It doesn't end with goodbye.

by Amenumpha

"I love you."

And then he leaned in, and Naruto couldn't think, couldn't breathe, because this was what he had dreamed of, this was everything; a buzzing in his ears, his mind, blocked off any outside interference, and his one track mind was focused on everything and nothing because Sasuke was kissing him, him the dead last, the demon container, the best friend and -

"Just kidding, dobe."

The whispered words barely registered in his mind when he realised the buzzing wasn't really buzzing, but the chirping of a thousand birds. And then all he knew was a hole in his heart and the white of death.

Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep beep.

Blearily, a blonde haired boy woke to his alarm clock. Where was he? Naruto shuffled under the blankets, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes, when he stiffened. This was not right.

And then the memories assaulted him, and he couldn't stop his tears because damn damn damn! Wildly, he registered his surroundings, and realised that he was no longer in the forest just outside of Fire's boundary. No, he was in his old home, the one he'd moved out of when he took off with Jiraiya, and he was afraid, because what? What happened?

He stumbled out of bed, barely realizing that his night cap, the one he'd lost for years, was on his head. Naruto stumbled to the mirror.

And nearly fell over in shock.

Naruto didn't understand. Emotionally drained, his brain refused to comprehend the situation, the reflection in the mirror, that one that didn't have the muscle of years of fighting, the constant weariness, the reflection that was fresh, almost absurdly small but so clean. This Naruto probably didn't even have blood on his hands yet, hadn't spilled undeserved blood.

How?

Of course, he'd thought to himself before, on those sleepless nights, those stolen moments on the top of the Yondaime's head, his father's head. If he could go back and change things, if he'd had a chance to do things over, just once more? To prevent all the tears the future caused. But these things never really happened, you know? Time travelling, it shouldn't be possible!

But then again, he thought ruefully to himself, since when had he ever cared for constraints like those?

And somehow, he was crying again, but at the same time, laughing, upon seeing the date on his cheap calender. This was, this was, this was just-

Face wet and eyes glittering, he heaved in a large breath, and breathed out.

There were things he needed to do.

It was probably the day of another D rank mission, he decided. Naruto, not really knowing what to do, left for Training Ground 7 after zipping up his old jumpsuit, watering his plants, and making sure that his milk still had a week to expiration date, because this time, this time he wanted to be strong from the beginning, not just when it was necessity, when people started relying on and looking at him for help. And if that meant skipping a little ramen for some milk and vegetables once in a while, then damn, he was going to do it.

This time, Sasuke, I'll show you that strength can be got from Konoha as well.

He quickly stretched then jogged to the Training Ground instead of walking, because he figured a little exercise might do him good. What he didn't count on was how much energy he had, way too much to be contained in just a jog. Heck, he almost felt like challenging Lee to something, the sudden burst of energy that potent.

He was in the past. A broad grin spreading once again, this peace he hadn't felt for years, ever since Sasuke defected, and in record time, Training Ground 7 was in sight, and with that, the one person Naruto loved more than Konoha itself.

Naruto almost burst into tears again. This time, he'd do things right.

A/N: This story was inspired by a picture by kidchan on deviantART (or tsun tsun, on Pixiv). You can find it here: http: / / kidchan . deviantart . com / gallery / 843 386 3# / d2fz7rs (remove the spaces, or just Google it.)

It's just a really sad picture. Sad, but romantic as well, which, really, is perfect for me.

This story was supposed to be sad, but somehow, it refused to be. Not with Naruto there. I'm sorry if he's out of character, I just wanted to write a time travel story.

I doubt this is going to be continued, by the way. So I apologise if you're dissatisfied, but this is probably all you're going to get.

Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.