Many genin who made it to the final round of the Chunin Exams had vanished, throwing themselves into hardcore training or spending time at home to rest and recover. Sakura, however, found herself wondering the village aimlessly, her feet seeming to know where she was going before she did. She found herself at a flower shop, one she was intimately familiar with after spending hours of her time with Ino.

She pressed her palm to the door, pushing it open and gasping at the change in atmosphere. It was warm inside, flowers on every shelf and sunlight beaming in through the windows.

"Welcome!" A voice chirped from inside.

Sakura went towards the voice, peeking around a tall shelf and looking for the person who spoke. It was a girl with now short blonde hair, pulled back with a ribbon. It was Ino, someone she was still on the fence about.

"Hey, Ino," Sakura said. "How are you?"

"Oh, Sakura, I'm doing fine," Ino replied, smoothing out her apron. "I was actually about to go see Lee."

"Do you mind if I come along?" Sakura asked timidly.

"Not at all, I'm sure Lee is bored to death in the hospital and would enjoy your company." Ino chuckled, shooting her a wink.

Sakura giggled. "Well, I suppose I should pick out a flower to bring him."

"I'll help you pick!" Ino chirped.

"Thanks!" Sakura grinned.

~~~~~

The monotonous colour scheme of the hospital burned itself into Sakura's brain forever. She didn't like seeing a place where so many sick people were, she wished they didn't have to be there.

The heavy smell of chemicals burned her throat as she nervously made her way through the different wards, following closely behind Ino and a nurse who was leading them to Lee's room.

"He isn't in bed..." The nurse sighed, peeking into the room. "Again..."

"That's Lee for you." Ino chuckled.

Sakura awkwardly clutched her bouquet of daisies, rocking on her heels until she suddenly heard shouting down the hallway.

"You should not be out of bed!" A female nurse scolded. "I don't want to see you up again!"

"But I must train!" Lee exclaimed. "The power of youth is flowing through my veins! I cannot rest!"

"You can and you will, otherwise I'll tie you to the bed!" She hissed.

Lee's face fell, however, his eyes widened when his gaze fell on Sakura.

"Sakura!" He exclaimed joyfully. "My beautiful flower!"

"Hey, Lee, how are you feeling?" Sakura asked, her eyes drifting to his left arm and leg, tightly wrapped in casts.

"I would be feeling better if I could go out and train!" He huffed, staggering into his room.

He stumbled forward a little and Sakura was quick to catch him, helping him over to his bed.

"You should be more careful, Lee." Sakura sighed, placing her flowers into a vase by his bed.

"You're starting to sound like the nurses!" Lee chuckled, smiling brightly.

Ino smirked, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively and placing her own flowers in the vase.

"Well, I'll be back to check on you later Lee, I have to get back to my family's flower shop." Ino chirped. "I'll catch up with you later Sakura!"

"Oh, okay, see you later Ino." Sakura replied, giving Ino a confused glance when she winked.

The room went silent once Ino left, Lee averting his gaze to the floor as his bright smile faded to a frown.

"The Doctor's don't know if they'll be able to fully repair my arm and leg," Lee mumbled. "I may not be able to continue being a shinobi."

Sakura's jaw dropped. She stared at Lee in shock, giving him an incomprehensive look.

"But what would you do then?" Sakura asked.

"I do not know." He replied, rubbing his knuckles.

"I really wish I could help you Lee," Sakura whispered to him. "But I'd like to ask you for a favour."

"Anything for you Sakura!" Lee exclaimed.

She took a deep breath, coming face to face with Lee.

"I want your help with something."

~~~~~

"I appreciate all your help Kana, but I actually have someone who's willing to train me." Naruto awkwardly said, making Kana raise a perfect eyebrow in question.

"I understand why you'd want another teacher, after all, we have different fighting styles and affinities," Kana said, leaving out that she had all affinities as a result of experimentation. "But who have you found that is better suited to teach you?"

"I think his name was Jiraiya," Naruto hummed in thought. "He said he was a... Toad Sage?" 

Kana's eyes widened slightly. She had heard that name before, and whenever he was mentioned, his name was spoken in admiration, and only a small part of fear. He was one of the Legendary Sanin of Konohagakure, a student of the Third Hokage and teammate to Tsunade Senju and Orochimaru.

Why would a sanin offer to teach some genin he just met? Unless Naruto either blackmailed him into it, he has a really good heart, or he feels like he has to teach him. Kana supposed their relationship didn't matter, the tutelage of a sannin was something you don't pass up. 

"Well then, I guess I'm done helping you," Kana chuckled. "Feel free to come and find me if you need some help or just someone to talk to."

"Will do, now I have to find the nearest bathhouse..." Naruto mumbled.

"Bathhouse? Why would you need to go there?" Kana asked.

"I'll explain later." Naruto sighed.

"I'm holding you to that!" Kana chirped.

The two split paths, Kana on her way to the inn her team was staying at, and Naruto presumably headed to a bathhouse. Kana glanced at the arena not too far away, her mind ticking away the minutes, hours, and days until the final part of the Chunin Exams. Usually, she would be eager for a fight, but she was going against Azumi, someone whose skills were still mostly unknown.

She used a sword, seals, and genjutsu, although she never saw what the genjutsu did, as the only one trapped in it was Azumi's opponent. 

Kana's chest heaved as she sighed, thinking of what to do next.

"Training it is." She decided. "I should practice my ninjutsu and train my kodachi skills. I haven't seen Yuki and Gray in a while too."

Her mind drifted back to Amegakure, where feelings of homesickness settled in the pit of her stomach. She smacked her cheeks, making a few people turn and stare for a moment.

"Focus," She told herself. "I have to win this, for Ame."

~~~~~

Lee's wheelchair skid to a stop as the girl who was pushing him collapsed, gasping for air like a fish out of water. She rolled onto her back, staring up into the beautiful green trees surrounding the outskirts of the village.

"Sakura, you haven't given up yet, have you?" Lee asked, peeking over the back of his wheelchair. "There are only 400 laps to go!"

"Lee, I'm running around the entire village and I just finished my 100th lap!" Sakura wheezed angrily.

"You asked me to help you get stronger, and this is exactly how I trained," Lee replied passionately. "Day and night, without breaks I would do drills, run laps, and spar against anyone I could. Just because I was at a disadvantage, didn't mean I couldn't become just as strong as my teammates, and one day, I'll be as strong as Gai-sensei!"

Sakura went silent, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. Slowly, she sat up, facing Lee with a bright smiled.

"I don't know how you do it Lee," She giggled. "You manage to be so optimistic, even in your situation, I really want to be like you."

Lee blushed, nodding his head so fast that he could see stars dancing in his vision.

"I will do my best, Sakura!" Lee exclaimed, smacking the arm that was wrapped in a cast against his forehead in a salute.

Lee whined in pain, rubbing his sore head. Sakura giggled, and it wasn't long before the two of them were laughing together.

For the first time in a while, Sakura was happy.

A/N

Sorry about the lack of updates, I've been super busy, plus I'm officially in high school now, and boy are things hectic. It's nice but overwhelming. Let's just hope I don't fail any classes (except for English, I'm in AP English and I'm good at it)!