Gardens of Rain
Redemption
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(Sorry for the short length of these chapters, I’ve been
moving into a new apartment for college so I’ve been really busy, but I still
wanted to update fairly regularly.)
Chapter II: Redemption
The two trudged back to Konoha,
awkwardness was thick in the air and it felt hard to breathe,
them I really have failed Sakura…even
after so much time I’ve done nothing…now she doesn’t even want to try anymore…
Sakura looked at her feet as her throat felt tighter,
unable to cry but still wanting to. She had been trying to be nicer to
As the two passed through the gates to Konoha,
they silently parted, both wanting to say something to the other but their
hearts would not allow it. Naruto felt too depressed
to even look at Sakura, much less speak as he trudged back into the village
towards his house. Sakura was too caught up in a flood of thoughts and emotions
to part her lips as she made her way to the training grounds to let out some
emotion.
Naruto opened the door to his
house and dragged his body inside, falling to the couch, staring at the ceiling
fan turning lazily. He let out a deep sigh, not wanting to move or breathe, the
overwhelming feeling of guilt held him in place. I just don’t know what to do… he battled in his head.
he can talk some sense into all of this And by sheer will
the couch and out the front door again, heading towards Shikamaru’s
apartment.
Meanwhile, Sakura was letting out her frustrated thoughts
on a small mountain in the middle of the training grounds. The other ninja’s
there took a break from their training to stay out of the pink-haired girl’s
way. With a final blow she landed a punch which shattered the remaining rocks and
she made her way to a grassy hill. The other ninja’s came out of hiding as
Sakura laid down in the grass, bruised and sweaty,
watching the clouds pass by in the blue sky above.
---
Naruto knocked on
noticed Naruto’s face. He doesn’t have that usual grin plastered to his face…this is going to
be troublesome. “What do you need Naruto? I was
watching the clouds on the roof when you woke me up.”
Naruto tried a weak grin, “Well
I hadn’t seen you in a while and I thought I’d stop by on my way home and …”
“Naruto, I live nowhere near you
and since when have you ever looked so depressed, tell
me what’s wrong before you make this too troublesome.” He groaned
“Well…” Naruto said, looking
away, “I need to talk to you about Sakura…”
Shikamaru cocked his head “…oh?”
---
The breeze blew gently, catching Sakura’s hair and playing
with it. She let out a deep sigh, trying to figure out what was going on. It
had already been several years since Sasuke left the
but the images were still fresh in Sakura’s mind. Then again…they weren’t. The
memories were already starting to fade; no longer did the tone of
images cloud Sakura’s eyes. Was she forgetting? No…she was accepting it, and
yet she clung to it desperately. Damnit, am I trying to
NOT get over this? Maybe I just needed something to cling to…some shard of a
broken memory to cherish and hate. Sakura rolled over, propping her head up
with her arms, Maybe I have just been
clinging to a past that’s long gone,
afraid to move on cause I don’t know what the future may bring…Maybe…I just
need to let it go, and embrace the future…take risks and move on with my life
before it slips away on a rapid of broken dreams.
---
Naruto explained the situation
to Shikamaru who frowned, “So you’re saying you no
longer know how to make Sakura happy?” Naruto nodded
solemnly, “Well Naruto, keep something in mind. Back
when Sasuke left, we pursued him because he was a
had with that village and us dissolved. Sasuke is no
longer part of this village, and therefore you really have no reason to
continue perusing him”
“But Sakura wanted him back! I can’t go back on my word!”
“Sakura said herself that you need to get over it, from
the sounds of it she’s moving on and therefore you have too, you’ve fulfilled
your promise to her to the extent that is possible.”
Naruto looked down, “Yea I
guess…but I just want Sakura-chan to be happy…”
Shikamaru sighed, “You worry
about others too much, and you should do what makes you happy, and act on it.
Otherwise you’re going to spend your life standing in the shadows being used.
If you want to be with her, then go do something about it.”
Naruto thought for a moment, “Alright,
hopefully she’s still at the training grounds. Thanks Shikamaru”
he said with a big goofy grin on his face, running off towards the training
fields.
Shakamaru let out a deep sigh
and laid on his back staring at the clouds, “Relationships are so troublesome.”
---
“So Hinata, what have you been
up to lately?” asked Kiba, lounging against a rock, a
hand resting on Akamaru’s head. The small dog from
years past had grown to gigantic proportions.
“Oh nothing much, just a lot of training
with Neji. You know Kiba
it amazes me how huge Akamaru has gotten, I could
almost ride him!” Hinata giggled.
“Well that’s not the only thing that’s huge and ride-able”
Kiba smirked
Hinata
Kiba fell over, with a sigh of
frustration, “Oh never mind…”
Hinata blinked a few more times,
“Well if you’re sure…”
“Yeah, yeah, no problem, say, what were you talking to
“Oh…” she blushed, “I asked him to go out with me, but he
said no”
YES!
nuts for turning you down.”
“No it’s ok, I know he’d rather be with Sakura, he always
has, I guess I was just being hopeful.”
This is my chance!
“Hm I suppose so, so…are you planning on going out
with someone else instead?”
“Hmm, no I don’t think so… not for a few more years I
think.”
DAMNIT! “Hmm
well…if that’s what you really want…I
would just think it be a shame for a girl like you to go so long without a kiss
from a handsome man that will sweep you off your feet…”
Hinata turned an even brighter
red, “Actually I’ve never had a real kiss from a boy…”
“Oh really?”
moving in a little closer to Hinata “You just put
your lips together and….AKAMARU!” The massive dog just decided to relieve himself
on Kiba’s leg. Hinata
giggled as Kiba gawked at his soaked pant leg, “The
older you get the more of an attitude you get! Great,
and these were my favorite pair of pants!”
Hinata smiled, “Well it looks
like you have some cleaning up to do, I need to meet Neji
is 10 minutes for training, so I’ll talk to you later alright
Kiba hung his head, “Yea,
alright, see you later…” Another perfect opportunity
lost…
---
Sakura’s eyes were closed, laid out on her back, the warm
sun played across Sakura’s face. Well that’s
it then, I’ll defiantly move on, its time to let the past go and move on into
my future. She silently thought to herself. Suddenly a shadow blocked out
the sun and Sakura’s eye fluttered opened and she smiled at the face looking
down at her.
“Hello Sakura, lovely day isn’t it?”