"You've been my sensei for only a few months. Trust me, you'll learn a lot more about me."
"I'll learn a lot about you?" Kakashi half-chuckled, "Okay then. I'll be sure to look out for that."
Sakura opened her mouth to call-out Kakashi's patronizing tone, but quickly closed it, not wanting to start a fight.
"So you want to learn the next step?" Kakashi implored, ignoring the boys as they tumbled from the tall trees.
"Yes." Sakura stated confidently, "I want to get ahead."
"You're already much stronger than I expected." Kakashi sighed, "Why do you feel the need to try even harder?"
"Because I have people to protect, Kakashi!" Sakura exclaimed angrily.
"You dropped the suffix, Sakura-chan." Kakashi looked at Sakura suspiciously, his eye shooting metaphorical lasers at her, "Was it a freudian slip?"
"W-what do you even mean?" Sakura fumbled over her words, panic beginning to set in, "I just got....overwhelmed."
"Alright..." Kakashi gave her one more skeptical look before turning back to the boys in the trees. Without sparing Sakura a look he spoke to her. "If you feel the need to advance, walk on water."
"So, no instruction?" Sakura implored, her voice dripping with annoyance, "I'll just....learn myself?"
She got no reply. Letting out a sigh, she walked over to the small pond by the trees. Of course, she knew conceptually how to walk on water. She'd gone over many drills and fallen into a myriad of lakes, but with her body in the state that it was in, walking on water without difficulty was a tall order. Thankfully, she wasn't supposed to get it down on the first try; exceeding in the difficult skill of water-walking on her first try would be unfathomable. She doubted an Uchiha could succeed on their first try. Before she could take a stab at the technique, Sasuke approached her.
"Hey, what's up?" She started, surprised that it was Sasuke talking to her and not Naruto.
"How did you get up the tree so easily?" He looked at Sakura confusedly, scanning her from head to toe.
Sakura looked at Sasuke skeptically. She decided that Sasuke didn't understand that you couldn't completely dismiss someone and insult them then ask for their help disrespectfully hours later. Sakura was sure someone had taught him basic manners at some point, since he was part of the Uchiha head family; apparently, he'd forgotten them all. "It's all a balance, you see." Sakura started, "If you release too much chakra into your feet, you will break the bark of the tree and fall off. If you don't release enough, you won't make a connection. You have to find the midpoint between the two where your weight is supported and you have the perfect amount of contact with the tree. Naruto will likely be the worst at it because he has so much chakra. The more chakra, the harder it is to control."
"That's why it's so easy for you." Sasuke noted.
"Rude, but I'm not going to deny it. I have a feeling that your chakra control could be very good if you work at it. You should consider learning healing jutsu."
"Me? A healer?" Sasuke scoffed, "I'm meant for the front lines of battle."
"Don't be so closed-minded." Sakura chided Sasuke, "Think about Lady Tsunade. Because of her mitotic regeneration jutsu, she can fight in the front lines and heal. Doesn't that sound amazing?"
"Tsunade is your inspiration. I'll find my own." Sasuke replied, shooting down Sakura's idea without hesitation.
"Who said we can't share a role model? Think about how useful healing jutsu could be. You could save your teammates lives."
Sasuke opened his mouth to respond but found himself at a lack for words. He would never say this to Sakura's face, but healing jutsu was for the weak. It was for those who stayed behind in battle and cried. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he believed that healing jutsu was for women. Sure Tsunade was strong, but she was an exception. Sasuke wasn't sure if he was talented enough in chakra control to become and exception.
"I know what you're thinking." Sakura said, breaking Sasuke out of his reverie, "You think healing jutsu is for women."
Sasuke was taken aback for a moment before he tried to fake a scoff. "I would never-"
"No, no, it's not your fault. The idea that women are weak healers is a concept that society feeds everyone. In reality, society is afraid of what will happen when women are given equal opportunities. As much as they beg to differ, they know, somewhere deep inside them, that women can do just as much if not more that a man."
"Sure, whatever, I don't doubt it." Sasuke rolled his eyes, "By saying that I thought healing jutsu was for women, you were putting words in my mouth."
"Oh, was I?" Sakura implored, staring at him straight in the eye, "I guess I just misunderstood your patronizing look. Anyway, go tell what I told you about chakra control to Naruto. He needs the extra help."
"Why would I do that?" Sasuke looked incredulously at Sakura.
"Because, no matter how threatened you feel by Naruto, this isn't a competition. We're a team, and for us to function well, we all need the same opportunities and we need to support each other."
"Tch." Sasuke huffed, walking back towards the trees. Sakura was sure he would relay the information to Naruto, though. Despite Sasuke's indifferent façade, Sakura knew that if there was one thing Sasuke cared about, it was the strength of team seven.
Sighing, Sakura began to walk towards the water. Carefully, she placed her dominant left foot onto the waves. The foot bobbed nicely on top, though she could tell that she would not be able to hold her weight. Noticing Kakashi's watchful eye, she decided that she should get a good fail in so that she wouldn't seem to suspicious. Bracing her body for the icy-cold plunge, she put all of her weight onto her left foot and promptly fell into the pond. Shivering, she stepped onto the shore and took off her flowy, red dress, leaving only her tank-top underneath. Sakura steadied her breath and took another stab at water walking. This time, she didn't fail deliberately. She stayed atop the water's surface for about three seconds before losing control and toppling into the pond once again. Finally acknowledging Sakura's serious attempt, Kakashi ambled over to the pond.
"Looking damp, Sakura-chan." He joked, "I must say, I'm impressed with how quickly you've caught on to the concept of water-walking."
"I've read about it." Sakura stated, and she wasn't lying. As a genin, she read books on every jutsu she could imagine. Regrettably, she never attempted to put any of her myriad book-smarts to practical use until she received a nasty wake-up call in the form of Sasuke's untimely departure.
"Yes, but let me give you some pointers."
Sakura listened on attentively, re-learning a lesson she had learned years ago. She remembered all the tips and all of the advice. Sakura didn't have any problems fundamentally. What she needed to work on was executing a skill she had mastered in a lighter, weaker, smaller body. "Thank you Kakashi-sensei." Sakura said sincerely.
Smiling at her sensei, she stepped on the water again, taking her current body weight and chakra amount into account. Since her chakra level was so abysmal at the moment, concentrating it was actually easier than she had expected. Carefully, she took several tentative steps across the surface of the water. Precariously, she was able to walk well into the middle of the small lake before plunging into the (still frigid!) water. Her body was not as pathetic as she had initially thought. Sakura was beginning to realize how little advantage she took of her physical skills as a genin. Yes, she wasn't particularly buff, and yes, her chakra reserves were small, but she had brimming potential that she never tapped until too late. No. It wasn't that she neglected to tap into it, it's that her senseis and peers neglected to encourage her. She was taught to be the girl on the sidelines. Her weakness was encouraged. Sakura wouldn't deny that she could have taken her improvement into her own hands with the right motivation, but her male peers didn't have to. They were taught to be strong and their improvement was encouraged. For Sakura, improvement was strange. A woman who possessed confidence in their own skill was viewed as arrogant and odd. It was the reason that Tsunade harbored the ill will of so many.
Sakura swam back to the shore and wrung the excess water from her hair. She focused her mind on the task at hand again and stepped onto the surface. The waves undulated gently below Sakura's sandaled foot, creating a touch of imbalance. Acknowledging this, she adjusted her body to the constant movement of the water, following it instead of fighting it. Relaxing her body and only expending the exact amount of chakra necessary, she walked across the lake, breathing in rhythm with the ebb and flow of the gentle waves. With grace, she walked across the entire lake. If she hadn't already achieved this, Sakura would be jumping for joy. In fact, she probably should to keep up her inconspicuity.
"Kakashi-sensei!" She exclaimed with well-feigned excitement, "Did you see that? I walked across the entire lake!"
"Do it again." Kakashi insisted, turning towards her.
With a firm nod, Sakura walked across again, retaining her poise. "See?" She grinned, "I told you I could do it."
Kakashi nodded, "I am impressed." With that, he turned back to Naruto and Sasuke.
Despite his seeming dismissal of her achievements, Sakura was pleased. At the moment, she knew that Kakashi's reaction was actually incredibly emotive. He was probably reconsidering her after her display; oh yes, Sakura was pleased.
A/N: Ah, I'm sorry for the string of filler-ish chapters! There's a lot of action/canon stuff I want to get to, but I really need to lay the foundations of the characters and get y'all acquainted with Sakura's mental state. I promise to start getting back into things in the next chapter.
Wowee y'all. It's 2019. It's been about a year since I started this and I promise I will finish eventually. Hopefully I won't take more multi-month breaks during which I'm in fandom limbo. Regardless, I'm so thankful for all of your continued support. Every time I get a comment, I feel so happy. I'll do my best to keep the chapters coming and I hope y'all just enjoy them!
Feel free to point out any discrepancies in the story line/spelling/grammar. It really helps me since I'm a pretty young writer.
To a fabulous 2019! ~Ashi