(A/N: This will be a series of one-shot poems that reflect Naruto finally being accepted in Konohagakure, not as the Kyuubi, but as a human, and the hero he is. It also reflects the pain he hides behind the mask that all seem to wear and not notice.)

This is dedicated to those who wear this mask.

Another day, another life,

Why can't I stop the sharp, sharp knife?

I need to feel human; I need to feel pain,

It's the only thing keeping me oh so sane.

Blood drops to the floor, a nice rich red,

I revel in the feeling, my arm still bled.

I make no move to stop, it feels too nice,

A knock at the door, my blood turns to ice.

I silently curse, and mop the bloody floor,

I hear the whine of the opening door.

I quickly hide the blade, and pull down my sleeve,

I instantly heal, and I'm pretty relieved.

"Coming!" I call out, donning my mask,

I hated it, but it was a needed task,

To make sure no one knew of my pain,

My mask kept me safe, again and again.

I enter the kitchen, and see Emotionless there,

We work together well, we make a good pair.

He smiles and waves, I instinctively knew,

The smile was fake, he was relatively new.

"Hey Emotionless, what brings you here?" I loudly ask,

I had to keep up my life saving mask.

He studies me with dark, dark eyes,

I sense the beginnings of an obvious lie.

"Old Lady Baachan has a mission for you," He replies,

My mask urges me to cheer, and I comply.

A chance to escape the pain, I'll gladly go,

But why I have a bad feeling, I'll never know.

"I'll meet you there, Emotionless." I say, and usher him out the door,

He looks kind of reluctant, and I push a little more.

He leaves, and in comes the undeniable dread,

That makes me feel even more lifelessly dead.

Knowing my time was near, don't ask me how,

I take out my journal, on it, a big brown cow.

It was my favorite animal, it made creamy milk,

That goes down my throat smoothly, like satin or silk.

Hurriedly, I write what I knew was my last,

I glanced at the clock and realized fifteen minutes had past.

I left my journal out and went on my way,

Furball thought of an excuse, which I refuse to say.

A scream fills the air; an explosion rocks the ground,

I struggle to block the god awful sound.

The screams continue, they cannot be stopped,

It's like a volcano is about to erupt.

I needed to find Old Lady Baachan, she needs my help,

Against the invaders, pathetic little whelps.

She's fighting against the Hebi-Teme, I sneer,

The Hebi-Teme's defeat is so very near.

"Oi, Hebi-Teme! You die today!" I yell,

He looked annoyed, that much I could tell.

Old Lady Baachan looks peeved as well,

Now I was here to give him hell.

She nods to me, and leaves the scene, I nod back,

I am confused at the shinobi he seems to lack.

He smirks, and sneers, and doubts, and frowns,

He doesn't think I could seriously take him down.

It was a good fight, tiring, bloody, and long,

We both take a breather and resume our song,

Slash, cut, punch, bruise, kick, scream, and lash,

Down he goes with a well placed smash.

I walk calmly up to his body, prone,

Mangled, and bloody against the hard, cold stone.

I raise my kunai above his heart, beating, beating, beating,

In his eyes something akin to obvious pleading.

My eyes grow cold, my body tense,

Hebi-Teme's execution is about to commence.

In this final moment, I slightly hesitate,

That moment is his to greedily take.

My eyes flash red, and he is scared, you see,

He opens his mouth and summons Kusanagi.

He shoots up, and I shoot down,

We impale each other, with only a grunting sound.

He looks shocked, and his chest stops moving,

I shut my eyes, and I hear a melody, soothing.

Cherry Blossom comes up to me, and begins to cry,

I open my eyes, and asked her softly, "Why?"

She bops me softly and quickly replies,

"You're my best friend, please don't die."

I smiles softly, and I murmur in a voice soft,

"I'm sorry, but they are here, to take me aloft."

She only cries harder, and my breathing slows,

She tries her hardest to make my breathing grow.

"Let me go, Cherry Blossom, I need to be free,

Free from the chains that bound me to the tree."

She shakes her head, and tries again,

To free me from my unending pain.

I tell her to seek out the little brown book,

At my apartment is where she should look.

By then, everyone else is here, and I smile,

My truest and most genuine one in a while.

After that, I am lifted, and now I am free,

From the chains that bound me to the everlasting tree.

After I leave, I watch from above,

As my Village rebuilt with kindness and love.

I watch my funeral, and tears stream down my face,

All of Konoha is there, and their honoring my fate.

I got what I wanted; I got what I craved,

I got the respect from the Village I gladly saved.

The thing I wanted most, I finally have,

I have achieved the dreams so little have had.

And now, finally,

I am free…

(A/N: Well, I am curious to how you took this poem. It took me hours to get it right, please tell me what you think.

Oh, and if you flame harshly for a stupid reason, you will find them burning your house down. It is your fault if you read it, you should not complain about something someone has obviously worked hard on.

Thanks for reading!)