He died…how could he have died…he was so full of life, quick to laughter, quick to anger, devoted to those close to him but now he's just a memory…just like the other two. Tsunade looked down at the urn containing Naruto's ashes and shook her head. I really thought he could have succeeded me; it will be always be quiet. She then stood up and addressed the crowd.

"Naruto was an outcast for a lot of his short life, rejected because of what was inside of him and only recently did we see through the Kyuubi. His dedication to this village will never be forgotten and even though he dreamed of so much more he will be proud in the fact that he defended this land from danger and in doing so sacrificed his own life. A long time will pass before we will no longer grieve but in honour of his bright spirit, we must carry on and more importantly the person chosen to keep the Kyuubi must not be given the same treatment Naruto was."

With that Tsunade turned and left and all made a procession past Naruto's urns. Sakura, Kakashi and all those who took the chunin exam with him walked past with a moment's stillness at the altar. Finally came Hinata barely suppressing her emotions, tears rolling down her clenched face as she tried to remain calm as she approached the centre. She placed down her lily and looked upon the picture of Naruto smiling with the rest of team 7 and her composure broke and she knelt in front of the picture and heaved great sobs as she clenched the cloth on the table.

"Naruto-kun, you can't go you don't know how I feel, I have everything because of you and yet I you barely knew me. You can't leave me, I need you even from that shadows you sustained me. Please don't, please, please…"

Neji looked upon his cousin with heart wrenching emotion and knelt next to her taking her hand. He knew how she felt for a while and knew how delicate she was. He would sorely miss Naruto, even for a loud mouth Neji saw him as a person pure of heart and his determination to protect the weak increased his respect even more and the village would be empty without his bright confidence. But even in his misery at the loss of Naruto, he new his emotion could not even compare to that of Hinata's, he was the one thing that kept her going and even though she kept her distance from him all these years she still fell for him so hard the this loss was crushing her. Neji put his other arm around his shoulder and Hinata being exhausted from days of emotional grief could only let him lead her away as her last dregs of energy were spent weeping for what she would never again see.

"I know it sounds empty Hinata-sama, but you will learn to cope. Our grief may not be the same as yours but we all feel the loss and together we will get though…together we move on." Neji said as he led her to her house.

"But Neji move on to what, what's left for me? I can't see any future without Naruto-kun there." Hinata croaked, her exhaustion meaning she paid no heed into downplaying her feelings towards Naruto.

Neji said nothing as he led her back and stared into the distance.

Hinata minds was reeling, When she heard the news 3 days ago it seemed unbelievable, Naruto seemed so full of life, how could someone like that die. The report said it had been quick that it was sheer bad luck. Naruto and team 7 came across a group of Rogue Ninjas and made pursuit and were dealing with them quickly when a stray kunai struck Naruto in the neck and the others assuming he was off dealing with a group of ninjas found him too late and his injuries were beyond Sakura's ability and all that could be done was create a temporary seal for the Kyuubi. For 2 days Hinata didn't eat or sleep and just sat in her room staring at the wall, no emotion coming forth and it was only when she had to change for the funeral service that the reality hit her and only her will power kept her from breaking apart before getting to the altar with Naruto's remains.

Neji lead Hinata back to her room and laid her down into her bed and turned to leave. He turned just before leaving the room and looked down at her. She has already fallen into an exhausted sleep. He didn't know what to do and for a while he just looked at her as her breathed slowed and the tears dried on her cheeks. He was scared she couldn't get through this and his duty to the head family as well as his fraternal feelings for this fragile little girl made him worry even more and he knew if he couldn't do anything he must find someone who can and with that he left the Hyuuga compound and headed for someone he thought would be able to help the heir of his clan.

Hinata woke in a doze and waited for her eyes to focus to her surroundings and as she rubbed her eyes awake and then her memories came flooding back and she collapsed back down on her bed and stared at the ceiling wondering how she could move on like Neji said. Naruto was her inspiration, he gave her strength, he gave her the confidence she needed to step out of the dark and take on new challenges…and now…how could she gain the confidence to be what she strived to be, without Naruto there no matter how far he was from her. Hinata was woken from her thought by a short knock on the door. She sat up ensured she looked somewhat presentable although aesthetics were the last thing on her mind.

"Come in" She mumbled, her voice quiet and passive.
"Yo" said a male voice as a tall grey haired man made his way into Hinata's room and sat down on the floor.
"I came for a chat if that's ok?" he said as he made himself comfortable.
"S-sure Kakashi Sensei…" Hinata stammered a reply wandering what prompted this unexpected visit. Equallably unexpected came a rush of pain as she remembered Kakashi was Naruto's teacher. She quickly turned her face away as her eyes welled up and concentrated all of her energy into not crying just yet. Kakashi waited until Hinata had regained her composure and in doing so framed what he had to say in the best way possible.

Kakashi waited until Hinata had regained her composure and in doing so framed what he had to say in the best way possible.

"I don't visit the Hyuuga compound much as you have probably noticed but I today I figured there was someone I needed to talk to and as I was coming over here a concerned family member was out looking for me." Kakashi said as he remembered Neji running into him in the previous evening.

"Kakashi-sensei, I was looking for you" Neji said.

"Oh really?" Kakashi replied, looking down from his latest icha icha book

"What do you need?"

Neji paused before answering making sure his words put across the sense of urgency appropriate for Hinata's unstable condition.

"Its Hinata-sama, I'm afraid the loss of…Naruto will be unbearable for her. Her grief is too heavy…if she carries on like this I don't think she will be able to recover; I fear she will just…fade away."

Kakashi looked at Neji noting the pleading in Neji's voice which had never been present before. Either Hinata was really in a dire state, or Neji cares about her very strongly he thought to himself.

Neji hearing no response continued his speech.

"Kakashi-sensei, I'm not sure if you noticed but Hinata felt something very special for Naruto. I know she was not around him much, however the improvement she has made in these past few years, even when Naruto was away with Jiraiya-sama was based on her inspiration from him. I'm at odds if I should use this word, but I fear she loved him."

Kakashi smiled. He has known Hinata's feelings toward Naruto for a long time, almost immediately after taking on team 7. His eyes never missed the small girl in the corner of his eye never taking her eyes off Naruto…unless of course he happened to look her way. Kakashi put the book into his pocket and said to Neji:

"Yes, I was somewhat aware of Hinata's feelings towards Naruto and I understand that she must be going through a great amount of pain right now but why is it that you have searching for me?" Neji paused before answering unsure of how to speak what he needed to say, but realised his composure was not important compared to ensuring Hinata's health.

"The reason is, you always seem to be able to simplify things so that tragedies in one's life seem trivial and one small part of life, I think Naruto, before he died began to inherit this gift and so…"At this point Neji dropped to his knees, a gesture that shocked even Kakashi.

"…I beg of you as a cousin, a friend and a protector of the main branch talk to Hinata for me, for her, for the Hyuuga. She needs to see there is life beyond this tragedy and as frustrating as it is to me, I cannot help her and I think you are the only one that can."

Kakashi, impressed by Neji show of devotion had already considered going to talk to Hinata and Neji's plea decided it for him. To see a Hyuuga member prostrated on the floor in front of him, an outsider made Kakashi worry Hinata's condition was worse than he feared.

"Get-up" Kakashi replied

"It wouldn't do for a Hyuuga to be seen to be kneeling to the likes of me now would it" he said as Neji slowly stood up and wiped the dust from him clothes.

"I will go…" Kakashi said as he saw Neji's eyes brighten and start to turn and head towards the Hyuuga compound.

"But not until tomorrow Neji, urgency is useless unless our little heir as had some sleep…Well see you". With that Kakashi disappeared into wisps of smoke and Neji bowed once more before going back to his room.

Hinata, after managing to stem back her tears looked at Kakashi, wondering whom it was who has asked him here. Hinata was a little in awe of Kakashi as Naruto had always had such a high opinion of him and this moment Hinata really took notice of him as if being able to see this man as Naruto had she could be closer to him even though he wasn't going to be here. Tears threatened again but Hinata held them back and took in the spectacle that was Kakashi. She couldn't determine his age yet she knew even with his silver/grey hair he couldn't be too old…there was a sense of youthfulness in him that showed through any exterior appearance. She saw his headband covered one eye and remembered Kakashi other name "the copycat ninja" and realised that under that band lay the Sharingan. His stillness also came across to Hinata which made him seem even more professional, as much as his reputation as well as his acquisition of the Uchiha bloodline limit. After taking this all in she realised that this person was far above your average ninja, far above even, some of the trainers that taught her and realising she was starting to see what Naruto saw in Kakashi made her feel happy and sad at the same time. She was closer to his perception of this man, but now this made no difference as he was gone. The latter of these thought took prominence in her mind and she dropped her gaze and stared at the floor.

"When I was younger…" Kakashi began snapping Hinata's attention once more to him.

"I knew a man who was very much like Naruto…he had the same smile, the same laugh, the same energy and even the same hair. He always used to say to me "Life is for living so stop being serious." I considered him a bit foolish and unprofessional despite his reputation and I tried to ignore his attitude. One day however a friend of mine died whilst on a mission…" At this point Kakashi paused and put a hand over his covered eye and Hinata, considering this to be a painful memory let the silence continue at Kakashi's discretion…

Kakashi stepped out of his room and covered his eye to the sun and headed out into the forest. His new eye hadn't fully healed and so there was still a patch on it. This physical reminder of what happened made it even harder to think of anything else apart from what happened last week. Reaching a secluded spot Kakashi sat down and drew his short sword and stuck it into the ground and just stared at the gash it made into the ground. Before a week ago, Obito was just an annoyance but at least he was still here, Now he's gone and nothing will bring him back and all I have left is this eye Kakashi thought to himself as a tear rolled down one side of his cheek. He started to haphazardly gouge marks into the ground become increasingly deeper as his frustration and sense of futility bore power in those strokes. How am I supposed to deal with this? He thought to himself shamefully wiping the tears from his face before returning to relentlessly stabbing the ground. Why did he have to die, this is my father's death all over again, even that being amplified as he no longer had to feel shame for what the White Fang had done.

"Damn it all" Kakashi finally making a sound and followed it by a howl of rage and threw his sword at a tree. It caught the edge and suddenly snapped. Kakashi ran up to the tree and started to beat it with his fist, cutting them almost immediately but his mental main blocking out any physical pain. He finally stopped exhausted and collapsed next to the tree, the tear on his cheek now unashamed at his emotion Kakashi sat there heaving great breaths. After a minute or so he noticed his bleeding fists and brought them closer to him. As he did so he saw some movement out of the corner of his eye and he stood up cuffing away the tear. In front of him stood a tall man with blond, spiky hair and blue eyes with a white cape. He stood in front of Kakashi holding the two pieces of the broken sword.

"Sensei." Kakashi said as he bowed.

"I told you once, Ill tell you a thousand times, there is no need to bow to me. Sit down Kakashi" Said the man and Kakashi did so.

"I figured you would be in the forest again." Said the man looking at Kakashi's bleeding fists.

"Life is for living Kakashi" he followed up.

Kakashi was not in the mood for the usual pep-talk and his rage came through. "Try telling that to Obito, Sensei, he's dead there's no "living" for him" he screamed as he stood up and started to leave.

"Kakashi sit down now, for the sake of Obito's memory sit down" the man replied his voice slightly louder than before.

Kakashi tempted to continue walking away but the throbbing in his bandaged eye made him stop and he turned around and sat down.

"Why did Obito die" the man asked Kakashi.

"For nothing, for a little skirmish, he died and his memory will fade and his only hallmark is my eye" Kakashi said, realising that he was proud of having a part of Obito as part of him.

The blond man looked at Kakashi and sighed. He saw the pain written in this boy's face but he knew that he had to get across what needed to be understood, if he didn't this boy would live in his own world of misery and self-pity.

"Kakashi, you insult the memory of Obito if you think that's all he died for. If that is all you think, he did indeed die for nothing, because the reason he died doesn't acknowledge his sacrifice." The man paused as he looked at Kakashi's faced still remained belligerent.

"You are why he died Kakashi, he died protecting you! He died to protect the village and most importantly those he loved. He died for you, for me, he died so that you could go on living your life Kakashi. He stopped living so that you could." The man continued with passion in his voice his fist clenched.

"I understand your pain Kakashi, we all feel his loss, but you must understand that his sacrifice was so that you could live. Do you call this living Kakashi? Secluding yourself away from everyone beating your fists bloody? You think this is living? He died so you could continue and yet you waste your life in the present, ignoring everyone and wallowing away in your own world. If you live like this you are throwing Obito's sacrifice in his face, you are not doing what he died for, you are not living." The man finished and turned to Kakashi.

Kakashi couldn't believe he was being attacked for being upset for someone dying and he ran at his teacher. As he did flashes of Obito's face came into his mind and he saw him smile realised why Obito had died, it wasn't patriotism, it wasn't a noble ideal, he died for us, for me and Kakashi knew he would do the same for Obito, for this man in front of him and anyone he cared for. Before he reached the blond man, Kakashi dropped to his knees and tears came to his eyes again and he didn't stop them flowing nor hide them. The man took Kakashi in his arms and held him whilst he heaved great tears and let the pain wash out.

"Life is for living."

Before Hinata could even respond Kakashi made his farewell and left saying only.

"I hope I have given you something to think about," before closing the door. Hinata was speechless. For a short moment her anguish was sidelined by her empathy that she felt with Kakashi and the pain that she knew he must have gone through. Tears again came to her cheeks but this time it was not just for Naruto but for Kakashi, for everyone who had lost someone close to them, for everyone who at one point was lost in themselves striving for a way to escape from the misery that enveloped them when they felt that gap in their life created from the loss. Hinata cried silent tears on her bed and lost herself in thoughts. The thoughts were of Naruto. Nearly every time she saw him he was happy and full energy and the only times he wasn't was when he was protecting those he loved and in those times he was a violent fury with such determination that it set her heart afire just thinking about it. It was then she realised the meaning behind Kakashi's story: Naruto was both like Kakashi's teacher and the friend whom Kakashi had lost. Naruto knew that life was about living and he ensured everyday he lived to the best of his ability just as the teacher said and he died to ensure that other's could do the same as he did, just like Kakashi's friend. Hinata let herself go once more into the depths of her agony and wrent her clothes in anguish and rage a final expelling of self-pity and she cried aloud the name in which she loved dearly.

"Naruto! I will live because you want me to live. I will live because life is for living. I swear I will honour your sacrifice and everyday I will live my life to its fullest to ensure you died for a reason. I will move on."

With that final cry Hinata collapsed back into her bed and succumbed to a full, dreamless sleep.