Chapter Text
As the first rays of the morning sun painted the city in hues of gold and amber, Sakura Haruno prepared herself to prepare for another busy day at Konoha Law Associates.
The city's relentless, rhythmic pulse seemed to echo in her every step as she navigated the streets and avenues. There was a sense of purpose in the air, mingling with the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and the distant hum of traffic. Every passing stranger had a destination to reach, and a goal to achieve. The early mornings were always bristled with this great amount of trafficking in the metro Konoha area.
With every step closer to her workplace, Sakura took a deep breath at the challenges and possibilities that awaited her. It wasn't that she was scared or nervous, Sakura was eagerly anticipating those challenges. Sakura double majored in political science and biology. At the time, she was deciding if she wanted to go to law school or med school. During undergrad, she won several literary awards and was part of Model United Nations. She went on to law school to further dominate and terrorize her fellow law students by being one of the top scorers. After graduating second in her class in law school, Sakura knew she was amazing. No discussion about it. Honestly, she was disappointed that she did not graduate first but that was her other headache.
Sakura felt the crisp air conditioning as she walked into the grand fifty-storey building. Her heels clicked as she strutted to the elevator. People were bustling and shuffling around as they performed their tasks for the day. Konoha Law Associates was one of the top law firms in the city. The company commenced in the early days of Konoha by Hashirama Senuu and his brother Tobirama Senju.
The brothers were the epitome of excellence. They forged new laws, and ideas, and changed the way the nation critically assessed the Constitution overall. In the main foyer of the firm, their pictures were proudly hung on the wall, the wall of the greats. Everyone called them the Kages. On the wall, were pictures of some of the highest-ranking lawyers that ever graced Konoha Law Associates. Out of the hundreds, almost thousands of lawyers that came through these doors, only six lawyers were distinguished and a cut above the rest. On these walls were Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze, Tsunade Senju, and Kakashi Hatake. The most shocking one on the list was the infamous Kakashi Hatake. Sakura still could not believe her porn-loving chief from her early days as an intern was “distinguished” enough to be on the wall.
In all sincerity, she can believe it. Kakashi was one of the best. With over 600 case wins under his belt over the years, he deserved to be on the wall. If only he would stop reading that stupid book of his.
“Good morning Sakura”
Here he was now, the man of the hour, Kakashi Hatake. Ever since he got his picture up on the wall he was promoted to Head of the Family Law Department. Which was luckily, the same department she worked in. When she first began interning at Konoha Law Associates, she started under Kakashi. At the time, he wasn’t an official kage but she still looked up to him a lot. He did not talk down to her or yell at her like other “big shot” lawyers would. He knew she was inexperienced and actively learning but never held it against her. After she finished law school and passed the bar, she started working under Tsunade Senju. Tsunade was the granddaughter of Hashirama Senju despite that she was a legend in her own right.
Tsunade, known as the 'Princess of the Slugs' due to an incident where she punched a notorious underground slum lord during a particularly vicious case, stood out as one of the most prominent and formidable criminal defense lawyers. She was also the only woman practicing law on the Kage wall. Sakura learned a lot by training and researching under Tsunade. Before receiving training from Tsunade, Sakura exhibited a loud and argumentative demeanor. However, after her training, she not only retained her confidence and assertiveness but also gained the physical strength and skills to support her assertive nature in the courtroom.
Now she is back working under her one and only Kakashi sensei who brings her coffee and makes her leave early to pick up his dogs from the sitter. As much as she will miss the dangers and excitement of criminal defense, she knows she can do great work in family law.
"Good morning, sensei. What's the plan for today?" Sakura greeted him with a cheerful tone as they walked into the elevator.
Kakashi checked his watch while they headed up in the elevator, “I have a board meeting with the execs this morning at 10, but we have a new high-profile case with a large amount of media coverage. Temari is going to fill you in on the details when you head up.”
Sakura smiled at the prospect of a new high-profile case. Lately, her work has consisted of mainly paperwork.
Exiting the elevator onto the 35th floor, Sakura made her way down the corridor to her office. She entered, deposited her bags, and then embarked on a direct route to Temari's office. Temari, a highly skilled paralegal at the firm, often found herself underestimated by those who misunderstood the breadth of her role. While many assumed paralegals were merely overpaid assistants, they played a pivotal part in legal matters that extended beyond the administrative. From Sakura's first day at the firm, she had forged a strong rapport with Temari, their camaraderie strengthening as they navigated the intricacies of their shared professional world. Sakura knew that she wouldn’t have made it this far without the strong and dedicated woman.
Sakura flung open the door, her questions about the case tumbling out like an unstoppable torrent. "You have to tell me about the—OH MY GOD!" The gruesome scene that met her eyes was so shocking that Sakura instinctively shielded her vision, stumbling backward into the gray-carpeted hallway. She blindly reached for the door handle and slammed the door shut. The sight she had just witnessed felt indelibly etched in her mind, a haunting image she feared she would never erase.
A few minutes later, Shikamaru Nara emerged from the office, looking somewhat disheveled, as he meticulously adjusted his attire. Shikamaru, another legal practitioner at Konoha Law Associates, specialized in Labor Law, a paradox given his reputation as the most laid-back worker one could ever encounter. Despite his inclination towards laziness, Sakura and Shikamaru had collaborated on several cases in the past, holding each other in high regard. Shikamaru and Temari were in this weird on and off again friend with benefits situation.
“Sakura,” Shikamaru said nodding his head in her general direction without lifting his eyes.
“Shikamaru,” Sakura muttered doing the same.
He fled the scene presumably heading back to his office.
Sakura stumbled into the room like a drunkard after a night out or like Tsunade after she got a new case. Temari was picking up sheets of paper off the ground.
“I can not believe that I walked into that. I am never eating at your desk ever again.” Sakura said while throwing herself down in the chair.
Temari's mischievous grin widened as she quipped, "If that's the most shocking thing you've ever seen, then you need some action in your life."
Sakura let out an exasperated sigh. She crossed her arms and reclined in the chair, a testament to her disinterest in romantic entanglements. Her career was her paramount concern. Ever since her sensei’s portrait had been added to the Kage wall, Sakura's aspiration to establish herself as a distinguished lawyer had never been closer. However, she couldn't deny that a certain someone stood in her path, vying for that coveted spot on the wall.
“Why are you breaking into my office so early anyway?”
“I came to ask you about the new high-profile case, Kakashi started to tell me about.”
Temari waved her hand
"Oh, the Celebrity Divorce Case, right? I shot you all the info in your email. But in a nutshell, it's all about this global supermodel and a big-shot artist. They've had their love story on the front page for ages now."
"And you won't believe it, but it's like a soap opera. We're talking long-running marriage issues, nasty tabloids, whispers about an affair with the assistant, and even rumors of a love child."
“NO!”
"Yeah," Temari responded as she organized her files for the day. "Kakashi rescheduled the initial client meeting for tomorrow. It'll give us a chance to figure out how to tackle the media issues."
“Do we know who is the opposing counsel on the case,” Sakura questioned while getting up to head back to her office.
Temari looked up quizzingly. She was about to answer when she heard a crashing noise outside the door. Both of the women in the office were startled and looked to the door to see what that was.
“SAKURAAAA!”
The ladies sitting in the office rolled their eyes when they realized who it was.
None other than Naruto Uzumaki threw open the door.
“YOU’RE WORKING ON A CASE AGAINST SASKUKE-TEME”
“WHAT!”