"Wow!" Mikoto exclaimed. "We should cook together one-day Sakura-chan, I can teach you a new recipe!"

"That sounds nice." The rosette hadn't learnt any new recipes since her parents' death and she was honestly looking forward to it. She hadn't bothered to buy any cookbooks since there were already plenty in the house (she had read them all and had learnt each dish but that wasn't the point).

'Hey! At least give me some credit, cha!'

'For what? Screaming and yelling demands whilst I cook? Correct me if I'm wrong Inner but I'm pretty sure that isn't helping.' Inner pouted and crossed her arms, looking off to the side.

Sakura took another bite out of her dorayaki to hide the upwards quirk of the corners of her lips.

"Can I try some of Sakura-chan's cooking Okaa-san?" Sasuke asked his mother.

"Sure Sasuke-kun!" The dark-haired female smiled as she handed him one of the bentos Sakura had made.

The boy eagerly opened it and grinned as his dark eyes surveyed the box's contents. There were two rice balls that were shaped to look like bears, pieces of seaweed acting as the food animal's features. Sesame seeds could be easily spotted from their place in the white rice and Sakura had made sure to coat the rice animals in a decent amount of soy sauce. There were six pieces of Maki sushi that's filling consisted of avocado and salmon. There were several cherry tomatoes and a few Onigiris. In a separate compartment, there were a few sticks of dango, the pinkette had put some in a few of the bentos and had settled on mochi for the rest.

"Wow, Sakura-chan!" He exclaimed. "This looks great!"

The rosette smiled, her green eyes moving down to stare at the ground. She could feel her cheeks heat up slightly and hoped that her hair covered the red that had most likely spread across her face.

The duckbutt-haired boy picked up one of the cherry tomatoes and plopped it into his mouth. He chewed it before swallowing, a huge grin lighting up his youthful features.

"Sakura-chan, you really are a great cook!"

"Sasuke-kun," Mikoto said, causing said boy to look at her, "Why don't you try some of the sushi? Sakura-chan didn't make the tomatoes. At least I don't think she did.. Sakura-chan do you grow your own fruit and veg?"

The dark-haired woman looked at her curiously and Sakura took a moment to think. The Uchiha Clan Matriarch had sparked a new idea in her mind. She had helped her mother with gardening and she looked after the blonde's plants well enough, but growing her own ingredients had never really crossed her mind. It would be a nice hobby and she was sure it would prove to be rewarding. She could buy some books on gardening and start out with the fruit and vegetables that are easier to grow.

"No, I haven't grown any of my own before but I think I may start soon."

The dark-haired woman clapped her hands together, her obsidian orbs shining as she looked out into the distance.

"Oh, that's such a wonderful idea Sakura-chan! If you ever need any help at all I would be more than happy to help you!" The rosette could have sworn she heard a groan come from where the males were but ignored it and turned her attention back to Mikoto.

"Very well, I shall make sure to find you if I ever require assistance."

A hum of pure bliss caused the pinkette's attention to turn back to Sasuke. The young boy had started eating the sushi she herself had made from scrap and was enjoying it thoroughly. The duckbutt-haired Uchiha opened his eyes, a red hue spreading across his cheeks when he noticed that everyone was staring at him.

"Is it nice Sasuke-kun?" His mother asked him, an amused smile gracing her features.

The boy nodded, shyly looking down. It was clear that he was embarrassed with how he refused to lift his eyes from the ground. His cheeks were puffed out slightly, his lips pouting, the red that was spread across his face had darkened and after a moment of silence Sakura could have sworn that she saw his lips moving faintly as if he was grumbling something under his breath.

"I'm glad you like my food." The rosette said, hoping to ease her friend's embarrassment.

She truly was touched that he enjoyed her cooking, she would have felt terrible if she messed it up somehow.

'Yeah, yeah, you're grateful. Blah, blah! Let's switch already! Are you trying to torture me?'

Sakura only just managed to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "Ok, ok." She muttered under her breath. 'Just please don't be too obvious.'

'Yep, sure blah, blah, blah! Let's go, cha!'

Sakura inhaled deeply, closing her eyes as she let her other half take the driver's seat. When emerald eyes opened Inner Sakura was in control.

She immediately looked around. Above her, hundreds of Sakura petals rode the wind, dancing as they followed the breeze's lead. It was as if the two were putting on a performance, greeting them and celebrating that they were alive. They were commemorating the short life of the cherry blossoms, dancing until they could no longer and slowly drifting towards the ground. The birds around the area sang symphonies, providing the music for the dance. The gentle rustle of the wind rushing through leaves and petals adding to the song as the world around her became one, pulling off a performance that left Inner in a daze.

"Sakura-chan?" Mikoto spoke up, bringing Inner out of whatever trance she had been in before. She blinked, turning her head to look the Matriarch in the eye. "Are you alright?"

The dark-haired woman's expression clearly displayed her concern and Inner mustered up a smile that she hoped looked assuring.

"I'm fine, I was just admiring the scenery!"

A soft smile took over the Uchiha female's face, the concern previously etched into her features gone.

"Yes, it looks like something out of a fairytale doesn't it?" She said, looking around. "The Cherry Blossom trees look ethereal, they make the environment seem like some sort of myth."

Inner stared at the dark-haired female who smiled softly as her eyes followed some petals that were gliding around the area, riding the invisible wind. The petals danced around each other, doing multiple flips and occasionally brushing against each other. They continued their dance fluttering around until they got caught on a branch. The breeze tried to help them escape but in the end, only one managed to slip out of the tree's clutches. The other remained stuck, it stopped moving as the wind left with its friend.

Inner frowned. Why did it seem a lot sadder than it should have been? Why did she feel as if she had just watched the saddest thing in all the Shinobi Nations? Ok, maybe that was a bit of a stretch but she really didn't think she should be feeling so full of sorrow.

She sighed, her eyes moving to the ground. Only moments before she had demanded for her other half to hand over control of their body, keen to feast on the food laid out on the picnic blanket. Now however, she was enchanted by the scenery, just as the Food Queen had stated, with the Cherry Blossoms in bloom, filling the village with white and pink flowers, it all felt.. surreal in a way. It looked like some sort of fantasy land, where dragons exhaled fire and Pegasus' soared up above, where the trolls from the land Sakura and Sasuke had created lived underground in their village that was lit up by all kinds of colourful crystals that emanated light. Where unicorns could conjure up near to anything and phoenixes spread their wings and rose up from the ashes of the dead.

It was.. breathtaking.

'Inner, you can admire the scenery all you want, I'll let you have control for a while so eat.' Sakura was mildly annoyed that after all the whining and groaning all Inner did when she allowed her to have control was stare like an idiot at their surroundings.

Inner Sakura grumbled in response, picking up an egg sandwich and taking a huge bite out of it. A blush spread across her cheeks, her eyes sparkling as she ate happily. Outer Sakura, meanwhile, had an unreadable expression on her face.

'It's just an egg sandwich? Why is she acting as if it's the most delicious thing in the world?'

The egg sandwich quickly disappeared and Inner grabbed another, stuffing it in her mouth. Outer cringed. Her mother had always taught her proper etiquette and pigging out in front of the main family of a notorious clan was most defiantly something she would disapprove of.

Mikoto opened the packet of drinks and took some out. She handed one to Sasuke and placed one down next to the pinkette.

"Itachi-kun, would you like one?" When the boy shook his head Mikoto smiled before helping Sasuke stab his straw in his juice carton.

Inner grabbed the one the dark-haired female had put next to her and freed the straw from its wrapper. She then proceeded to locate the place where she was supposed to insert the straw and stabbed the pointy end of the hollow tube into it, creating a hole. She smiled before sucking at the straw. Her body relaxed as the sweet liquid of the juice inside the carton filled her mouth. She put down the drink, licking her lips. Inner turned her head to look at the dark-haired Matriarch.

"Can I have one of the bentos Ou- I made?"

The woman looked up and smiled at her before grabbing one of the bentos and handing it to the rosette.

"Arigatou." She grinned, taking the offered bento and setting it on her lap. She opened it and drooled at the sight of the food inside.

She picked up one of the pieces of sushi and plopped it in her mouth. She practically melted as she chewed it.

'Umai!' She yelled internally as she swallowed. She then picked up another piece of sushi and chewed it happily, her eyes closed as she relished the food she was eating.

"Are you done, Sasuke-kun?" Mikoto asked the duckbutt-haired child.

The boy leaned back, his hands on his full stomach. He nodded his head, a bead of sweat forming on his brow. The heat of the sun was as stifling as ever and being in the Fire Country meant that it was exceptionally hot.

"Alright, wait for your food to go down a bit before getting up to play, you too Sakura-chan." The woman said, turning to the petal-haired girl as she said her name. Inner had just finished the bento at record speed and was currently eyeing the dorayaki Sakura had brought. The Uchiha female covered up the exposed food, making Inner pout.

'Aww man! This is no fun!' Inner whined. She looked up, watching the petals dance in and out of each other.

'Really? I thought you liked looking at the scenery?'

Inner Sakura scrunched her face up, her lips forming a pout. A single petal floated down and landed on her nose, Inner blinked, looking down at it.

In their mindscape, Outer Sakura choked on a laugh, attempting to muffle her giggles with her hands. Inner flushed, shaking her head violently in hopes of making the pink petal fall from her face. It was successful but the ring of laughter still echoed in her mind, courtesy of her other half. Inner scowled, an embarrassed flush covering her cheeks as she tried her best to zone out Sakura's laughter. Of course, that was easier said than done since her other half was currently in the mind and there wasn't a time when one of them couldn't hear the other (unless one of them ventured to the back of their mind or fell asleep).

"Sakura-chan?" Inner looked up to see Mikoto staring back at her.

"Huh?"

"Are you ok? Okaa-san was talking to you but you didn't react or respond at all!" Sasuke said, leaning forward to stare intently at his pink-haired friend.

Inner nodded, not daring to blink as she stared into Sasuke's wide eyes.

'Why is he staring at us like that?'

'I'm not sure but for some reason, I feel like I shouldn't blink.'

The boy leaned in closer to her and Inner swallowed as she felt her eyes begin to dry up. The young Uchiha's eyes narrowed slightly and Inner held her breath as she tried to ignore the temptation she felt to close her eyes. Exquisite emerald eyes watered as she continued to stare into onyx eyes.

"Mm, ok." He leaned back and Inner let out the breath she had been holding in, closing her green eyes that were sparkling with tears.

"Okaa-san, can we go play now?" Sasuke asked, looking up at his mother with pleading eyes.

The woman hummed. "I don't know Sasuke-kun, has your food gone down?" The boy nodded. "What about you Sakura-chan?"

In all honesty, Inner felt like she had eaten a few crumbs and that was it, so she felt like she would be able to run around without throwing up her stomach's contents afterwards. Then again she didn't really want to play with the Uchiha, not because she didn't like him- the duckbutt-haired boy was amusing at times after all- but because she didn't find herself all that interested in running around like a headless ninja.

'I don't mind taking control for a while.' Outer Sakura piped up.

'Ok, but the minute the Food Queen uncovers the food you let me have control again, understood?' Her other half nodded and in a flash, Outer Sakura was in the driver's seat once again.

Sakura blinked before nodding, she knew that both she and Inner Sakura were going to be exhausted later from all the switching they were doing but she knew that neither of them wanted to miss out on the festival.

The Matriarch sighed before letting her youngest son grab Sakura's hand and pull her up from the ground. Sasuke then raced away from where his family had set up for the picnic, dragging Sakura along.

"C'mon Sakura-chan!" The boy exclaimed. "Let's go play!"

He dragged her towards an area away from where people were before letting go of her hand and standing with his chest puffed out proudly, his chin raised and his hands on his hips. Sakura blinked in confusion as the boy turned to face her, putting his hands on her shoulders, a wide smile on his face.

"Let's play hide and seek!"

Sakura tilted her head to the sighed. "Shouldn't we ask some other people to join us? Playing with more people will make it a more joyous experience would it not?"

"Huh?" Sasuke tilted his head to the side, an expression of confusion on his face. "Stop making things confusing with your fancy words, Sakura-chan."

The duckbutt-haired boy was frowning at her, his lips set in a pout.

"Oh." The girl blinked. "Sorry.."

Sasuke shrugged. "Nah, don't worry about it. Now let's start playing!"

Sakura decided to not mention the fact that he had ignored her comment about inviting others to join their game. She knew that he had understood what she meant, he was, after all, smart in his own way. She guessed that he had a reason to disregard her words and left it at that.

The young Uchiha explained the rules of the game, Sakura making sure to listen intently as he talked. In short, there would be two rounds; one where he was the seeker and one where she was. The hider had to stay in the area and wasn't allowed to hide where people had set up their picnics. Whilst the seeker was searching for them, the one hiding would count in their head until the seeker had either found them or given up. Whoever lasts the longest before the seeker finds them wins.

"And the winner gets a prize!" The boy grinned as he put his hands up in the air, a large grin on his face. "You can hide first Sakura-chan!"

"Ok, how long will I have to hide?" Sasuke adopted a thinking position, a finger resting underneath his chin.

"I'll count to... sixty!" Sakura nodded and the boy turned around covering his dark eyes with his hands as he began to count out loud.

The four-year-old looked around, her short, pink hair jostling against her cheeks. She jogged away from where Sasuke stood, still counting. She obviously didn't want to stay too close to where the boy was, that would just be asking to get caught.

Sakura stopped moving.

'Wait a minute..' She looked up at the great Cherry Blossom tree to her left.

Once Sasuke finished counting, he uncovered his face, looking around. He randomly chose a direction and rushed off, none the wiser about the green gaze that followed him.

Sakura sighed as she settled into her hiding spot. It was surprisingly comfy and the pinkette doubted her dark-haired friend would find her even if he laid eyes upon her hiding spot. By some miracle she had managed to turn her biggest disadvantage into her greatest advantage - her hair.

Normally, the soft pink would attract attention and would have given her presence away almost immediately but her surroundings were, for once, acting in her favour.

'Are you forgetting about what the little Uchiha said?'

'You do realise that we are pretty much the same height as Sasuke-san, right?'

'Yeah.. whatever, just answer the question.'

'Are you talking about the prize?' The rosette asked sceptically. Inner nodded. 'Ok... what about it?'

'I bet it's food and if it is you have to let me eat it.' Outer Sakura frowned.

'But I'm the one who's partaking in this game, shouldn't I be the one to receive the prize should I win?'

Inner huffed, defiantly crossing her arms. 'Well.. if it is you still have to let me have it, cha!'

Sakura rolled her emerald eyes. Sasuke had gone off in the opposite direction to her hiding spot and so the pinkette decided that she should probably get as comfortable as possible since she suspected she wouldn't be found for a while. She had already been pretty comfy before but then, how comfortable can one be when hiding in a Cherry Blossom tree?

She had used her chakra control to her advantage and had walked up the trunk of the tree. Then she had nestled herself on a sturdy-looking branch that had pink blossoms blooming from its edges. The flowers were the same shade as her hair and Sakura made sure to stick herself to the branch using her chakra, ensuring that she wouldn't fall.

'Our training is paying off!' Sakura nodded in agreement, her green eyes surveying the land below, looking out for familiar duckbutt-styled hair.

They had been training hard. Even when Outer Sakura wasn't in control, Inner would keep up their training and as a result; they had progressed rapidly.

'How long do you think it's going to take for him to find us?' Sakura asked Inner. Since they were both pretty confident with their hiding place the rosette decided that they might as well pass the time by having a conversation.

'Hmm, I don't think he's even going to find us. He'll probably give up and then we can jump out and scare him!' Inner chuckled evilly. "Just imagine his face when we scare him!"

Sakura sighed at her other half's sadism, Inner was truly one of a kind.

'You bet I am!'

'You know what? I'm not even going to bother to try and talk to you any longer, I'm just going to get a headache.'

Inner blew a raspberry at her in response.

Silence followed, only the rustling of the pink blossoms met her ears as a breeze passed through the area. The weather was sunny and the light wind kept the temperature from being too hot. The serene, blue sky went beautifully with the pink and white petals that the whole village was celebrating. White, fluffy clouds slowly meandered across the sky, letting the wind guide them.

There was no sign of Sasuke and pink eyebrows furrowed as her lips pouted. She hadn't realised how boring hiding could be.

A buzzing sound in her mind made itself known as it slowly grew louder. Soon it was followed by a clicking sound and the rosette winced as Inner Sakura's loud voice was heard, making her ears ring. Her other half wasn't even singing she was just screaming incoherently at the top of her lungs. The whole of her head was vibrating as her other half refused to quieten down even when she asked her to.

Meanwhile, a certain duckbutt-haired boy was checking around every tree and bush, pouting every time he didn't see his pink-haired friend. He wasn't sure exactly how long he had been looking for her but Sasuke felt like it had been hours! The young Uchiha really wasn't sure where the female was, he had checked everywhere he could think of but he just couldn't find her.

He was beginning to think she was cheating but then the pinkette didn't seem like the type to. He thought back to his older brother and remembered all the times he would use a jutsu to cheat when they played.

'But Sakura-chan doesn't know how to use justu so she can't be cheating!'

This, of course, meant that she was just extremely good at hiding. Sasuke could have sworn that he had searched the place until there was no stone left unturned but there was still no sign of Sakura. He didn't want to give up but he was out of ideas of where she could be. The only good side of the whole situation was that he had found a couple of good hiding spots for when it was his turn.

He didn't want to give up but he really wasn't sure where else his pink-haired friend could be. He had never before imagined that someone with pink hair would be able to camouflage themself so well outside.

He puffed out his cheeks- half out of frustration and half out of annoyance. The rosette was infuriatingly talented in the art of hiding and the young Uchiha was beginning to contemplate giving up when he heard a rustle from one of the trees.

Sakura was listening out for the boy in case he gave up or approached her hiding place. It had been a good while since her turn had begun and so the rosette assumed that the duckbutt-haired boy would soon give up if he didn't find her. The boy was determined, sure, but he only had so much patience.

The young girl's other half had stopped bugging her and had gone oddly silent. Inner had caused a nasty headache that would most likely last the rest of the day though, so maybe she was satisfied. One could never really be certain with Inner.

Her green gaze fell on a familiar head of dark, spiky hair lingering below. She identified the owner of the hair as Sasuke and hoped that the tree of pink blossoms would provide her cover from his prying eyes. In the corner of her eye, Sakura spotted a black bird resting on the branch next to the one she was occupying. She faced the bird, internally praying that the animal wouldn't give her hiding spot away. 

It let out a quiet squawk and the pinkette's green eyes immediately snapped to Sasuke's form. She let out a silent breath of relief when he didn't seem to have heard the noise. The dark bird began cleaning itself, lifting its wings as it burrowed its head under them, pecking at its feathers. It then shook, somewhat like a wet puppy would. She winced as the petals rustled from the movement. The bird continued preening however, Sakura's attention was caught by a gasp from down below.

Sasuke looked at the black-feathered bird for a moment before his eyes searched the rest of the tree. He hadn't taken into account that the pinkette might be hiding in a tree. It certainly would keep her well hidden, what, with the pink blossoms in full bloom. Her hair would blend in perfectly!

He searched the tree for any branches that were in arms reach of him. He couldn't see any though and his eyebrows furrowed as he looked at the other trees in the area. There were a few branches he could reach but once he got to that point he was at a loss of what the next step was as the other branches were either too high up or weren't sturdy enough to support his weight.

He heard a loud chirp come from the bird that he had caught sight of earlier and looked up at it just in time to catch sight of the animal taking off into the sky. A few petals fell off the tree and Sasuke's dark eyes widened when a sneeze sounded from the very tree the bird had just left.

"Sakura-chan, was that you?" The young Uchiha's onyx eyes were searching the tree, trying to find any hint of his pink-haired friend. "If you are up there then can you come down? I know we're playing hide and seek but I can't find a way to get up there."

It was silent for a moment until quiet rustling could be heard. A blur of green and pink jumped down from the tree and standing in front of the duckbutt-haired boy was the person he had been looking for.

Sakura smiled at the young Uchiha, stretching her arms and back as much as she could in the kimono she was wearing. She had gotten tired of hiding and was glad that the boy had found her when he did, she also hoped that hiding in the tree hadn't caused any damage to her clothes. She would hate it if she damaged the beautiful kimono, it hadn't been particularly costly but Sakura still didn't want to damage it- especially when it was her first time wearing it!

"Woah! Sakura-chan, you have to show me how you got all the way up there! I tried for ages but all the branches were too high up!"

The rosette tilted her head to one side as she looked at the boy, a puzzled expression on her face.

"You couldn't climb the tree?"

Sasuke blinked as heat spread across his cheeks.

"W-well yeah.. I.. I couldn't reach any of the branches.." The last part was but a quiet murmur and green eyes widened as her mind processed his words.

She looked back at the tree she had been hiding in and her face softened as she realised that all the branches were higher up the trunk, out of their reach.

'Did you seriously forget that? You do realise that that is the reason why we walked instead of climbed, right?'

Sakura blinked. She wasn't sure why Inner was so.. brazen, it was honestly infuriating. Her other half was always like this though, so she knew she would have to prepare for an eternal headache.

"Oh.. sorry about that, if I had known you couldn't climb up the tree I wouldn't have hid up there.."

'What? Don't apologise! We're in this to win the Food Queen's food!' Inner screamed.

'I know but.. since Sasuke couldn't get up the tree I feel as though we cheated..' The young rosette bit her bottom lip, guilt flooding her being. 'Also, we don't know if the prize is going to be Mikoto-san's cooking so stop saying that it is.'

A groan resonated throughout her head. 'Why do you have to be so mean Outer-chan!'

Sakura frowned. 'I'm just trying to keep your expectations down, I know what you're like when you think you're going to get food but don't and I'm not going to waste what money we have on food we do not need to satisfy your depressed cravings.'

The entity with Kanji on her forehead pouted.

'But Outer!' She whined.

Sakura ignored her other half's cries as she turned her attention back to Sasuke. The dark-haired boy was staring at her with wide, unblinking eyes.

"You good Sakura-chan? You zoned out again." His eyebrows drew together, a crease appearing between them.

"Erm, yeah I'm alright, don't worry." She swallowed trying to ignore the discomfort she felt. "I-isn't it your turn to hide, Sasuke-san?"

His face lit up as realisation sparked in his mind. "Oh yeah! Count to sixty and I'll go hide, make sure not to cheat, Sakura-chan!"

The girl with hair the colour of the flowers that were blooming above their heads smiled, nodding her head. She then covered her face with her hands, squeezing her eyes closed.

"You ready?" She asked, keeping her emerald orbs shut.

The boy voiced his affirmation and with that, Sakura began counting. She tried her best not to pay attention to the sound of the young male's footsteps, making sure she didn't open her eyes and uncover her face until she had finished counting.

"And sixty!" She exclaimed as she opened her eyes and moved her hands away from her face. "Here I come.."

The rosette began her search for the dark-haired boy, making sure to check behind every tree, since Sasuke had been the seeker first he had most likely found a couple of good hiding spots as he searched for her.

Inner chanted in their mind, her voice getting louder and louder. 'Cheat! Cheat! Cheat! Cheat!'

'No Inner we are not going to cheat.' Sakura deadpanned.

The pinkette's other half shrank, a pout on her face. 'But why? We could easily win and get the delicious prize, either search for his chakra signature yourself or I'll just tell ya where he is!'

'Inner, if you ruin this game you will lose food privileges for the next few days.'

Her eyes widened at that statement and a giant bunny plush popped into existence in front of her. She grabbed the giant pink bunny and wrapped her arms around it, sniffing as she buried her face in the stuffed animal.

Outer Sakura sighed. She found her other half's peculiar obsession with food bizarre but it did provide her with a good punishment for when the childish female deserved one.

'Now,' she thought, 'where is Sasuke-san hiding?'

It took the rosette just over five minutes to find the young Uchiha. He had been hiding in a dense bush that covered him quite well. His only downfall had been the screech he released from his mouth when bird poop landed with a splat, only centimetres before his face, startling him.

His face was scrunched up, his bottom lip sticking out in a pout. Sakura stared at the duckbutt-haired boy in front of her, they were standing in silence, the young Uchiha having come out from his hiding spot after the pinkette had found him thanks to his shriek.

Deciding to break the awkward atmosphere, Sakura cleared her throat. Sasuke's dark eyes moved up to her emerald green ones, a red flush decorating his cheeks.

"Are you ok Sasuke-san?"

The embarrassed boy nodded his head, his onyx eyes moving back to the ground as he fiddled with his clothes. Sakura's brows furrowed slightly as she let out a small sigh.

'We won! We won! We won, we won, we won, we won! We won!'

'Inner, I don't think we actually did, we were found and so was Sasuke-san, therefore, there's no victor."

'Hah? But we totally lasted longer than him!'

'But we were both caught in the end so doesn't that mean it's a tie?' The rosette's frown deepened, she was very confused about the rules of this game.

'Did you seriously forget the rules from the beginning? The one who lasts the longest wins! We lasted longer so we win!'

Emerald eyes glimmered as realisation washed over her. Now, that she thought about it, Sasuke did say that.

'Honestly, how do we share a mind when you're so much dumber than me?'

Sakura gaped, her mouth opening and closing silently as she processed what her other half just said. The pinkette really wasn't sure why Inner was being more.. Inner than usual but she was beginning to get quite fed up.

'Inner, if the prize really is food you aren't getting any.'

Sakura winced as screams filled her head, pain blooming as her mind shook with Inner's deafening howls. Tears were streaming down her face as she held onto her giant pink bunny plush, her hands squeezing the life out of it.

"Sakura-chan, you're doing it again."

Said rosette blinked and bit her bottom lip. She really had to stop talking so much with Inner when she was around other people.

"Ah, so-" She was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Sasuke's older brother.

The two four-year-olds turned to Itachi, a smile immediately blooming on Sasuke's face as he scampered up to the older boy. Sakura felt something attack her heart and flutter around her chest as she saw the admiration her friend held for his brother, the rosette wasn't sure why but tears glistened in her eyes and she blinked hard in order to get rid of them.

"Okaa-san told me to come and get you two, we're going to go on a walk." The eight-year-old said, his dark orbs moving from his sibling's to hers.

Sasuke whined, pouting as his brows furrowed, his onyx eyes looking up at his brother. "Already?"

Itachi sighed, kneeling down to look Sasuke in the eye.

"You and Sakura-san have been playing for almost an hour now Sasuke and you know Okaa-san wants to go on a walk to admire the scenery."

"Fine!" The boy huffed. He turned back to the pinkette and reached out to grab her hand. Once her hand was secured in his, he turned around and looked up at Itachi who was now standing. "Let's go."

They walked back to where Mikoto had packed up the picnic, Sasuke grumbling under his breath as both Itachi and Sakura stayed silent. The woman turned around and smiled at them, placing her hands on her hips. Fugaku was standing behind her, his usual stern expression in place.

"Thank you for getting them Itachi-kun! Now that we're all here, let's go on a walk through the village."

Sakura liked the thought of walking through the village and admiring the scenery, she had done so on her journey here earlier and she was eager to do so again, this time, with company. Sasuke huffed as they all started to walk, it was clear that the boy wanted nothing less than to go home and play ninja with the rosette but knew that it would be fruitless to argue with his mother.

Petals of various different shades of pink fluttered around, a few white ones joining the dance as the trees and foliage rustled, the consistent wind keeping up the song to nature's dance.

Before they could get too far, someone grabbed Sakura's wrist, causing the pinkette to look back. Emerald eyes blinked as she tilted her head to look up at her friend's older brother.

The boy leaned forward and lifted his hand, petting the pinkette's head. His fingers ran through her short locks and the pinkette tried to ignore the feeling of nostalgia as memories of her mother brushing her hair popped up in her mind. Sakura blinked, her emerald eyes moving to his face, of which was unexpressive as per usual. His onyx eyes were fixed on her hair, as if he was manifesting all the concentration he had in him to.. The pinkette frowned, what was Itachi doing?

It was only when he pulled back that she realised what the eight-year-old had been doing. The main indicator being the pink petal he held between his thumb and index finger. The colour of the petal was scarily similar to the shade of her hair and Sakura could feel her cheeks heat up as she stared, unblinking at what Itachi held.

"O-oh.. thank you, Itachi-san.." The four-year-old couldn't find it in her to meet his gaze and let out a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding when the Uchiha pulled away. The boy then walked off, catching up to his brother who immediately brightened in his older brother's presence.

As they travelled through the village a certain entity who lived in Sakura's mind piped up, having spotted something out of the corner of her other half's eye.

'Azumi-obaasan's shop!' The female exclaimed, catching Outer Sakura's attention. 'Oooo! Let's go and say hello, it feels like it's been ages since we last saw her! Oh, please Outer!'

Sakura held back a groan. She hated to abandon the family who had invited her out to join them at the festival but Inner did have a point. It did feel like it had been a while since she had last checked in on the woman and she used to see her and her daughter every week, often dropping by with one of her parents.

Sneaking a glance at the chatting family ahead of her, Sakura quickly dashed over to her friend's shop, aiming to be in and out as quickly as possible.

The pinkette entered the building and her attention was immediately captured by two customers. A young mother was trying her best to pull her screaming son away from a shelf full of toys and towards the register, the boy, however, was having none of it.

The pinkette watched as the woman finally managed to calm her wailing son and move towards the register where a familiar blue-haired woman stood. Her eyebrows were pulled together in silent concern as her light periwinkle eyes darted between the mother and son duo.

As the other woman started to speak to her, Azumi forced her lips into a tight smile, trying her best to listen to the woman over the ringing in her ears from the uproar that had occurred only seconds before.

Whilst the two conversed, the young boy took a moment to look around, the topic of the conversation happening above him failing to catch his attention. What caught his attention instead was the head of pink hair he spotted standing at the entrance of the shop. His brown eyes widened and a grin overtook his young face. He tried to run over to the object of his attention but the grip his mother had on his wrist prevented him from doing so. He looked up at his mother who was still immersed in the conversation she was having with the owner of the shop and glared, tears pooling in his eyes.

When she didn't seem to notice his hard stare on her, he turned to the floor and stomped angrily, letting out a frustrated scream through his clenched teeth. His face turned red as he threw a fit, refusing to listen to his mother as she tried to calm him down.

The rosette found it difficult to watch the scene, it was obvious that the woman was at a loss of what to do with her son and on top of that was embarrassed by his behaviour. Her eyes kept on darting between Azumi and her son, torn between leaving to save herself from further humiliation and continuing on her errands with a screaming three-year-old clinging to her arm.

'Poor woman, this is just painful..' Sakura agreed with her other half, flinching as the young boy let out a particularly high-pitched screech.

"What even set him off like that?" The cherry blossom-haired girl muttered, her eyes glued to the events unravelling in front of her.

'Seems like he's just difficult in general.. though- nah, never mind...' By some oddity, Sakura had nearly forgotten about the peculiar ability that Inner possessed so when her other half spoke up she had to remind herself to breathe. 'What?'

The pinkette made a noise of confusion. Inner sighed, resting her shaking head in her hand as she closed her eyes, a disappointed expression on her face.

'You seriously forgot? How is that even possible!' Outer stayed silent, trying to think of a change of topic as Inner ranted about who-knows-what.

'Oh, you cut yourself off earlier, mind sharing what you were going to say?'

Inner, having been interrupted, blinked before waving her hands in front of her face. The corners of her lips were tilted up, forming a sheepish smile as her eyes closed, a bead of sweat forming on her temple.

'L-like I said! Never mind!'

Emerald eyes narrowed. 'Inner, stutter? Never!'

'I'm being serious Outer it's nothing to worry about!' A few moments of silence passed before Inner let out a groan. 'Fine! He wants our hair..'

'What? Are you being serious?' More silence ensued and horror dawned on Sakura, her face dropping as her body tensed. "Oh kami, you're not joking!"

Inner shushed her other half's screeches, painfully aware of the other occupants of the shop they were in. Meanwhile, Outer Sakura couldn't get her head around what Inner had said, sputtering and muttering internally.

'Careful, Outer, your inner bepuzzlement is showing on your outer face.'

Said girl scowled. 'And how are you not freaking out? Usually, you're the more.. expressive one between us.'

'For your information, I am still processing this. Then again, I do feel quite aghast, why would he want our hair anyway?'

'Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?' Sakura raised an eyebrow, turning her attention back to the little boy who was still throwing his temper tantrum.

The mother was switching between apologising softly to Azumi and trying to calm her son down. It was obvious that the shop owner was also trying to aid the woman and Sakura's face softened.

'Ok, ok, I get it, at least let me act like I don't hold all the information in the world!'

Outer Sakura rolled her eyes, she knew that Inner was anything but modest and that she craved attention. It was clear that she was only acting the way she was in order to gain her attention.

'Anyway, the boy spotted our hair and- long story short- is a brat so he pretty much wants anything he lays his eyes on, I guess since our hair is a unique colour it caught his attention.' Inner's brows drew together, not sure if what she had just said made sense.

Before the pinkette could react, she froze. The young boy's brown eyes met her green ones and with his free hand, he pointed at her.

"Pink!" He yelled, catching his mother and Azumi's attention. The womens' eyes travelled to her form and Sakura, if possible, grew even more tense than before.

Azumi's face lit up, a smile blossoming from the previous concern she had displayed, making her appear years younger than she actually was.

"Sakura-chan!" She exclaimed, walking up to the girl. "What a surprise, I thought you would be out admiring the scenery!"

The girl mustered up a small smile, trying her best to ignore the hard stare the young boy was sending her way. In their mind, Inner Sakura was growling, her eyes narrowed in a fierce glare.

"Yeah, I was, I just erm-" Her eyes moved to the young boy before quickly returning to the blue-haired woman. "thought I would stop by.."

"Well, I'm glad you did! I tried a new mochi recipe today that I'm sure you'll love!" Inner immediately stopped glaring daggers at the three-year-old and instead looked at Azumi, some drool escaping her mouth. "Just wait here whilst I finish serving these customers and then I'll bring you them."

Unfortunately, it appeared that the young boy heard the woman's mentions of mochi and he immediately demanded to have some. Azumi, who had moved back to stand behind the register frowned and tried to focus on helping the boy's mother with the items she wished to purchase.

Meanwhile, Inner was outraged, her jaw was resting on the ground as she stared at the young boy, picturing two horns sprouting from his head and a pointy tail sticking out of his dark shorts, fire raging on behind him, consuming the shop.

'How dare he? He doesn't even like mochi!' She screamed.

Sakura winced, waiting for the ringing in her ears to cease before focusing back on what was going on.

"Darling, if you behave we can pick you up some mochi on our way home and you can have it after your dinner." The three-year-old's mum said, turning away from Azumi to kneel down by her son, a weak smile on her face.

'What!' Inner roared, causing Sakura to go deaf temporarily. 'Is she being serious right now? The boy doesn't even like mochi and she said he wasn't allowed any sweets after he misbehaved at a picnic they went to with his mother's best friend and her son!'

Sakura sweat dropped at the information of which she really didn't need to hear.

'Inner, it isn't any of ou-' She was interrupted by a high-pitched scream, courtesy of the young boy.

"No! I want it now!" He yelled, stomping his little feet defiantly.

"Sweetheart, please don't make such a fuss!" The woman said, her voice soft as her eyes looked around the shop, clearly embarrassed.

The boy let out another screech, stomping his feet in anger. His mother apologised to Azumi before grabbing her son by the wrist and rushing out of the shop. The bluenette stared after them, her eyebrows furrowing. Sakura chose this moment to approach the woman who still stood behind the register, hesitantly speaking up.

"You alright Azumi-san?" The pinkette asked, looking up at the older female.

Said female blinked before looking at Sakura. "'Azumi-san'? Sakura-chan, what happened to 'Azumi-obaasan'?"

"Oh, gomen." Heat rose to her cheeks as her emerald orbs stared at the floor, unable to meet the bluenette's gaze.

Since Inner began taking control of the body, she had decided that she was the one that should drop in every now and then to visit Azumi and her daughter. Of course, Inner being Inner decided that 'Azumi-san' was much too formal and so started to call the woman 'Azumi-obaasan'.

"Don't worry Sakura-chan! I'm alright, I just feel bad for that poor woman." Her light periwinkle eyes moved down to the pile of things the woman had wished to purchase. "She didn't even get to buy what she wanted."

Sakura followed her gaze to the pile, her expression softening slightly. She too felt bad for the woman, it was clear her son was difficult to manage and she was sure that because of her son's outbursts, she lost a lot of confidence, constantly feeling insecure.

'That's oddly specific and kind of on point..'

"Hey, Sakura-chan, you wouldn't mind going after them would you? I'll get you some mochi and will put this in a bag." The woman gestured at the pile of items.

The pinkette's expression morphed into one of pensive contemplation as she went through the pros and cons of doing such a task. Deciding to help the poor mother out, Sakura sighed before nodding her head. She just hoped that the Uchiha main family weren't too concerned by her sudden disappearance.

Azumi smiled before grabbing a bag and carefully placing the items inside it before fetching the young girl's mochi.

Whilst the woman was searching for the mochi, Sakura's emerald eyes were moving around the shop, searching for anything new. Her eyes stopped on a stand with multiple charms on it. She approached it and looked at the multiple options. Deciding to grab a few after noticing their cheap price, she walked back to the register and put them down, searching her form to find where she put the money she always carried around.

Azumi came back with a container that, Sakura guessed, had her mochi inside. The woman handed the pinkette the bag before giving her the container and spotting the charms.

"Ah! Would you like to buy these?" The female smiled.

"Yes please." The girl said, finally having found the money she had hidden in the folds of her kimono. She placed the money on the register before meeting the bluenette's gaze. "This should be enough, right?"

Azumi checked before sending a closed-eyed smile towards the young girl. "Yes! Thank you so much for doing this Sakura-chan, I hope you enjoy the rest of the day!"

The green-eyed girl smiled before grabbing the charms and securing them in her kimono. She said goodbye to Azumi before leaving the shop.

She hurried around, searching for the mother and son duo. She wasn't sure quite where they were or if they were even still in the vicinity but she had agreed to find them and give the mother the things she wished to purchase so she was determined to complete her mission. She just hoped it wouldn't take too long since she still had to catch up to the Uchiha family.

'Hey, Inner? Do you know where that mother and her son are?' Knowing Inner and her odd abilities, the pinkette guessed that there was a possibility that her other half could probably locate nearly anyone.

'Thanks for the boost of confidence and yes, I do know where they are!'

'Ok.. So, where are they.?'

'They' re r-'

Before Inner could finish her sentence, a deafening scream ricocheted through the area, causing everyone around her to wince and cover their ears. Sakura herself felt as if her ears were being attacked and she gritted her teeth as her emerald eyes searched for the one behind the banshee-like wails.

She sweat dropped when she found the mother and son duo standing by a stall that was stocked with multiple toys. The young boy had big tears rolling down his cheeks and snot escaping his nose. His head was pointed at the sky and his mouth was wide open, releasing earth-shattering shrieks as his mother stood, frozen behind him. The stall owner was laying, passed out on the ground, most likely having been knocked out by the noise.

Sighing, Sakura walked over, her soft footsteps breaking the woman out of her horror-induced trance. Not knowing what exactly she should do, Sakura held out the bag full of items. The older female blinked before hesitantly reaching out and taking what the young pinkette was offering her.

Peering inside the bag, realisation struck and the female instantly began panicking again. Sputtering and bowing repeatedly as Sakura tried to get her to calm down.

"I'm so sorry! I-I didn't pay for any of this so I really can't accept this!" She tried to give the bag back to Sakura but the pinkette wasn't having it.

The young boy, having noticed her presence turned around and continuously stomped, crying and yelling intangible nonsense that Sakura, for the life of her, couldn't understand.

Meanwhile, Inner was sat comfortably in a big bean bag, sipping some kind of drink and stuffing her mouth with sweets. Although she absolutely despised the young boy she was finding it entertaining watching her other half frantically trying to distinguish the situation, thoughts running wildly around their mind as she tried to find the solution that would fix this whole mess.

Losing her patience, Sakura slapped her hand over the three-year-old's mouth, muffling the sound of his cries. She was fed up with his immature behaviour and the headache he was gifting her had her mind spinning.

"Would you please cease your howls?" She spoke, her voice low and her green eyes set in a dark glare.

The boy was really getting on her nerves and although she was used to loud cries (the entity she shared both a mind and body with being the one who had built up her tolerance), the sheer audacity he had to treat his mother the way he was fed her unruly temper. Instead of being severely ungrateful and spoilt, he should be thankful for the things he had, not everyone was as fortunate as him after all. He had two loving parents who were alive and healthy. He had a roof over his head and plenty of food and water, his father worked long hours to provide all of this for his family and his son remained wanting more.

The boy stopped, seemingly frozen in shock, his mind unable to process what the pinkette had done. Noticing his sudden silence, Sakura uncovered his mouth before turning back to the boy's mother, her expression relaxing from the harsh glare that had adorned her face beforehand.

"Now, as for you, Azumi-obaasan wouldn't ask me to take all this to you, knowing you hadn't paid if she didn't intend for you to have them. She's kind enough to allow you to have all this without paying.. She can tell you've got enough on your plate as it is."

The woman frowned slightly, not quite catching the last part of what the young girl had said. As her mind went over Sakura's words, she hesitantly accepted the full bag. Tears glistened in her eyes and her lips formed a thin line. The woman bowed her head, closing her dark aqua eyes as the wind rustled her hair. Her chest was warm and she could feel a tingle in her nose as she fought back tears. 

"I'm sorry." She sniffed, wiping her eyes with her forearm. "It's stupid of me to cry like this but I can't help it! I'm just so grateful!"

Sakura blinked, her lips parting slightly as her brain went blank. She knew that the woman was probably very emotional and was possibly prone to emotional breakdowns but in this situation, she was at a loss. On one hand, she had a spoilt boy who was a sizzling explosion tag, waiting to go off and on the other, she had a crying young woman who had lost pretty much all her confidence. It was safe to say that the pinkette was truly helpless in this predicament. 

'A little help here, Inner?'

The young girl turned to her other half for help, as the two tended to do whenever they found themselves needing some form of help. 

'Nah, sorry Outer but you're on your own for this one.'

Inner's response caused Outer Sakura to frown, a huff leaving her through her nose. She didn't know what she had expected, both of them were terrible in situations like these; having to comfort others and deal with emotions was quite exhausting.

Taking a deep breath, Sakura turned her attention to the young woman whose dark turquoise eyes glistened with tears. 

"Stop crying." She said. "You have a son who obviously needs attention and someone who can teach him what's wrong and what's right. I understand that you are struggling to cope but that doesn't take away your responsibilities. Next time you pass by Azumi-obaasan's shop make sure to thank her. Not many people are as kind as she is."

The woman looked as if she had frozen upon hearing the little pinkette's words. Her eyes were wide, tears bubbling inside them as they threatened to fall. The young mother's lips were parted, her mind racing and her heart pounding in her ears.

Seeing the effect her words had on the female, Sakura turned to the boy.

"As for you, stop being an ungrateful brat, your parents are doing their best to supply you with all the necessities you need to survive. Stop screaming every second you get and don't throw a tantrum whenever things don't go your way. Your mum is obviously struggling to cope with your behaviour so end your selfishness and start doing things to help her. I don't know if you're so oblivious that you haven't noticed but your mother's confidence is rapidly decreasing. I understand that you are young but that doesn't mean you can continuously whine and demand to have whatever you lay your eyes on. I desperately hope that you are not so selfish that you won't take my words into account." Hard emerald eyes stared intensely at the shorter boy who appeared to be stunned.

'My, my! Never knew you were an inspirational speaker Outer-chan!' 

Sakura scowled, her other half was obviously teasing her. It wasn't as if she wanted to spout such words, the moment just seemed to call for it and who was she to refuse? Inner didn't bother helping her so she had taken things into her own hands. 

'Must admit though.. I really am not the best at sorting situations like these out.' She puffed out her cheeks.

'Well no duh! I'm honestly surprised you even tried to soothe the situation, they are strangers after all.'

The rosette frowned. 'I don't think anyone can be a stranger to us, what with your odd abilities.'

A few moments of silence passed between them, an imaginary ellipsis appearing above their heads.

'Well, I'm sorry..'

The pinkette sighed, turning her attention back to the mother and son duo who appeared to have calmed down. The brown-eyed boy was eerily quiet compared to his usual screaming, snot-nosed mess. His eyes were fixed on Sakura, an emotion that she was unable to identify swirling in their depths. 

A sniff caused the pinkette's attention to move to the young woman. She let out a weak laugh as she wiped away the tears staining her face.

"I never would have thought that I would be getting a lecture from a young girl." She sniffed letting out another weak laugh. "How can someone so young say such wise words?"

The young girl watched the woman as she gathered herself. She had no idea that a few words would cause such a stir in the older female's heart. All she had said was what she believed was the honest truth of what she thought they needed, she truly believed that the woman needed to step up and become the mother her child needed and that the young boy needed to learn some manners.

"Thank you.." The woman smiled, dark turquoise eyes shimmering. "I'm sorry you had to say all that but.... thank you."

The woman was grateful, that much was obvious. It was clear the female was ready to break down into another series of tears so Sakura decided to send the two on their way.

She watched their backs as the two walked off, hand in hand. The rosette couldn't see their expressions but it was clear already that her words had changed something.

'Not sure how though.' Sakura thought with a frown. She really wasn't, she knew that plenty of people could make cheesy speeches she just never expected that she could as well, let alone one that could have some effect!

'Honestly Outer, we'll have to put you on a diet, no more eating cheese!'

The young female sighed. Inner's attitude hadn't changed at least.

Emerald eyes studied the silent figure of the young boy. A memory of his earlier tantrums filled her mind and she groaned internally, feeling a headache come on.

'And to think he's only a year younger than me..' The thought was quite unnerving.

'Technically a year and a half.' Inner piped up.

'That doesn't help!'

~<*.*>~

Sakura had found the Uchiha family surprisingly fast (thanks to Inner's navigation skills) and as the sky changed from a calm hombre to an inky black, they made it to the family's home. It was a calm ending to an eventful day and as she sat on the engawa, Sasuke next to her, the pinkette let herself relax. The stress of getting ready for the picnic and resolving a family feud had most certainly drained her of most of her energy.

The dark sea was littered with stars, pink petals floating down from the sky, looking purple with the absence of light. She had enjoyed the festival, regardless of the madness. Even without her parents around it made her feel happy to know she still had people to celebrate with. A small smile blossomed on her face as she admired the many stars decorating the dark sky.

"Hey, Sakura-chan?" The sound of the boy's voice caused the pinkette to turn her head to look at him. She hummed as a way to tell him that he had her attention and the boy took a deep breath before continuing. "On the walk, I saw a stall and there was this really pretty hair accessory that I thought would suit you so... I got it for you as a present though I guess it's also your prize for winning our game of hide and seek earlier.. Thank you for being my friend!"

He held out his hands and Sakura's lips parted slightly as she stared at the pretty haircomb he held. It was decorated with carefully crafted Sakura flowers, the majority were in full bloom, a few were on the verge of blooming and a couple were still buds. It took her breath away and her smile widened as her emerald eyes met Sasuke's onyx hues.

The boy smiled shyly back. "Can I?"

Sakura followed his gaze back to the hair accessory and she felt her cheeks heat up slightly. She looked back up at the boy and her smile grew as she nodded her head.

She turned so that the young Uchiha had access to the back of her head. His fingers combed through her pink locks, gentling getting rid of all the little knots that had formed throughout the day. He carefully sorted the different layers of her hair and slowly began to put together a bun that sat at the base of her head. As he worked, his tongue escaped his mouth, pressing against his bottom lip as he focused. Finally, he had managed to create a bun that didn't fall apart almost immediately and added the hair comb, marvelling at how it looked.

'This guy should not become a hair stylist when he's older.'

'Inner..' Sakura awkwardly whined.

'Don't 'Inner' me Outer! Our hair is a mess, it's going to take years to get all the knots out!'

'That's a bit dramatic...'

It was true her hair was more of a mess than a bun but a decent amount of hair was still in place (thanks to the comb). Sakura also didn't want to make a big deal out of it since it was obvious the boy had worked hard to do her hair. She would feel bad if Sasuke's hard work went to waste so when he was done she didn't touch her hair. No matter how much it bugged her, no matter how the comb dug into her skin and no matter how uncomfortable she was, she didn't move a strand.

She turned back around to be greeted by Sasuke's red face. Sakura blinked in confusion before giving the boy a closed-eyed smile.

"Thank you for my present, I like it a lot!" 

She opened her eyes only to pause, her expression turning into a pensive frown. The duckbutt-haired boy's face had grown redder than a tomato. The front of his head was so bright it acted as a light source in the dark of the night.

'Tomato, tomato... tomato? Oh! Outer, the charms!'

Green eyes widened and Sakura got out the charms she had purchased earlier in the day. Sasuke, who appeared to have calmed down a bit, watched her curiously. His hand was grabbed and he felt something being pressed against his palm. When Sakura retracted her hand he looked down, his eyebrows rising as his dark hues looked at the object he now held.

Resting in the palm of his hand was a charm that was obviously a tomato. The object was shiny and the small stalk that was surrounded by spiky green leaves had a hole in it where a piece of fabric was hooked through it. The ends of it were tied together, creating a loop. 

Sasuke's eyes sparkled and he moved his gaze up to Sakura's face.

"Wow, Sakura-chan! I didn't know you got me a gift too, thanks!" He grinned at the pinkette before looking closer at the charm that resembled his favourite thing to eat.

"It's no problem." The green-eyed female smiled softly. "I also got one for Itachi-san, Mikoto-san and your father."

The boy looked up, his eyes begging for her to let him see. With a sigh, Sakura handed him a chicken charm. She had gotten it for Itachi, she wasn't sure why but as soon as she laid eyes on it, his face popped into her mind. The majority of the chicken was white, it had a yellow beak and a red comb and wattles.

"This is for nii-san?" The boy's expression was that of confusion but soon changed when Sakura handed him another charm. "Wow! It's so pretty!"

This charm was of a Sakura flower, the pinkette had bought it for Mikoto, remembering the multiple compliments the Matriarch had fired her way about the shade of her hair. The charm was almost the exact colour of her hair and had a silver outline. The back of the charm was also silver and, like Sasuke's, was shiny.

"Do you think she'll like it?" Sasuke hummed in affirmation causing a small smile to break out on Sakura's face. "Ah! Here's the one I got for Fugaku-san."

She handed the male yet another charm, the previous charms he'd been holding falling into his lap. The charm the young female had gotten for the clan head was one of their clan's emblem. The back of the charm was black as was the outline and like the others was also shiny. 

Sasuke gathered the charms in his hands before standing up, Sakura watching curiously.

"Where are you going?" She asked him. The young boy looked up, a boyish grin on his face.

"To give the charms to them, duh!" He stuck his tongue out before racing off inside.

Sakura's emerald orbs widened as her brain processed what had just happened. She blinked before standing up and rushing after the young Uchiha.

'We bought them, shouldn't we be the ones to present them to those we bought them for? Cha!' Inner yelled, arm raised and fist clenched.

Special Chapter Secrets:

Inner was outraged that the prize for winning hide and seek wasn't edible and moaned about it the whole of the journey home until Sakura let her feast on the mochi they had received from Azumi.

When she received the charm Sakura had bought her, Mikoto hugged the young girl with a smile on her face.

Itachi took the charm with a polite nod of his head and a quiet thank you.

Fugaku's reaction is unknown.

Itachi's charm is actually inspired by something in the anime.

{This is defiantly inspired by Taisho Secrets}

A/N: Finally! After almost seven months I have completed this! I am so sorry for the wait, this took much longer than expected. Hopefully the length of this makes up for the wait? I ran into multiple issues during the writing of this and want to thank anyone who read this and is still here even after such a long time. I can't believe I have gotten so far, thank you! 

Even those of you who haven't followed me, I still appreciate the support you have shown through reading my writing and voting and adding my stories. Since this is so late, I am quickly approaching two hundred followers, I just hope that whatever I do if I ever reach that milestone, will not take me as long as this did. 

I shall be doing my best to get back to updating more often!

I apologise for any mistakes, if you notice any please point them out (kindly), thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed!

Word Count: 14236