Stand By Me

As the end of the world approached, Naruto and I held hands. Our eyes met and I could see the love and affection held there. He was my best friend in the world and I wouldn't want it any other way.

"I love you, Naruto." I said, the tears beginning to well up. I mourned for all of the time we'd never have together. All of the perfect afternoons we were missing out on. It had never been enough.

"We're going together and that's all that matters." He rubbed his thumb across the back of my palm to comfort him. His eyes were miraculously dry. "If there's a heaven, we'll end up together again. Always. I promise."

The light of the end of the world grew brighter and Naruto pulled me to him in one last hug.

When the light had faded and only darkness remained, we found each other again. It felt like we were falling forever, until we weren't. Suddenly we were in a brightly lit meadow. Fat, fluffy white clouds trailed slowly across the sky and the flowers in the meadow bowed their heads lazily in the wind.

A little ways away, two figures sat talking on a blanket with the remains of a picnic spread around them. I would recognize the back of that head anywhere. Both of them actually.

"Sasuke!" I called out, the same time Naruto called out Hinata's name. They both turned and huge smiles were on their faces. They beckoned us forward and we went. I could hardly believe my eyes. Tears were streaming down my face as I took them in, whole and alive and happy.

I fell to my knees and into Sasuke's arms. My last memory of him was holding him as he drowned in his own blood. The sight of his dead eyes was something I thought I'd never get out of my memory.

And Hinata. She'd been torn apart, literally, by several different Zetsus while we were forced to watch. Here there was no sign at all of what had befallen her.

I turned my eyes back to Sasuke and traced his face wonderingly. "You're really here. This isn't a dream is it?" I asked. Even if it was, I hoped I'd never wake up. He was here in my arms again. Everything I'd asked for and more. His eyes were looking at me so softly.

"No, this is real. Or as real as the afterlife can be. But we're here. We made it. We're all finally at peace." He said, and kissed me so softly it almost broke my heart all over again.

"Are there others?" I asked.

Sasuke simply smiled and nodded his head behind me. I turned and saw the meadow had filled with tons of other picnicking people. My eyes filled as I saw Kakashi and Guy, Neji and Tenten, Temari and Shikamaru, and so many others.

Sasuke pulled me back against his chest and rubbed my hair. "It's ok. You and Naruto were the last of us. We've been waiting for you." I couldn't help the tears that came then.

"It was so hard, Sasuke. Losing all of you. I welcomed death at the end." I admitted, ashamed.

"Shh, it's ok. We all did. We're together now." I nodded and he wiped at the tears that had trickled down my cheeks. "We can go see the others now if you want."

I shook my head. "I just want to spend a little more time with you, if that's ok." I said, looking deeply into his eyes. I had forgotten the exact color of them after he'd gone. The memories of his dead eyes had been too much after he was gone.

"That's perfectly ok. We have the rest of eternity to see them." He said. We lay down on the blanket, holding hands and looking up into the endless sky. I felt another hand grasp mine and knew it was Naruto's. I felt within me that we were all connected under that blue sky even in death, even after the world had ended. I closed my eyes and accepted eternity.