This is just a little one-shot I thought of. I just needed a quick break from my other story and this is what came to mind. Please enjoy :).
This story is rated for all ages. I do not own Naruto. There may be a sequel to this story, but I am still contemplating. Enjoy this story, though!
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"Today's a winding road that's taken me to places that I didn't want to go"
It's good to be home, he thought. He walked through the streets and people nodded in respect towards him. He smiled back at them. His stomach began to growl so he walked the familiar path to Ichiraku. Teuchi, the owner, had died a few years ago from a disease. His daughter Ayame ran the business by herself now.
He walked in and sat down. Ayame turned and saw him. "It's good to see you're back from your mission, Hokage-sama!" she beamed.
He smiled at her. "You don't have to call me that. You can just call me Naruto. Like the old days."
"But you are Hokage now! It's traditional to show respect to your Hokage!"
"But I'm also your friend and I've known you for years," he pointed out.
Ayame shrugged. "Whatever you say, Naruto-sama. The usual?"
He smiled wearily and nodded. After a few minutes, she placed his usual order of ramen in front of him. He thanked her and downed the whole bowl in a matter of minutes. He began to pull out his wallet, but Ayame stopped him. "It's on me," she said, and smiled. Naruto thanked her and left the ramen bar.
"Surprises let me know she cares."
I can't wait to see all of my friends, he thought. He had been gone for almost a month, helping Suna recover from the war between them and Iwa. When he had arrived, there was almost nothing left. Gaara, the Kazekage and Naruto's friend, pleaded for help from Konoha and he gladly went down there himself to help fix the damages. While he was gone, Sakura had taken charge. She had become the most renowned medical ninja in all of the ninja villages and was the most powerful kunoichi he knew. He couldn't wait to see her. He had been planning to confess his love to her when he returned, and that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.
He also wanted to see Sasuke. Sasuke had come back to the village two years ago, around the time Naruto had become Hokage. He gladly took him back, but he had to be under high surveillance. After everything he had put them through, he had still been considered a threat. But Naruto had removed the need for surveillance watches about six months ago. It was obvious Sasuke had no need to destroy anything.
"I dream of you amid the flowers, for a couple hours, such a beautiful day"
Naruto continued walking and stepped into Ino's flower shop. "Naruto! Naruto, over here!" He turned and saw Ino running towards him, her long blonde ponytail bouncing behind her. She hugged him and he returned the favor. "So what brings you here, Hokage-sama?" She smirked.
He smiled at her. "I need some flowers."
"Oooooh, who are they for? Tell me!"
"You don't need to know!" He said playfully. Ino smiled and told him to wait there for a second. She returned with a bouquet of white and yellow roses.
"They're perfect," he said. He took the roses from her hand. "How much do I owe you?"
"You are Hokage now, mister! The least I can do is give you complementary flowers!" She insisted.
Naruto hesitated, but accepted the flowers. He thanked her and walked out of her shop. Ino watched him walk away, praying to God that the flowers weren't for Sakura.
Naruto continued to walk down the streets until he reached the Hokage's tower. The guards nodded at him with respect as he walked into the building. When he reached his office he sighed in relief and said, "It's good to be home." He looked through his window, which provided him a panoramic view of Konoha. His village. He had done it. He was Hokage. The thought still shook him at times.
"Hokage-sama?" Naruto turned and saw one of his guards standing at his doors. "Sakura-san had left you a letter while you were gone. It's in the top drawer of your desk."
"Thank you," he said, and the guard bowed and left. Naruto opened the top drawer and found an envelope sitting on top of everything. It said "To Naruto" is Sakura's loopy handwriting. He opened the letter and began reading.
"Love never lasts. We've got to find other ways to make it alone or keep a straight face."
Dear Naruto,
I'm sorry I couldn't tell you this to your face. I know you will hate me after reading this letter, but it is something I must do. First of all, you need to know that I love you so much. You are the greatest friend someone could ever have and I'm so glad that I was put on Team 7 with you so many years ago. You were always there to save me when I screwed up and you were there to comfort me when Sasuke left. Thank you for always being there for me.
I can't think of any way to put this gently, so I'm just going to say it. Sasuke and I are getting married. I love him, Naruto. I've loved him from the start. When you banned surveillance on him, we started seeing each other. And when you left a month ago, you weren't here for me, but Sasuke was. He helped me get through so much, and we just clicked. He asked me to marry him last week, and I said yes.
Naruto, you need to know that I love you. I love you so much, and I will always love you. But it's always been him. It's been him from the beginning. The love I share with Sasuke is different from the love I share with you. But it's love nonetheless. I know you must hate me for doing this to you. I just couldn't say it to your face. It would be too hard for me, and I know that one of us would have ended up bawling on the floor of your office (most likely me).
I will understand if you never wanted to see me again. I understand if you hate Sasuke and me. I'm so sorry I had to do this to you, Naruto. My heart aches as I'm writing this, and you can see the tears on this paper. This isn't easy for me. I know it isn't easy for you, either.
I would love to still be your friend, but I don't know if you would want a terrible friend like me anymore. There is an invitation to the wedding in this envelope. I understand if you don't want to come. I hope you can forgive me one day. I never wanted this to happen.
With all my love,
Sakura.
Naruto stared at the letter in disbelief. His knees felt weak and he gripped onto the edge of the desk to keep from falling.
"Hokage-sama?" The same guard from before came into his office. "We have everything set for your assembly. They will expect you now. Hokage-sama?"
"This life is anything but certain. When they close the final curtain, you'll get a glimpse of the truth, cause you're still around."
Naruto could barely hear the words the man was saying. All he could hear was the pounding of his heart, and Sakura's laughter. His vision began to blur as tears formed in his eyes. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. He didn't even make a sound as he cried to himself. There was no noise for this kind of pain.
The hand that held the letter began to shake, and it crumpled under his tight grip. He gasped, and the letter fell from his hand. He grabbed the roses and pushed past the guard and made his way to the roof of the tower. He sat there, looking down at Konoha. His head was buried in his hands as we sobbed. He felt like his heart had been ripped out of his chest and was being punctured by a thousand needles over and over and over. He looked at the sky. It was the same shade of pink as Sakura's hair. He made a low growling noise and wept again. He cried and cried for what felt like hours.
Naruto took a look at the roses next to him, and began plucking off the petals, looking at them fly through the sky as the wind carried them away. She loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, she loves me not.
Naruto was down to his last rose. She loves me, she loves me not. He plucked the rose petals ever so cautiously. She loves me, she loves me not. She loves me, she loves me not. She loves me…He stared at the very last petal on the very last rose.
It was pink, just like Sakura's hair. Sakura. She had been there since the beginning. He thought of her laugh, and how he loved it so much. He thought of how she cried, and how he wanted to do anything to make her stop and smile again. He thought of her big jade eyes and soft pink hair. Her bad temper. Her telltale maroon top and black shorts. Her killer punch. Her. Sakura. After everything that they had been through together, this is what it came down to. A letter, a rose, and a broken heart.
With shaking fingers, he plucked off the last petal, threw it to the wind, and whispered, "She loves me not."
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Thanks for reading this, guys! The song lyrics I used are Thunder by Boys Like Girls, All The Small things by Blink 182, Daydream in Blue by I Monster, The Only Exception by Paramore, and Still Around by 3OH!3
I'd love to hear reviews from you guys! They're always appreciated!