Reunion

Ninja Academy

The beige-haired girl propped her cheek on one hand and stared at the blue sky outside the window, her thoughts drifting.

Sakura had already graduated two years ago...

It had been such a long time since she had seen Sakura...

What was Sakura doing right now...?

Honestly, didn't Sakura know to come play with her...?

Sakura was the worst...

But Sasuke was so handsome...

"Ino."

"Answer the question I just asked."

Iruka's voice rang out from the podium, making Ino blink.

A question?

What question?

Ino looked blankly at Iruka on the podium, appearing both innocent and foolish.

Seeing Ino's clueless expression, Iruka's gaze sharpened.

"Go stand outside as punishment!"

"Okaaay~~"

Ino trudged out of the classroom and was met by four grinning faces.

Naruto, Kiba, Choji, and Shikamaru.

Looking at those four carefree faces, Ino's mouth twitched.

She had actually ended up hanging around with people like them...

After finally enduring until school was over, Ino stepped out of the Ninja Academy as usual.

"Ino, over here."

A voice that was both familiar and unfamiliar rang out.

Ino froze for a moment.

A flash of pink in her field of vision was dazzlingly eye-catching.

Sakura?

Sakura had come to pick her up after school?

Just as Ino was about to throw herself at her, someone was faster.

A golden figure tore past her from behind like a gust of wind, shouting as he ran:

"Sakura-chan!"

Aaaah!

That bastard Naruto, get away from my Sakura!

Idiot!

"Sakura!"

"You haven't come to see me in so long!"

With one hand pressed against Naruto's forehead, Sakura kept him from moving forward no matter how hard he struggled. Prevented from hugging her, Naruto looked like an abandoned child, utterly pitiful.

Sakura could not help feeling helpless.

"Sorry, Naruto."

"There really were a lot of things going on recently."

"But from now on, I should have more time."

Sakura casually ruffled his blond hair.

"Hehe, then Sakura has to come see me."

"I learned how to make some really delicious dishes."

"Even Choji couldn't stop praising them!"

Choji?

Wasn't that guy fine with anything as long as it was edible?

Seeing Naruto's treasure-showing expression, Sakura's expression softened.

"I will, Naruto."

"Sakura!"

Before Naruto could react, a figure had already pounced into Sakura's arms.

"Sakura, you idiot!"

"You haven't come to see me in forever!"

Ino wrapped her arms around Sakura's waist and rubbed against her like a cat.

"Why can Ino hug her, but I can't...?"

Blondie pouted as he watched Ino cling to Sakura.

"Huh?"

"Sakura and I are both girls."

"How could you hug Sakura, Naruto?"

Ino turned her head and looked at Naruto with undisguised disdain.

Before Naruto could argue back, Ino clung to Sakura like a kitten again and said:

"Sakura, you suddenly went so long without coming to see me."

"I thought you'd forgotten about me."

Sakura rubbed Ino's head and spoke helplessly.

"It's because I've been too busy."

"There's too much to do after becoming a ninja."

"I simply couldn't spare the time."

Training, carrying out Anbu missions, and helping Hiruzen Sarutobi formulate strategies had left Sakura wishing she could split one day into three.

She simply had no time to visit Ino.

Fortunately, things could stabilize for the time being now, and Sakura could finally have some time of her own.

"All right~~"

Ino pouted before reluctantly replying.

Sakura had always been like this. Even back at the Ninja Academy, Ino had never seen Sakura have any time to herself.

She was either reading or training.

Ino hadn't expected Sakura to remain the same after becoming a ninja.

Then Ino noticed Sakura's pink ponytail, which now fell past her shoulders. The red hair ribbon from before had been replaced by a black one.

"Where's the hair ribbon I gave you?"

At Ino's question, an apologetic look appeared on Sakura's face.

"Sorry, Ino. It broke during a mission."

Sakura wasn't lying to Ino. It really had been damaged during one of her missions with Tenzo and the others.

"Then I'll give Sakura another one. What color do you like?"

Sakura tilted her head, thought for a moment, and then said:

"Black."

Red was too conspicuous. Black offered better concealment.

Though her pink hair wasn't exactly subtle either.

"Eh?"

"Why black again?"

Ino released Sakura and carefully looked over her outfit.

Compared to her days at the Ninja Academy, Sakura was now dressed entirely in black.

Her clothes could not have been simpler: a standard black ninja outfit often worn by ninjas, along with a pair of black ninja sandals.

She looked completely like a boy.

"Me too!"

"Me too!"

Naruto jumped around nearby, making his presence known.

"Huh?"

"What do you want, Naruto?"

Ino put her hands on her hips and glared at Naruto in annoyance.

Could it be that Naruto wanted her to give him something too?

No way~~~

Of course, if Naruto said something nice, then maybe it wouldn't be impossible.

"I want to give Sakura a gift too!"

Just as Naruto was about to continue, several more people walked over.

Shikamaru, Kiba, Choji, and Hinata, who stood off to the side watching them enviously.

Oh, and Shino too. If Sakura had not been so sharp-eyed, she might have missed him.

"You're drawing too much attention, idiot."

Shikamaru gave Naruto a helpless look, but his gaze drifted involuntarily toward Sakura.

More precisely, toward Sakura's clothes.

It was the ninja outfit that only Chunin in the clan wore.

In other words, Sakura had already been promoted from Genin to Chunin during this time.

"Everyone's here. How about I treat everyone to a meal?"

"How about barbecue?"

Sakura looked at the people before her and spoke with a light smile.

"Yeah!"

"Sakura's the best!"

Choji, who was munching on potato chips nearby, cheered.

"Woof!"

Akamaru, perched atop Kiba's head, immediately chimed in.

"Hinata, do you want to come too?"

Sakura looked at the girl who had been hiding in the back and waved to her.

"Eh?"

"C-can I?"

Hinata's cheeks reddened, and she did not dare look Sakura in the eye.

"Of course."

Without hesitation, Sakura took Hinata's hand and led the group of classmates beside her toward the Barbecue Shop in the village.

After all, Anbu ninja benefits were fairly good. In terms of salary alone, they could be considered high-income earners.

On the way, Sakura specifically asked about Sasuke, only for Kiba to tell her that Sasuke had gone straight home as soon as school ended.

Her plan to invite him fell through.

After all, from Sakura's perspective, this was also a rare class gathering.