Disclaimer: I do not own any characters of "Naruto"; I simply borrow them for my fanfiction.
Gaara/Sakura – She was prepared to die, being a coward wasn't something she was proud to hold onto and returning home was no longer an option.
Chapter 1
"Dying Wish"
Can you feel death? Can you see it coming? At that last moment when all noise leaves your mind and all movement leaves your body, can you feel it?
At the instant when the earth was silent my heart felt everything; Naruto's pain, Kakashi's past, Tsunade's strength, Sasuke…
I know I'm crying; I can see the reflection of the sun on my cheek but I don't feel the water trail left behind, I don't feel it hit my arm, I don't mind; I can feel everything in my chest within every beat. I don't cry for myself, I never thought of myself dying old; I cry for them. For Kakashi and Lady Tsunade who don't deserve to lose someone else, for Naruto and Sasuke a friendship I would have liked to see reunited; I pray it will someday.
I pray they can forgive me before I think they'd be better off hating me. I shouldn't have left on my own, I tell myself I had no choice. My mind flips through my last day on this earth, my eyes close in shame. I didn't want to leave them I simply couldn't breath. I couldn't carry everyone's pain; the loss of Jiraiya, the search for Sasuke. None of them pushed them on me, they didn't expect me to carry them or lend them a shoulder. It wasn't what had happened lately, it's what has built up in their eyes. Kakashi's right eye lifeless, empty of all emotion his left a constant reminder of what he lost of how he failed. Naruto's once vibrant blue eyes now fogged over set on one thing, something he does because of a promise he made, a promise to bring Sasuke back. Tsunade's eyes are different, they aren't dead, they aren't foggy, their drunk. Constantly playing over her life as a ninja she drinks herself into a stooper every day before noon and every night to knock her out for a dreamless sleep.
Tonight I was coward, I came upon my sensei crying for the first time since the death of her best friend and I saw my future. I lost all hope I had built up over the years from Naruto's speeches about never giving up and I ran. I packed my bags, I left a note, and I was gone.
On my way out of the village I saw Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru eating at the place Asuma had taken them to celebrate, it's exactly one year after his death today. I watched the anbu take in shot after shot of saki and Kakashi stare at his fingers wrapped around a glass. I had passed the village gates before I had decided not to turn back. I didn't want to live a life where everyone I love is destined to die before their time.
Laughing at myself my eyes open before they flood over with tears, "what kind of a ninja am I?", "What kind of a friend am I?" I've stolen my life away from myself and those who love me. I was weak, I am weak, I deserve this end.
I tilt my head back and stare up at the cloudless sky, not a tree in sight. My hands sink in the sand below me gripping for anything to hold onto in my last moment. I can feel my last breath slipping away from me, I exhale one last time and smile as I watch Naruto wave from a distance.
"I have only one wish; that you'll be the exception and live happy…. Good bye Naruto"
Author note: This is a short opening chapter the next ones will be longer….. Any reviews and opinions are welcome, please be nice about it…..