Author's note: This is jus some drabble (some of it a little long =/ ) to keep my inspiration going. Some of its pairings, flashbacks, thoughts, feelings… all kinds of things so I hope you enjoy. I would also like to give credit to naughty_but_nice38 on Yahoo! for some quotes =)

I do NOT own Naruto, the characters, or the quotes/songs contained herein.

Please rate and review if you like. =)

"Ordinary. The kind of dangerous, beautiful ordinary that you just can't leave alone..." (Faye Valentine, "Cowboy Bebop")

She was just standing there like she had done all these years in the past. Her hair much longer this time and she was taller, but that was all that had changed. She stared intently at Tsunade giving them a mission debriefing.

Nothing had changed.

Kiba drank in her figure, the Hokage's voice seeming to fade into the background. She had developed curves, barely visible under her baggy clothes. She wasn't a sex symbol; she wasn't bold; she wasn't loud or outgoing. Hinata was ordinary.

And she drew him in.

"The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved, loved for ourselves, or rather loved in spite of ourselves." (Victor Hugo)

Uchiha Sasuke lounged in the newest Akatsuki hideout. It was dark and damp. The walls were ancient rock formations, soaked by the leaking of a nearby lake. It was nowhere near comfortable or homey… not that he could hardly remember what "homey" felt like anymore.

Everyone had left him to himself, as they knew he preferred, and he sat there with only the light of a lonely candle with his thoughts.

Of course, he had expected Konoha to eventually come after him. He had expected the Anbu and Kakashi and Naruto to try to track him down. Hell, they could have sent anyone in the entire damn village and he wouldn't have flinched, but here he was… brooding over the fact that Sakura had just darted after him with her kunai. It wasn't that he felt anything for her. He didn't. Sasuke had just never considered that the little pink-haired tomboy would do it. All their childhood lives she had declared her love for him, cut ties with her best friend for him, and even offered to sacrifice her loyalty to the village for him.

And she had just tried to kill him.

Sasuke had never considered how pained it would feel to know that her love was gone. He didn't reciprocate, but it was a safety net had didn't know existed… that was gone now. Sakura had loved him despite everything he had done; and would do.

He thought that over as he clutched his chest. He never knew it would be so painful.

"A heart's a heavy burden." (Sophie, "Howl's Moving Castle")

There wasn't any rain, yet, but Kakashi wished it would go ahead and pour. He was getting tired of sitting at this old memorial, trying to hide his tears.

Rain made it easier.

He could tell you exactly where their names were without looking or running his hands over the engravings.

Obito.

Rin.

Minato.

Kushina.

…Sakumo.

Gone. All of them gone. They had all left him alone to carry this heavy heart; this heavy burden.

"The graveyards are full of indispensable men." (Charles de Gaulle)

Tsunade sighed and poured herself another cup of sake, keeping an eye and ear open in case Shizune happened to pop in to drop off yet another enormous stack of paperwork. Tipping the cup back, her gaze wandered to the open window. The air felt nice. It was a balmy eighty degrees with a mild breeze.

She would so much rather be outside.

A small girl walked by carrying a bundle of mismatched flowers. Tsunade poured another serving of sake and watched. The little girl turned into the Konoha cemetery and down a few rows until she came to a particular stone and stopped.

The Godaime thought back to the war when she, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya were just a bunch of kids themselves. It was overcast and a well-seasoned jounin stood before them.

"You're all indispensable," He shouted to them and the room packed with Konoha ninja, "The mission comes first. No questions asked,"

Tsunade looked from Orochimaru, who looked like he couldn't care less, to Jiraiya, who stood with an unwaivering determination. Had she made a mistake? Maybe she should never have become a ninja. She could never tell them this, they would just laugh in her face.

Tsunade came back to reality as the girl laid the flowers on the gravesite. No, they were wrong. They are not indispensable. They did not die in vain. And, as Hokage, she would make sure of this.

Knock, knock.

"Tsunade-sama? I have some more papers for you to fill out,"

She smacked her forehead against the wood desk, "Ugh."