Chapter 1
How it all started

As I said, I was only 15 when Shizune came to me and asked me to follow her to Tsunade.
I did as I was told and followed her, but what awaited me there left me puzzled.
I entered the room and looked directly at Tsunade's desk, but she wasn't sitting there but was standing at the window, averted her view. "You called for Master Tsunade?"
"Yes. Please sit down. You won't like what I have to say," she replied. I did what she told me and sat down because I wasn't alone on the Tsunade before I came.
Temari stood in a corner of the room and looked into the distance.
"What's going on Master Tsunade, why did you call me?"
"That is difficult to explain. I made a mistake that unfortunately cannot be changed anymore.
I should have listened to the others and not pushed my thick head through, but it is now too late for repentance. Sakura you will accompany Temari to Suna and you will leave your Konoha headband here. "
"But why should I leave it here? I didn't have to, what the hell is going on here, Master Tsunade. I ........"
"I am no longer your master, from now on I am Ho kage for you and nobody else.
Even if I didn't really deserve this title anymore ...... But it doesn't matter now. You will leave Konoha today so that the goodbye is not even more difficult than you already will not say goodbye to anyone. I want you to come back here as inconspicuously as possible and never again. "
"But why? What is all this about? Why should I disappear and then to Suna too, I can't just go to Suna and stay there, that won't work."
"That’s okay," Temari said. "Gaara knows, even if he's not exactly impressed by the thing. He actually has nothing to do with it.""But...........,"
"Nothing but Sakura go pack your things and get out of here." Tsunade shouted and turned to her so that her amusing look underscored the whole thing.
Temari went to Sakura and grabbed her shoulders to direct her out of the room. Arrived in front of the door Temari took a deep breath and collects herself, she put a comforting hand on Sakura's shoulder. "I know it's all a bit rough and messed up now, but I'll explain what's going on as soon as we've left the land of fire behind us. So let's pack your things now and think carefully about what you take with you. You know that the way to Suna is long and hard, if you had too much with you, you would just drop it. But maybe it's better that way, if you have nothing from your past, nothing can cause you pain. "
I looked at Temari who tried to smile at me encouragingly. But somehow she didn't want to succeed and in the end it looked like a frightening grimace.

We arrived at my apartment and I secretly wondered what would happen to her if I were no longer there. Would you throw all things in the trash or give them away or you would leave them like that in the hope that I would return, but that was rather unlikely. She had forbidden me to do so. I hurried to pack and soon had everything I needed like: toothbrush and toothpaste, a few clothes to change, provisions, sleeping bag and something to light the fire and, last but not least, the photo of Naruto, Sasuke, Kakashi and me. Temari is currently waiting outside the door to give me my privacy and not to destroy the last moment of goodbye. I looked around one last time so as not to forget anything, even if that would cause me pain. But I couldn't aderst this was my home, this is where I grew up. I quickly suppressed the tears that came up in order to appear strong and not to lose control.I went to the door and put my hand on the handle, I pushed it down and opened the door to the outside into another life. In a future unknown to me.

Temari had made himself comfortable on the floor and looked up when she heard the door.
"Ah there you are at last, I thought you would have hit your head again. But since you are here now we can go. You know the way to Suna right? Hope the sandstorms have subsided otherwise it will be extremely uncomfortable and we also need longer. "
We broke loose and made sure that no one saw us. It would have been hard to explain where I was going and when I was coming back when I had this thought that I was still wearing my headband. I peeled it off and made sure that Temari hadn't dropped it. Then I put it in my backpack.
"Gaara won't like that at all.", Temari said suddenly. I looked at her questioningly.
"That you take the headband with you, he knows that it is very difficult for you, but he does not accept something like that when you are new. People might think that you are a spy from Konoha and I certainly do not need you say what they'll do to you, not to mention what Gaara will do to you if you discredit him. "
"Please Temari, I promise I won't show it to anyone. I know what danger this is. But I will definitely hide it well. PLEASE." Temari looked at her and noticed her pleading look. "Okay, but don't drag me in there if he catches you with it. Promise me otherwise you'll throw it away and on the spot." Temari looked at me urgently and I wonder if it's really that good. That could be easily misunderstood, to take with me but then I thought to myself that it was my past. I had to fight hard to get this headband, I didn't want anyone to take it from me.And besides, I associated a lot of memories with it.
"I promise, but then you will keep your brothers from looking through me, otherwise I can't guarantee anything." I would love to, but you know that Gaara the security of the village is paramount. "I nodded silently and hoped that Gaara would look over it.

We had been on the road for quite a while now when Temari decided that it was time for a break. They found a shady spot and sat down.
"We will need about 1 hour to reach the border. Then it will not be long before we reach the desert. As I said, I hope the storms have subsided. If not, our onward journey would be delayed by several days and I can I can't afford that, I'm running late anyway. Gaara would tear my head off. "
"But he surely sees why the onward journey is delayed, right?"
"That is not said, it does not have to storm everywhere in Suna. But I still hope that the storms have subsided." We did not speak further because we were disturbed by a noise. It was
only very quietly, that's why we thought at first we just imagined it. Until it could be heard against.
We listened attentively to find out where it came from. Then there was a rustle in the bushes and a figure appeared in the shade. Temari pulled her fan and was about to catch up when the figure revealed itself. "Oh one of the three legendary Sa Nin. What are you doing here so close to the border?" Temari said sarcastically. Jiraiya raised his eyebrows in horror and looked at her unusually seriously.
"I was looking for your brother Kankuro and secretly hoped that he would be with you, although Gaara already tells me that he is not. Is it really true that he has turned his back on Suna."
Now it was up to Temari to look seriously. "He hasn't turned his back on Suna, he just left for a while to clear his head.""It's understandable with the shit he dumped, I would do that too. But I would never let my country down."
"He won't let his country down. You have no idea so stay out of it. We know
or I know where Kankuro is and that's enough. When he has calmed down, he'll come back on his own, what do you have to rush people over and over again? I tell you only one thing, stay out of this if Gaara has not explicitly asked you to look for him. "
I looked frightened from one to the other that seemed to end in an argument that Temari couldn't win. I had to do something before it degenerated.
"Hey Temari we have to go.", I said to distract her for the first moment I thought she hadn't heard me. But I was wrong. She turned to me as if she had forgotten that I was still there. At first I was slightly offended until I remembered what I actually wanted to do.
"Temari we have to move on. We don't have time for something like that." Then she finally seemed to notice what I wanted from her and turned completely away from Jiraiya. "Yes, exactly, we have to continue immediately otherwise we won't be there before it gets dark." Temari put her fan away and ran, I grabbed my things and followed her without turning around again.
It took a lot longer than Temari said it took us 2 hours to reach the limit. It was already getting dark when I stopped to have a drink, because otherwise I would have fallen out of my footpaths. Temari turned around when she noticed that I was no longer following her. “What's going on, now don't say you can't anymore.” She said, amused, and looked mischievously at me.
"No, that's not it. I just had to drink something because otherwise I would have fallen over. But next time, of course, I won't stop you, you just want to fall over."
"It was just kidding, you don't have to go straight into it.""I'm sorry, you're right. It was just a very exhausting day for me and my nerves are starting to get through with me. I don't know either, I'm just happy when the day is finally over."
"Well, that won't be long, it's already dark and we have to go a bit before we can rest so come on now."
As I said, so done and on it went, I tried to keep myself in the election, but the events of the day got to me more and more. I tried to suppress it again as I have done so often, but I couldn't quite succeed, the knot in my chest seemed to get bigger and bigger and threatened to suffocate me. If Temari hadn't stopped and focused my attention on something else, I would have collapsed and who knows what else.
We stood on the edge of the desert which seemed to shimmer in a light blue and stretched almost infinitely far. Like an ocean of sand and rock with small oases as islands.
"So now we can take a break."