/ Hey all. I wrote this a few years ago and was rather afraid to publish it until now. I do not own Naruto or the characters and contents. All rights reserved and go to Kishimoto. If I owned Naruto, Sakura would be with Kabuto and Sasuke wouldn't be such a jerk. Haha. Okay, so any comments, drop me a PM or write a short review. Arigato! Enjoy. /

Sasuke kun…

The words rang in her mind like a broken record. That was who she was longing for, who she was searching for, begging for.

"Sasuke kun…" She said aloud, doing the best of her ability to convince herself that he was never coming back.

He didn't want to come back. He was gone forever and there was not a thing she could do to stop or change it. What she wouldn't give to hold him in her arms again. Memories flashed through her mind, stinging like a cut, a wound that would never heal.

"Sasuke kun…" she said a second time.

Tears welled in her dead looking emerald eyes and she did her best to force the tears back that she could feel leaking from their prison.

"Sasuke kun…" she said only once more before bursting into tears.

"Doshde…Doshde…?"

The pink haired female could not figure it out. Why had he done this? Why was she never good enough? Why was Naruto never good enough? Did the time they had spent together as Team seven mean nothing?

The night he left still burned her, the feeling of flames scorching her skin was present every time the thoughts would come to her mind, driving her mad with every second that they lingered.

"Sasuke kun, I love you so much I can't stand it! Please, take me with you…I'll even help you with your revenge, just please, I'm begging you don't walk away! If you leave, it would be the same for me as being alone…Please stay…"

Her head lowered toward the ground, on her knees, now in so much pain, she couldn't stand it.

"You've not changed at all…" The dark raven spoke.

His eyes were as cold as his smile and he turned to her wickedly, "You're still annoying…"

That hurt, a lot, another knife into the heart of the kunoichi before him, pouring her heart and soul out to him not to go. She needed him, wanted him, loved him. She'd do anything for him to stay.

"Don't leave me!" she cried out, desperate to say anything to hinder his footsteps, even for the smallest of minutes.

"If you leave, I'll scream! I'll wake the whole village!"

In the next instant, he was behind her. His cold and dark eyes fixated on her, but it was as if he was looking right through her.

"Sakura…"

He spoke again in short breaths and sentences, causing the teary eyed female to stare blankly into space in hopes that he'd changed his mind, in hopes that she'd actually done something to make him stay, actually been useful for once in her life.

"Arigatou.."

In the next second, Sakura felt the stinging feeling, the feeling of unconsciousness.

"Sasuke kun…"

There was darkness, so much darkness. The cold abyss she was in while in the pits of unconsciousness, it was horrifying. The dreams wouldn't cease. Orochimaru had Sasuke, he had what he wanted. Sasuke was gone and she could never get him back. He'd won, and once more she had proved how worthless and useless she was to those who needed her most.

With frightened eyes, she awoke, sitting straight up in a cold sweat from her fiendish nightmares.

"He's gone…" she whispered, "Sasuke kun is gone…"

Snapping out of it, the pink haired female could still feel the tears so freely flowing down her face and onto her now blood stained clothes. Standing before her now, was the same raven, but oh how very different he was. The same cold eyes, smile gone, all life seeming to be absent. This was not her raven, her reason for living, her everything, this was someone different. This was an imposter, some kind of fake that had replaced the boy she loved.

"Doshde…?" she said again, a little louder than before, only to be met with that same cold and devilish smile.

"Even now," he began, "You're still just as annoying as you always were…Sayonara, Sakura…"

And then her life came to an end. All of her pleading, begging, hopes, faith, it was all for naught. Sasuke had continued down the path of evil, a power hungry monster was what he had become.

Even in her last moments, she'd asked him why, and all he could say were those famous words of his.

"You're still annoying…"

"Gomen,Sasuke kun…I wasn't strong enough to bring you home, to help you, to save you, maybe Naruto can, I know he can. Please, forgive me…Daisuke, Sasuke kun…"

Her thoughts were the last thing she revealed as she spoke the words aloud and it seemed that when she had fallen, the raven looked back at her. Even if it were for the smallest of seconds, his eyes flickered to something she was familiar with, something she'd seen before. It hadn't been a lie after all. Those times they spent together had meant something, but that was then, and this was now. She hadn't lied. She loved him till the very end with everything in her.

"Sayonara…Sasuke kun…" were her very last words.

The pink haired kunoichi ceased to breathe, a small smile on her face as the light left her eyes, never again to return. She'd loved him, despite everything, and even in the afterlife, she'd love him.

"Naruto, save him…" she had pleaded to the blond.

Naruto stood in horror as he noticed he'd arrived too late. Sakura was gone. Sasuke had killed her. Even if the blond was there, the raven could care less. He knelt down to the fallen kunoichi, a cold and almost sad smile on his lips as he spoke.

"Arigatou, Sakura…"

He did not apologize, for he was not sorry. He had broken his bonds with this girl and with the blond now before him in tears and a rage.

"I suppose you wish me dead now, ne, Naruto?"

His dark eyes lingered on the other and his smile was again nonexistent.

"I have succeeded in killing my past, the only thing left to erase stands before me…"

Naruto growled, the kyuubi was besting him and he knew it, but he was so angry.

"Doshde, Sasuke!?" he practically yelled at the cold hearted raven, "She loved you! Even as you destroyed her she loved you! Doshde?!"

Sasuke cringed on the inside but wouldn't dare let it show to Naruto, his eyes showing a small bit of emotion though quickly it disappeared.

"Loved me? She was a nuisance. The most annoying girl I'd ever met…she wouldn't fight me. The more I struck her down, the less defensive she became. She didn't believe I would truly kill her…I put that to rest along with her, and soon, you'll join her."

He drew his sword, dark eyes blazing with hatred and malice, Naruto fuming with anger and hurt. The kyuubi's chakra began to glow around him, the ball in his hand was formed, and he ran towards the Uchiha male with his attack so as to hit him point blank.

"Rasengan!" he yelled, tears falling from his normally bright and blue orbs.

"Chidori!" the raven responded, running at the blond with full intent to kill.

"Die!"

The two collided. A bright flash of light surrounded the area, when it cleared,, both boys were on the ground. Naruto lay lifeless next to his best friend, his rival, and his worst enemy, Uchiha Sasuke.

The raven too lay lifeless, his dark eyes shut now to reveal a sort of peaceful look on his pale face. Blood ran from his eyes and lip, and his face was scarred from the direct hit, but both boys died in the way they knew it would have to be. In the end, they all were together again, for on the other side waiting for them was the pink haired kunoichi, smaller than was remembered, a small red bow in her hair and an outstretched hand. The raven looked up, all feeling of hatred or revenge gone, as if it had never been there in the first place, blinking, he reached up to take the hand of the young girl only to realize that he himself looked different as well. Lastly, she turned to the blond. The same hand outstretched and the same hand taken.

Both were now standing on a small plane of land, slanted but comfortable. It was peaceful here, wherever this was.

"Sakura chan..?"

The blond blinked his tiny orbs and stared at the two miniature versions of his friends, both smiling at him in a welcoming manner.

"Welcome home…" Sakura said sweetly only to be interrupted by a much older voice.

"Sasuke, oi, Sasuke!" The raven's tiny eyes widened.

"It can't be.." he said quietly only to be met with a poke in the middle of his forehead.

There before him stood his older brother, he looked the same as ever, but like he was when he was younger, before anything had happened that changed their lives.

"Itachi nii san…." He whispered, running to his brother and hugging him tightly.

"Everything is alright now…" The older male said, only to be met with another voice.

"Itachi, what are you doing? Is Sasuke here yet?" Again, his eyes widened, "Mom..?"

He looked up to see his whole family, his clan, they were all smiling and waiting for him.

"I'll see you later guys, I've things to do.." He ran off but not before he turned to his two best friends and smiled.

"Arigatou.." he said, tears in his eyes and a sincere smile about his face.

He lightly kissed the female's forehead and gave his blond friend a curt nod. Naruto returned the nod as well as the look and smiled at Sakura.

"I told you he cared.." he teased only to be met with a blush and a smack upside his head.

"Naruto, come inside silly boy!"

Now it was the blond's turn to be surprised.

"Naruto, just like your father, so adventurous. Come now , inside, dinner time. You can bring your friend if you'd like."

The blond's eyes were wider than they'd ever been. He looked into the water below him and saw no whisker marks, just a normal face. He felt no anger, no chakra from the kyuubi, he was free. Tears welled up in his orbs and he hugged his female friend tightly.

"Arigatou.." he whispered before grabbing her hand and trying to take her with him.

"Coming, mom!" he yelled but Sakura smiled and lightly backed away.

"Arigatou, but I've a few things to do myself.."

Naruto simply nodded and ran off into the embrace of his parents.

Sakura was happy now. No more did she feel like crying. Her heart was happy, content, and where it should be. A light shone in her as she saw her two friends embraced by their families and she herself sat by the water humming and laying in the grass while she awaited them to return to her. In the end, they were all together again, on earth their lives had been torn apart, stripped of each other, friends turned enemies, but here, they could be friends again. It was tragic that death had to bring them together, but in the end, it was all worth it, for the smiles she saw on Naruto and Sasuke's face made it worth everything that they had had to endure in life.

"Arigatou…Naruto, Sasuke kun…I'll be here when you return. Everything will be alright now. Everything is as it should be…"

In the end, they had just needed a second chance.