I don't own Naruto. Comments and constructive criticism is always welcome.
Naruto was tired. Tired, worn out and dull. Sometimes he'd close his eyes, try to sleep, but just end up staring at the ceiling all night long, to only get out of bed four hours later and move around or train, something other than thinking.
He would go on missions, and he'd kill and come home and wash it all off as much as he could. And he'd repeat it again and again, knowing that somewhere maybe a kid was asking for mommy or daddy. But it was his job, and he was good at it, and he took pride in it, and tried not to think about that kid.
Sometimes it was hard. Sometimes the blood on him stayed on him, long after the shower. Sometimes, it'd be days before he got a restful night of sleep and when insomnia came he would wander around Konoha or stare at the stars and let nothingness pass around his mind. Or he'd clean his apartment or do laundry and Naruto thanked Whomever for inventing all night laundry mats. He'd nod to a tired Shikamaru who also had insomnia or bad dreams- Naruto never asked which, it didn't seem right.
It was rare, but other times he would stare at the night sky outside his window and just think about that kid. He built up scenarios inside his mind, some idea stemming from truth (Naruto would never forget the sound or the look of Ino's daughter as her mother's funeral went on around her sobbing.) some from not truths. He hated those nights.
But the nights he hated most were the ones where he would dream. Dream of his friends and teachers who had long since died. He would dream and remember carrying Neji's body back to Konoha, limp and dead. The look on Sakura's face when they were told Kakashi had been killed- brave but crying. Ino's funeral, Chouji's funeral, Kakashi, Gai, Asuma, Shino and Kiba. Hinata. So many people he would remember.
Sometimes Naruto's dream would be quiet, as he remembered standing in the graveyard with his head down as it rained.
End