"You should worry about yourself. I hear both of your teammates have been arranged special training. Only you seem to have nothing to do. Have you been abandoned? Just kidding, hahaha..."
"Kakashi-sensei would never! It's just that Naruto and Sasuke are participating in the Chunin Exam, so he doesn't have time to arrange anything..." Sakura's confidence dwindled as she spoke, her voice eventually fading to a near whisper.
***
Sakura, who had boldly approached Daigan, perhaps wanted to protect the children of Konoha from being bullied by the menacing Sand Ninja. However, the Konoha kunoichi's art of conversation was no match for Daigan's, who nearly drove her into a depressive spiral with a few simple retorts.
"Hey, ugly girl over there, don't stand around feeling sorry for yourself in the street. You're making it look like I'm bullying you..."
"Ugly girl?" Utterly shocked by Daigan's explosive words, Sakura pointed at herself dumbly. "Are you talking about me?"
"Who else here dares to speak to me?"
Covered in bandages and sitting in a wheelchair, pushed by an identical substitute puppet while a beautiful puppet on his shoulder continuously fed him, he was a strange sight no matter how you looked at it. Who besides an ignorant child would casually approach him?
"You jerk..." Even though she was a little scared, Sakura, laughing through her anger, couldn't help but raise her fist. "Before you talk about others, take a look in the mirror. What right does someone like you have to call anyone ugly?"
"I am a man of great talent and renown. My appeal is not something a little girl like you can appreciate."
"Oh? Is that so? Then what's with that puppet of yours? It looks exactly like that Sand Ninja girl named Temari. But from what I can see, she ignores you completely. Is it that you can't win her over in person, so you have to make a doll to satisfy your vanity? You really are a shameless, undisguised pervert..."
Getting more worked up as she spoke, Sakura pointed a finger viciously at Daigan and the puppet, continuing her relentless tirade. "It's already July. It's so hot. I thought the season for perverts was over, but to my surprise, you're still brazenly displaying your inappropriate fetish..."
After blurting out a long stream of words, the pink-haired kunoichi finally stopped, panting with rage.
"Are you done?" Daigan asked, smiling at Sakura, who had suddenly erupted after he had struck a nerve.
"Ah... I'm sorry!" Coming to her senses, Sakura realized how rude she had been and immediately felt embarrassed. "I went too far, but if you hadn't spoken so cruelly in the first place, I wouldn't have..."
"If I remember correctly, your name is Haruta Sakura, right?"
"It's Haruno Sakura. My family name is Haruno, not Haruta... We were in the same Chunin Exam, you should at least remember my name... You didn't mispronounce it on purpose, did you?"
"Family names are trivial matters. Don't worry about it, Haruta Sakura..." Daigan waved his hand dismissively. Few Sand Ninja even had family names, and besides, who cared about Haruno or Haruta? It wasn't like her clan had produced any outstanding ninja. "First, I'm a genius, not a pervert... Second, Temari is my chosen life partner. Our union is an inevitability, not something others can slander. Finally, I am a magnanimous person and will forgive your insolence. However..."
"However what?" Sakura looked at him defensively, sensing he was up to something.
"Relax. I said I wouldn't cause you trouble, and I'm a man of my word..."
"Then what do you want?"
"Nothing important. You wouldn't be able to handle anything too troublesome anyway..." Daigan looked at the nervous Sakura. "Help me deliver a bouquet of flowers to Rock Lee..."
"Is it because you feel guilty for injuring him? Why don't you go yourself?"
"It wouldn't be appropriate..." Daigan shook his head. At this crucial juncture, it was best for Sand Ninja not to interact with Konoha ninja. If he hadn't run into Sakura on the street, he wouldn't have had the chance to talk to a Konoha ninja at all. "As for guilt, my injuries are no lighter than Rock Lee's, are they?"
"That's true! But why do you want me to visit Lee on your behalf? You two aren't that close, are you?"
"You don't understand! Tell him for me that I hope we can have another exhilarating battle someday..."
The Chunin Exam had too many restrictions. Fighting someone like Rock Lee had left him feeling unfulfilled. Winning through a trick was a necessity, but he'd love the chance to fight him again with no holds barred, to truly test his skills. There weren't many pure ninja like Rock Lee left in the world.
"I don't understand the way you guys think, but I can visit him and pass on a message for you, no problem..."
"The sense of camaraderie between commoner ninja striving for their goals... you'll understand it sooner or later. As for why..." Daigan trailed off with a smile.
Sakura's circumstances were even worse than Daigan's or Rock Lee's. She didn't have an exceptional physique, nor did she possess Daigan's boundless imagination and advanced knowledge. Aside from her excellent chakra control and decent intelligence, Sakura had almost no special talents, making it even harder for her to become a powerful ninja. Without Tsunade's tutelage, her potential was very limited.
"Commoner ninja..." Sakura looked dejected. "Chasing after people whose backs I can barely even see... is it really hopeless?"
"Hey, we're different. I'm on the verge of success. It's not the same as your slim hopes..." Daigan said with a mischievous grin. "Life is long. Many people drift apart as they walk their paths! It's not that they don't want to walk together, but they unknowingly fall behind and can't keep up... Little girl, there's no shame in being in love, and difficulties are nothing to fear. But if you lose the ability to walk side by side, you will eventually be left behind. You like that Uchiha Sasuke who looks at everyone like they're his enemy, don't you? You're in a dangerous spot. Your performance is even worse than that fool Uzumaki Naruto..."
Uzumaki Naruto had at least advanced in the Chunin Exam. The guy who had always been considered the dead-last was now ahead of her. It would be strange if Sakura didn't feel a sense of crisis.
"I think I understand a little!" Sakura said, still a bit dazed. "But for all your insightful talk, you don't seem to have achieved much yourself..."
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