Welcome back my candy hearts and paper flowers! Hope you enjoyed the last of June, I just spent it enjoying the last season of squid game. It was just what I needed after a bit of family drama and emotional turmoil. Nothing like a good story to recover. Anyway if you're running on fumes like me I hope this chapter will refuel you, so enjoy!
Chapter 81
The destruction was nothing compared to the upheaval that class A was experiencing, as another rigid debate began to break out among the peers. Some who arrived a little late to the party were taking in the decorative destruction left behind by the hostess who impolitely left early. A new comprehension of Sakura's power was shining through the dust and it was becoming a clear warning sign to them all. This single battle royal could not be won by them. It was crackling their brave masks. Sakura had shown her destructive power before, but it had never been aimed at her classmates in this manner. She was always tamed and controlled when she exhibited her ability, especially if she had to stand against one of her classmates. But this attack was comparable to the destruction at Kamino. Which had a different impact when you were standing in front of it rather than from behind a screen. The situation was as unique as watching a hurricane from a distance while someone else was getting swept away by it.
"Oh man," Denki couldn't help but whistle, but there was a hint of exasperation and reservation in his eyes, even his bottom lip twitched with discomfort.
"Is everyone uninjured?" Tenya called out.
"You're kidding right?" No one was truly injured despite enduring that calamity of a punch. It might've been the only confirmation they had that this wasn't a fight to the death or made with malicious intent.
"We need to track her down," Tenya said after confirming that all his classmate's injuries were manageable. This wasn't the first time they had been hit with such a striking force. During the provisional licensing test, they had also met someone with the ability to shift an entire field in a single move and though separated they all managed to avoid injury then as well. "If we don't find her before the time limit-
Minoru chose to bounce in and cut Tenya's incoming monologue. "Are you insane!? Did you see what she did to this place? You still think you can take that bell off her?" He craned his neck to look around at the rest of his classmates, "I mean we're all thinking it, right? There's no way we can actually-
"SHUT YOUR MOUTH SMALL FRY!" Katsuki's quickly exploded with his voice. But he looked far from angry while his eyes were raging there was a deeply sinister smile on his face. Its presence loomed like an omen. "She's finally taking off the kid gloves. If you wanna back out that's your problem but don't drag me to your level. I'm not stopping till I rip that bell from her, even if I have to beat her to a pulp to do it!"
"Sounding real villainy there," Hanta commented but kept a distance knowing he was taunting the minefield. He started stretching his arms to remove the strain he felt from constantly shooting tape. Trying to keep a calm facade, and ignore the dryness in his throat when he looked at the destroyed area. They were probably going to take a while to replant and repair this area after today. "But you should know by now, you can't take her head on in a fight. None of us can,"
That was a natural consensus after all this time. Sakura could fight after having a hole blasted through her chest and wasn't constrained in any way. Right now it seemed she was trying to prove just how unrestrained she was. And could simulate a simple training exercise into a fight for survival.
"How much time do we have left?" Mina asked.
"Four hours," Shoto replied.
"Four hours?" Minoru squeaked, his hands clutching his head. "That's way too long! Can we just… I don't know, give up? Is that an option?"
"No, it's not!" Eijiro snapped, his usual easygoing demeanor replaced by uncharacteristic frustration. "We can't just give up because things seem tough. This is training. What are we gonna do when we're real heroes? Quit because the odds are against us?"
"This isn't tough," Mashirao muttered, his voice low. "This is impossible. It's like we're facing that villain from Kamino. You know, the one who sent All Might flying?"
"The same one Sakura took down," Denki added.
Once again Class A began to dissolve into bickering with overlapping voices and attempting diffusion. Although everyone had their own perspectives, there were fundamentals that they all shared and usually, it kept them on the same page if not the same chapter but right now there was a divide due to the same problem. Sakura. They couldn't fully agree on their standing with her. She was a complexity they weren't used to facing. For most of them, throughout their time together, a clear line could always be drawn on a decision or a standpoint of discussion, and that made conversing and interactions easy with each other. Yet somehow Sakura managed to drive a wedge into the harmony of Class A with a simple test.
And so many were completely oblivious to the fact. '
Ochaco glanced at Izuku who stood silent, overlooking his friends but his eyes were intense the kind of way they got when he started mumbling through observations. Only this time his lips were pressed in a thin line, his brows furrowed downwards. But she wasn't the only one who noticed, Katsuki's sharp look cut into him before he was even in front to tower over Izuku.
"What's with you, Deku?" Katsuki growled, his crimson eyes narrowing. "You're never this quiet. Spit it out already."
Katsuki was rarely this calm especially when he was addressing Izuku of all people, which caught the attention of the rest of the class.
"Did you figure something out Deku?" asked Ochaco.
Unlike Sakura, it was easy to dissect Izuku as a topic, his habits and skills were all laid out. They knew he was a better strategist than he gave himself credit for, and had a particular skill for quirk analysis. Even in a crisis, he could be quick to realize a solution and formulate a plan. He was smart enough to pick up on other people's weaknesses before they even revealed them. And he couldn't help but run his mouth with his mind like a broken faucet.
Izuku's head snapped up. "Maybe… maybe she didn't expect us to get the bell to begin with," he said, his voice cutting through the noise.
The group fell silent, all eyes turning to him. Denki blinked, surprised. "Wait what?"
Momo stepped forward, her expression thoughtful. "If that's the case, then what was Sakura's intention? She said to get the bell, so that's what she wanted. Are we overcomplicating this?"
"Hold on, everyone," Izuku interjected, his voice steady but urgent. "Sakura always acts with intention. She's not the type to flaunt her power over others the way she has been so far. There has to be a reason for all of this. Let's look at what's happened so far."
The group stepped closer to each other, all ears on Izuku as he began pacing his words after everyone recounted their encounters with Sakura. The fights, the traps, even what was said towards them.
The group quieted, their attention focused on Izuku. He began pacing, his words spilling out like a torrent. "She set traps in the forest for us. She ambushed us, fought us, but she didn't just take off. She stayed. And remember what she said to you, Yaoyorozu?"
Momo nodded, her brow furrowed. "Yes. She said I was the closest to understanding the truth."
"Why did she say that?" Izuku pressed.
"I'm not sure," Momo couldn't see she had done anything of significance on her own, "I didn't even confront her directly, or alone. All I did was help plan an attack together and it didn't even work, she completely overpowered us," Even when Shouto appeared, nothing detered her.
Perhaps blinded in disappointment to this, Momo failed to notice what Izuku saw first. But that was the thing about perspective, it was easier to see if it wasn't anything on yourself. Then it hit Izuku.
"That's it! You had us work together!"
"Hold on, that can't be the point of this training, we're supposed to get the bell," pointed Minoru.
"But that's not the point Sakura's been driving," Izuku said, now beaming with new energy as if he had just found a stubborn missing piece of a puzzle. Sakura told them to get the bell, but they couldn't beat her on their own. In this case, the training had turned into a meaningless taunt, if things were to continue as they were. However…
"What are you thinking, Midoriya?" Tenya asked. An earnest expression to hear the opinion of his friend as if he would always hold the correct answer. When he first met Izuku, he didn't make a strong impression on Tenya, but whether or not Izuku realized it, he had a keen eye that was right more often than his ego would admit.
Izuku's eyes gleamed with determination. "I think… I think this test isn't about the bell. It's about us. How we work together, how we adapt, and how we find a way forward even when the odds are stacked against us. Sakura's not just testing our strength—she's testing our resolve."
The group exchanged glances, the pieces of the puzzle slowly falling into place. Katsuki smirked, his usual scowl replaced now as he felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction. "Took you long enough to figure it out, nerd."
Izuku ignored the jab, his focus unwavering. "We've been approaching this all wrong.."
..
..
..
'Kakashi would probably get a kick out of this,' The bell between Sakura's fingers rang, and the chimes caressed her ears with a sense of nostalgia. Sakura sat cross-legged on a high ridge, her back against the rough bark of a towering tree. She stared at the skies, feeling the air grow colder, the smell in the air crisp that stung the inside of your nose just enough for you to notice, the signs of winter having crept in. It was silent, and as she learned by now, in many of those moments of silence, she would be attacked from behind. A monster of her own making, one of paranoia, fear, insecurity, and intrusive worries that latched onto her back with weight and tore into her mind with its teeth.
How many months had it been in this world?
An old thought that would've had her grappling in the past. Sakura's usual way of fighting and staving off this monster was to assure herself that it was only a matter of time before she found her own way back. That as long as she didn't surrender, she wouldn't lose. Sometimes she would win, sometimes she would lose against those thoughts, but today she had a different answer. Or rather question.
'What does it matter?'
For hours, she would focus solely on finding a way home, but after all this time, Sakura could not help but learn about the world around her. In all its advanced technology and population of power's, there was no force that knew of a way to return her to where she belonged. Well, perhaps that was redundant.
Her therapy sessions where the attempts to chip away at her defenses were frequent. And at times, Sakura wondered, what would become of her if she revealed the truth to someone. Where she'd come from?
'I'd probably get committed,' She leaned her head against the tree, ignoring the rough scraping on her scalp. She was giving them time. No doubt by now, everyone must've seen the commotion she caused. That kind of disaster would be seen for miles and it's likely they either heard it, felt it, or saw it.
She had given them time—time to regroup, to plan, to think. She wondered if they would rise to the occasion or fall apart under the weight of their own doubts. Because she was aware of how much she had been throwing onto them since the start of this training.
'See through deception,' They were used to the straightforward way towards the goals. 'It's not enough,'
That's what she liked about her classmates. Interacting with them had given her a reprieve from her reality, a justifiable distraction. With so many of them unaware of their vulnerabilities. In truth, this was her way to escape.
She plucked off the autumn-colored leaf that fell onto her head, twirling it between her fingers, watching its colors showing off the season change.
It would soon be the end of this year, and the mark of a new one being in this world. Sakura could be determinedly stubborn in her stance against the odds. Both a blessing and curse, as that stubbornness, could also prevent her from seeing the picture of reality that she didn't want to accept. In this regard, Sakura considered herself a slow learner.
Her situation wasn't going to change because she was determined to make it so. More than a miracle was required.
The problem was the only time Sakura ever experienced a miracle, or one in a million moment was because she happened to be standing near one of her friend's who were willing to defy all odds and fates no matter what seemed to be cast out for them. That was the strength Sasuke and Naruto held.
They had a strength she just couldn't grasp.
If it had been either of them, Naruto or Sasuke, she was certain they would've found a way to return by now or at the very least not succumb to despair the way she has. For every moment Sakura was spared to think about her world, she felt as if she was sinking slowly. Sometimes she could catch herself and pull herself up before she was pulled under and suffocate, other times, she'd just allow herself to fall. And then claw her way out. Because if she stayed down, no one was going to bring her backup. Not Sasuke, not Naruto, not anyone.
Right now Sakura would describe herself as standing on the line of a twilight zone, unable to choose which side she was going to stay on. The light or the darkness. Either way, she was going to have to accept a certain fate. Continue to chase what others would consider an unobtainable goal or surrender, and settle herself in this new world.
At the moment she was doing nothing more than performing a poor balancing act. Which is why her classmate's attention was such a welcomed distraction. They gave her something to do, something that was tangible. So she didn't have to feel like she was constantly chasing phantoms of hope and for that she was grateful.
Sakura noticed the sudden change in hue around her, going from darkness to a light pink, nothing that could be found in nature, and a sharp sound reverberating in the air. She looked up to see bright, colorful explosions lit up the sky—fireworks. They were bold, dazzling, and unmistakably deliberate. Someone was sending a signal, and it wasn't subtle.
A smile couldn't help but form, "Alright," Sakura murmured, pushing herself to her feet. "I'll bite."
This was the first time someone was taking the initiative to call her to them. The fireworks were a risk, but Sakura considered her attention captured. Besides she couldn't teach any more lessons if she didn't find her students. She kicked off from the ridge, blurring through the trees. Wondering if this encounter was going to bring something different at last. Or if the results were going to be the same.
Meanwhile, deeper in the forest, Kyoka and Mezo moved silently through the underbrush. Fitted with special equipment, earpieces that amplify hearing, and night vision goggles. Allowing them to track Sakura's movements even from a distance. Kyoka's earphone jacks were plugged into the device, her eyes closed as she focused on the sounds around her.
"She's on the move," Kyoka whispered, her voice barely audible. "Heading northeast. Fast."
..
..
..
The fireworks were still going strong in the same area, which gave location for Sakura to follow. The vibrant colors shifted the forest area and made it's usually dim world a little brighter, also frightening the small animals that lived within the area and causing a new ruckus, it might've been more subtle but Sakura could notice these small shifts in the darkness.
She wondered if they had done that deliberately to keep their presence hidden from her or if it was just a fortunate coincidence. Either way, she was far from going in blind.
Finally Sakura neared the source of the colorful explosions, discarded packages of fireworks. This wasn't something you'd randomly have on you, only Momo could've done this.
"Interesting," Sakura picked up the used firework package, now walking steadily on the ground. "Given the time duration it took for me to get here, and the fact that the last firework just stopped scattering, I know that someone is here,"
She could feel the slightest shift of nerves in the air, although there was nothing but darkness up ahead. Despite this, no move was made to attack her.
She crouched low, her fingers brushing the ground as she examined the area. The grass was slightly flattened, and there were faint footprints leading away from the fireworks. Whoever had set off the fireworks had vanished quickly, but not completely. They were still nearby—she could feel it.
Her gaze shifted to the treetops, her eyes catching nothing but pitch black, however she could sense the presence. Toru and Tsuyu. They were the most likely candidates, who could vanish in plain sight like this. And they had gone through the trouble of keeping quiet instead of running likely to confirm if Sakura would appear.
Now she was very curious to see where this would go.
Another firework went off in the distance, it wasn't that far off but it seemed convenient when she knew there was still someone right there.
The rustling of leaves to her side was the only warning she got before a bright laser beam sliced through the air where her head had been moments before. She ducked low, her body moving on instinct, and rolled to the side just as a spray of acid splattered against a tree trunk, sizzling and smoking.
"Yuga and Mina," Sakura muttered under her breath, glancing at the damaged tree trunk.
The attacks didn't stop there, only escalated, as the two came out of the shrubbery and started throwing their quirks at her. Sakura was running around dodging the acid and laser beams. Though she could tell that they were being careful. The attacks of these two needed to be avoided, but because of their doctrine, they couldn't be reckless either. Mina and Yuga tended to use their quirks more for defense against attacks when they were in practice and only went full force when it came to facing things like robots.
They were keeping a distance from her though, and it seemed that Toru and Tsuyu took this chance to escape into the forest.
'Now this is getting interesting,'
THAT'S ALL MY LOVELIES! Hope you enjoyed this chapter and Remember to stay strong! I'll see you soon!
PRIVATE MESSAGING: Available on Tumblr ONLY! I love when you guys reach out to me but it's hard to respond to everyone especially when I need to hop onto different platforms. If you want to reach out personally with questions or messages please do so via Tumblr. THANKS Loves!
Check out the SCHEDULE POSTS On Tumblr, and if you like my stories, want to give me some extra support to help the creations of new stories and can't wait for the latest chapters consider joining me as a special member of my seedling troupe:
EARLY CHAPTERS FOR MEMBERS NOW: BUYMEACOFFEE
https://katsura369.carrd.co/
- (Bleach crossover) Kunoichi amongst Reapers: exclusive chapters (Sneak peek on Tumblr)
-Commission: Demon slayer x My hero academia (PART 1 & 2)
- Kunoichi amongst Benders (Avatar x Naruto crossover) (13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
-Kunoichi amongst Heroes chapter (82, 83, 84, 85)
-Kunoichi amongst Heroes WHAT IF SPIN OFF: Dorms and Exams
-Kunoichi amongst Pirates chapter (35, 36, 37)
-Crossroads of Fate chapter 26, 27, 28, 29
-Through the Looking Glass chapter 31, 32. 33, 34, 35, 36
-(SEQUEL) Through the Spyglass chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,6
-SPECIAL HALLOWEEN CHAPTER: Shinigami amongst Shinobi
Want more INFO on my STORIES and ARTWORK lookup Katsura369