Prove that the Sasuke people had seen was a fake.
That’s what she’d said to the Hokage, but even after Sakura set her mind to the problem after returning home, she couldn’t think of a way to actually do it. And instead of focusing on how she could prove he was a fake, her thoughts kept turning to why Sasuke didn’t come back.
Hurry up and come home, Sasuke.
Tell me that the real you would never do anything like that…
A sliver of anxiety wormed its way into her heart. And that sliver kept her from being able to collect her thoughts, so she simply prayed fervently that she would get to see Sasuke again soon.
This is a waste of time.
Thinking that moving her body might clear her mind as well, Sakura left the house and set out walking without any particular destination. But before she knew it, she was on the academy’s doorstep. Perhaps some unconscious desire to get far away from the hustle and bustle of the business district had brought her here.
In the early afternoon, she could hear the voices of the children at school. She decided to watch them for a bit through the fence.
As she walked around to the schoolyard, she saw children around the age of ten practicing their karate kata in pairs. Then she looked over at the teacher giving the lesson.
Oh! It’s Naruto!
“Come on, you guys! Don’t just go through the motions. Seriously, you have to actually think about the next attack and get yourself ready!”
She’d heard that Naruto had started teaching at the academy from time to time as a special lecturer after the Great War. And watching him now, he seemed to be doing an excellent job of it.
“Hey! When you’re done sparring, make sure you weave the sign of reconciliation! Whether you’re strong or weak or whatever, that’s a ninja rule.”
Students who did not follow the kata etiquette got a rap on the head from Naruto.
You were like that too, way back when, Sakura told him in her head and smiled softly.
Once he had given instruction to all the students, Naruto had them line up and bowed with them.
Raising his head, he noticed Sakura. “Hey!” he called out. “Sakura!”
She waved her hand in a small gesture.
“You guys just wait a sec,” Naruto told the children before trotting over to her. “What’s up? You got the day off?”
“Mmm, well, I guess it’s something like that,” Sakura answered. “But look at you. You’re quite the teacher, hmm?”
“Right?” Naruto grinned and rubbed the bottom of his nose with a finger. He then clapped his hands together. “Oh, hey! You’re here now, why don’t you give it a go too? Teach them their kata.”
“What? No, I’m good.”
“Come on, just for a minute. Show them the incredible techniques of a lady ninja with superhuman strength!”
“Now look, you can just stop with the ‘superhuman’ thing—”
“Hey! Guys! A super amazing guest teacher’s come by for you today!” Naruto turned toward the children and shouted, without sparing a second for Sakura’s protests. “Check it out! Superhuman lady ninja teacher, Haruno Sakura!”
“And now you say it a second time!” Just as Sakura shot off this retort, the children joined their voices as one.
“Thank you very much, superhuman teacher!”
“See? This is because you shoot your mouth off!” Sakura said with a snort, but Naruto paid her no mind.
“Hurry up!” he called, returning to the children.
Honestly, this guy…
But now that he had set her up, all Sakura could do was go and teach for a bit. Shaking her head, she stepped into the schoolyard.
When she actually got in there with the children and instructed them on their kata, she noticed that her spirits were unexpectedly lighter.
It was a technical sort of instruction, but the children were all at different levels, so she had to change her method for each child she spoke with. Some digested what she said so quickly it was surprising, while others still couldn’t do it after being told several times. All of it was the individuality of the children.
As she demonstrated the kata, she thought of how to phrase her instructions to meet the needs of each student. Using both her body and her brain like this, she could feel the stagnation blocking her heart these past few days melting away. She was entirely absorbed in teaching until the bell rang.
At the end of the lesson, Naruto made the students line up. “You guys did good. So to finish up, today’s guest teacher, Miss Haruno Sakura, has something very special to say. Listen up.”
“Huh?!” Having been abruptly tossed the baton like this, Sakura was baffled. “H-hold on a minute. What are you talking about?”
“Anything’s fine. Just a few words from a graduate to the kids coming up.”
“Miss Sakura, please be brief,” one of the students said, and those around her laughed. Even in this day and age, there was always someone looking for laughs.
Dammit, Naruto!
Glaring at him out of the corner of her eye, Sakura desperately racked her brains for what to say.
“Er, what should I say? I wasn’t expecting this, so I really will keep it short.”
With the children staring directly at her, Sakura continued, “It was so much fun doing this lesson with you all today. The kata are the foundation of ninja fighting, so don’t neglect them. Practice them a lot, okay?”
To bring things to a close, she said, “And maybe some of you already know about this, but as a medical ninja, I created something called the children’s therapy center. It’s a place where kids who have been through some tough times and are maybe hurting can come and work on getting past that hurt with us. Minds are tricky things, you know. It’s only natural that we can’t know what other people are thinking and feeling, but sometimes we don’t even understand what’s going on in our own minds. We can train with a partner to make our bodies stronger, but how do we make our minds stronger? I want you all to become ninja with strong bodies, of course, but also strong minds. So to make that happen, please fail a lot, please do a lot of embarrassing things, and, well, love a lot of people. If you do, I’m sure…”
∞
“Hup!”
“Thanks.” Sakura took the can of juice Naruto offered.
After the lesson was over, they had gone to a park near the academy. Sitting side by side on a bench, they drank their juice.
“Hey, thanks for helping out with the lesson, Sakura.”
“Sure. It was fun for me too. A nice change of pace.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“But I honestly was surprised, you know. You really have the makings of a great teacher, Naruto.”
“Heh heh. I guess it’s just I was always falling behind, so I totally get how the kids who can’t do it feel, y’know?”
“Right.”
“But I mean, you! You were so great. I just come and teach at the academy sometimes, but you’re actually really working with kids in a real way, right?”
“Not at all. Not me.” Sakura shook her head. Being complimented directly like this was hard somehow. Finishing off the last of her juice, she sighed. “I’m a disaster. I told the kids back there to be ninja with strong minds too, but I’m basically the worst at that right now.”
“Something happen?” Naruto said, and tossed his empty juice can into a garbage can several meters away.
Sakura watched the perfect shot and suddenly felt like telling him everything. “So, Sasuke, okay?”
“Sasuke?”
“People have been seeing Sasuke all over lately. But—”
She hesitated for a second about whether or not it was all right for her to talk with him about it. But in the end, she did. He was going to hear about it sooner or later anyway, and she’d rather he heard it from her.
Naruto listened to the whole story without interrupting. And then he said, “Huh, that so? So that’s what’s happening.” His tone was light, without a hint of seriousness, and Sakura felt somehow letdown.
“‘That so?’ You’re not surprised?”
“Why would I be? I mean, that Sasuke’s a fake, right?”
“He is, but…” Sakura was slightly dissatisfied with his lack of a reaction. She thought he would be surprised or angry or get excited or show a little more emotion of some kind.
“If it’s a fake, then no need to worry. Don’t get too hung up on it, Sakura.”
“But we still don’t know who would make a fake like this or why, you know?”
“I’m telling you, it’s fine,” Naruto said, and smiled at her.
Sakura sighed. “Somehow, talking to you, I end up feeling like I was so silly for worrying like crazy about it. And Sasuke, he hasn’t answered any of the messages we’ve sent—”
“There, that!” Naruto suddenly shouted.
“What? Why are you shouting?”
“Sasuke’s not answering, so I’m not worried either.”
“I totally do not understand.”
“Okay, look.” He scratched his head as if trying to figure out how to put it before continuing. “The fact that he hasn’t come back to the village even though there’s some fake of him hanging around means he doesn’t think it’s a big deal either.”
“Sasuke doesn’t?” Sakura murmured. He doesn’t think it’s a big deal…
“If he was here, he’d say, ‘Don’t call me to the village over something so trivial. You guys take care of it,’” Naruto said, imitating Sasuke.
Sakura burst out laughing. And then, as if the fog had cleared away, she realized Naruto was right. What was she moping around for? She switched tracks from her negative thoughts and sat up straighter.
“Right. That’s it, isn’t it?”
The fact that Sasuke hadn’t come back to the village was because Sasuke himself didn’t see the current matter as particularly serious. It was a very Naruto-like, simple, clear-cut opinion, but his words were exactly what Sakura needed at that moment.
A smile naturally spread across her lips.
“It’s the best when you smile, Sakura, y’know?” Naruto said, and grinned wide enough to show his teeth.
Sakura took a deep breath. It was a sign of how her mood had changed that even the air tasted good.
“Thanks, Naruto,” she said, standing up. “I feel better after talking to you.”
“Heh heh heh,” Naruto laughed. “But, y’know, Sakura, that Sasuke’s such a headache. I mean, always giving you trouble like this.”
Naruto playing at the big brother was so ridiculous that Sakura burst out laughing again.