The hero is said to be dead

?*

The afternoon sun shone on the bare mud floor with scorching heat. Although it was not as scorching as the midday sun, it was still unbearable.

It has been more than a month since summer, and even in such an annoying hot weather, ninjas still have to keep practicing, in order to become stronger, and even more so to live even a second longer on the battlefield.

Cultivation in a harsh environment is very particular about speed, blindly holding on will only wear down the body, and proper rest is necessary, so - taking a nap has become the best choice.

Among the branches, where the dense branches and leaves cover the place, the temperature has been maintained at a comfortable state, and even the occasional summer wind seems to be filtered into a cool wind.

It's a nice resting place, private and shady.

There is a faint black hidden among the layers of greenery, which seems to be human clothes, but it seems not to be.At this moment, a gust of hot wind blows in the face, and the branches and leaves sway instantly into blue waves, rustling, revealing the sleeping person leaning on the tree trunk.

Her long black hair was tied behind her head with a red rope, and her bangs slanted behind her ears covered her smooth forehead. Bunches of sunlight shone through the gaps in the leaves and shone on the girl's face, and tiny spots of light danced with the shadows of the trees.

The girl didn't sleep well, her brows were slightly frowned, the blood was gone on her fair face, and cold sweat occasionally slipped down her forehead.

It seems to be a nightmare...

I don't know what happened to the girl in the dream, her expression suddenly became very desperate, and in a blink of an eye she showed a cold killing intent.After tossing like this, the girl's face gradually became calm.

A drop of tear condensed from the corner of her eye and shattered on the branches below her. The girl's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she opened her eyes.

What catches the eye is a piece of rich green, with the glare of the sun shining from the top of the head, Hui subconsciously raises her hand to cover her eyes.

my hand?

Consciousness was still a little fuzzy, and Hui looked at her little hand suspiciously, feeling both familiar and unreal.

"benefit!"

A familiar voice came from under the tree, Hui's body shook, and he lost his balance and fell from the tree.The feeling of weightlessness mixed with the sound of wind in her ears woke her up, her body made an instant judgment, and Hui used the strength of her waist to twist her body around.

From lying on his back to facing the ground, Huizheng was about to do something, but lost his judgment when he saw the person under the tree.

"Bang—" The sound of a heavy object falling to the ground shocked the leaves.

The young man suppressed the painful muffled sound in his ears, felt the reality of the young man below him, and his consciousness was controlled by unknown emotions. Hui tightly circled the young man's neck, and his body got closer, as if only this could soothe the unspeakable heart. of fear.

"Great……"

With her cheek pressed against the boy's ear, Megumin's voice trembled slightly, and she said something that even she didn't understand.

"...Great...Madara...you're still alive..."

Madara originally came to find Megumi, who hadn't been seen for a long time. He didn't expect to see the girl falling from the sky as soon as he called out.Without even thinking about it, he rushed over to catch Kei who was frozen in the air for some reason, and Madara was startled by Kei's reaction before he had time to ask.

The two bodies were tightly pressed against each other without leaving a gap, and Madara could clearly feel the girl's soft body that had begun to develop.The girl's warm breath was next to his ears, and he, who had never been so close to a person of the opposite sex, couldn't help but blush.

"Meiyou... what happened?" Madara didn't know where to put his hands, and finally suppressed the embarrassment and shyness in his heart, he asked the girl in his arms softly.

The negative emotions accumulated in my heart in the past few days were all vented in this hug and cry, and the moment her rationality returned, Hui was in a bad mood.

She couldn't control her emotions for a while, and she actually made such an overstepping movement. Hui kept circling Mottled's neck, and an unnatural blush had already appeared on her face.

"Actually...it's nothing. I just had a nightmare..." Recalling what happened in the dream, Hui's expression was weird for a moment.

"Nightmare?" Madara repeated Hui's words, he was surprised what kind of dream made Hui lose his composure.

Hui didn't answer right away, some things she didn't feel when she was dreaming, but it was different when she woke up and thought about it, she didn't really want to talk about the things in the dream.

"...So, what kind of nightmare?" Madara couldn't see Kei's expression in the current posture of the two of them, and he continued to ask.

"...It's...you...and Quanna...the nightmare of leaving." After struggling for a while, Kei said a part, and this part was enough for Madara to figure it out.

The smile on his face was fleeting, Madara hugged Megumin lightly, then reached out to lift her up, and got up from the ground himself.

"It's over, the Nine-Tails attack is over. I was only seriously injured, I'm still alive, and I will continue to live in the future. Then——Quanna will live, and Megumin will live, I promise." Hei Ruyushi Staring at Kei, Madara promised word by word.

"Madara..." Gazing blankly at the young man in front of him who was not quite the same as usual, Hui said softly, "...you seem to talk more today."

A string of tic-tac-toe popped out of his head, and Madara resisted the urge to explode, and tried to choke out a sentence: "I really don't know what to say about you..."

Wen Wen smiled, Hui didn't tell Madara, he had said similar things to himself in the dream.Now... she just returned the sentence to him.

……

After sorting out the documents on the table and putting them away, Ikuko Uchiha was about to leave to take a look at the nearest wounded.She stood up from the chair, and when she looked up, she saw Kei standing in front of the table at some point.

"Hui?!" Startled, Yu Zi rubbed his slightly aching head, while reflecting that he was too obsessed with reading to notice Hui's arrival, while lamenting that the girl's ability to hide her breath was getting better and better.

"What happened, you came to me suddenly?" Yu Zi asked Hui with a gentle expression.

"Senior Yuzi, I want to ask you one thing. About... dreams and reality." After careful consideration, Hui decided to express all the questions in his heart to find an answer.

Surprised by Kei's serious attitude, Yu Zi put away her smile.She took a good look at the girl in front of her, and then sat back on the chair.

Recounting what happened in the dream in a calm tone, Kei tried not to meet Ikuko's eyes.

After finally telling all the details she remembered, Hui silently let out a sigh of relief, and then quietly waited for Yuzi's reaction.

"Pfft..." It could be heard that the owner was trying hard to hold back a laugh.

really……

Sighing helplessly, Hui has given up any chance to argue.After losing control of her emotions that time, she recalled that long and real dream again. Although she couldn't remember many details, she still had an impression of the basic things and people.

I have to complain, the self in the dream is really... Terribly negative.It is said that dreams exaggerate a lot of people's emotions, and now she really understands it.

"...So, you came to ask me to interpret my dream?" Yu Zi looked at Hui with a funny face.

"Senior Yuzi!" Hui frowned and whispered in a low voice.

"Okay~ okay~ I know..." Retracting her joking gaze, Ikuko started to discuss her dream with Kei formally, "Objectively speaking, your dream was triggered by the 'Nine Tails Incident' Self-protection of the body. You witnessed the whole process of Madara being seriously injured by Kyuubi and opened your eyes, and then your emotions further collapsed under the stimulation of "Madara may die". The most important thing is - you didn't vent these emotions Come out, but press it in the bottom of my heart..."

Speaking of this, Yu Zi took a deep look at Hui, and then turned his gaze out of the window.

"...You should be thankful that you had this dream. It vented out all the negative emotions you suppressed in your heart, otherwise... as time goes by, you will collapse... just like you in the dream."

Recalling everything in the dream, Hui's expression changed.

"Hui, try to smile more...don't put everything in your heart and bear it alone, and..." Speaking of this, Yuzi thought of the child of the patriarch's family, and she sighed, "...don't be like Madara .”

"?" Hui tilted her head in doubt, she didn't understand what this had to do with Madara.

"People can influence each other. Madara's child looks strong, proud and independent, but in fact... On the other hand, he is an extremely insecure person. He is so sensitive that it makes people feel helpless. Like a hedgehog, he hides his weakness in his heart and protects himself with the thorns covering his whole body..." Rubbing his forehead feebly, Yu Zi shook his head and smiled wryly, "... so does the father, so does the son... oh... If the wife still It's good to be here..."

Seeing that the topic had shifted to another place, and he might hear something that he shouldn't have heard if he stayed any longer, Hui calmly put forward his idea of ​​leaving.

Coming out of Yuzi's room, Kei walked towards home while thinking about the information that the other party inadvertently revealed.

Does she lack "maternal love" because of her mother's early death... But she doesn't have a mother either, and she doesn't see herself with strange attributes like Madara.Could it be... is it because of the father (patriarch)?

Comparing the impression of the patriarch's cold face with her father's smiling face at home, Hui strengthened her guess. She didn't consider that the patriarch might behave differently when facing the clan and facing the family.

From what Senior Yuzi said, Madara seems to be in a very dangerous situation... What will happen to a person who lacks love and has no sense of security when negative emotions pile up?

Wrapping one arm around his chest, resting his elbow on it, Hui's index finger curled up and rested on his lower lip, thinking silently.

It seems...maybe...will be the same as what happened in her dream?

At the thought of this possibility, Hui's face instantly became serious.

It seems that what Ikuko-senpai said is quite right... It would be great if Madara's mother was still alive, or to be more realistic, if only someone could become "Mara's mother".

But thinking of the smiling, nostalgic and longing expression on Madara's face that rarely fluctuates when he mentions his mother, Hui feels that this is a fantasy.

Unless it is a woman Madara is familiar with and has felt "mother-like tenderness" from her, otherwise...

Ugh?Wait a moment!

Madara is familiar with..."Motherly Gentle"...

It seems...Senior Yuzi... quite meets these two conditions...

Subconsciously turning around and looking at the room in the distance, Hui showed a ghostly expression on his face.

After being dazed for two seconds, Hui quickly turned around, and she quickly dispelled the amazing thoughts in her mind, and quickly left this place.

Hui thought that she must have been affected by the previous dream to have such terrible thoughts.

If senior Yuzi found out that she didn't sleep a wink for several days and nights to save Madara, and then took meticulous care of Madara's deeds as a strong proof that she became "the object of Madara's mother's love", senior Yuzi would definitely kill her.

Pushing open the door, Hui took off her shoes and arranged them neatly, then walked barefoot to the kitchen where voices could be heard faintly.

... Instead of having time to think about such impossible things, it is better to find time to verify what happened in the dream.She can still remember after waking up... She doesn't think that everything that happened in the dream was shaped by her own consciousness.

Reaching out to open the door, Hui slowly raised the corners of her mouth when she saw the tall figure busy with her back facing her, revealing a joyful smile that should belong to an ordinary child.

"Father, I'm back..."?

☆, postscript

?*

After reading the comments, I feel that it is necessary to explain the ending and the extra episode, so I put the postscript in advance.Considering that some people may not read what the author has to say, put it in the text.

About the ending: The ending of Hui Dreaming was decided halfway through the writing, because I think "dream" is a mysterious thing.If it is a dream, then some bugs in the text and Hui’s extreme negative performance can also be explained (yes! I want to save Hui’s!), but this does not mean that Sakura is unreal, in summary it is : Hui thought that what she was doing predicted the dream, and Senior Yuzi thought that Hui was dreaming to vent her emotions, but it was actually—— Hui's dream was something that happened in a parallel world.In other words, there are three worlds: the original, Hui's world, and Sakura's world. (The theory of the three worlds comes from the words of friends. It seems that I can still write through the original work →→)

About the side story: From now on, I will write Sakura's story (I decided to write a long one~), and I will write Hui's story in the future.I won’t talk about Sakura’s story, I think many people are looking forward to it, but Megumin’s story... Ahem, I can only say that Madara hasn’t met Hashirama at the end, and Megumi will definitely prove that "Senju Hashirama "Whether it exists or not, then she will definitely pay close attention to Madara's whereabouts... Well, let's not talk about it, we will see you in the episode~

ps: Sakura's story will start at midnight tonight!La la la~ I really like writing side stories~

☆, The Road to Sakura ([-])

?*

Sakura, cherry blossom, the person named after it must be a pure and beautiful girl like cherry blossom.

It blooms quietly in the spring when all things are revived. Large expanses of white and pink, the clouds are steaming and rosy, as if destined to be gorgeous and enthusiastic for a lifetime, just like the goddess named "Wood Flowers Blooming" in myths and legends, she must be extremely beautiful.

This girl, with cherry-colored hair and blue eyes, grew up healthily as an ordinary child with the simple and beautiful blessings of her parents.Even if she will experience many hardships in her later life, she will live freely and happily like cherry blossoms fluttering in the wind in the spring sun.

Sakura always thought that this girl was her, even though her parents left her early, she thought so.

It wasn't until she was eight years old that a small green bud sprouted from the bare tree in the yard, that Sakura realized that when the name "Sakura" was dubbed the surname "Senju", it was destined to be a little bit different. Things are different.

Senju...Sakura, Senju Sakura, once she thought it was just an ordinary name, but after she was eight years old, she vaguely understood that she had to bear everything that belonged to this name.

Praise and hope, sorrow and blame, and... responsibility.

The Qianshou couple died when Yunyin Village was invaded four years ago.

At that time, Sakura was only four years old. She looked at her parents who were all ready to go, and her eyes showed a child's reluctance for their parents who traveled far away.The word war doesn't have much profound meaning to her.

Sensing his daughter's depressed mood, Qianshou Zhao walked over and patted Sakura's head lightly.

"Sakura, if you keep frowning your eyebrows, it will become unsightly."

Her father's gentle and teasing tone did not make Sakura feel better. She raised her small face and asked her father, "Are Mom and Dad leaving again? How long will it take to come back? They won't be back for a long, long time." ?"

"I'm sorry, Sakura... Dad and Mom had to leave to protect Sakura and everyone in Konoha. It won't be long, Dad promises." Qianshou Zhao squatted down and looked into his daughter's eyes. He untied a cherry blossom-shaped pendant and put it in the palm of his daughter's hand.

"This pendant will protect Sakura on behalf of Mom and Dad." Putting his daughter's hands together, Qianshou Zhao pointed to the big tree that had just sprouted outside the window and said to Sakura, "When the leaves of that tree are all green, it will bear fruit, Mom and Dad." will come back to you."

Raising her small hand to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes, Sakura seemed to understand and nodded her head.She held the cherry blossom pendant tightly in her palm and pressed it to her chest, and stood at the door like this, watching the backs of her parents disappear into the night.

An unexplainable uncomfortable feeling suddenly surged from the bottom of her heart, and for a moment, Sakura had the illusion that her parents were gone forever.She ran forward a few steps, reaching out to grab something, but finally stopped under the dim streetlight.

Tightening the cherry blossom pendant in her hand, Sakura took one last look at the end of the street, turned and went home.

In late spring and early summer, the big trees in the yard have been dyed a vibrant green, and the cicadas are blowing against the face with the summer heat wave, making people feel lazy out of thin air.

Xiao Sakura sat in the corridor of the yard, staring at the big tree in a daze, and the piece of summer-relief watermelon sent by the neighbor's aunt remained untouched.She lightly touched the protruding part of her chest with her fingers, feeling the coldness coming from the pendant, a trace of loneliness flashed in Sakura's downcast eyes.

The leaves have turned green, a lot of green, deep and shallow, like oil paintings.But... Dad and Mom didn't come back.I heard from my neighbor's aunt that the war is still going on, and my parents must be very busy, so they can't come back.

Next time... next time, when the big tree bears fruit, I will definitely be able to see my parents!

Time flies, and it is the autumnal equinox in a blink of an eye, and the large green areas fade away, replaced by harvested yellow and red.

Sakura was sitting in the corridor, holding a copy of "The Encyclopedia of Plants" that she dug out from her parents' study room in her hands. Her eyes did not stare at the book, but fell on the tree that had already borne fruit.

The tree has already produced large and small fruits, but the couple still haven't come back.It would be a lie to say that she is not disappointed, but Sakura is still looking forward to it, even more so than in the summer, because it is rumored in the village that the war is about to end.

Seeing Mom and Dad soon...

Leaning her head on the pillar of the corridor, two blushes of joy flew up on Sakura's round face.

Winter is coming, and the bare trees are covered with thick snow. This time, instead of sitting in the yard, Sakura is lying on the window of the living room, watching the ninjas coming and going on the street, looking forward to the appearance of her parents.

The war with Yun Yin had ended several days ago, and during this time there was a festive atmosphere in the village, and when the first batch of ninjas returned from the battlefield appeared, this atmosphere evolved into a different kind of Sakura Indescribable atmosphere.

Many people were crying, happy and sad.Sad, Sakura understands, because their loved ones will never come back; happy, Sakura doesn't understand.

Why do relatives cry when they come back?

Sakura thought, when her parents come back, she won't cry like those people, she must smile, show a big smile, ten times prettier than before, and then shout "papa ", "mama", throwing themselves into their arms.

She will pester her father to teach her ninjutsu, and then she will work hard to become stronger, so that she can go to the battlefield with her parents in the future, and she will no longer be left alone.

she wants……

"Ding-dong-"

The doorbell rang suddenly, and Sakura jumped off the window sill, rushed to the door, and opened it.

"Pa..."

As soon as the first syllable is uttered, the rest of the syllables are stuck in the throat and can no longer be uttered.The expression of surprise mixed with excitement on Xiao Sakura's face has not disappeared, and the person at the door caught it, and the pity in the eyes of that person is even worse.

Standing at the door was not the parents that Sakura had been waiting for, but an old man from the Senshou clan.The old man had a very good relationship with the Senshou couple. At this time, he appeared here, looking at Sakura with complicated and incomprehensible eyes, and he didn't know why.

"Xiao Sakura, let's go see your parents, okay?" The old man showed a faint smile and said softly to Xiao Sakura.

"Father... have father and mother come back?!" Hearing that she was going to visit her parents, Sakura agreed without thinking.

At that time, she didn't know that what she was going to see was not the parents she had been waiting for, who would smile at her and rub her hair gently.

"...we will come back when the leaves turn green and the tree bears fruit."

The promise is still there... but it will never be fulfilled.

On the day of the funeral, the sky was covered with gray clouds.This kind of weather is neither rainy nor sunny, gloomy, and the most depressing.

The four-year-old Xiao Ying was wearing black clothes, was led by the old man of the Thousand Hands, and stood in the crowd.Her pink hair drooped on her shoulders, like cherry blossoms wet by rain, her blue eyes were covered in gray mist, but not a single tear shed.

Not not to cry, but because I have already cried, heartbreaking, breathless crying, like all children who have lost their parents.

There are two tombstones in the cemetery that must belong to Sakura's parents, and two of the countless names engraved on the memorial tablet must also be "Thousands of Omens" and "Thousands of Mebuki".

Maybe in a long time, there will be one more person here and above.

Will it be hers?Or... someone else's.

In the crowd, the suppressed crying of a child could be heard faintly. Xiao Ying stood silently, but her thoughts had already flown back to the past.

"Crying won't solve anything. We will choose to cry to vent our sadness, but we won't live in it forever."

That's what her father told her, so she only cried once.

"Maybe one day we will leave you without warning, but I hope you will live strong...even if you are the only one left."

This is what her mother told her, so she has to be strong.

"Even if something like that happens, as long as you have this necklace, we will always be by your side."

That's what her parents told her, she's... never alone.

Four-year-old Senju Sakura, after her parents passed away, was ignorant and for the first time began to seriously think about what her parents had said, and for the first time began to think about everything contained in the word "war".

☆、The Road to Sakura ([-])

?*

"I am back!"

Opening the door and shouting to the empty room, Sakura took off her shoes and put them in order, then walked barefoot to her room.She changed her clothes, which were stained with sweat and dust, and then left the house as usual to go to the neighbor's next door for dinner.

Since her parents died in battle two years ago, Sakura was arranged to be taken care of by her neighbor's aunt's family.It is said to be caring, but in fact, Konoha handed over the pension to them, and the elders of the clan supervised it. Before she was able to support herself, her neighbors were responsible for her food and clothing.

Maybe it's because the relationship between the two families is usually good, and her experience can easily arouse people's sympathy. The neighbor's family is very kind to her and very caring, but... after all, they are not a family.For her, that deserted room with a parental atmosphere in the study and a big tree in the yard is her home, her destination.

The cherry blossom tree in the yard has been dying since two years ago.Sakura still remembers that just after the funeral, grandpa Takashi from the family sent her home.In the snow-covered yard, Grandpa Longzhi held her hand, pointed to the cherry tree and said to her, "Sakura, when the cherry tree bears fruit next autumn, father and mother will come back."

She thought that Grandpa Longzhi must be afraid that she would be sad, so he lied to comfort her.Grandpa didn't know, but she already knew that Mom and Dad went to another world.But it doesn't matter, as long as the cherry tree is still there, it will still bloom, and it will bear fruit, with pink single-petal flowers and small sour fruits, she can feel that her parents are still around.

"Good night, mom and dad. Sakura worked hard today too..." Lying on the bed, Sakura put her right hand on the pendant on her chest, and reported her day's experience to her parents in a volume that only she could hear.

This habit was formed by Sakura a few months ago, and she is unshakeable. She spends a few minutes before going to bed to communicate with her parents who are far away in another world.At this time, she is the happiest, because mom and dad may appear in her dream.

"...I love you, Dad, Mom."

Ending today's exchange with the same words, Sakura let go of the hand holding the pendant, turned sideways and fell asleep.

……

Early the next morning, Sakura opened her eyes on time and got up from the bed. Her movements were crisp and quick, and she quickly changed into light clothes.

Keep up the hard work today too, starting with... a morning run.

It was still early, and the air-conditioning from last night had not dissipated. There were not many people on the street, and many shops were not open.

Sakura's running route starts from the door of her house and ends at the breakfast restaurant on Santiao Street. She is a frequent customer of that breakfast restaurant, and the time is fixed every day, and the boss already knows her.

"It's very early today, Sakura!" After wrapping up two buns and handing them to the girl, the shopkeeper greeted him kindly with a smile.

"Well, thank you, Uncle Shopkeeper!" With a cute smile on his healthy red face due to exercise, Sakura took the paper bag, thanked the shopkeeper and ran towards home.

Walking home with small steps, Sakura went through the day's itinerary in her mind.

After a good breakfast, I went to see the sick cherry tree, and then finished the book I hadn’t read before. In the afternoon, I went to Grandpa Takashi to ask him about shuriken throwing skills. In the evening... Ah!correct!Bringing sweet treats to the neighbor aunt's son at night!

Stopping in her tracks, Sakura glanced at the dessert shop on the front right with an advertisement for three-color dumplings, and silently added a word in her heart.

"...life is born, life dies...but life can also be saved..."

Whispering to himself, if you don't pay attention to listen, you don't know what you're talking about.The moment they passed by, Sakura heard a cold and clean voice say so.

life will... die...

Subconsciously stopped, Sakura repeated this sentence in her heart, she seemed to understand something, but she didn't seem to understand anything.Sensing the departure of the person who spoke, she turned her head curiously, and what she saw was the back of a boy who was about a head taller than herself.

It's a ninja...a ninja like Mom and Dad.

Her eyes fell on the unusual blue forehead strap on the back of the boy's head, Sakura thought to herself, and then her eyes moved down.After her eyes touched the round fan pattern embroidered on the back of the opponent's clothes, she added three words before the attributive.

It's... Uchiha's ninja.

Uchiha.

The first time Sakura saw these three characters was in a book about the history of the Thousand Hands Clan. "The old enemy of the Thousand Hands", that's what it says in the book.

Enemy... What is an enemy?She doesn't understand.Do you mean the enemy?So what is an enemy?Is it the relationship between Konoha and Yunyin?

"...Uchiha has a genius...it won't be long...hey...if Tsunade is here, we Senju won't be able to... Sakura, you have to work hard, our children of Senju's class Among them, you have the best talent.”

Sakura thought of what Grandpa Takashi said, and she was even more confused.It is said in the book that Senju and Uchiha formed an alliance to establish Konoha. Doesn't the alliance mean the dissolution of the hostile relationship?Why... Grandpa Takashi would be so unhappy when Uchiha had a talent?

"Sakura!"

The sound of warning sounded, and Sakura was clever, her small body turned in the air, and the kunai in her hand was thrown.Five kunai collided with each other, two were nailed to the target at a tricky angle, and three fell to the ground.

"Xiao Ying, why did you lose your mind during training?!" As soon as Xiao Ying stabilized her body on the ground, Senju Takashi walked up to her and asked her seriously.

"I'm sorry, Grandpa Longzhi..." Sakura lowered her head to apologize, she knew that Grandpa Longzhi was always strict in practice.

"Sakura, with your talent, if you don't work hard, you will soon be surpassed by the children of the Uchiha family." Takashi Senju patted Sakura's head and said earnestly, "Oh... I heard that the head of the Uchiha family The youngest son has also started ninja enlightenment training. That child named Sasuke, as the younger brother of Uchiha Itachi, must have excellent talent!"

Sakura nodded with half understanding, she didn't really understand why she had to compete with that "Uchiha Sasuke", why Senju had to fight Uchiha.Obviously...the so-called "Qian Shou's class has the best talent" was just selected from among the three.

I don't know when, Senju Takashi's requirements for Sakura became more and more strict, and the amount of training was also increased a little bit. However, Sakura didn't feel bored, and she was satisfied with a fulfilling life.

However, the good times didn't last long, and as time went by, some things gradually deteriorated.The busy life slowly became less beautiful, and when she had to give up something because of training, the inner boredom grew.

"Why is it so painful..."

With a wave of his arm, he threw a row of shuriken.

"Since when did the long-awaited training time become so annoying..."

Sweat dripped down his smooth forehead.

"Why...she has to work hard for someone she has never even met?"

Eyes filled with tired emotions were dizzy with gray mist.

……

It was at this time that Sakura met that person, who would be her best friend no matter what happened in the future.

"Well... do you like flowers and plants too?"

Sakura, who was flipping through a book in the bookstore, turned her head when she heard the sound.

The owner of the voice is a girl with light yellow short hair, about the same age as Sakura, with a long bunch of bangs hanging on the right side of her cheek, and the one on the left is caught by a dark green hairpin. Her big eyes are very energetic.

"No..." Xiao Sakura showed a friendly smile to the girl, "It's just that there is a cherry blossom tree at home, which has been sick and can't sprout, so..."

"So that's how it is!" The girl suddenly realized, she pointed to herself with her right hand and said to Sakura, "My home is a flower shop, 'Yanzhong Flower Shop', my name is Yamanaka Ino, if you have any questions about flower trees, you can ask me!"

"Uh... hello, I'm Senju Sakura." Surprised by Ino's enthusiasm, Sakura smiled and said her name.

"So your name is 'Sakura'! It's a beautiful name..." Ino was about to chat with Sakura when her mother called her from the door of the bookstore.Saying goodbye to Sakura with regret, telling Sakura to come to her, Ino turned and ran to her mother.

Seeing Ino running away, Sakura looked down at the book in her hand, and suddenly felt that what Ino said made sense.

Perhaps it is more useful to ask someone more experienced in this area than to search here!

After that, Sakura often went to the Yamanaka flower shop to ask Ino for advice about cherry blossom trees.When Ino couldn't solve the problem, the two little girls would take each other to find Ino's mother.

The friendship between girls is always so simple and pure. During the unhappy time for Sakura, Ino became the only beam of warm sunshine, which made her smile when she recalled it many years later. ?

☆、The Road to Sakura ([-])

?*

"Sakura! Sakura! Let me tell you, I fell in love with someone!" Ino ran to Sakura with a look of excitement.

"……the person I like?"

Sakura closed the book in her hand, she looked at Ino, whose face was flushed with shyness and joy, and suddenly wondered who could make her always strong friend show such a cute expression.

"Yes! Yes! I told you that he is super handsome..." Talking about the person he likes, Ino danced excitedly, his light blue eyes sparkled brightly, "...if you see him , will definitely fall in love with him!"

"...So - who is he?" Sakura became even more curious, and a little bit unconvinced.Who on earth could make Ino think that she would like it too.

"... Sasuke, his name is Sasuke Uchiha!"

Sasuke Uchiha? !

Sakura's face changed in an instant, and the fingers pinching the pages of the book unconsciously exerted force, and the uncontrolled force poked a hole out of the thin paper.

The slight cracking sound drew Sakura's attention back, she looked down at the small fragments in her hand, her eyes were full of pity.

"Sakura...you don't know Sasuke-kun too, do you?" Ino asked carefully, noticing that something was wrong with Sakura.

"Ah? Ah... It's not that I know him, but I often hear his name..." Sakura's eyes fluttered, but she just didn't look at Ino.She did hear this name often. From Grandpa Longzhi, it was the name of her opponent, the person she wanted to surpass.

In the cognition of the seven-year-old Sakura, the "rival" is the worst relationship, and it must be "undead".The person her friend likes is actually her opponent... She doesn't want the other party to know about this kind of thing.

"It's not just that, is it? Sakura, you must be hiding something! We are best friends, no matter what difficulties we have, we have to face them together!" Feeling that Sakura was hiding something important, Ino puffed up , looked at Sakura seriously.

Ino's attitude touched Sakura, she hesitated for a while, and finally made up her mind.