Chapter 22: Resolve
The wind howled fiercely atop the cliff, tugging at the loose crimson ribbon tied around her sakura-colored hair. As the wind tore it away, just as it was about to drift off into the endless sky, a delicate, pale hand reached out and caught it.
"Sakura… your thinking is indeed…"
Hiruzen Sarutobi paused, searching for the right words, uncertain how to respond to The Will of Fire According to Haruno Sakura.
"I understand, Grandpa Hokage," Sakura replied, smiling faintly.
"After all, you're already so old now," she added, her tone light but sincere. "If we younger ones keep burdening you with everything, wouldn't that make us look completely useless?"
"That's why I want to take each step on my own… one by one… and make it happen."
As he looked at the serious expression on the pink-haired girl's face, Sarutobi Hiruzen fell silent. Her words had cornered him, leaving no room for argument.
This pink hair may look soft, but there's steel underneath.
"…Sakura," Hiruzen said, staring at the girl before him. His eyes, once clouded by age, now held a piercing clarity, as if he had made a monumental decision.
"What is it, Grandpa Hokage?" Sakura tilted her head curiously.
The old man's dry lips moved slightly, and the words that emerged widened the girl's emerald green eyes.
——
A complete success!
Sakura weighed the purple scroll in her hands. The burden that had been pressing on her chest for years finally lifted, dropping to the ground with a satisfying thud.
The sword of Damocles that had hung above her head had finally vanished.
Unexpectedly, it was a complete success.
All the mental energy, all the lost sleep she had sacrificed to compose The Will of Fire According to Haruno Sakura… was worth it.
Yin Seal: Strength of a Hundred!
It was hers now!
It had taken her two whole years. From a civilian-born academy student, she had skipped multiple grades to enter the sixth year early. And now, thanks to this thesis she'd poured her heart into, she had secured her goal at the graduation exam!
I really am amazing!
At that moment, Sakura felt utterly free. The chains that had bound her spirit for so long were gone.
Even the air smelled fresher, the breeze more refreshing.
What she wanted most now was to share her joy with someone. But deep down, she knew—this happiness wasn't something she could share. It was a secret that had to remain buried in her heart.
Leaping from rooftop to rooftop in Konoha, Sakura didn't even know where she was going.
But… did that even matter?
No. It didn't.
She just wanted to find a quiet place to let it all out.
Two years of effort. Two years of constantly living in fear.
She hadn't had a peaceful night's sleep in all that time, terrified that if the Yin Seal ever showed itself too early, the Interrogation Unit would come and take her away.
She had no idea where her feet had taken her. But when she finally stood before a serene lake and saw the peaceful scenery, she decided this was the right place.
She unrolled the scroll in her hand—marked with special codes denoting top-secret clearance.
Lines of writing flowed before her eyes.
Like seeing an old friend again.
Though this was her first time truly reading it with her own eyes, every word struck a chord deep in her memory. She understood it all at a glance.
Because this was knowledge she had merely "forgotten."
The Yin Seal… In theory, there were no shortcuts to mastering it. It required the practitioner to store chakra little by little, with steadfast determination, until it could be fully realized.
Sakura closed the scroll, her gaze shifting to the lake's mirrored surface. Her reflection stared back at her—flawless, delicate, youthful.
She picked up a small stone from beside her and tossed it into the lake. Ripples spread outward, distorting her reflection, before slowly calming once more.
But now, the face staring back at her lacked the joy it once had.
A strange emptiness hollowed her chest.
She had obtained the Yin Seal, and yet… after the elation faded, no joy remained.
Her mind wandered back to what Hiruzen had said to her.
…
The old man's lips had moved slowly, his normally clouded gaze so intense that Sakura hadn't dared to look straight at him.
"Sakura… would you like to become my student?"
"My final student."
Her pink hair had fluttered in the wind. She could hardly believe her ears.
But then, as if waking from a daze, she had quickly responded, her voice filled with urgency:
"I would!"
"Master!"
…
That purple scroll in her hand—he had given it to her after she said she wanted to become a ninja like Lady Tsunade.
Her emerald eyes dimmed as she stared at it.
Was this… a lie?
Was Hiruzen a good person?
Sakura couldn't help but question herself.
To his enemies, perhaps not.
To his political opponents, certainly not.
But… to her?
She bit her lip. To me, he truly was a kind elder.
Maybe he had his own motives—maybe he wanted to give Naruto deeper ties to the village, and she was just one of them.
But… did that matter?
A noble person is judged by actions, not intentions.
For the sake of this scroll, for the Yin Seal, she had deceived that old man.
Perhaps he had genuinely seen her as the future of Konoha.
And had taken her on as his last disciple.
In this world, the bond between master and disciple, between teacher and student, are two entirely different things.
Kakashi was a teacher to Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura.
But Jiraiya to Naruto, Tsunade to Sakura… those were true masters.
One was an institutional arrangement. The other was a spiritual inheritance.
They could not be compared.
In many ways, the relationship between master and disciple could be even deeper than blood ties.
Suddenly, Sakura stood up.
Her emerald eyes glared fiercely at the lake.
She knew she might be foolish. Arrogant. Self-righteous.
She had placed chains on herself, taken on burdens of her own making.
But so what?
The pink-haired girl picked up another stone, clenched it tightly, and threw it with all her might into the lake.
By normal standards, what kind of power could an eight-year-old girl possibly put into a single stone?
But—
The wind howled. The water screamed.
The entire lake surface erupted into crashing waves.
With a resounding crack, a large tree on the opposite bank groaned and fell to the ground.
Behind it, a stone half as tall as a person was split in two by that same stone.
Monstrous strength.
Absolute brute force.
A gift from Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Old man… if you believe I can do it, then I'll become the person you saw in me.
"Ah—huh?"
"Sakura!"
A familiar, cheerful voice called out, jolting her back to reality.
A blonde boy holding a fishing rod appeared before her.
"Naruto?"
"Are you… fishing?" she asked, surprised to see him here of all places.
"Yeah! I didn't expect to run into you here, Sakura!"
Naruto grinned widely, walking up to her without hesitation.
"Wanna fish together?" he asked. "I can make another fishing rod!"
Sakura scratched her head, a small smile tugging at her lips.
Oh well… it's not like I've got anything else to do today.
"Alright, sure."
"By the way… do you use bait?"
"Bait? What's that?"
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End of Chapter