Chapter Text
Sakura Haruno couldn't believe it, she felt completely overwhelmed.
She had received too much information in a very short time, and her mind was still struggling to process the fact that she had traveled through time, finding herself now in the past, approximately a year since the Hidden Leaf Village had been attacked by the Kyubi. The reconstruction was still ongoing, and the dust of the tragedy could still be felt in the air.
And according to what she had been told, being in this moment was her destiny.
...
Just moments before, Sakura had been in the hospital, reviewing the records of the newly admitted patients after an A-rank mission. Until suddenly she began to feel dizzy until she lost consciousness.
The next thing she knew, she was waking up disoriented on the cold floor of the Hokage's office, her arms firmly held by the ANBU soldiers...
There began the conversation she never thought she would have: with the Third Hokage, whom she had already seen die in her time.
At first, Sakura thought it was all a dream. However, the reality around her was undeniable.
"Y-You... you..." she stammered, not knowing what to say. "Am I in the past?" she whispered, with a lump in her throat.
She knew that time travel jutsus existed, but she had not performed any of them. She was completely perplexed. To her surprise, Hiruzen Sarutobi calmly got up from his seat and interrogated her. After verifying the data she provided, he seemed to believe her.
He asked the ANBU to leave, and then he was left alone with her. He walked to the window, his hands crossed behind his back, observing the outside with a serious gaze before speaking.
"This is not a journey you have chosen. You were sent," he said bluntly. "And you won't be able to return until you fulfill your mission."
"What mission?" Sakura frowned, fearing the answer.
Hiruzen slowly turned towards her, looked her over, and then fixed his eyes on the young woman's.
"It's written on your left arm."
Sakura looked in that direction, turned it, and there, engraved on her skin like a tattoo, were the words:
"Save Kakashi Hatake."
She felt the air leave her lungs.
"How?" she whispered, with a tight throat. "I don't understand... Kakashi-sensei is fine in the future."
The Hokage looked at her fixedly, without saying anything about her outburst. Sakura covered her mouth, realizing that she had just revealed information about the future.
"With all due respect, Hokage-sama... I don't understand what's going on. I don't want to alter the timeline. There should be a jutsu that takes me back to my own time."
"There is no such jutsu," Sarutobi replied calmly. "But there are ancient records, very ancient, of ninjas who were absorbed by space-time ruptures, destiny marks that manifest as a form of natural balance. No one knows why they occur, or how, but it is said that the very chakra of the world... can call someone at the exact moment when they are needed."
He paused, as if searching for the right words.
"Your mark was not placed by anyone we can trace, it is a part of you now. As if time itself had chosen you, Haruno Sakura."
"But what would I save him from? Is he very injured? Sick? I'm a medical ninja, I could help if..."
"I have an idea of what it's about," the Hokage interrupted her. "But it's not a physical wound, Haruno. It's an internal wound. A silent pain that he has carried for years... too many losses for someone so young."
"So..." she murmured, not entirely sure. "Is my mission... to help him emotionally?"
There was a brief silence. The Hokage looked at her attentively.
Sakura took a deep breath.
"I... I've studied mental health in the medical field. I'm not an expert, but I know how to recognize the symptoms, I know how to approach certain traumas, maybe I can... be there for him. Listen to him, accompany him... Be his therapist."
She looked up, this time determined.
"If that's my mission, I want to try. I want to help him."
For a moment, the silence became thick. Then the Hokage nodded, satisfied.
"Then I will officially assign you as his therapist. But it won't be easy, Haruno. Hatake is not someone who easily accepts help."
"I know," she replied. "But I'm not someone who gives up easily either."
Sakura looked at her arm again, where the words "Save Kakashi Hatake" were still engraved. If that was her mission, she would fulfill it.
...
Later, already in the apartment that had been assigned to her, Sakura looked closely at herself in the mirror and her new appearance.
She had dyed her hair a deep black-blue, completely hiding the characteristic pink. Her bangs now covered her forehead, not to hide her old insecurity, but to disguise the Byakugo seal. Her green eyes were hidden behind intense blue contact lenses.
The uniform she was wearing was not that of a kunoichi, but that of a civilian medical professional, it was sober and neutral.
She was no longer Sakura Haruno. Now she was Sakuya.
She didn't want to completely distance herself from who she was, but she didn't want to get involved as Sakura. If she pretended to be someone else, it would be easier to deal with someone who in her future would be her sensei.
She tried the name in silence, letting it roll through her mind as she observed her reflection. She looked different, and above all, she felt different. She took a deep breath, aware of the mission that lay ahead of her.
They had already provided her with all the necessary information about the fifteen-year-old Kakashi Hatake. She knew his history, his deep pain and his growing isolation. She knew he had lost too much, and too soon in a traumatic way. And that, little by little, he was building an impenetrable armor, becoming increasingly ruthless on the battlefield.
Her mission was clear: Save Kakashi Hatake. Because although he did not show any signs of wanting to die, he did not seem to have the desire to live either. And from now on, Sakuya would be the one in charge of changing that reality.