Rewriten November 6th 2009.
Originally writen February 18th 2007.
Disclaimer: Lyrics from SR-71's Goodbye. I do not own Naruto or any other characters, I make no profit from the writing of this piece of fiction.
A/N: Well it's been awhile Since I looked at this story, Which as far as I'm concerned is probably the only reason this story might turn out alright. And I have noticed lately that this Fic has been put on some alert lists I thank all of you for your support, and it's payed off. I will be posting an Authors note seperately That I will take down once I have finished writing the story so please take a look at that If you want to know whtas going on.
Lastly I am looking for a Beta. Thanks for your support and here is chaper one of goodbye New and approved!
Goodbye
Prologue
I'm Everything You Know
A single murmured name repeatedly slipped from between coral lips as the lithe form shifted beneath the worn brown comforter adorned with a alternating kunai and shuriken pattern.
"...suke. Sasuke, sasuke. Sasuke." An endless mantra repeated by the blond hidden from the judgment of you world only in his sleep, but constantly facing the heartbreak of a day that should never have been allowed to happen. Of a friend, no, A Best Friend that he could not save from a darkness that the young blond could not begin to understand. The tossing worsened as the night mare surfaced and repeated, it always repeated. The blond awoke with one final choked out name before promptly tumbling out of his childhood bed.
"Ouch!" The young man groaned from his slumped position on the ground, 'every God damned morning!' The blond fumed as he hefted himself to his feet picking his way around the rooms filth as he made his way to the only room in his house that was separate from the rest-the Bathroom. The only article adorning the blonds body was carelessly discarded outside of the shower. The boxers were drenched with the spray from the shower as the blond carelessly climbed into the lukewarm spray. Cerulean eyes shuttered themselves as blond hair was thoroughly wetted. As lather was worked into the now deep gold locks the young mans thoughts wandered back to the recurring dream- No, memory. Sometimes he wondered if he was the only one that noticed that Sasuke was gone. Even though thinking so was unfair the blond couldn't help it. Even the helplessly attached Sakura was moving on. The bubble-gum haired girl who had claimed unconditional love. How could people be so careless with throwing words around only not to fallow through with their promises. No one could really even call him a hypocrite for his thoughts, his feelings for the pinkette had changed sure, but he had only ever said he liked her, never anything more.
Naruto stood in front of his mirror examining his own reflection. Blond locks still weighted by the shower hung loosely around his scarred cheeks, the whisker like marks never fading always a reminder of what he was. Cerulean eyes no longer able to completely contain the sadness saturating his soul. The childishness nearly nonexistent the glow in blue orbs diminished. The blond would always miss his safe mask, pain hidden behind stupid questions and a stupidly cheerful smile. As exhausting as it was, it was familiar, safe.
The worst part in Sasuke's betrayal, to Naruto, was their last moments together at the valley of the end. The one moment of perfect synchronization where they shared a childhood memory of the promise they had made to one another. Sasuke left their bond in tacked, Why? That was the question that came up the most in Naruto's musings on Sasuke -Why?
Sasuke would always be the goal at the end of it all. The one thing Naruto would get stronger for, The one person Naruto would give his life to save. The first friend that the blond had ever made. If he couldn't even save his best friend what right did he have becoming the Hokage?
You Wonder Friend or Foe
Naruto jogged down the street, an unshakable melancholy settled in the pit of his stomach like a bad omen. Team seven was training on training ground three today. Well what was left of the broken team plus Sai. Sai...Naruto wasn't sure about the man, as far as the blond was concerned he was a necessary evil for completing appointed missions with proper efficiency, nothing more.
Naruto still couldn't fathom what made Sakura think that Sai and Sasuke were anything alike. It just cemented the blonds opinion the the Bubble-gum haired girl was useless. The whiskered young man looked to the sky his cerulean eyes reflecting the tempest of the sky, which mirrored the tempest in his mind.
Rounding the corner he spotted both Sakura and Kakashi standing on the Bridge that the team always used to meet on. Kakashi looked the same as always, Sakura had kept her pink hair short and constantly had her medical supplies at hand.
"yo!" Kakashi greeted, not sparing a glance from his latest orange novel.
"Hey Naruto!" Sakura chimed plucking at a strand of Pink hair nervously.
"I thought we were training?" Naruto asked tensely nodding his head towards the purse cluched in the bubble-gum headed girls had. Despite himself Naruto found himself unaccountably angry, the melancholy lump in his stomach churning uncomfortably.
"No training today. I thought we should take a brake. Just to relax, you know." The pink haired girl said with a girlish tilt of the head and a cutely dimpled smile, all of which made the blonds stomach turn and turn with a brewing outburst. " I mean we've been working really hard, and there's no leads on Sasuke right now, so why not take a break?"
"A break!" Naruto ground out trying to rain in his pointless out burst of anger. "Yeah, sure I'll get on that. How about after I get Sasuke back. Or maybe after the Akatsuki stop being a threat." With that Naruto stalked off hands jammed deeply into his pockets muttering curses under his breath.
Kakashi peaked out from behind his book watching Naruto disappear into the training ground with mild concern. "Did you ever catch when he started doing that?" Kakashi asked amused despite himself.
"What throwing random temper tantrums or acting like Sasuke when he's pissy?" Sakura hissed at the tactless man beside her before promptly storming off to go find someone to bitch at.
"Lunch alone again it would seem." sighed out the silver haired man before disappearing in his customary puff of smoke.
I'm The Burning in Your Throat When You Swallow
The forest surrounding the training grounds was cast in shadows, only small blotches of grayed sunlight flitted between the leaves of the towering trees. Naruto had so many fond memories of the training ground laid out before him. But when training he had never truly ventured into the green forest area on his own accord, preferring to fight in the clearing. Stealth and subtlety was never his thing.
Naruto stopped in front of a tree that had appeared in his path. He examined the towering hight and the powerful trunk filled with ridges and notches; some natural, some man made and some old enough that the coarse bark was finally showing signs of healing. The young man ran his hand down the length of trunk directly in front of him, The training scarred hand curling into a fist, that tightened into a shaking white knuckled grip on the air before it was pulled back and powerfully thrust into the trunk of the tree. The sound of wood splintering not truly registering in the blonds mind as another hand joined the first, and the powerful tree was left standing tall as it took blow after blow from the blond releasing his built up anger on it.
"...Why don't we go talk about useless things and shop Naruto. It's not like the trainings helping." Naruto grit out as hit after hit on the old trunk resounded throughout the empty training ground.
"Better yet stop training all together Naruto." Bang,Bang, leaves were now showering to the forest floor.
" It's not like it matters Naruto, you're never going to amount to anything!" Bang, crack. The wood splintered under the brutality of the blonds hits. Finally the blond disengaged leaving behind a splintered trunk unlikely to recover, with in the year the tree would loose all leaves never to grow them back. Leaving behind a scared skeleton that in it's life time had laid witness to many a ninja grow and die for their precious people. The young man rested his head against the scared expanse, bloodied hands scraping agitatedly at the bark, "you gave up on becoming Hokage a long time ago." Slideing to the ground the blond allowed himself to fall onto his back.
"Dobe..." the words tumbled from teeth swollen lips as the blond looked up into the leaf eclipsed sky.
TBC...