Born at Dawn, Dead by Dusk

Naruto swallowed hard and sat down next to the chair.

Black Sakura usually seems perfectly normal, but what's terrifying about that woman is that she's not crazy at all; in fact, she's quite restrained, only showing her extreme side to Naruto.

Even if Naruto tells others about this, probably no one will believe him.

It just goes to show that there's always someone who can subdue something else. Even though he's a lawless outlaw who has no sense of martial ethics, he'll still be a little intimidated when he encounters Black Sakura.

"Would you like some water?" Sakura handed over a glass of water, which seemed to be cold.

"Cough."

In the cramped duty room, the curtains were drawn back, but the Nikko was blocked by the mountain of files. Strands of sunlight squeezed in from the corners, reflecting a jumble of light onto the white walls.

A sliver of light fell on the table, landing on the rim of a disposable water cup. Naruto frowned, a slightly unpleasant thought suddenly creeping into his mind.

My beloved is on the mountainside, but the mountain is too high for me to find her. My love gave me osmanthus cake, what can I give her in return?

Sleeping Potion.

"You don't need to be so wary of me. There's no poison or anything like that in the water." Sakura looked up and smiled. "Completely pure."

"I really don't believe you're saying those two words," Naruto said after a pause. "I have important business with you today. Let's talk about water another time."

"What important matter?" Sakura stopped turning the page. "Are you going to accept my suggestion from last time?"

"I absolutely do not accept this." Naruto shook his head. "Lord Tsunade said that Team Seven will be reorganized in a while, and Kakashi-sensei will not have time to continue serving as our instructor Jonin."

"After a while, the higher-ups should assign a Jonin instructor and new teammates. At that time, Team Seven will probably start taking on missions as well."

"I understand." Sakura said "Oh," and her gaze fell on Naruto's face. "If Team Seven is reunited, you won't be able to hide from me anymore, right?"

"I wasn't hiding, I've just been a bit busy," Naruto said calmly. "Sakura, you've been busy training too, so it's normal that we haven't been in touch much, isn't it?"

Hearing him say that, Sakura nodded gently.

"What you said makes a lot of sense, but I don't like this reason. It makes me feel like you're just trying to brush me off, which makes me feel even worse, doesn't it?"

"I'd rather you say you're afraid I'll do something outrageous, and honestly warn me not to do anything strange, or you'll find a way to erase my existence."

"Uh, why would you think that?" Naruto leaned back against the cool chair, looking at Sakura with a complicated expression.

He didn't know how to deal with Black Sakura; so far, she didn't seem aggressive. He'd been hiding for a while, but now there was nowhere left to hide, so he had no choice but to face her head.

"That's just how it is. You really don't need to be so nervous." Sakura's eyes narrowed slightly. "I already said from the beginning that I didn't intend to do anything."

"I'm very satisfied with my life now, and I don't have any intention of doing anything to you. Besides, I cherish Naruto very much."

"Stop, don't say such creepy things." Naruto gasped. "It's come to this, I have nothing more to say. I'll still consider you Sakura no matter what."

"Physically, yes," she added.

"There's no need to emphasize this kind of thing." Naruto grasped the glass of water, the ripples spreading gently. "Forget about those things as soon as possible, it's pointless."

"You said you wanted me to remember you, but ultimately it's because you're worried that Sakura might suddenly wake up one day, and you'll fall into a deep sleep. You'll have to give up your current life and become an observer, no, you might just disappear."

Sakura's smile vanished. She turned her head, her calm black eyes reflecting Naruto's face.

"That's the only thing I really dislike about you."

When Naruto saw that Sakura was no longer calm, he immediately realized that he had hit her sore spot. So he relaxed and asked with a smile.

"Because I see it too clearly?"

"No," Sakura denied. "I just don't like your condescending attitude, saying you're worried you'll disappear someday. You haven't experienced it, so how do you know what I'm thinking?"

"Are you very afraid of dying?" she asked.

Naruto paused slightly, noticing that Sakura's expression was somewhat strange, something indescribable.

After regaining his senses, he replied.

"I'm not that scared, but there are still many things I haven't enjoyed, so I want to live life to the fullest."

"That's really your style," Sakura said. "I'm not afraid of death either. To be precise, I don't have that concept. I'm very satisfied with my daily life."

"But whether there are one more day or one less day like this, it doesn't really matter, do you understand?"

"Because you can't feel the meaning of life?" Naruto asked.

"Pretty much." Sakura pursed her lips. "I was quite happy when I gained control of my body, but as time went on, I wasn't so happy anymore."

"So I want to find some meaning in life. For example, if she likes Sasuke-kun, then I'll make Naruto like me."

"Wait a minute." Naruto interrupted Sakura, his brow furrowing as if something was amiss. "Sakura likes Sasuke, so you want me to like you?"

"What kind of absurd logic is this? The two things are completely unrelated!"

"Do you like her?" Sakura asked, referring to Pink Sakura.

"I don't like it." Naruto shook his head without hesitation. "A comrade is a comrade, and even if I were to like someone else, I have other people I could like. There's no need to hang myself on one tree."

Upon hearing this, Sakura paused for a moment, then burst into loud laughter. Her laughter echoed in the small duty room, tears streaming down her face.

"You really know your place."

Naruto laughed too, "I just didn't have that idea in the first place, and besides, you can't force a relationship."

"It's great to have so many choices," Sakura murmured.

"That kind of thing isn't important, let's not talk about it." Naruto subconsciously changed the subject. "What you really want is the joy of living, right?"

"Hmm." Sakura thought for a moment and said, "I'm quite happy right now, so I don't plan to try anything new. You're the only person I really know around me, so..."

So you're using yourself as a test subject? What kind of human observation experiment is this?! Naruto mentally screamed, black lines appearing on his forehead, and he took a few deep breaths to calm down.

Have you heard the story of the Mayfly?

"No." Sakura shook her head and pointed to her head. "She may have heard of it, but I can't share too many of her memories. Most of them are about Sasuke, and I don't like them."

"Since I'm just killing time anyway, I'll tell you about it." Naruto relaxed after realizing that Sakura wasn't as gloomy as he thought.

"Okay." Sakura stopped what she was doing and sat up straight.

Naruto simply recounted the story of the Mayfly demon from the Hundred Demons Compendium, without embellishing or adding his own personal touches, simply telling the story because he was in a good mood.

"Do Mayfly only live for one day?"

"Yes, don't interrupt me, let me finish."

"I used to know where the sun would rise, but I had never seen it before. Now I have."

"It's not sunny every day," Naruto paused and said, regardless of where the story was headed, "It rains occasionally too."

"I've seen it, and it's quite beautiful, completely different from how I remember her," Sakura said.

"Have you seen the sunrise? Standing on the Hokage Rock and looking into the distance, you can see the edge of the Konoha Forest. It's hazy and misty, like frost." Naruto asked with a boastful smile.

"No."

"Where's the waterfall?"

"No, the hospital has been very busy lately, and I also need to focus on my spiritual practice. If I were to leave, I would have to work night shifts, so I wouldn't say I'm tired. It feels quite novel."

The two chatted casually, and the story ended halfway through.

Naruto was talking about the Fireworks Festival, Sakura told him that she saw the fireworks rising into the sky from her window and that they were quite beautiful. Naruto didn't feel much about it; he just thought they looked pretty.

"It's okay, you'll see it when you do missions later," Naruto reassured him.

"I understand." Sakura suddenly stood up, startling him. "I know what to do."

"What?" Naruto subconsciously felt that something seemed off about how things were going.

"I still want you to fall in love with me." Sakura picked up her pen, the sharp tip pointing at him. "That way, things will get interesting."

"Interesting? Are you misunderstanding something?" Naruto also stood up and took two steps back.

He just wanted a normal teammate, and things were slowly progressing according to the script of camaraderie. He was trying to awaken her longing for camaraderie, but now it seemed...

"It's okay if you like someone else, I'll just be your backup girlfriend."

"Cough cough!!!" Naruto couldn't hold back and started coughing violently. "What did you say!?"

"You'd better calm down, Sakura!"

"I'm very calm." Sakura's eyes reflected the piles of files. "The books say that the most exciting thing is to do things secretly behind everyone's back."

"What books are you reading?"

"A book?" Upon hearing this, Sakura turned around and took out a copy of Make-Out Paradise from the drawer.

Seeing this, Naruto felt a blow to his ego. He acknowledged Jiraiya's writing ability; his mastery of morally questionable writing was a secret to his bestsellers.

Faced with a betrayal from his cheap master's work, Naruto opened his mouth, trying to salvage the situation before things got any weirder and more distorted.

"Wait a minute! Something's not right!"

"I can accept it"

"Stop! Don't repeat that again!" Naruto took a deep breath. He finally understood what Sakura's most terrifying aspect was; he had actually wavered for a moment just now.

Terrifying! Absolutely terrifying!!

"Don't you want to? On the surface, you're clearly a close comrade, but in reality, you're my possession." Sakura's words were like the whisper of a devil.

"I don't like that, but it's okay if it's Naruto."

Besides,