Acedia
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.
Acedia: a state of listlessness or torpor, of not caring or not being concerned with one's position or condition in the world.
She was alone, walking on the seemly never-ending street. As she pulled her jacket closer to herself, Sakura Haruno wished that she never left her house in the first place.
It was quiet, serene. Too quiet, in fact for Sakura. However, years of solitude harden her to be numb to the solitude of it. How long has it been since the war? Three years? Five years? All Sakura can remember is the pain and the numbness that ensued. War is to suffer. She knew that all too well, in fact all shinobis do. Death and casualties are just part of their lives. They seen Death countless times, wrestled with Him for more time, are no longer familiar strangers to Him. Yet why? Why does it still hurt? Hurts more than Tsunade Shishou chakra-enhanced punch to the gut over and over again.
Shaking her head, Sakura tried to get rid of the thought of her beloved Shishou out of her head. She then made a mental reminder to leave some flowers at Shishou's grave the next day. The war against Pein ended successfully, to those who did not know the truth. Tsunade Senju, the last of the Senju Clan and the remaining Legendary Sannin died an honorable death in battle. She clashed fists against Konan, literally in killing her when she died of blood loss. Even her Creation Rebirth could not revive the Godaime Hokage.
Kakashi, her old sensei is now the Hokage. Although he spends most of his time in front of the memorial stone, no one reprimands him for it. After all, why begrudge a mourning man of his moment of grief? Gai, Kakashi's life-long rival fell in battle, protecting his beloved student, Lee. Lee was caught unaware by an Ame ninja and would have died if not for Gai's sacrifice. Gai who was already suffering from chakra exhaustion from days of fighting used his last ounce of strength to protect his dear student. He did not regret it.
Lee. Strong, determined, loyal Lee. He died soon after Gai did, going on a killing frenzy by taking out an entire troop of Ame ninja even though he was attacked again and again. He fell only when the last of his sensei murderers died from his taijutsu attacks. She could hear his spirited shouts of Youth and Konoha Green Beast. She could see his face earnestly looking at her as he first confessed his love for her. She almost regretted turning him down. Almost. Regret is for wandering fools after all.
Shikamaru. All his intelligence and near 200 IQ could not save him. He went into a killing frenzy after seeing his long time girlfriend and teammate, Ino killed right in front of her eyes. A kunai in the back was all that was needed to take down the Shadow User. Chouji, is no longer the food-loving, happy go lucky shinobi he was. As the surviving member of Team Asuma, he struggled, fought the desire to die. All that was left was a shell of the man he was.
Kiba, Hinata, Shino, Neji, Tenten all perished in the war as well. All her friends and family died, the figure of her mother sashaying in the kitchen and the strong shoulders of her father whenever he carried her as a child.
"Sakura!" Hands held her shaking shoulders gently.
She turned around to see a pair of charcoal eyes slightly tinted with red, a head of golden blonde hair. This is why she still lives, why her blood still flows through her body, why her heart is still pumping.
"Come on, let's go home." Sakura smiled, hearing that.
Passer-bys would see a familiar sight of a pink head walking arms linked with a blonde in orange and a figure with his hair spiked outwards and upwards with an Uchiha emblem gleaming under the moonlight.